What’s this? Huang actually becoming a likable character? Surely not.

We’ve had the opportunity to learn more about Hei’s other comrades, Yin and Mao, but Huang has up to this point remained largely an enigma. While he’s been portrayed thus far as a rather crass and unpleasant individual, acting as the Syndicate’s representative and just generally being a tool, this episode helps cast him in a more sympathetic light. Finally we learn a bit more about his motivations and just why he hates contractors with such a passion.

A woman he cared for turned out to be a contractor and betrayed him by killing his friend. He was then coerced into joining the Syndicate to prevent his memories from being erased. It certainly seems as though he has reason enough to dislike the contractors and what they represent.

The cantankerous, chain smoking, gruff old man seemed rather distant and invulnerable. In this episode you get to look into his past and see the face of an estranged man who preserves his memories at a terrible cost.

Personally, I loathe it when a series has a character that is completely one dimensional and boring. I hate token bad-ass, genki girl, emotionless villain, etc. That bores me to death. I can’t feel satisfied about a character who simply serves as a plot vehicle and nothing else. “Bad guy A fights good guy B to win heart of girl C, etc.”

This episode really showed what a genuine character Huang is. Especially near the end of the episode, where Huang completely jeopardizes the whole mission out of concern for Shihoko. What’s this? Hard nosed, no nonsense, film noir type detective is *gasp* worried? Even frightened? I think that’s excellent. Now we know Huang’s story is really about a man who is betrayed by someone dear to him and then coerced into working for a criminal organization.

Additionally, I thought it was just poetic how Huang resents the fact that he can’t get drunk. He can’t even find solace in escapism. Now his rough exterior means something, because it’s a product of pain and remorse. He fights to hold onto his memories even though they only bring back regret, and no amount of drink will drown out his past. That’s the ironic brilliance of the episode.

It’s phenomenal character development, and with enough comedic presence to not feel pretentious. It’s so subtle; that’s what makes it touching. I’m sold. I love it when a series takes the time to offer personal insight into the characters. It makes for such an enriching experience.

Honestly, I felt such relief at the end of the episode. All I could think was, “Oh Huang, at last I don’t have to sigh and roll my eyes when you’re on screen any more. I know why you’re such a bastard!” Now I’m actually glad that Hei didn’t deep six him.

Yeah, but he’s still a tool.

Admittedly though, one thing that Darker than Black excels at is making the characters feel believable and relevant to the story.

On a somewhat unrelated note, I really like this shot of the Shinjuku skyline. It’s nice to see all the major landmark buildings appearing much as they do in the real Tokyo. If you mouseover the screenshot, you’ll see I’ve marked a few of the more interesting ones. The most notable is probably Shinjuku Park Tower, which was featured in the film Lost in Translation. Except for the gate in the background, that’s pretty much exactly how Shinjuku looks when viewed from the west.

If you take a look at the satellite view on Google Maps, you can see the line of skyscrapers marching north through Shinjuku Park, starting with Shinjuku Park Tower on the southern end. The pointy DoCoMo Tower is actually quite a ways to the east of the rest of the skyscrapers, barely visible in the lower right hand corner. DoCoMo is basically the 800 pound gorilla of the Japanese telecom industry, by the way, accounting for the lion’s share of the keitai (cell phone) market, among other things.

Speaking of gorillas, Huang’s expression here is absolutely priceless.

Ahh yes, the cult evangelists. I’ve been accosted by JWs several times while in Japan, mostly while visiting popular tourist attractions. They seem to especially target foreigners, perhaps because they’re more receptive to proselytizing than Japanese people are. They can be quite persistent, too. Fortunately, there’s a foolproof defense for situations just like these…

The classic gaijin defensive tactic for whenever you want to quickly extract yourself from a bad situation! It’s the perfect cop-out! Unfortunately, Hei makes a rare slip-up by being a little too fluent, and instead ends up getting caught up in their pace.

Best moment of the whole episode - when they both throw out a “Ni hao!” at him and he just drops his groceries on the ground.

That right there is the Darker than Black equivalent of a facepalm. Hei is far too GAR to actually slap his forehead, so that’s the best we’re gonna get, I imagine.