Hold onto your wrinkles.

It cannot be understated how influential FLCL has been on both the eastern and western animation industry. It was made at a creatively charged and formative time for both its studio, Gainax, and the medium of anime when it was only recently entering a digital age. It has practically become scripture for those who wish to enter or merely consume animation as a whole.

And yet its existence seems so haphazard. It was nonchalantly tossed out into the world at the dawn of a new millennium over six inconsistently released parts, and thrown on the air in America over an abbreviated week in mid-summer three years later. It is, by the admission of its director, just a bunch of stuff he saw around his house or liked thrown into one pot, and is rumored to just have been intended as a tech demo for new animation equipment. It’s tone is sporadic and inconsistent, events happen often without any clear explanation, and even title has no consistent meaning, pronunciation, or even SPELLING.

Yet despite these things, it managed to leave an irremovable impact on anime and animation as a whole, and in this current era of nostalgia and breathing new life to franchises that were long since ended, it is returning with the first of two new seasons this Saturday, with an almost entirely new cast, new creative team, and being made almost twenty years after the impression made by its source. In a world where we have seen the varying levels of success this kind of revival brings, a question arises amongst those who loved the original: Should this be happening?

On the eve of this much hyped next chapter, let’s go some of the many understandable worries that fans of the original could not be blamed for having.

The Planets Aligned:

Much of what makes any landmark story has a huge impact has to do with when it is made. The landscape of the industry it was made, the financial and emotional states of the people who were involved, and sometimes just pure happenstance. The original Star Wars or Ghostbusters could not be made as they were in today’s film industry, for example. Likewise, Studio Gainax was a very different entity in the late 90’s where they still had most of their founders and the almost obsessive level of dedication that led to the polarizing but massive success of Evangelion, and now, where most of their best people have gone off to places like Trigger, which began its life making things in that same spirit, or Khara, where the main job is pulling Hideaki Anno in and out of his depression as productivity demands. Its debut in the states was also weirdly good timing, as anime was still much more niche and counter to what most stateside viewers knew, and now the view of an exposure to the medium has changed so much that simply being weird and out there isn’t going to cut it anymore. Not to mention the decision to, as far as we know as of this writing, only Haruko is carrying over from the original cast of characters. With this much gone from the original production, is it possible to make these sequel seasons feel like the old times where it counts?

Well, unlikely as it may seem, it is possible to retain the spirit of a work without the entirety of the same creative team or characters. Take Blade Runner 2049, which managed to keep the feel of its predecessor from nearly twice the amount of time between the works. It certainly doesn’t hurt to have as much of what made it work in the first place as you can, as the Samurai Jack revival from last year showed, but if the comprehension of the original is understood, even if you don’t have the SAME people, it should be perfectly doable to make a fitting next installment if you have the RIGHT people.

In Name Only:

But what DID make FLCL great? What was it at its core that led to such a lasting impact? A lot of people will tell you it’s a coming-of-age story, but that’s just the tip of the giant protruding robot finger. As said before, the weirdness and excellent animation were major factors in it making its unique impression, but there was more beyond that. The small town feel of Mabase that helped it to be a character in its own right, the uncommon musical addition by The Pillows, who were obscure talent even in Japan before and after FLCL’s release, and the quant tendency of oddities like robots based on appliances, rare guitars as weapons, or a giant iron as a landmark helped characterize it as feeling like it had meaning, even if there wasn’t any. Not to mention the many plot points and character details that went completely unexplained, such as Haruko’s Space Patrol connections or the nature of Medical Mechanica and Atomsk, that some may never want explained to maintain the mystery and speculation.

What can we expect to be in these sequels to replicate that? Give every new kid a robot, guitar, and sexually frustrating relationship with an alien girl? Repeat small phrases like “I’m going to overflow” or “never knows best” to get old fans a pat on the back for getting the reference? How much of it will callbacks with no real reason for the sake of fanservice?

Breaking the Moldless Mold:

In kind of goes without saying that FLCL is a rather odd duck. It’s a product of its time, and yet it’s timeless. It goes beyond a formula, but it would be naïve to say it didn’t have a structure in its short run: Naota has a vague adolescent emotional problem, a thing is coming out of his head in response, most of the time it’s a giant robot, Haruko and Canti get involved and destroy it. But now, we have a new cast aside from Haruko, and it looks like more than one person will be having stuff pop out of their craniums. So, is this staying too in line with the expected or moving to far away that it might as well be called something else?

I can only offer a certain way of thinking on this: FLCL may just be beyond its original cast and formula. Perhaps these new installments will be about exploring the untapped ideas and combinations that have been speculated on for the nearly two decades since it came out. Or maybe it’s simply a cash grab that wants to tap a groundbreaking classic’s fanbase and will ultimately be a pale imitation? It’s impossible to say until we see it, and that starts tonight.

Wherever this show takes us, we’ll always have the first to enjoy, but I do hope this is worth the ride.