Anime Review: FLCL (Furi Kuri)
FLCL; Furi Kuri; or Fooly Cooly. Whatever you want to call it, it stands up as some of the most bizarre, yet entertaining anime ever created. It was produced by both Gainax and Production I.G., two mammoth companies. Gainax is most well known for putting out Neon Genesis Evangelion (NGE). Production I.G. is one of my favorite companies, releasing movie gems like Dead Leaves, Blood: The Last Vampire and Jin-Roh, and series like Ghost in the Shell and Blood+. Production I.G. has some of the best animation you can see anywhere. So when these two got together, as they did on the final NGE movies, big things are to be expected. And does FLCL ever deliver.
Great animation, bizarre story, great voice actors (seiyu), and an awesome soundtrack combine to create what could only be called anime splendor. It’s a hilarious adventure of a young boy named Naota, who lives in a boring town when a strange woman shows up with a guitar and runs him over. Things only escalate from there, with giant robots, looney secret agents, a giant iron, and space pirates; all in under six short episodes. This OVA (Original Video Animation, anime that when released goes straight to DVD) is one of the craziest stories you’re likely to come by. It shows off exactly what anime can do that sets itself so far apart from every other medium out there.
And did I mention the music? The soundtrack itself worth a mention as much as the anime itself. Almost all the music is provided by a Japanese rock band called The Pillows. The music fits into the six episodes perfectly. It adds to the whole, making FLCL one of the most enjoyable anime I’ve ever seen.
So is there anything bad to say about this? Yes. The same things that set it apart (a plot that will make just as much sense by the end as the beginning) ultimately makes it hard to be enjoyed by a wider base. Many of the jokes are also very Japanese. Without some knowledge of the culture or little notes that explain what is being made fun of, much of the humor is lost. I have a hard time deciding whether or not the small amount of episodes hurts the series. If it had been longer, everything could have been fleshed out and explained better. It could have been much more accessible. However, the quality of animation would have dropped, and there’s no telling exactly how much easier the plot would have been to digest had it been fully spread out.
The series aired on Cartoon Network sometime two years ago during the [adult swim] scheduling block. It still airs sporadically. If you’re lucky (or happen to be able to browse a TV Guide) you can still catch the episodes on cable. And if you happen to like it, or love it like myself, the next closest thing to FLCL I’ve been able to find is Dead Leaves - which also happens to be released by Production I.G. too. Combining some of the same ridiculously beautiful animation, off-the-wall plot, and inane humor of FLCL, Dead Leaves still manages to be a whole different monster.
Amazon links for the series: FLCL - Ultimate Edition DVD Collection and Dead Leaves. OST here: FLCL - Ultimate Edition DVD Collection.
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