Anime "Darker Than Black": characters.

A person does not know what real loneliness is when he is alone in a room. And when the room is full of people, and one of them is a traitor.

Sign contracts. Walls are built instead of bridges. And someone stole the moon and the sky, replacing them with fake stars. So now the gods of this world shine from heaven. And when the stars are falling, you don't want to make a wish at all. After all, a wish made under the death of a fighter will most likely turn out to be gloomy.

By the way, it makes no sense to think about why this series at the same time wants to attach the label "noir", and at the same time not. In fact, "Darker Than Black" essentially incorporates almost all genre diversity. recent years, and of course it can't do anything on its own. The stamps swell. Therefore, I want to call it the loudest nonsense of all this time. However, when the head flickers familiar word"noir", this shortcoming immediately fades in the darkness. In a world where beautiful and insidious women rule the show, where the hero merges with the antihero, and the danger trivially hides in the shadows, everything exists and irony, and romance, and action, and detective, and drama, and psychedelic and at the same time none of this No. Noir, like matter. Color scheme stellar glow reflected in the surface of the lake.

Ridiculous, of course, but extremely interesting that the young Li Shen Shun, an exchange student, is the most ordinary-looking guy. Timid, insecure, moonlighting wherever he can. Everyone simply adores him, and not only for the outstanding collarbone line, but also for his gentle character. That's just all this mask. As soon as the eyes turn away from him, the colors again flow from the face. Because in fact he is the Black God of Death, as he was called by the cops. And without superpowers, he is more dangerous than many who have signed a contract, but with supernatural power it's doubly scary. At night, he puts on a white mask with an ominous smile and destroys the same contract soldiers as he does in the city near the Gates of Hell almost the Strugatsky Zone no, the Tarkovsky Zone By the way, the smiling white mask still reminds a little of the revolutionary V, but nothing else makes them related .

Now you don’t even have to try to find noir in pure form, in whatever form. Noir is extremely outdated since the post-war economy stabilized and the American people regained faith in a brighter future. And here it is the result of the search for new potential bottoms this genre: Blade Runner, No Country for Old Men and Sin City. By the way, "Darker than Black" has even less in common with noir than the aforementioned tapes.

And if a black cat is hiding in a dark room, Tensai Okamura clearly does not want to turn on the light and check. With amazing enthusiasm, he infuses his series with noir suspicion, legends and fatal lyricism. He makes riddles, but does not ask the audience to find their own answers. Riddles remain rhetorical. But damn adorable. How to conclude a Contract? What happens if you don't pay the price? What is actually a Gate? And why is the Wall necessary? And too much has already been said about this to consider it only metaphorical symbols.

One thing Tensai has definitely succeeded in is regret. The Japanese generally proved that they do not know how to regret correctly. This feeling translates either into sky-high pathos speeches and landscapes with a tear-jerking melody, or into a black, cynical silent camera slide. And in "Darker than Black", which is, in fact, a collection of short stories, each two episodes long, it is the most natural, canonical, even somewhat American.

Yes, be it wrong, this is regret, here there is the same philosophical Zone that Tarkovsky once squeezed out of the Strugatskys. One has only to overcome the huge Wall, and there, in the empty streets, the contractors are looking for answers to the questions that they ask themselves. They die alone. They save each other. They kill each other. And again looking for answers.

Contractors, they are, as sources say, no longer people. They suppressed their emotions, became deceitful monsters who value their lives above all else. Dolls are mediums whose personality was destroyed, and only information important for existence was left. But here's the irony it seems that over time they will be able to become people faster than people themselves. Rare glimpses of their humanity are more valuable than the strongest words of the masters. And their payment for power adds human colors to them and makes them philosophers. They don't know why they sometimes smoke, or lay out pebbles, or bend the corners of all the wanderers in the book. From the outside, it looks so much like those meaningless habits that are so characteristic of real living people.

This is what the conversation is about. Lee (Hei, Black God of Death, BK-201) is overly human even with his perpetually bored face. Yin is too human, a doll with an absent gaze of purple eyes. Yes even black cat and she is human. By the way, how else, in this case, to separate people from non-humans? After all, the light falls equally on everyone, and in the rain everyone gets wet at the same time quickly. Any comparisons seem artificial and contrived.

However, noir he is. He does not open the way for the heroes to escape. Does not divide heroes into good and evil. He pulls the fools out of the crowd to throw them back into the darkness. Welcome to rain and melancholy. Loneliness and theft. Fatal encounters and betrayals. Here, out of place, the parodic character reveals the secrets of being and the future, and the most bitter disappointments turn into even more bitter deceit. A musical melodies from Yoko Kanno evoke those same doomed notes of melancholy that once sounded in Cowboy Bebop. And excessive lyricism turns actions into an echo of other actions, forcing the eyes to be involuntarily surprised by their own insight. It all looks like tinsel hung around things that are inconspicuous and uninteresting at first glance. Here already in some way Sinkaev's passion to be alone quietly whimpers and from the general mass, from dialogues and actions, pots, telescopes, corners of rooms begin to quietly stand out. This n-th secret bottom seems to completely unfold the romance of sad and unhurried confrontations between monsters and people and monsters with monsters, again turning it into a discordant and downtrodden, but from that it is such an ideal regret. Regret is worse than the wildest hatred. Regret is sadder than the most empty desire. Darker than the darkest thoughts. Darker than black.

This is the end of the second season of the anime series. Darker than Black 2 , which lasted 12 episodes. In history, there was a place for both well-known heroes and new faces.

Suo Pavlichenko became the main character, and the Russian city of Vladivostok was chosen as the place of action.

Among old acquaintances remained Hei, Mao, who moved to new form, July, Kirihara, etc. It is not directly mentioned what happened between the seasons; for this, four OVAs will be released along with the discs of the second season.

Meanwhile, the gap between the two seasons isn't the only thing that leaves viewers confused. Bones famous for creating open-ended anime such as Xam'd, DtB, Eureka Seven And soul eater , so DtB 2 was no exception. On the one hand, this was facilitated by a small number of the series themselves, on the other hand, that the creators decided not to reveal the cards until the very end - which caused confusion. Therefore, conclusions about the end of the second season are up to each individual.

This article is the result of a collection of different opinions supplemented by the opinion of the author himself.

Brief retelling of the events of the last series.

Suoh meets up with Shion and they go to the gate. Hei meets with Yin, or rather with her shell, and also goes to the gate for her soul.

Kirihara, along with Maou, meets with Madame Oreilly showing off the supercomputer.

Shion disappears and Suoh meets up with July.

Hazuki meets with Genma and they have a fight. July brings Suoh to a half-dead Shion and Yin. Shion dies, July falls unconscious, Suoh pulls out a PTJ and aims at Yin.

The meteorite shard on Suoh's chest shatters, and Hei appears. Terrible and incomprehensible things are happening. Yin suggests that Hei kill himself. Kirihara sees Hei with Yin for a moment, then a flash of light envelops everything. Suoh is alive, her parents are alive and she was late for school.

Kirihara leaves the Gate with Kabayashi.

And now what happened.

Shion leaves Suoh at the center of the gate to make a deal with Yin, which he tells Suoh afterwards. The exact terms of the deal are unknown. One of the opinions is this. Shion is able to create physical copies of everything including humans, but is not able to endow them with souls. In the past, ME was used for this purpose. But the creation of a new Earth requires the infusion of a large number of souls, and here the role of Yin begins. According to the theory, all the killed (or committed suicide, if you like) contractors that Yin saw, gave her their souls. Indirectly, this theory is confirmed by the fact that on the new Earth Suo meets people who died on the old one: her father, mother, etc. The purpose of creating a new Earth is to give contractors normal human life, and the cost of the deal is Shion's life.

Suoh has no memory of his "past life" due to the destruction of the meteorite fragment pendant. As explained in the series, the meteorite is needed to hold the memories of "cloned" people. If you carefully examine Madame Oreilly's supercomputer, you can see a huge sphere - a meteorite that allegedly fell on Dr. Pavlichenko and his children. After the transaction is completed, this ball is no longer there.

Suoh supposedly lost her contractor abilities also due to the destruction of the pendant. It may have contained Hei's sealed power. In this case, by destroying it, Yin would restore Hei's abilities.

Two years have flown by in Naruto's world. Former rookies have joined the ranks of experienced shinobi in the ranks of chūnin and jonin. The main characters did not sit still - each became a student of one of the legendary Sannin - the three great ninja of Konoha. The guy in orange continued his training with the wise but eccentric Jiraiya, gradually ascending to a new level of martial prowess. Sakura has moved into the role of assistant and confidant of the healer Tsunade, the new leader of the Leaf Village. Well, Sasuke, whose pride led to expulsion from Konoha, entered into a temporary alliance with the sinister Orochimaru, and each believes that he is only using the other for the time being.

The brief respite is over, and events in Once again rushed with hurricane speed. In Konoha, the seeds of old strife, sown by the first Hokage, sprout again. The mysterious leader of the Akatsuki set in motion a plan for world domination. Unrest in the Village of Sand and neighboring countries, old secrets pop up everywhere, and it is clear that one day the bills will have to be paid. The long-awaited continuation of the manga inhaled new life to the series and a new hope to the hearts of countless fans!

© Hollow, World Art

Here is how it was. Izanami can grant wishes. Sion asked to take the souls of Suo and July and transfer them to the world he created so that they live happily there.

Then came Hay. Yin asked him to kill himself. Instead, Hei made some kind of wish, something like "I want to be together with Yin." His wish came true. He ended up with Yin, who was already separated from Izanami.

A yin-like girl was shown rising from a coffin. short hair. During this, the words "So what about the one whose birth was spoken of in the prediction? How will this birth reflect on our world?" were spoken. That is, in this case, it is implied that this girl who rose from the coffin was Izanami, but not Yin. This is confirmed by the fact that that girl absorbed the souls of people nearby.

Yin is said to be alive, but unconscious after splitting from the Izans, so to speak.

To solve all the problems, it was necessary to kill Yin and then Izanami would have died, but Hei did not. Izanami is alive and the new "Organization", in which the famous cop girl is a member of us, will have to deal with Izanami.

And Hei and Yin, apart from all these problems, are now together in no one knows where. But they are not dead. They are, so to speak, in a separate world created by the desire of Heya. Apparently this is a world for dolls and contractors. Two dolls with yellow hair also entered. Before entering, they said something like: "The gates have opened again, let's go there, let's go there."

To understand this, you had to watch Ova. Wow, this is not a separate series. This is a plot that stands between seasons 1 and 2. And there we understand how Yin became part of Izanami. And then, after looking at the ending, you can understand what kind of white Yin and black Yin (White - Yin, black - Izanami).

Well, in general, the ending is understandable in principle. You just need to think about it a bit)

The characters in "Darker Than Black" are a mixture of characters so different that the viewer simply begins to feel dizzy, while the veterans only chuckle at the attempts of neophytes to understand the plot. Creation opens up a whole new world full of conflicting protagonists, original storylines. Against the backdrop of all this, there is an ordinary guy who must either bring the world down at the feet of his own kind, or save him, dooming his family to a slow extinction. "Darker Than Black" is really capable of not only awakening empathy, but also making readers or the viewer literally sob uncontrollably, and some plot moves are still closed even to fans.

Information about the author, some facts

The anime "Darker Than Black" is special. It was originally filmed specifically as a series, and only after its success did the manga appear, which is now moving forward compared to the events of the TV version. Directed by Tensai Okamura. The project was conceived as extremely serious, so the choice of seiyuu, voice actors, was carried out both for Hollywood movie. The premiere took place on April 6, 2007. In total, the animated series "Darker than Black" consists of 2 seasons, as well as a 4-episode OVA, chronologically standing between the first and second seasons. The second part was criticized for the loss of plot edge, but in general, the anime turned out to be successful. The audience rated the series 7.8 points out of 10, which is a pretty good result.

The target audience

At first, the Darker than Black anime was aimed at teenagers. However, the series turned out to have a more adult audience, which is why the manga with the events of the second season was already published in a more status magazine. Despite the abundance of combat scenes, the plot pleases with thoughtfulness. The narrative of the world is presented in parts, the viewer does not have time to drown in the details. The setting is unique because it combines several subgenres at once, such as post-apocalypse, superpowers, the fight against terrorism and others.

The animated series "Darker Than Black" is hardly suitable for a young audience under 16, as there is a lot of violence and gore in the scenes. In addition, some of the questions posed by the plot require repeated viewing and very thoughtful thinking. Watching the series "Darker than Black" with subtitles can significantly improve your impression of the characters. Some moments are simply lost due to other voice acting.

Story Basics

Ten years before the events in the series, a catastrophe of an unknown nature occurred on Earth. IN South America and Japan, two anomalous zones appeared - the Gates of Heaven and Hell, respectively. In the infected area, unexplained events. Expeditions cannot reach the center, the plants that make their way in the affected area hardly resemble the usual flora, no traces of animals have been found. On the basis of the UN, a specialized organization is being created to study and use the influence of the Gate called Pandora. Anomalies have led to the fact that among the people began to appear contractors - those who are lucky or unlucky to get abilities. However, each such "superman" has lost his ties with society, and is also forced to "pay" with special actions or their absence.

Judging by household items and cars, the chronology of the plot covers the 90s and zero years. Dimensions anomalous zones are hundreds of kilometers. Each Gate is surrounded by a high wall, and the military is on duty at their border. The contractors themselves, by virtue of their abilities, have a huge impact on the geopolitical situation in the world and are widely used by criminal and government organizations, representing, in fact, independent combat units with a powerful potential for destruction or penetration.

Contractors and their classification

Darker Than Black characters have different abilities. In the course of the story, it turns out that certain forces are obtained with an eye to the events in the applicant's past life, in fact, like the price. So, for example, before becoming a medium doll, Yin played the piano wonderfully, but when she received powers, she lost her hearing, although in the course of the plot she demonstrated wonderful game. One of the main mysteries of the series lies in how an unknown Force chooses contractors. In addition, the world is waiting with a shudder for the moment when the Gates of Hell will open. With a similar collapse in South America, there was a surge of terrifying power, the protagonist was there and saw everything.

The classification of contractors provides for the division into several "classes", namely:

• Contractors directly. Previously, a person acquires such power under the influence of particles at the quantum level, while the power is not transmitted to everyone. There are no obvious limits to abilities, the only limiter is the fee. Almost always, this is something that in ordinary life a person would never do. So, for example, in the second season, the contractor girl Tanya gained control over insects (a phobia) and was forced to use her ability to tear her hair (she was very worried about them during her lifetime).
• Doll. A medium who senses other contractors. Some are able to capture not only a hint of power, but also indicate an absolutely exact location. Instead of spies, they use "spirits", a substance or organisms of an unknown kind, which move in a certain environment, for example, in the case of Yin, in water.
• Moratorium. A very strong contractor who rarely controls his abilities. Presumably, moratoriums are those who, due to circumstances, have experienced a horrific tragedy. There is no charge for the use of force. The surge is under the influence strong emotions, the rest of the time are often apathetic. After a certain period of time moratoriums turn into puppets, less often into contractors. In the first season, the protagonist meets a moratorium girl with the terrifying power of fire, she survived the fire as a child.
• Regressors. Contractors who, due to a certain scenario, have lost their strength. It is not known why this happens or how it can be provoked. Presumably, the contractor will lose strength under the influence of all the same particles, this is partly confirmed by the protagonist, who in fact uses the power of his sister, and not his own, having been at the Gates of Heaven. However, loss is also possible if the contractor has not "paid".

A contractor can gain the power of another, but exactly how this happens is unclear. The first season of "Darker Than Black" showed both the side that fights to eradicate people with superpowers, and those who support them. However, assistance also requires payment, in this case, services for a particular structure.

Organizations involved in the narrative

Among the structures that are fighting for the study of the gates, there are both public and private. A short list can be presented as follows:

• Organization. Structure of an unknown kind. The protagonist of "Darker Than Black", together with his sister and girlfriend Amber, worked for this company. During the conflict in the Heaven's Gate area, many contractors died or went missing, among them Pye. Amber survived and, unlike the main character, remembers what happened. The structure's motives are mysterious, but it clearly does not want the contractors destroyed.
• Pandora. Characters in Darker Than Black are highly ambivalent about the organization. It was conceived as an institute and research laboratory for studying the effects of particles on people, but later became a paramilitary structure with its own operatives.
• YPRES. The structure is headed by Amber. It has an impressive staff of militants with a very strong abilities. The key task is to prevent the death of all contractors and the scenario that took place at the Gates of Heaven.
• MI-6. A secret intelligence service that pursues its goals and does not hesitate to use contractors. In fact, it seeks, if not to destroy, then at least completely curb the superhumans, it has its agents in Japan.
• AI. An astronomical institute whose scientists study contractors. Responsible for the installation of an "artificial sky", the stars on which are a symbol of each person who has gained his abilities. He has a staff of mediums who monitor the situation on the ground, cooperates with the police.

Most organizations do not hesitate to use contractors for their own purposes, including the destruction of their brethren.

Distinctive features of the contractor

As mentioned above, the contractor loses his humanity and emotions. All the same Tanya from "Darker than Black: Gemini and a Shooting Star" told her friend that she did not even remember how they confessed their love to her. At the same time, Yin proved that after the acquisition of abilities, feelings remain, but they are much more difficult to awaken. In addition, the contractor has a very poor memory of his past life and the people in it. So, for example, after gaining strength, childhood memories, attachment to parents, and even own child. The contractor's only link to the past is his ability and the pay for it. Otherwise, gaining strength allows you to think more soberly, to maintain composure even in critical situation, easy to adapt and get used to new role. Contractors have been known to become sadists or masochists.

Black Reaper

The protagonist of the anime Darker than Black. Real name - Hey, star code - BK201. Mercenary, details of life prior to becoming a contractor are unknown. A brunette with black eyes, in ordinary life he prefers loose clothes, something simple and inexpressive. For the task, he tries on a black turtleneck, trousers, and a raincoat made of bulletproof fabric. He is proficient with a double-edged knife, usually starting a fight by throwing a dagger at the enemy. A wire is attached to the blade, which allows Hei to reach the enemy with his abilities and shock the enemy with electricity. First, the viewer is assured that his payment is food, the guy eats a lot. However, as it turned out later, is not a contractor. He got his powers from his sister. Key abilities - control of electricity, its generation, change in the structure of matter. Prefers to introduce himself as the Black Reaper, wears a mask during missions. He is trying to figure out what happened to his sister in South America and restore his memory.

yin

Real name is Kirsi. Together with Mao and Hei, he is in the same group. Conducts reconnaissance and learns about new contractors. Her mother died shortly after the plane crash with her father on board, which was the impetus for becoming a doll. It has the rudiments of feelings, which is amazing. In fact, she is very attached to Hei, loves him and saves him at the end of the first season. Becomes a prime target for Pandora and MI6 in the subsequent narrative. The details of Yin's transformation into Izanami are unknown. Presumably, her second incarnation is a contractor who can destroy the Gate, which will lead to the death of all those with power. In the form of Izanami, she addresses Hei and reassures that Yin was truly devoted to him. In the "Darker Than Black" main photo used as a poster, Yin is holding Mao as she has become attached to a cat.

Mao

First impression - talking cat. In fact, a contractor whose ability allows you to move into animals. Lost his body in an operation in Russia while a member of the Organization. Helps Hei to understand the current situation and events near the Gates of Heaven. In the second season, he changed his home to a flying squirrel. It is not known exactly how he survives on the streets. He is very afraid of losing himself, in order to avoid this, he saves his own consciousness on a dedicated server via a wireless interface. Sometimes he loses his memory. The characters in the anime "Darker Than Black" are all different interesting biography. For example, Mao's name was Ricardo, and he used to be quite an imposing man. He dreams of regaining his body, what is his fee, it is not known.

Juan

A former police officer who now leads Hay's group and directs him on missions. Not a contractor, but is a member of the "Organization" as a consultant and facilitator. Has access to databases former colleagues. After Hei leaves the "Organization", his further fate unknown.

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Qin's real name. Heya's sister, one of the first and strongest contractors. Participated in the conflict at the Gates of Paradise. She looked like a slender brown-haired woman with blue eyes. The key ability is to control electricity and change the structure of matter. Application fee - sleep. After it turned out that the war in South America was started to reduce the number of those with power and eventually destroy the Gate, she used her power to create a semblance of a black hole, as a result of which she disappeared. Before that, she transferred part of her powers to Hei. Whether the protagonist is "Darker Than Black" or Amber, they both blame themselves for what happened, but believe that Qin's sacrifice was not in vain.

Amber

Sets as its goal the protection of all contractors on Earth. Loves Heya since the moment when they were in the Organization. Later she became known as a terrorist who undermines the foundations state power. She created her own structure, the task of which is to prevent the destruction of the Gate. The key ability is time manipulation. The pay is getting younger. Using the power too often will cause Amber to die, which is what happens at the end of Season 1. Her final outburst allowed Hei to stop the collapse.

havok

Member of Heya's group Latin America. Is a regressor. She regained her emotions and agrees to help the protagonist in search of his sister. Possessing strength, she was known as the most feared and powerful contractor. The key ability is to create a vacuum. The fee is to drink the blood of children. During the operation, MI6 was killed by an operative on November 11. She does not regret at all that she lost her abilities, but she does not know exactly how this happened.

Misaki Kirihara

A police lieutenant and Hei's girlfriend. At the same time, he investigates the murders of the Reaper, trying to determine his identity. Good-natured and calm girl. At one time, the protagonist often met with her, having fun. But later Hay realized that policewoman lives in a completely different world, and gave up trying to make friends with her. Misaki has been looking for a protagonist throughout seasons 1 and 2 of the series. Believes that even contractors can be honest and worthy members of society.

Suo Pavlyuchenko

Professor Pavlyuchenko's daughter and contractor. The protagonist of the anime Darker than Black: Gemini and Shooting Star. She was experimented on by her father with the help of her brother. The goal was to create an exact copy of a person. She is very attached to her brother, a good-natured and calm girl. It is hard to accept the fact that he is a contractor. Her strength is the call of a heavy rifle and cartridges for it. The fee is to make origami. At the end of Season 2, the characters in Darker Than Black face a difficult choice. Her brother gave his life so that Suoh could have own world, actually creating a copy and giving it to the girl. Lives now ordinary life and goes to school. Her parents are alive and protect their daughter.

Sion Pavlyuchenko

The key ability is the creation of a copy. The resulting replica differs from the original, albeit slightly. Contractor with great potential. Fee - cannot walk for a while after using abilities. Made a pact with Yin/Izanami in order to save my sister from the horrors of the world. In fact, he loves Suoh very much and is ready to give up his life for her. He took part in the experiment voluntarily. The characters of the 2nd season of "Darker than Black" turned out to be less charismatic, which is why the project was criticized. However, the twin tandem seems well thought out and interesting.

What happened at the end of the second season?

Did Darker Than Black characters die? No, not really. The fact is that Izanami is a contractor who can grant wishes, any. Her payment, like anyone else who wants to use power, is the souls that the girl absorbs. Shion sold himself in exchange for Izanami creating a separate world for Suoh and July, where they are happy. In addition, she asked what he could do for Hei, who wished to stay with Yin. They were transported to another world, just for puppets and contractors, effectively opening the Gate. The main narrative is interrupted along with the awakening of Izanami, now the Organization must find and destroy this contractor, since the girl, in fact, has great power.

Possible sequel

On this moment There is no word on whether Darker than Black season 3 will be released. Although the original project received another episode to celebrate the series' anniversary, there is no confirmed follow-up work. Most likely, the story of the characters "Darker than Black" is officially completed. Despite the fact that the fans of the project hardly want this. If we take into account the rumors, then we can note the cyclical appearance of new "ducks" regarding the continuation of the original anime.

"Darker than Black", as mentioned above, is the original series. It's catchy, deep and a bit sad. The opening of "Darker than Black", or rather, its first season, is all that is left for the fans. However, everything is not so bad. Favorite anime You can watch it over and over with both voice acting and subtitles. "Darker than Black" ultimately allows you to plunge into a completely different world, full of its secrets and mysteries. The story is complete, but fans are left with a lot of questions. Well, an open story with Izanami gives hope for the emergence of a completely new project in the future.