FLCL Genre: Action d. morris's Overall Score: 10

Reviewer: d. morris
Type of Review: General

First off before you read this review, throw out any preconceived notions you have about storytelling and plot. Once you do that get rid of any notions on deep meaning symbolism, metaphors, and the like because they need not apply for this anime (well maybe they do). When all that is said and done, now you can start reading this review. Furi Kuri was GAINAX's first foray into the field of digital animation and what a foray it is. Anarchic, energetic and wildly inventive, Furi Kuri, or FLCL, is the kind of anime that just comes out of left field to become an instant classic much in the same way Cowboy Bebop and Shin Seiki Evangelion did.

Furi Kuri is the story of Naota, a young school boy who is bored with life in his small town. Nothing seems to change in his town other than the addition of the Medical Mechanica factory recently. He keeps getting hit on by his brother's girlfriend Samejima Mamimi while he goes through the pains of going to middle school. Everything then changes once Haurohara Haruko shows up on the scene and smacks Naota upside his head with her bass guitar. Yep you read that right, a bass guitar. That's not mentioning the robots that keep popping out of his head or the crazy colonel intent on stopping whatever the plan is that Haruko has. Normally I would go on saying what happens with out giving too much away but, the plot and its elements continue to escalate in sheer insanity without divulging spoilers. In a good way though because this is a series where reality goes out the window, past the yard, over the street, and into that toxic waste dump across town where it's warped beyond recognition into something that oddly enough makes sense, I think.

In fact that's half the fun of FLCL, trying to make sense of the bizarre plot which does exist and can be done but only upon watching every episode. That's the reward of FLCL; understanding the methods to its madness. Like all GAINAX productions, which are prone to deconstructing existing genres, Furi Kuri is a changing of the guard for the old boy surrounded by various women genre. At its heart this is the story of a boy coming of age and trying to figure out his place in the world and his place in the lives of the women that surround him. However eschewing the over the top slapstick which most series of this genre are prone to do as well as the boob jokes (only using sex as an exploration of Naota's own sexual awakening), FLCL creates humor from the situations that the women around Naota create and how Naota reacts to those situations which usually ends up with a fight between robots that pop out of Naota's head.

FLCL is a series that really only makes a lot of sense if you watch a lot of anime, really it does. There are references and parodies of various anime throughout the series that any quick eyed viewer can catch. Of course no person can catch every reference the first time through and multiple viewings are a required must with this series. However though a person new to the anime experience can watch the series too though some of the fun will be lost not to mention it may be a bit offputting and hyperactive for that individual. Sometimes it's off putting and hyperactive to veteran otaku but those that do enjoy their anime on the crazy side as well as wonderfully experimental should definitely check out Furi Kuri.