Death Note is based off of a manga series created by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. The anime was produced by Madhouse, and directed by Tetsuro Araki. The Death Note anime, which consists of 37 episodes, ran on Japan’s NTV from October 3, 2006-June 26, 2007. A three-hour TV special, Death Note Rewrite: The Visualizing God aired on Nippon Television on August 31, 2007. In Japan, two live-action films based on the Death Note manga were released in 2006. There have also been three videogames and several soundtracks (for both the live-action films and the anime) released in Japan. Viz Media holds the U.S. distribution rights to Death Note, and the anime premiered on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim block on October 20, 2007.

The series features a bored, intelligent high school student named Light Yagami. He resents the crime and corruption that is in our world. One day, he discovers a mysterious notebook with the words “Death Note” written on the cover. The inside of the notebook has instructions on how to use it. The instructions claim that if a human’s name is written inside it, that person will die. At first, Light is skeptical of the Death Note, and compares it to the threats included in chain letters. After conducting a couple of experiments with the Death Note, Light comes to the realization that the Death Note is real.

The Death Note contains very specific rules. The human whose name is written on the note will die. The note will not take effect unless the writer has the subject’s face in their mind when writing his or her name; this is so people who share the same name with the individual are not affected. If the cause of death is written within forty seconds of writing the subject’s name, that cause of death will happen. If the cause of death is not specified, the person will die of a heart attack. After writing the cause of death, the details of the death should be written in the next six minutes and forty seconds.

Light begins to use the Death Note to exterminate criminals. One day, he is visited by a shinigami (a god of death) named Ryuk, who had previously owned the Death Note. During the meeting with Ryuk, Light declares he wants to pass judgment on people he deems as evil or who get in his way, and create a utopia. To top it off, Light wants to reign over the new world as its god.

The number of sudden, unexplained deaths of criminals grabs the attention of the International Police Organization and a mysterious detective known only as “L.” “L” learns the serial killer is located somewhere in Japan, and that somehow, the killer is able to kill their victims without laying a finger on them. Light realizes that “L” will be his greatest nemesis, and a psychological game of “cat and mouse” begins.

When Death Note airs on Adult Swim, it has been given a rating of TV 14. Personally, I’m not quite sure 14-year-olds are ready for this show, especially in light of hearing of teenagers getting in trouble for keeping notebooks with the names of people they would want to kill. Most of the kids involved in these cases say they got the idea from Death Note. I honestly believe kids younger than 17 really shouldn’t be seeing this; the only exception to this might be a 16-year-old who is mature enough to understand what it is they’re watching.