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DARLING in the FRANXX poster

Shows that feel likeDARLING in the FRANXX (2018)

The distant future: Humanity established the mobile fort city, Plantation, upon the ruined wasteland. Within the city were pilot quarters, Mistilteinn, otherwise known as the “Birdcage.” That is where the children live... Their only mission in life was the fight. Their enemies are the mysterious giant organisms known as Kyoryu. The children operate robots known as FRANXX in order to face these still unseen enemies. Among them was a boy who was once called a child prodigy: Code number 016, Hiro. One day, a mysterious girl called Zero Two appears in front of Hiro. “I’ve found you, my Darling.”

If you loved DARLING in the FRANXX, the closest series we have are The Last Man on Earth (2015), 12 Monkeys (2015) and Raised by Wolves (2020). All three share DARLING in the FRANXX's contemplative and bleak feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Violet Evergarden (2018).

11 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · Amazon Prime Video · Hulu
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If DARLING in the FRANXX hit the spot, these will too

The Last Man on Earth poster
The Last Man on Earth
2015–2018 · 4 seasons · FOX
★ 7.4drama · comedyHulu

The same preoccupation in both: life after the end

The difference: Easier on the ideas than DARLING in the FRANXX

The year is 2022, and after an unlikely event, only one man is left on earth: Phil Miller, who used to be just an average guy who loved his family and hated his job at the bank. Now, in his RV, Phil searches the country for other survivors.

12 Monkeys poster
12 Monkeys
2015–2018 · 4 seasons · Syfy
★ 7.7sci-fi & fantasy · dramaPrime Video

One thread runs through both: life after the end

The provocative story of Cole, a time traveler from a decimated future in a high-stakes race against the clock. Utilizing a dangerous and untested method of time travel, he journeys from 2043 to the present day on a mission to locate and eradicate the source of a deadly plague that will all but annihilate the human race.

Raised by Wolves poster
Raised by Wolves
2020–2022 · 2 seasons · HBO Max
★ 7.4sci-fi & fantasy · drama

Both land stillness and ideas at once

After Earth is ravaged by a great religious war, an atheistic android architect sends two of his creations, Mother and Father, to start a peaceful, godless colony on the planet Kepler-22b. Their treacherous task is jeopardized by the arrival of the Mithraic, a deeply devout religious order of surviving humans.

Violet Evergarden poster
Violet Evergarden
2018 · 1 season · TOKYO MX
★ 8.4animation · drama · sci-fi & fantasyNetflix

Common ground in both: love and romance

The difference: Leans harder into war & politics than DARLING in the FRANXX does

The war is over, and Violet Evergarden needs a job. Scarred and emotionless, she takes a job as a letter writer to understand herself and her past.

Snowpiercer poster
Snowpiercer
2020–2024 · 4 seasons · TNT
★ 6.9sci-fi & fantasy · dramaPrime VideoHulu

Dreamlike where it counts, bleak underneath

More than seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland, the remnants of humanity inhabit a gigantic, perpetually-moving train that circles the globe as class warfare, social injustice and the politics of survival play out.

Sweet Tooth poster
Sweet Tooth
2021–2024 · 3 seasons · Netflix
★ 7.7drama · sci-fi & fantasyNetflix

Drama with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

On an epic adventure across a postapocalyptic world, a lovable boy who's part human and part deer searches for family and home with a gruff protector.

Plunderer poster
Plunderer
2020 · 1 season · TOKYO MX
★ 6.5action & adventure · sci-fi & fantasy · animation

Both keep coming back to the same thing: anime

The difference: Sits closer to action & adventure than DARLING in the FRANXX does

In a post-apocalyptic world dominated by the so-called "Numbers," each human will have their identity branded with their own "Count," which could define any number related to their life. May it be one's walked distance or amount of compliments given to them by others, this Count could lead them to the abyss when it has dropped to zero. In the year 305 of the Alcian calendar, Hina has inherited a mission from her Mother, whose Count has depreciated to zero, to search for the Legendary Red Baron. In her adventure, she meets a half-masked swordsman named Licht who tries to hide his identity, as he is known as a degenerate for having an incredibly low Count.

War of the Worlds poster
War of the Worlds
2019–2022 · 3 seasons · Canal+
★ 6.5sci-fi & fantasy · drama

Both lean on ideas more than on sci-fi & fantasy

When astronomers detect a transmission from another galaxy, it is definitive proof of intelligent extra-terrestrial life. The world’s population waits for further contact with bated breath. They do not have to wait long. Within days, mankind is all but wiped out by a devastating attack; pockets of humanity are left in an eerily deserted world. As aliens hunt and kill those left alive, the survivors ask a burning question – who are these attackers and why are they hell-bent on our destruction?

The Rain poster
The Rain
2018–2020 · 3 seasons · Netflix
★ 6.3sci-fi & fantasy · dramaNetflix

Dreamlike animation in both cases

After a brutal virus wipes out most of the population, two young siblings embark on a perilous search for safety. A Scandinavian thriller series.

The Promised Neverland poster
The Promised Neverland
2019–2021 · 2 seasons · Fuji TV
★ 8.1animation · drama · mystery

Two things both keep coming back to: growing up and orphan

Emma, Norman and Ray are the brightest kids at the Grace Field House orphanage. And under the care of the woman they refer to as “Mom,” all the kids have enjoyed a comfortable life. Good food, clean clothes and the perfect environment to learn—what more could an orphan ask for? One day, though, Emma and Norman uncover the dark truth of the outside world they are forbidden from seeing.

Falling Skies poster
Falling Skies
2011–2015 · 5 seasons · TNT
★ 7.1action & adventure · sci-fi & fantasy · dramaNetflix

Comedy built on bleakness, twice over

Falling Skies opens in the chaotic aftermath of an alien attack that has left most of the world completely incapacitated. In the six months since the initial invasion, the few survivors have banded together outside major cities to begin the difficult task of fighting back. Each day is a test of survival as citizen soldiers work to protect the people in their care while also engaging in an insurgency campaign against the occupying alien force.

Silo poster
Silo
2023– · 4 seasons · Apple TV
★ 8.1sci-fi & fantasy · dramaApple TV+

Contemplative drama, and it commits to that

In a ruined and toxic future, thousands live in a giant silo deep underground. After its sheriff breaks a cardinal rule and residents die mysteriously, engineer Juliette starts to uncover shocking secrets and the truth about the silo.

In the mood for more contemplative?

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The best-reviewed series that share DARLING in the FRANXX’s defining feeling.