FLCL

Oh, the highly acclaimed Fooly Cooly. It's been labeled as a "masterpiece", something "special" "unique" "pleasantly different" yada yada yada. For an anime to have gotten this much praise then it should have been extremely enjoyable and in particular funny as it is supposedly meant to be a comedy(primarily). Sadly, FLCL did not offer any but was a one way trip to hell the moment a certain character made a flashy appearance in the first episode. STORY: There is absolutely no story behind this anime. It is just six episodes of disjointed scripts that attempt to fuse together as much genres as possible then injected withpointless crude sexual humor. It is as confusing as reading a Chemistry textbook upside down and going to write a Biology exam. It is not anything overly intelligent that one wouldn't understand but a very sorry attempt for a plot. ART: A rather welcome aspect of FLCL. The art is unique and very neat while the animation is decent but nothing breathtaking. SOUND: Another redeeming feature of the show.The music, as a standalone is nothing special but mixed with FLCL actually makes sense. It blends perfectly with the animation and just about managed to keep my sanity while being subject to the torture that was Fooly Cooly. CHARACTER: This is perhaps the aspect of FLCL that is worse than the Story. A good anime has characters that you can connect to, ones you feel an attachment to, ones you root for, likable characters. The only half decent character in FLCL is Naota. The lot of em are either disgusting or detestable and very easily forgettable. Now welcome to Haruko, my no. 3 most hated character in anime history only behind Shin in Gundam Seed Destiny and Roshio in TTGL. The introduction of Haruko marked the end of FLCL for me. A good description of her would be spontaneously annoying. ENJOYMENT: I did not enjoy FLCL plain and simple. I have watched this anime an unbelievable 3 times because I kept telling myself maybe just maybe I missed something or there's is an underlying essence but NO, I only hated it more each time. CONCLUSION: When there is a subject of controversy, you find things like -Opinions differ -One man's meat is another man's poison -it is hit or miss -People have different tastes etc In this regard, FLCL is as polarizing as they come. It will be a love/hate relationship if you decide to brave the show. The good thing is you'll know which category you belong very early on.

~ Nothing happens here, only the ordinary ~ You've heard of abstract anime, right? You've heard of shows that completely surpass convention, right? FLCL or "Fooly Cooly" or "Furi Kuri" is a vast expanse of hyperactivity, fast-paced, nonsensical story-telling, abstract presentation, slapstick comedy, innuendo, slice of life, science fiction and more... (you can take a breath now) It is the definition of "abstract" in that i don't even consider it to be an anime; and here's why... FLCL is an "all or nothing", love it or hate it show; because there are 2 fundamental viewpoints and analytical approaches that can be used to evaluate it. To remain relatively impartial, i amgoing to utilize both of these heavily contrasting arguments to become a part of the rare "middle-ground" viewpoint... ---------- - The "Technical" Viewpoint - Analyzing FLCL's technical merit as an anime title; with a start, middle, and end... From a technical perspective, FLCL can only be given low amounts of quantifiable praise for the most part. This is because 2 of the most important parts of any animated title or novel: story and character, are generally quite poor... FLCL is a highly abstract title after all, with a very vague and arguably non-existent development of a plot line in the form of a journey or growth. Many would argue that this show is nothing but a random and nonsensical arrangement of spontaneous events. It's fast-paced to a hyperactive extent, and so it's a nightmare to keep up with the current happenings. It's full of pointless and meaningless slapstick humor that cheapens the show, makes it impossible to take seriously as an anime, and gives it a "loony toons" vibe of immaturity (which is ironic if you read on). Therefore most people who reflect on the technicalities of FLCL conclude that in terms of long-term storytelling, and an overriding plot, the show completely lacks fluidity, clarity, and consistency. Therefore rendering it unable to build up a conceivable and/or gripping plot... It is to be expected of a very short anime, that the characters excluding our main protagonist aren't really "developed" at all. Their design is generic for the most part, uninspiring and conforming to a multitude of cliched stereotypes. Furthermore, they're not nearly sufficiently elaborated upon in the form of emotional growth, changes or back stories to trigger many attachment values. In contrast however, the way in which they all interact is quite clever. It's both crazy and casual at the same time, which leads to an interesting integration of abnormality, into normality. Due to its time-scale, and it's ever-changing, inconsistent structure, FLCL fails to develop over a long term. Though it does however succeed in the short term, due to it's immediate presentation methods... If from a technical aspect, there's one light at the end of the tunnel; then it's this integration of casual dialogue/character chemistry, and the way that it maintains an immersive and realistic atmosphere in the midst of all of the craziness. This is helped by the viewpoint of our relatable and therefore arguably the only clearly "considered" character: Naota. He is our realistic protagonist who is critical to the meaning behind FLCL (as i will mention later), and alongside the appropriately uplifting, youthful, casual soundtrack, his existence allows for some slice of life elements to shine through. This means that FLCL is atleast good painting a very "ordinary", therefore relatable, therefore immersive picture; in the immediate term, which provides a very care-free atmosphere to remind you that if you've gotten this far, then you're taking the show too seriously... ---------- - The "Artistic" Viewpoint Analyzing FLCL's artistic merit and intentions as an "expression" FLCL is a show that hides the very heavy topic of growing up and maturing into adulthood, behind an ironically "immature" veil of nonsensical slapstick. Those who are generally more open-minded argue that FLCL intends to defy convention in such a bold way to enhance its meaning. This abstract nature is prominent enough to argue that those who only see a "bad anime" here, simply don't understand atall... The events that take place in FLCL happen at such a blinding and incomprehensible speed, and the show's duration is short: to resemble the pure chaos of the very small amount of time that it takes for a child to loose his/her youth and reach maturity. It is a show that documents the "race" to adulthood. All of the characters besides Naota appear as "stupid" and "immature", hence the continuous slapstick comedy: to represent the plight of adolescents who feel as though their "non-adult" status nullifies the relevance of the words they utter. This references the rather dark and isolated viewpoint that mankind itself is nonsensical and that "only I" make sense in this world of barbarians/corrupt/immature "adults" who don't live up to their title. This can be linked to the corruption of mankind's rigid and flawed administrative infrastructure. Those who evaluate FLCL artistically are likely to conclude that it is a very meaningful and relatable show, disguised in a form so abstract that it can only be seen in a good light; if people look into the reasoning behind its bold methods. FLCL documents the plight of adolescents who feel as though they have to force maturity upon themselves by feigning ignorance in childish/immature things, to become better than the evidently immature/corrupt adult dictators that are responsible for the flawed administration of the modern world in which we live. ---------- Considering both viewpoints, it's obvious that FLCL is a show that needs to be looked at from an artistic perspective in order to work. It is therefore not an anime... but an artistic expression instead. It's therefore hard to give quantifiable credit with an ordinary reviewing approach, which could misleadingly cause people to think lowly of the title. FLCL works on some levels, and doesn't on others (though again, arguable this is intentional). I am going to turn a technically "1 to 2" show to a "6" due to its very meaningful, deep and relatable artistic values which could equate to a "10"... therefore averaging out in my opinion just above the half-way point. FLCL therefore serves to show us that there is a limit to how abstract and minimalist an anime can be, and still be easily praised from a "MAL reviewing" perspective... Which is shown here to be quite a rigid one... ---------- Do i recommend the show? - To answer a question with a question, can you be open-minded enough to appreciate it? ~ Nothing amazing happens here, only the ordinary ~

It seems that the writers were convinced that rapidly alternating between art styles, animating grandiose nonsense, and neglecting a coherent story are viable substitutions for writing something that's actually entertaining. They were wrong. I was bored senseless both times I watched this, despite the series analyses I read after the first watch. Story - There is no notable story or plot. When I try to describe the events of the show to people they think that I'm just making things up. The story is basically impossible to spoil. 2/10 Characters - The MC from Evangelion is paired up with a bipolar schizophrenic girl with unexplained magical powers.The character interactions are nonsensical and character motivations are not even remotely explored. It's difficult to take anyone in this series seriously. 2/10 Art - One of the few redeeming elements of the show. The art is superbly well done, especially the over-the-top ridiculous sequences that this show is known for. My score ignores how the authors used the many changing art styles as a replacement for actual content. 9/10 Sound - The sound was excellent as well. The soundtrack was great, the voice actors were solid, and even the English dub is surprisingly good. 9/10 Enjoyment - Watching this once was once too many. Some people might enjoy the aesthetic that the absurd, intense visuals produce, but it felt like a one-trick pony ten minutes into the first episode. I was a fool to continue watching, thinking that it would get better. 1/10 Overall - The problem with this show is that if everything is ridiculous, then nothing is ridiculous. I love surrealism, grandiosity and not always understanding everything until the end, but FLCL tries so hard to take everything to an extreme that it struggles to be coherent or meaningful. Perhaps this is why fans are so defensive of this show - the idea that a show with so much effort put into its visuals and aesthetic can have so little purpose is upsetting, so they create a "deeper meaning" for the show. In reality, there isn't one. Or, at the very least, there isn't one without grasping at straws. And that's not a meaning worth discussing.

Well, here's my review for FLCL (or Furi Kuri, or Fooly Cooly, or whatever the heck you want to call it.) It's really quite a truthful review, for if you're an obsessed fan of the series, I suggest you turn around now and keep your "not helpful's" to yourself. STORY--- Simply put, there was none. I suppose it was meant to be a coming of age story, but alas, I fail to see this for myself. There was little to no plot, with each episode consisting of nothing but chaotic character interaction rampant with dialogue that could be "misinterpreted" sexually. If I recall correctly, and keepin mind that I was told this by a HUGE fan of the show, nearly every phrase spoken could be interpreted as a sex joke. Also: many objects in the show can also be viewed sexually (IE: Canti is supposed to represent a penis when he turns into a red cannon.) Even the TITLE of the show is a sex reference! Too many sex jokes? Too simple? Too mindless? Nope! When they're "discreetly hidden throughout the show", even sex jokes are "smart." Apparently that's what the kids are thinking these days while they giggle into their hands, in pseudointellectual glee. ART--- One of the finer aspects of the show, I, by no means, hated the art. This doesn't mean that I'm a fan of the art style or anything; I just had little reason to complain about it (especially when you compare the art to something more atrocious, like the story.) Admittedly, it was really quite cartoonish at parts, but mostly where appropriate, so I had little reason to gripe about that either. Also, the sketchy art style is unique, if nothing else, so I need to rate this at least a seven out of ten. SOUND--- Again, this is one of the finer aspects of the show. I honestly felt that the voices, as annoying as they may have been, really did fit the characters perfectly (in English anyway.) Also, the musical score is decent, and while it's not something I'd listen to every day of the week, it is something that I can enjoy once a song gets stuck in my head. This is definitely the best aspect of the show, and as such I'll give it an eight. CHARACTERS--- 99% of the time I'm generous enough not to rate something a one, but the characters in this series don't have a snowball's chance in hell at scoring anything higher. I HATED the characters in this series more than in most. They're loud, annoying, immature, whiny, and entirely unlovable. They're damn near impossible to relate to, and they display little to no development at all...and if they did, then I missed it because of the chaotic "storyline." There was ONE character I liked in this entire series, and that was the kid in the mouse costume. "Smoooooooch!" ENJOYMENT--- The reason I gave this a four was because, when you don't try to swallow the "symbolism" and "intellectual value" that this show allegedly has backing it, it's actually mildly entertaining. Of course, this is long after you've accepted that the show is nothing but mindless entertainment. And it is mindless entertainment. Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of mindless entertainment, so I gave this a four. You'd think that I, the one writing this negative review, would've given it an even lower score, but I do have some reasons for not outright giving it a one. First of all, I did enjoy some of the humor, to some degree. It was random, sure, but there were some parts that I found mildly amusing. It's not like I was bursting out in laughter or anything, nor did I find the show terribly clever or witty, but I did give a chuckle here and there. Also, while I did not come for the art, nor the sound, I did enjoy both of said subjects thoroughly (more so the soundtrack; I didn't really 'enjoy' the art, but I'm not complaining either, so I guess you could call that 'enjoyment' since this is FLCL we're talking about here.) OVERALL--- I COULD have given this a one. I really could have; especially when you compare this anime to some of the real masterpieces out there. In fact, it deserves a one simply because it is absolute garbage compared to these masterpieces I speak of... but I'd feel bad giving it a one because the sounds (voices/music/etc...) were actually pretty good, and the art wasn't half bad either. So I'll stick it with a two and get over my guilt eventually. The story was a train wreck, the humor was mostly sex-based, and got old really quickly, my primary enjoyment of the series consisted of "ooh, pretty music", and, on top of all this, I hated the characters more than I've hated in most series. While the show did have its redeeming qualities, the fact remains that I didn't watch this show because I heard it had good artwork, nor did I watch it because I heard it had good sounds...I watched it because I heard that it was a good story with good characters, and that it was off-the-wall hilarious with all sorts of intellectualism going on. I got the opposite of all that. Hence, my low score. I hope you all found this review helpful, and I'm hoping you won't give me a "not helpful" simply because I spoke my mind about the show.