Zero Two

{{short description|Fictional character in Darling in the Franxx}}

{{About|the Darling in the Franxx character||02 (disambiguation){{!}}02}}

{{Infobox character

| image = Franxx Zero Two.jpg

| caption = Zero Two depicted in the Darling in the Franxx key visual

| first = "Alone and Lonesomе" (2018){{cite web|url=http://darli-fra.jp/story/?no=1|script-title=ja:第1話独りとヒトリ|trans-title=Episodе 1 - "Alone and Lonesome"|website=darli-fra.jp|language=ja|access-date=October 10, 2018|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171226020657/http://darli-fra.jp/story/?no=1|archive-date=December 26, 2017}}

| creator =

| voice = Japanese
Haruka Tomatsu{{cite web|url=https://www.christianpost.com/news/darling-in-the-franxx-spoilers-voice-cast-revealed-in-new-promotional-video-206425|title='Darling in the Franxx' Spoilers: Voice Cast Revealed in new Promotional Video|last=Justimbaste|first=Kristinova|date=14 November 2017 |access-date=October 10, 2018}}
English
Tia Ballard{{cite web |url=https://www.funimation.com/shows/darling-in-the-franxx/ |title=DARLING in the FRANXX |website=Funimation |access-date=February 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180131005601/https://www.funimation.com/shows/darling-in-the-franxx/|archive-date=January 31, 2018}}

| gender = Female

| occupation = Special forces mecha pilot

| species = Klaxosaur (Can syncretize herself into a human gradually over time) {{Cite episode |title=Inhumanity |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=May 25, 2018 |season=1 |number=19 }}

| alias = The Partner Killer{{Cite episode |title=Alone and Lonesome |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=January 13, 2018

|season=1 |number=1 |time=23:33 |quote="The Partner Killer." }}
Code:002
Nine Iota{{Cite episode |title=The Garden Where It All Began |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=March 31, 2018 |season=1 |number=12 }}

| spouse = Arsyad 001{{cite web|url=http://darli-fra.jp/story/?no=23|script-title=ja:第23話ダーリン・イン・ザ・フランキス|trans-title=Episode 23 - "DARLING in the FRANXX"|website=darli-fra.jp|language=ja|access-date=October 10, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180412133430/http://darli-fra.jp/story/?no=23|archive-date=April 12, 2018}}{{Cite episode |title=DARLING in the FRANXX |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=June 30, 2018 |season=1 |number=23 }}

| lbl21 = Hair color

| data21 = Pink

| lbl22 = Eye color

| data22 = Green

}}

{{nihongo|Zero Two|ゼロツー|Zero Tsū|lead=yes}}, also called {{nihongo|Code:002|コード:002|Kōdo:002}} and {{nihongo|9'℩|ナインイオタ|Nain Iota|"Nine Iota"}} is a fictional character in the Japanese anime television series Darling in the Franxx by A-1 Pictures, Trigger, and CloverWorks.{{cite web|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-10-18/darling-in-the-franxx-anime-video-reveals-story-teaser-january-premiere/.122890|title=DARLING in the FRANXX Anime Video Reveals Story Teaser, January Premiere|date=October 18, 2017|website=Anime News Network|access-date=October 12, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019003733/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-10-18/darling-in-the-franxx-anime-video-reveals-story-teaser-january-premiere/.122890|archive-date=October 19, 2017}} She was designed as the most prominent character and icon of the series. Zero Two is an artificially-created life form who aspires to become fully human, and an elite pilot with an infamous reputation as the "Partner Killer". She is well known for addressing Hiro, the protagonist, by the eponymous term "darling".

Creation and design

File:Franxx Zero Two Material Book Concept.jpg

Zero Two had the most labor-intensive design process and was designed to be an iconic character to act as a flagship for Darling in the Franxx.{{cite web |last1=Fobian |first1=Peter |title=Crunchyroll - DARLING in the FRANXX Creators Talk TRIGGER and Zero Two at Crunchyroll Expo 2018! |url=https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-feature/2018/09/10-1/darling-in-the-franxx-creators-talk-trigger-and-zero-two-at-crunchyroll-expo-2018 |access-date=10 October 2018}} The series' creative staff came to the consensus she should be the most eye-catching character.{{cite web |last1=Allen |first1=Skyler |title=Interview: The Staff Behind Darling in the Franxx | The Fandom Post |work=The Fandom Post |date=18 September 2018 |url=https://www.fandompost.com/2018/09/18/interview-the-staff-behind-darling-in-the-franxx/ |access-date=12 October 2018}} The inspiration for Zero Two's anime design came from character designer Masayoshi Tanaka and director Atsushi Nishigori. Tanaka explained that the design team was more concentrated on "what sort of existence Zero Two had", rather than her appearance, beginning with a vague image of a "badass transfer student".{{cite web |last1=Fobian |first1=Peter |title=Crunchyroll - INTERVIEW: DARLING in the FRANXX Creators Talk Franxx, TRIGGER, and Zero Two! |url=https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-feature/2018/10/05-1/interview-darling-in-the-franxx-creators-talk-franxx-trigger-and-zero-two |access-date=10 October 2018}} The initial design concepts of Zero Two were substantially subdued in comparison to her final appearance, appearing as a small, quiet, dark-haired character, before the design team decided that the design did not work with the intended personality.{{cite web |last1=Valdez |first1=Nick |title='Darling in the FranXX' Shares Original Character Designs |date=18 August 2018 |url=https://comicbook.com/anime/2018/08/17/darling-in-the-franxx-anime-original-character-designs/ |access-date=10 October 2018}} Her originally dark hair was exchanged for pink to assist in marketing her as the series' icon. Tanaka adapted the original design for the queen of the Klaxosaurs. The creative team considered their goal to make Zero Two an iconic character as a success, citing the abundance of cosplay and fanart. When asked by fans, Nishigori stated that Zero Two was his favorite character in the series but expressed that he was more "attracted to her charismatic personality" rather than her romantic appeal.{{cite web |last1=Frye |first1=Patrick |title=Darling In The FranXX Season 2 release date: DarliFra anime spawns a manga, but will Zero-Two return for a second act like Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann? |work=Monsters and Critics |date=20 June 2018 |url=https://www.monstersandcritics.com/anime/darling-in-the-franxx-season-2-release-date-darlifra-anime-spawns-a-manga-but-will-zero-two-return-for-a-second-act-like-tengen-toppa-gurren-lagann/ |access-date=10 October 2018}}

Zero Two is an elite pilot originally belonging to the special forces unit with an infamous reputation as the "Partner Killer" due to none of her previous co-pilots having survived past three rides.{{cite web|url=http://darli-fra.jp/story/?no=4|script-title=ja:第4話フラップ・フラップ|trans-title=Episode 4 - "Flap Flap"|website=darli-fra.jp|language=ja|access-date=October 10, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171226020657/http://darli-fra.jp/story/?no=4|archive-date=December 26, 2017}} As an artificially-created hybrid between humans and Klaxo sapiens (a cybernetic dinosaur-like species which inhabited the Earth millions of years ago), she possesses superhuman abilities such as increased strength and rapid regeneration.{{Cite episode |title=The Beast and the Prince |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=April 7, 2018 |season=1 |number=13 }} Commonly viewed by others as a monster, Zero Two possesses bestial physical characteristics such as two small red horns and fangs.{{cite web|url=https://otakumode.com/news/592e7343641c27b6379481e1/DARLING-in-the-FRANXX-Character-Introduction-Video-Features-Code-016-Code-002!|title=DARLING in the FRANXX Character Introduction Video Released! Tokyo Otaku Mode News|date=14 September 2017 |access-date=October 10, 2018}} She began to pursue her ambition to become fully human after meeting the protagonist Hiro in her youth, and frequently questions the meaning of humanity.{{Cite episode |title=Your Thorn, My Badge |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=February 10, 2018 |season=1 |number=5 |time=19:32 |quote="What is 'human' to you people?" }} Zero Two has a confident and assertive personality, as well as being consistently rebellious towards the collectivist, quasi-theocratic world government depicted in the series.{{Cite episode |title=Fighting Puppet |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=January 27, 2018 |season=1 |number=3 |time=20:52 }}{{Cite episode |title=Flap Flap |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=February 3, 2018 |season=1 |number=4 }}

As a child, she was significantly more bestial in nature with red skin, blue blood, longer horns, sharper teeth, and described as having eyes "filled with hatred for the world".{{Cite episode |title=The Beast and the Prince |series=Darling in the Franxx |time=22:31 |quote="Hands clasped together, and eyes filled with hatred for the world." |date=April 7, 2018 |season=1 |number=13 }} Growing up, Zero Two took on a significantly more humanoid-like appearance, with red blood and light skin.

Appearances

An elite pilot belonging to APE's special forces, Zero Two is a mysterious and rebellious girl often referred to as a monster due to her red horns and klaxosaur blood. She is also known as the "partner killer" as all partners who pilot Strelizia with her always die after riding three times with her at most, with Hiro being the only exception. She always refers to Hiro by the eponym "darling". Her true age is unknown but is clearly around Hiro's age. Her ultimate wish is to become fully human so she can reunite with an important person from her past, which turned out to be Hiro. Since she was a child, she was inspired by a book called “The Beast and the Prince”, which she notes is similar to the circumstances of her and Hiro. She begins creating her own version of the story but intentionally left the last page blank because of the likelihood she may have to part ways with Hiro.

She later finds out she is a clone of the Klaxosaur Princess created by Dr. Franxx. When Hiro is forced to link with the princess, Zero Two is able to mentally connect with Strelizia to save him and stop VIRM from destroying the planet but this left her body catatonic. Mentally, she continued fighting VIRM in a galactic battle in space. She and Hiro reconnect, allowing Zero Two to merge with Strelizia, becoming the Strelizia True Apus, and overpower the VIRM. She and Hiro then part ways with their friends but promise to return. In the final episode, Zero Two and Hiro are nearly defeated but they sacrifice themselves to destroy the VIRM home planet and free the souls trapped by VIRM. At some point in the future, they are reincarnated into two children.

Reception

=Merchandise=

{{multiple image

| align = right

| image1 = Franxx Zero Two Nendoroid.jpg

| caption1 = Zero Two Nendoroid

| height1 = 240

| width1 = 180

| image2 = Franxx Zero Two Kotobukiya.jpg

| caption2 = Zero Two Kotobukiya figure

| height2 = 240

| width2 = 191

}}

Several pieces of merchandising action figures based on Zero Two have been announced. A Nendoroid, a brand of figures manufactured by Good Smile Company that typically feature exchangeable faces and body parts, was released in December 2018.{{cite web |last1=Sherman |first1=Jennifer |title=DARLING in the FRANXX's Zero Two Gets Nendoroid Figure - Interest - Anime News Network |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2018-07-15/darling-in-the-franxx-zero-two-gets-nendoroid-figure/.134049 |access-date=14 October 2018}} Other figures from Kotobukiya and S.H. Figuarts were released by the end of 2018.{{cite web |title=Zero Two is Your Darling in the FranXX in New Figure! | Tokyo Otaku Mode News |date=19 June 2018 |url=https://otakumode.com/news/5b28ad523dcdc59725bd1f10/Zero-Two-is-Your-Darling-in-the-FranXX-in-Beautiful-New-Kotobukiya-Figure! |access-date=14 October 2018}}{{cite web |script-title=ja:『ダーリン・イン・ザ・フランキス』ゼロツーが立体化、搭乗ポーズも再現 | マイナビニュース |url=https://news.mynavi.jp/article/20180430-624292/ |website=Mynavi Corporation |date=30 April 2018 |language=ja |access-date=14 October 2018}}

=Awards and nominations=

At Newtype Anime Awards 2017–2018, Zero Two ranked second for Best Female Character.{{cite web|title=Newtype Anime Awards 2018 Winners and Details Announced |date=8 October 2018 |url=https://www.thenerdmag.com/newtype-anime-awards-2018-winners-and-details-announced/ |access-date=October 10, 2018}} Eric Van Allen of Kotaku describes Zero Two as "much a protagonist as Hiro" and considers her character arc as "one of the show’s best parts".{{cite web|title=Darling In The Franxx Doesn't Make Good On Its Promises |url=https://kotaku.com/darling-in-the-franxx-doesnt-make-good-on-its-promises-1827628015 |website=Kotaku|date=16 July 2018 |access-date=October 10, 2018}} Kyle Rogacion of Goomba Stomp expresses that she is "easily one of the best aspects of Franxx".{{cite web |title='Darling in the Franxx' Check-in: Ending With a Whimper | Goomba Stomp |url=https://www.goombastomp.com/darling-franxx-ending/ |access-date=August 31, 2018 |archive-date=August 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831111434/https://www.goombastomp.com/darling-franxx-ending/ |url-status=dead }} Skyler Allen notes that Zero Two's energetic nature "lets her steal pretty much every scene she’s in".{{cite web|title=Darling in the Franxx Review - A Piece of Anime |date=11 July 2018 |url=https://apieceofanime.com/2018/07/11/darling-in-the-franxx-review/ |access-date=October 10, 2018}} Tokyo Otaku Mode News ranked Zero Two twice as the best Winter 2018 character in both male and female polls.{{cite web|title=Top 10 Waifus and Husbandos in Winter 2018! | Tokyo Otaku Mode News |date=10 June 2018 |url=https://otakumode.com/news/5b14a0e0910f66526483f642/Top-10-Waifus-and-Husbandos-in-Winter-2018! |access-date=October 28, 2018}}

On March 5, 2018, Kim Kardashian posted a picture of Zero Two on her Instagram profile, stating that the character was the inspiration for her hairstyle.{{cite web |last1=Valdez |first1=Nick |title=Kim Kardashian West Reveals Her Anime Bae To The World |date=4 March 2018 |url=https://comicbook.com/anime/2018/03/05/kim-kardashian-anime-bae-zero-two-darling/ |access-date=10 October 2018}}

Zero Two became the subject of many internet memes. One scene of an emotional conversation between Zero Two and Hiro became a meme when fans realized that the animation made their mouth movements easy to manipulate and dub over with nonsensical audio. Popular edits involved audio such as dial-up modem connection sounds or popular music.{{cite web |last1=Jackson |first1=Gita |title=Fans Turn Darling In The Franxx's Tender Reunion Into Dub Fiasco |date=4 May 2018 |url=https://kotaku.com/fans-turn-darling-in-the-franxxs-tender-reunion-into-du-1825787160 |access-date=28 October 2018}} The meme began when a Tumblr user posted an edit with barking noises over the two characters.{{cite web |title=Hiro Kisses Zero Two Remixes | Know Your Meme |date=May 2018 |url=https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/hiro-kisses-zero-two-remixes |access-date=28 October 2018}} The scene originates from episode 15 of Darling in the Franxx.{{Cite episode |title=Jian |series=Darling in the Franxx |date=April 21, 2018 |season=1 |number=15 |time=19:02 }} In November 2020, a video edit of Zero Two dancing to a remix version of "2 Phút Hơn" by Pháo became viral. The dance itself was taken from "ME!ME!ME!" The trend originated in China when TikTokers began mimicking the dance. The song and the associated clip of Zero Two appeared in popular memes.{{cite web |title=Hai Phút Hơn | Know Your Meme |work=Know Your Meme |date=17 December 2020 |url=https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/hai-phut-h%C6%A1n |access-date=14 February 2021}}

class="wikitable"

! scope="col" | Year

! scope="col" | Award

! scope="col" | Category

! scope="col" | Recipient(s)

! scope="col" | Result

! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{Abbr|Ref.|References}}

rowspan="2" align="center" | 2018

| rowspan="2" align="center" | Newtype Anime Awards

| Best Character (Female)

| Zero Two

| {{draw|Runner-up}}

| rowspan="2" align="center" | {{cite web|title=Idolm@ster SideM, Bungo Stray Dogs Film Win Top Newtype Anime Awards - News - Anime News Network |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-10-07/idolm@ster-sidem-bungo-stray-dogs-film-win-top-newtype-anime-awards/.137844 |access-date=October 8, 2018}}

Best Voice Actress

| Haruka Tomatsu {{small|as Zero Two}}

| {{nom}}

rowspan="2" align="center" | 2019

| align="center" | 3rd Crunchyroll Anime Awards

| Best Voice Artist Performance (English)

| Tia Ballard {{small|as Zero Two}}

| {{nom}}

| align="center" | {{cite web|title=Crunchyroll - Winners of the 2019 Anime Awards—Updated Live! |url=https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2019/02/16/winners-of-the-2019-anime-awardsupdated-live |access-date=February 16, 2019}}

align="center" | Funimation

| Best Girls of the Decade

| Zero Two

| {{won}}

| align="center" | {{cite web|title=A Decade of Anime: Best Girls & Best Boys|url=https://blog.funimation.com/2019/12/27/a-decade-of-anime-best-girl-best-boy-my-hero-academia-re-zero/|access-date=November 27, 2023|website=Funimation - Blog!|date=December 27, 2019|archive-date=May 5, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505223902/https://blog.funimation.com/2019/12/27/a-decade-of-anime-best-girl-best-boy-my-hero-academia-re-zero/|url-status=dead}}

References

External links

{{Official website|https://darli-fra.jp/}} {{in lang|ja}}
{{anime News Network|anime|19850|Darling in the Franxx}}
Crunchyroll's [https://www.crunchyroll.com/darling-in-the-franxx Darling in the Franxx] Page

Category:Anime and manga characters with accelerated healing

Category:Anime and manga characters with superhuman strength

Category:Darling in the Franxx

Category:Female characters in anime and manga

Category:Fictional female soldiers

Category:Fictional military personnel in anime and manga

Category:Fictional half-demons

Category:Fictional special forces personnel

Category:Fictional mecha pilots

Category:Fictional monsters

Category:Fictional suicides

Category:Fictional super soldiers