So, this past Saturday was Laundry Day which actually means I either do a month's worth of laundry or just go naked....ugh! I. Really. Hate. Laundry. I had to do about 10 loads! It really, really, sucked. (Ok, you can stop playing your damn small violin now.) Anyways, the good part about Laundry Day is the fact that while I'm sorting through mounds of dirty clothes and taking my time folding, I can binge through TV shows!
For awhile, I've been on the lookout for new anime to watch that's interesting yet action packed. Recently I came across a comment on FB mentioning "Darker than Black" to be a pretty awesome show. So, I gave it a chance.
Here's my review after watching all three seasons:
Honestly, I'm still confused about this show. Bones, the creator, leaves you with so many unanswered questions and open-ended conclusions. I hate doing this, but I actually had to look through forums just to make sure I actually understood what was going on! And even after all the blog reading and comment trolling I still don't really feel like I get it. But the funny thing is...I want more!
To give you a sense of the plot without giving away any spoilers, the show is set in the future where from out of nowhere a gate called "Heaven's Gate" arrives in South America and a gate called "Hell's Gate" arrives in Tokyo. When the gates arrive they remove the current sky and put in place a "fake" one where each star represents the life of a Contractor. Contractors are humans who were given psychological powers when the gates appeared. Also, the presence of the gates caused some humans to turn into Dolls; unemotional beings used by Contractors who are able to track the whereabouts of others by projecting themselves through physical objects, such as water or glass. Contractors are currently being used by the government and other high powered organizations as weapons. They have no emotions and can only think rationally. Because of their powers, they make great assassins. They are called "Contractors" because in order to use their power they must fulfill a "contract", also known as a "remuneration", which requires them to do very odd tasks, such as flip shoes over, smoke a cigarette, or give someone a kiss. (Yes, very weird show so far, right?)
The main character of the show is Hei. He is an assassin working for a team called "The Syndicate". He has several team members who help him with his missions, my favorite being Mao.
Hei is sooo badass! I loved his moves and how quick he was (even though for the life of him he could never keep his mask on...like honestly what was the point of it?) There is also a perfect mix of gore to go with the action. It isn't overbearing as I've seen in some other anime shows. The action sequences though are pretty dope, and music to go along with it was rightly chosen. Check this out...
Action aside, the point of the show, I guess, is to follow Hei as he goes through life as a Contractor tackling his internal demons and memories from his past. You also try to learn about the gates and why all this happened. This is the part I'm not really clear on but some forums helped me get a better understanding. You also learn about how humans, overall, especially in Tokyo are dealing with this phenomenon.
I loved this show! Hopefully, Bones comes out with another season. I mean, he really has some explaining to do. As I could tell from the reaction in various forums, we're just all too confused. Reading through all the philosophical interpretations hurt my head!
The action was great and the plot was moving. Season 2 is my favorite because of how they showed Suou's transition into being a Contractor. Plus she had awesome chemistry with July which was too cute!
I don't want to give away too much, but hit me if you want to chat about it. Otherwise, check it out. It's definitely worth the time.
Other anime I'm watching:
Sword Art Online II
Akame ga Kill!
To give you a sense of the plot without giving away any spoilers, the show is set in the future where from out of nowhere a gate called "Heaven's Gate" arrives in South America and a gate called "Hell's Gate" arrives in Tokyo. When the gates arrive they remove the current sky and put in place a "fake" one where each star represents the life of a Contractor. Contractors are humans who were given psychological powers when the gates appeared. Also, the presence of the gates caused some humans to turn into Dolls; unemotional beings used by Contractors who are able to track the whereabouts of others by projecting themselves through physical objects, such as water or glass. Contractors are currently being used by the government and other high powered organizations as weapons. They have no emotions and can only think rationally. Because of their powers, they make great assassins. They are called "Contractors" because in order to use their power they must fulfill a "contract", also known as a "remuneration", which requires them to do very odd tasks, such as flip shoes over, smoke a cigarette, or give someone a kiss. (Yes, very weird show so far, right?)
The main character of the show is Hei. He is an assassin working for a team called "The Syndicate". He has several team members who help him with his missions, my favorite being Mao.
Action aside, the point of the show, I guess, is to follow Hei as he goes through life as a Contractor tackling his internal demons and memories from his past. You also try to learn about the gates and why all this happened. This is the part I'm not really clear on but some forums helped me get a better understanding. You also learn about how humans, overall, especially in Tokyo are dealing with this phenomenon.
I loved this show! Hopefully, Bones comes out with another season. I mean, he really has some explaining to do. As I could tell from the reaction in various forums, we're just all too confused. Reading through all the philosophical interpretations hurt my head!
The action was great and the plot was moving. Season 2 is my favorite because of how they showed Suou's transition into being a Contractor. Plus she had awesome chemistry with July which was too cute!
I don't want to give away too much, but hit me if you want to chat about it. Otherwise, check it out. It's definitely worth the time.
Other anime I'm watching:
Sword Art Online II
Akame ga Kill!
Agreed, doing laundry is a hassle sometimes.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, nice review. Darker than Black was decent.