FLCL: Grunge

I have never felt so thoroughly repulsed in my life as I did while watching the first episode of FLCL: Grunge. Perhaps it’s a sign of the current state of the medium that a beloved OVA has been turned in a soulless cash-cow franchise with each successive sequel becoming somehow even more creatively bankrupt than the last, but regardless Grunge outdoes itself in being completely void of any artistic merit, passion, or ability to inspire anything other than instinctive aversion to the rational mind. It’s clear as day this is a vanity project, the long-dead corpse of a once great 6-episode series being puppeteered by the callous hacks over at Toonami. I can almost imagine the pitch meeting that spawned this embarrassment, and it makes me shudder. The original OVA series was nothing short of remarkable, and you’d be hard pressed to find anything quite like it now. The cynic in me knows we’ll never get a project on this scale ever again. Something like FLCL is the culmination of so many brilliant minds putting painstaking effort into creating a work that, while totally unlike anything else at the time, was still evocative enough to strike a chord with people even 20 years later. The animation was boundary-pushing, using countless storyboarding and directorial techniques to reframe what could’ve been an unremarkable coming of age story into an adulation for the visual medium, accompanied by some of the most striking rock music ever composed courtesy of The Pillows. There isn’t a single uninspired thing about FLCL. You could probably recognize Haruko or Canti even if you’ve never seen the anime. When I look at FLCL: Grunge, I see a derisive, flavorless, calculated product. Completely devoid of any ambition, Grunge resigns itself to cheap, tacky 3D animation more fit for whatever brainwashing programs they show preschoolers on TV now; it’s fitting, because Grunge is also mindless slop, produced for America’s ever-growing army of adult children who refuse to let go of familiar things lest they be forced to step outside their comfort zones and experience the unfamiliar. Remember FLCL? Well, it’s back, with a shiny new coat of paint, but not too different. We even got The Pillows to come back! All the characters from the original show everyone loved too! You don’t have to think or learn new things, just be content with what you have. In its opening episode Grunge manages to force as many current year references to such vapid cultural touchstones as #MeToo and “mansplaining”. As if the last 10 years of entertainment weren’t already chock full of awful platitudes for the chronically out-of-touch (Californians) like this, now they’re in anime. Or whatever this is supposed to be, I’d honestly be doing anime a disservice by lumping this in with it. What the fuck happened? FLCL was a story about maturity. Naota has to come to grips with the hard realities of life and accepts that he has to be his own man in order to face his problems head on. Screw what anyone thinks of him. FLCL: Grunge feels more than happy to oblige with what our increasingly neurotic society demands art be; inoffensive, free from anything that might offend the shareholders, or the emotionally stunted egocentrics of modern America who want everything to be safe and reassuring so they don’t have to pay $100 a month for antidepressants that don’t do anything rather than face the reality of how shitty everything is now. It’s the polar opposite of its predecessor. I hate it. If you have any self-respect not just as a viewer but as a human being, you should hate it too. If you do, Adult Swim’s execs might take a minute from counting their ever-dwindling stacks of money to consider funding animated projects that aren’t irredeemably bad. tl;dr: it sucks. I saved you 23 minutes of your lives

While the animation of this show was at first questionable, I feel like FLCL Grunge did a great job just condensing what made FLCL great to watch. The Anime's one-day episode, broken into multiple points of view, gave us so much to look at. More world-building, more about normal life in this world. There are moments when Grunge gave us these real down-to-earth mellow times that remind me of the calm and peaceful moments of the original, While at the same time still giving us, while not as good as the original, the action moments. Which for what they were, were just fun. The show is rushed in places, and the three-episode run time did catch me off guard. However, I honestly did enjoy it. After watching Progressive and then seeing Grunge, I honestly prefer Grunge a lot more. While the animation itself is different, it tries to emulate the feel of the original. By episode three, it does a decent job. All in all, I say give it a watch, it only has three episodes. think of it as FLCL compressed or a pit stop on Haruko's travels.

FLCL Grunge is the worst FLCL sequel yet. The original FLCL was one of the most creative, beautifully made anime of its time, with every bit of it oozing with the passion of every person involved, but as has been proven time and time again, Americans getting their hands on anime has heavily hurt the industry, and the FLCL sequels commissioned by Adult Swim have been no exception. Not even bothering to bring back the minds that made the original great, Progressive was a swallow attempt at trying to make the OG again, but lacking any of the charm and boundless inspiration that it had, instead coming across as a cynical rehash solely made to satisfy corporations. The next sequel, Alternative, fared even worse, as it completely butchered even basic ideas that the original had, completely misunderstanding the metaphors it had used, and just overall had nothing to offer thanks to its bland and uninspired art that, while pretty, had nothing to make it stand out from any other anime. I believed things couldn't get worse for this once great series, but then Adult Swim came again with 2 MORE SEQUELS, and FLCL Grunge sure didn't disappoint in how bad it is. Let's start with the elephant in the room: the visual style is the equivalent of a pig rolling in shit. From the second the trailers showed this season would go full CGI, I had my expectations at rock bottom, but the compositing here is just atrocious, mixing horribly with the aesthetic of the returning characters, and making the new ones feel like they belong in a completely different show. The fact it sometimes mixes the cel shaded CGI in with some traditional animation (which still doesn't look good, mind you) brings back nightmares of Berserk 2016, even if this at least doesn't reach such criminal levels of bad. The fact the series tries to recreate scenes from the original show, but using this ugly look in place of the brilliant original, they just look plain bad as the visuals the OG had gone for just don't translate to CGI at all. Even if you let the visuals aside, another great issue with Grunge is the story, as this franchise whose main message is growing up sure has been stuck repeating the same plot for 4 seasons now. So yes, the plot is again a copy paste of the original whose deviations just don't matter, as nothing this blatantly corporate product could do would hope to match the most thematically perfect coming of age story of this century, let alone when the execution in this one is so poor even 2/3 into it you're not sure what even is this trying to do beyond said rehash, as the story goes literally nowhere by the end. Really, when a franchise starts contradicting its messages, you know it has gone for far longer than it should've, as the fact this keeps preaching to move on while being stuck on trying to cater nostalgia for the original series as its only marketing method is just disgusting. Oh, and they couldn't even bother to get back Haruko and Amarao's voice actors, showing once again that they just don't care and only want a cheap cash grab, the only positive I can even give to this show is once more bringing back The Pillows, as their songs are just as good as ever. In the end, I just don't get who this series even is for. FLCL fans have no reason to watch a criminally watered down version of the show they can watch again in one sit, most new people wouldn't start watching a 20+ years old series in the 4th season, and anyone who would do it anyway won't get anything of real value out it since it's just a bland, corporate and ugly turd. Earlier this year, I said that a certain isekai show would be the worst anime of the year unless something went really wrong, and seeing how Grunge just utterly fails in every conceivable aspect and I see no reason anyone should waste these 90 minutes of their time even trying to watch this mess, I see I summoned the monkey's paw, as I now declare this to be the worst anime of 2023. Thank you for reading

With FLCL Grunge being the latest installment in what I'd begrudgingly call the "FLCL Franchise", one cannot help but make comparisons to the the original entry from 2000 and the following entries Progressive and Alternative from 2018. Opinions on how necessary it was for us to have more FLCL will of course vary from person to person, but for this review I do feel like it's more important to see this as it's own interpretation of the themes presented in the original FLCL because of the heavy iconography that it takes from it in order to form a new coming of age story from three different perspectives, though this will not preclude comparisons to the original since it still draws heavily from it. Following the three main characters: Shinpachi, the son of a sushi chef; Shonari a rock alien with an alcoholic older brother in the Yakuza and Orinoko who is the daughter to a sickly sword smith. Paving a way for the next generation is the central theme of this coming of age story and the setting of Grunge seems to reflect the world that young people have to face today. The town is polluted, education is underfunded, future prospects are limited, criminals and politicians collude with each other to further their own interests and a corporation controls the only form of social mobility available to the people of that town. This is all in the subtext though, the tone is still full of the same jovial, anarchic and transgressive sensibilities that is associated with the FLCL name. This is all strengthened by the structure that was chosen to tell this story. The three episodes tell more or less self contained stories revolving around our main characters, but they all eventually converge into the climactic events of the night from those perspectives leading into an ending that is quite heartfelt and satisfying for its short three episode run. Time never feels wasted, and the balance of introspection and fun feels great. While the new ideas shine brightly in this entry, the use of imagery from the original muddles the identity of Grunge in a way that I think is simultaneously interesting and annoying. The interest comes from how this imagery is recontextualized for this story. Some events and character appearances deliberately echo the original OVA to draw attention to the new ways it takes those themes to create a dialogue between the two for its audience. At other times however, while fun, the reuse of the imagery feels a little bit purposeless by drawing too much attention towards it, breaking the immersion for me a little. Overall though, my feelings towards the writing is more positive than negative. The visuals have been contentious overall because of its use of CGI, though I do feel as if this contention comes from a general aversion that some people have towards it in anime. I do not want to dwell on that point too much, but what I do want to do is encourage the readers of this review who are on the fence on it because of this choice to still watch it anyway because it is a creative choice that still lies within the ethos of the original for artistic expression. Throughout there's a really strong style and tone through its use of bold colour contrasted with black shadows for some really cool looking silhouettes and scene composition. The characters themselves are cel shaded with expressive models, and 2D animation is often used for gags and fights keeping up the anachronistic styling FLCL is known for. The music is part of the aesthetic of FLCL as well and the Pillows deliver with some new recordings of old songs they have composed. I do wish that there was more variety in the track selection however as a person who has been listening to them for more than a decade now since there is again that reliance on making callbacks to the original musically as well, but when tracks that have not been used before do come up, it is truly a treat. I'm very fond of the use of the track "Sayonara Universe" in the final episode with its melancholic and droning chords to book end the show, as well as being a nice thematic bow on it all. More of that sort of thing would have made the end product stronger in my opinion. With the callbacks and references to the original, one might ask then "who is this for?". Standalone I do think that it works but it doesn't have the runtime to really make it's symbols its own. The original that it draws from also exists and most including me would tell a newcomer to just watch that. The more likely person to be interested in FLCL Grunge is that fan of the original since that is who it seemed to be marketed towards. In that capacity, I think that a lot of enjoyment can be derived from it. A new and fresh take on FLCL's coming of age themes, cool new art and animation, the pillows and it doesn't overstay it's welcome. If you have the itch for more FLCL, then I think you will have a good time with Grunge

I'm writing this review from the perspective of someone who loved FLCL Progressive. I genuinely think Progressive earns the name FLCL. Alternative needs a rewatch before I give my full thoughts but the point is I'm speaking as someone who doesn't think the existence of these sequels is an abomination upon mankind. What the fuck is this? Let's go back a bit. I'm of the firm belief that we were going to get sequels to FLCL no matter what. It's not Adult Swim's fault, it's Gainax's for not selling the rights to Hideaki Anno and/or Kazuya Tsurumaki so they could sit on the rights until they croak. I think Adult Swim were the best people to order new FLCL seasons. They're uber fans of the original and understand how inevitable FLCL sequels should be made. The question of whether or not they should exist is an irrelevant one. Ultimately, they exist, and we should judge them on their own merits since they clearly have no intention of surpassing the original. That's why I liked FLCL Progressive. Then, in March 2022, two more seasons were announced. ANOTHER batch of FLCL sequels raises several questions. Did Adult Swim consider Progressive/Alternative a success? Were they HAPPY with the middling reception? Do they actually not want these and were forced to make them by either American or Japanese investors? And the elephant in the room, why was one of them animated in CGI? I've been saying this since the animation style was revealed: it's not that bad. This isn't the worst anime CGI can get, we've got Ex-Arm and Tesla Note to prove that. There's a style to it that makes it shine. But just because the sun shines doesn't mean its heat doesn't piss me off from time to time. The problem lies in how that style clashes with the FLCL style, so it feels like it's struggling to keep it together. But I don't think the animation is the problem. If this was in 2D, I'd might've given this a 5/10 but probably would've kept the score the same. The animation is not Grunge's problem, it's the writing. People hate Progressive and Alternative because they are named FLCL. But you're supposed to let the FLCL branding become an afterthought while watching it. They aren't meant to be direct sequels, it's just an anthology sort of deal. There's a line you don't cross and FLCL Grunge hopped on a Vespa and blasted through that line: they incorporated characters and locations from the original with NO subtlety towards it. In Progressive, it's a wink to the audience, but in Grunge, it's in your face. The fear of God was felt in my bones when I realized that in the trailer and the show confirmed by suspicions. By including these references in the plot, it's telling the audience that they <i>should</i> be thinking about the original FLCL while they're watching it. Which is the last thing a sequel should be doing? A good sequel's characters, environment and storytelling should be able to stand out on their own without forcing comparisons to the original. This is such a monumental step backwards and I don't know why Adult Swim approved of this. The characters are uninteresting. Shinpachi is a worse version of Naota, Shonari is part of a clan of rock people that stick out like a sore thumb since they're the only fantasy species in this world, Orinoko doesn't stand out when we've had plenty of other anime girls like her in the past. If the FLCL sequels have done anything, it's bastardize Haruko Haruhara. What once was a mysterious but fascinating character for anime fans has now become an annoyance. These sequels, fortunately, don't explore her backstory, but we now have more Haruko than we ever needed. What I'm trying to say is that it's old. Finding out that the series was only 3 episodes last week was a shock. I didn't understand why the series was so short or why every episode took place "on the same day from 3 different perspectives". And having seen all of it...NO! IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE! There's nothing <i>special</i> about this night, there's nothing <i>special</i> about these characters, there's nothing <i>special</i> about this animation and that's a big problem because FLCL is one of the most special anime ever made. If you're going to have a <b>THIRD</b> completely unnecessary sequel to one of the most beloved anime of all time, then you goddamn better provide something special. Progressive was special. Alternative was special. People will tell me I'm wrong but I will die on that hill. Grunge THINKS it's special when there is nothing special about it. Anything this provides is something I can find elsewhere in anime. It fails to have a purpose in existing as an anime, don't even get me started on its failure to exist as a sequel to FLCL. At least FLCL Shoegaze looks good.

The original Fooly Cooly was like lightning in a bottle. It was something that can't be replicated, and remains one of the most iconic series in the history of Japanese animation. But here we are, with Adult Swim's third attempt to capture lightning in a bottle with another series. Grunge takes place on a different planet, seemingly a post-apocalyptic dystopia setting where crime is rampant and people are trying to get off the planet, but with limited shuttles left. With this being a different planet, not only are there humans, but there are also rock people for some reason. No other explanation is given on the setting. Following a group of three kids, each episode is shown in their own perspective of a single night. My biggest personal issue with Grunge is its blatant lack of originality. The first two sequels, Alternative and Progressive, were at least original. This takes so many beats and scenes that were outright pulled from the original, it's almost embarrassing. I can pick out shot after shot that are directly taken from the original that it almost feels plagiaristic. And even when it steals good things from the original, it has no idea what to do with them. Visually speaking, this is the biggest departure from all other series to this point; opting to use a stylized 3DCG instead. Most times it looked cheap, stiff, and ugly. Haruko was arguably the best looking character, but she got the royal treatment compared to the rest of the cast. As for the characters themselves, they were so bland, that I struggle to remember their names. No real personalities, no features that stand out, and only a single episode of development for each of main three protagonists. We see another familiar face besides Haruko with Commander Amarao. But he's practically irrelevant and more like a punchline. Haruko on the other hand was what stringed all the episodes together. Clearly she is the anchor for the series, and without her, it's not really Fooly Cooly. They used her as much as possible, it was strange to say the least. The music, arguably one of the most important aspects of FLCL, was awkwardly implemented. Despite the quality of the pillows, they were poorly used. Songs were shoved into scenes randomly and they end early or fade away awkwardly. Not a flattering way to use what is still a phenomenal band like the pillows. The biggest crime of this series is that I feel like it's not saying anything. Usually there is some kind of message that the viewer can takeaway, but in this case, it feels like nothing happens. This leaves the audience shrugging their shoulders and asking why they spent an hour of their time watching this. I'm also in that boat. No originality, nothing to say, and boring; the very antithesis of what Fooly Cooly is supposed to be.

Do you guys remember back in the day, way back in the “modern” internet era, where it was all small, enclosed forums and isolated communities that you don’t have to find, but they find your way around to you instead? Back when TV was the main media consumption device. That golden era of the early 2000s. I feel like the perfect representation of that weird liminal nostalgia in Anime is the original FLCL, it was so mystical, so relatable, and weirdly bittersweet, and then some spin-offs were announced but the facade of nostalgia dulled out and all hype prior to its release was met with nothing but disappointment. But this time felt different, this time it’s not a pretentious spin-off, it’s a full-on reboot, or maybe I’m snorting under-treated copium over here. You thought 3D was bad? I think you just haven’t seen FLCL: Grunge then, this was a master’s piece, a perfect blend between 2D and 3D that was fully 3D but sold the 2D vibes better than most 2D animations. It was super animated and super-expressive; it felt larger than life. I love retrospective narrative direction, which is probably why I fell in love with the words of the likes of Tarantino, this reboot was composed of such, three episode telling the same events, only through the scope of three different characters, each perspective adds in tons of layers on the plot with so many convoluted sub plots mixed in that makes you beg to rewatch another time. One of the most common criticisms around the spin-offs before was that they ruined Haruko’s character, they either made her way too over the top and thus appeared very try hard and forced, or they dulled it up below the notch, however, this one is as crazy and unpredictable as the original, it kind of gives it a run of her money. The Pillows return, I think that’s it, that’s the real selling point, or at least it is for me. The whips of nostalgia as the first notes kick in and you come to realize it’s The Pillows is very chilling, very sad in a way, but also very happy, as if you’re meeting an old friend after many years of separation. I feel like this reboot is an anomaly, it defined the stereotype, it beat the odds, and most of all, it pays respect to the original work. Overall: 8.48/10.

Embarrassingly bad, in every aspect of writing, animating, voicing, and directing. Uninspired characters, shallow dialogue, and a cheap-looking style come together to make something that would look more in-place on youtube as a fan-project that was anticipated for 6 years before flunking into oblivion upon release. An attempt is made to give a unique theme to the setting and cast like exist in prior series, but questionable worldbuilding (e.g. a new, 100% unexplained obviously-alien race is just randomly present, and have the most boring name imaginable: "Rockians") and a bad fascination with trying to tell 3 un-flushed-out stories at the same time leaves you with nothing but the show vaguely shaking its hand and saying "Hope good" in the least creative ways. Grunge leaves a permanent stain on the series, and no trace of the reason the former series were good are present. You'll get a better FLCL experience just listening to a Pillow album.

The FLCL sequel seasons have been trying their best to re-serve us the original, but it’s been divided into parts. Progressive gave us its over-the-top sci fi action. Alternative gave us its story of meaningful character growth. Grunge is giving us something I thought had long been lost: its energy. The 3d animation is obviously a downgrade, but it allows them to be much more dynamic, and more easily set up shot composition that matches the original in style. I’m honestly really impressed that they were able to recognize what made FLCL Season 1 special on such a visceral level. I know a lot of this has to do with mimicry and skillful Pillows needle drops that are probably just baiting my nostalgia, but I legitimately enjoyed my watch of this.

"FLCL: Cringe" That is better fitting name for this trash. Any imaginary efforts of the authors are simply drowned in the demerits of this show. It's not even about the style and graphics (that are genuinely bad), because there's nothing inspiring about this show. The characters are just a set of talking and yelling heads and based on images of original show. Dialogues are just a random combination of words and hackneyed tropes which make absolutely no sense. The creators tried to present this show as an alternative version of the original, however, they didn't really bring anything of their own. The original concept of adolescence and adulthood, coupled with dystopia, was replaced by random nonsense. things just happen, but the authors didn't have the talent to present them in a fascinating way. It's not enough to just make supposedly "crazy" scenes. Going back to the visual - yes, it's disgusting. Low framerate of horrible 3D CG, lacerated scenes and acidic palette in combination look just awful. There are small patches of successful solutions, but there are too few of them. In the end, the authors didn't even bother to write new tracks in the grunge style, lol! Most of it are just old tracks and their arrangements. The most annoying thing is that when you watch it, you don't feel like your soul is dying like with other bad titles, but you realize with your mind that this show simply doesn't have a single point to exist.

the art is strange, and the anime have some problems, especially on the first episode the constrution and the way the things happen dont make much sense, but not like the nosense of the original flcl,the things just dont work, but ep 2 and 3 are really good, i think thats not really bad or good, but its underrated, the points of view are really nice, the ost (the pillows never fail) and caracters are good too so, thats a good anime, but doesnt have something really especial to watch i wish that FLCL shoegaze can be FLCL in a better way

When I saw the tags mecha and parody, I expected something along the lines of Darling in the Franxx. But nope, the most mecha parts of the anime are the TV heads and the bike. FLCL: Grunge is the fourth season in the FLCL series, pronounced "fooly cooly" (if you don't already feel stupid saying it, you'll feel stupid watching it). I tend to jump into seasonals, so I didn’t realize it was part of a larger series until a few minutes into the first episode, when I had no idea what was going on. The episodes are titled after the main trio of friends: Shinpachi, Classic Shonen Protagonist; Shonari, who gets bullied for being made of rocks; and Orinoko, the cute one. They live in a world run by yakuza and where iron has all but disappeared. One day, their everyday life gets disrupted by the scheme of a mysterious mistress called Haruko. Haruko is definitely the anchor of FLCL. She also has the most personality compared to the main trio. Rather than an anime about three main characters who meet her, it feels more like an anime about Haruko with three recurring background characters. If you're watching FLCL, it's definitely for Haruko. There’s also the animation to talk about. It’s bad. 3DCG has its merits when used right, and you’d think that it’d have its place in a futuristic anime tagged as mecha. But it just feels jarring and sloppy, especially when combined with choppy 2D animation for impacts. It’s more like a new animator’s experimentation than an actual finished product. Unlike most anime, the dub came out before the sub, so I ended up watching it in dub (fight me). But even the VAs rub it in that it’s a Japanese story forcibly translated into English. Haruko's rant near the end of the first episode can be generalized to a lot of dubbed anime. For me, dub works in comedy and satire, and that includes FLCL, at least for that rant. Overall, I recommend FLCL: Grunge only if you’re looking for something nonsensical to turn your brain off for a while. ^^

Not even the soundtrack could save this garbage. The original FLCL was an amazing anime with an incredible soundtrack, great characters and a unique concept. This was just a money grab from Adult Swim to squeeze as much money out of the FLCL IP as possible. The charm of the animation from the original is replaced with a lifeless and bland CGI style. The side characters are lifeless even Haruko, the main character and the one saving grace of this dumpster fire, was barely in her own anime. Every anime they release under the FLCL name ruins the original let FLCL die.

I... honestly don't know how to feel about FLCL Grunge. I wanna like it, but I can't. Visually, it's pretty fun. It's no Beastars or Land of the Lustrous, it certainly has its iffy moments, but the lineless cel-shaded style is cool. However, the actual story is the definition of mediocre. Grunge felt like a re-tread of almost every single one of the original's story beats. It doesn't even do anything to subvert them or put any sort of spin on em. When it tries to do something different by throwing some (somewhat typical) emotional punches, they don't hit as hard as they were probably intended to, since we just don't get to know our main characters enough to truly care about them. Being cut down to just 3 episodes (which mostly happen in media res at the exact same time) really means that the plot and character development seriously suffer. It felt like a poorly thought-out fanwork where someone got the vibe of FLCL without any of the actual meaning. Instead of exploring what it means to grow up or the balance between freedom and responsibility, Grunge explores... not much, really. It's just like someone said "what if I reworked FLCL to be sci-fi?" without putting any thought into what the story should really say. I hate to say it, but I can't recommend watching Grunge. It's not *bad*, I've certainly watched worse anime, it just doesn't say anything that hasn't already been said much better by the original or even Alternative. Since I'm writing this right after Grunge's finale aired, I'll hold out hope for Shoegaze being decent, but I'm not getting my hopes up. If Shoegaze isn't great, I think [adult swim] and Production I.G. need to go back to the drawing board... or they just need to move on from FLCL.

The original FLCL remains as one of my favorite anime of all time even after 20 years. I also enjoyed Progressive and Alternative quite a bit. I was wondering if the music had an influence on my opinion on them but I do genuinely really like the characters for those two and after watching this I know for sure that it wasn't just the music. The one point I'm giving this anime is from the first episode and the music alone. The first episode was decent. I rated the anime 6/10 after seeing it and then it got worse. Way worse. It attempted to be a reboot with half of the episodes, and with all three episodes were the same episode in a different perspective that explained nothing. If I haven't seen the original a hundred times I wouldn't have any clue what was going on. The pacing was very poor because they tried fitting six episodes into three, and two of those threes were basically a recap. It's just not good at all. Even if I wanted to spoil it I wouldn't know where to start. Just don't watch it. Watch the original instead.

Look, let’s face it: NOTHING is ever going to be FLCL… but since we already have it, do we really need anything else to do that again? FLCL is an original masterpiece, so by definition, any attempt to repeat it would be… unoriginal. With that, I dare you to take off the nostalgia goggles and see FLCL Grunge for what it is: a fun - and surprisingly touching - story set in our favorite universe, complete with all the neon-psychedelic absurdity that is FLCL! The same (apocalyptic) events are told in three coming-of-age stories featuring a set of friends trying to find their place in this world - or otherwise, leave it! With only three episodes, it’s an easy watch, and an experience worth having. And yes: it’s fully CGI, but that doesn’t make Haruko any less fun or sexy, so get over it!

The comeback of FLCL with 'Grunge' was honestly very disappointing for me. Although this show demonstrates heavy inspiration from the 2000s release, it struggles with elements that seem unsure about how to move forward with the setting and cast. The three episodes are meant to showcase the characters Shinpachi, Shonari, and Orinoko, but out of these three, only Orinoko had a properly developed personality and backstory. Shinpachi, an attempt to resemble Naoto, was never explored any deeper in the first episode, even though he was supposed to be the main character. Instead, the entire episode felt like a regurgitation of ideas and messy direction that simply did not reflect any useful elements to advance the plot or delve into Shinpachi's emotional struggles and motives (if he had any). Orinoko and Shonari, despite the lack of time, were the only ones who received a proper conclusion. In this review, I'm avoiding comparisons to the classic anime because I tried really hard to view this one as a newcomer to this generation. Despite its weirdness, FLCL was always attempting to make sense of its cast as a "coming of age" story. The problem is: You can't have well-developed characters if you constantly bombard the viewers with inconsistency and improperly cram so many characters into such a short run. Haruko, once again, takes center stage in the show for pure fan service. This time, it's taken to the extreme and her characterization is lost in the process (thanks to AS).

Well, I'll be honest, I searched for flcl on Facebook and accidentally ended up watching flcl grunge first in the chronology, only to realize in a comment that this anime had more seasons. Without further ado, I must summarize that for me this is perfect, I cannot say that this anime is a masterpiece at levels like dungeon meshi, but it is much better than many other things I have seen, that is why I decide to give it 9 stars, if I rate this season for what it is, it really isn't bad, if I compared it to its other seasons it would surely be disgusting, but taking advantage of the fact that I haven't seen them by pure luck, I can avoid the prejudice of rating this season taking into account its other seasons. What do I want to achieve? It's simple, the seasons of an anime that is made through remakes (not sequential) should not use its other seasons that do not affect the plot itself, just as an anime should not be rated with respect to its manga, since that anime itself is its own product, if you want to rate anime with respect to manga you have a website made for that, you cannot underestimate the work of an animator just because she is not faithful to a manga world, when it can be True to its same world in the anime, it would be like judging a fish by its ability to climb trees; It should also happen with animes like this, where the seasons are not sequential, and although I understand that the length of the anime is not so necessary, it is a different way of seeing the world of this anime, almost as similar as amagami ss, yosuga no sora or even euphoria (shady examples, I know) that its final rating is based on the entire season as a whole, but in the end each timeline in the viewer's view should be able to be rated separately for greater convenience

I've been putting off writing this review for a while because I'm in no rush to waste more time on this disappointment. My expectations were low but god damn. This is easily the worst of the FLCL "sequels". Another idiotic attempt to recapture lightning in a bottle pushed out by people who want to make a quick buck and don't care to or don't understand what made the original series special. For starters the CGI animation is laughable. The character additions and attempts to add on to our preestablished world that FLCL takes place in (if this is even the same world I honestly can't even tell) only succeed at bringing it down. I don't think there was anything I liked about this as even hearing The Pillows attached to this just left a sour taste in my mouth (no hate to The Pillows they're awesome.) I will probably rewatch this once because its short and I want to see if the sub is any better than the dub which was not good.

I was feeling meh the first 2 episodes but in my opinion, the final minutes of the third episode captured a magic feeling that the very first FLCL gave me. A very flawed and questionably animated sequel but ultimately I enjoyed the feel it was going for on the third episode. I think it could've been better for the first 2 episodes though. None of the jokes really landed for me and the dialogue felt a bit stiff at most parts, Haruka and Orinoko were definitely the highlights for me. I also think people are a little too harsh on the amount of CGI in the animation personally, as it conveyed a distinct unpolished, or clumsy feeling that fit the grunge theme for me. I think overall I'd prefer this one over FLCL progressive.