Death Note Watch Order: The Anime, Relight Specials and Live-Action Versions

Watch the 37-episode Death Note anime from episode 1 to episode 37. That is the whole animated story, and nothing else needs to be slotted into it. The two Relight specials are optional recaps you can watch afterward, and every live-action version, Japanese or American, is a separate adaptation rather than a missing chapter.

Most confusion comes from the size of the franchise around that one series: two recap specials, a run of Japanese live-action films, a Japanese TV drama, a web prequel and a Netflix film. None of them change the order of the anime.

Death Note screen works and where they fit

Title	Format	Where it fits
Death Note	TV anime, 37 episodes (2006–2007)	Start here; the complete animated story
Death Note Relight: Visions of a God	Anime special, 130 minutes (aired August 31, 2007)	Optional recap, after the series
Death Note Relight 2: L's Successors	Anime special, 93 minutes (aired August 22, 2008)	Optional recap, after the first special
Death Note; Death Note: The Last Name	Japanese live-action films (2006)	Separate adaptation
L change the WorLd	Japanese live-action film (2008)	Part of the same live-action line
Death Note: New Generation	Live-action web series, 3 episodes (September 2016)	Prequel to the 2016 film
Death Note Light up the NEW world	Japanese live-action film (2016)	Sequel to the two 2006 films
Death Note	Japanese live-action TV drama, 11 episodes (2015)	Separate retelling
Death Note	American live-action film, Netflix (2017)	Separate adaptation

The anime: one series, no seasons to sort

Anime News Network's encyclopedia lists the series at 37 episodes, first broadcast in Japan from October 2006 to June 2007. It is one continuous run, so there is no second season to look for. If a menu offers you more than 37 numbered entries, check whether the extras are the specials described below.

The Relight specials are recaps, not sequels

The two specials followed the series. ANN lists Relight: Visions of a God as a 130-minute special that aired on August 31, 2007, and describes it as showing "what the story looks like from Ryuk's point of view." Relight 2: L's Successors aired on August 22, 2008 and runs 93 minutes; ANN files it as the sequel to the first special, and its plot summary covers the later part of the story.

Both retell events you will already have seen. ANN's review of the first special's Director's Cut release, by T Strife (February 18, 2010), graded it a B and called it "Tightly written, well animated and, at times, genuinely thrilling," while noting that it "Occasionally leaves noticeable holes over certain details" as the story moves along. The same review said that for someone new to the franchise it "is as good a place to start as any." We still recommend the series first: the specials compress it, and a compressed version is easier to appreciate when you know what was cut.

Is there a newer anime special?

We could not find one. When we checked ANN's encyclopedia on October 7, 2026, a search for Death Note returned the TV anime and the two Relight specials as its animated entries, with no later special. If you see a newer animated special listed somewhere, look for an announcement from the publisher or studio before treating it as part of the order. A missing search result is not proof that nothing exists, but it is a reason not to add an entry on the strength of a list.

The Japanese live-action films are their own continuity

Japan's live-action line began with two films in 2006, Death Note and Death Note: The Last Name. ANN's report on the 2016 film calls Death Note Light up the NEW world "a 'forbidden sequel'" to those two films and gives its Japanese opening date as October 29. The same report says the returning stars had last played their roles in 2008's L change the WorLd. ANN lists the three-episode Death Note: New Generation, released in September 2016, as a prequel to the 2016 film.

If you want this line, watch it in release order: the two 2006 films, L change the WorLd, New Generation, then Light up the NEW world. It does not slot into the anime at any point.

The 2015 drama and the Netflix film

Japan also made an 11-episode live-action TV drama, broadcast on Nippon Television from July to September 2015. ANN's entry uses the manga's own premise as its plot summary, Light finding the notebook Ryuk dropped, and links it to none of the films or the anime as a sequel or prequel, so treat it as its own adaptation.

The American Death Note film, directed by Adam Wingard, premiered on Netflix on August 25, 2017. ANN's cast list shows how far it sits from the other versions: Nat Wolff plays Light Turner, not Light Yagami, with Keith Stanfield as L and Willem Dafoe as Ryuk. It is a standalone adaptation; you can watch it at any time or not at all.

After the anime

If you want the story in its original form, our guide to reading the Death Note manga and the supplementary books guide cover the English editions. The Death Note quote pages and best Death Note quotes work best once you have met the characters, and the ending explained page is for after episode 37.