Darling in the Franxx is an unusual anime, with a lot of interesting plot twists and world-building that set it completely apart from a lot of other seinen anime out there. The series is a coming-of-age story, but also a post-apocalyptic story, and also a mecha story.
The story takes a wild turn in act three, when it suddenly turns out that the people in power are actually agents of VIRM, an alien group that is trying to take over the world. The last episode sees Hiro and Zero Two going to space to fight them back, while the rest of the Parasites remain on Earth to try to make the world liveable again. Still, there are a ton of questions that are left completely unanswered by the finale.
10 What Is Goro Looking For?
Goro goes out to see the world (after planting a kiss on a surprised Ichigo), wanting to see if he can find other survivors of the war and see if there are resources they can use as they rebuild society. He promises Ikuno he’ll look for what she’s asked for, but it’s never specified just what that is. It likely has something to do with Ikuno’s research into stopping their aging process, but it’s never made clear, even after Goro returns.
9 Why Is Ikuno Aging Faster Than Everyone Else?
The Parasites have a short lifespan. They’re not designed to make it to adulthood and actually live full lives, mostly because they’re generally expected to die in their Franxx during battle. The audience can see this in these last episodes, as these relatively young people in their 20s have gray in their hair and look noticeably older. Ikuno, though, is aging much faster than the rest of her team, and it’s never clear why, though it is clear that there’s a hint of melancholy to her happy ending.
8 Were Hiro And Zero Two Able To Destroy The VIRM?
It’s said a couple of times in the series that the VIRM are indestructible. But still, Hiro and Zero Two go out in space to fight them and to protect Earth from them. Though they clearly win the battle (despite dying in the process), it’s unclear whether they’ve actually managed the impossible and destroyed them or if they’ve just saved Earth for the time being and will someday have to pull it off again.
7 How Could Ai Sense What Was Happening In Space?
Ai is the daughter of Mitsuru and Kokoro. She’s born after Hiro and Zero Two go to space, so she never knows them herself, though she has probably heard tales of their heroism. Still, she seems to be very aware of what Hiro and Zero Two are doing out in space.
She even uses the world “darling,” which she has likely never heard before. It’s never explained how she has this knowledge that Hiro and Zero Two are in trouble.
6 How Did Hiro And Zero Two Get Disconnected?
One of the important things about the relationship between Hiro and Zero Two is that they have this incredible, deep-seated connection that none of the other Parasites seem to have together. It’s what makes them so powerful in battle. But out in space, they seem to lose this connection, making them weak and vulnerable in battle and leaving Zero Two to take on the fight alone. How did the connection get lost? Did the VIRM manage to do it? Was there something else in the situation, a lack of hope, perhaps, that was responsible?
5 Where Have The Other Children Been?
A lot of the suspense of the series is how the world treats the children who don’t make the cut as Parasites. What happens to them? Do they just get sent back to the Garden where they spend the rest of their days? Do they get disposed of? No one’s really sure, except that they do seem to have survived the experience, since they show up in the finale to help with the rebuilding of the world.
4 Is Nothing Happening In Space Affecting Earth?
It seems a little strange that, considering that Hiro and Zero Two have gone off to save the world by fighting the VIRM, that no one on Earth seems to be remotely affected by what’s happening. There’s no real fallout for the space war that’s going on in Earth’s defense. Everyone really just seems to be going about their lives as normal.
3 Are Ikuno And Naomi A Couple?
Ikuno is one of the most tragic figures in the series (at least among those that don’t actually die) as she holds onto a very one-sided love for Ichigo. She’s the only overtly queer character in the series, and her confession to Ichigo goes unreturned. But she eventually reunites with Naomi, a child who is sent away from the Parasites as being unable to pilot a Franxx. They’re clearly intimate in this new world and are seen holding hands, but it’s never clearly established whether Ikuno has actually found love.
2 Do Hiro And Zero Two Get Back Together?
Hiro and Zero Two die in the process of defending Earth from VIRM, and the series ends with the two of them meeting again as children, having been reincarnated on Earth, where the human race is now thriving again.
It’s a sweet and hopeful moment that cuts some of the melancholy of them dying together instead of getting to live together. But it begs the question of whether they actually are soul mates and get to be together again in this new life.
1 What Actually Happens In The Final Battle?
There’s a lot that’s not very clear about what goes down in the last battle. Hiro and Zero Two are involved in an explosion that seems to defeat VIRM, but it’s not very clear. And how did the explosion happen in the first place? Did they use some kind of connection in their minds in order to pull this off? There’s a lot that could probably be clarified about what happens here.