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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's All In Naota's Head, March 29, 2004
Naota, the young teenager who is the central character in this imaginative series finds himself in the envious position of having two women dote on him. One of these is Ninamori, the young daughter of the mayor of Mabase, and the other is Haruko, an attractive 'alien' who has moved into his house as maid. Or this would be an envious position if Ninamori didn't want him to play the cat in the school play - Puss and Boots. And the perpetually effusive Haruko loves Naota for the space warp between the hemispheres of his brain.Ninamori has her own problems, a philandering father, a home that is falling apart, and a desperate need to hide her feelings behind a veneer of adult maturity. Like Naota, life has become too complicated and efforts to reign it in wind up creating new monsters that spring unbidden from one's brain. Haruko is that shaman who brings these things to the surface. Whether they be creatures from outer or inner space, we don't know, but like a mad psychiatrist, Haruko presides over their birth and their final demise. In the second episode on this DVD a baseball game becomes Haruko's metaphor, as she and Naota play on opposite sides in the game. Despite having his brother's bat, Naota seems unable to play, while Haruko, who hits equally well with both bat and base guitar, is apparently the next best thing to Mickey Mantle. Naota's frustration includes not just his failure at sports, but a dark jealousy over Haruko's relationship with his father. He hides behind his powerlessness, unwilling to take any risks, while Haruko keeps telling him that nothing will happen until he swings the bat. This is possible the zaniest series in modern anime. Haruko runs the gamut from being an object of innuendo to acting like one of those Zen masters that leap out of nowhere to hit you with a stick until you learn to avoid the beating. She has her own agenda, which might include saving the earth or turning the unsuspecting Naota into something greater than his own expectations. As of yet, the bemused viewer has no clue. Again, the series benefits from extensive director's commentary. Not that this ever quite explains anything, but it provides many reassurances that it is the series, and not the viewer, that is insane. Outstanding are and music fill out the bill, making FLCL a must see for the anime aficionado and amateur psychologist alike.
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