Even years after its initial release, Death Note remains one of the most widely beloved manga ever made. Adapted multiple times to anime, film and television, the series tells the story of Light Yagami, an incredibly intelligent boy who stumbles upon a Death Note, a book that ends the life of any name written down in it.
Death Note is notable for the great number of spin-offs that launched from the title — full-blown, original stories that sprouted from the main story. Here is a list of all the various iterations and whether they are worth a watch.
Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases
Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases by Nisio Isin was published in August 2006, placing it mere months after the series’ proper conclusion in May 2006. The story is a prequel narrated by Mello, featuring a case L helped Naomi Misora solve in Los Angeles.
Beyond Birthday is a violent killer who Naomi tracks down with the assistance of L. While L primarily talks to Naomi through a screen, as he does with the SPK in the early chapters of Death Note, Naomi meets a detective named Ryuzaki, who uses the same alias L uses in the main series. So is this also L? Or is this someone using his name? And if so, why? This is a clever mystery story that exists comfortably in the early canon of the franchise without ever requiring any references to the Death Note or Shinigami proper.
Verdict: Worth checking out
Death Note 13: How to Read
This spin-off is the thirteenth volume of the Death Note manga — though it doesn’t function as a real chapter. Rather, it’s a guidebook, containing extra information otherwise left out of the manga proper. As it doesn’t offer any spin-off narrative, it isn’t necessary to go into too much detail here. However, what it does provide is a wealth of information on the lore of the series, offering context for any lingering questions fans might have had when reading the manga. It’s incredibly informative for fans who want more of the Death Note world.
Verdict: Essential reading
Chapter 109
One of the first noteworthy post-series Death Note spin-offs was a manga one-shot published in February 2008 in Weekly Shonen Jump. This chapter is often referred to either as “the one-shot” or “Chapter 109,” as it’s technically the 109th chapter of the 108 chapter original series.
“Chapter 109,” set two years after the Death Note manga’s end, focuses on a new Kira emerging, who picks up where Light left off. This Kira is given a Death Note by a shinigami, and tries to make a name for himself as Kira. The story focuses on Near trying to figure out the right way to deal with the situation. He ultimately decides that this guy has no real plan and isn’t cut out for the Kira life. Near goes on television as L, says he isn’t interested in taking the case and leaves. Readers then learn that the Kira, horrified that no one is taking him seriously, kills himself.
“Chapter 109” doesn’t enrich the story of Death Note all that much, but offers an interesting insight into Near’s character.
Verdict: Skip
L: Change the WorLd
“Chapter 109” came out the same month that L: Change the WorLd hit theaters. This third film in the live-action Death Note series takes place between the defeat of Kira and L’s death. In case you didn’t see the prior two films, they adapt the Death Note story but omit the Mello and Near arc. Instead, L outsmarts Kira, but sacrifices his life by writing his own name down in the Death Note, although he gives himself enough time to tie up loose ends first.
L: Change the WorLd is one of the cases where L has to solve a particularly challenging mystery that incorporates several Death Note characters. Director Hideo Nakata (the name behind such j-horror classics Ringu and Dark Water) aimed to present a more human side to L because he felt that the previous films gave his character little time to breathe. The film even includes Near, finding a place for the character in the new continuity, whereas before he would have been out of place.
The character of Matsuda was originally slated to appear in the film, but all his scenes were cut and re-edited into a Made-for-TV short called “The Man Who Was Made a Fool by L the Most – Detective Matsuda’s Case File.” L: Change the WorLd was later adapted into a light novel by “M.” It has the same name and plot as its source material.
Verdict: Watch if you love the films, skip otherwise
L FILE No. 15
L FILE No. 15 is a spin-off book released in conjunction with L: Change the WorLd. It exists in the first film’s continuity and references L writing his own name in the Death Note. For the most part, the book is pretty straightforward. It’s primarily an art book, featuring art of L doing mundane tasks over the course of his development; though, there are a few pieces of material that are worth looking at.
First, there are two manga chapters: “L: The Wammy House” and “L: One Day.” They are comic strips featuring L, once again, doing mundane things. There is also a List of Sweets, where L ranks his favorite and least favorite sweets. In addition, the book opens and closes with passages written by Watari, L’s loyal companion, who offers more background information on the orphanage where L was raised, as well as their relationship.
Verdict: Skip
Death Note Video Games
Death Note characters have appeared in multiple video games, most notably Jump Super Stars, Jump Ultimate Stars and Jump Force. All are crossover games featuring the many characters of Shonen Jump.
Verdict: Play these
However, if you think Light Yagami facing off against Goku is a little ridiculous, there’s L the Prologue to Death Note -Spiraling Trap- , which is another prequel to Death Note starring L. You’re an FBI agent trapped in a strange room with L as a contact to help you escape. It’s another one of L’s many cases before taking on the Death Note case. Much like the BB Murder Case, it offers canon insight into L’s life before meeting Light.
Verdict: Not particularly important
Death Note: Light Up the NEW World
The 2016 film Death Note: Light Up the NEW World exists as the fourth film in the franchise, taking place ten years after the end of the prior trilogy. Here, Shinigami show up and drop six Death Notes on Earth, resulting in a three-way battle for the notes between L’s successor, the Death Note Special Task Force and an enigmatic computer hacker and Kira worshiper named Yuki Shien.
The film features cameos from every major prior character, including L and Light. It’s based entirely on original content, so it’s definitely a spin-off, not an adaptation of the original manga. It also adds new rules to the series, such as that only six Death Notes can exist on Earth at once.
Ultimately, the spin-off film lacked the energy and intensity that the original manga had between L and Light, which, ultimately, is a problem for any Death Note spin-off. Without the psychological chess match between L and Light, everything feels less impressive.
Verdict: Only watch if you need more
Death Note: Short Stories
Released from Viz media in May 2022, Death Note: Short Stories compiles new tales by the original Death Note creators, Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, as well as a previously told sixth story. In the wake of Light Yagami’s actions as Kira, the world is changed. In the lingering aftermath, the notebook falls into new hands, but do those potential users have what it takes to carry on Kira’s legacy, or are they strong enough to resist its allure? Two of the previously published stories were featured in L: FILE No. 15, revisiting L’s childhood and his initial arrival at the orphanage, but many diehard fans will likely have already read those tales.
Verdict: For fans desperate for more Death Note content, the new stories in this collection fill a void
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