The appeal and reviews of "Darling in the Franxx": A story of robots and youth

Darling in the Franxx: A story of hope and struggle for the future

"Darling in the Franxx" is an original anime series that aired in 2018, co-produced by TRIGGER and A-1 Pictures. This anime, directed by Atsushi Nishigori, brought together a stellar cast and crew, deeply moving and exciting viewers. Below, we will introduce detailed information and reviews of this work, as well as recommended points.

story

"Darling in the Franxx" is set in the distant future. Humanity has built mobile fortress cities called "Plantations" on devastated land and is enjoying civilization. Within this, the children who live in the pilot residential facility "Mistltinn," commonly known as "Torikago," have grown up without knowing the outside world or the freedom of the sky. Their mission is to fight giant lifeforms called "Klaxosaurs." The children pilot robots called "Franxx" and try to prove their existence by fighting.

The main character, Hiro (code number 016), was once known as a child prodigy, but is now a dropout. While it is said that there is no point in existence if one cannot pilot a Franxx, a mysterious girl called Zero Two (code number 002) appears before Hiro. She has two seductive horns growing from her forehead and declares, "I found you, my darling." This encounter will greatly change the destiny of Hiro, Zero Two, and the other children.

Commentary

"Darling in the Franxx" is an original anime project by a stellar team of people who have worked on many masterpieces. Director Atsushi Nishigori has experience as a character designer for "The Idolmaster" and "Gurren Lagann," and he demonstrates his talent in this work as well. Character design is handled by Masayoshi Tanaka, who worked on "Your Name" and "The Anthem of the Heart," providing beautiful visuals.

The project was produced by TRIGGER, the studio behind "Kill la Kill" and "Little Witch Academia," and CloverWorks, a new brand from A-1 Pictures, the studio behind "The Idolmaster" and "Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day." The combination of these two companies is truly a dream come true.

In addition, the project is supported by a number of impressive staff members, including Hiroyuki Imaishi, director of "Kill la Kill" and "Gurren Lagann," Shigeto Koyama, who participated in "Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo" and "Big Hero 6," Toshifumi Akai, character designer for "Magi," and Naotaka Hayashi, director of "Steins;Gate." With all these staff members gathered together, "Darling in the Franxx" has achieved extremely high quality both visually and narratively.

cast

The cast of "Darling in the Franxx" is also impressive. The voice actors who play the unique characters are Yuto Uemura as Hiro, Haruka Tomatsu as Zero Two, Yuichiro Umehara as Goro, Mutsumi Tamura as Zorome, Aoi Ichikawa as Mitsuru, Hiroki Goto as Futoshi, Kana Ichinose as Ichigo, Nanami Yamashita as Miku, Saori Hayami as Kokoro, Shizuka Ishigami as Ikuno, Ami Koshimizu as Naomi, and many more. The supporting cast is also impressive, including Soma Saito as 9'α, the leader of the 9's, Marina Inoue as Nana, Katsuyuki Konishi as Hachi, and Kenyu Horiuchi as Professor Franxx.

Main Staff

The main staff of "Darling in the Franxx" are as follows:

• Original: Code:000
• Director: Atsushi Nishikori
• Assistant Director: Toshifumi Akai
• Series Composition: Atsushi Nishikori, Naotaka Hayashi (MAGES.)
• Character design: Masayoshi Tanaka
• Chief animation director: Masayoshi Tanaka
• Mechanical design: Shigeto Koyama
• Action Supervision: Hiroyuki Imaishi
• Mistilteinn Design: Akiko Nakamura
• Klaxosaur design: Masahiro Iwasaki
• Art setting: Yoshinori Shiozawa
• Art director: Satoru Hirayanagi
• Color design: Kazuko Nakajima
• 3D Director: Shogo Tsurui, Ryuta Undo
• 3DCG: Studio Color, A-1 Pictures
• Monitor graphics: Kayoko Zama
• Director of photography: Yuya Sakuma
• Music: Asami Tachibana
• Sound Director: Hata Shouji
• Edited by: Akinori Mishima
• Production: TRIGGER/A-1 Pictures

Main Characters

The main characters of "Darling in the Franxx" are as follows:

• Code:016 Hiro: Once known as a prodigy, he is now a dropout parasite. He worries about his place in Mistilteinn.
• Code:056 Goro: A good-natured young man who is everyone's mood maker and has high abilities as a parasite. He has been best friends with Hiro and Ichigo for a long time.
• Code:666 Zorome: He is frivolous and emotional, but somehow lovable. He dreams of becoming an adult someday.
• Code:326 Mitsuru: Proud and sarcastic. He feels a sense of rivalry towards Hiro.
• Code: 214 Futoshi: He is easy-going and does things at his own pace, but he also has a surprisingly sensible side. He has a friendly personality and gets along well with everyone.
• Code:002 Zero Two: A mysterious girl with red horns. An elite parasite nicknamed the "Partner Killer."
• Code:015 Ichigo: The leader of the children, a reliable honor student. She is always concerned about her childhood friend Hiro.
• Code:390 Miku: A beautiful girl with a beautiful appearance and a great figure. She is cheerful and innocent, but also selfish and competitive.
• Code: 556 Kokoro: She has a gentle and calm personality, and is like a Madonna to the boys. Although she doesn't say much, she is actually very thoughtful.
• Code: 196 Ikuno: He is calm and collected and rarely shows his true self. He loves reading and is always reading a book.
• Code:703 Naomi: A former parasite candidate girl. She failed the aptitude test she took with Hiro and decided to leave Mistilteinn.
• Code:081: Zero Two's former partner, a parasite. Having been with her, he sustained significant damage to his body.
• Code:090 26th Squad: After kissing 13 cities, they join forces with Hiro and his friends. Their leader is Code:090.
• 9's: A special guard unit under the direct control of APE. Its leader is 9'α Nine Alpha.
• 9'α: Leader of the 9's.
• 9'β
• 9'γ
• 9'δ
• 9'ε
• 9'ζ
• 9'η
• 9'θ
• Nana: Parasite Administrator at the APE Operations Headquarters. She is in charge of taking care of the children living in Mistilteinn.
• Hachi: Commander of the APE Headquarters City Defense Operations. He issues strategies and orders to the children in the battle against the Klaxosaurs that are approaching 13 cities.
• Dr. Franxx: The scientist who developed Franxx. He has a strong interest not only in Franxx but also in their enemy, the Klaxosaurs.
• Seven Sages: The seven supreme commanders of the human governing body APE. They are called "Papa" by the children of Mistilteinn.
• Chairman
• Vice Chairman
• Werner Frank: A scientist who conducts illegal experiments, including cloning. His research results at the university were highly praised, and he was scouted by APE.
• Karina Mirza: A researcher in telomere regenerative medicine. She worked with Werner on the study of immortality.
• Klaxosaur Princess: A mysterious being with blue skin and horns. She leads other Klaxosaurs and lurks deep underground on Earth.

Main Robot Items

The following main robots and items appear in "Darling in the Franxx."

• Strelizia: Hiro and Zero Two pilot the Franxx. They fight with a giant spear-shaped weapon called the Queen Pike, which is a special weapon against Klaxosaurs.
• Queen Pike
• Delphinium: Goro and Ichigo pilot a Franxx. The team leader, he uses two-handed weapons, the Enbishop, to fight.
• En Bishop
• Argentia: A Franxx piloted by Zorome and Miku. It is a speed-focused unit specialized for close-quarters combat, and fights with claw-shaped weapons called "Night Claws" attached to both fists.
• Night Crow
• Genista: The Franxx piloted by Mitsuru and Kokoro. It is covered in heavy armor and fights with a bayonet-shaped cannon called the Luke Sparrow, which boasts immense destructive power at close range.
• Luke Sparrow
• Chlorophyte: A Franxx piloted by Futoshi and Ikuno. A support-type unit that emphasizes long-distance attacks. It can fly for long periods of time using the fins (Wingspan) equipped on both arms.
• Wingspan
• Lance Pettigree
• Mass-produced type: A mass-produced Franxx used by Unit 26. Since there are no individual differences, they excel at organized tactics.
• Bornhasta
• Type 9: A Franxx exclusive to 9's. Fights with a spear-shaped weapon called the Amazon Pike.
• Amazon Pike

subtitle

The subtitles for each episode of "Darling in the Franxx" are as follows.

• Episode 1: Alone and alone
• Episode 2: What it means to be connected
• Episode 3: Fighting Dolls
• Episode 4: Flap Flap
• Episode 5: Your Thorn, My Mark
• Episode 6: Darling in the Franxx
• Episode 7: Shooting Star Moratorium
• Episode 8: Boy x Girl
• Episode 9: Triangle Bomb
• Episode 10: The Eternal City
• Episode 11: Partner Shuffle
• Episode 12: Garden/The Garden of Beginnings
• Episode 13: The Monster and the Prince
• Episode 14: Sin and Confession
• Episode 15: The Two-Winged Bird
• Episode 16: Our Days
• Episode 17: Paradise
• Episode 18: When the Cherry Blossoms Bloom
• Episode 19: Non-humans
• Episode 20: A New World
• Episode 21: For the sake of my beloved
• Episode 22: Stargazer
• Episode 23: Darling in the Franxx
• Episode 24: Don't Let Me Go

Theme songs and music

The theme songs and music for "Darling in the Franxx" are as follows:

• OP1
  • Period: 2-24
  • "KISS OF DEATH"
  • Lyricist: HYDE
  • Composer: HYDE
  • Arrangement: HYDE/Carlos K.
  • Sung by: Mika Nakashima
  • No OP for the first time only
• ED1
  • Period: 1-24
  • "XX:me (Kiss Me)"
  • Lyricist: Katsuhiko Sugiyama
  • Composer: Katsuhiko Sugiyama
  • Arrangement: Katsuhiko Sugiyama
  • Sung by: Zero Two/Haruka Tomatsu, Ichigo/Kana Ichinose, Miku/Nami Yamashita, Kokoro/Saori Hayami, Ikuno/Shizuka Ishigami

Rating and Recommended Points

"Darling in the Franxx" is a work that is attractive for its epic story, beautiful visuals, and deep character portrayal. Below, we will introduce the specific evaluation and recommended points of the work.

Story and Themes

"Darling in the Franxx" is a work that depicts the problems and hopes that humanity will face in the future. The children's efforts to prove their existence by fighting deeply moves the viewers. Also not to be missed are the relationship between Hiro and Zero Two, and the growth of the other characters. In particular, the development towards the final episode was extremely moving, and will have brought many viewers to tears.

The main themes of the film are "freedom" and "restraint," "love" and "battle." The children's escape from the "bird cage" and their quest for freedom sends a strong message to the viewers. The love story between Hiro and Zero Two also teaches us the importance of finding hope even in the midst of battle.

Visuals and performance

The visuals of "DARLING in the FRANXX" are extremely beautiful, with character designs by Masayoshi Tanaka and mechanic designs by Shigeto Koyama. The Franxx designs in particular are innovative and visually impactful. Additionally, the action scenes are also very impressive, with Hiroyuki Imaishi overseeing the action scenes.

In terms of directing, Director Atsushi Nishigori's attention to detail can be seen everywhere. In particular, the scene depicting the relationship between Hiro and Zero Two and the climax scene in the final episode leave a strong impression on viewers. In addition, the beautiful background music by Asami Tachibana is also an important element that livens up the story.

Characters and cast

The characters in "Darling in the Franxx" are unique and charming. Each character's story is carefully drawn, including Hiro's growth, Zero Two's past, and the worries and hopes of the other children. The acting of the cast was also excellent, and in particular, Tomatsu Haruka's performance as Zero Two and Uemura Yuto's performance as Hiro left a deep impression on viewers.

In particular, the character of Zero Two is very attractive, and her horns, red hair, and background with the nickname "Partner Killer" attract the interest of viewers. In addition, Hiro's growth and the relationships with the other children are also points not to be missed.

Recommended points

Darling in the Franxx is recommended for the following reasons:

• Epic story and deep themes: The film is appealing for its epic story that depicts the problems and hopes that humanity will face in the future, as well as the deep themes of "freedom" and "restraint," "love" and "war."
• Beautiful visuals and direction: The beautiful visuals, created by Masayoshi Tanaka's character designs and Shigeto Koyama's mechanic designs, as well as director Atsushi Nishigori's meticulous direction, are worth seeing.
• Attractive characters and cast: The unique characters and the acting of the wonderful cast, including Haruka Tomatsu and Yuto Uemura, captivate viewers.
• A moving final episode: The developments leading up to the final episode and the climax scene leave viewers with a strong emotional reaction.

Conclusion

"Darling in the Franxx" is a work that is appealing with its epic story, beautiful visuals, and deep character portrayal. This anime depicts the problems and hopes that humanity will face in the future, and will deeply move and excite viewers. In particular, the relationship between Hiro and Zero Two, the growth of the other children, and the climax scene in the final episode are must-sees. Please watch this work and experience its charm for yourself.