A solid 5 stars out of 5.
To say that Fooly Cooly is completely coherent would be a lie. To say that it's completely incoherent and nonsensical is also a lie. It's a tale about adolescence told through fantastic and metaphorical means, where girls are literally as alien as most boys believe them to be, and preteen sexual tensions are realized through phallic giant robots. But this is no psychoanalytical show by any means. If there are any surreal, dream-like interpretations to be made, then they need to be made with this in mind: dreams don't always make sense. And neither does FLCL. But it's one helluva ride.
To say that Fooly Cooly is completely coherent would be a lie. To say that it's completely incoherent and nonsensical is also a lie. It's a tale about adolescence told through fantastic and metaphorical means, where girls are literally as alien as most boys believe them to be, and preteen sexual tensions are realized through phallic giant robots. But this is no psychoanalytical show by any means. If there are any surreal, dream-like interpretations to be made, then they need to be made with this in mind: dreams don't always make sense. And neither does FLCL. But it's one helluva ride.
A Summary?
Naota, our 12 year old protagonist, is trying to grow up in a town where he believes everything is ordinary and nothing special ever happens. His older brother, Tasuku, has left the little suburb of Mabase for the United States, fulfilling his baseball ambitions and leaving Naota with a huge authority vacuum. Naota's father and grandfather are clearly incompetent authority figures, a common issue in many anime, and so Naota seemingly runs his own affairs, albeit with a persistent mood of defeat and depression. He hangs out with Mamimi, a high school girl and Tasuku's former girlfriend. She latches onto Naota as if he's supposed to replace Tasuku; she soon realizes that he is a poor substitute. Naota has a group of friends he sees at school, and when not at school he spends time with the smothering Mamimi. His life is pretty ordinary.
When Haruko dramatically enters Naota's life by slamming him in the head with her guitar while riding her trademark yellow Vespa, his life is transformed. By hitting his head, Haruko created a portal for giant machine robots to exit through. These monstrosities are creations of Medical Meccanica, a mysterious corporation housed within a building shaped like a massive iron. Their plan, from what I can gather of the rather confusing explanation the show offers, is conquer the galaxy by flattening planets so that their citizens can no longer think, much like how humans need the wrinkles and folds in their brains in order to think. The iron-shaped building, then, is apropos. In one of the monsters that is released resides Atmosk, king of the space pirates, who Medical Meccanica has imprisoned and Haruko wishes to capture so that she can take his powers. Each of the six episodes is devoted to the unveiling of Haruko's secret agenda and how Naota fits in it. Naota's adolescent concerns, in the meantime, are compounded by the emergence of these monsters from his head; he constantly covers up the mysterious acne-like lumps on his head, which eventually turn into monsters when he is incredibly stressed.
Accolades
In comparing this show to other anime, I have to say that when I originally saw this on Adult Swim many years ago, I was instantly amazed by its uniquely loose and free animation style. To date, the only other anime I've seen with similar animation and bold storytelling is Gurren Lagann (Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann). Both shows were produced by Gainax.
FLCL won awards for “Best Anime Comedy” and “Best Anime Short Series” at the First American Anime Awards . And it has won many other accolades. The show is definitely one of a kind and set the stage for anime that would later feature exaggerated character expressions and explicit references to world culture. Naota's father comments on a green jacket he wore similar to what Lupin the 3rd wears in the Miyazaki film, Return to Cagliostro. There is a whole scene where Haruko mentions Jimi Hendrix and Elvis and Rage Against the Machine and Red Hot Chili Peppers. And Mamimi's cell phone is manufactured by Cyber Dyine, a play on the Cyberdyne Systems defense network that exists in the Terminator franchise.
This isn't a show for people who want complete coherence in narrative. This isn't a show for people who cannot stand action sequences that stretch the limitations of animation to their breaking points. There's a short fight in episode five where Haruko is dueling agents who are after her and Medical Meccanica. They fight in an absurd John Woo, Matrix-style shootout where bullets fly and dozens of suited men emerge from windows and air ducts, shooting before they even have their target in sight. Haruko meanwhile has been blowing them up with her guitar, which has been outfitted with a gun attachment and lets her blow up agents like Scarface. It's zany and enjoyable for those willing to reconstruct what they think animation is allowed to do.
“Older women can have a strong effect..."
Earlier I mentioned the show's attempts to show adolescent angst through stress-induced monsters coming from Naota's head. They always show up at awkward times, like when Naota tries to kiss Mamimi and is rejected. The monster then emerges from his forehead and shoots up into the sky, resembling a giant penis in the distance. The agents after Haruko observe this; one of them has hearts coming out of her eyes as she admires it. And most of the women in the show are like that whenever Naota's monsters emerge.
Indeed, one of Naota's challenges is understanding his relationship to the two central women in his life, who seem to be seeking something through him. They want things that a teenage kid would not understand, but is suitable enough to provide a semblance of. Could be true love and comfort, could be an outlet for sexual tensions, like how Mamimi leaves hickeys on Naota's neck when she's really in love with his older brother. Or in the case of Haruko, it could simply be that she needed Naota in order to reach Atmosk. Poor Naota! He's got a long way to go before he scratches the surface of how love works.
Indeed, one of Naota's challenges is understanding his relationship to the two central women in his life, who seem to be seeking something through him. They want things that a teenage kid would not understand, but is suitable enough to provide a semblance of. Could be true love and comfort, could be an outlet for sexual tensions, like how Mamimi leaves hickeys on Naota's neck when she's really in love with his older brother. Or in the case of Haruko, it could simply be that she needed Naota in order to reach Atmosk. Poor Naota! He's got a long way to go before he scratches the surface of how love works.
Plausability
FLCL takes us on a fantastical journey into a town where “nothing amazing happens”. Of course, Mamimi circulates an iconic photo of Naota atop ruined buildings, holding a guitar, just before she leaves to become a photographer; the guitar is sitting in Naota's room at the end of the series. Canti, the robotic vessel for Atmosk, is still in Naota's home, cleaning and cooking. But Naota has moved on with his life, wearing a new school uniform and hanging with his same crowd of friends.
At some point in the series Naota asks Haruko, “Who are you, really?”, to which she replies, “I'm an illusion of your youth, a manifestation of the feelings in your adolescent heart.” In a similar manner, films such as Inception and even Cowboy Bebop: The Movie question the “reality” of unfolding events through self-reference. Did anything occur in real-time consciousness, or was everything contained within a dream? There's enough unresolved questions at the end of FLCL to convince me that Haruko was indeed a real person in the context of the show. But I suppose every trippy story must leave open-ended questions, as if paying tribute to The Twilight Zone. At the end of the day, does it really matter? Haruko was real enough to provide me with one entertaining show.
Most of the cast and crew.
* I did not mention the show's music, which prominently features songs by The Pillows, a Japanese rock band. I don't see how I could describe the music adequately, so I suggest watching the show to understand. It certainly adds to the zany flavors of the show's themes and animation. Check it out!
* I did not mention the show's music, which prominently features songs by The Pillows, a Japanese rock band. I don't see how I could describe the music adequately, so I suggest watching the show to understand. It certainly adds to the zany flavors of the show's themes and animation. Check it out!
I watched FLCL on Netflix. It is also available through Hulu.com, and the DVDs are available on Amazon.com. FLCL was produced by Gainax, Production I.G., and Starchild Records.
- Elijah Lee
Awesome show
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