I know what this is; you know what this is; everyone knows what this is. Death Note’s (DN) iconicity precedes itself even beyond the realm of anime, a feat few series have achieved. So what actually makes this series so notable? (pun intended). DN definitely features competently crafted visuals and audio (the character themes go hard) that have aged gracefully, but it’s certainly not why people would or should remember DN. What makes DN such a memorable series is the strong personalities of Light and L and how the relationship between the two of them is meticulously crafted from beginning to end and the evolution of such a relationship over the culmination of 25 episodes till the ultimate climax. Light and L are what make DN special.

Light and L
The common phrase “The villain is the hero of their own story” perhaps precisely expresses how the story of DN is presented, as it is from the perspective of Light, a man with a crazy god complex and believing that he is absolute justice incarnate. If this story were from the perspective of L, it would be quite clear who the hero and villain are. However, DN proposes a more layered approach to this, as rather than there being a defined protagonist and antagonist, the audience finds themselves choosing based on personal principle by actively judging Light and L’s actions. However, what perhaps makes DN so enthralling is some innate part of the human condition that is revealed, where the viewer isn’t necessarily in direct agreement with Light/Kira’s actions, but regardless, they ultimately still want to see the world Light envisions in the end, even though he may be the villain. The progression of Light and L’s relationship over the course of 25 episodes is constantly changing into something new and interesting. At first they are faceless individuals with no connection to one another, but through the use of their deductive reasoning and brilliance, they are able to get to the point of even understanding how one another thinks, each other's appearance, and even forming a twisted friendship. The depth of their characters elaborately expressed through their perspectives on justice, society, and truth. The way they are able to keep the viewer on the edge of their seat at all times, as two geniuses constantly attack each other's throats through layers of deception, misdirection, and careful planning. And the deep, fulfilling relationship the two have is what makes the viewer attached to these two characters. This is what makes DN exceptional.

About Episodes 27-37
From the beginning, it was pretty clear that the series would conclude with Light’s death from the time Ryuk mentioned that he would be the one to claim his life. So the choice by Ohba to make that happen due to Light’s unchecked pride and arrogance after his initial victory and his subsequent complacency after L’s death is a fitting conclusion. However, the pathway to it post-episode 26 is what’s problematic. More specifically, the addition of Near and Mello as new Kira challengers. I can’t say I envy Ohba’s position when they were writing DN. Light’s victory over L was an inevitability, and there was also a considerable amount of foreshadowing with that implication. But once L is gone, who stands up to Light and defeats him once and for all? There were no remaining characters who could, so the addition of new ones makes sense. However, as I have constantly stated throughout this review, DN is Light and L’s intricate characteriszation and relationships with one another. Adding new characters to that mix who have not even half of the time that Light and L had together to develop makes them feel wholly shallow in comparison and leaves the impression that they are an unwanted presence. It’s unfortunate, but I feel that the setup for Near and Mello’s introduction was bound to be lacking from their conception. Even supposing that different characters replaced them, I feel that they would also face similar challenges in the narrative. Whilst there are certainly actions and components of Near and Mello's characters that debatably make episodes 27-37 worse overall, I find what I stated above to be the primary issue.

Concluding Thoughts
The 8/10 score I give DN is specifically for episodes 1-26. Otherwise, with episodes 27-37 included, I would give the series overall a 5-6/10, which I don’t believe this series actually deserves. And whilst I would recommend someone watching the series for the first time to complete the entire series from beginning to end at least once, on all my subsequent watches, like I’m sure many others do, I choose to skip episodes 27-37, which ultimately is a shame that DN couldn’t have ended as strongly as it started. Regardless, I overall would still highly recommend this series to anyone.