5 Most Recommended Anime Series Similar to Death Note
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For horror and mystery fans or Japanese anime and manga lovers, Death Note is one of the most watched anime around the globe. The unique and thrilling plot has made many people surprised and excited. If you miss the psychological thriller, here are 5 best anime like Death Note to experience the vibes again.
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About Death Note
Death Note (デスノート), made by the famous tag team consisting of the writer Tsugumi Ohba and the illustrator Takeshi Obata, was serialized on Weekly Shonen Jump from 2003 to 2006. 12 volumes with 108 episodes were released totally. Its anime adaption with 37 episodes were made in 2006-2007.
It was also adapted into a live-action movie in 2006, which was followed by a sequel titled Death Note 2: The Last Name. The spin-offs L: Change the World and Death Note: Light Up the New World were released in 2008 and 2016. The other version of the live-action film were made and distributed by Netflix in 2017.
The symbol of the manga and anime is Death Note on which an owner can kill someone by writing his/her name. A high schooler Light Yagami picks up the Death Note and meets a Shinigami (a kind of gods) named Ryuk. He is opposed to another main character called L. They battle against each other as they play high-level mind games with their highest intelligence.
▶︎Check the anime series of Death Note!
▶︎Check the manga series of Death Note!
1. Platinum End
Platinum End (プラチナエンド) is the third manga written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata as well as Death Note, and its anime adaptation was released in 2022. The dark-fantasy manga has been serialized on Jump Square since 2015.
A young boy named Mirai Kakehashi, who loses his family in an accident, suffers from abuse from his uncle and aunt. He decides to kill himself but is helped and granted special powers by a Guardian Angel called Nasse. 12 other people are also granted the powers and designated as a candidate for the next god.
Platinum End is the most recommended anime if you like Death Note since the same manga artists make it. Death Note has the theme of death and evil but Platinum End address the theme of something more positive like happiness.
▶︎Check the manga series of Platinum End!
2. Hunter x Hunter
Hunter x Hunter (ハンター×ハンター) is one of the most popular ongoing manga and anime series in Japan. The adventure manga has published by Weekly Shonen Jump as well as Death Note since 1998. There are 2 versions of anime adaptions: the one was aired between 1999 and 2001 with 62 episodes and the new one was released from 2011 to 2014 with 148 episodes.
Hunter x Hunter centers on a young boy Gon Freecss, who travels around the world in search of his father Ging Freecss. Gon decides to become a licensed Hunter as his farther and grows up by training and fighting with a variety of opposite characters.
Hunter x Hunter is recommended to watch for the fans of Death Note although it is categorized as the genre different from Death Note. The characters in Hunter x Hunter sometimes battle with complicated rules as Light and L face on the mind games with their high intelligence.
▶︎Check the anime series of Hunter x Hunter!
▶︎Check the manga series of Hunter x Hunter!
3. Higurashi: When They Cry
Higurashi: When They Cry (ひぐらしのなく頃に), is a popular horror and mystery anime series. It was originally made as a computer game in 2002, adapted into a manga from 2006 and a light novel from 2007. There are five seasons of the anime series including the three OVAs, which were released from 2006 to 2013. It comes back as a remake titled Higurashi: When They Cry – Gou in October, 2020.
The setting is a fictional Japanese small village with a population of less than 2000. A young boy Keiichi Maebara moves to the village from Tokyo and experiences cases of murder and missing people there.
If you are interested in horror or thriller stories in Death Note, you will like When They Cry.
▶︎Check the anime series of Higurashi: When They Cry!
▶︎Check the manga series of Higurashi: When They Cry!
4. Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh
Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh (ブギーポップは笑わない), also known as Boogiepop Series or Boogiepop and Others, is a dark-fantasy and thriller anime. It has been published as a light novel since 1998, and the first anime adaption was released in 2000 and the second one consisting of the main story of the novel was broadcasted in 2019. A part of the original story has been made into a manga adaption.
The story of Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh focuses on the high school students who hold various personal problems describing a dark side of the world: death, split personality, battles, etc. Boogiepop, who can be looked on as a main character, shows up as another personality of a character in the school when something threatening the world happens.
The dark-fantasy world with thriller and horror depicted in Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh really looks like the setting of Death Note. Both have a similarity in the themes such as death and crime.
▶︎Check the anime series of Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh!
▶︎Check the manga series of Boogiepop Doesn’t Laugh!
5. Case Closed
Case Closed (名探偵コナン), also known as Detective Conan, is the most famous and popular mystery manga and anime in Japan, which is highly recommended if you like Death Note. The manga of Case Closed has been serialized on Weekly Shonen Sunday since 1994 and there are about 100 volumes so far. It is sometimes regarded on as the modern Japanese Sherlock Holmes. The anime series has been aired since 1996 and anime movies are released every year recently.
The high school detective Shinichi Kudo is transformed into a kid by a poison, who comes to identifies himself as Conan Edogawa. He solves a variety of cases hiding his true identity from the opposite Black Organization that gives him the poison.
You can enjoy a variety of mystery cases in Case Closed as you experience the deep and complicated story in Death Note.
▶︎Check the anime series of Case Closed!
▶︎Check the manga series of Case Closed!
If you have some other favorite manga and anime, check the recommendations like them!
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I'm writing by my motto: helping travelers spend their limited time experiencing something priceless in Japan. My articles won't let you down! Living in Tokyo and traveling many popular and hidden sites all over Japan, I deliver well-selected and latest tourist information to you from the perspective of “100% Japanese local”. My specific interests are island hopping, eating countless bowls of ramen, watching anime and reading manga. Enjoy Japan Web Magazine for recommended food spots, hidden gems Japanese Otaku (geek) culture, and everything about Japan :)
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