If you don’t know me very well then you might be surprised to learn that I’m an avid anime buff.  And with anime gaining popularity in the U.S. (with people who wouldn’t normally watch it) I’ve compiled a list of the Top 10 Must-See Anime Series for those of you looking to pop your anime cherry.  Now while there are alot more (and better) ones out there, I decided to stick with the more popular and completed ones that you can actually buy in this country without having to look that hard.

7.  Death Note

 

 

What Wikipedia Says:

The series is about Light Yagami, an extremely intelligent young man who resents the crime and corruption in the world. His life undergoes a drastic change when he discovers a mysterious notebook, known as the “Death Note”, lying on the ground. The Death Note’s instructions claim that if a human’s name is written within it, that person shall die. Light is initially skeptical of the notebook’s authenticity, but after experimenting with it, Light realizes that the Death Note is real. After meeting with the previous owner of the Death Note, a shinigami named Ryuk, Light seeks to become “the God of the New World” by passing his judgment on those he deems to be evil or who get in his way.

Soon, the number of inexplicable deaths of reported criminals catches the attention of the International Police Organization and a mysterious detective known only as “L“. L quickly learns that the serial killer, dubbed by the public as “Kira” (??, “Kira”^? derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the word “killer“), is located in Japan. L also concludes that Kira can kill people without laying a finger on them. Light realizes that L will be his greatest nemesis, and a game of psychological cat and mouse between the two begins.

 

Why it made the list:

Death Note challenges your morals like no other anime has.  It asks some hard real world moral questions and forces you to think of your answer before choosing a side.   In a normal series you have a good guy and a bad guy and you know who your rooting for.  But in Death Note the line between good and evil is blurred and you don’t really know who to root for.  And once you decide on who you want to win, Light or L, you will change a few times throughout the series.  This series keeps things interesting especially in the early episodes by giving you a shocker at the end of each episode.  Giving you that rare thirst to see the next episode ASAP.  The extremely smart storyline will baffle even those of you who like to predict what will happen next.  Death Note is an intellectual anime that will have you guessing til the final credits.

OCBENJI One Line Review:

“If you had the power to anonoymously kill anybody by writing their name down while picturing them?  Would you? “