Reviews

This anime is absolutely fantastic. Probably the best aspect of it is the whole genius vs genius premise, which is established very early. It's certainly one of the smartest anime I've seen, and the actions Light and L take will leave you speechless by the end of an episode, and you may even have to re-watch some of it to fully understand what you just saw. The art style is semi-realistic and its muted colors sets the mood for the show nicely. The music is a great compliment to the action. Whenever Light's doing something with the Death Note or making a genius decision, he's usually backed up by a choir and orchestra to supplement his "godliness," and much of the rest is complimented by distorted guitar riffs, which are very good if you're into that type of music. Overall character development isn't lacking either. Of course, Light and L are given the most depth, but even the supporting characters are adequately developed, although they can seen 2-D at times. Watching Light transform from a child prodigy into a merciless god and L go from a voice behind a monitor to a human with habits and personality were some of the most enjoyable parts. The only major thing that disappointed me was that it was lacking in subtlety. This was the first anime I had ever watched and I would recommend it as anyone else's first anime too, because it has a somewhat complex plot and gray morality is the major theme, but it's still simple enough for most people to enjoy.