Short Answer:
Zero Two, along with her beloved darling Hiro, died in the process of defeating VIRM, the mysterious alien race. They managed to destroy the planet of VIRM at the cost of their own lives, but things didn’t end here as they swore to meet each other again in another life. After the final episode’s credits, We see two kids resembling Zero Two and Hiro living on earth, hinting that they are the reincarnation of Zero Two and Hiro.
Strelizia True Apus Awakening
After defeating the invading army of VIRM, Strelizia Apus and the remaining Klaxosaurs went into space to pursue VIRM while Zero Two and all of the humans remained on Earth. As the days passed by though, Hiro noticed something was wrong with Zero two, for one thing, Zero Two wasn’t talking anymore. It was also at this time that Hiro began to notice a lot of cuts suddenly appearing on Zero two’s body. Saddened and desperate to find a way to help her, he found that at that moment, all he could do was stay by her side and hug her.
However, as he hugged her, their horns touched and Hiro got a glimpse into Zero Two’s consciousness and realized that although her body was right there with him, her mind was in space, merged with the Strelizia Apus being continuously attacked by the VIRM and any damage the Strelizia Apus receives, is also inflicted on the body of Zero Two on Earth. Realizing that she’s alone again, Hiro decides to go to space cause he promised Zero Two that if ever they were separated, they would find a way to be together again. His squad realizes the danger involved and tries to stop him from going into space but Hiro already made up his mind.
It’s Zero Two. I can’t leave alone. We made a promise. Even if we were torn apart, we’d go to get the other, no matter how far.
Hiro to Goro
What Hiro doesn’t realize at that moment though is that Zero Two intentionally left him because she knew that if he continued linking with her, he’d eventually lose his humanity. Because he’s the person she loves the most, she’d rather die alone in space rather than have him turn into a monster like her.
Here’s a clip of Hiro realizing Zero Two’s mind is in space.
After reaching space, Hiro finds the VIRM army who is attacking the neutral Apus. Saddened to see Zero Two, who is holding them alone, Hiro decides to help her despite knowing he won’t be able to return once he merges with her and the neutral Apus. Hiro finds his way into the Apus and tries to link his consciousness with Zero Two and after successful linking, the whole body of Strelizia Apus changes. Its face is replaced by Zero Two’s face and it’s arms and torso are that of Zero Two’s as well, revealing the Strelizia True Apus.
Zero Two and Hiro’s final battle against VIRM
In its final form, Strelizia Apus destroys the fleet of VIRM’s army, but its main army remains in another galaxy. The awakening of Strelizia Apus activates programmed satellites on neighboring planets that form a wrap hole to another universe. Zero Two and Hiro travel straight into this dimension portal with a giant bomb made by ancient Klaxo Sapiens.
On the other side of the portal, the travelled a great distance to get to the home planet of VIRM. It even took them eight years to get there. Luckily, Hiro was no longer human at this point and didn’t require sleep or food. They engage in the final battle against VIRM’s main fleet, which is much larger than all previous fleets.
Strelizia Apus is battered to the point that it is unable to move any further, but Hiro and Zero continue to fight till their last breath. Just when things are looking grim, Hiro and Zero Two bonding gives birth to another chance in the form of Strelizia, which emerges from the destroyed body of Strelizia Apus. Together, they land the final attack that initiates exploding protocols of the bomb leading to a massive blast that annihilates the VIRM’s planet from existence.
Check out this video on how Zero Two and Hiro saved humanity by defeating all of the VIRM!
Is Zero Two Dead?
During the final arc of the anime, we see the physical body of Zero Two turn into stone. This made a lot of fans questioning whether she was still alive. However, in the same episode, we see her consciousness is still intact and is able to communicated and link with Hiro. In that moment, Zero Two’s physical body may have died but her mind was still alive.
Zero Two and Hiro indeed died in the final fight against VIRM, but their love for each other remained immortal as they swore to meet each other in another life. They believed that their souls are destined to be together, so whether they reincarnate or not, it is the sheer reality that they will always be together. It is important to note that Zero Two’s body was already suffering on the earth because her consciousness was linked with Strelizia Apus. Upon awakening Strelizia True Apus, Zero Two’s physical body on earth turns to stone as Zero Two, and Strelizia Apus becomes one, as shown in episode 23 of Darling in the Franxx.
Zero and Hiro Reincarnation
Hiro and Zero Two gave their lives for the future of their beloved ones as VIRM planned to rob the physical bodies of all living things to make weapons. After the blast, We see countless souls, released from the imprisonment of VIRM, going back to their original bodies. Among these souls, We see Hiro and Zero Two’s souls beginning their long journey back to Earth while holding hands. Centuries later, Hiro and Zero Two’s souls are finally seen reaching the earth. Later, We see a kid with hair similar to Hiro sitting beneath a cherry tree reading a picture book. Soon, a girl with pink hair similar to Zero Two runs past him and trips. As the boy helps the girl up, they introduce themselves, and the screen fades, concluding that Zero Two and Hiro did end up reincarnating on earth.
You can see the their reincarnations here in this video!
Interesting Fact:
Since the start of Darling Franxx, We have seen Humans fighting the Klaxosaurs because they deemed them monsters. However, Later we discovered that there is something more than meets the eye about them. In reality, Klaxosaurs are not monsters; rather, they are biological weapons born as the result of evolution that occurred in the bodies of Klaxo Sapiens. They are indeed living things that lost their intellect and became weapons of mass destruction. It is pretty tragic that humans continued to fight them for about half of the series, yet they are people who sacrificed themselves to protect the earth from alien invasions.
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Although mecha anime primarily focuses on warfare and machines, there are some mecha anime that feature lovable couples. Tusk X Ange couple from Cross Ange: Rondo of Angel and Dragon anime has vibes similar to Zero X Hiro. At first, Ange comes off as a sheltered noble girl who ends up becoming a rogue soldier because she lacks mana abilities. She crashes on a remote island, and Tusk, an ordinary guy with adequate technical knowledge, helps her. They had their ups and downs, but eventually, they fell in love and decided to protect each other for eternity.
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