Death Note

OK, so I know this is held up by many as anime's Greatest Thing Ever, but I've started it twice and lost interest within a few episodes both times. Both main characters are so unlikable and engage in such despicable acts that I find it impossible to root for or care about anyone involved. Not my cup of tea. Sorry.

Probably the slickest serialized crime thriller ever; Death Note is filled with chessmaster games galore, dripping with an awesome rock-inspired demonic style. Like underpainting in late-romantic oil paintings, the hints of moral musing breathe some light and depth in places, too.

İlk jeneriğin olduğu bölümler 90, ikinci jenerikten sonrası 60 ¯_(ツ)_/¯

Man is it good up until episode 23, after which it falls off a cliff. Watch it, but stop there to avoid disappointment.

Unbelievably committed to what it's doing, tonally and in terms of pacing. From the first moment to the last, there are no filler subplots, no comedic breather episodes, there's nothing going on that isn't part of THE GAME, the big mind-game with the entire world at stake. It's written with the psychotic singlemindedness of Yagami Light himself. I don't know of any TV serial as tightly plotted as this, so in that regard, if in no other, it's the gold standard.

An excellent supernatural drama which runs out of track halfway through and continues to chug on as it plows needlessly through landscapes where the plot has long since run out.

Watch out Criticker, if you keep adding anime series I will have a huge list for you to keep up with... That being said, Death Note is probably one of the bet suspense animes around. The constant struggle between both Light and L is spellbinding, even though it moves rather slowly and loses steam in the second half of the series. However, both characters are incredibly entertaining, and watching them intellectually spar and fake each other out is far too much fun.

The first part of it was fantastic, but it got so slow for me nearing the end that it just wasn’t as watchable or enjoyable. The ending, however, I did enjoy, albeit controversial.

Great series, driven by razor-sharp intellect. At times the thoughts will be racing through your head - which is so satisfying -, against the background of top-notch score and drawing. -- I have to say that the last 12 episode segment is not as great as the previous ones, it is just OK.

Went downhill in the second half, and the two main characters are a little too perfect and hard to connect with, but otherwise a great series with a unique premise and deep themes.

I always thought this is what Dexter wanted to be -- it has the same "killing the bad guys" concept, though instead of the main character mugging it for the camera and everyone fucking each other, this has some well measured tactics between our "hero" and the authorities, including the brilliantly scheming L. I probably would've liked it more if it was a bit shorter, and I definitely would've liked it more if my friend who lent me the DVDs hadn't spoiled everyone's death to me.

First half is great. Second half is meeeh.

A remarkable series from beginning to end. While after the death of a certain character, other character arcs become less interesting, the series never loses steam. Light is such an interesting character, and the tension that builds is divine. One of the best anime series you could watch, though honestly, I'm probably not the authority on that.

Has a show ever been this in love with explaining meaningless details and choices? It's like hearing a smug lawyer read a contract they drafted out loud. Written by someone who daydreams about how they would take down Mike Tyson in a boxing match with a meticulously planned hour-long punch combo, never realizing how under-equipped they are to actually fight.

Death Note is a series I respect for its use of tension and mind games between the leads, even if its application is laughably contrived and often ham-fisted. But I don't think the series gets enough flak for other things such as its characterization even beyond Misa. L's quirkiness made me roll my eyes, and the leads fit into the trope of genius that I find nauseating and unconvincing. The show also has no real exploration of its morality, using it as a motive rather than a theme to explore.

First half is quite good. Second half is a convoluted mess.

A great concept on paper (get it?) that fails because the author is unwilling to handicap one of the two leads. They're both equally implausibly smart, so the developments come down to how unsmart the writer is. I'd like to see an American version, if only because we'd be killing Senators instead of guys who robbed convenience stores. Light Yagami is Rorschach, except hotter and dumber.

This rating is for the first 25 or 26 episodes, which ranged from a score of 80 to 100. What comes after ranges from 50 to 70 or so. The plot is really intriguing and the the intelligence of both the writing and the two lead characters makes it almost perfect at times. One of the best anime for non anime fans I'd say.

loved it very captivating and plot was unpredictable

Up to episode 20. I don't think I'll continue for a while because this arc is absolute horsecrap. Generic evil corporate villains and Light becoming a hypocrite? Let's not even get started on the pacing. Just awful. I'm not picking it up for a while, maybe forever.

First like 8 episodes amazing. Then it keeps going in phases of like 10 episodes, where the first 2 change up the show a lot and are 80s, and then set up to new cool shit that's 90ish again. Ending is horrible but I can imagine my own :)

First half of the series was great. Very smart and well thought out. The second half was terrible. As soon as L arrived the series went sharply downhill. All the good qualities left and it became absurd and boring C-

First season is solid gold. Latter seasons enraged me. :D

Captivating but wildly uneven. The first 16 episodes are brilliant because of the numerous mindgames between Light and L and cliffhangers. The following "Yotsuba" arc replaces all this with dumb humor and stupid, caricatural behavior. Fortunately this arc ends on a good episode and is followed by an even better one. Then the series goes back towards the style of the early episodes but without the same punch/quality (slight improvement with the introduction of Mikami, terrible tone-deaf ending).

First 1/3 is like a 92, the middle is like 80, and the last 1/3 is 70ish. Completely worth watching. At least watch what I consider to be season 1. (first 1/3 or so)

I absolutely loved everything until the big twist two-thirds of the way through (no spoilers, but if you've seen it of course you know what I'm talking about), which was a bold move, sure... but I just didn't like anything after nearly as much. That said, the first two-thirds of the show were completely awesome. It's not even about the Death Note itself or the supernatural stuff as the twisty, ingenious, awesome chess game between Light and L. I was in awe at how clever the the writers were.

It's good, but I feel like it could be better. I read the manga before watching the anime and really enjoyed it (It's still far from perfect and suffers from many of the problems I have with the anime). I feel like the faster pace of the anime doesn't work for this character-driven story. I know that it's part of the limitations of the medium, but I wish they would take more time to explore the characters and the relationships between them. Nevertheless, there were some incredible scenes in here

It starts out so strong, but gets waylaid somewhere around episode 15. I've actually never completed the series, despite trying a few times. My rating is probably a bit generous, because the show could have been fantastic.

One of the best anime to compare all other anime to, almost no rewatch value however.

nice series

Slick, tense

Delightfully unrealistic and convenient. Shame the ending sucked.

Fantastic psychothriller with a strong storyline, a wealth of well-developed characters with a whacky edge, great soundtrack and an unnerving moral dilemma.

Death Note presents a captivating premise that oozes tension and fascination, as we follow the main character through a web of lies and world-altering steps. The initially mundane world and average cast are instantly elevated by the ingenuity and ambition of the protagonist, making it almost unbelievable how good it becomes. The show consistently provides satisfying payoffs, defying expectations time and again. While the story may lose some momentum after the midpoint, its addictive nature keeps

First half 85 Second half 55

From memory.

A very entertaining series of cat-and-mouse games, played between a brilliant detective and a killer with supernatural aid. Both characters are smart in a believable way, with the audience having full access to their entire thought-process.

A bit pretentious at times. And despite an implied wish to "rid the world of evil," this series is politically shallow. The aesthetic isn't always for me with how edgy it is, but you can't deny it does it well. It's certainly engaging even if it's not as thought provoking as it wishes it could be.