On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me…

12 contractors fighting

11 Knightmares skating

10 microbes brewing

9 Lucky ladies

8 Misa-Misa’s

7 bure bures

6 zawa zawas

5 GI-GA DRIIIILLS!

4 metatags

3 rain charms

2 Guchuko’s

And a cruise on a nice boat for free!!

Well, finally we’ve arrived at the end of the song, and an end to this list of epic anime moments from the past year. This series of posts has been a ton of fun to write, and has helped remind me of some of the many entertaining anime this year had to offer. I hope you all enjoyed it as well.

Honestly, I wish could keep on going, because there are plenty of other great shows and great moments I’d love to reminisce about.

Also, I would be remiss if I did not give credit where credit is due – thanks very much to CCYoshi for inspiring this idea, and to the ABC for helping to foster the community discussions that brought about this kind of idea sharing.

So what did you all think of this little experiment? Were there other shows you would have preferred to see on the list?

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It’s the climactic conclusion we’ve been famished for here at Epic Win, and might I say that few words other than “epic” can adequately describe the ending of Darker than Black. With the impending demise of all the contractors will it be Li or the Black Reaper that has the final say?

The final episode was excellent; I felt that the true essence of the story and the question that it asks was brought forth in poetic fashion. That question being, “Is there hope for peace, and do differences only bring about conflict and war, or is it those differences that make us unique, shape our experiences, and define our lives?”

I thought it very fitting that the final climactic scene took place at Sensoji Temple in Asakusa. It was a bit strange, though – the temple area is normally so crowded that it was a bit unnerving to see it completely desolate.

There’s a lot of fascinating symbolism in that choice as the location of the center of the gate region. Asakusa is often referred to as the “spiritual heart of Tokyo”, and Sensoji is the most popular temple in the city, drawing over 30 million visitors every year.

The entrance to the temple area is the Kaminarimon, the Thunder Gate, a very appropriate place for Hei to enter the final stage from. It is believed that Sensoji is a place where wishes can be granted, and many people come to pray for the safety of their families and loved ones. The temple itself is dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon, often described as a goddess of mercy.

There are many ways one could interpret it all, but it’s clear that the setting parallels Hei’s inner conflict, as well as the path he eventually decides to follow.

When Amber began speaking to Hei, initially I was struck by the serene calm of the situation, especially considering, you know, the impending doom of the massive particle accelerator firing up. The endless cascade of the falling stars and the final conflict also set up an interesting juxtaposition. It’s the same kind of feeling you get with a film like 2001: A Space Odyssey. You understand the rational motives behind something, but also realize that something greater must be sacrificed for true resolution.

Finally, the mystery behind Hei’s enigmatic nature is revealed…he is not a true Contractor. His sister Pai lives on inside of him, granting him his Contractor abilities; she is the real Contractor.

We see now that the dichotomy between Hei’s human side and his Contractor side really serves as the focal point around which the philosophy of the entire show is built. He illustrates the larger conflict between Contractors and humans, between reason and emotion, and between fate and free will.

As we saw in the flashback to South America, even as a human he was already a completely badass killer, a soldier who could easily discard his emotions in order to focus on his mission. With his Contractor side, he is able to suppress those feelings even further. Yet unlike true Contractors, he is not immune to his emotions, not exercising complete control over them.

Thus he is vulnerable to acting rashly or becoming angry, and yet at the same time that gives him a great deal of power. He is able to make decisions which seem illogical to the other Contractors, but which allow him to follow his own moral compass unwaveringly. He throws away the fear and hesitation, but holds firmly to his desire to protect those dear to him.

When the world was enveloped in white, I thought that we were getting a repeat of the gate incident, but somehow I knew it seemed too easy for things to end on such an indecisive note. Deus ex machina endings are definitely beneath the storytelling prowess we’ve seen so far in Darker than Black.

It was awesome to see a sort of spectral reunion among the many fallen comrades throughout the series. Apparently even as a ghost Huang is as cantankerous as ever.

It was nice to see Havoc again, as well. She’s still high on my list of “cool characters that didn’t get nearly enough screen time.”

The reunion between Hei and Pai was so beautiful and bittersweet; the sadness in his heart was well articulated. In times of war, people are often forced to commit horrible violence to protect what they hold dear. Again the theme was very strong here – violence begets violence, but is it “within the stars, or within ourselves?” Yeah, that’s right…a Julius Caesar reference in an anime blog.

When the choice was left up to Hei, at first I thought he was going to sacrifice everything, to give up the contractors in order to prevent all the people in Japan from disappearing, but then I realized that Hei himself was emblematic of what the decision was. Hei was the solution: a human, but attempting to live as a contractor, attempting to strike a balance between the two worlds, giving hope for a future of peace.

It was really touching to see Hei say farewell to Amber, and her self sacrifice for the greater good was also quite poignant. Throughout the series I had a fundamental distrust of her character, but in this final episode her ulterior (good) motives showed through. Again, the characters are so powerful in this series.

Hei! Watashi wo hitori ni shinai de!

Despite having watched this episode four times already, hearing Yin’s final line, “Watashi wo hitori ni shinai de! Don’t leave me alone!” still sends chills down my spine every time. After 25 episodes of her flat, expressionless delivery, it was stunning to hear her voice calling out with such intense passion and desperation.

The subtle relationship between Hei and Yin has been developed little by little throughout the series. As kindred spirits, the two have a somewhat unique bond.

Hei and Yin share the same struggle as supposedly emotionless beings trying to come to grips with their true emotions, trying to reconcile their past experience of loss with their present desire to move forward, and trying to find the correct path for themselves in the future.

I loved how Yin is able to bring Hei back, how she is able to change and feel. The message was so subtly communicated through the characters that the greater theme just exudes from them. The Contractors were a brilliant story device because they portrayed, in an interesting way, the great struggle between fate and free will.

It’s funny, because Kirihara’s boss is so typical of people who justify their genocide in ploy for greater world peace, harmony, order, etc. It was the same with Hitler and Stalin: you believe a certain group or a certain ideology poisons society so you murder in the name of peace. Sadly ironic, really.

It is exactly because of that kind of attitude that the final fight scene of the series was so immensely rewarding.

He goes in for the grab.

“No no dawg, you’re doing it wrong.”

“Here, let me know show you how it works.”

OWNED!

Sorry toolbox, Hei ain’t havin’ none of that! That was so cleansing, to have him save the day one last time. Takin’ care of business, and with the Kuro no Shinigami mask intact even!

“Li to iu otoko wa mo inai.”

At the line, “The man called Li no longer exists,” I couldn’t help but wonder if the smallest bit of doubt remained within Hei. Even when you make the right decision, sometimes it takes time before you realize all the consequences.

The ending was rather bittersweet. The ramen shop lady waits patiently for Mao, not knowing that he’ll never return.

Walking alone, Hei seems a little bit lonely. Having been cut loose from the Syndicate, and having lost almost everyone important to him, it truly seems as though the man called Li Shenshun might as well no longer exist.

I loved how the series gave an honest illustration of the epilogue. The contractors still exist and some still abuse their power. But power is neutral, neither inherently good nor wicked. It is people who manipulate it that causes violence and conflict. In short, the show ended brilliantly – the world still isn’t perfect, but there remains a glimmer of hope that shines like the distant stars.

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Darker than Black draws near to the climactic conclusion, as the final battle at the gates of Hell is about to begin. Through the turmoil of conflict and the ghosts of the past that shape the present, Hei comes ever closer to the answer of his sister’s disappearance.

Poor Mao seems a bit disturbed by the nonchalance of November 11. Of course, I would be as well. Being surrounded by enemies, one of them nude, is not exactly what I’d call an ideal situation.

I apologize terribly for making you look at that right after the jump. OTL

But you gotta love Mao in comic relief mode. While Darker than Black certainly isn’t much for comedy, the little bits of humor added here and there are a welcome change of pace from the heavy philosophical and moral commentary much of the rest of the series presents.

Schroeder-sensei is an interesting character. On one hand, he seems rather chill, and does well at taking everything in stride. On the other hand, just when you start thinking he’s fairly normal, he goes on a slightly psycho, childish rampage. Kind of like a mix of every genius professor stereotype, all rolled up into one.

I have to admit, though, his character design is great, what with the huge ears and fro.

Wicked cool or wicked cool?

Whatever that thing is, I want one.

Oh so GAR.

I actually thought Hei might’ve ended things right here, but then, we all know better than to expect such an easy resolution.

Despite his bravado and arrogance, I was really saddened to see things end for November 11. There was a considerable amount of foreshadowing even before Amber’s dark prophecy, but nonetheless you always hate to see a character doomed by fate. I mean, look at what happened to poor Oedipus…

On the other hand, he managed to take out six guys with submachine guns…with a bottle of booze! Pretty cool way to go out. Wish we could’ve seen that battle.

The death scene was masterfully done. I really appreciate how this series shows the depth of every character, even amidst all this strife and conflict.

Kirihara’s grieving for November 11 was particularly touching. The story really endears you to Kirihara, with her strong sense of justice and compassion.

All those character development episodes are finally paying off, as the subtle interactions between the core cast speak volumes.

It’s a testament to how far the cast has come in their relationships, that little scenes like this can say so much without any dialog. It really gives a sense of the camaraderie and trust between Huang, Mao, Yin, and Hei.

By the way, it’s interesting to note that even before he became a Contractor, Hei was apparently still pretty badass. I think this is the only time in the series that we seen a non-Contractor completely own a Contractor in a direct confrontation like this.

I was so thrilled to get another round of Guy and his film noir flair before things ended. The interplay between him and Kiko is always hysterical. His presence also provides the show with that much needed comedic relief, and a certain sagacious quality that I enjoy immensely.

Unfortunately, this kind of scenario is entirely too conceivable, either in Japan or in the U.S. Especially here in LA, many affluent and doting parents will do just about anything to make sure their unfortunate offspring succeed academically, including hiring professional detectives to do their children’s homework for them.

My parents never did that, but they probably considered hiring a hit man at least a few times during my childhood.

Also, it was great to get some insight on a more practical level about how people reacted to the stars suddenly vanishing from the sky. I think one thing this show has done particularly well is drawing the viewer into the world in a very immersive way with scenes like that.

It was also nice to see Kirihara and Hei reunite one last time; they both appear to have quite healthy appetites. The spontaneity of the episode was definitely a plus.

Man, I am getting so hungry just looking at that picture.

Kirihara seems to be the first person who hasn’t been completely floored by Hei’s voracious appetite. She even seemed to be holding her own against him to a some degree!

You know, Guy is exactly the sort of character you would expect to dine and dash at a restaurant.Luckily for him Hei’s Syndicate apparently pays pretty well.

“Don’t fall for me.”

Greatest Guy line ever.

A peaceful end to the episode…

Or maybe not! The night ends, the date is over, and the havoc starts up again with the everyone riding off to Pandora to save Tokyo from certain destruction. Talk about an abrupt end to an otherwise pleasant evening.

So the gang roars off towards the imminent confrontation while Amber rallies her troops for the final assault.

Getting talked down to by a cat…now that’s embarrassing!

I love how Huang talks about fishing so nonchalantly. The whole time he’s talking you know that, like November 11, he’s sort of reading his own eulogy. When Yin gave him that final farewell hug, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sorrow as I watched him drive off alone.

Huang is a tsundere. n_n

Stubborn and tenacious to the end, Huang protects his comrades, the people he has come to know and trust. I was truly sad to see Huang go, but his death was so heroic and powerful, it almost seemed to evoke a sort of samurai nostalgia. Excellent.

Seriously, when did Huang become this cool? Remember when he used to be just the grumpy, anti-social old man who bossed everybody else around? Man, the series sure has come a long ways.

You have to admire Kirihara’s idealism. Even on the eve of destruction, as all the pieces of the puzzle come together and she seems so small and helpless, she still holds firm to her sense of justice.

Yet another one of those brilliant small touches. Hei holds up his hands to help Yin down onto the tracks, and she just jumps right into his arms. These small moments throughout the series serve to tell us more about the characters than a whole episode’s worth of dialog ever could.

Some of these nameless contractors have pretty awesome powers. I kind of wish we could have gotten to see more of the big fight scene.

Without a doubt, this is the Contractor power that made me laugh the hardest. This girl apparently charges up rubber bands and then shoots them into the enemy like some kind of incendiary shell. So basically she’s Gambit, except instead of cards she uses office supplies.

If you think she’s dangerous with those tiny things, you should see what she can do with with one of those industrial strength rubber bands and a pack of 5/8″ staples. I still can’t make up my mind whether to laugh or be really impressed.

Sure enough, Wei just won’t be satisfied until he redeems his honor. Was anyone besides me having a bit of DBZ nostalgia with the whole “Saiyan pride!” thing? Anyways, what was brilliant about the scene was the way it illustrated how irrational and impractical Wei’s sense of honor was. If he was truly a Contractor why act with such human emotion?

In this case, I think it was due to a sense of inevitability.

While Contractors are rational beings, that doesn’t mean they are without morals and ideals. For many Contractors, certainly ensuring their own survival and well being is their main priority, but for others perhaps protecting their life is not as important as protecting their honor.

Earlier you mentioned Huang’s samurai-like heroic death. That kind of thinking is very traditional Japanese, and for some people it’s still truly ingrained into their sense of morality. For such an individual, choosing honor in death would be more than a mere emotional decision. It would simply be consistent with who they are as a human being.

Wow, vaguely Christian, Evangelion-esque symbolism. Didn’t expect that from DtB.

And then, of course, like some kind of video game boss, he blows himself up to reveal the secret passage our heroes need to proceed.

* insert Zelda secret music *

As Yin and Hei draw close things become even stranger…

Whoa! What? Wait a minute! Holy crap, from vague flashbacks to terrifying pyrotechnic abilities, and then of course just to intensify the madness we have yet another Amber time warp fiasco intermingled. I was just mouth agape after this whole transition. It all happened so quickly I was just left stammering and by then the scene had changed.

Just when I thought I had a pretty good handle on Amber’s power, she demonstrates that her abilities are not so easily apprehended. So not only can she stop time and see into the future, she’s also capable of giving others visions revealing their own futures to them? Crazy.

And now Mao just up and bails on his comrades? WTF? Seriously, this is just too maddening! I know we’re approaching doomsday here, but come on. Can I have one minute to breathe and comprehend the rapidly changing dynamics of the situation?

*sigh* I think I need to lie down.

It seems as though Mao’s computer brain got hacked while he was infiltrating the bad guys’ server, and they used him as a puppet to deliver cryptic messages of doom, a la Ghost in the Shell. However, it all happened pretty suddenly, so I can see how you could interpret things differently.

Wow, Yin is surprisingly agile! I’m so tempted to shop this picture up to give her a skateboard.

Well, that solves that riddle at least. Somehow Amber looks more sinister than ever as a little child. Seriously, little girls terrify me. I probably couldn’t even make it through an episode of Higurashi.

The story is rapidly progressing toward the grand finale, and grand it is. If you haven’t seen episode 25 yet, what are you waiting for? Go watch it NAO! lyk srsly.

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Amber seems younger and younger looking every time we see her. Assuming that it’s not just my imagination, this could lend some credence to speculation that her obseisance is aging in reverse (growing younger).

Coupled with the fact that we’ve already seen an obeisance that causes aging, in Alma’s case, as well as Amagiri’s warning to Amber that “there’s a limit to how many times you can use your power” back in episode 16, and it seems like an entirely reasonable assumption to make.

We caught the witch! Somebody call Factory.

I seriously felt like I was watching an episode of Witch Hunter Robin for a minute there in the beginning.

It seems that in many anime series, in particular I’m thinking of Read or Die and Samurai Champloo here, Americans are depicted as being either moronic or manipulative, and always uncooperative. Not that I feel this stereotype is completely without justification mind you, but still…

Yin’s arc in episodes 13 & 14 really served to highlight the fact that she and Hei have an unusually strong bond between them. They certainly proved to have excellent teamwork in this episode.

It was quite interesting to be able to see Yin in a more active role, providing realtime intel during Hei’s Sam Fisher-style infiltration.

Alright, was anyone else feeling that sort of James Bond nostalgia when Wei made his returning appearance? I mean his face is even scarred from the previous battle, for goodness sakes!

However, this ensured yet another epic fight sequence so I was actually quite thrilled. I’m aware that it’s often an overused story element to have a particularly interesting villain mysteriously return to exact his vengeance, but given how mysterious the whole nature of the contractors and the gate incident is, I didn’t feel cheated.

While I am glad to see Wei Zhijun finally back in action, I was a bit disappointed with the fight scene. The bullet time stuff seemed a bit contrived, and just overall the fight lacked the dynamic feel of their last battle.

Besides, blowing up trees is so Naruto.

The mysterious new contractor’s power of teleportation, being able to go virtually anywhere on a whim, seems like it would be pretty convenient. You could zip over to the coffee shop to grab a drink without having to so much as lift a finger. The whole losing your clothes bit would get rather bothersome after a while, though…

“Yes, I’ll have a double-shot and, uh…what? Oh, no, no creamer thank you. Yeah, my…clothes are back at home, sorry about that.”

The Pandora guys are serious business.

For some reason whenever Hei dons his “Black Reaper” mask I’m always at the edge of my seat. I think it’s great that his persona is unassuming and polite when he’s just going about his normal business. The juxtaposition between that and the hard-edged professional killer look is quite entertaining. Every time I see that mask I just think to myself, “Oh, it is so on.”

While Huang, Yin, and to an extent even Mao have all gotten some character development and backstory, Hei and Amber are still highly enigmatic. Small hints have been dropped here and there throughout the series, but we still don’t really know much about Hei, which is disappointing because he’s definitely one of the most interesting characters in the show.

With only four episodes remaining, it just doesn’t seem like there’s enough time to really develop the remaining characters and their relationships. My fear is that we’ll be left with more questions than answers at the end of the day.

Fortunately, based on the episode 22 teaser, it sounds as though we may finally get some exposition that will unravel a few of the mysteries and resolve some of the loose ends.

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Darker than Black completes the tale of Huang’s back story in brilliant film noir fashion, highlighting its continued focus on solid storytelling and character development.

Whenever I watch an episode with a character who has a mysterious past and a gruff exterior, my mind immediately goes to films like The Big Sleep, Out of the Past, Key Largo, and of course Casablanca.

There’s something very intriguing about Huang’s character that stems directly from his troubled past and his lost love. Once again, I think something that Darker than Black has done so well as a series is in giving all the characters some genuine depth and shape.

When Huang learns of Shioko’s deception, you really sense his remorse and pain. He’s a man whose memories are only of bitterness, resentment, and loss, and yet those are the very memories he has fought so hard to retain.

Dive-bombing, crow style

This has got to be one of the best stealth bombers I’ve ever seen. Sure, the range isn’t great, nor is the maximum payload, but you’d never see it coming.

MULTIKILL!!

Since when did Huang become so awesome? I think he took out more guys in this episode than Hei did.

They totally should have known better than to bunch up like that when their opponent is specifically using frag grenades. Now there’s no one left to revive the team, and they’ll all have to respawn back at the base.

Now when Huang learns that Isozaki himself was a contractor and also duping him, it just compounds the emotion of his plight.

As a side note, I also thought it was rather poignant how Huang says that Isozaki was “killed twice over” due to the fact that his widow’s memories were erased. It’s really a profound thought; if you have no memories then you have no true identity, you lose your humanity and your sense of self without your memories.

And if no one remembers you, then how much of an identity do you still have? Many shows and stories have explored that concept already, so I won’t get too deeply into the heavy stuff, but suffice to say that in many people’s minds, being forgotten by their loved ones is perhaps a fate even crueler than death. Then it’s not just a matter of having your life taken away, it’s as though your very existence has been erased.

It is indeed as if Isozaki never was. It also raises interesting conundrums on the nature of existence; if someone is entirely forgotten, was their existence totally worthless? Or is existence itself a virtue despite the memories of other people?

Wow, sorry to go off on a tangent, but seriously this show really makes me ponder about these things. I personally love it when a series integrates some measure of philosophy into the plot; one of the many reasons why I hold Mushishi in such high regard.

So now we see that one of the themes of this story arc is memory – Isosaki being forgotten by everyone else, and Huang, the last person who really remembers him, stubbornly holding onto those memories despite the cost.

I love this scene because it drives at the heart of the story without feeling pretentious.

As I’m sure with some you, it was with great loathing that I endured the scene in the Matrix Reloaded in which Neo has his discussion with “The Architect.” Look, I’ve read Simulacra and Simulation and The Intelligence of Evil, and all I can say is that what Baudrillard eloquently and brilliantly articulated in his books, the Matrix films (especially the last two) mutilated and brutalized into a bunch of pontificating nonsense with cheesy kung fu duels.

Fortunately, the Wachowski brothers had nothing to do with Darker than Black, and we’re able to have this incident here: As Hei is talking with the prophet he comes to grip with the nature of the contractors. Beings stripped entirely of their emotion and ability to show remorse, are they human, and if so, can they atone? Brilliant stuff.

And so the second theme emerges – humanity. If you kill people, does that make you inhuman? If you have no emotion, does that make you inhuman? If you lose your conscience, does that make you inhuman?

This particular thought is more straightforward than many of Darker than Black’s other thematic elements, since it’s all exposition, but rather than trying to resolve anything, it simply asks the questions and leaves them unanswered. Shihoko’s obeisance proved to be a nice counterpoint to this, but unfortunately wasn’t very well developed. Hopefully in coming episodes we’ll see this idea developed more fully as we learn more about Hei’s enigmatic past.

I get pretty tired of shows that try to be “deep”, but are so heavy handed in their execution that you feel like the scriptwriter is just beating you over the head with a philosophy textbook going, “Get it? Get it?” I think one of the strongest merits of Darker than Black is that they’ve been able to develop powerful philosophic and thematic elements, but so seamlessly woven into the larger story that you almost don’t notice them at first.

I think that because of this many people fail to understand the show. They’re either watching just for the action, or they’re so caught up in trying to “figure out” the sci-fi setting, or what Hei’s obeisance is, or whatever that they miss the richness that’s hidden in the details. Even I overlooked some of the more subtle aspects until Owen from Cruel Angel Theses took the time to point out his observations.

Darker than Black certainly never feels contrived, and yet still manages to deliver a tremendous amount of content in a half an hour.

What an amazing finale. Especially Huang’s final line. “Don’t trick me anymore.” That’s just excellent writing; his pain is so real it’s scathing.

I love this series, in case you can’t tell.

Looking forward to the conclusion of the first season; I truly hope this series gets another season at some point. The writing is just second to none.

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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.

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