It’s only shallow from the surface! Dive in and the show gets deeper than you might expect.
I recently bought Funimation and for $6 a month this is a treat!
I was watching my hero academia and watching some classics and finally got to see Blood-C uncut…
Then I decided to try something new.
And damn.
Darling in the Franxx is a TREAT and a half. I kept skipping over it, it was always the front page of every search… finally I pulled the trigger.
I saw mechs and I saw women in “doggy” position with remote control handles coming off their hips which a guy would control, while his groin is just a few inches from the woman’s “who-haw”.
And as I sat there watching this at 11PM at night, I found myself nodding and saying “Of course.”
I nearly turned it off but then I saw a kiss on the first episode? Maybe a love triangle? Maybe a DUAL love triangle? MAYBE A DUAL LOVE TRIANGLE AND A SEPARATE LOVE TRIANGLE?! “Okay okay, so we’re not beating around the bush… the last episode isn’t the kiss and it’s a show full of artificial angst… it’s gonna be a: work through the romance problems and the post dating late game drama… I’ll stick around…”
What was an inch deep puddle suddenly became an extremely shallow pond. I though I’d see it play out.
So there is the obvious sexual tension thing and the ways the mech piloting room is set up, boyXgirl, dystopian world, AdamXeve, quack-a-saurus-rexes… okay okay…
But then there is the nomenclature… pistilsXstamens adultsVkids reproductive systems not working, immortality, happiness machines, what a kiss is, what love is, what it is not, ups and downs and all arounds, how people are imperfect and we hurt eachother BUT STILL, relationships, platonic and romantic, are worth it. That relationships and people can change and evolve. That mistakes can happen. That mistakes can be forgiven. That what we want now might not be what we want later on or maybe it is.
You’ve got the Evangelion-esque porcupine theory that the closer people get the more they poke and hurt each other so sometimes they choose to maintain a distance. You’ve got the fighting mechs as a back drop and catalyst to accelerate the drama and relationships between our cast of characters.
The more I watched the more difficult it was to hit the button to exit the app and switch shows… after a few hours I forgot that I was trying to talk myself out of the show… and I just enjoyed it lol. Like a normal person would!
It just started to hit so many interesting notes about human beings, and this mystery of the world, understanding the terminology, how the relationships and love triangles would work out. Damn good drama! I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, a show without an element of well done romance I consider almost unacceptable and thus not worth my time(some sports anime I’ll let it slide). So much of it is relatable in this show!(albeit in a MUCH more practical and realistic way, I mean it IS an anime, it’s meant to be sensationalized and entertaining, but the root idea is relatable!!!)
I don’t know about all you, but I LOVE… well… LOVE!
The show had some great situational low brow comedy too! In one instance, the mechs, which were not working properly due to the pilots not synching correctly, start to collapse and the characters scream at each other to “GET IT UP” as they are in, not to put too fine a point on it, SUGGESTIVE POSITIONS LOL.
The characters are all pretty swell. Each one has something that uniquely makes them, THEM. They are all inimitable and their antics are great to watch as they figure out who they are and what they want. And more importantly what they do not want, or rather, WHO they do not want. The show moves pretty quick too, so there is never a dull moment.
The balance between fighting(the weakest aspect of the show and it is not half bad) and world building(pretty interesting), and the character interactions(THE MEAT AND POTATOES) are all well done and it leads to a well paced show. And while uninspired and lack luster enemy designs and less than stellar fighting animations don’t always help the cause… it is, decidedly, sufficient.
The show touches on great points though. I really liked the scene where Hiro tells Zero Two he loves her and she interprets that as sexual and Hiro emphatically tells her NO, not THAT… and it seems that boundary gets blurred so often. Feverish adoration is NOT necessarily love. While romantic love does usually have a physical intimacy, it IS, make no mistake, founded upon care for well-being and friendship. Which I thought was a fun distinction in that scene. Although being attracted in the first place is very important as well. Love is not, NOT complex! And it is not something that can be maintained without nurturing!
I could go on and on, Evangelion similarities, social commentary, analysis of the human condition… but I think people should glean all that for themselves!
Basically, the show might surprise you and certainly rose to the occasion(and I’m only on episode 18!)
It turns out that the puddle gets pretty deep once you take a step in. Do NOT let the fan service fool you. It ends up all meshing pretty well to be a pretty unique title that is worth the time and a lot smarter than you might give it credit for on first impression.
Until next time!
-AniSun
Anime Sunday 