The ending for Darker than Black:
Ryūsei no Gemini was very satisfying. Although very sad, the conclusion given to Suou’s narrative was solid and fitted the overall plot of season 2.
I loved the role of Suou's
pendant as it ties in nicely with the plot of the show. I found it irritating that I was not able to think of any theories on its purpose considering the stark similarities between Suou and s1’s Shinoda Chiaki.
Bones execution of the climax featuring the separation of Suou and Hei (music, animation, VAs and script) was well done. It greatly evoked my emotions towards Suou and Hei thus giving justice to the empathy I gave them during the run of the show.
The scene truly served as the peak and culmination of the characterizations of Suou, Hei and the mutual growth of their relationship amid their internal and external conflicts. The dialogue and body language hold so much emotion being the moment where the two were most intimate. Suou’s lines contained subtexts of fear and sadness brought by a conditioned response due to her repeated experiences of reunion leading to separation and probably doubt brought by her uncertainty of Hei’s feelings, not necessarily “love-love” but whether the importance she has for Hei was mutual between them; all summarized when Suou said “You’re’ lying”. It’s ironical that Suou’s otherwise happiest moment resulted in her simultaneously feeling the saddest
. The
meaningful echo with the dialogue in the ova trailer alluding the emotions and imminent separation between Hei and his loved ones was very nicely done. I’ll give extra points to Hei for really expressing to Suou that he was sincere and acknowledged to Suou that her emotions were not entirely one sided.
It was hinted throughout the last three episodes, especially in the end that Hei knew about Shion’s plan. Whether or not he knows the details, he is certain of their separation. That gives more light behind Hei’s emotions and interactions during Suou’s “confession” and Mao’s “love” comment during ep 10 and the Pelmeni cooking scene in ep 11 ( I knew it that there was more meaning behind Hei choosing a Russian dish for breakfast than just cheering up Suou
) .
Some Yin fans, including me, might have felt that the conclusion between Hei and Yin (taking into consideration the flow of the story and the close proximity of their reunion with Hei’s separation with Suou in the plot, I’m more inclined with the “Hei letting her go” interpretation) was not given justice given how they were all “love-love” with one another in the OVA trailer. But further reflection makes their ending just right with a bittersweet feel to it. I would assume that the OVAs would really show us their “love-love” and their heart breaking separation afterwards. Considering how Hei’s separation with Suou could be seen as a cushion for his parting with Yin. One of the roles of s2 was to make Hei and Yin's “final moment” together end in good terms. Comparing the changes and situation that Bai and Yin undergone then contrasting their separation with Hei really drives this point.
Not meant to be a downer, Hei carrying Yin and Suou’s monologue makes for a bittersweet conclusion for the character driven plot of Darker than Black:
Ryūsei no Gemini.
As for the ending regarding the “events” of the story, It didn’t felt rushed despite a fair number of details said in one episode. True, we were given a sizable amount of information but not entirely impossible to digest, if one chooses to do so.
I really liked the “too” open-ended nature of the epilogue. It really gives a great sense of continuity and a bit of realism to the story. The second season ended in true DtB fasion. A "definite happy ending" cannot not be possible because a season’s worth of our heroes’ adventuring cannot possibly solve the root causes of the conflict that have forever plaque the world of DtB such as greed, discrimination, violence and corruption- the dark side of human nature. (Well, maybe if you give people hugs and turn them to tang
)
Given the vagueness ending, I cannot help but sometimes be frustrated that despite my interpretation, I cannot “really” be certain of what actually happened. As such, this is the beauty of vague endings. It compels one to think. Not everything is expected to be spoon-fed to us. If something does not make sense, one must do something about it, whether it needs a rewatch of a particular episode or the whole series itself to find the answer/s. But I would like to point out that this should not be seen as a chore but an enjoyable experience on its own. It's safe to say that director intended the show to be fully enjoyed this way.
Also, interpreting does not necessarily need to be a lone endeavour. The advent of the internet easily facilitates a discourse (hopefully a peaceful one) regarding different interpretations that could complement and/or supplement our own interpretation of such endings. These interpretations are by no means baseless. I’m glad that animesuki among other internet communities (2ch,4ch,blogs,etc) took time in making sense of things. As seen in the interpretations of others, the show had visual, verbal and thematic hints littered all over. As mentioned before, the ending also reminds me of Eva, especially how DtB is quite similar in terms of plot focus and vague endings. DtB’s endings could have well been shout outs to Eva.
No offence guys, I just feel sad and a little irritated when some people say that the show sucked because the ending didn’t make sense. Then again, I understand their point since such vague endings could also be seen as an attempt by the director in trolling us and/or his inability to make sense of his own work rather than a sincere attempt to make us think. Choosing between the two all boils down in whether you trust that Bones and Tensai Okamura, given that they themselves have constraints and limitations, did their job to the fullest. At least try to makes sense of the ending before bashing a show. If it still sucked, that’s perfectly reasonable. Just bash away
, at least you tried made sense of it.
I enjoyed and recognized the effort of Bones in making the show. To those who viewed the show looking for “a lot” of action or a “mystery solving” thriller/arc, I will not be surprised that the show would suck big time. This is because both seasons, Darker than Black:
Kuro no Keiyakusha and Darker than Black:
Ryūsei no Gemini were made with a particular focus, as such, one should view them using an appropriate lens. Amid the various organizations, fight scenes, the gates, technical jargon …etc, a closer look on the both shows reveal that Tensai Okamura always
meant Dtb to be viewed as a drama. Darker than Black:
Ryūsei no Gemini stayed true to this. The emphasis of the show is not on the mystery behind the gates but the mystery behind human nature seen through the thought processes, emotions, motivations and actions done by our lead characters in context of the DtB universe.
If Tensai Okamura would really end DtB, I would very disappointed. Not because of the dangling story or unanswered questions but because this would be the last I would see of DtB.
Its good to
see that despite the prevalence of moe blabbery, shows like darker than black still hold a sizable niche in the anime viewing community.
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