# Death Note (2015)

> A brilliant but disillusioned student gains a supernatural notebook that kills anyone whose name is written in it, and begins a secret crusade of justice that draws the genius detective L into a deadly duel.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/56476

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 11
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: crime, drama, mystery
- Network: Nippon TV
- Cast: Masataka Kubota, Kento Yamazaki, Mio Yuki, Hinako Sano, Reiko Fujiwara, Megumi Seki, Tomohisa Yuge, Shugo Oshinari
- TMDB rating: 7.0/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4623604/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: dense
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: tense, brooding, psychological, unsettling, cerebral

## What critics say

Audiences find the cat-and-mouse battle of wits between Light and L gripping, though the rating is mixed.

## Synopsis

Death Note (2015) is a Japanese live-action crime thriller miniseries broadcast by Nippon Television Network, running for eleven episodes of about 45 minutes each. Masataka Kubota plays Light Yagami, an ordinary university student whose life changes when he receives a mysterious notebook that kills anyone whose name is written in it. Kento Yamazaki plays L, a famously gifted private detective who sets out to expose the vigilante killer Kira, while Mio Yuki's N arrives as a dangerous and unsettling presence. Hinako Sano's Misa Amane and Megumi Seki's Shoko Himura add further pressure to the investigation. The engine of the series is a constant battle of wits: Light must hide his identity while manipulating police procedures and rival investigators, and L must test every alibi and pattern of deaths to close in. Each episode builds through clues, interrogations, and tense psychological maneuvering in a modern Japanese city. The show is one continuing story where order matters, with a dark, brooding tone and a steady undercurrent of moral unease about justice. Fans of Sherlock, Mindhunter, and Hannibal will find resonance in its cerebral cat and mouse pursuit and its unsettling portrait of a man who believes he is righteous.

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