Story 8/10
I'd really like to give this a 10, but I can find no justification for it. On the positive side, the story is well-paced, and despite the low 12 episodes, it explains most things pretty well. There was a certain bit of the story that I won't spoil that I felt was not explained all that well, which is why I gave this an 8. Let's just say that the bit of the story I'm talking about is integral to the show's entire plot, so it needs to be explained pretty well.
Art 10/10
Almost nothing in this show is ugly. I can remember thinking the tank-thing (I can't remember the name of it) in one of the early episodes being very obviously CG, but I didn't see anything else that was distracting. The characters all look great, with my favorite being Lily.
Sound 9/10
Same thing that I say whenever I give Sound a 9 or 10. Everything sounded natural and didn't pull you out of the experience. The minimalist opening was perfect for this kind of show, which I kind of wish Death Note had done in retrospect (to be fair this may have been the streaming platform I was using). Music was well-used for the most part. I did find that some scenes would have been much better silent. Specifically scenes where Keith was making some L-esque grand discovery.
Character 8/10
Aside from the Market Maker characters, everyone was established well. I found it very difficult to care about any of the villain's motivations, aside from a villain I cannot name because of spoilers. Most of the villains are members of Market Maker, and those that aren't are throwaways. It felt like a lot of the motivations behind the actions of Market Maker were shoved into the last 3 or 4 episodes for the sake of a mystery, which made it very difficult to be invested in the endgame.
Enjoyment 9/10
The fight scenes are my favorite part of this show. It really reminded me a lot of the fights in Tokyo Ghoul, which I felt were pretty good. Those scenes in Tokyo Ghoul were the only thing that kept me watching. That isn't to say that the Death Note side of the show wasn't just as good. Keith not only makes a good L-type character, he is also good on his own. While he is a quirky detective, he has quirks all his own and a completely different motivation than L. Keith initially comes off as very impulsive, but as you watch you start to try to determine his motivation before the show tells you. For me the show was less about finding out whodunit, and more about finding out what was going on inside Keith's head, which was oddly pretty enjoyable.
Overall 9/10
While it threw me off at first, this show blends Death Note and Tokyo Ghoul pretty well. The two compliment each other, with long explanations by Keith followed by an action sequence or a fight scene, and action leading to new discoveries by Keith. This cycle does the show a great service. It keeps you invested in both sides of the show. Even when the exciting conclusion of a fight scene comes, you're anticipating another scene where Keith explains things to the mongoloids of the RIS. I can't say it was perfect, though. If you pay enough attention you can guess bigger parts of the show before they happen. I'm not talking about guessing who an insignificant side-villain is, I'm talking big spoilers here. Maybe that's what they were going for, but for me it was kind of a let down to know what was going on 3 episodes before it happened.
You'll probably like this if you liked the first season of Death Note and parts of Tokyo Ghoul.
