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ファイト／ステイナイト 
OP Theme: 「覚醒ヒロイズム ～THE HERO WITHOUT A “NAME”～」 (Kakusei Heroism ~The Hero Without A “Name”~) by アンティック-珈琲店- (Antic Cafe) - AVI version (960 x 540, 42.4MB) | PSP version (14MB)
Well, things are starting to become interesting. I like how this time around the people targeted for extermination are the MI6/SIS guys. The series also come with a set of new OP and ED theme. I personally like the new OP better than Howling. I just think it's more consistent and there is some kind of rhythm to it. Having said that, the song is nothing special and the animation that accompanies it are not as good as the first OP. The new ED theme, which is performed by High and Mighty Color, is pretty good but I prefer Tsukiakari, which is far more melancholic in nature. This new song seems like a love song. It makes me wonder about the girl in the white hat seen with Hei and Yin. This brings me to another point, Hei's love interest, which I always thought is Yin. However, it seems like he'll either be paired off with Misaki or Amber.
The episode begins with April about to exit a male hosts club. When one of the hosts asks her if she'd like him to send the receipt, she asks the guy to send it to the British Secret Intelligence Service. She asks him to just use the abbreviation as mailing address but instead of MI6, she wants him to use SIS (MI6 is an abbreviation that is no longer used by the British Secret Intelligence Service). The host thinks that April is joking although he's impressed with her drinking ability. Cut to a shot of a group of her 4 male hosts looking drunk. In response April tells the guy that she can't do anything but drinking after work. Outside the club, April bitches about the fact that all of the hosts are drunk before the client is drunk. When she turns around, she's shocked to see Amber and a caucasian boy with gray hair standing across the road. She quickly runs towards them while making a phone call to November 11.
Unfortunately, both Amber and the boy already enter a black car before April can reach the two of them. After the black car left, April hopes that November will answer her call but it seems the guy is still in the shower and therefore doesn't hear the call ("Death" cigarette for the win!). April decides to leave a message telling November 11 that she just saw "February". She then enters a cab to chase the black car. However, as soon as she steps into the cab, a major explosion happens in the area. In the aftermath of the explosion, November 11 comes to a hospital where July and their boss already wait in front of an operating room. The boss informs November 11 that one person survives but has not regained consciousness yet. He is also concerned with the news that February has been seen in town. Because of this, November plays the message that April left in his mobile before she got caught up in the explosion.
In the message, April confirms that the person that she saw was "February" and that she was accompanied by a Caucasian boy with mismatched eye colors. Later on in the rooftop, the boss tells November 11 that at one point when attending a war buddy's funeral in Hong Kong, he saw February there. However, he wasn't sure it was her since they've never heard about her for 5 years. Because of this, he wonders why she purposely appear now. November then informs the boss that they still have no information about the companion. The boss tells November that in this country, there's a saying that "Water that has been spilled won't go back into the glass". The information that February stole from them as double agent can't be regained. UK lost a research related to Contractors. Having said that, they can still give appropriate punishment to the "maid who spilled the water" (whoa, why blame the maid? It could be the cat who spilled the water).
What the boss is concerned is the connection between February's appearance and the cycle of the Great Dark Spot. He then ends the conversation by telling November 11 to suspend other duties and to give top priority in capturing February. Meanwhile at the Astronomy dome, Kanami informs her assistant that according to the Zurich convention, the Great Dark Spot is the largest class of sunspot which occurs once every several years. The sunspot is concentrated in one area of the sun's surface, making it looks like one giant eyeball. They weren't able to observed the sunspot prior to the gate's appearance. Because of this, they don't know what's going to happen. Having said that, they do know that during the last Great Dark Spot cycle, which happened 5 years ago, the South American gate disappeared. Meanwhile, the boy who was seen with February, is now seen on a street, trying to grab a necklace which is stuck on a tree branch.
Much to the boy's surprise, Hei appears and picks the necklace for the boy. He gives it back and tells the boy that may his smile always be protected. The boy looks confused and asks Hei why he did it. After a while, however, he remembers that at a time like this, he should thank the person so he thanks Hei for the help. The two end up introducing themselves and the boy informs Hei that his name is Maki. When Hei asks the boy who gave the necklace, the boy explains that it's an important person. In response, Hei asks the boy to treasure the necklace. Having said that, he can't help but wonder how it got into the tree in the first place. Instead of answering the question, the boy turns around and say thank you before leaving Hei. After the incident, Hei walks to the opposite direction, arriving at an area where an explosion has just happened. Mao then appears to tell Hei that the 45th street was the aim because a meteor fragment was kept there.
Hei enters a black car where Huang is waiting to give him the brief. He tells Hei that the MI6 people have left tracks and hands Hei a dossier on April, informing him that she's one of the people that they encountered during Havoc's case. Hei's mission is to recover the meteor fragments. Meanwhile, Maki returns to an abandoned underground bar and is questioned by a red-headed man who wants to know what Maki was thinking when he decided to return to the scene of the crime. Maki explains that he dropped his important necklace because it was blown off by the force of the explosion and ended up got stuck on a tree. He then refers to the red-headed man as Amagiri, telling the guy how he met an interesting and gentle person who also projects a mysterious vibe. Maki, however, ensures Amagiri that he wasn't being followed. In response, Amagiri tells Maki that now they've obtained the meteor fragment, the town will be filled with chaos and hatred.
Maki then changes the conversation and asks Amagiri of Amber's whereabouts. Amagiri tells him that she's gone out to search for the last key. Upon hearing this, Maki wants to help out but Amagiri tells him that he doesn't need to come. Maki is confused to hear this and wonders if Amber is meeting someone. Speaking of Amber, she's now seen exiting a train station and goes to buy umbrella even though the day is clear. Back to the Astronomy dome, Kanami assures her assistant that when the Great Dark Spot happens here, it won't be the same as the phenomenon that happened in South America. However, she also thinks it's one of the omen indicators that they must consider. Kanami then tries to tell her assistant about what the stargazer (the old lady in the astronomy dome) saw during the Great Dark Spot that happened before South America's gate disappeared. Before she can do this, however, someone asks her to go back to the observation room.
It appears the stargazer has spoken about how the stars whisper in happiness and sadness. Meanwhile, another explosion happens in the city. Saitou who's inside a car with Kouno points out that the building in question is MI6's Tokyo branch. Misaki receives similar information from her supervisor, who believes that CIA agent was involved. The two then enter a room and are surprised to see Eric Nishijima in it. Misaki wants to know where the foreign affairs and section manager but Eric Nishijima cuts to the chase by telling them that he needs an 'off-the-record help'. He starts explaining about the event that took place three weeks ago, where a material has been taken from inside the gate. Although CIA agent was involved in the beginning, the one who took out the material was from another organization. Upon hearing this, Misaki's suspicion lies on MI6.
Nishijima explains to her that UK has lost its lead when it comes to Contractors information after their information was leaked out. In the last few years, it's obvious that their their impatience has become visible. Misaki theorizes that CIA might have been the one who exploded the MI6 branch in order to regain the material from inside the gate. Before Eric can respond properly, the three hear another explosion coming from outside the window. When they open the window, they see the CIA headquarter has been attacked. Down on the street, Mao is surprised to know that the CIA has been attacked and wonders if it's a retaliation by the MI6. Huang doesn't agree with this and thinks it's another organization, causing him to wonder if they're trying to start a war. Meanwhile, a girl who works at a ramen place is throws water to wet the street. However, because she's not paying attention, she throws a little towards an approaching customer.
ED Theme: 「Dreams」 by HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR - AVI version (960 x 540, 23MB) | PSP version (8.53MB)
Thankfully the customer is none other than Amber and thanks to the umbrella that she bought, she doesn't get wet. At the same time, November 11 finds out that his boss that MI6 is still waiting for information that is provided by the mole who works for CIA. His boss is heading to the American embassy while November's job is still to capture February. Before November 11 can leave the parking area with his car, he's confronted by Hei who wants him to return the meteor fragment that MI6 stole. November 11 flatly claims the accusation although he wouldn't mind getting the chance to fight Hei again. In addition to this, he'd like to know February's whereabouts. To help Hei understands what he's talking about, November tells the guy that February's code name in Hei's organization is "Amber". Hei is shocked to know that Amber is in this town. November informs him that their agent has checked and confirmed that the explosion was done by her.
After the two have screaming match accusing the other party of knowing about Amber's whereabouts, November realizes that Amber has done something bad to Hei's organization as well. Hei then leaves the building by jumping off it after telling November to stay away from Amber because he wants to deal with her on his own. As November races out of the parking lot, he calls in MI6 again to ask for new information about the explosion that happened to CIA. After finding out that Chinese Ministry of National Security is involved, November suspect that the next explosion target is the Chinese embassy. True enough, as soon as he gets out of the parking lot, he sees the explosion happens. He then manages to stop the car in time to avoid another explosion. Once the dust settles, November notices Mika so he goes off the car to confront the boy. Before he left, however, he tells July to contact someone in case something happens to him.
November then faces off with Mika. Mika seems helpless at first until he uses his power to create a hand prints all over November's location and detonates the area. At the same time, Kanami informs her assistant that this is the second time she's heard the stargazer speak. The first time was during the Great Dark Spot that happened 5 years ago and back then the South American's gate disappeared. Because of this Kanami thinks that this could be the beginning of the end. Meanwhile Hei is on the street, reminiscing about the time when he was still working with Amber. Back then Amber suggested that Hei, Pai, and herself run away together to a place where they can see the stars. She then gave Hei the same necklace that she gave Mika, hoping that it'll protect his smile. In the present, Amber arrives at the tobacco shop where Yin works. She greets Yin and tells her that it's been a while since they last met. Right at this point, the weather starts to rain.
Impression:
It looks like someone at bones really like Souseiseki (no, not Desu. Her sister, the one on the right). Otherwise, I have no idea why they decided to go with such character design for Maki. Overall, this episode gives a good third party description of Amber's nature. It looks like she's a true femme fatale in a classic film noir style. She was a double agent that betrayed not only the MI6 but also the organization that Hei works for. On that note, it looks like Amber has some kind of pre-cognition ability. I assume this because she bought an umbrella on a perfectly fine weather. I think she knows of what will happen in advance (her getting splashed by water, the rain that comes when she visits Yin's store) and therefore able to prepare for the situation. Having said that, it seems to be a rather passive ability and if she betrays powerful organization left and right, I can't help but wonder how she manages to stay hidden.
Meh to both the new OP and ED. I like the old ones better. They're darker and more edgy.
the ED is acceptable. The new OP has an initial D feeling to it (therefore not suitable...). The old OP and EDs are still better.
I love the new OP, but not really the ED. I preffer Tsukiakari better. The OP has a bit of initial D feeling to it, like what melty said, but I still liked the action in it. Because it started off with cars, I think.
This brings me to another point, Hei's love interest, which I always thought is Yin.
Really? I always saw it as a sort of camaraderie/friendship thing rather than attraction. Then again, I haven't watched any new episodes since 9, so I may have missed something--or not paid close enough attention.
Really? I always saw it as a sort of camaraderie/friendship thing rather than attraction. Then again, I haven't watched any new episodes since 9, so I may have missed something--or not paid close enough attention.
Yeah, I guess it can be interpreted as close friendship. But I think I saw the signs coming from Yin (assuming Androids...er, Dolls can feel love). Hei is a bit too cold though so it's kind of hard to figure out if he actually likes anyone.
First time post, long time lurker, haha...Anyway, I've been rooting for Yin(and personally believed, given the kind of focus we've had on Yin so far) that for Hei's love interests it was going to come down to Yin vs. Amber: Crayola Battle (sorry, my little joke XD). What made you change your mind? And Hei/Misaki is just too weird and unlikely in my opinion...
By the way, I think the girl in the white hat is Bai. Wasn't she wearing a white dress as a child in the eps with flashback? 'Cause we've got chibi-Yin and chibi-Hei there already...
Does'nt anyone love Meena ;_____; ?
Hei with Misaki would be interesting, though I'd doubt the chances of Hei hooking up with anyone in this series. DTB just isn't the kind of series to really have major romantical plot lines eh? A few hints here are there maybe with Yin and Meena but I just can't see Hei falling for anyone.
The whole episode all I could think of was: Boku Boku Boku Boku Boku Boku Boku Boku.
It was very distracting. .__.
What does "boku" mean?! sorry i don't know any Japanese T____T
And one more question, I’m still behind in watching DTB (stuck in episode 13) who is this girl with green hair? is there any connection between her and CC from Code Geass? they look identical but i don't see any particular relation between the two animes.
sorry if you have answered this question before, i couldn't find anything in your Blog. if you have indeed talked about it, just refer me to that article :)
"boku" is basically a masculine form of saying "I".
On the subject "Hei's love interest", I agree with Cat in that I doubt they'll delve deeply into any romance in the series. But I can certainly see some attraction coming from Meena, Yin and Amber (and possibly Misaki later on). Amber looks like a past love interest to me, especially in that flashback. As for the others, it just seems to be all one-sided love with Hei on the receiving end.
If Hei does ever gets an interest in somebody in the series however, I personally think/hope it would be Yin. I love how they're interacting (or lack thereof >.>;;) with each other so far, and I hope that'll continue to develop.
agree with some above... i doubt Hei will fall for any girls. DTB just don't go into that kind of romantic relationship story aren't they ^^'
.. can't imagine Hei falling in love etc etc anyway
though i enjoy every scene where girls falling for him *i might be one of them...*
Yin for me, might just a lil sister for him
while Amber sounds like a past partner, not into romance stuff
about Misaki, i am not that sure for this one, new op show something like Misaki going to know Hei's real face...
it might develop into something interesting hehehe
while, if i can chose any pairing for Hei....
i'll be on HeiHavoc side *though i kno it's impossible*
i still can't forgot arc 5-6 impression left about them on me...
Thank Jesus Christ this isn't American TV where every character sleeps with every other character. As a matter of fact, no one has to sleep with anyone. By looking at Bones' past track record, I doubt that Hei would get definitely paired off with someone. But if he does, I would have to say that it's Amber.
Anyway, I've been rooting for Yin(and personally believed, given the kind of focus we've had on Yin so far) that for Hei's love interests it was going to come down to Yin vs. Amber: Crayola Battle (sorry, my little joke XD). What made you change your mind? And Hei/Misaki is just too weird and unlikely in my opinion...
The new OP kind of puts Misaki in a position where she would be involved in Hei's life. Moreover, she's one of the few 'non-Contractors' who have seen Hei's face.
What does "boku" mean?! sorry i don't know any Japanese T____T
"Boku" means "I". It's a term that Japanese male tend to use in daily conversation. Female usually don't use "Boku". Well, some female do but it sounds kind of masculine, prompting people to call them tomboy, etc. In a series called Rozen Maiden, there's a female doll called Souseiseki (who has the same mismatched eyes as Mika from this episode) who likes to use "Boku" to refer to herself. That's why her fans nick-named her "Boku".
On the subject "Hei's love interest", I agree with Cat in that I doubt they'll delve deeply into any romance in the series. But I can certainly see some attraction coming from Meena, Yin and Amber (and possibly Misaki later on).
Why do people think that Meena is even a contender? Her role seems to be one-off like those James Bond girls (the non-important ones). Assuming there'll be a romance, I think it'll come down to either Yin, Amber, or Misaki.
Is it just me, or are the Pizza Hut ads increasing exponentially?
>> Is it just me, or are the Pizza Hut ads increasing exponentially?
There's always around 3-4 ads per episode. One is a large advertising billboard, one is small ads on public transport, then there's boxes of pizzas that the characters consume.
I agree, I always thought it would be Yin and I still believe in that - it's more interesting from the doll aspect. A double agent love is just too predictable and bland in my eyes but it's up to DTB.
Personally, I think Misaki wouldn't even begin to be paired with Hei.
>>>There's always around 3-4 ads per episode. One is a large advertising billboard, one is small ads on public transport, then there's boxes of pizzas that the characters consume.
My point is that I started noticing more, and those being more blatant.
>>>Back then Amber suggested that Hei, Pai, and herself run away together to a place where they can see the stars.
Her name is Bai -_-
BTW, Amber's seiyuu is Tomoko Kawakami, Misuzu's seiyuu from AIR. No wonder Amber has the gigglelish "ni ha ha". It's fitting really, since Misuzu and Amber seem to have the same sad smile.
The reason I started watching DARKER THAN BLACK was just to hear AN CAFE's new song. I really love the series now and even though I fell in love with HOWLING... This OP is WAY BETTER! Go AN CAFE!
Bai means white, and hei is black in chinese in case you guys did'nt know. Btw Garten, are you going to cover the special ending episode for Death Note.
Quote:
"Having said that, it seems to be a rather passive ability and if she betrays powerful organization left and right, I can't help but wonder how she manages to stay hidden."
Perhaps she can also affect what she sees, like.. she look into the future and is able to see what would happen if she does that or that.
Tho I might think it is more to her than meats the eye, or brain.. like Hei I don't think she is a normal contractor.
Her name is Bai -_-
It's actually spelled "Pai" in Japanese. At least according to many Japanese source that I've gone to. I know the kanji for her name means white (shiro). However, the katakana reading that's given to her name is clearly "Pai" not "Bai".
From Japanese wikipedia:
白 <パイ>
声‐藤井結夏（幼少期）
黒の妹で現在は行方不明。アンバーと同じく南米で失踪、行方不明になる直前まで彼女と共に居た。組織の関係者なのかどうか、また契約者かどうかは不明。第一話と第十二話のアバンタイトルで星空の下に佇む少女。
You can clearly see there that her name is spelled as "Pai" 「パイ」instead of "Bai" 「バイ」.
Btw Garten, are you going to cover the special ending episode for Death Note.
Definitely. I may as well do it to complete the series. But it's not out yet.
the 1st 20s of the opening remind me of initial D......
Garten:
The Chinese character is pronounced "bai" in Mandarin. I thought maybe they were using a Cantonese pronunciation but I checked a dictionary and it turns out to be "baak". However, I checked back at the end of episode 5 and it's clear that Hei is saying "pai". I guess it's official that way, but to a native Chinese speaker, it sounds so bad :(
Then again, they also screwed up Hei's name on his application in episode 11.
"Why do people think that Meena is even a contender? Her role seems to be one-off like those James Bond girls (the non-important ones). Assuming there'll be a romance, I think it'll come down to either Yin, Amber, or Misaki."
Well when I wrote about Meena I was talking about those 2 episodes she featured in, and not as a future character. My mistake with the presumptious sentence structure, sorry about the confusion.
Personally I'd love to see an Amber x Hei storyline but alas, its doubtful.
no, Bai is also white in mandarin, so i think they're using that one since hei is also black, i mean the pronunciation as well as written ( well Cantonese and mandarin have same writings but different pronunciations).
I want a love story in Darker than black!!!.. so, i think that the most sexy couple would be Hei and Amber, and they seem to be in a hate/love relationship
"Bai" is the way to spell 白 [Shiro] in mandarin. But the remember that the Japanese put their 'borrowed' words [that's the Katakana] in the form where they are pronounced as. And from what I've heard from my friend who is a regular chinese speaker, she pronounce "bai" as "Pai". That is why the Katakana is written as "Pai" instead of "Bai". If it was to be written as "Bai" then they'd pronounce it as "Bai". And it wouldn't sound the same as the mandarin version.
Sorry if it's confusing, but it's the best way I can explain it.
I can't wait for this epsiode, new op/ed themes look awesome too~
But i can't downlaod the new op - megaupload doesn't work with my internet service and the page on the sendspace link says "Sorry, there was an error. The file may have already been deleted or it may be in use."
Can somebody upload it again please? I really want to watch it =(
Shana, I just re-uploaded the PSP version of the OP:
Download the OP
I'll try to upload the larger one tomorrow (9 hours from now) but I hope this will do for now.
As a Chinese person, I can safely say "白" is pronounced as "Bái". In Cantonese (I'm from Hong Kong) it's pronounced as "bag(6)", which gives it sort of a "baak" sound.
(Just restating what everybody's been stating.)
I don't know, but is there a hint for MisakixNovember? Maybe it's just me being stupid and overanalyzing stuff though.
The love interest is definitely Misaki. Notice how in the opening song she is pictured watching in 'awe' of how Hei executes his martial arts moves. She is animated in that moment for a purpose and a hint. Also, note the closing of the latest episode... there is a girl with Hei doing several things on a beach, like lying under an umbrella. This woman's hair is black. Amber's hair is blonde. Also, Yin appears with Hei and the mystery woman (Misaki) for a split second, but she is not shown being involved in doing the couple activities that Hei is participating in with the woman. It's all there, just look closely. Also, Misaki appeared in the opening song for the episodes before 15 as well. They did this same thing in Disney's Gargoyles - Elisa Maza, a New York detective ended up in a relationship with the gargoyle leader Goliath at the end of the series - and they didn't pair up at all until the end. It's the human woman and the supernatural male theme all over again. It's all obvious it will be Misaki and Hei.
Urgh...I hate Misaki.... she seems to be the leader of that little group, but she never does anything useful...hate these type of characters...
On another note, I never thought of Yin as a candidate for Hei's love interest, I always thought he treated her as a sister, the sister he'd lost.
Anyway, I pray to God that Hei doesn't end up with Misaki.
Actually, just had to comment about the new ED vs. Tsukiakari. While I prefer Tsukiakari myself because of the tone it sets, but reading the subs of the ED shows that it does make sense. It talks about loss and correlates with the ending sequence. Btw, the girl in the white hat is Bai -- his sister. Although I see that many people have already commented on that. (Bai is Chinese pinyin for white, I believe, that's the discrepancy .. since Li Shen Shung is supposedly Chinese.)
As for Hei's love interest, I also doubt that there will be any in this anime .. although I can definitely picture something between Hei and Yin. Yet, that's even a stretch as I believe he views her as another sister to protect (to a point).
I wonder what Amber's abilities are, too .. and I assume that Mika's abilities were like that of the .. Chinese bodyguard of the ganglord's daughter. although that seems rather strange ..
I can't help but wish for a YinxHei ending considering how they react towards one another in episodes 13 and 14? But then again, perhaps Hei only wants to protect the ones around him because he failed in protecting Pai, who was the one most closest to him. I do hope there will be any possibilities however it seems as if it will only be a close companion/partner relationship.
I've been reading that Amber might die off in DTB, which is a likely case because her appearance just gave me the instant thought that her character will die. Well, in DTB, seems like every other contractor besides Hei dies or will die in upcoming episodes. I don't mind either way, Amber's story doesn't interest me that much.
To Anan: Perhaps, but I thought that in the closing, the girl might be Pai (don't remember but does Pai have black hair?) However, I didn't really base it with Misaki because I never trust OPs with the pairings and such because sometimes they just animate characters and give you a "idea" of what it is suppose to be like. Maybe it will be Misaki and Hei but Hei doesn't seem to be the type that will give feedback, so I doubt it will be with anyone. And Misaki has on and off screen times, she appears only when the police is needed, however she does seem to have interest in Hei the Contractor.
However, these all all my assumptions, heh, perhaps I am wrong in explaining about the OP. *shrugs*
intriguing. i like li more each time (hah, i know i'm using his alias). so amber has some relationship with yin? and the kid with the 2 colored eyes was pretty freaky. my favorite character (mao) didn't get enough air time, but i rather like the pace of this episode. waiting to see how they resolve this.
btw, since li said amber was his (prey?), i kept expecting her to plunge li's (hiei?)'s life straight into his back--so that scene where they were talking about running away was unaccountably suspenseful.
you thought yin was hei's love interest? she's like... 10.
oh hell, if anime doesn't rearrange your sense of... hey, i'm not talking morality, it's aesthetics. i just don't find it utsukushii. i think misaki is better off a free agent. and amber? eh. let her play with the little boy. plus, yin's a doll. say that 3 times and see if that doesn't send creepy crawlies up your arm. ^^
besides, this anime doesn't feel like the makers felt the need to insert any inkling of romance.
the new OP and ED doesn't particularly grab me, but i don't feel the need to mute, and that's good enough for me.
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