23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
contemplative anime, May 9, 2003
This review is from: FLCL (Fooly Cooly) - Vol. 3 (DVD)
I would be hard pressed to find a more confusing anime than FLCL, and that's saying a lot for this genre. Then again it isn't all that surprising coming from studio GAINAX, those who brought us all the way to The End of Evangelion. FLCL is certainly one of their more "down to earth" films at it's heart and is surprisingly simple to analyze once you either ignore or accept the mayhem. The second to last and last episodes are on this DVD which bring this series to an acceptable and nevertheless ambiguous conclusion. In the fifth episode they show their true colors applying more Matrix inspired "bullet time" fight scenes and successfully parodying everything real or animated including South Park. But that is simply for the enjoyment of those who know the references. And in true GAINAX fashion the writer, director and animator lose their last inkling of sanity in bringing this production to a finale. To get a sense of this (and this is not a spoiler) simply look at the cover of this DVD, taken from a frame in the last few scenes. Overall I do wish the series was longer, but I think that would lose some charm if that were the case. Frankly I think it is some of the best animation Production IG has done along with some of the most imaginative storytelling(?) I have seen. To cap it off, a warning to those light of heart, and a shameless promotion: I highly and humbly recommend this series, the last episodes will without a doubt blow your mind.
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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Most Beautiful Anime Ever Put on Video, November 17, 2003
This review is from: FLCL (Fooly Cooly) - Vol. 3 (DVD)
The stylistic achievement is simply stunning. Very few, if any, TV anime ever reach this level of eye-candy gorgeousness. Gainax's FLCL combines the palette subtleties of the best of Studio Ghibli with its own distinct character designs, action gestures and emotional expressions. Hilarious manga-style sequences AND this volume's 'Brittle Bullets' features a riff on South Park's faux-construction paper style.
If you've never seen FLCL before, just relax, have an open mind and let this bizarrely wonderful world take you in. Let the stream-of-consciousness story wash over you like a KoolAid waterfall. You'll want to see it again just to make sure you saw what you saw the first time.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's the Climax!, July 7, 2004
This review is from: FLCL (Fooly Cooly) - Vol. 3 (DVD)
This DVD contains the last two episodes of the ridiculously hilarious show FLCL.
In the first of these two, Brittle Bullet, we see more action with General Amarao, who first appeared last episode. For those of you not too great with names, that's the guy with red hair and huge dark green eyebrows which occasionally fall off. His confrontation with Haruko is just one of the things to look forward to in this episode. The others include Kitsurabami (his assistant) getting a crush on Canti, Naota going off the deep end a little, a huge fake gun fight, a a giant gunslinging robot that comes out of Naota's head and starts shooting a 100-ft. long shotgun at Haruko, who's wearing a ridiculous bunnygirl suit and toting a slingshot.
The second episode is FLCLimax, and it is indeed the climax. In this one, everything that has been growing throughout the series will come out to create a truly insane sequence. At its core (very, very deep) FLCL is a love story about Haruko and Naota, and we finally see the resolution of that in this episode. I'm not going to tell you how it ends, but I'll leave on word: Atomsk. Oh, and did I mention another Manga sequence?
Ultimately, while this series is constantly bizarre and often innappropriate, I still find it one of the most hilarious and wonderful series I have ever seen. Perhaps this is because it transcends everything else I have ever seen, becoming something that does not really fit into any category. Whatever it is, it is a great show, one not to be missed.
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