TV-Series
Description
"Darker than BLACK: Ryuusei no Gemini" is a sequel to the original "Darker than BLACK" series, set two years after the events of the first season. The story unfolds in Russia, where a mysterious phenomenon known as the "Heaven's Gate" has disappeared, leaving behind a massive crater. In its place, a new anomaly called the "Hell's Gate" emerges, surrounded by a city now under the control of the Syndicate. Contractors, individuals with supernatural abilities but devoid of emotions, continue to operate in this altered world.
The narrative centers on Suou Pavlichenko, a young girl living with her twin brother Shion and their father in a small town near the Hell's Gate. Suou's life takes a drastic turn when her home is attacked by a group of Contractors, leading to the death of her father and the abduction of Shion. Determined to rescue her brother, Suou becomes entangled in a complex web of intrigue involving Contractors, the Syndicate, and a secretive organization known as the Izanami.
Hei, the protagonist from the first season, reappears as a key figure in the story. Now a rogue operative, Hei is pursued by various factions while attempting to uncover the truth behind the Hell's Gate and its connection to the Syndicate. His path crosses with Suou, and the two form an uneasy alliance. Suou discovers that she possesses latent Contractor abilities, which manifest under extreme stress, adding another layer of complexity to her journey.
As the plot progresses, the motivations of the Syndicate and Izanami come to light. The Syndicate seeks to exploit the Hell's Gate for its own gain, while Izanami aims to manipulate the Gate's power to achieve a mysterious end. Suou's brother, Shion, is revealed to be a pivotal figure in these plans, possessing unique abilities tied to the Gate. The story builds toward a climactic confrontation at the Hell's Gate, where the true nature of the anomalies and the fate of the characters are revealed.
The series explores themes of identity, sacrifice, and the consequences of wielding power. Suou's growth from a sheltered girl to a determined individual willing to confront her fears and embrace her abilities is a central focus. Hei's struggle with his past and his role as a Contractor adds depth to his character, while the dynamic between the twins, Suou and Shion, underscores the emotional core of the narrative. The interplay between the various factions and the moral ambiguity of their actions create a tense and engaging storyline.
The narrative centers on Suou Pavlichenko, a young girl living with her twin brother Shion and their father in a small town near the Hell's Gate. Suou's life takes a drastic turn when her home is attacked by a group of Contractors, leading to the death of her father and the abduction of Shion. Determined to rescue her brother, Suou becomes entangled in a complex web of intrigue involving Contractors, the Syndicate, and a secretive organization known as the Izanami.
Hei, the protagonist from the first season, reappears as a key figure in the story. Now a rogue operative, Hei is pursued by various factions while attempting to uncover the truth behind the Hell's Gate and its connection to the Syndicate. His path crosses with Suou, and the two form an uneasy alliance. Suou discovers that she possesses latent Contractor abilities, which manifest under extreme stress, adding another layer of complexity to her journey.
As the plot progresses, the motivations of the Syndicate and Izanami come to light. The Syndicate seeks to exploit the Hell's Gate for its own gain, while Izanami aims to manipulate the Gate's power to achieve a mysterious end. Suou's brother, Shion, is revealed to be a pivotal figure in these plans, possessing unique abilities tied to the Gate. The story builds toward a climactic confrontation at the Hell's Gate, where the true nature of the anomalies and the fate of the characters are revealed.
The series explores themes of identity, sacrifice, and the consequences of wielding power. Suou's growth from a sheltered girl to a determined individual willing to confront her fears and embrace her abilities is a central focus. Hei's struggle with his past and his role as a Contractor adds depth to his character, while the dynamic between the twins, Suou and Shion, underscores the emotional core of the narrative. The interplay between the various factions and the moral ambiguity of their actions create a tense and engaging storyline.
Episodes
Staffel 1
1The Black Cat Doesn't Dream of Stars...
A meteor shower in Siberia two years prior ends when a meteor strikes twins Suou and Shion Pavlichenko and their father at their campsite. The incident transforms Shion into a Contractor. In the present,Suou attends school in Russia, photographing daily life, while her father conducts secret research on Contractors and confines Shion to a hidden room as remuneration for his powers. Suou’s classmate Tania arrives late to school one day displaying no emotions. After school, Tania manifests Contractor abilities, summoning a swarm of locusts to attack her boyfriend Nika when he tries to stop her. Military forces from the FSB surround the Pavlichenko home. Shion contacts Suou telepathically, instructing her to take an amulet and follow a secret escape route. Suou discovers her father’s body after an intruder interrogates and kills him. Dr. Pavlichenko’s assistant Bella reveals herself as April, an MI6 Contractor, and flees with Suou. April kills an FSB Contractor pursuing them but Hei, also known as BK-201, arrives and electrocutes her. Suou last sees Hei standing over April’s body as the episode closes. Hei now holds Suou, forcing her into a new and uncertain conflict.
2Fallen Meteor...
Suou Pavlichenko awakens in an abandoned warehouse,her chest now housing a sniper rifle she can materialize at will. Hei arrives and confirms she has become a contractor, though her emotional reactions remain stronger than those of other contractors. Her father, Pavlichenko, shot her to trigger the transformation and then escaped with her twin brother, Shion, who was already a contractor. The organization Hei once worked for sends agents to capture Suou, treating her as a valuable experimental subject. Among them is the contractor July, a young boy who tracks targets by manipulating sensory perception through a telepathic link. Hei evades the first ambush by directing Suou to use her rifle to shoot a tracking device off a pursuing vehicle. After using her power, Suou experiences her remuneration: an uncontrollable compulsion to fold paper cranes. Hei warns her that all contractors pay such prices and that mastering her ability is essential to survival. The two form a temporary alliance: Hei seeks information about his own past while helping Suou locate her brother. The organization responds by dispatching more contractors, and Suou resolves to find Shion despite her father’s betrayal.
3Vanishing Into the Snow Field...
Suou tackles Hei into icy water after an energy surge disables the drones trapping him. Hei wakes,ties Suou, and slaps her when she accuses him of killing loved ones without hesitation. Mao reveals he survived the Tokyo incident through memory backups and now works for the same woman who employs Hei, delivering new orders. Hei breaks Suou’s phone to prevent tracking, and she discovers an origami whale from her brother Shion directing them to Ikebukuro. They reach a train station where Hei creates a diversion, but Tanya intercepts Suou using Nika as bait. Hei attempts to fight but finds his contractor powers gone. Genma and Mina arrive, slaughtering Russian soldiers and causing a massive fuel explosion. Tanya kills Nika with her locusts, triggering Suou’s transformation: a giant rifle emerges from her pendant, and she gains contractor abilities. July directs Suou’s fire, wounding Tanya and targeting Genma and Mina before Hei stops her. Hei carries the unconscious Suou away, and July joins them. In Hachijou, Misaki learns from a Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications representative that BK-201 lives and receives an offer to join Agency No. 3. On a boat to Japan, Hei tells Mao he will kill the woman connected to Yin’s fate as Suou folds origami cranes, paying her new contractor remuneration.
4白銀は氷の中に…
Hei and Suou arrive at a lakeside town after fleeing the previous attack. Suou attempts to contact her father through a payphone but reaches only a recorded message. Genma Shizume,a Contractor with the power to freeze water and manipulate ice, intercepts them at a hotel. He operates under a contract requiring him to drink blood after each use of his ability. Hei engages Genma in combat, using his own powers and tactical skill to counter the ice attacks, but Genma escapes when Suou accidentally fires a pistol in panic, distracting Hei. Suou’s father, Kouichi, appears briefly via a monitored video call, warning her that she must continue moving and that the meteor fragment inside her is sought by multiple factions. The Syndicate deploys agents to secure the fragment, and Misaki Kirihara independently tracks Hei’s movements, seeking answers about his identity and the rising contractor activity. July, a doll assigned by the organization, begins relaying Suou’s location to his handler. Genma regroups with another Contractor, orchestrating a trap to isolate Hei from Suou. Hei resolves to destroy the meteor fragment to end its influence, while Suou faces the reality that her brother Shion may still be alive and tied to the same conspiracy. The episode closes with Genma freezing the lake beneath Hei and Suou, cutting off their escape route as a coordinated ambush closes in.
5Episode 5
Suou and July follow Hei through Tokyo’s underground passages. A television broadcast reports the discovery of a charred corpse in a hotel room,linking the death to the ongoing Contractor incidents. Hei identifies the victim as a former associate and decides to investigate the killer. He locates the Contractor, a woman who manipulates light to generate extreme heat, at an abandoned factory. She attacks Hei with focused beams that melt steel supports and set the building ablaze. Hei counters by using his own power to redirect her attacks, forcing her to retreat. Suou watches from a distance, realizing the gap in ability between herself and the Contractors she pursues. The woman escapes into the night, leaving behind a briefcase containing files on the Hell’s Gate incident from five years ago. Hei opens the case and finds photographs of himself with his former team, including his sister Pai. Suou asks about the images, but Hei does not answer. The episode closes with Misaki Kirihara receiving intelligence that a Contractor linked to the mysterious Syndicate has entered the city, setting her investigation on a collision course with Hei’s movements.
6An Aroma Sweet - a Heart Bitter
Hei boards a truck during the decoy operation,but Shizume drives the vehicle away from the transfer point. Shizume reveals that Izanami is Yin. Hei escapes and returns to the designated exchange location where Suou, Mao, and July wait. Suou aims her rifle at Yin, but Hei blocks the shot and stops her. A Section 3 contractor attacks Suou, but Yin’s observing spirit kills the attacker before Suou can act. Hei contacts his employer, Madame Oreille, and cancels the mission to destroy Izanami. The team retreats and continues their journey toward Tokyo. In Vladivostok, Norio receives a cake baked by his mother Michiru, a contractor who abandoned him years earlier. Michiru arrives in the city, and Norio finds her dying in his arms after she is fatally wounded. Hei tells Suou she is not suited for killing and orders her not to fire her weapon again; Suou counters that she will comply only if he stops drinking. With Yin now identified as Izanami and the mission abandoned, Hei’s group moves forward while Kirihara’s Section 3 continues to secure and transport Yin.
7The Doll Sings to the Dancing Snow...
8On Summer Days, the Sun Sways...
9The Door of Memories...
Suou finds a data recording left by her father in his abandoned laboratory. The recording reveals that her memories of a normal family life were artificially implanted after the original Suou died in a Gate experiment. The current Suou is a constructed entity designed as a vessel. Suou rejects the fabricated identity and decides to go to Hell’s Gate to uncover the full truth. Hei,now stripped of his contractor powers, struggles to protect her while confronting his own past involving his sister. July tracks approaching hostiles as the Syndicate and MI6 operative Genma Shizume close in. Genma corners Hei, forcing him to rely on tactics rather than abilities. Suou manifests her contractor power—materializing a sniper rifle—and fires to defend Hei, but the act shows signs of instability in her control. The episode links Suou’s identity crisis to the larger conspiracy of memory manipulation and Gate-related human experiments. With the group moving toward Hell’s Gate, the Syndicate deploys additional assets to eliminate them, setting up a direct confrontation.
10Episode 10
Suou Pavlichenko and Hei reach the designated town where the Syndicate hides the meteor fragment. Pavlichenko,Suou’s father, emerges from the Syndicate’s encampment and reveals his collaboration with the organization. He discloses that Suou’s memories and personal history are fabricated, as she is a clone created from the original Suou’s genetic material. Suou rejects his words, asserting her individuality and refusing to be defined by her origin. A Syndicate sniper fires, striking Pavlichenko in the chest. Suou activates her freezing Contractor ability, expanding ice to shield the area and immobilize nearby enemies. Hei eliminates the sniper and other Syndicate soldiers, clearing the immediate perimeter. Pavlichenko, with his final breaths, tells Suou to escape and live without constraints. The Syndicate forces withdraw, taking the meteor fragment with them. Hei locates July, who lies unconscious but unharmed. Suou acknowledges her father’s death but chooses to continue alongside Hei. In a separate location, Izanami awakens fully, setting the stage for her direct involvement.
11雷の中、消えないで
Hei and Suou flee through the underground tunnels as Syndicate forces pursue them with orders to capture both. Suou’s memories of her brother Shion fragment,revealing implanted recollections placed by the organization. Hei confirms that Suou is a duplicate created by Shion’s contractor ability, a copy intended to serve as a vessel for the ritual. The astronomer captures Suou and takes her to the observatory, where he prepares to access Hell’s Gate. Hei confronts the astronomer, but his contractor powers continue to degrade, forcing him to rely on the meteor fragment for combat. Misaki Kirihara reaches the Gate’s perimeter and uncovers documents detailing the Syndicate’s human experiments and the true purpose of the Gemini meteor. The astronomer activates the ritual, merging his body with the Gate’s interior and generating a large-scale spatial distortion. Suou, trapped inside the distortion, experiences a direct link to Shion’s consciousness. Hei’s attempt to retrieve Suou fails as the distortion expands and separates them. The episode closes with the astronomer’s transformation completed, Hei shut out from the Gate, and Suou inside facing Shion’s apparition.
12Ark of Stars
Hei arrives at the meteor excavation site and confronts the contractors guarding the Ark of Stars. Suou Pavlichenko locates her father,Shion Pavlichenko, who reveals his plan to use the meteor to forge a new Hell’s Gate and overwrite existing reality. Suou activates her contractor ability, generating a flawless duplicate of herself that approaches Shion while she withdraws. Genma Shizume intercepts Hei, forcing him into a hand‑to‑hand fight where Hei operates without his former contractor powers. July deploys his sensory abilities to track Suou’s true position and guide her to safety. Misaki Kirihara arrives with Department of Public Security units, encircling the site and applying pressure that disrupts Shion’s control. Shion initiates the meteor’s activation, producing a spatial distortion that begins rewriting the surrounding world. The duplicate Suou steps into the distortion, fulfilling the condition Shion engineered to transfer Suou’s consciousness into a new body. The original Suou’s body disintegrates, but her memories and identity persist in a duplicate Shion created in an alternate dimension. Hei loses the final remnants of his contractor abilities, leaving him without any supernatural power. Suou lives in the parallel world, free from the Gates and the conflicts of Contractors, while Hei disappears from the original timeline with no trace.
Cast
- Goro Kobayashi
- Suo Pavlichenko
- Yoko Sawasaki
- Mina Hazuki
- Kanami Ishizaki
- Genma Shizume
- Dr. Mikhail Pavlichenko
- Madame OreilleJennifer GreenKaho Kōda
- Shion Pavlichenko
- Misaki Kirihara
- Gorou Kobayashi
- Yōko Sawasaki
- Dr. PavlichenkoKatsunosuke Hori
- Suou Pavlichenko
Comment(s)
Staff
- DirectorTensai Okamura
- StoryboardTakeshi MoriKōichi HatsumiTensai OkamuraTakuya IgarashiShingo KanekoHideyo YamamotoNorimitsu SuzukiHiroshi Haraguchi
- Unit DirectorNorimitsu Suzuki
- Original creatorTensai Okamura
- Character DesignTakahiro Komori
- Chief Animation DirectorTakahiro Komori
- Art designTomoaki OkadaTakashi Aoi
- Sound DirectorKazuhiro Wakabayashi
- Scenario
- Episode DirectorKōichi HatsumiTensai OkamuraKeisuke ŌnishiShingo KanekoHideyo YamamotoHideki ItōDaisuke ChibaTarou IwasakiYuriko SugayaNao Higa
- MusicYasushi Ishii
- Original Character Design
- Art DirectorTakashi Aoi
- Animation DirectorTakahiro KomoriTatsurō NagaiHideki ItōEiko SaitōAtsushi HasebeYuka KudōYuriko IshiiRuriko WatanabeTakashi MuraiHiroyuki NegishiYoshiyuki KohiraHitomi Odashima
- 3D DirectorKōki Ōta
- Director of PhotographyGō Kanbayashi
Production
- ProductionMOVICMainichi Broadcasting SystemBONESAniplexHakuhodo DY Media PartnersSony Computer Entertainment
- Animation ProductionBONES
Relations
Manga overview