DARLING in the FRANXX

DARLING in the FRANXX is an original mecha anime, which means it tells a story about giant robots and was not based on a manga or novel. It was made together by two studios, Trigger and A-1 Pictures, with most of the animation done by CloverWorks. Atsushi Nishigori directed it. The show has 24 episodes and aired from January to July 2018. It became one of the most talked-about anime of that year.

The story is set in the 22nd century. The surface of the Earth is now dry and empty, and the adults no longer live on the open land. Instead, they live inside huge moving cities called Plantations. These cities slowly travel across the waste. Near each city is a home for special children. The children are made in a lab, have code numbers instead of normal names, and are raised far away from adults. They are called parasites, and they are trained for one job only: to fight.

The enemy is a race of giant beasts called klaxosaurs. These monsters attack the Plantations again and again. To fight them, the children pilot tall robots called FRANXX. Each FRANXX needs two pilots, one boy and one girl, who must work as a pair. Their minds have to connect for the robot to move well. If the pair cannot connect, the robot will not work.

The main character is Hiro, whose code is 016. When he was younger, everyone called him a genius. But now he cannot connect with any partner, so he is not allowed to pilot. He feels lost and useless. Then he meets Zero Two, a girl with red horns on her head. She is a very strong pilot, but she has klaxosaur blood, and people call her the Partner Killer because of what happens to the boys who ride with her. During a monster attack, she loses her partner, and she lets Hiro climb into her robot. That choice changes both of their lives.

Hiro also belongs to Squad 13, a small team of young pilots. Ichigo is the squad leader and has known Hiro since they were small. Goro is calm and kind. Zorome is loud and wants to prove himself, and Miku is sharp-tongued and proud. The children live together in a house the show calls the birdcage, and much of the story is about how they grow up, fall in love, fight with each other, and start to ask questions about the adults who control their lives.

The show mixes big robot battles with teen romance and strong emotions. It looks at growing up, love, and what it means to be human. Critics had mixed feelings. Many people liked the romance and the coming-of-age story. Others did not like the many sexual jokes about teen characters, and some felt the later episodes moved too fast. Still, the show won awards. Shigeto Koyama won Best Mechanical Design at the 2018 Newtype Anime Awards, and the opening song, Kiss of Death, won Best Opening Sequence at the 2019 Crunchyroll Anime Awards. Zero Two quickly became one of the most famous anime characters of the decade.