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Darker than Black/Season One Tropes N-Z (view source)

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Tropes that are inherent spoilers should go in the [[Darker Than Black (Anime)/Season One Spoilers|Season One Spoilers]] article.
 
{{tropelist}}
{{examples|Examples:}}
 
* [[Naked First Impression]]: Played with, since the naked party is a man, and the other is a cat... yeah.
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** At least once they explicitly refer to him as "codename Hei."
*** Hilariously enough, Word of God has stated that his real name is Li. Yeah. The cover ID name.
* [[Non Standard Character Design]]: Gai and Kiko do not look like they belong in this show, and often use effects like [[Wingding Eyes]], [[Blue With Shock]], and [[Cross -Popping Veins]] that the rest of the show never uses. This is probably to mark them as the [[Plucky Comic Relief]]. Dr. Schroeder also looks totally different from every other character.
* [[No Tell Motel]]: November 11 and co. find Havoc living in one of these.
* [[Not of This Earth]]: The setting has strong ''[[Roadside Picnic (Literature)|Roadside Picnic]]'' style setup, so it has ''lots'' of strange things ranging from small plants to Dolls' and Contractors' abilities to the [[Alien Sky]]. Some of weird stuff found [[Black Box]] [[Imported Alien Phlebotinum|applications]].
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* [[Not What It Looks Like]]: The time when Kirihara ran into Hei in a department store- buying a wig and a bra. {{spoiler|They were to help disguise a doll, you pervs.}}
* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: Hei in his "Li Shengshun" persona. Not ''stupid'', just so naive, clumsy, and [[Adorkable]] that no one thinks to look for the Black Reaper behind that smile.
* [[Obstructive Bureaucrat]]: [[The Syndicate]] seems to use these as an added safety net. Also, there's the [[What an Idiot!|morons]] at the American embassy.
* [[Odd Couple]]: [[James Bond]]-ish November and [[Bottle Fairy]] April.
* [[Offscreen Teleportation]]: Hei's [[Stealth Hi Bye]] abilities often reach this level.
* [[Primal Scene]]: Played seriously, with Yin when human, where she was blind and her music teacher was having an affair with her mother that they hid from her, but she discovered evidence of it anyway. {{spoiler|Besides her connection to her [[Nakama]], this may be one more reason why she doesn't go with the music teacher when he comes looking for her.}}
* [[Omake]]: Two chapters' worth in the first manga, a [[Hot Springs Episode]] and a [[Cooking Duel]] in the [[Interquel]] manga, and basically the entire [[OVA]].
* [[One -Hit Kill]]: {{spoiler|Shihoko}}'s power basically dissolves the victim's internal organs. Anyone hit with it dies pretty much instantly.
* [[One Person One Power]] - each Contractor has one superpower only.
* [[Only a Flesh Wound]]: Hei manages to drag himself halfway across the city with a bullet through his leg. But then, [[Berserk Button|Amber was involved]], so it's not totally surprising he went [[Determinator]].
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* [[Pointy Ears]]: Wei, a Contractor with [[Bloody Murder|the ability to use his blood as a weapon]] has pointed, elf-like ears for no apparent reason.
* [[Portal Cut]]: This is technically what Wei's powers do: he teleports whatever's covered in his blood, leaving the rest intact.
* [[Power At a Price]]: Arguably, the premise of the whole show. [[Superpower Lottery]] gives you a superpower but you must pay the price for using it. When it's something that you can do yourself, like breaking your fingers or smoking, it's compulsive. When it's aging forward or backward, it triggers after each use. Also, the show strongly implies that the main price which all Contractors must pay is losing your humanity and becoming an [[Lack of Empathy|absolutely rational]]... [[What Measure Is a Non -Human?|being]]. There are at least two ways of using the power and not paying the price, though both aren't cheap either. {{spoiler|Losing your body is really a price to pay. Or gradually turning into walking plant. Hei subverts this because he [[Soul Fragment|inherited]] his abilities from his sister, who effectively paid the price for him (and depending on how her merger with him works, she may still be paying the price for every time he uses the power as her sleeping probably wouldn't impact Hei all that much).}}
* [[Power Glows]]: Contractors using their powers are surrounded by a cool-looking blue aura, and [[Glowing Eyes of Doom|their eyes]] glow [[Red Eyes Take Warning|red]]. This is taken [[Up to Eleven]] {{spoiler|when Hei gets a little... upset... near the Meteor Shard, which makes the entire ''neighborhood'' and everyone in it glow.}}
* [[Power Incontinence]]: Contractors who enter "Moratorium" aren't forced to undergo Remuneration, but lose control and begin unconsciously using their powers while slipping into trances. If the power involved is {{spoiler|''setting stuff on fire''}}, this can be [[Tragic Monster|very bad]]. The odds of regaining control are slim.
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** This series plays up on the theory that only the mass that is part of the object being teleported would be. Anything else would stay behind. Clothes are not part of a person's body mass, thus cannot be teleported.
* [[Power Trio]]: The MI6 agents.
* [[Pre -Mortem One -Liner]]: Not a prominent feature, as the style is more realistic than "[[Calling Your Attacks]]", but Hei once said something like "Wipe that smile off your face" to a Contractor just before zapping him to death.
** Although he doesn't succeed in killing him at that point, when he first confronts the body-stealing Contractor, Hei says something like, "So you kill people and make it look like suicide; how about I try the same thing with you?"
** In his first appearance, November 11 has one. A gangster tried to double cross him, and ends up frozen in the middle of a street. After begging November 11 not to kill him, the gangster reveals the location of the [[Girl in A Box|package]] November had intended to pay for. November 11 pats him on the shoulder and says something like "I knew we'd work well together". As November walks away, the guy freezes into a [[Human Popsicle]] and smashes on the street.
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** Similarly, Nishijima's glasses flash all menacing-like when he's {{spoiler|discussing his orders for the Syndicate to assassinate Hei's unit.}}
* [[Secret Identity Identity]]: Hei is arguably three people- the "Black Reaper", a mass-murdering [[Mook Horror Show|unstoppable]] contractor; "Li Sheng Shun", a kind-hearted but naive [[Adorkable|dork]]; and the real "Hei", {{spoiler|a gentle, friendly guy who hardened his heart and [[Took a Level In Badass]] so he could stay with his [[Big Brother Instinct|beloved sister]] after she turned into a cold-blooded killing machine}}.
* [[Self -Parody]]: The first season OVA episode (involving a [[Crack Fic]]-writing [[Loony Fan]] [[Stalker With a Crush]]), the vast majority of which is [[Crowning Moment of Funny|absolutely hilarious]].
* [[Sexy Secretary]]: One contractor, whose [[Power Perversion Potential|power]] is to teleport people out of their clothing and whose [[Intimate Healing|Remuneration is kissing people]].
* [[Shell Shocked Senior]]: Havoc, and to a lesser degree Hei.
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* [[Shout Out]]: Several, including references to ''[[Death Note (Manga)|Death Note]]'' and ''[[Code Geass]]''; additionally, the anime that Kiko is said to watch in episode 7 bears a considerable likeness to ''[[Ouran High School Host Club]]'', another BONES series.
** The last episode is potentially an extended shout-out to [[Neon Genesis Evangelion]].
* [[Show, Don't Tell]]: Relied on to the point of [[Viewers Are Geniuses]] and [[Mind Screw]].
* [[Shown Their Work]]: The series is painstakingly researched in most imaginable aspects, down to copying a foreign language graffiti in distant locations and accurately representing various [[Rare Guns|obscure guns]].
** Then again, they couldn't even translate the title properly.
** And there's a reason we always refer to PANDORA by the acronym; their English needs some work.
* [[Single Stroke Battle]]: This aesthetic was subverted/mocked when Hei fought Wei in episode {{spoiler|10}}. It had most of the usual traits: the two characters charge at each other, it goes to [[Bullet Time]] as they pass each other, and they both stop in one place and look dramatic before the results become clear. However, {{spoiler|those results were actually ''faked''; neither of them managed to hit the other one, and the blood on Hei's mask was actually his own, put there to fool Wei into writing him off as dead. As a result, the supposed loser crashed in through a window a few minutes later and beat the crap out of the supposed winner.}}
* [[Slow -Motion Pass -By]]: Always done in real time, but the same idea. Usually, it's someone chasing Hei who goes straight past "Li" without noticing him, but at least once someone misses Amber instead.
* [[Smoke Out]]: A couple of times when Hei is in an otherwise inescapable position ({{spoiler|November 11 gluing his feet to the floor, Kirihara and a squad of her heavily-armed subordinates aiming machine guns at him from ten feet away}}), Huang drops a bomb that gives him a chance to [[Stealth Hi Bye|disappear]]. In the first example, it also {{spoiler|melted the ice holding him in place}}.
** Actually if I rembember correctly, {{spoiler|he melted the Ice with his electricity}} in the first example.
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** [[Your Mileage May Vary]]: Maki states this philosophy and specifically states that it isn't something Amber taught him. Amber's plan was to give Hei the chance to choose the path that He'd be happiest with, very little opinion on the superiority or inferiority of either race.
* [[Soul Fragment]]: [[It Was With You All Along]]. And mediums, as proven by CY-463.
* [[Soundtrack Dissonance]]: The [[Relax -O -Vision|especially peaceful]] [[Ending Theme]].
* [[Spiritual Successor]]: It has the same premise as ''[[Roadside Picnic (Literature)|Roadside Picnic]]'': "[[Not of This Earth|exclusion zone]] just dropped on us - [[Imported Alien Phlebotinum|weird artifacts]] - contraband" -- and is close in spirit. Show "Hell's Gate First Reconnaissance" or other scenes inside the Gate without main characters to someone knowing Picnic but not DtB and ask where they came from. That's not counting an alleged wish power of the Golden Ball and the Gate. Though the circumstances, scale and focus are different.
** Within the anime genre, there are some similarities to ''[[Ergo Proxy]]'' (Re-l and Kirihara and Vincent and Hei), ''[[Witch Hunter Robin]]'' ([[Gray and Gray Morality]] involving [[Differently -Powered Individual|Differently Powered Individuals]]), and ''[[Elfen Lied]]'' (living security systems, although much much less squicky in this show)
*** If you want more [[Squick|squicky]], there's "[[Witchblade (Anime)|I-Weapon]]", sorry, "D-Weapon" project in manga. Based on the Dolls' ability to cope with the degree of cyborgization normal people couldn't take (easy brainwashing is a bonus, of course). And yes, when that guy was plugged into his wall socket, his legs clearly weren't there.
** And of course ''[[X Men]]''
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* [[Static Stun Gun]]: Hei [[The Paralyzer|uses this all the time]], once even pretending he had a taser.
* [[Stealth Hi Bye]]: One reason Hei is known as [[Fan Nickname|Chinese Electric Batman]]. He has a distinct tendency to vanish if he's out of someone's sight for even a second. Arguably the most impressive was when he disappeared from ''right in front of Kirihara'' during the time it took her to put on her glasses, while sporting a bullet wound that had him limping so badly he was having trouble walking.
* [[Stereotypes of Chinese People]]: Kind of a mix of examples. Alice and Wei are rather negative examples, being a psychopathic [[Mafia Princess]] and her equally psycho Contractor [[Battle Butler]]. Hei is Chinese and a [[Badass]] martial artist, but in his Li persona presents himself as a friendly, unassuming Chinese immigrant. Kenji, seeing how Hei wins the fight with a troublesome client [[Cover -Blowing Superpower|while feigning weakness]], notices the skill and makes a comment to the effect that "[[All Asians Know Martial Arts|it's true that all Chinese people are martial arts masters]]". Li's landlady jokingly mentioned [[Foreign Queasine|attitude toward the Chinese idea of food]], but other than that she cares not who came from where.
* [[Stock Superhero Day Jobs]]: Hei pretends to be an exchange student while working at various menial minimum-wage jobs.
* [[The Stoic]]: Since Contractors are stoics by nature, damn near half the cast. Hei in particular.
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* [[Tin Man]]: Nearly every Contractor or Doll encountered. Others, such as Amber, seem to have realized that this idea is really stupid.
* [[Title Drop]]: Within a title. Episode 25 is called ''Is the Somber Dream of the Grim Reaper a Shade '''Darker than Black?'''''
* [[Token Non -Human]]: Mao, a [[Talking Animal]] in a team otherwise comprised of ([[What Measure Is a Non -Human?|mostly]]) humans.
* [[The Tokyo Fireball]]: They even call it the "Tokyo Explosion."
* [[Tokyo Is the Center of The Universe]]: A poster child for the trope.
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* [[Trojan Prisoner]]: Accidental one. Yakuza guys thought a Doll was just one more sort of illegal goods and didn't even blindfold her. Hei, Mao, and viewers learned something new about Dolls, and Yakuza were surprised by a superpowered ninja "somehow" homing right in on their hideaway.
* [[Trope Overdosed]]
* [[True Companions]]: Both Hei and co. and the British agents despite both being entirely composed of [[Card -Carrying Villain|card carrying villains]].
** The term is actually used in the episodes with Maki, as when November 11 is kidnapped, July goes to Kirihara for help and refers to November and April as his Nakama (translated in the subtitles as "friends"). When Kirihara tells November 11 about this, he is at first surprised, but then shows caring towards July, demonstrating complexity beyond what is expected of a Contractor.
** The Public Security Bureau's Foreign Affairs Division, 4th Section, dedicated to arresting/hunting down Contractors also counts as a Nakama, as they are quite close and affectionate with one another, and Kirihara refuses a promotion at least partially because she doesn't want to leave her team.
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** In general, 90% of what is said in the first couple of episodes is either misleading or an outright lie.
* [[Unreliable Voiceover]]: Mao, at the beginning of Episode 22, gives a dramatic speech about keeping his cool and doing the rational thing while the actual video shows him acting both terrified and mortified. It's [[Crowning Moment of Funny|funny as hell]].
* [[The Un -Smile]]: Yin [[Frozen Face|had to use her fingers to smile]]. Unlike most instances of this trope, however, it was [[Moe|cute]] rather than freaky.
* [[UST]]: Huge amounts between Hei and Kirihara; episode 23 brings it close to [[Dating Catwoman]] levels.
* [[Viewers Are Geniuses]]: You were expecting an ''explanation''? We gave you a perfectly good set of [[Cryptic Conversation|Cryptic Conversations]], [[Dark and Troubled Past|confusing flashbacks]], [[Unreliable Expositor|Unreliable Expositors]], and even a [[Mind Screw|Mind Screwy]] [[Journey to The Center of The Mind]]. ''You'' [[Figure It Out Yourself|figure it out]]. [[Fridge Brilliance|We'll wait]].
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* [[We Have Been Researching Phlebotinum for Years]]: In the first two episodes of ''[[Darker Than Black]]'' [[The Hero]] accidentally saves a scientist working under the [[Masquerade]] and on the run receives a hasty explanation of what's going on.
* [[Weapon of Choice]]: Hei fights with throwing knives and a choke wire. Handy since they conduct electricity.
* [[What Do You Mean ItsIt's Not Awesome?]]: In episode 11, the head janitor addresses his employees [[Serious Business|like they're in a military line-up.]]
* [[What Is This Feeling]]: Dolls and Contractors both tend to act like this, since so many of them buy into the obviously incorrect [[Tin Man]] idea.
* [[What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart Anyway]]: Some powers are nearly universal, but many are too weird or noticeable to use freely. That's not counting their random price.
** Itzhak probably bears special mention, though, since he's about the only Contractor we see who can't do much of anything in a fight.
* [[What Measure Is a Non -Human?]]: Both Contractors and Dolls are considered no-longer human and may actually think of themselves this way but frequently show hidden depths. Dolls are quite passive at best and catatonic at worst, and Contractors' typical self-centered attitude and "[[When All You Have Is a Hammer]]" style don't show that people who treat them as a sort of killing robots are too wrong either.
* [[What Measure Is a Non Super]]: Evening Primrose takes this view, as do some of the crazier Contractors unaffiliated with them.
* [[When All You Have Is a Hammer]]: Played with: many Contractors act like walking guns with a single type of ammo, up to using [[Hollywood Tactics]]. Others are more flexible. Still others are quite capable even [[Badass Abnormal|without using their powers at all]].
* [[When She Smiles]]: What first made Amber fall in love with Hei. [http://i49.tinypic.com/dphlkl.png We can totally see why].
* [[White -Haired Pretty Girl]]: Yin.
* [[White Mask of Doom]]: Worn by Hei, who provides the page picture at the time of this writing.
* [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?]]: Played for laughs. Kurasawa is terrified of cats.
* [[Why Do You Keep Changing Jobs?]]: A rare main character example in Hei's undercover missions, all of which involve him taking some kind of menial job. Lampshaded when the [[Private Defective]] wonders why he keeps showing up.
** Played with further in the manga omake, with stuff like [http://www.onemanga.com/Darker_Than_Black/9.5/06/ his growing bad reputation and Kiko's interpretation of this habit.]
* [[With Great Power Comes Great Insanity]]: Contractors appear to be utterly lacking in conscience (as poor {{spoiler|Mai}} put it -- ''"Why?"''). And/or have some quirk wired to the [[Berserk Button]] (Hei:[[Dead Little Sister|sister]], Wei:[[Worthy Opponent|victory]], {{spoiler|Nick:sky}} Maki:[[Yandere|crush]], November 11:smoking). The few "how I became Contractor" stories we've seen suggest that it could be the other way around and people who are already about to go crazy may [[Incredibly Lame Pun|contract]] some unusual power.
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[[Category:Darker Than Black (Anime)]]
[[Category:Season One Tropes N-Z]]
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