One day while minding his own business, Naota is viciously (and hilariously) attacked by Haruko Haruhara, a 19-year-old girl claiming to be an extraterrestrial investigator. Equipped with nothing more than a Rickenbacker 4001 bass guitar, she wallops Naota in the head, thus activating his N.O. (the mystical powers generated between the left and right hemispheres of the brain). Apparently Naota has just the right N.O. for Haruka’s purposes, allowing him to transport intergalactic creatures from anywhere in the universe straight to earth. There’s only one catch, these creatures happen to be using Naota’s head as the portal!

 

Aside from transporting the odd space-entity to earth, Naota strives to live the normal life of a 12-year-old boy. Unfortunately for him, however, Haruko has yet again destroyed all chances for normality by inviting herself into Naota’s household and volunteering as his maid. The enigma only deepens when Naota discovers Haruko’s secret mission – to track a felonious space-pirate named Atomsk and that Medical Mechanica may be keeping him prisoner. Got all that? Good.

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FLCL truly is the most surreal experience that can be had outside of methamphetamines. This bizarre tale of adolescence spans only six episodes, but somehow manages to fit in an encyclopaedic amount of character, pop culture references, action, humour and zany Easter eggs. One such mystery centres around “FLCL” itself. What does it mean and why is it everywhere? Is it an acronym or some strange alien code? One theory states that it actually stands for “Flictonic Cliple Weber Syndrome”, the fictional medical condition that allows Naota to channel space creatures through his head. However, the truth is deliberately kept from us. Even director Kazuya Tsurumaki admits he doesn’t know the answer!

Track down FLCL today. You won’t be disappointed.