Alternative Titles
Darker than BLACK - Kuro no Keiyakusha
Information
Type: TV
Episodes: 25
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Apr 5, 2007 to Sep 28, 2007
Duration:
24 min. per episode Rating:
R - 17+ (violence & profanity)
L represents licensing company
StatisticsScore: 8.301 (scored by 10015 users)
Ranked: #1072
Popularity: #40
Members: 17,706
Favorites: 742 1 indicates a weighted score
My Info
Popular Tags
action drama mystery sci-fi supernatural |
SynopsisIn Tokyo, an impenetrable field known as "Hell's Gate" appeared ten years ago. At the same time, psychics who wield paranormal powers at the cost of their conscience also emerged. Hei is one of the most powerful of these psychic agents, and along with his blind associate, Yin, works for one of the many rival agencies vying to unlock the mysteries of Hell's Gate. (Source: ANN) |
Related AnimeAdaptation: Darker than BLACK
Side story: Darker than BLACK OVA
Characters & Voice Actors
Staff
Recommendations
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People with mysterious supernatural abilities join secret organizations designed to watch/control other people with similar abilities
Very similar premise; Contractors are very similar to Witches.
Let's just say Darker Than Black is much grittier and darker, and there are nothing assumed. It's also more intelligent and you can't find any over used cliche at all. If Witch Hunter Robin was an excellent show for you, then Darker than Black will be a superior show for you.
Both feature people with superpowers, both are episodic, and both are boring.
Witches and contractors seems like similar, ^^
Similar premise to both shows, superpowered people in a quasi-future society, both centered around a character with above average powers that seem conflicted. Both have elements of mystery, Darker than BLACK just feels a little more hardcore.
Both shows focus on the slow unravaling of a mystery and conspracy through police work and investigation, with small bits of action in between. Both have a case of interesting characters, great music, and high production values.
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The similiar main character Lelouch and Hei act very nice hiding their true goal
Both are "only" very good during most part of series, but both have gorgeous (!) finish.
Blood? Contractors? Mysterious green haired women in white suits? Pizza Hut everywhere? Same time slot?! That's right - Darker than Black and Code Geass have all these qualites in common. If you like one, there's a good chance you'll find the other good/funny.
Whilst they aren't really terribly alike, the dark themes these two anime's share make them both highly recommendable, and if you like one then you will probably like the other. Both of the main characters, Hei and Lelouch, obtain supernatural abilities, and whilst Lelouch manipulates people and leads a revolution, Hei is manipulated by a mysterious company. But both characters seek to change the way the world currently works for the better.
Darker than Black and Code Geass are both in a technological world where the protagonist have a very powerful ability. There are lots of pizza hut hidden in the background or just somewhere on the screen. Suspense and fights, thats what they are all about.
Lelouch and Hei are very similar in that they both have supernatural abilites obtained through a "contract" (different meanings in each anime, but still a contract :P ) They wear a mask to the public (Lelouch is Zero and Hei is BK-201)and both are devoted to their little sisters. Both have Pizza Hut everywhere and mysterious green haired girls (well, one of them is really blond, but sometimes it looks green). If you like one of them, you'll probably like the other ;)
The characters are very similar to each-other Hei is to LeLouche as Amber is to CC. Amber and CC even look alike! Now back to WHY. The goal for each of them (Lelouche and Hei) both involve their sisters. Both have "magical" powers to help them succeed in their way of their goal. Either finding or protecting it seems so alike.
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Reviews
| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Character |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
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Nov 7, 200725 of 25 episodes seen 90 of 107 people found this review helpful Darker than Black, what an adventure it has been. Darker than Black takes place in a near future world where two gates appeared, Heaven's Gate and Hell's Gate. The mysterious appearance of these gates brought with them the Contractors. Contractors are people who have entered into a contract with an unknown force and gained a unique power in return. The nature of the contract however requires them to give back each time they use their power. Payment is anything from smoking a cigarette to writing... a poem. The main story is told through an omnipotent point of view with the "camera man" being at the scene and generally following a certain group of characters, but can focus on other characters as the protagonists for an entire arc. It is a very unique telling of the story and hard to put into words, but that isn't a bad thing.
The animation and art style of Darker than Black are superb. Each character is completely unique and unlike some other shows with several similar looking characters, Darker than Black does an excellent job of giving each character an unique style and a winning personality. The fights of Darker than Black are done very well and are very fluid. Although short at times, it is after all not a shounen series, they are excellent none the less. Some fights are extended and are a real treat for the eyes. Bones, the producers, did an excellent job with the series and I am looking forward to seeing more of their work.
The soundtrack for Darker than Black is up there with my favourites of all time. An excellent mix of various genres of music. At one point it will be a jazz track, then later it will be an orchestra piece or a rock track. Overall the music is really well done and accurately depicts the scene. At some points I found myself with the hair on the back of my neck standing up as the music heated up in preparation of a coming battle. The voice acting is top notch. Hei has two distinct voices: one serious and the other calm or even clumsy sounding. The other main characters: Kirihara, Yin, Huang, and Mao also have top notch performances. Overall the casting and voice acting are very well done.
Each character has their own special traits and have very well written dialogue. Although it is for the most part an Action/Drama type of series, there are often Comedic undertones to help break up the suspense. When Hei is not masquerading as BK201, his codename, he is a very funny and sarcastic individual. Most every character has moments that make you want to laugh, especially Gai, the off the wall private eye, and his partner, the pink haired money hungry Kiko. All in all the characters have a very nice chemistry and it is interesting to see Hei's interactions with the people who are pursuing him. The only thing that is holding back the characters is, with the exception of Hei and Yin, there is very little back story provided for many of the main characters. This is hard to do of course though with an episodic type series.
The series seems episodic as the story is generally told in two episode mini-arcs, with the final arc being three episodes, it never really feels very episodic. Especially toward the end where the main plot runs into each new arc. Although there is a sense of conclusion after each arc, it never really feels like it is in an episodic nature (if that makes any sense at all). I immensely enjoyed Darker than Black and with a very satisfying ending I can only dream of a sequel. read more
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| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Character |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
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Apr 17, 200825 of 25 episodes seen 31 of 40 people found this review helpful Ah, the age old question; what to do when certain people suddenly begin manifesting mysterious superpowers. Darker than BLACK responds with a classic solution found in series ranging from Witch Hunter Robin to X-Men: Form secret organizations to monitor and control these people. However, despite the similar theme, this show is anything but derivative.
In the beginning of the series, the premise of the show is somewhat vague as little is known about where the powers of the... contractors come from, or how they are related to the gates. As the series progresses more information is inevitably revealed, creating good plot exposition and allowing the story to move at a decent pace and keep each episode interesting. Where this series really shines however, is the characters.
Hei is portrayed brilliantly, having a rather comicbook superhero-like persona but adding a unique spin to it. His motives are not initially apparent, nor is his true relationship with the syndicate to which he belongs. Also, while contractors are known to be emotionless and purely rational, Hei somehow manages to retain his humanity, an anomaly which many of his acquaintances and opponents comment on. The true reason for this, as well as the origin of his powers remains hidden until the end of the series.
The other members of Hei's organization are similarly well portrayed, each being represented uniquely and interestingly. Huang, Yin, and Mao each have a well written back-story that is both engaging and important to the overall plot. The other characters in the story are outstanding as well, especially the antagonists. Despite the fact that the contractors are supposed to be unemotional, each character still manages to have a unique personality which often even enhanced by this fact.
If there is one weakness in this series, it is the ending, which is unfortunately rather inconclusive. I'm kind of hoping for a sequel, but this may be difficult for reasons that would be hard to disclose without revealing spoilers. The ending also has a "suddenly everything got weird" part to it that seems common in final episodes of supernatural anime, but at least it makes a lot more sense than many I've seen. If you like shows about people with supernatural powers, I think you should definitely watch this series. read more
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| Overall |
10 |
| Story |
9 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Character |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
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Aug 2, 200725 of 25 episodes seen 64 of 83 people found this review helpful ==STORY==
The story is very good in my opinion, it contains many details about the history, abilities and life of the characters. It gets more and more complicated through the show. The story tells about a world, very similar to ours that had gone through a massive change. one day the starts started raining from the skies and together with them appeared a gate, Hells Gate. Some people were given special powers but not for free and they didn't really choose them. They were simply given spe...cial powers. They are called Contractors. A contractor has a special ability, as an example I can rain fire from the sky however it will cost me something. Each contractor has a different "payment" method. Some have to drink alcohol after each time they use their powers, some have to drink blood. The contractors are lacking emotions (as far as I've noticed) but aren't emotionless. Together with them appeared 2 more life forms, Dolls and Oracles. The dolls lack ANY emotions or free will, they act according to what they are told to do. They can do anything a normal human can. The oracles can... obviously predict the future. Since the "Hell's Gate" appeared many weird phenomenons started to appear near it. The city (Tokyo) was closed within walls and new skies appeared.
=ART==
The art is awesome, there's always a feeling of mystery and an enemy might hide anywhere. You can never tell what's going on and it doesn't randomly switch the scenes. The show is smooth and is pretty much perfect.
==CHARACTER==
The characters start with a small amount of info about them such as name and that's it. The info will grow through the story and new parts of them will reveal. The characters evolve and change quite a lot through the whole story. Some develop new sides which have never been seen even if they shouldn't.
=ENJOYMENT==
I enjoy this show very much, to be honest with you I can't stop watching it. Almost watched the raws! The story isn't messed up, the art is great and you just can't stop watching. This show will leave you with a taste of more at the end of each and every episode.
==OVERALL==
I enjoy this show so much and that's the main reason I'm making this review. Since some of you are probably confused I am more than glad to write this review down for you. I really hope you'll enjoy this show as much as I do.
~regards -> Tsunami! <- read more
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Opening Theme#01: "Howling" by Abingdon Boys School (eps 1-14)
#02: "Kakusei Heroism ~The Hero without a Name~" by An Cafe (eps 15-25)
Ending Theme#01: "Tsuki Akari" by Rie Fu (eps 1-14)
#02: "Dreams" by HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR (eps 15-25)
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