Darker than BLACK / First Impressions

OP Sequence

OP: 「ツキアカリのミチシルベ」 (Tsukiakari no Michishirube) by ステレオポニー (Stereopony)
Watch the OP!: Mirror 1, Mirror 2, Streaming ▼

Summary:

After finishing off April, Hei tries to get the meteor core from Suou, who he still thinks is Shion. Suou temporarily blinds him with her camera’s flash, and before he can chase her, another Contractor attacks. Hei has his hands full fighting this female, and in the meantime, Suou is able to get away on the urging of a mysterious voice. Given this, both Hei and the female disengage. Suou meanwhile is approached by a strange man who tries to be friendly with her, but she’s suspicious of him and escapes with the help of her squirrel. As she then makes her way through the woods, she happens to see someone walking in the distance. Much to her surprise, it’s Shion, but Shion hurries away. Unable to return home, Suou tries to go to a friend’s house, but her friend’s memories of her have already been erased. By chance though, she eventually runs into Nika who had just escaped from his hospital room, and she’s so glad to see him that she hugs him. The two are able to find refuge in an old shack Nika uses, and after moping for a bit, Suou decides to do something by making posters with the picture she took of Hei.

The next day, Hei finds wanted posters all over town claiming that he’s a marriage swindler, and he eventually tracks down Suou by herself. Ignoring the posters, he again demands that she hand over the meteor core, and he promises to spare her if she does. Suou, however, feels that Contractors are liars, and she screams when Hei tries to search her and inadvertently gropes her chest. At the height of emotion, Suou tries to get some answers out of Hei about Shion and why he killed her father and Bella. When Hei answers that he’s a Contractor, she questions what it means to be one and why there are people like them. This triggers a memory in Hei of Yin, but everything is then interrupted by the arrival of the Russians. They’re not the only ones who show up though because August 7 appears as well, and his Contractor power allows him to reflect back the Russian bullets. Hei ends up deciding to escape with Suou, and August 7 chases after them. The Russians try to pursue too, but they’re stopped by another Contractor, the same one who tried to be friendly with Suou earlier. His allies have also laid a trap, and after Hei is able to defeat August 7, they activate a device that surrounds Hei in a bubble and electrocutes him. It has the side-effect of reacting with the pendant Suou is wearing, and because of that, she’s able to see a scene of Hei chasing after a crying Yin who bids him farewell.

At around this same time, Misaki is somewhere gazing at the stars with a telescope, and she suddenly notices BK-201 fade away.

ED Sequence

ED: 「From Dusk Till Dawn」 by abingdon boys school
Watch the ED!: Mirror 1, Mirror 2, Streaming ▼

Pretty much everything I said earlier about the OP/ED applies here.

Preview

This episode sure ended with a bang, and the whole Yin scene finally explained why we haven’t seen much of her so far. It’s unlikely that they killed her off, but it’s obvious that she’s not going to be around and perhaps Hei is searching for her or something. Whatever the case, the ED animation sequence seems to suggest that Suou will be Hei’s partner for the series. I did notice though that Mao is now confirmed back after all the speculation last week about the black cat. The voice that told Shion to run away near the beginning of the episode belonged to Mao’s voice actor Sawaki Ikuya, and he’s listed in the credits as just 声 (voice).

In any case, one of the other things that made the episode fun to watch was all the new Contractor powers and remunerations, especially with Hazuki Mina. Given the humor and likability of her and Genma and Youko, I assume they’ll be reoccurring good guys, in contrast to August 7 who ended up being creepier than expected. Also, I loved the epilogue because it showed not only that Hei’s star disappeared but also that Misaki is still obsessed with him. I mean, what are the odds that she’d have her telescope pointed directly at his star when it faded away? I’m still hoping for some sort of MisakiXHei ending (though I don’t think it’ll ever happen), and it’ll be interesting to see how big a role she plays as the story moves forward.

96 Comments

  10. The battle between Hei and Mina was great. I also found August 7’s power to be really interesting, I was actually expecting him to survive most of the series but I guess he didn’t, it really is a shame. Looking forward to more.

    Wiru BK-201
    Reply

  11. Awwwww =( I’m sad that Yin is gone…?
    I was always hoping for a Yin x Hei type of pairing but it’s sad to know that she plays such a minimal part (if any part) at all in this season T_T

    TM
    Reply

  15. great episode, but another halting finish, shit wanna know what happened to Hei, and his star.

    Yin where are u, u better be recoverable, and Hei’s current goal

    and it’ll be great if Hei and Suou team up. she is already seeing that he is different from the others.

    Chimasternmay
    Reply

  17. YIN IS NOT DEAD! I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THIS!

    also :3…. MisakiXHei….

    T_T, if only… if only… maybe after all this he can settle down and have a “normal” life…

    but if that happened I’d be all for a slice of life, seinen, romance genre show….

    Putang
    Reply

  26. I really like how they used the camera in this episode. 🙂
    It was overall a good episode. I hope Hei straightens up and loses the beard. Kick some strenght into him Suou.

    I hope this will go on well as it has been so far. I like how there is always mystery in this series. 😛 Yin come back! We will surely see more of Misaki at some point. 😀

    Tuuli
    Reply

  27. Great episode of the week XD. I didn’t notice the last few parts (where BK 201 star disappears) until I read this. Kind of a habit to close the window when the show ends and the ending credit plays >.>

    Chaos
    Reply

  28. Is Yin really dead O.o? I remember at the end of the first series they showed her outline holding the cat that was Mao, but that sorta made it seem more like she didn’t have a body anymore or something in that scene.

    random
    Reply

  29. Something is not adding up, Shion can walk now? i know he is a contractor but he has been on the wheelchair for a while now if thats him Suou saw then that means he faked it all this time and also its funny that he would dress up like his sister to avoid danger from other contractors wherehas by doing so he is putting his sister in harm’way by having her dress like him its bad enough Hei couldn’t tell she was a female and April too made that mistake.

    CornerBoyz
    Reply

  32. @TM: same here! I was quite disappointed that she might be dead or if she is alive, that she might play a minimal role, nonetheless, Hei chasing after her in his memories was good indication about the two’s relationship. At the very least, it explains why Hei is like this in his current state, his basically a mess without her. I’m also glad that Misaki will play a role with all of this, since I especially want Misaki and Yin to play a major role with Hei in this season. So I hope that it will happen.

    Also, If you want to see Yin play a much better role, read the manga about this. It’s called: DARKER THAN BLACK: SHIKKOKU NO HANA , which is a sequel to the original anime 1st season, but this sequel is completely different from the anime 2nd season, and yes in this sequel Yin is actually together with Hei, and they have their moments together, its cute.

    X
    Reply

  37. I had given up on waiting for Darker Than Black S2, but then..BAM! It’s here and it kicks ass. I had practically quit watching anime after the last two fail seasons. Yin~<3 I’m happy I can finally enjoy anime again.

    Daiske
    Reply

  40. Shikkoku no Hana happens right after the first season & no Yin doesn’t ‘die’ in it ‘yet’, but a lot of shit can happen in 2 years so whatever. I just wonder why they were so damn slow in getting it out. Its only on ch9 now.

    Megas
    Reply

  42. @omni: do you know who is the CIA agent and the mysterious shawl lady? They ones who quoted Son Shi’s Art of War…

    I wonder what role do they have to play.

    I also noticed twins in the opening. yay!

    dtbfan
    Reply

  44. Hahahah.. The entire time Hei was shown drinking, I couldn’t help but keep repeating “Wasted Hei! Wasted Hei!” Seriously, what happened to him these past two years!? Did he like just shove part of his humanity off because something happened to Yin? I thought DtB 1, might’ve taught him something, but, he doesn’t seem too different.

    Love the humor scenes in this ep. Looking forward to the next one. (And yeah, hopefully, Suou can knock some real sense into Hei.)

    tg
    Reply

  48. I’ll laugh if Yin’s dead.
    I wouldn’t be surprise, I mean this is BONES we’re talking about. Must we rememeber the ending to season 1?

    Anywayz, it’s not a good sight to see a hobo molesting a loli lol ( though I really doubt he intended to do it like that ) Poor Hei, he needs a hug.
    Anywayz, the fights were awesome & I really liked the Magician guy. And we finally see Misaki again, cool.

    Bunny
    Reply

  49. @ Cain is a Scar’s fanboy
    Hei was always human, his powers were given to him by his siter, hence he’s a contractor yet a normal person all the same.

    August 7 was kinda cool, but he just ended up as a fodder, which sucks. And the preview gave away how Hei isn’t extremely maimed in any way =P.

    SomethingLeft
    Reply

  50. @SomethingLeft: That’s true, it was all revealed in the final episode, that his sister was the one who had the star designation of BK-201, and was the most powerful contractor known. Though her remuneration sucks seeing as she has to sleep, which would make her pretty vulnerable, well except the fact that Hei watches over her. It was also revealed that the war in South America was when Hei gained the reputation of “Dark/Black Reaper” because despite being a human, he has killed many, both humans and contractors, to the point that people and Hei included had thought of himself as being a contractor.

    Especially after his sister disappeared, which then he gained contractor abilities without remuneration and kept his humanity, though with the hell he’s been through, even he convinced himself that he’s one of them now. Just as someone mentioned in the earlier posts, I thought as well that Hei should have understood all of this, seeing as he was lectured by all of the dead people who has a connection to him (Like his sister and huang) about his humanity. I guess Yin’s disappearance or separation really messed him up. Though I hope either Suou or Misaki knocks some sense to him, cuz I really liked the old Hei better, where he had the identity of Li.

    Also just a question, in this episode, Hei mentioned that the professor was already dead when he got there, that was a lie right? I mean no matter how much I replied that scene, I could’ve sworn it was him who killed the professor.

    X
    Reply

  51. ^ You got my thoughts down pat exceptionally well! Kudos! Yeah, I’m kind of still speculating over that scene too. It seemed clear, from our view, that Hei killed her father, but, we were not on that other side of the door. When the first episode came out, I couldn’t actually believe it and thought there might be a doppleganger going around (who’s parading as BK201 just to lure him out/blackmail him—-ok, that would’ve made an interesting twist).

    If it really is him, who killed her father. And then, he says that to her…. >.> He deserves a slap on the face for lying (or trying not to anger her in some way) by Misaki! >D Then, a hard cold wash of water… Yeah.. A splash or two…

    tg
    Reply

  53. “I mean, what are the odds that she’d have her telescope pointed directly at his star when it faded away”

    higher than the odds of an astronomer watching a star explode million light years ago- where it just reached earth

    lime
    Reply

  56. Hmm, not sure how I feel about this season so far. A lot comedy going on, and normal children popping up out of the woodwork. Hei can dodge knives and bullets but a slow child catches him with a flash from a camera and he’s dazed. That rock summoning guy gets own’d by a Mao controlled squirrel and a trashcan? I cant imagine anything like that occurring in DTB S1, and to top if off this little girl not only escapes several contractors but also the russian government/military.

    The first season was so wonderful in its exposition of what it means to be human as well as the choices of right and wrong in a land shrouded in grey. Along with Kurozuka and Serial Experiment Lain, it was one of the few anime series to tackle existentialism in any sort of interesting way. From the current trajectory S2 looks like its gonna be a by the numbers young child redeems haggard disillusioned man through sheer optimism and love, Hei saves Suou (possibly having to kill her brother) in the end, she cries, he smiles (there is potentiality for the alt ending where Hei dies so that Suou can live) and they both look up at the stars. All the while Misaki falls asleep alone, again, with only her Hei Body Pillow to keep her company.

    So Very Odd
    Reply

  57. jesus christ can they pack any more action into the second half of the first episode and the entire second episode? i doubt they’ll be able to keep this up for long. REALLY hope they dont have any lame filler miniarcs like they did in the first season of dtb.

    The only part of this episode that pissed me off was Suou yelling “NO” when Hei was about to kill August 7 and Hei actually stopping. Christ dtb2 better not get all cheesy on me. And of course as he goes along looking for this meteor fragment he probably already realized where it really is and will now work to protect this silly overly optimistic Suou character. Ugh.

    dbreak
    Reply

  58. Great episode, and good to see Yin and Misaki, if only in brief cameos. And Mao too! There’s still a lot left unexplained, namely what happened to Yin following the thwarted Evening Primrose plot to destroy the Hells Gate and what made Hei seemingly join the CIA (remnant of the Syndicate?) and start letting himself go and drink himself into a depression.

    That said, I don’t think that was actually Hei that killed Suou’s father. Shion revealed himself to be walking again and saying that his renumeration (losing the use of his legs) was finally paid and over with. It’s quite possible in my mind Shion somehow stole the likeness of Hei and killed his own father, for whatever reason. His father, remember, distrusted Shion and wanted Suou to stay away from him. Why? Probably because their dad knew Shion was dangerous now that was an emotionless/remorseless contractor.

    Of course, Hei could be lying that he didn’t kill the professor, and was the actual murderer, but we’ll see how that plays out.

    Oh, and wasn’t there a female contractor in season 1 that already had the renumeration to kiss people? It was the teleporter who also had to go naked whenever she used her power, and she’d go around porting around in the buff while using her renumeration to get close and seduce her targets before porting them away with her. Still, Hazuki looks pretty cool. I’m guessing her ability is to somehow kinetically energize whatever object she’s holding (even herself?) and empower them to cut/pass through solid matter.

    August 7th’s magician renumeration was pretty neat too. I doubt he’s really dead (he’s a magician, after all). Hei needs a cool bad guy to square off against, though few could match up to the badass Chinese emo-elf exploding blood assassin that was Wei from Season 1. XD

    Raika
    Reply

  59. Damn you guys are funny. I must admit that this is starting to look like a crapper that’s full of pointless action. Now Hei gets to go all out again with a idiot of a girl whose carrying around a gun that looks much heavier than she is – let alone being able to fire the thing. That’s why I love the laws of anime.

    Hei might be cold as hell, but he shit bricks over little girls. First his sister, then Amber, then Yin, now Suou. I don’t mean to make it as bad as it sounds but GD, that’s gonna be the death of him. I guess this is just going to make Misaki push harder for him – *Hei body pillow*, hahahahahahaa

    Megas
    Reply

  60. August 7 is not dead. Remember, he fell from Hei’s initial shock, but Hei was about to deliver the FINAL KILLING blow when he was STOPPED. So the magician’s not dead. Yet.

    Anyway, wasn’t November 11 supposedly the strongest in the MI6? I really doubt that his freezing powers are stronger than August 7’s reality warping powers. ><

    dtbfan
    Reply

  63. i totally fond of this episode, not to mention all the cool fighting scene and new Contractor, such shame that the Magician died so fast….i don’t hate Hei ‘new’ look, but i think he should quit drinking alcohol, come on Hei,bright up!!!!1i love the ending song, love the way it started, just love it, can’t wait…..

    treble89
    Reply

  64. Well, when Darker than Black 2 was first announced, the website showed Hei and Yin together. It doesn’t make much sense to put Yin together with Hei if she’s to play a small role in the series. Much less to say, if she’s to be dead.

    katsudon
    Reply

  66. Can’t say I’m disappointed, but I can’t say I’m that impressed yet.

    I hope there will be another ground breaking plot twist like DtB1 though maybe not so late in the season.

    Btw, is DtB2 going to be a 13 or 26 episode long anime?

    invAZN
    Reply

  69. this long rifle is PTRD russian antitank rifle, WW2 era weapon capable of piercing 40mm of steel…
    note that BK-201 star disappeared not fell, meaning perhaps he stopped being contractor and became… human?

    ewok
    Reply

  71. Meh, you know that noone is dead… this ME thing where they will put April, the professor and burger-kun? It’s going to be some memory-transfer thing, for sure. Yin confirmed for final boss (with the memories of all the bad guys combined)

    Gray
    Reply

  76. All in all, one shouldn’t be surprised that this second season might suck; most sequels do (cough Code Geass, Transformers, Resident Evil flicks, etc cough). I find it funny how people complain on the second episode about its not as “awesome” since there’s an annoying little girl, but whatever, I’m just watching this for the lulz.

    SomethingLeft
    Reply

  77. @Himeya:
    What? No! Those two were the main reason why many parts of season 1 were getting on my nerves. Did they serve any purpose than to annoy us? I am also glad that they got rid of the idea of having two episode-arcs.

    bobara
    Reply

  92. @CornerBoyz: Nope, it was mentioned in the first season that Hei was already a big eater and a huge appetite during the South American War which was when Hei didnt have contractor abilities, I believe it was Havoc who said this, or something like that basically the girl with red hair who was also involved in the war. She even mentioned why Hei was always reckless and would defy logic and reason despite being a contractor, keep in mind that a contractor only makes rational and logical choices, so then she suspected that Hei wasn’t a contractor, of course this was all confirmed in the last episode in the 1st season.

    X
    Reply

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