Anime
Criminal main character

Death Note

TV show

Description

Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects and he's bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and now Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But when criminals begin dropping dead, the authorities send the legendary detective L to track down the killer. With L hot on his heels, will Light lose sight of his noble goal...or his life?

Personal Thoughts

Even if you believe you don't like anime, if you do like crime books, movies, tv shows, and more from the point-of-view of the criminal, I highly recommend giving Death Note a try. And if you don't like subtitles, find the "dubbed" version--the English voice acting is excellent.

Whenver you're experiencing a mystery from the point-of-view of the criminal, as you are with Death Note, the real mystery is how to stay ahead of the forces closing in. And this show introduces a worth adversary early on with Detective L, who narrows the source of mysterious deaths to Japan almost immediately, and even suspects the killer doesn't need to be present to commit the murders.

The show also toys with viewers' sense of morality because, yes, using the power of the Death Note, Light Yagami is killing people. But while Dexter had to be taught to channel his psychopathic impulses towards society's worst criminals, Light follows that code naturally.

While the show does ramble at times, and not all phases of the investigation feel as relevant or compelling, overall, the entire experience of Death Note's 37 episodes is a worthwhile rollercoaster.

Released:
2006
Seasons:
1
Episodes:
37
Viewer rating:
TV-14
Learn more:
IMDB
Stream on:
Netflix
Alternate buy option:
Buy from Vudu