Short Answer: Kids, also known as Parasites, are tasked with fighting Klaxosaurs. As such, they usually don’t survive these dangerous fights and die as children. In order to pilot a Franxx, possession of reproductive organs as well as a certain amount of yellow blood cells is required. Only the children had both of these requirements which made them the only options as pilots for Franxx.
Due to the advancement of science, humans achieved immortality using magma technology and as such, lost the need for reproduction. Humanity eventually abandoned the idea of reproduction and lost their reproductive ability as well as their basic feelings. With their current state, adults had no chance of piloting Franxx and so children were genetically created in a laboratory with the sole purpose of being parasites.
What role do the kids play in Darling in the Franxx?
Kids in Darling in the Franxx play the significant role of Parasites who pilot the Franxx to fight off the Klaxosaurs. Children basically serve as weapons that protect the adults living in futuristic plantations. Dr. Werner Frank created these children biochemically as the only fertile humans are capable of piloting Franxx. Children are divided into pairs as male and female parasites are required to pilot the Franxx. Male Parasites like Hiro and Gorou are called Stamens, while Female Parasites like Zero Two and Kokoro are called Pistils.
Although many people wouldn’t even call them humans, I genuinely believe that they were more human than the adults who literally gave in to their desires and dragged the world to chaos. At first, these children are eager to fight Klaxosaurs even at the cost of their lives because they are brought up in this way but eventually, they begin to develop emotions and individual personalities by interacting with one another. It is important to note that children remain the main focus of the anime throughout the series as they are the only hope left for humanity.
Here’s a clip of the what fight scenes look like! Check it out!
“For some reason, I don’t want to see those children hurt themselves any more than they already have. Funny isn’t it? I mean… I’ve watched over them as tools for warfare for so long.”
Nana
It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Darling in the Franxx is an anime where all the spotlight goes to these kids, and they deserve it for their countless sacrifices and efforts in protecting their homeland, which their predecessors failed to protect.
How the discovery of Dr. Werner Frank affected Humans
Dr. Werner Frank was a mad scientist conducting illegal experiments on human clones until the APE organization recruited him. By using the authority and resources of APE, Werner discovered the magma energy resource, which was cheap and abundant. APE used magma energy and rebuilt the entire civilization. Dr. Werner Frank realized his dream of immortality by conducting various experiments on this new energy resource.
After APE took control of the world, they proposed immortality operations to all humans, and people ended up going through these experiments to achieve eternal life. However, soon, they learned the shocking truth that they lost their reproductive abilities in exchange for immortality. From this point, the fall of humanity started as they failed to realize the tragedy behind this whole immortality and advancement drill. At first, humans considered losing reproductive abilities a fair bargain for immortality, but soon they learned that nothing but despair lies ahead of immortality.
“Fate is cruel. In order to obtain something, one must lose something else.”
Dr. Werner Franxx
How the discovery of Dr. Werner Frank affected the Earth and the Klaxo Sapiens
The discovery of magma energy gravely affected the environment and condition of the earth as humans continued to extract magma energy from the core, causing the plants and other lifeforms to die. Soon, the entire earth became a barren land, forcing humanity to live in giant moving fortresses called Plantations. These Plantations had all of life’s essentials, yet they still ran on magma energy. Humanity did manage to survive by living in these advanced cities, but the earth continued to deteriorate, which caused a severe threat to the existence of mankind as magma energy would eventually run out, and humanity would cease to exist.
On the other hand, Dr. Werner’s discovery of magma energy incurred the wrath of an ancient species called Klaxo Sapiens as humanity continued extracting magma energy like a natural resource. In reality, magma energy was actually created when Klaxo Sapiens sacrificed their bodies to revive the planet. Centuries ago, Klaxo Sapiens inhabited the earth with advanced technology, but mysterious lifeforms called VIRM invaded earth and war broke out between them that continued for decades.
Klaxo Sapiens used the earth’s life energy to fight off VIRM but continuous use of the earth’s resources led to the deterioration of the plant. At this point, the weaker Klaxo Sapiens sacrificed their bodies and became an energy resource called magma energy to restore the planet. In short, humanity continued fighting Klaxosaurs while VIRM, their real enemy, sat back and enjoyed watching them devour each other.
“We are the defenders of this planet. Once upon a time, during a long battle, we turned ourselves into an immortal weapon. Except fighting, all was lost, so we went to sleep at the bottom of death, our bond was to prepare for the returning invader.”
Code 001
Here’s a short video of code 001 explaining the story of the Klaxo Sapiens.
Our Final Thoughts:
Adults, including Dr. Werner, made the kids disposable weapons that would serve as a shield against Klaxosaurs attacks. They intended for the children to die in battle in order to prevent humanity from going back to its old ways where reproduction was its main way of surviving. However, their plan didn’t go smoothly as Squad 13 managed to survive all the battles and eventually discovered the whole tragedy lurking in the shadows. I can’t help but think that If Dr. Werner had realized the truth behind the magma energy earlier and stopped extracting it, then Klaxosaurs wouldn’t have attacked humans in the first place, but the greed of humanity and manipulation of VIRM caused them to proceed with this plan that not only destroyed a significant portion of humankind but also propelled the planet earth towards doom.
You May Also Like:
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED is a well-known series from the Gundam franchise, which debuted in the twentieth century. Its main plot follows the story of Kira Yamato, who finds himself dragged into the never-ending fight between Coordinators and Naturals and his efforts to put an end to this tragedy by piloting a powerful Gundam called The Strike.
Although the storyline of Gundam SEED and Darling in the Franxx is entirely different, but the context remains the same in both anime. The central idea of both anime is to feature teenagers who pilot giant mechas to fight off the evil threatening world peace. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED is definitely worth your time if you happen to enjoy such mecha anime.
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