Glad I finished this on a whim after dropping it roughly half way through. Death Note is a well regarded classic at this point and not without a reason but it's not without flaws.

Art: Realistic, detailed and grounded. Usually this combination leads to good looking but rather bland looking titles, not the case here. Obata is really talented when it comes to design and style, he deserves a lot of credit for making a manga about people talking always looking so cool. There's a lot of care put into the way every character looks, dresses or walks to separate them from each other and complete their personality. Designs for everything paranormal are exceptional, I wish Shinigami played a bigger role if just to see them more often.
Overall the look is very clean, everything looks like it was meticulously drawn with maximum precision which basically means no sketchy lines or visual inconsistencies. Shading is very detailed which helps that realistic look but there's also some nice hard light and shadows for more dramatic scenes.

Characters: while main cast is pretty interesting and varied, it's not the point of the manga. It's about a tense game of playing cat and mouse so it doesn't really matter how deep or developed the characters are. However they are distinct and quirky enough make their interactions fun to read.

Story: Death Note, at its core is a battle of wit between two opponents, trying to stay one step ahead of each other to accomplish their goal and assert their own superiority.
While it can provoke a discussion about justice and morality, as author stated, the point of the manga is just to a fun, thrilling ride which is why won't discuss those themes. At no point they are really explored or even addressed so even if you applied the whole author's death concept there would be little to talk about. However I think Ohba is admirable for managing to create a story where it's still possible to root for the villain even if you disagree with his ideology well at least I do).
In summary there's little variance in plot progression, until the very end it's just a constant back and forth with stakes gradually getting higher, from faith of one individual to entire humanity. It all comes down to whether or not you'll find that enjoyable. There's valid complaint that many events are unrealistic , unlikely, and some other 'un's. However I think if you're gonna read a manga with gods of death and notebook that kills people in any possible way, some suspension of disbelief is in order.
At last, there's one complaint I had and it's that the whole thing can get very drawn out and wordy at times. In particular when Death Note gets in the hands of corporate assholes the manga asks too much when you're supposed to care about page after page of really boring musings about how these people you know nothing about will use the notebook. There are other minor moments when characters explaining their deduction process becomes redundant but it's far less offensive.

Funfactor: Death Note is an entry level title for a good reason. It's well made and easy to get into or recommend. It's probably a good get if you somehow still haven't seen or read it.