Short Answer: Darling in the Franxx is good and worth watching as it features a unique blend of mecha, romance, tragedy, slice of life, and comedy. Although it may not have as much episodes as other mecha anime, it’s enough to make you glued to your seat with either its action, romance, tragedy or all of them. One unique feature of this anime compared to other mechas is that humanity is fighting against organic-mechanic beings instead of other mechas and although that might sound kind of weird to you if you come from mecha anime where it’s just purely mecha, Darling in the Franxx doesn’t disappoint when it comes to mecha action.
The main cast of characters fights Klaxosaurs, which are organic beings, unlike the typical mecha anime where people use mechas to fight other mechas. On the other hand, It does suffer from a rushed storyline and vague character development, but it still has some promising aspects that prevail over its flaws. Darling in the Franxx survives by synchronizing itself with the emotions and psyche of the human mind; that’s how it managed to remain in the hearts of countless people even after gaining criticism from the masses.
The Characters
Darling in the Franxx features a wide cast of characters contributing to the storyline in one or more ways. Most of the characters are teenagers, as this anime focuses on teenagers living in a dystopian future.
Just like most mecha anime, Darling the Franxx features a male protagonist and a lead heroine. Both encounter hardships as the story progresses but their friends support them and actually help move the story along. Although the story focuses more on the main protagonist and the lead heroine, it also does shine the spotlight at the supporting characters every now and then. So as the story goes on, you’ll not only find yourself invested in the main characters, but of the supporting characters as well and how all of them go together as a whole.
However, unlike most mecha anime, Darling in the Franxx features a range of personalities that you don’t normally see in other mecha. The childish personality is one such featured personality in this anime and although it might sometimes be too much, it reminds us that these characters are just children who are forced to be soldiers.
Considering all these points, Darling in the Franxx did a great job in presenting its characters and I’m sure that you’ll certainly enjoy sticking with these characters till the end.
Here’s a short clip of what I mean when I say the characters in this anime showcase personalities you wouldn’t normally find in other mecha anime. Check it out!
The Execution
Darling in the Franxx is an original series, unlike the usual anime based on the manga and light novels. Throughout history, original anime tends to be not as bright as anime with the backing of a manga or light novel. Adapted anime are generally more successful than the original ones but Darling in the Franxx managed to give tough competition to them by bringing vibrance to the so-called dry mecha genre.
What makes Darling in the Franxx a great anime is it contains great blend of mecha, romance, and slice-of-life themes with a little dash of psychological issues thrown into the mix making it a combination that anime fan would certainly enjoy. Personally, I was dying to watch a mecha anime that focuses on a romance story, and Darling in Franxx turned out to be a perfect fit.
With regards to the pacing of the show, Darling in the Franxx paced it perfectly in its first 12 episodes, but it kept getting worse with every subsequent episode. This is mainly because of a vast storyline but lesser episodes. Darling in the Franxx’s execution is unique as we get to see the world from the individual perspective of each character and how it affects their personalities and goals. With such a wide variety of characters and personalities, you’d find yourself amazed at how the themes can change quickly from action to slice of life in a matter of a few episodes. Nevertheless, Darling in the Franxx’s goal was to satisfy fans with a taste of several combined genres, which surprisingly turn out to be so good that we can literally forget about its shortcomings.
You can check out this video to see a battle scene from Darling in the Franxx. You’ll find that sometimes battles in Darling in the Franxx aren’t as serious as you’d think, the pilots are children after all, so it’d be natural for them to act childish, even in battles.
The Music
Music is a big part in any movie, anime or show. Without music, the feeling is just not the same. Music brings so much emotion to whatever is being shown. Whether it be courage, hope, fear, sadness or happiness, music is able to amplify these emotions. Take for example horror films. I’m pretty sure any horror film would be less scary or even silly if you remove its ominous backing soundtrack.
The same goes for Darling in the Franxx. It’s able to make us feel a range of emotions with its amazing soundtracks. Although it only has one opening scene, it’s very catchy and has been on the playlist of people for a long time now. The opening also features amazing art and the song used “Kiss of Death” goes very well with it. Unlike the opening scene, there are multiple end credit scenes and each of them are also very catchy. They manage to capture viewers with not only with their art and music that work so well together but as well as the symbolism it shows. After listening to these songs a couple of times, you’ll be sure to find yourself singing along to them!
When it comes to battle scenes, Darling in the Fraxx sets the scenes right with pulsating drum beats that are accompanied by the tense sounds of violins that just put you on edge while watching the characters in battle! Dramatic scenes are flavoured with violin sounds that set the mood right and there might also be hints of soft piano playing to make things more dramatic. All in all, Darling in the Franxx masterfully uses its soundtracks to elevate an already great story to greater heights.
Below is the opening scene for Darling in the Franxx. Enjoy!
Below is one of the ending scenes of Darling in the Franxx. Enjoy!
The Animation
Being a newer mecha, Darling in the Franxx features animation that makes your eyes happy. If I had to pick one thing that every fan of Darling in the Franxx admires, it would be animation because the animation on this anime is simply breathtaking. Unlike most mecha anime, Darling in the Franxx features a more bright and vivid animation. All throughout the anime, you’ll be be seeing colorful scenes here and there because this anime is also a slice of life sometimes. These bright and colorful scenes however, provide the viewers with a mental break from all the dark and gloomy serious scenes that Darling in the Franxx also has.
You might be interested to know that three popular studios (A-1 Pictures, Trigger, and CloverWorks) collaborated to produce Darling in the Franxx. All the animations from these studios are fantastic, from character design to world design and Darling in the Franxx is is no exception as it’s also a gem created by these three studios.
Although the characters are not drawn in much detail, they are still good enough to match the surrounding aesthetic environment. The fight sequences are crafted with so much care that any mecha fan would appreciate the work put into it. All of the scenes go so well with the soundtrack paired with them as well, further enhancing the feelings we get from these scenes. If you like good art, then you’ll surely enjoy the art of Darling in the Franxx.
Just look at these amazing works of art!
The Plot Twists
Everyone likes plot twists. They’re like an instant boost that catches the audience off-guard and gets them them to continue watching. However, as amazing as plot twists may be, they can just be as bad. Darling in the Franxx features a number of plot twists that will be sure to make you question what just happened. Some of them might be controversial for many people at first, but as the story gradually progresses, the show managed to connect all the dots.
The plot twists in Darling in the Franxx are spaced evenly throughout the show so instead of getting so much shocking information in one sitting, you multiple little shocks throughout the series which is great as it keeps you glued to your screen, wanting to know what happens next.
Our Final Thoughts:
Darling in the Franxx indeed suffers from vague character development and plot holes, but they are a part of it, and acknowledging these flaws let us to enjoy the rest of the series. Being an original anime, Darling in the Franxx has long crossed the ranking charts, showing that its positive aspects did prevail over the flaws. I can’t stress this enough, but the way this anime portrays the forbidden love between Hiro and Zero Two and how they managed to change the world together with their fellows is tear-jerking and inspiring at the same time.
You May Also Like: Neon Genesis Evangelion
Neon Genesis Evangelion is a classic physiological thriller anime released in the 19th century. Its central plot follows the story of Shinji Ikari, who finds himself in brutal battles against himself and otherworldly creatures in order for him to protect the ones he cares about as well as in order for him to find what he truly means to himself and to other in the process.
Darling in the Franxx is relatable to Neon Genesis Evangelion as both anime feature giant robots piloted by teenagers in order to do battle with giant monsters. Moreover, these anime also have a side love story as well as psychological side story that is worth watching. If you like a combination of mecha, romance, psychological and action genres, then Neon Genesis Evangelion is definitely for you.
If you want to know why Neon Genesis Evangelion is very popular, you can click here to start reading our article about it.
You can also click here to check out our other Neon Genesis Evangelion articles.
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