DARLING in the FRANXX

Episode 7

Given that the last episode essentially served as the climax for DARLING in the FRANXX's opening act, it makes sense that Episode 7 would calm things down and just let the kids relax. Of course, there's no more time-honored way for an anime to let its cast bust loose than a beach episode, so there's no surprise to be had when Hiro, Zero Two, and the rest of the gang end up chilling out on the sand in their swimsuits and letting their hormones run wild. I don't have any strong opinions on beach episodes either way; they're rooted in familiar clichés and tropes, but for every example that of a lame descent into overindulgent fanservice, there's another that uses the opportunity for endearing character interactions and amusing shenanigans.

At first it seems like DARLING is trying to appeal to its baser instincts with this episode; it doesn't take long at all for the camera to start ogling the girls' chests and behinds, and the first few minutes of the episode are devoted to the boys getting all hot and bothered over their female friends in swimsuits. Those elements quickly fade into the background for the most part, as it becomes more clear that this beach episode is exploring our protagonists' evolving personal relationships alongside their burgeoning sexuality. It doesn't make the fanservice any less lurid, but it does give these scenes a character-focused context that helps the episode go down smoother.

Given how sex-obsessed DARLING in the FRANXX has been, it's easy to forget that the characters themselves have almost no understanding of their own adolescent desires. One of the funniest scenes of the episode involves the boys ganging up on Hiro and demanding to know how a kiss works, with Zorome being desperate enough to get his more experienced friend to show him exactly how it works. Even Hiro's limited experience with intimacy via Zero Two has left him more befuddled than anything; he might be the one who's had a kiss before, but he still doesn't grasp what it means. (Zero Two asserts that it's a way of claiming ownership over someone, which is its own problematic can of worms.) More interestingly, this whole beach outing was Dr. Franxx's idea, meaning that giving the Parasites an opportunity to explore their feelings for one another beyond the boundary of their rigid stations could just be another part of his grand plan for them.

The episode isn't just about watching the Parasites get horny without understanding what it means; it also gives us some of the best interactions between the pilots yet. While we don't necessarily learn anything new about these characters, simply seeing them feel free to behave like teens strikes the right tone to keep the episode from feeling wasteful. The animation team steps up this week too, devoting plenty of frames to idiosyncratic character beats that help make the characters feel real. The way that Zero Two plays with the ocean water is a brief but deeply humanizing moment, and the adorable way that Ichigo tries to trace Hiro's footsteps in the sand communicates her affection for him better than any more dispirited longing glances. Are these visual cues pretty on the nose? Sure, but they're executed with such panache that I'm hard pressed to care much.

The second half of the episode provides some much needed, if frustratingly vague world-building. The abandoned village that the kids explore doesn't tell us anything we couldn't guess from having seen other post-apocalyptic anime, but it works well enough as a mood piece that I find myself forgiving DARLING's lack of originality once again. No matter how many times the trope is wheeled out, there's something inexplicably powerful about seeing kids of the future bear witness to a dead and only passingly familiar world. Kokoro's discovery of a Baby Book also implies that there are more discoveries to be made down the road. Boys like Mitsuru and Zorome are perfectly happy to serve the adults in the Plantation so long as they feel useful, but I wonder how many of them will feel the same way once they learn about everything being a Parasite denies them, including the prospect of being raised by a family or starting one of their own in a romantic relationship.

If I have one major complaint about this episode, it lies once again in how the show handles Zero Two. Multiple characters go out of their way to remark on how huge it is to have Hiro and Zero Two officially join the team, but Hiro is the only character who seems impacted by this so far. Zero Two's lone wolf nature is part of her character, but she barely gets anything to do this week; all her scenes exist to develop other characters instead of herself. Her early rapport with Hiro ties directly into the exploration of his own puberty-addled feelings, and the only conversation she has with Ichigo just plays up their romantic rivalry for the umpteenth time. Zero Two is the show's most compelling and engaging character by virtue of her design and performance alone, but we know frustratingly little about her own thoughts and feelings. Though her relationship with Hiro is taking some important steps toward becoming more than just a plot device, Zero Two herself remains planted firmly in Manic Pixie Dream Girl tropes, which limit her potential as a character. If DARLING in the FRANXX is going to succeed in the long run, it needs to give its leading lady room to exist on her own terms, instead of as a vehicle for other characters' arcs.

Beach episodes are never the apex of creativity in a series, and “Shooting Star Moratorium” isn't an exception to that rule, but it was an engaging and well-produced episode of anime nonetheless. I will admit that I remain disappointed that so much of DARLING's conceit has been about reinforcing such traditional ideas about sexuality and relationships (which are only reinforced by this episode), but if DARLING is going to end up pushing a fairly rote baby-making message, I appreciate how far it goes to make the message entertaining. The show still has a long way to go before I could call it great, but I'm happy to settle for “pretty good” at this point.

Rating: B

DARLING in the FRANXX is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

James is an English teacher who has loved anime his entire life, and he spends way too much time on Twitter and his blog.