Darker Than Black Episode 22

Hopefully, there will be a large amount of Amber development in the final arc, as until now, there has been very little. I guess it’s obvious now that she is definitely getting younger, which is pretty sad as it strengthens my personal belief that she won’t make it to the end. But even if she doesn’t, I like to think that she and Hei will reconcile before that—it’s kind of depressing watching Hei act so mercilessly in this episode. A small glimmer of hope though: perhaps Amber will survive, and in a world with no contractor powers (where the original contractors are still alive), she and Hei might attain a new relationship, though something more like brother-and-sister.

Published by pmflood1 on September 12, 2007 [6 Comments]

Darker Than Black Episode 21

Ah, this episode’s pace feels really good, and regardless of this episode being the first half of the last two-episode arc, it seems as though the main story has already started. It’s disappointing that the final arc will only be 3 episodes, though at least it means there shouldn’t be any pacing problems. The sad thing is that it doesn’t look like Amber and the other characters aren’t going to get much character development. Is it just me or does Amber sound even younger when she catches Mao talking at the end of the episode? It could just be because I haven’t seen in a while, though if not, it would support the theory that her remuneration is getting younger.

Published by pmflood1 on September 9, 2007 [8 Comments]

Darker Than Black Episode 20

This episode fails to impress me as much as the previous ones, though overall it’s still pretty good. It ended how I thought it would with Shihoko dying, though the original purpose of killing the prophet somehow faded into unimportance, and ended abruptly. Nothing new about the Syndicate or Evening Primrose is revealed, which is quite a letdown, though interesting information regarding contractors is disclosed. It seems that when it comes down to contractors not having emotions, it is really the ones that affect their judgement that are the keys of being a contractor—something which Hei strangely has. But apart from this, contractors and the Gate still remain a mystery…

Published by pmflood1 on September 6, 2007 [5 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 19

"Dreaming a Shallow Dream, Without Even being Drunk... (Part 1)" "Asaki Yumemishi, Yoi mo Sezu...(Zenpen)" (あさき夢見し、酔いもせず…(前編)) This episode is actually a lot better than what I initially suspected. The revelation of a few snapshots of Huang’s former life proved to be far more interesting and impacting than I though. I never believed I would like the guy, though this episode has certainly pushed me more towards his favour. The last scene where Huang learns of his foolish interference causing the capture of his old friend Shihoko is quite significant as well. Not only that, it seems like this arc is continuing the Primrose arc somewhat, although Amber has yet to make another appearance (which I am slower dying for).

Published by pmflood1 on August 11, 2007 [7 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 18 “I’ll Sing a Love Song at the Garbage Dump… (Part 2)”

"I'll Sing a Love Song at the Garbage Dump... (Part 2)" "Hakidame de Rabu Songu o Utau... (Kōhen)" (掃きだめでラブソングを歌う…(後編)) Well, they ended this arc on a fairly feel-good note with both Kenji and the Doll alive and well even though Hitotsubashi got killed. They didn’t reveal quite as much about Dolls as I had hoped they would - like how Dolls are created in the first place - but they did manage to show again that Dolls can have emotions. Yin also played enough of a role in this for me to think again that she and Hei have a special connection of some sort - or at the very least, she’s quite observant of how he acts. It’s probably not too far of a stretch to think that either the two of them will be close partners for the final arc or Hei will have to save her or something. The ...

Published by pmflood1 on July 30, 2007 [7 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 17 “I’ll Sing a Love Song at the Garbage Dump… (Part 1)”

This one seems to be a one-off story but there are some Amber-after effects coming out of last week's episode. I do hope that this 2-parter will shed more light on the doll's background and mechanism. I just feel that lately they start to resemble the name that's been given to them. This is a contrast from the first doll on the show, Chiaki, who's as normal as any other humans until her programming over-rides her. Ever since then, however, other "Dolls" including Yin, seems to be emotionally stunted and robotic. This makes me wonder if there was anything special about Chiaki that makes her far more humane than the other "Dolls"? More importantly, I'd like to know how and why someone decided to make a "Doll" in the image of Kirsi. If Yin was created to remind someone of Kirsi, then wouldn't it be in their interest to infuse ...

Published by pmflood1 on July 30, 2007 [9 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 16 “The Memory of Betrayal is an Amber-Colored Smile… (Part 2)”

I’m getting very excited with an ending like this—Amber returning to her ‘Evening Primrose’, and its purpose is still completely unknown to me. All I guess is that it’s probably connected with the disappearance of the gate in South America. The abundance of new characters in this unknown group also suggests that the finale will be a blast. I hope they devote all the episodes after this next arc to the ultimate end, or at least tie the arcs close together. It doesn’t seem like Amber or her group will appear in the next arc, which is a shame since they’re by far the most interesting characters thus far.

Published by pmflood1 on July 30, 2007 [15 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 15 “The Memory of Betrayal is an Amber-Colored Smile… (Part 1)”

Oh wow…although I can’t say this episode is as good as the last, I’m tempted to do so purely because Amber appears, and just by seeing her makes me love her character. Not only is she an awesome C.C. look-alike, but she actually has a personality that I like. I never thought about this until now, but I also really want to learn more about her background (since apparently she has quite a lot to do with Hei and Bai). I can’t wait to see more of her, and I sure as hell hope she doesn’t die. If she does I’ll cry. Really. And is it just me or does the present Amber look and sound younger than the Amber in Hei’s past?

Published by pmflood1 on July 30, 2007 [16 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 14 “On a Silver Night, the Heart Does not Sway on the Water’s Surface… (Part 2)”

Nine point five, the equivalent of a 9.9 before I started rating things lower, and is basically the highest score I would give to an anime episode normally. This episode is truly beautiful visually, musically and story-wise. Well for me anyway. I have a strong desire to see Yin get closer to Hei, and her doing so in this episodSe adds to my overall love of this episode. The quality is certainly of Darker than BLACK’s usual high standard, while the fountain of blue apparitions in the end tops everything off superbly. Yin’s piano piece serves as a magnificent accompaniment to the story being told, or perhaps it’s the story that’s the complement to the piano solo.

Published by pmflood1 on July 30, 2007 [11 Comments]

Darker than Black: episode 13 “On a Silver Night, the Heart Does not Sway on the Water’s Surface… (Part 1)”

Ah, I’ve been looking forward to this episode ever since seeing the preview for it. It’s not as strongly focused on Yin as I had thought, but with her being an emotionless doll, I guess following her walk around looking dumb wouldn’t be very entertaining. Her background story is pretty interesting though which makes me wonder how she became a doll in the first place, and whether she can return back. I can’t say I ‘believe’ she can or will return back to herself before becoming a doll, though perhaps she can regain her emotions and more of her memories, seeing as how Hei has emotions.

Published by pmflood1 on July 30, 2007 [4 Comments]