Story: 6/10

The plot and story of Darling in the Franxx is nothing to brag about, but there are positive points about the story that make this manga a fun read. First, the world that is created in Darling in the Franxx is really quite interesting. Throughout the length of the manga, the reader is introduced to more and more information about the world that they’re reading about. It seems like every time the story introduces something new about the world that’s shrouded in mystery, in subsequent chapters, it is cleared up.

The story has a rhythm. It doesn’t seem too slow nor too fast. There will be parts that will be slow, like the downtime in-between fights and there will be parts that will be fast, like the actual fights. However, this all coalesces and delivers the reader great pacing of the story. With that, the story also handles the various elements within it quite well. The world is straight out of a great Sci-Fi novel, there are futuristic architecture, insane technological advancements to bear witness to. It has almost everything a Sci-Fi junky would want, and within this lies the biggest element in Darling in the Franxx, Mechas. This element of the story is done well too. Each of Plantation 13’s Mechs are unique and have their own strengths and weaknesses, they have awesome and huge battles, and the Mechs are there to battle some sort of power struggle.

Those are the great parts about the story but what is something positive without it’s negatives, and there are a handful of those as well. Starting off with the theme of Ecchi. This manga overuses fan service to a large extent. If you’re not familiar with the manga, Darling in the Franxx includes nudity, and because of that, I feel that the nudity aspect of the manga is exploited way too much. At times, I found myself wondering if I was reading porn or not. The fan service is just way over the top and not done tastefully at all. Then the next biggest thing, which I will expand upon in the character section, is the people that exist in this world. I understand that this is a 60-chapter manga so, it doesn’t necessarily have all the time in the world to develop each and every single character but, this manga doesn’t do that one bit.

Art: 7/10

The art is definitely the shining aspect of Darling in the Franxx. From the cool designs of Plantation 13’s Mechs to the unique look to each of the characters, the art is great. Each of Plantation 13’s Mechs are drawn so cool and unique. They all look different from each other, they all have unique weapons and when you get to see them fight, it’s a sight to behold. Oh boy, oh boy, are the fights and the action drawn well. Most of the time, you can see what exactly is going on in a fight, and the gore, wow… the small amount of gore scenes in the manga are done exceptionally well. I always found myself gasping at all the moments someone’s head came off or a limb was severed.

Characters: 3/10

As I mentioned earlier, the characters in Darling in the Franxx are pretty bad. There is little, close to 0-character development for any other character outside of our 2 main characters, Hiro and Zero Two. You find yourself not knowing anything about the rest of the characters. If you’re lucky, the reader will get maybe 2-3 panels of flashbacks for certain supporting characters. Even then, the 2 main characters, outside of their origin story, don’t really see them progress as characters. Other than the cliche “love triumphs over all” the characters themselves are quite dull and not exciting at all. Then, worst of all, this lack of character development is attempted to be solved by shoving love triangles down the reader’s throat. This one character loves this one character but that character loves another, then another character shows up and loves that one. It’s a sad attempt to get the reader to care about the characters and their evolution.

Enjoyment: 6/10

Overall, I enjoyed Darling in the Franxx. I’m a complete sucker for Mecha series because it reminds me of my childhood. The very first thing I saw from the anime medium was a movie that included Mechs and I would always remember playing with Gundam figures as a wee child. So, aside from the dullness of the characters, the actual Mecha part of the series really carried my enjoyment. Darling in the Franxx had these pretty-looking Mechs that had cool weapons and could engage in awesome fights. The ending to the manga was also satisfying, it didn’t leave me wanting more and it also did one of my favorite things in manga and anime, in which the beginning of the series will start with one small theme that’ll introduce the world that you’re about to dive into and the ending will revisit that theme. Whenever a series does something like that, I always love it.

Verdict

At the end of the day, I’d have to say that this manga is just average. It’s definitely got its positives but that is not without it’s negatives, and in Darling in the Franxx those two are equal. It’s a Mecha series that was pretty fun to read but any lasting impression soon disappear after it’s been completed.