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Parasites
Parasites in General
All Parasites of Plantation 13.
- Artificial Human: Episode 19 implies that they were created with the use of Dr. Franxx cloning process since humanity lost their reproduction organs.
- Child Soldiers : Judging from their appearances,they probably are still 14-17 years old.
- Color-Coded Characters: The pistil/stamen pairs each have a color on their suits that corresponds with their Franxx.
- Hiro and Zero Two are red.
- Goro and Ichigo are blue.
- Zorome and Miku are pink.
- Futoshi/Mitsuru post Episode 11 and Kokoro are green.
- Mitsuru/Futoshi post Episode 11 and Ikuno are purple.
- Conveniently an Orphan: Implied trope. The Parasites are isolated from the rest of the Plantation at birth, living a life like orphans with no known feeling of having a parent, and are only informed of their duty to pilot Franxx. In episode 10, their "infected" state also suggest why they are separated from other adults. After Kokoro tells them about human reproduction in episode 17, the kids are left wondering where they come from if Papa didn't actually create them.
- Eager Rookie: All of them are eager to go into battle for the first time, having been training all their lives for it.
- Foil: An interesting case in that the contrast is done not between two character, but between pairs of characters.
- Ichigo/Goro vs. Kokoro/Futoshi: Both pairs have a relationship that involves unrequited love. However, Goro was aware from the start that his feelings were one-sided and accepted it with no trouble, while Futoshi believed Kokoro reciprocates his feelings and was completely blindsided when she decided to leave him. Goro never hold a grudge against Hiro for being the one Ichigo loves, while Futoshi became frustrated and aggressive when Kokoro suddenly chose to ride with Mitsuru. Conversely, Ichigo was so distracted by her own issues that she never noticed Goro's feelings, while Kokoro was aware of how much Futoshi adored her but didn’t know how to reject him without breaking his heart. Finally, in the end, Goro and Ichigo do end up with each other, while Futoshi and Kokoro find other romantic partners.
- Zorome/Miku vs Mitsuru/Ikuno: Zorome and Miku fight all the time while Mitsuru and Ikuno keep their relationship professional when they are inside their Franxx. The Irony is that Mitsuru and Ikuno dislike each other and are very open about that when they are not acting as pilots, while Miku and Zorome genuinely care about each other but refuse to admit it. Zorome also refused to leave Miku when suggested to change partners, while Mitsuru and Ikuno have both, in different moments, jumped at an opportunity to change partners.
- Goroawase Number: Hiro gave everyone a name based off of their code numbers.
- Love Dodecahedron: Given the subtext related to the pilots being partners, the actual romantic dynamics are all over the place. In fact, the only ones who are not involved in the dodecahedron are Zorome and Miku.
- Painful Transformation: Judging by the reactions of the girls, being forced into Stampede mode is less than pleasant.
- Phlebotinum Girl: or Phlebotinum Children, since both the pistil and stamen kids suffer from the same things. All of the parasites are being trained, isolated and have undergone a body modification using "Yellow Blood Cell". Not to mention their Franxx can go to "Stampede-mode" if the pistil kids force themselves that far. They have very little idea about relationships, love, kissing and human reproduction and no idea where they come from. Also,they are completely forbidden to have any romantic relationships with each other or their memories will be wiped out. If they are fail as parasites,they will mysteriously ''disappear" and never be heard from it again. So far, the only former parasites who have become adults are Hachi and Nana.
- Released to Elsewhere: Implied to be the fate of kids who fail to show potential as parasites. A few of the characters comment how so many other children "disappeared" from the Garden as they were growing up, and were never heard from again.
- Not to mention the concept of "Pruning" introduced in episode 11.
- Superhuman Transfusion: Implied with the "yellow blood cells" and the "parasite injections" seen in Episode 12.
- True Companions: Not really so much at first, since while they work well as a team, there is some noticeable friction. But after almost all the pilots go through some Character Development, they now classify for this trope.
- Took a Level in Badass: All of them improve by leaps and bounds over the course of the series, going from clumsy rookies to being one of the Squads with most potential and one of the highest kill counts. Just compare their first sortie to the battle of the Grand Crevasse in Episode 15.
- Tyke-Bomb: They are picked randomly in their childhood, then are brought to the APE and isolated from the adults in order to be trained as future pilots of Franxx.
- Virgin Power: Pistils would lose the ability to pilot a Franxx if they're impregnated, seemingly due to hormonal changes.
- What Is This Thing You Call "Love"?: Due to how they were raised, these kids don't seem to have an understanding of the concept of love, kissing, or anything related to reproduction. Though oddly enough, they do have a taboo about nudity and know the word "pervert".
List of Parasites
The Franxx
Franxx in General
- Ace Custom: All of Plantation 13's FranXX are unique designs.
- Ejection Seat: The Franxx have ejection systems for the pistils that the stamen can use. However, it pretty much traps the stamen inside, unable to do anything barring using the Self-Destruct Mechanism.
- Expressive Mask: The robots all share the expressions of the female pilots.
- Fembot: All of the Franxx are decidedly feminine mecha, complete with breasts, Robot Hair, and even projections that resemble a Sailor Fuku on some of them. This is possibly to ease Synchronization for the girls. However, it's mostly likely their form is the byproduct of being made from the Klaxosaurs who are females.
- Floral Theme Naming: The Franxx are all named after flowers. Taking it a step further, the female pilots are called pistils and the male pilots are called stamens.
- Hulking Out: If the female pilot pushes too much power into controlling Franxx, it will cause the Franxx to transform and become a berserker-form with the female pilot losing control of her actions.
- Powered by a Forsaken Child: Episode 20 reveals the Franxx are created by modifying klaxosaurs, the females of the klaxo-sapien race. The male in the core is then ripped out and replaced by the pilots.
- Self-Destruct Mechanism: The Franxx have built-in self-destruction mechanisms to use if captured.
- Super Prototype: The Plantation 13 kids themselves are expressly acting as an experimental group and are showing results far more extensive than their counterparts.
- Synchronization:
- For the Franxx to fully function, the pilots must be in complete unison with each other, if there is the slightest detection of the unison coming apart it will lose control.
- Because the girls become one with the robots, they feel feedback from the damage experienced by them. Enough painful hits will knock them out, and any substantial damage to the mechs transfers to the girls, as seen when Delphinium had its arm ripped off during a fight, and afterwards Ichigo had a broken arm. They also lose awareness of their physical bodies during this time, such as what happened in 8 when a Klaxosaurs had its "blood" seep into the cockpits of the Franxx and land on the girls pointing, yet they had no idea until after disconnecting.
- Transforming Mecha: The Franxx can transform from a humanoid form to a four-legged beast, called "stampede mode" which is most likely their original Klaxosaur form.
- Uniqueness Value: The pilots from Plantation 26 note that Plantation 13's Franxx (the main casts) are unique, while their own models all look the same.
Strelizia
The main Franxx in the show and is piloted by Hiro and Zero Two. It is equipped with a giant spear called "Queen Pike" to battle with klaxosaurs.
- Animal Motifs: Its Stampede-mode has the form of a lion, a symbol of power and predatory instincts. Episode 15 shows Stampede-mode Strelizia as a lot more capable, being the most powerful Franxx in the battle even when piloted alone. Though it does NOT help Zero Two's sanity, and Strelizia gets significantly more powerful once she manages to link up with Hiro
- Golden Super Mode: Its final form.
- Grappling-Hook Pistol: Can pull herself towards enemies by launching her harpoon into them and reeling herself into it.
- Law of Chromatic Superiority: After Zero Two and Hiro reconciliate, Strelizia is almost completely crimson and she is shown to be capable of completely obliterate the opposition, implying the form is more powerful. This happens again in the final episode when Strelizia turns gold.
- Meaningful Name: Strelizia
, the flower it is named after, is alternatively called Bird-of-Paradise flower, evoking the symbolism of the one-winged bird associated with Hiro and Zero-Two. Its honey-yellow/orangeish spike-shaped petals also resemble similarly colored and shaped magma spear of the mecha-Strelizia. In further keeping, the Strelizia flower turns red when it matures. See Mid-Season Upgrade and Super Mode below. - Mid-Season Upgrade: The new Red version in episode 15.
- Power Gives You Wings: Gains wings in Episode 6.
- Shoulders of Doom: The doomiest shoulderpads this side of a space marine.
- Super Mode: Gains one in Episode 15, where it turns completely red. It seems to be activated by The Power of Love.
- Super Prototype: Even amongst a team of Super Prototype Ace Customs, Strelizia stands above the rest.
- Super-Reflexes: Capable of blocking projectile attacks with ease due to to this.
- Super-Strength: Compared to the other Franxx.
- Weaponized Exhaust: The thrusters on her waist can be used to burn a klaxosaur, as seen in Episode 4.
- You Will Not Evade Me: Her harpoon allows her to reel back in an agile enemy.
Delphinium
The Franxx piloted by Goro and Ichigo. As the Franxx for the squad leader, it is armed with two sword type weapons named "Envy Shop."
- Animal Motifs: In the manga, its Stampede-mode has the form of a canine, fitting with its rival—Strelizia— having a Stampede-mode which resembles a lion.
- Dual Wielding: Her weapons are a pair of spears with magma-energy tips. Because of how they are mounted in the gauntlets, though, they are typically used as a pair of short swords.
- Lightning Bruiser: Built to be fast and sharp, even having double the amount of thrusters on its waist compared to Strelizia.
- Meaningful Name: The delphinium flower is related to protection against dangers (Ichigo wanting to keep Zero Two and Hiro apart, Goro putting the squad before himself at all times) and striving for your goals, which fits with Ichigo's determination to be a good leader.
- Robot Hair: Has bangs on the right side of its face much like its pistil. It's revealed to have a full head of pink hair in episode 15 when Strelizia briefly knocks off its helmet.
- Throwing Your Sword Always Works: The gauntlets Delphinium's spears are mounted in allow her to fire them like javelins. Unlike Strelizia, however, she doesn't appear to be able to reel them back in.
Argentea
The Franxx piloted by Zorome and Miku. As a Franxx that specializes in close combat and speed, it is loaded with a fist claw type weapon called "Knight Claw."
- Butt-Monkey: As a combination of being a close-combat unit and having Hot-Blooded pilots, Argentea ends up taking pretty much all of the more comical bumps in the series, and plenty of serious ones too.
- Close-Range Combatant: The only unit on the team with no ranged abilities whatsover. Even Delphinium, a fellow Dual Wielding melee fighter, can at least launch her spears.
- Fragile Speedster: In addition to a lack of ranged options, Argentea has very little armor. This makes her quite agile, but if she takes a hard hit, it'll put her down.
- Girlish Pigtails: Has stylized twintails, just like its pistil Miku.
- Meaningful Name: The argentea flower is associated with playfulness and absurdity. Its pilots are definitely the rowdiest of the bunch.
- Wolverine Claws: Wields a set of magma-energy claws on both hands to shatter cores.
Genista
A heavy weaponry Franxx piloted by Futoshi and Kokoro. It is covered with heavy armor and is loaded with bayonet type artillery named "Rook Sparrow," which can cause great damage at close distances.
- Animal Motifs: In the manga, its Stampede-mode has the form of a dragon.
- Anchored Attack Stance: Her feet can deploy claws that dig into the ground for more stability when firing her weapon.
- Badass Longcoat: Her design looks as though she's wearing a heavy greatcoat, combined with a bearskin hat.
- Battle Strip: The manga's version of Kokoro and Mitsuru's first true synchronization has Genista lose all of her old equipment and battle in the nude.
- Bayonet Ya: Her cannon has a magma-energy bayonet on the edge to shatter klaxosaur cores.
- BFG: Wields an utterly massive cannon. Its longer than Genista is tall, and Genista is about 90 to 100 meters tall.
- Mighty Glacier: Not as nearly as mobile as the other Squad 13 units, but her cannon is the hardest-hitting weapon they have by a good margin.
- Revolvers Are Just Better: Her weapon has a break action with the cartridges loaded into a revolver-style cylinder.
- Sexy Backless Outfit: Genista's coat's is open at the back, revealing the same Fembot body type as the other Franxx.
Chlorophytum
A support type Franxx for long distance attacks, piloted by Mitsuru and Ikuno. Its arms are equipped with the heat sink called "Wing Span," which allows it to fly for a long time.
- Animal Motifs: Her overall design and ability to fly evokes some bird imagery
- Arm Cannon: Chlorophytum can retract it's hands and shoot a barrage of bullets out.
- Beam Spam: In Episode 21, to create an opening to the Star Entity, Chlorophytum fires multiple laser beams from her arms, which causes her to deactivate because she used up all her energy to fire the laser beams, and also turns Ikuno's hair gray.
- Cyber Cyclops: Has only one eye. Which eye, left or right, tends to change.
- Energy Weapon: She can focus her shots into a more powerful energy blast, but the amount of energy this uses restricts its use.
- Jack of All Trades: Befitting a support unit, Chlorophytum can do a bit of everything, but falls short compared to her more specialized allies. Though her ability to fly does make her unique among them.
- Kick Chick: It's magma-weapons are located in it's feet, and thus attacks by kicking when in melee range.
- One-Way Visor: It wears a visor but one eye is always obscured, referencing the secretive side of one of its riders.
- Purple Is Powerful: While she's not exactly as strong in offense or defense compared to the other FranXX units, she has the most versatile skillset, which helps in battles that can be very unpredictable.
The Final Franxx - Warning: Walking Spoiler
Strelizia Apus, Dr. Franxx's "work of works", is an absolutely titanic Franxx made from the converted form of the Klaxosaur superweapon Star Entity.
- Humongous Mecha: Understatement of the year. Strelizia Apus stands taller than some mountains, and can swat away Franxx-sized combat units as if they're gnats. Episode 23 shows that it's almost as large as one of Mars's moons.
- Mighty Glacier: Apus doesn't move particularly fast (though her apparent speed is deceptive, as she's simply that big), but she can tank anything and everything VIRM throws at it with nary a scratch.
- Stellar Name: Named after the constellation Apus, the Bird-of-Paradise, which shares its name with the flowers of the genus Strelizia.
- Wave-Motion Gun: The single horn on her head can fire an energy beam powerful enough to clear the skies from horizon to horizon and eviscerate an entire orbiting fleet in a single shot.
Staff & Administration
Nana
A caretaker assigned to take care of the Parasites of the 13th Plantation Corps.
- The Ageless: Episode 24 reveals that she is immortal.
- Cool Big Sis: A surrogate one for the kids, as she is their caretaker. They were really happy to hear she will keep her job even after they become official pilots, and Ichigo even calls her Nana-nee.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Flashbacks in Episode 18 show that Nana is a former pistil whose stamen was killed in a mission gone wrong. Her grief at his death was so great that she had to be sedated and (presumably) have her memories altered to forget him.
- Foreshadowing: When Mitsuru and Ikuno's synchronization continue to drop and he seems like a prime candidate for "pruning," Nana goes off-script to suggest the children change partners in an effort to save his life. This foreshadows her suppressed emotions and memories of losing her own partner. Subconsciously, she wants to save him the way she couldn't save her own partner when she was a parasite too.
- Goroawase Number: Nana means 7. If her name is also her Code, this makes her a Retired Badass more highly-rated than anyone in the active squad (aside from Zero Two).
- Laser-Guided Amnesia: Episodes 16 and 17 heavily imply that Dr. Franxx has tampered with Nana’s memories to some degree, and episode 20 implies she has undergone yet another memory wipe offscreen. Episode 22, however, double-subverts this by showing that the "new" Nana was just a substitute.
- Maybe Ever After: The finale implies she sticks with Hachi since they both are immortal, and she might be hooking up with him.
- Meaningful Name: Nana is an affectionate nickname for a nanny.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: To Zero Two. In contrast to the kids, she directly counter-argues with her and uses regulations to limit her activities. The two do not get along.
- Please Wake Up: An Episode 18 flashback reveals that she was in this pose when her Franxx partner died in her youth. Her inability to cope with his death led to her memories being suppressed.
- Team Mom: Becomes this in Episode 22 after seeing an email sent by Dr. Franxx urging her and Hachi to "become the children's new adults".
- What Is This Feeling?: Seeing the kids enjoy each other's company during Dr. Franxx's month-long experiment re-awakens her own suppressed memories of her beloved and deceased Franxx partner, and the trauma of these re-awakened emotions gets her fired from caretaker duties.
Hachi
A Plantation Defense Commander responsible for coordinating the Parasites during missions.
- The Ageless: Episode 24 reveals that he is immortal as a result of going through the same procedure as most of the adults.
- Dramatic Irony: In episode 18 he's clearly upset to see the children so distraught by APE crashing Kokoro and Mitsuru's wedding. He tells a catatonic Nana in confidence that if only he had emotions like her, he could think what to say to comfort them. This makes it clear to the audience, but not him, that the fact that he is so upset by the children's pain and his inability to comfort them that he has emotions; he's just been brainwashed into thinking he doesn't.
- Eye Scream: Injures his right eye while trying to shield Nana from an explosion in Episode 23.
- Goroawase Number: Hachi means 8. Like Nana, if this is a holdover from his Parasite days, he's a Retired Badass and a better-rated Parasite than those he's commanding (Zero Two excepted).
- Maybe Ever After: His last scene with Nana leaves it ambiguous if he is interested in her, and wants to regain his emotions for her, but its implied the two at least are together to some degree.
- Mission Control: Serves this role to the parasites on the field.
- My Greatest Failure: An Episode 18 flashback implies that he and Nana used to be part of the same Franxx squad, but when Nana's partner died in a mission gone wrong he was unable to sooth her grief, which led to her getting her memories wiped and his emotions suppressed. He reminisces on this failure about the same time he confesses that he doesn't know how to ease the children's grief over APE crashing Mitsuru and Kokoro's wedding.
- Nerves of Steel: Didn't lose his stoic look when a klaxosaur attacked and seemingly crushed Strelizia or when two Franxx crashed very close to where he was standing.
- The Stoic: Remains calm and composed while overseeing the training of the Parasites, never changing his facial expression. This is because his emotions are suppressed.
- What Is This Feeling?: Subverted. He's clearly distressed for the children when APE rips Kokoro and Mitsuru away from their wedding, but he later reveals to a catatonic Nana that he still believes he doesn't have any emotions. His reaction is more "why do I not have this feeling?"
- What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: Inverted. After APE crashes Kokoro and Mitsuru's wedding, he confesses to Nana that not having emotions like compassion or empathy like her is what feels truly awful.
007/"New Nana"
007(or, as she is better known,"New Nana"), is the real Nana's temporary replacement after she is forced to resign from her duties as Plantation 13 caregiver. This is due to her receiving her old memories back after being triggered by Kokoro's statement about human relationships and reproduction.
- Ambiguous Situation: Given that she shares the same codename and hair colour with the real Nana, there is a possibility she was her clone. The statement from Dr. Franxx that he will replace Nana with "New Nana" and his Backstory about his experiment to create the parasites' children via a cloning process is strengthens the theory that 007 (or "New Nana") are indeed real Nana clones.
- Eyes Always Shut: She never opens her eyes or shows her emotions when she explains things.
- Replacement Goldfish: She is introduced in episode 20 as "New Nana". She is no longer the "replacement" after the real Nana is returned, but is still together with her and Hachi to help the other parasites to rebuild their new life.
- Stepford Smiler: Type 2. She is empty and lacking in empathy toward the other parasites. She will ignore their questions if they ask her anything and only follow APE's instructions to her. No wonder most of the fans found her so annoying and creepy at the same time.
- Took a Level in Kindness: 007 was completely toned down after Hiro and Zero Two's departure from the others to defeat VIRM. She began to be concerned about Kokoro's pregnancy and her baby's growth since Kokoro became the first parasite to give birth,and she became a good example to the other parasites.Later, 007 is seen to help Kokoro give birth to her first daughter and help the parasites and other caregivers cultivate a self-sufficient lifestyle.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Her current condition after the timeskip is unknown. It's unknown if Hachi's statement about "they are immortal" is true of all parasite caregivers or only for both him and the real Nana.
Others
Code:703/Naomi
Hiro's previous partner, who failed out with him.
- Ambiguous Situation: While we can see the reason why Hiro and Naomi failed to connect in their FRANXX due to him being tainted with Zero Two blood, some fans theorize the reason why they can't connect is because of Naomi's sexuality. It's never stated if she is a lesbian just like Ikuno or bisexual and we never know how her relationship with Hiro or if she ever developed a one-side love for him. After she is freed from cryogenic sleep, she is shown to become close with Ikuno and implied becomes a girlfriend to her, which strengthens this theory.
- An Arm and a Leg: Lost her right arm.
- Hooked Up Afterwards: She’s implied to have entered a relationship with Ikuno during the eight-year Time Skip in the final episode.
- Ironic Name: Naomi means "Happy; pleasant" in Hebrew. When she's introduced she's bitterly miserable about being expelled from the program she's been trained for since infancy. Her name is likely a reference to the biblical character of the same name, who also becomes bitter to the point she tells her family to call her Mara (bitter) after losing her husband and sons.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Despite her own misery over being expelled from the program, she encourages Hiro to use his chance to stay, and tells him that she hopes he can find a partner that makes him happy.
- Not Quite Dead: She supposedly survived her transport's destruction and is in the hospital recovering. This was a lie by APE. She died in the crash, but they claimed she was sent to the hospital to keep the other kids from getting upset... until Episode 22 reveals she did survive after all and was kept in cryostasis the whole time.
- Pair the Spares: Episode 24 strongly implies Naomi and Ikuno become life partners following the war with VIRM.
- Released to Elsewhere: Implied to be her fate before her transport crashes, and she is hospitalized instead. Possibly played straight; when Naomi's "hospital stay" is referenced, the screen pans to white butterflies which are a nod to Japanese folklore for a soul departing. She later shows up during Hiro's near-death experience, further muddying her actual status. Episode 12 seems to suggest that she's pushing up daisies, but Episode 22 revealed she is still alive (albeit in cryostasis).
- Small Role, Big Impact: Her accident galvanizes Hiro to try to protect his friends.
- The Bus Came Back: In Episode 22, it's revealed she's alive and was in cryostasis the whole time.
Ai - Warning: Unmarked Ending Spoiler
Ai is Mitsuru's and Kokoro's daughter, and the first naturally born child after APE's departure.
- Hereditary Hairstyle: Her bangs look similar to her father's hairstyle.
- Meaningful Name: Ai is the Japanese word for love. Mitsuru and Kokoro name her after this in honor of Hiro and Zero Two's relationship. Her name's reveal is also a critical moment since it reveals the Parasites have moved on from APE's code number system.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Many of her mother's facial features carry over to Ai. Her irises and hairstyle resemble that of her father's though.
- Walking Spoiler: Mitsuru's relationship with Kokoro is pivotal to the second half of the series. Ai's very existence not only spoils the outcome of their relationship but the ending for the series itself as well.
