# Darker than Black (2007)

> A Chinese contractor with supernatural powers takes on espionage and assassination jobs in a Tokyo scarred by mysterious gates and a shadowy syndicate.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/29208

## Facts

- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 37
- Episode runtime: 25 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: animation, action, science fiction, mystery
- Network: MBS
- Cast: Hidenobu Kiuchi, Masaru Ikeda, Misato Fukuen, Kiyomi Asai, Ikuya Sawaki, Kana Hanazawa
- TMDB rating: 7.7/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0995941/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: dense
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: brooding, stylish, melancholic, tense, dark

## What critics say

Audience reception is positive, with viewers praising the atmospheric action and layered conspiracy plot while the second season is rated lower than the first.

## Synopsis

Darker than Black (2007-2009) is a Japanese seinen anime produced by MBS, Aniplex, Square Enix and BONES, following Hei, a Chinese contractor with supernatural abilities who takes on espionage and assassination missions in Tokyo. Ten years after mysterious spatial anomalies opened Heaven's Gate in South America and Hell's Gate over Tokyo, the real stars have vanished and been replaced by false ones, and people with special powers called contractors have emerged. Hei's engine is a restless hunt for work and answers as he moves through a city shaped by a secretive organization called the Syndicate, which displaced the United States as the dominant global power after the Heaven's War. Each episode tends to pair a mission with a slowly tightening web of conspiracy, and the show runs for two seasons across thirty-seven episodes, rewarding attentive viewers who track its shifting alliances. Its tone is dark, brooding and stylish, with violent set pieces and a melancholic sense of a sky that no longer looks right. Fans of Code Geass, Hellsing Ultimate and Cowboy Bebop will find a similar blend of supernatural action, shadowy intrigue and morally compromised antiheroes.

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