Darker than Black

At first glance this draws on the slightly worn-out theme of an alternative version of modern Japan where not everything is as it should be. But on the second viewing, I was captivated by the amazing characters who took hold of me and wouldn't let me go. The charismatic Hei/Li, the ethereal Yin, and the determined Kirihara drew me into this world of contractors, puppets, and the Syndicate, and Darker Than Black turned out to be very pleasant and surprisingly intimate sci-fi. It works both in terms of the long-term development of characters and in the side storylines of the individual enemies, and even though the finale satisfied me more than enough, my excitement for the next series is in full swing. (21.07.2023)

What I like about this is how integrated it is, some of the story feels episodic and yet at the same time reaches into the animated future. I really liked the idea of a world where there are gates and contractors and puppets. I always love ideas like that, except that the execution is often lacking, but thankfully not in this case, so I'm happy. Music – I never saw the opening sequence all the way through, it just didn't sit with me, but the ending sequence... I really enjoyed it, after the episode it was either calming or a “wake-up call", depending on what was going on in a given episode, it just always made such a nice ending to the episode, until I ended up singing it... The main character didn't really grab me at first, I just thought he seemed like a typical stereotype. And you could argue that he actually is, but a stereotype that you grow to like over time – at least I did. A character that doesn't fall into the "hated" department. He's not the usual good guy who's afraid to pull the trigger and then lies awake at night with pangs of conscience. If he has any, he hides them well from his surroundings – and from the viewer. And when he's the good student Li, you don't find his rank annoying, as you do with other characters. I guess you can tell, but I really grew to like him over time! It's probably because of his eyes... ;-) Towards the end, the anime builds up nicely and I already know that I won't keep the 2nd season waiting long. Hooray for genocide! And the 26th episode was very interesting :-D (24.11.2009)