My Thoughts on Darling in the Franxx

Alright, I need to add a quick little note before I actually share my thoughts on this one: I was heavily advised to NOT watch the full series and was given a specific stopping point. After learning how the show ends... I highly recommend any new watchers stop at episode 15 (where I personally think it should've ended), though you COULD stop at episode 20/21 if you're brave enough.

I will try to keep this as spoiler free as I can up until I start talking about the end. Beware of minor spoilers up to that point, just in case I accidentally spoil anything!

First things first, I wasn't too crazy about the first 8 episodes. I can best sum them up as follows: horny teenage boys fight over the "top" girl. These episodes are essentially nothing but sexual innuendos, but they don't quite touch "ecchi" material. You get introduced to who you'd think are the main 10 characters, but in all honesty, only 2 of them really seem to matter for the main "plot" of the show: Hiro and Zero Two. The rest are, unfortunately, highly forgettable unless you are interested in their subplots (which come later)... So not off to a good start character wise, in my opinion. Also not a good note when the show feel the need to start off strong with the fan-service shots as opposed to what was actually in the trailers (giant fighting robots), but I'll touch more on that in a moment.

From the first 8 episodes, I was able to gleam a select few points that the show seems to touch on for all of it's plots. There's sex, romance, growing up, religion, and child soldiers. Ok, it sounds good from just that, right? Nope. While I admit it wasn't my cup of tea for those episodes, I can at least tell you this much: you aren't going to get much payoff for all the things it touches on. I had many questions, and as if to dissuade me from being at all interested in it for the storylines, I was instead given innuendos and ass shots. Wanna know why? Because the way the giant robots work in this universe is to have 2 teenagers (a boy and a girl) pilot them. The girl is quite literally in the perfect position for receiving anal (never thought I'd use that as a description, but my God is it the truth) and the boy is sitting in a chair behind her, steering via controllers attached to her butt. Yep. This show went HEAVY for the sex topics right out of the gate. You only catch little glimpses of the rest of the topics, and I personally wish they'd spent more time building on those (as they appear to play a fairly big role in the grand scheme of things) as opposed to showing off some teenage ass.

Rant aside, I personally was about to call it quits if those episodes kept up... But then, in a bizarre twist, the Beach Episode gave me plot. Actual plot. It made me interested and hopeful. The fan service was kept to where it normally was in the episodes before it, if not slightly less, and I have to give props for that. I am still very much of the opinion that this one episode helps build the world far more than the rest before it, but looking at when this series first came out... I really can't fault the 2 studios that worked on this for how they handled these first few episodes. At this point, I at least felt like I could maybe get into the show a little more, and for a while I did. I loved the little side plots they opened up outside of just the topic of sex/attraction, and I stuck around for those side stories alone. The fan-service was also cut down, but I may have also just gotten used to it now that I think about it.

But this all brings me to what the show REALLY wanted to showcase all along: the "romance" between Hiro and Zero Two. You'll find this very evident in the first 3 episodes alone, but that wasn't what got me. No, it was the cliché back-story they both shared (not going to spoil anything). Or rather, it's cliché if you typically watch slice of life anime, I should clarify. Again, I have to look at this through the "well, when it first came out..." lens and give a point for it not being as contrived back then as it is now, especially given the target demographic. While the episode showcasing their story had it's cute moments, I'm too used to slice of life for it to have the full intended effect on me.

Everything stays relatively the same for me up until episode 15. This episode screams series finale, right from the get-go. And honestly? It wraps up a good majority of the story. Of course there are still the unanswered plot lines, but from what I've been told, a lot of what I picked up on gets half-assed answers in the end anyway. Also, from clips that I've seen, the fight goes to space? And Zero Two becomes a spaceship? I have no clue why they went in that direction, but I'm glad I stopped where I did. Aliens and giant robots could work in certain circles... But not if it's introduced out of the blue and used as a series finale. And given the amount of potential this show had (despite my protestations)... An ending like that just ruins it.

All in all, I can say this much: while not typically one that is up my alley, if you watch it for strictly Zero Two and her character as a whole, the show's going to be great for you. There's potential that doesn't really get tapped into regarding the slice of life moments, but the fight scenes with the giant robots (when not focused on teenage girl butts) are top notch, and the romance... Well, it's a romance. And so long as you stop while you're ahead at episode 15... The show isn't all that bad. I have my own personal gripes with it, sure, but I can still recommend the watch.

Just keep in mind, for those who do decide to give Darling in the Franxx a watch, to stop at episode 15 if you want to keep the memory of the show in a good light.