<P> Death Note is a 37 - episode anime series based on the manga series of the same name written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata . Death Note aired in Japan on the Nippon Television (NTV) network every Tuesday, from October 3, 2006, to June 26, 2007 . The plot of the series primarily revolves around high school student Light Yagami, who decides to rid the world of evil with the help of a supernatural notebook called a Death Note . This book causes the death of anyone whose name is written in it and is passed on to Light by the Shinigami Ryuk after he becomes bored within the Shinigami world . </P> <P> A three - hour "Director's Cut" compilation TV special, titled "Death Note: Relight: Visions of a God", aired on NTV a few months after the anime concluded . Although advertised to be the "complete conclusion", the popularity of the series inspired the release of a second TV special, titled "Death Note: Relight 2: L's Successors" nearly a year later . These specials recap the first and second arcs of the anime respectively, with new scenes added to fill in any plot holes resulted from omitted footage . </P>

How many episodes of death note anime are there