Darker than Black

this is one of the best series ever done, **a must watch.**

Bones does a fantastic job with the Darker Than Black series in creating a dark fantasy world where humans and "contractors" with supernatural powers are at odds with each other over not just control/power but also the right to exist. The MC, Hei, is so intriguing with his constant struggle between his human and contractor side (not to mention that he is a complete badass). The rest of the crew including Yin, Mao and even Huang make a very dynamic team and each has a very dark and complicated past. Even the other supporting characters get fleshed out pretty well.

The first season is an absolute thrill and I couldn't stop watching till the very end. It does a great job of having individual arcs (that are each 2 episodes long) which introduce us to tons of great characters while slowly delving into the deep and satisfying overarching story. There's a ton of plot twists and you honestly don't know where everyone's true intentions and motivations lie. The quality is great throughout and the action and anticipation keeps on building until the very last episode. However, the second season (Gemini) and OVA (Gaiden) are definitely not as strong as the first season (I mean it's a tough act to follow) but are still enjoyable nonetheless even with their flaws. Particularly, I just wish that Hei was a bit more of the focus in the second season rather than Suo. Also, the season 2 ending...

The action is awesome throughout the entire series and you see a good variety of different powers amongst the many contractors that we meet in this series. You can tell Hei is a badass but he isn't super over-powered compared to the enemies which makes the battles more entertaining. The dub is pretty solid for this series with Hei rocking his best impersonation of the Christian Bale Batman voice. I'd definitely recommend at least watching the first season as it is a staple of the darker action/thriller anime genre for a reason. You won't be disappointed in this Bones work. And I just gotta say that I still love me some Misaki.

Opinion:

I would have to actually rewatch the start of the series again, and still missing season 3 (?).

There are action scenes in there for sure, but I think the thriller and mystery part plays a higher role.

Unlike Black Lagoon, while the different arcs seem to be pretty loose at first, they are in a way connected more to the main plot.

I think I would have wished a bit more for a streamlined and connected plot, with some twisting questioning appearing later having happened earlier on to keep you

[spoiler]At the end of the series (?), episode 25, there is still not revealed what these gates are and where they are coming from in the first place.[/spoiler]

Rating: 9/10

Like: ...black lagoon (with mystery elements and plot twists?), Black Bullet

Totally weird and confusing concept and plot on start but grows on you as you watch it

It's nice as an anime that has that old feeling, but the story is pretty weak Imo.

6.7/10