Naturally, after consummating their relationship, Kokoro and Mitsuru get married this episode. It’s a pretty silly thing to pull on the whole Squad’s part considering how much trouble Kokoro got in last episode. Did it really not cross Kokoro’s mind or Hiro’s that having a wedding will carry a lot of risks? And Ichigo found out that they were being monitored by Hachi and Nana. She was really okay having her squad hold this event and knowing that some authority will see it? Then again, the Nines probably would’ve had the lovebirds captured anyway. I’m also amazed that we’re even having a wedding at all considering how young our heroes are but then again they’re ignorant about a lot of things so I’ll let it slide.
Something I find silly is that Zorome acts like this is the first time he’s heard of marriage. Man, he really did forget the events of Episode 10 because that lady he ran into said marriage does happen in the adults’ society. But that detail does beg the question as to why the military intervenes the wedding in the first place? Why deny Mitsuru and Kokoro a wedding if it’s an option that’ll be granted to them during adulthood anyway? Even if marriage functions differently in this world, the better thing to do from a writing standpoint would be to not have marriage legalized by APE in the first place. I thought the problem with Kokoro was that she wanted to have a child. Where does the wedding fall into this? I’m just saying, sex and marriage are technically separate things.
On the whole, I couldn’t help but feel that this wedding was yet another excuse for the show to meander more through its story. We’re 18 episodes in and still, the pacing has not picked up and there’s a lot of stuff that needs to be addressed. I’ve grown to like Mitsuru and Kokoro but this is an awful lot of screentime to allot them, considering that they’re arguably the third most important pair in the show. Maybe the takeaway from the wedding and its fallout is to have the viewer realize that Hiro and Zero Two’s own romance is time bomb in of itself. Part of me wants to subscribe but Hiro’s ability to survive Zero Two’s powers is too valuable to jeopardize.
For that matter, why only erase Mitsuru and Kokoro’s memories of each other? Even if the mind wiping was thorough, it’s still risky to let everyone else remember the wedding at all. In fact, why even put the two back in the same squad and even keep them as partners? After all the trouble of making the two forget each other, Papa and APE still wants these two to work together? If you’re going to run a messed up system of child soldiers, at least do it the right way.
There’s a couple of other things to address here. I guess Futoshi volunteering to officiate the wedding is a decent way to resolve his broken heart but I’m amazed just how forever alone this poor boy is now. And of course, it’s the fat character suffering this fate.
Meanwhile, the show actually brought up Ikuno wanting to co-pilot with Ichigo in Episode 11. It turns out that the former has a really one-sided crush towards the latter…and it kind of begins and ends there. She gets all sad that the FranXX system is a male-female system only, Ichigo hugs her, and they kind of just move on from there for some reason. That’s it. I don’t feel that positively about how Ichigo interpreted things either. Having your sexuality denied and oppressed is not exactly the same as getting friendzoned by some guy.
And big surprise but Zero Two was still the most interesting character in this show. I guess their relationship hasn’t advanced much but I kind of like seeing the two enjoy life together before things go awry. And chances are that the storm is coming soon as Zero Two suffers an alarming hallucination involving Master Hand and all her deceased partners. Maybe she’s feeling guilty about her past actions?
I’m getting frustrated with Darling in the FranXX again and with only six episodes left to see, that’s not a good sign. What worries me most though is that from what I’ve heard, the next episode is what will really make or break the series for me.
Thanks for reading!
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