Wakaranai

 

Darker than Black season 2 plows ahead with another stellar episode, again leaving its competition behind in the dust. Although there are anime I haven’t seen, so I can’t say this definitively, there’s little doubt in my mind that this series is the pinnacle of the season, with its fast pace, depth of character, thrilling action sequences and polished production values. And for once I’m not alone in my pick for the season: 2ch recently ranked it as the most entertaining show of the fall lineup! I think the show’s success can be attributed to the fact that it finds a really great position somewhere between being pretentious and overly deep and being too shallow; it is both easily accessible and emotionally captivating. I feel really sorry for those with this misfortune to no have already seen the original DtB. Even though I complained about that series a lot it was sure worth it just for this follow-up season.

The last two episodes have dealt with some really confronting and fascinating themes as Hei continues to emphasise the anti in his new anti-hero role by perpetuating a tyrannical and absusive relationship with his young charge, the sympathetic and multi-faceted, Suou. His physical abuse of Suou was a shocking change of tone for the series. Even though the series never lost its ability to entertain, it gained a much more emotional spin that really gave my heart a good tugging. It’s not as though the violence directed at Suou was particularly graphic or serious, but rather than the physical distress of being kicked and slapped, it was the crushing of Suou’s once sprightly and innocent spirit that made for such distressing and riveting viewing. When she told Hei to hurry up and hit her to get it over and done with, my heart was just broken!

Suou’s character has now reached a point where she has not only been pulled into a life of grey morality, but is also at odds with herself. As she is dragged deeper and deeper into the world of contractors, of killing and solitude, her struggle between her lingering human emotionality and the cold indifference that seeks to possesses her as a contractor is intensifying. Suou’s character is a perplexing and gripping juxtaposition of a young girl with a strong, loving heart and soulless killing machine. I find it impossible not to sympathise with her and root for her as she tries to find herself in this harsh new existence. I think she’s probably one of my favorite character of the last few years.

Hei himself hasn’t reacted well to having to share the limelight with another star. By that I mean he has become grossly unlikeable as the alcoholic, abusive and uncaring hobo. He’s not just a shadow of his former self, but a true wreck of a man, whose competence in battle is just about his only asset as a hero. Another way of looking at it though is that he has become a hell of a lot more interesting. He always bored me as the stoic and unassailable protagonist in the first season, and in this season he is a guy that you just love to hate. And, despite his selfish and unkind attitude towards Suou, he now has a sense of intrigue, clearly caught in a pall of loss over Yin. Most importantly, even though he has a withered demeanor and twisted spirit, I still get the feeling that he is redeemable, and that it’s going to be an impressive moment when his sense of heroism is finally roused. Then again, this series has shown that it’s not totally predictable so far, so maybe things won’t turn out as nicely as that!

With all the moral dilemma and confusion going around, the only thing unequivocally good about this series is the excellent production qualities! Yasushi Ishii has created the best soundtrack I’ve heard for an anime in a long time. It’s unique, creative and textural music that works flawlessly with the series. The animation is slick, again providing an awesome action sequence, and the directing is sharp is effective, helping strengthen the show’s dramatic impact.

✔I think someone on the production team REALLY likes Misaki because every scene she’s in she looks incredibly cool. There must be a whole team of animators dedicated to making her look as suave and stylish as possible for her every appearance. The trench coat she had on this episode probably can’t be topped though. Lookin’g good, Misaki.

✔ What’s this? Gun maintenance? Weapons fans must be delighted. Ignoring the fact that she can spawn the anti-tank rifle and a handful of ammunition out of thing air, it’s rare to find an anime that puts this much thought into portraying guns.

✘ I’m still not really sure what the actual plot for this series is, and this is probably its only major flaw. Sure, there’s plenty of intrigue and important-sounding exchanges of dialogue between mysterious characters, but I’m not really sure what it’s getting at yet. But hey, I never really worked out what the first season was about – at least this series has enough thrills and drama to keep me from worrying about the story.

✘ The rest of the characters (except for Nika who is now thankfully deceased) are all complex and interesting, but for some reason Mao went in the other direction. Maybe he’s just getting into character for the new, cuter animal he’s inhabiting, but he’s been reduced to a pretty lame character who hangs around to make lame attempts at humurous comments.

 

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