FLCL: Shoegaze

23 years, 5 seasons, and a lot of misses later, FLCL is over. It's a bittersweet moment for me since I managed to find FLCL at all the moments when I really needed something that spoke to what I was feeling. As anyone who understood the original FLCL can attest to, moving from adolescence to young adulthood is a truly terrifying time. Fitting then that the last two entries, Grunge and Shoegaze, come the closest to recapturing the original's message of "It's going to be okay."

Now don't get me wrong, the original FLCL is untouchable compared to the four sequels, but I still feel like ... there's a little bit of unique FLCL-ness in the sequels. Many rightfully hold the original series as the best, but often discount the other four seasons for not being as well composed as the original. Given that the original FLCL was broadcasted all the way back in 2000, I think that the disappointment is misplaced. The people who made the original grew up in a dark and cynical time in Japan, while those who made the newer seasons likely never felt an entire world falling out from underneath them. I'd argue then that instead of just being a cash-grab sellouts of FLCL (even if that is likely the reason it was created), Alternative, Progressive, Grunge, and Shoegaze offer new perspectives and a whole new set of uncertainty that kids and teens struggle with today. And since the series is about the awkward, gross, terrifying moments that happen in adolescence, I can't help but feel that if the newer FLCLs were released without the expectation to live up to the original they'd be decently received shows.

For what it's worth, Shoegaze does begin to recapture some of the magic that the original imparted, although I can agree that it falls well short of how wildly consistent the original was. Three episodes is no where near enough to tell the scale of story that Shoegaze tried to present, with the last episode playing fastball with character development, backstory, action, and an ending all at once. Which is more than I can say for both Alternative's and Progressive's meandering attempt at six episodes. I do have to give Shoegaze credit for leaving the zany changes in artstyle, countless innuendos, and Haruko for the original, and instead giving us a straightforward story that naturally finds humor, heartbreak, and joy along the way.

The characters are Shoegaze's best aspect, with a simple coming of age tale between two highschoolers seeming to be ridiculously tame for FLCL, but works so well when you contrast it to it's direct prequel, Alternative. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that I think Shoegaze manages to both redeem and satisfyingly conclude whatever Alternative was trying to say. Adding on to the fact that this is the only "true" sequel to a FLCL season, the inclusion of Alternative's cast of characters is a pleasant touch instead of a weight that would drag the show down like I expected it to.

I've given FLCL Shoegaze a 7/10 on my list, but a 6/10 in this review since I have two different scales that I use. That being said, I do think this is a good show and worth your time, if only for the fact that it's supposedly the last FLCL to be made. If you managed to make it through Alternative and Progressive to get to Grunge and Shoegaze, the last two will undoubtedly be better viewing experiences. Even though it doesn't perfectly emulate the one-in-a-kind experience that the original presents, Shoegaze presents it's own, tamer experience that I think anyone with an open mind can come to truly appreciate.

A quick story that would've benefitted from a little more time to tell it!

Definitely more meaningful from having seen Alternative before it - it's a direct sequel series that reflects on the question "What do you do when you can't live up to other's expectations?" For the new characters, it asks "What would you do to shake up the world you don't belong in?"

Both are interesting questions to ponder! It gets through them to some extent but would've benefitted from a little more fleshing out - though, it is fun to try and put the pieces together from the juuuuuust enough detail you get in ... about 60 minutes of story.

Harumi is a fun character that I hope other people enjoyed, as they were an unexpected source of conflict! I liked them as the chaos-redhead much more in this story than I would've seeing Haruko crowbarred in when she doesn't really have enough humanity to tell this type of story. Also uhhhh man their backstory is harsh!

Definitely worth a watch if you enjoyed Alternative, and I'd say it's great at being its own little niche of coming of age FLCL (though what that means to you may vary).

FLCL: Shoegaze is great in spite of it all. To get it out of the way, no it's not the original, and that's ok. Once you get past that and judge the show on its own merits and as a sequel not trying to do the same thing again, that's when you get to the heart. Just because you've had the best $300 steak, doesn't mean you can't enjoy a great $30 steak after.

Shoegaze feels like it actually has something to say in comparison to the other seasons. Maybe even more than the original. Not to say it's better, but the ideas of not meeting ... expectations set by those in your life, the crisis of identity that's more present now than ever, and moving forward into the unknown at the cost of looking back at the familiar, can really resonate in the hearts those dealing with similar issues. The show could have done with a few more episodes, but honestly it left me wanting more time with these characters, I'm a good way. And the short bittersweet nature of the season perfectly captures the message the show sets out to send.

I completely understand this won't be for everyone. But I also get it if this is someone's favorite season of flcl. Growing up with the original series, this most likely won't be for you. But if this is your introduction into the series and it leads you to watching the original. You definitely could have done worse