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Postmodernism in FLCL
Postmodernism in media studies is often seen as a reaction against the elitism of the modernists. When the Japanese government recognized anime as a cultural export, they opened the doors for more companies to produce anime that goes against the grain. There are two major elements of postmodernism utilized extensively in FLCL, self-reference/self-reflection and parody. These will likely become more common in anime produced in the future, but FLCL includes more in its limited framework than most directors would hazard to include.
Self-reference and self-reflection can be a delicate subject if attempted by someone without the sensibilities of Gainax. In their case, they have learned exactly how much they can include and still produce meaningful anime. The ability to draw elements from previous work into current projects and to allow characters to step out of their roles while still part of the final product can be risky, but when done properly, adds an element previously unseen in more typical style anime.
At the very beginning of FLCL, upon the first meeting of Naota, Mamimi and Haruko, they set the stage of what the audience should expect by stepping outside of their roles and being shown behind the scenes during the CPR/kiss scene. Haruko explains to Mamimi that this scene was not as hard as it looked because she just had to hold her breath during the slow motion moment where she kisses Naota. Naota then pops in and responds furiously to this just being slow motion and not something more technically produced. This moment of self-reflection sets the stage for the anime to be allowed to break the fourth wall throughout the rest of the series.
There are two scenes with artistic style vastly different from the rest in FLCL, one in the first OVA and one in the fifth. They consist of manga style black and white panels where the camera reads through them like the human eye would read standard manga. These segments were said to have been very trying for the animation crew and they requested that no other ones like it be added after they finished the first one. Tsurumaki had only written them in this unique format because the scene would have been a boring discussion between four people sitting at the dinner table otherwise. He assumed that it would be a simple process since all of FLCL was being produced digitally. Of course, Tsurumaki could not let an opportunity for self-reflection this unique pass him by. Instead, at the end of the second manga scene, he has Kamon break out of it and return to the normal FLCL world. He states outright that these scenes were too expensive and the animators had told them not to include any more. Kamon goes on to tell Naota that the audience was feeling slighted by them anyway because they were not fully animated and were just in black and white, so why go to all the trouble. This type of self-reference in the middle of a very technologically advanced form of animation only possible with the most sophisticated CG artists and equipment was a very bold move for Gainax.
Gainax was not shy about including both obvious and more obscure forms of self-reflection into FLCL as well. First, Kamon is depicted as an independent manga artist who has worked on large scale projects in the past. At one point, Naota is talking about Kamon and mentions the fact that he has written extensively about the intricacies of Eva, an apparent reference to the most well known and respect series Evangelion. The amount of academic research into the philosophical nuances of Eva is staggering and to have a character in their latest production be one of those researchers both gives a nod to Evas success and pokes fun at the immense amount of study of that one series.
In possibly a more obscure moment of self-reflection, during one battle scene, Haruko flies in on her Rickenbacker bass guitar wearing a bunny suit. This could be seen as both a symbol of the Playboy Bunny image of America and a reflection of an early Gainax production for the Daicon IV opening ceremonies. It is a parody of that scene and anyone who has seen either the original short or the brief clip of it shown during another Gainax production, Otaku No Video, it should be recognizable. Also, the fact that Haruko shouts Daicon V as she flies in implies that this is the latest version of that original idea.
Parody is another staple of postmodernism which Gainax did not shy away from when producing FLCL. Because of the generally over-the-top and fast paced atmosphere of FLCL, the parodies are quick and often missed upon first viewing. Repeat viewings allow more time for these elements to be noticed and often allow important scenes to take on even more importance when related to the original media they are parodying.
One parody that nearly every American viewer responds to is the oft used bullet time slow motion made famous by its use in The Matrix. In that live action motion picture, the technique was mostly utilized to show action sequences in greater detail than ever before. Gainax decided to take that idea and do the complete opposite with the same technology. The nature of FLCL as a coming of age story allowed bullet time to be used to increase the drama and tension when Naota is about to kiss one of his female co-stars for the first time. It is employed originally in the opening scene after Haruko has delivered her Vespa attack and is then attempting to revive him with the kiss of life.
The style is parodied further by overemphasizing the cameras ability to shoot 360 degrees around its subject. The shot comes quickly from behind them and flies several times around the scene as Mamimi looks on in horror and finally zooms in close to focus on the act of Haruko reviving Naota. This same style is also used when Naota has been run down by Harukos Vespa once more and is this time airborne and headed directly toward an impact with Ninamori. When the footage is slowed down to bullet time, the moment between moments is shown as a very beautiful approach to a kiss. Right before their lips make contact, true time is restored and Naota slams head first into Ninamori leaving them both the worse for wear and ruining, yet again, what could have been a special situation between two potential future lovers.
In a less widely recognized parody to those not well versed in the history of anime, the act, from Revolutionary Girl Utena, of pulling a weapon from someones body is incorporated into FLCL. This is not a surprising parody considering the screenwriter for both of these anime was Enomoto Yooji. The startling twist is that unlike in Utena where the sword was given willingly from the body of the Rose Bride, FLCLs parody has Haruko violently digging around in Naotas skull and finally finding the guitar. The violence does not stop as she has to forcefully remove it from his head, at one point stepping on the back of his skull for leverage, while he screams out in pain. When she finally has removed the weapon she was searching for, she hands it to Naota and we are shown that this violation was seen as incredibly erotic by the female onlookers as they are seen with explosive nosebleeds. This is also a parody of the traditional anime convention of giving male characters a nosebleed to represent an orgasm. The role reversal of women having nosebleeds is intriguing enough, but add to that the volatility of this orgasmic event and you can understand just how erotic the scene was meant to be.
In a unique parody of what must now be considered a piece of global pop culture, there are multiple fast paced scenes where the animation style switches to one similar to the American animated series South Park. The FLCL characters depicted in this style can been viewed as childlike and at times obnoxious in relation to the South Park character they are parodying. This was an unexpected twist as most of the parodies are either anime or science fiction related, while this was parodying an American television show which had gained popularity in Japan at the time of this production.
The most obscure parody of FLCL is in the name of the one Haruko is endlessly searching for. Atomsk is the name of a book written by little known American science fiction writer Cordwainer Smith. He was more universally known for being an Army Colonel, a professor of Asiatic Politics at Johns Hopkins University and he served in China, Korea and Malaysia during his military days. Smith is still considered the godfather of study and practice of psychological warfare. To name the character of Atomsk the Pirate King after Smiths book is a unique twist on his work in the military throughout the region. FLCL Essay - Page 8 |
