Darker than Black Eps. 11 & 12

Recently it's been Darker than Black's method of characterisation that made me question its quality, but after this set of episodes I'm starting to doubt its approach to plot continuity as well.

These small story arcs have yet to genuinely contribute to any over-arching mystery of the show. We've had so many characters appear in the past twelve episodes, more than seems normal for scene-setting, and not much has come from any of their introductions. Some have been entertaining, and some less so, but apart from vaguely hint at a bigger picture I'm finding it hard to sum up their worth. I thought with the advent of first-hand exposure to the Gate and PANDORA in these episodes we'd finally get some tangible, meaty plot elements, but instead we get a fairly mundane, intensely irritating recognisance mission. I constantly felt that the show could have been spending its time better by giving the viewer real context rather than waste its time with quivering, paper-thin female scientists (the trope-ridden Mina) or contrived character development. 

The randomness of these plot-thread reminds me a little of Rahxephon in that it presents the audience with many characters and suggested ideas, but does very little to follow them up to any satisfying conclusion, or even utilise them to push things along in a comprehensible sense. The best excuse I can think of for DtB is that it's episodic, but then judging from what we've seen so far that doesn't sit particularly well when analysing its structure.

Granted, Rahxephon did eventually connect the dots by its finale (though with infuriating obliqueness) and perhaps DtB will do the same by intertwining every one's appearance into a neat web of relation by its end. But at this moment it feels sloppy and I'm worried that, like Rahxephon, DtB will have too many neglected ideas and characters by the time it finishes.

Playing the whole 'keep the cards close to your chest' approach only works if the audience is convinced of the story-telling's authority, that everything will be revealed in due course, and I'm not entirely sure if DtB is pulling this off. Nick presented some intriguing ideas and I'm curious to see how much the parallels between he and Hei actually matter. The preview for episode thirteen gave hints of more exposition on this, suggesting we might actually learn something about Yin as well as Nick. I may be losing a lot of confidence in DtB recently, but my interest in its insinuations and characters still remains. I just hope we get a reasonable pay-off for the commitment.

Comments

[Matte]

I agree on many of your points. It feels like there's a big mystery just around the corner in DtB but the show is just not taking us anywhere near it.

The gate-arc especially was a big disappointment in terms of mystery. I thought we would finally get some real info on what it is, or at least what they think it is, but instead we found out it can fulfill wishes in a sense.

It was the same in the arc with the former scientist whose team got wiped out inside the gate. They hinted that the gate was a dangerous place but never delved deeper or returned to this in the following arcs.

It just feels like the arcs lack a common goal and direction and the closer they get to the final episode the harder it will be to tie it all together, like you say.

It's funny though, while I agree with almost everything you're saying I still enjoy this show tremendously. It's just that it could be to so much better.

[Karura]

I enjoyed 11-12 a bit more than you (although as you know I wasn't too impressed with the 'pay-off' in 12), however after 13-14 I have to admit my current opinion is "I love it, but I want answers". You mention RahXephon, but the big difference with that was one of timing- by the time I wanted to watch it I could just buy the whole thing on DVD and watch it in a fairly short timespan instead of being drip fed an arc every fortnight.

[Hige]

Matte: Yeah, and at the end of episode 12 both Hei and Nick were flouncing around in the control zone like it didn't matter. I still have no idea why that area is so hazardous. Is it something to do with the effects it has on Contractors etc? And I empathise with the "it's lacking but I still love it" attitude. I had the same thing with Ergo Proxy. I'm less patient with DtB, though. Perhaps because it had such a promising start and EP only really had pretty pictures. :x

Karura: Yeah, I marathoned Rahxephon once I completed the DVD collection and it worked much more effectively. But we're watching DtB as a TV show rather than a DVD, so its method of exposure, and the consequential opinions we form, are totally different. As a TV show DtB doesn't really work. It's kinda episodic, but relies a lot on grander ideas for substance - and it's hard to appreciate them when the audience don't know wtf its alluding to. Maybe by its end when we have the whole thing to watch as we'd watch a DVD, and some informed hindsight, it'll work better. Not sure how I feel about what is basically a TV show relying on this to be a success, however. Seems a bit of a cop-out...

[Sasa]

Same here. I also liked episodes 11 and 12, mainly because I actually could feel with the characters. I think the strength of Darker than Black are still these "characters of the day", even though they mostly are only shortly introduced. So actually I'm not really interested in the mysteries of the world of Darker than Black compared to what kind of characters (and backgrounds) they will show us.
Actually I reached this opinion only after episode 14, when I realized that my main reason for watching Darker than Black is, well, the subtle emotions that the fate of these characters are stirring up in me. (The famous scene at the end of episode 14 made me want to cry.)

[Hige]

Sasa: There's definitely been examples of successful character moments in the show. The first two episodes with Shinoda and then Havock (sort of) for instance. But even the good ones have felt really underdeveloped, and there's just a general sense of inconsistency for me at the moment. I value characterisation above plot like you, but when there isn't much of that to talk about I'm inclined to focus on latter. :/

[Lupus]

Darker than Black works for me very much like how Mushishi does - each story in its own arc has it own appeals and themes, its own characters that, while they are often wonderful and draw sympathy in the short term, will probably only annoy me if they were to make repeat appearances. It's the short story of the side characters rather than the story of Hei that holds my interest as I watch each episode (Mai, Nick, and the "villains" in episode 13 and 14 stand out).

Sure, I want more of Hei and Yin as much as anyone else, but much like Ginko they serve largely as a connecting link between many of these individuals who would otherwise never cross path (but unlike Ginko their mystery adds little to their appeal). But if it's any comfort, the green hair, bandaged C.C.-look-a-like has started making appearances since episode 12 (she also shows up at the end of episode 14), though, much like the overarching plot of the show, she remains ethereal and just out of reach.

(If you don't know who I'm talking about, she's the fifth face at the end of the OP, along with Hei, Yin, Wang and Mao.)

There is no reason for me to find any discontent in how this show is being handled at the moment, but like everyone else I want a more substantial overarching story that would reveal to us more about the details of this world. I'm less concerned about tying the whole thing together - I don't think it was ever intended to be that way - and I like it enough just as it is.

[Hige]

Lupus: Hmm, the big difference between DtB and Mushishi is that latter was purely episodic from the very beginning. Structurally it signified all the traditional episodic characteristics without much compromise (as in, beyond Ginko's on-going involvement, each episode was isolated from the prior/next). DtB, however, is a muddle of episodic elements and on-going plot lines and it doesn't work. The parallel between Ginko and Hei & co is fair in that they're both reliable constants in shows that constantly change, but Mushishi demonstrates how to do it perfectly whereas DtB just seems confused and poorly planned. At this point. I feel a bit uneasy making these kind of judgemental statements when the show hasn't ended yet, but that's how it seems at this moment in time. Tis the downfall of (kinda) real-time commentary...