Evil Bad Guy Man: "Do your recognize this?" [He holds up 'Your First Childbirth.'] "Looks like you do. Mind giving us an explanation, Code 556? You're the one who dropped this, aren't you? But this is really strange. It wouldn't have been providied in the study here, and it surely doesn't belong to you. What's the meaning of this?"
[Confused protagonist murmurings.]
Blonde One: "I'm sorry for not telling you all. I want to make a baby."
[More confused protagonist murmurings.]
Evil Bad Guy Man: "Wow. But you do know Papa's banned that, right?"
[Suspicious protagonist murmurings.]
Blonde One: "You know, is that really such a bad thing? I mean, that's how the adults, we, and all humans are born. It's how we were all born. It's what we've done since ancient times."
[Shot of Evil Bad Guy Men making angry faces.]
Blonde One: "That's how all living things have kept their species going for thousands of years. So, well, that must be why we have boys and girls. This may be selfish of me, but I want to leave a mark - leave something behind before I'm gone."
Evil Bad Guy Man: "Leave a mark?"
Blonde One: "Yes. We've lived our lives believing our only purpose was to ride the Franxx into battle. But you know what? That might not be true! We could carry new lives and leave them here for the future. When I learned about that, I was so happy..."
Evil Bad Guy Man: "Disgusting. You're absolutely disgusting. This is ridiculous. Humans have evolved and cast their reproductive functions aside in the process. Reject that, and we'll all have to go back to conforming to one gender."
[Blonde One frightened murmurings.]
Evil Bad Guy Man: "Doesn't the thought often cross your mind? That gender is a pain, an annoyance that's only tolerated to operate the Franxx? And that's all it really is."
Kaelik wrote:Actually, it's clear from the show that since they have cameras everywhere, they called up the assault mind wipe squad as soon as they had sex and that they happened to show up during the marriage was basically just a for funsies and they didn't care about the marriage at all.
Actually, the between the lines is that the adults were overlooking all this bullshit because it's the Doctor's pet experiment with less-brainwashed pilots, but the Nines report directly to Papa so their presence fucks everything up.
Red Hair Adult Lady: "This is why I didn't want to let the Nines in! I knew it'd be nothing but trouble!" [Followered by lecture about how reproductive organs are only for piloting robots. Blonde One leaves, Evil Bad Guy Man shows up.]
Evil Bad Guy Man: "I hope you go back to doing your actual job from now on, instead of getting up to mischief with the doctor. I'll be reporting this to Papa and the rest."
[Black Hair Adult Guy grimaces. Cuts to scene of him talking to doctor.]
Doctor: "Oh, so [Blonde One] is useless now?"
Black Hair Adult Guy: "I believe continuing the test will be difficult."
They're talking about how Papa is 100% going to mindwipe Blonde One when he finds out.
Then Blonde One has sex and they play at marriage. The defining moment is the argument with the Nines, both narratively and literally. Papa schedules the assault mindwipe squad when he gets the report from the Nines about how Blonde One is relapsing into (gasp)
gendered thinking, and it's obviously the moment that is meant to put the conflict in context for the viewer's understanding.