The story follows Light Yagami, a genius high school student who discovers a mysterious notebook: the "Death Note", which belonged to the shinigami Ryuk, and grants the user the supernatural ability to kill anyone whose name is written in its pages.

[5] Global media suggest that a single mastermind is responsible for the mysterious murders and name them "Kira" (キラ, the Japanese transliteration of the word "killer").

Another ten years later, Ryuk returns to Earth and gives the Death Note to Minoru Tanaka, the top-scoring student in Japan, hoping that he will follow in Light Yagami's footsteps.

[19] In a 2012 paper, author Jolyon Baraka Thomas characterised Death Note as a psychological thriller released in the wake of the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack, saying that it examines the human tendency to express itself through "horrific" cults.

Toshiki Inoue, the series organizer, agreed with Araki and added that, in anime adaptations, there is a lot of importance in highlighting the aspects that are "interesting in the original".

[66] Death Note was slated to make its North American television premiere in Canada, as part of YTV's Bionix programming block, on September 7, 2007.

Published by Sony Music Entertainment Japan on December 20, 2006, it contains 14 tracks performed by various artists, such as Orange Range, Abingdon Boys School, High and Mighty Color, Doping Panda, and Galneryus.

The first film, simply titled Death Note, premiered in Japan on June 17, 2006, and topped the Japanese box office for two weeks, pushing The Da Vinci Code into second place.

It starred Nat Wolff, Lakeith Stanfield, Margaret Qualley, Shea Whigham, Paul Nakauchi, Jason Liles, and Willem Dafoe.

[97] In July 2022, it was announced that the Duffer Brothers recently founded Upside Down Pictures production company would be producing a new live-action series adaptation for Netflix.

[103] A sequel to the game, Death Note: Successors to L (デスノート Lを継ぐ者, Desu Nōto Eru o Tsugu Mono), was released in Japan on July 12, 2007.

[103][104] The player assumes the role of a rookie FBI agent who awakens in a strange hotel and attempts to escape with the help of L, who provides assistance via an in-game PDA.

[109] An English production was announced in May 2023 to play at the London Palladium for two nights on August 21–22, 2023,[110] directed by Nick Winston starring Joaquin Pedro Valdes as Light, Dean John-Wilson as L and Frances Mayli McCann as Misa.

[129] Anime News Network writer Zac Bertschy called Death Note a "surprisingly gripping and original suspense tale that raises a handful of interesting questions about morality".

She felt that once vital characters fading into the background, the ending brings back what the fans loved about the first volume and the supporting cast are "given a chance to shine".

The website's consensus reads: "Death Note is an exceptional anime that poses profound questions about justice and murder, all while delivering a supremely satisfying tale of tactical one-upmanship between a detective and killer.

The anime was commended with Tom S. Pepirium of IGN saying that Death Note's "heavy serialized nature" is what "makes the show so engaging and discussion worthy".

[138] The Daily Telegraph's Henry St. Leger wrote, "What starts as a moral fable about the corruption of power becomes a slow-burning game of cat-and-mouse as Light is chased down by the world's greatest detective.

"[139] Vulture's Maya Phillips wrote, "Beyond its deft twists and turns, Death Note also addresses questions about morality, justice, and capital punishment.

[144] The series release outside Japan has inspired other works, as well as individuals making their own mock "Death Notes", including one that was associated with a real-life murder.

According to Wired magazine, Death Note "[turned] Japan's most-popular print medium into an internationally controversial topic that has parents wondering whether they should prohibit their kids from reading manga entirely".

[17] In regards to the 2019 The Twilight Zone episode "The Comedian", Rosie Knight of The Hollywood Reporter stated that Samir's story appears to take a large influence from Death Note.

[150][151] The ban was designed to protect the "physical and mental health"[152] of students from horror material that "misleads innocent children and distorts their mind and spirit".

[158] In 2007, the education bureau in Pingtung County, Taiwan asked teachers to pay attention to any negative influence on elementary school students reading the manga.

[160] After volumes of Death Note were found at the February 2013 suicide of a 15-year-old girl in Yekaterinburg, Russia, a local parents' group began campaigning to regulate all media based on the series, saying that it had an adverse effect on the minds of children.

[165] A senior at the Franklin Military Academy in Richmond, Virginia, United States was suspended in 2007 after being caught possessing a replica "Death Note" notebook with the names of fellow students.

The school's principal wrote a letter to the student's parents linking to an unofficial website where visitors can write names and circumstances of death for people they want to die.

[167] In Gadsden, Alabama in April 2008, two sixth-grade boys were arrested for possession of a "Death Note" that listed names of several staff members and fellow students.

[168] In Gig Harbor, Washington, one middle school student was expelled and three were suspended on May 14, 2008, for having 50 names in their own "Death Note" book, including President George W.

[169] It was reported in September 2009, that a Year Eight boy in Sydney, Australia, created a "Death Note" that along with names contained a "battle plan" detailing where bombs could be placed inside his school.