Christopher Hitchens and FLCL: Difference between pages

Revision as of 17:06, 26 August 2005

Revision as of 19:34, 14 November 2005

Line 1:

[[Image:Flcl-1.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Introduction of Haruhara Haruko in the first episode. Left - Samejima Mamimi; Prostrate - Nandaba Naota]]

[[Image:Christopher Hitchens 2.jpg|thumb|Christopher Hitchens]]

'''''FLCL''''' ([[Japanese language|Japanese]] フリクリ ''Furi Kuri'', pronounced and officially [[romanization|romanized]] as ''Fooly Cooly'') is a six episode [[Japan | Japanese]] [[anime | animation]] [[Original Video Animation|OVA]] series, the brainchild of [[film director|director]] [[Kazuya Tsurumaki]] of [[Gainax]] and released by Gainax and [[Production I.G.]].

==Style==

''FLCL'' is a unique and somewhat esoteric production whose myriad oddities are frequently bewildering. This is compounded by the suckerpunch pace at which the plot progresses. Its hyperactive, occasionally juvenile, and illogical style can be misinterpreted, generally causing strongly opposing opinions of its value. There are many hidden meanings underneath its surface. ''FLCL'' could be categorized as a comedy, drama, soap opera, science fiction, or horror story. Its comedic side is most noticeable, as it [[satire|satirizes]] [[pop culture]] icons such as [[John Woo]] and ''[[South Park]]'', not to mention other anime such as ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' (which was also produced by Gainax) and ''[[Lupin III]]''. FLCL also brings up minor but notable pop references such as the ''Tomino Hammer'' which is refering to ''[[Yoshiyuki Tomino]]'s'' original ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam]]'' series including an unrealistic hammer weapon in a relatively plausible ''[[Real Robot]]'' Universe. ''FLCL'' also parodies slightly nostalgic Japanese culture itself, by switching styles to traditional kabuki at one point, presenting now defunct brands of drinks, Japanese style bread, and nostalgic 3-wheeled automobiles that were prominent in Post-war Japan. [[Pun]]s and sexually suggestive [[metaphor]]s fly freely. However, its comedic elements at times overshadow what is, at its core, a [[coming of age]] story. The stranger elements often reflect the confusion and awkwardness of puberty (or possibly of mankind in general).

''FLCL'' is an exercise in unconventional, self-referential anime. It is somewhat inaccessible to most viewers on all but the most superficial level. To appreciate the series, one has to first become acquainted with many anime conventions, and be able to see a second layer in the production. Otherwise, a viewer who is new to anime will simply be overwhelmed with the amount of unfamiliar content that the series presents in the very limited timeframe of three hours.

'''Christopher Eric Hitchens''' (born [[April 13]], [[1949]], [[England]]) is a journalist, author, and literary critic. He lives in [[Washington, DC]] in the [[United States]], and has contributed to ''[[Vanity Fair magazine|Vanity Fair]]'', ''[[The Nation]]'', ''[[Harper's]]'', ''[[The New Yorker]]'', [[Daily Mirror|The Daily Mirror]], [[Weekly Standard|The Weekly Standard]], [[Wall Street Journal|The Wall Street Journal]], [[Slate (magazine)|Slate]], [[The New York Times Book Review]] and ''[[The Atlantic Monthly]]''.

A significant element of ''FLCL's'' appeal is its music. Most of the background music was written and performed by the band "[[the pillows]],"<!-- All lowercase is correct, please don't change this. --> which has generated mass success and appreciation since the anime's release abroad. [[Shinkichi Mitsumune]] wrote almost all of the rest of the music. Two soundtrack CDs and a one-CD "best-of" compilation were released in Japan and later America. Another interesting note is that the action sequences were chereographed around the individual tracks used and not the other way around. There is also a significant amount of reference to guitars which are used symbolically throughout the series.

Hitchens is well-known for his [[Iconoclast|iconoclasm]], [[anti-clericalism]], [[anti-Fascism]], and [[anti-colonialism]], as well as his appreciation of [[George Orwell]] and advocacy of [[Kurdish]] self-determination. An exemplary sample of his work would include ''[[The Missionary Position]]'', which condemned [[Mother Teresa]] as egotistical and [[obscurantism|obscurantist]]; ''No One Left To Lie To'', which denounced [[Bill Clinton]]; ''[[The Trial of Henry Kissinger]]'', in which he made the case against the former National Security Adviser for [[war crime|war crimes]] in Southeast Asia and Chile; and ''[[Why Orwell Matters]]''.

==Story==

At one time Hitchens was considered a staunch member of the [[Anglo-America]]n left. In recent years, especially since [[September 11, 2001]], his reputation has shifted, and he is now often regarded as a kind of neo-conservative, at least in certain important areas.

[[Image:Flcl-2.jpg|thumb|300px|right|The visual style changes with the shot.]]

{{spoiler}}

The series focuses on Nandaba Naota, a twelve-year-old boy just starting puberty, living in the fictional, strange, and yet ordinary Japanese suburb of Mabase. Naota lives with his lecherous father Kamon and his baseball-coaching grandfather Shigekuni at their family bakery. He greatly admired his older brother Tasuku—a baseball phenomenon who has gone to the United States to play the game. Note that Tasuku, though often referenced, never appears in the series. Naota seems to be very frustrated with his life, and in the opening episode is musing about how uneventful and boring Mabase is.

Although he no longer considers himself a [[socialist]], he does not see much change in his political views. He has written on a broad range of subjects, but perhaps above all else he despises [[religion]]. To paraphrase him, he is not only an [[atheist]] but an anti-[[theist]]. This is set within a broader context of [[enlightenment]] values of [[secularism]], [[humanism]], [[emancipation]] and [[reason]]. His disagreement with others on the left is that these values could – and at times, should – be defended by military force.

Events kick off when a strange and mischievous girl named Haruhara Haruko runs him over with her [[Vespa]] and then whacks him in the forehead with a left-handed [[Rickenbacker]] [[bass guitar]] with a [[pull cord]] start motor. Soon afterwords Naota discovers that being hit with Haruko's bass left more than just a bump, it opened an N.O. portal in his head and things are starting to come out of it. Later that day Naota finds Haruko in his house, hired by his father as a live-in maid. It is gradually revealed that Haruko is in a confrontation with a company named Medical Mechanica (whose factory building looks like a giant clothing iron) located on the outskirts of Mabase which is holding a being named "Atomsk" which she is after, and she's using Naota as a means to her own ends, which are revealed in the final episode.

In addition to being hounded by Haruko, who uses a portal she opened in his head for her own selfish purposes, he is being watched by a man named Commander Amarao. He and his assistant, Lt. Kitsurubami, are monitoring Haruko and Medical Mechanica for intergalactic legal reasons and are attempting to save the Earth as the conflict between Haruko and Medical Mechanica (MM) escalates.

== Political views ==

=== Background ===

Hitchens' earliest political convictions were very [[left-wing]]. He became a [[Trotskyist]] during his years at [[Balliol College, Oxford]] and was tutored by [[Steven Lukes]]. He wrote for the magazine ''International Socialism'', whose publishers' descendents (the [[International Socialists (UK)|International Socialists]]) are today's British [[Socialist Workers Party (UK)|Socialist Workers Party]]. This group had a broad allegiance to Trotskyism but differed with more orthodox groups in refusing to defend [[communist]] states as "workers' states". This was symbolized in their slogan "Neither Washington nor Moscow but International Socialism". Hitchens left Oxford with a third class degree, and went on to work for the [[New Statesman]] in the 1970s, where he became friends with, amongst others, [[Martin Amis]] and [[Ian McEwan]]. Here he became known as an aggressive left winger, stridently attacking such targets as [[Henry Kissinger]], the [[Vietnam War]], the [[Catholic Church]] and others. Moving to the [[United States]] in the 1980s, Hitchens remained on the left, writing for [[The Nation]] magazine. He attacked [[Ronald Reagan]] and [[George H. W. Bush]] and American foreign policy in [[South America|South]] and [[Central America]]. Hitchens criticised the first [[Gulf War]], claiming (in an essay reprinted in "For the Sake of Argument") that the Bush administration lured Saddam Hussein into the war.

The plot also involves Mamimi, a delinquent girl who used to be Tasuku's girlfriend. Alone and friendless, she leans on other things, such as Naota or her pet cat, both of whom she calls "Ta-kun" (referring to Tasuku), and cigarettes. Japanese adolescents often add the suffix "-kun" to the names of their classmates and friends. There is also a girl named Ninamori who goes to school with Naota and seems to have romantic interests in him.

=== Islamic fascism and neoconservatism ===

Hitchens was deeply shocked by the [[fatwa]] (2/14/1989) against his longtime friend [[Salman Rushdie]] and he became increasingly concerned by the dangers of what he called ''theocratic fascism'' or ''fascism with an Islamic face'': radical [[Islamists]] who supported the fatwa against Rushdie and seemed to desire the recreation of the medieval [[Caliphate]]. Hitchens

is sometimes credited with coining the term ''[[Neofascism and religion#Islam|Islamofascism]]'', but [[Malise Ruthven]] has a better claim, since he used it in an article in [[The Independent]] on 8 September 1990.

The power of ''N.O.'' is what lets items be pulled out of characters' foreheads. N.O. comes from the cooperation of the right and left sides of the brain. When it is activated (usually from extreme scenarios including stress and duty) things can be pulled from anywhere in the universe. After the activation of his N.O., an x-ray of Naota's head shows that his brain is seemingly missing, but this is actually due to the [[x-rays]] being pulled into the vortex created by N.O., though Haruko uses it as a joke at Naota's expense. Naota's N.O. is responsible for the appearance of; Canti, Naota's [[Gibson Flying V|Flying V]], Atomsk's [[Gibson EB-0]], three MM robots, and in the end, Atomsk himself.

Hitchens did use the term ''Islamic Fascism'' for an article he wrote for the ''Nation'' shortly after 9/11 (although again the phrase is used earlier than that, for example in the ''Washington Post'' on 13 January 1979, and it also seems to have been used by [[secularism|secularists]] in [[Turkey]] and [[Afghanistan]] to describe their opponents).

==Characters==

Hitchens also became increasingly disenchanted by the presidency of [[Bill Clinton]], accusing him of being a rapist, and a serial liar. Hitchens also claimed that the missile attack by Clinton on the [[Sudan]] was a major war crime. The support of some on the left for Clinton alienated him further from the "soft left" in the United States. On the other hand he became increasingly distanced from the "hard left" by their lack of support for Western intervention in [[Kosovo]].

The English edition of the ''FLCL'' anime uses the Japanese naming order for characters.

*'''Nandaba Naota''' (ナンダバ・ナオ太), 12, is the main character. He believes he is normal, living in a normal town, full of crazy people. Unbeknownst to him, he has huge N.O. powers. Every episode he states that nothing ever happens in his town, even after the unexplainable and amazing happens. He carries his brother's baseball bat with him because he misses his brother. Naota is internally struggling with the recognition of his existence and independence from looking up to his brother, and to himself.

The years after the Rushdie Fatwa also saw him looking for allies and friends, and in the USA he became increasingly frustrated by what he saw as the "excuse making" of the [[multiculturalism|multiculturalist]] left. At the same time, he was attracted to the foreign policy ideas of some on the Republican right, and especially the [[neoconservative]] clique around [[Paul Wolfowitz]], with whom he became friends. Around this time he also befriended the [[Iraq]]i businessman [[Ahmed Chalabi]].

*'''Nandaba Tasuku''' (ナンダバ・助く) is Naota's older brother who moved to America to play baseball. Mamimi believes that, since Tasuku saved her from the fire at their old elementary school, he likes her. From context and the fact that he gets a another girlfriend in America, it is apparent that Tasuku has no real love for her. Although he never actually appears on screen, he is very significant to the storyline. As the former star of the baseball team, Naota idolizes him, but he is afraid of not living up to his brother's legacy, and in turn never even swings the bat when on the plate. In addition, Tasuku's news that he has a girlfriend troubles Naota greatly. In the first episode of the series, Naota realizes for a split second that Haruko looks like Tasuku.

*'''Samejima Mamimi''' (サメジマ・マミ実), 17, was Tasuku's girlfriend, though she dotes on Naota since his brother left Japan. She attends school infrequently, smokes, and has [[pyromaniac]]al tendencies, and spends most of her time under a bridge. It is likely that her parents are separated. She has a rather peculiar tendency to name many things after her personal nickname for Tasuku, "''Ta-kun''." It is originally set forth in the story that she has a fascination with fire after her rescue from the elementary school by Tasuku, though later it is revealed that she herself set the fire. She loves taking care of things that are weak-willed, which she leaves when they show some willpower. She also believes Canti to be a manifestation of a fire-starting fallen angel "Cantido", who is really a character from a videogame she plays.

*[[Image:FuriKuri6.jpg|thumb|310px|right|Haruko, riding her Vespa, preparing to use her guitar.]]'''Haruhara Haruko''' (ハルハラ・ハル子), 19 (or so she claims), is a pinkish-orange haired girl from outer space. She rides a yellow [[Vespa]] (and is also known as ''The Vespa Woman'', a pun on the word Vespa, which means wasp) and wields a left-handed Rickenbacker bass guitar as a bizarre weapon of sorts. She becomes the Nandaba household's maid and plays on a rival team of the Mabase Martians for extra money. She has also apparently had past relations with Amarao, most likely similar to her relationship with Naota. This mysterious character is the catalyst for ''FLCL's'' entire plot. She is called '''Haruha Raharu''' by Amarao; this may be another alias, however.

*'''Nandaba Kamon''' (ナンダバ・カモン) is Naota's father, a former pop culture journalist working as a freelance writer, with his own trashy paper. For a while, Haruko tries to use a copy of the father's body as her plaything, though the body of the real father is eventually found and reanimated by Naota.

*'''Nandaba Shigekuni''' (ナンダバ・シゲクニ) is Naota's grandfather. He owns the family bakery and coaches the local baseball team, the Mabase Martians. Because Mamimi was with Tasuku and refuses to acknowledge the end of their relationship, Shigekuni despises her. In general, a mean old man.

*'''Ninamori Eri''' (ニナモリ・エリ), 12, is Naota's classmate. She is the daughter of the mayor of Mabase and is class president. While she appears to be a very proper, even stuck-up girl, she isn't above breaking the rules to get what she wants. She stuffs the ballot box during the election for the school play in order to get Naota cast opposite her in the lead role, proving her interests in Naota, romantically. Ninamori is also very intelligent, if a little jaded. Though she does not say it, her parents' problems trouble her deeply.

*'''Miyaji Junko''' (ミヤジ・ジュン子) is Naota's eccentric sixth grade teacher. Her students have given her the nickname "Miya-Jun".

*'''Canti''' (カンチ, ''Kanchi'' in Japanese) is a robot with what looks like a television set for a head. He was manufactured by Medical Mechanica, but goes over to Haruko's side after Haruko smashes (and breaks) his TV head with her guitar. It is later revealed that Atomsk can manifest through him, with Naota being the catalyst. Atomsk's symbol appears on Canti's screen when he absorbs Naota; the symbol is a corruption of the [[kanji]] character for "adult."

*'''Commander Amarao''' (アマラオ) works for a secret agency of the Foreign Embassy department of the government. This group knows that aliens exist, and try to keep them from the public. Thus, Haruko/Raharu is a big problem for them. Amarao has fake eyebrows made of [[nori]] which, he believes, serve the dual purpose of making him look macho and protecting him from N.O. Amarao seems to have had a past relationship with Haruko similar to Naota's. It is a likely inference from the story that as a child he was approached by Haruko/Raharu, just like Naota, and she tried using his N.O. to contact/capture Atomsk. However, his N.O.-channeling ability is so weak that he can barely pull something the size of a [[slingshot]] through. Has a love of sickeningly sweet candy and drinks.

*'''Lieutenant Kitsurubami''' (キツルバミ) is an attractive young woman on Amarao's staff. Amarao makes a pass at her in the final episode, but she resists him. She also seems to become smitten with Canti, despite her efforts earlier to snipe him.

*'''Atomsk''' (アトムスク), also known as the "Pirate King" (海賊王), is the most powerful space pirate in the galaxy. His N.O. is great enough to steal planets. He is a bird-like creature, resembling a [[phoenix]]. He has a [[nose piercing|nose ring]] identical to the metal bracket on Haruko's bracelet, which allows her to detect Atomsk's presence or the activation of N.O. in general. Amarao portrays him inaccurately, imagining Atomsk's appearance as humanoid when he describes him to Naota. In an interview, the director clarifies that Atomsk's true form is indeed that of the bird, and Amarao's mental image was of a man because he believed that Atomsk and Haruko were lovers.

=== Post-9/11 =Episodes==

The total run-time for this show is three hours with commercials.

After [[9/11]] his stance hardened, and he has strongly supported US military actions in [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq]], particularly through his columns in ''Slate''. Hitchens had been a longterm contributor to the [[left-wing]] ''[[The Nation]]'' weekly, where he wrote his ''Minority Report'' column. After [[9/11]] he decided the paper was a mouthpiece for the kind of excuse-making on behalf of Islamic terror he was now arguing against, so in the following months he wrote articles increasingly at odds with his colleagues.

The episodes are:

# Fooly Cooly (Japanese title: Furi Kuri (フリクリ))

# FireStarter (Japanese title: FiSta (ファイスタ))

# [[Marquis de Carabas]] (Japanese title: Maru-Raba (マルラバ))

# Full Swing (Japanese title: Furi Kiri (フリキリ))

# Brittle Bullet (Japanese title: Bura-Bure (ブラブレ))

# FLCLimax (Japanese title: Furi Kura (フリクラ))

==Releases==

Following the 9/11 attacks, Hitchens and [[Noam Chomsky]] debated the nature of the threat of [[Islamism|radical Islam]] and of the proper response to it. On September 24 and October 8, 2001, Hitchens wrote criticisms of Chomsky in ''The Nation.'' [http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20011008&s=hitchens20010924][http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20011022&s=hitchens] Chomsky responded. [http://www.zmag.org/chomskyhitchens.htm] Hitchens responded in rebuttal to Chomsky. [http://humanities.psydeshow.org/political/hitchens-3.htm] Approximately a year after the 9/11 attacks and his exchanges with Chomsky, Hitchens left ''The Nation'' in part because he believed its editors, its readers, and persons such as Chomsky considered [[John Ashcroft]] a bigger threat than [[Osama bin Laden]].[http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20021014&s=hitchens] This was one of the most highly-charged exchanges of letters in American journalism, involving Hitchens and Chomsky, as well as [[Katha Pollitt]] and [[Alexander Cockburn]].

The episodes were originally released in Japan on six DVDs. It was also released as a two-volume [[manga]] by artist [[Hajime Ueda]], and a three-volume novel serialization by [[Yoji Enokido]], who also wrote the script for the show. All were released in Japan starting in 2000. The anime has subsequently been released on DVD in North America in three volumes by [[Synch-Point]], while the manga was released by [[TokyoPop]] in two volumes (ISBN 159182396X and ISBN 1591823978). All soundtrack discs, ''[[Addict (soundtrack)|Addict]]'', ''[[King of Pirates (soundtrack)|King of Pirates]]'' and ''[[FLCL No. 3]]'' were released by [[Geneon]]. ''FLCL'' has also been seen on [[Cartoon Network]]'s [[Adult Swim]] block in North America, starting in August 2003 and occasionally airing throughout 2003 through the present. It is currently on Adult Swim again during its Saturday night "ACTN" (action) lineup.

==Notes/Trivia==

=== Where he stands now ===

*There are examples of scenes in which Naota yells out "Tasuk--"; the Japanese audience, at first assuming that he will exclaim "Tasukete" (help!), may be surprised when he instead says "Tasuku," the name of Naota's older brother.

Hitchens has said he no longer feels a part of the Left and does not object to being called a former Trotskyist. His affection for Trotsky is still strong, and he still says that his political and historical view of the world is shaped by Marxist categories. In June, [[2004]], Hitchens wrote a blistering attack on [[Michael Moore]] in a review of Moore's latest film, ''[[Fahrenheit 9/11]]''; [http://slate.msn.com/id/2102723] this review was so widely discussed that three major publications offered rebuttals.

*The name of the company Haruko is fighting is spelled ''Medical Mechanica''. It was misspelled in a scene in episode 2 as ''Medical Meccanica''.

*Most of the vehicles in the series (such as Haruko's [[Vespa]], Miya-Jun's [[Volkswagen Beetle]] and Amarao's [[Volkswagen]] Rabbit) are European.

Despite his many articles supporting the US [[invasion of Iraq]], Hitchens made a brief return to ''The Nation'' just before the US presidential election and wrote that he was "slightly" for Bush, but shortly afterwards when ''Slate'' polled its staff on their positions on the candidates, and mistakenly printed Hitchens's vote as pro-Kerry, Hitchens shifted his opinion to ''neutral'', saying: :"It's absurd for liberals to talk as if [[Kristallnacht]] is impending with Bush, and it's unwise and indecent for Republicans to equate Kerry with capitulation. There's no one to whom he can surrender, is there? I think that the nature of the jihadist enemy will decide things in the end."[http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20041108&s=hitchens].

*Many of the important characters are [[left-handed]] due to the director's belief that southpaws have more outgoing personalities and are cooler than right-handed individuals. The same distinction is shown in the difference between those characters who enjoy spicy food or sour drinks, and those who don't, as well as those who swing the bat or don't.

*To try to make the dialogue easier to understand in the English translation, there are some places where dialogue is different from the Japanese version. For example, in the Japanese third episode, a boy dressed like a mouse keeps asking Naota about the "''chu''-lady"; in Japanese, ''chu'' is the [[onomatopoeia]] for both a kiss and a mouse's squeak. (This is translated to English by having the character repeatedly yelling "Smooch!" while practicing for the play.) Also, in episode 5, Kitsurubami yells about the similarity between the kanji for Mackerel and Blue in the Japanese version, rather than Cyborg and Robot as in the English version. Additionally a reference to a Japanese swimsuit idol was replaced by a reference to [[Anna Nicole Smith]] in episode 2.

In an interview with the journalist [[Johann Hari]] in 2004, Hitchens described himself as "on the same side as the [[neo-conservatives]]". In that interview, Hitchens makes it clear that he supports not George Bush ''per se'' (still less "Paleo-Conservatives" like [[Dick Cheney]] or [[Donald Rumsfeld]]) but only what he see as the "pure" neo-conservatives, especially, [[Paul Wolfowitz]]. Although Hitchens finds himself defending Bush’s foreign policy, he has little admiration for the man himself, in particular his support for ‘intelligent design’ and distain of reading. As an anti-theist intellectual with a penchant for drinking, Bush’ euphoric claim to have been ‘saved from drink by jesus’ did little to raise his opinion.

*It was rumored that the whole series was merely an experiment by [[Gainax]] to test out new techniques, and they used a 26-episodes worth of budget to produce the high quality animation. The [[The Internet Movie Database|IMDb]] says the series was created as a break from regular anime. More information can be found on the Director's Cut audio track and subtitles on the DVDs.

*[[the pillows]] <!--Please leave lower case -->did much of the soundtrack, with [[Shinkichi Mitsumune]] doing the remaining tracks.

In March 2005 he supported further investigation into [[2004 U.S. election voting controversies, Ohio|alleged voting irregularities in Ohio]] during the [[US presidential election, 2004]].

*The show contains numerous sexual innuendoes which were the lead artist's ideas, contrary to that of the director.

*The [[Vespa]] shown in the ending credits actually belongs to the director and at the time of the Japanese DVD release was not in working condition.

In contributions to ''[[Vanity Fair]]'', he offered rare but overt criticism of the Bush administration, for its continued protection of [[Henry Kissinger]], whom he views as complicit in the human rights abuses of [[Southern Cone]] [[military dictatorship]]s during the '70s. In 2001 he had published a book, ''The Trial of Henry Kissinger'', on Kissinger's alleged complicity with such regimes in South America and Asia. An even more [[iconoclastic]] work was his 1995 book on [[Mother Teresa]], ''The Missionary Position'', which was highly controversial.

*During episodes 1 and 6 the show temporarily uses a unique [[manga]]-like animation style. Due to uniqueness of the style, it required much time and effort to create. An inside joke in episode 6 is that Naota's dad says that they were told to never do that again, which is true - the CG artist had complained to the director about the complexity of the first "manga" scene, and initially refused to believe it could be done at all.

*The hand shown in episodes 5 and 6 is actually the hand of the director. The movement was captured on film and then spliced digitally into the animation.

In May 2005, [[George Galloway]] [[MP]], got into an [http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1486417,00.html argument] with Hitchens, before giving evidence to the US Senate. Galloway called Hitchens a "drink-sodden former [[Trotskyism|Trotskyist]] [[popinjay]]". "Some of which," Hitchens subsequently wrote in a newspaper [http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=15528737&method=full&siteid=94762&headline=mr-galloway-goes-to-washington--galloway-comes-out-fighting-but-the-yanks-fail-to-lay-a-glove-on-him-name_page.html column], "was unfair." A few days later, Hitchens wrote an [http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/005/641kyjkk.asp article] that attacked Galloway's political record, criticized his Senate testimony, and made a case for Galloway's complicity in the Oil-for-Food scandal. Hitchens is scheduled to debate Galloway in [[New York City|New York]] on 14 September, 2005. [http://book.democracynow.org/tourpage.php?id=472]

*In episode 4 the original idea was for Naota to hit his father in the head with the bat instead of the TV. But due to a string of kids beating their parents to death with metal baseball bats hitting Japanese news around production time, Naota attacks the TV instead.

*In episode 5, a ''[[South Park]]'' animation style is used. The decision to do so was made once again by the art team. Much of the Japanese audience, according to the director, was unable to understand the reference; ''South Park'' never caught on in Japan due to too many American [[pop culture]] references. In the American release of ''FLCL'', however, it was easily recognized and greeted with both applause and groans. Also in Episode 3 Miyaji Junko’s car has a Kenny key chain in it.

Since May [[2005]], he has been a contributing blogger at [[The Huffington Post]].

*Episode 5 contains a reference to the opening credits of [[Lupin III]], as Naota's dad pounces out of his red suit and into Haruko's bed (who pulls a blanket over her chest as a spring-loaded boxing glove flies out and hits him). Lupin III started its run on Adult Swim around the same time.

*In late 2003, one of the Adult Swim [[commercial bumper|bumper sequences]] listed some of the favorite shows of Adult Swim's staff. ''FLCL'' was among them.

== Praise for and criticism of Hitchens==

*While the sour drink in the black can that appears in the series seems to be a drink called "Lemon Squash" (レモンスカッシュ), an actual lemon-flavored brand of soft drink in Japan, the pamphlet accompanying the third DVD of the series explains that the drink is named "KaraC" as a pun on the Japanese word "karashi", which means "mustard" or something spicy, and juices that end in "C", like [[Hi-C]].

Appropriately for a self-described "contrarian" who deliberately seeks to provoke, Hitchens is the subject of considerable praise and admiration, as well as severe criticism. Among his admirers are [[The Observer]] writer [[Lynn Barber]] who wrote a glowing profile of him in 2002 [http://observer.guardian.co.uk/worldview/story/0,11581,683899,00.html] and the editors, including [[David Horowitz]], at [[FrontpageMag.com]] who appreciate his support for the Iraq war and his criticisms of the Left.

*Naota and Ninamori drink "Vitamin In" in Episode 3 because of proposed product placement. However, the scenes with the drinks were completed before negotiations finished, and the deal never went through. The studio decided to keep the beverages in the scene anyway.

*The true definition of "Fooly cooly" is not known nor made clear throughout the series, but one theory maintains it to be a Japanese shortening of "Flictonic Cliple Weber Syndrome," a fictional medical condition used as a plot device in the show. However, considering the phonetic structure of the Japanese language, it is far more logical to assume that "Flictonic Cliple Weber Syndrome" (pronounced "Furikutoniku Kuripure Ueba Shindoromu" in Japanese) is actually born from the term FuriKuri/Fooly Cooly, rather than vice versa. The unknown origin of the title is one of many quirks pointed out by even the characters, who frequently use the term, but never explain its meaning.

Some have criticized Hitchens for egotism, for turning up everywhere on television to promote himself and his books, and for changing his political views if he perceives that a self-advantage can be derived from it. Among his severest critics are one-time colleagues and friends, [[Alexander Cockburn]] and [[Norman Finkelstein]]. Cockburn has frequently alluded to Hitchens' tendency to tipple, and Finkelstein has argued that the change in Hitchens' political views has more to do with being on the right side of power than with heartfelt convictions. In a column for 8/20/05 [http://www.counterpunch.com/cockburn08202005.html], Cockburn writes, "What a truly disgusting sack of...(expletive) Hitchens is. A guy who called Sid Blumenthal one of his best friends and then tried to have him thrown into prison for perjury; a guy who waited till his friend Edward Said was on his death bed before attacking him in the Atlantic Monthly; a guy who knows perfectly well the role Israel plays in US policy but who does not scruple to flail Cindy Sheehan as a LaRouchie and anti-Semite because, maybe, she dared mention the word Israel."

*Upon initially airing FLCL Adult Swim announced that, of all six episodes, only one edit was made in episode 6. In fact, episode 6 contained two edits (a penis, which was blurred in the original footage, was further blurred for TV, and the credits, which contained a short extra scene, was cut), and a spoken obscenity was blanked out of the soundtrack in episode 1.

== Peter Hitchens ==

His younger brother by two-and-a-half years, [[Peter Hitchens]], is also a journalist, author and critic. Peter was initially also a leftist but later came to hold radically different, conservative, political opinions after several years spent reporting on the British [[Labour (UK)|Labour]] movement and British politics, followed by many assignments in [[Communism|Communist]] [[Eastern bloc|Eastern Europe]] and a period as a resident correspondent in Moscow at the end of the [[Soviet]] era. Today Peter writes for a [[London]] newspaper, the ''[[Mail on Sunday]]''. He is a staunch but unpredictable conservative who opposed the [[US invasion of Iraq|invasion of Iraq]] and criticised elements of [[Thatcherism]] in his book ''The Abolition of Britain''. He is also a leading critic of current plans to introduce a national identity card in Britain and has called for the replacement of Britain's [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] by a new movement. The brothers had a protracted falling-out after Peter expressed surprise at Christopher's reaction to 9-11, citing sometime extreme anti-American views that Christopher denied ever having held.

== Key points ==

Hitchens has taken a stance on several issues throughout his career as a contrarian. Whilst he may not deliberately court controversy, he finds the companionship agreeable nonetheless. Here’s some of the key stances he has taken throughout his career, and his reasons why. Unless stated otherwise, his views on these issues have remained consistent throughout.

'''Trotsky'''

Favoured Trotsky and Trotskyism as a broadside against Stalinism and western establishments, in particular both sides support for nuclear weapons. Hitchens regarded this as the compulsory enlistment of civilians in a nuclear war, and as such a violation of individual sovereignty. Trotsky’s defence of the enlightenment and the materialist conception of human history as well as a loathing of religion no doubt contributed to his appeal.

'''Vietnam'''

He regarded America’s intervention (and her allies) in Vietnam as a shameful continuation of European colonialism, betraying the enlightenment principles of liberal democracy and human emancipation. Today, he also regards it as a betrayal of the American Revolution.

'''Israel-Palestine'''

He regards this as another example of colonialism; an illegal, and unjustifiable occupation by Israel of another people, to deny them their basic human and moral rights. The ultra-religious dimension of Zionism unquestionably re-enforces his support for the Palestinian cause.

'''Mother Theresa'''

He despised the unquestioning adoration of the vast majority of western commentators. His particular points was her lack of treatment for people – particularly children – placed in her care; her strong religious views on contraception, abortion (which she described as ‘the biggest threat to world peace’) and her ‘acceptance’ of poverty. Also, the pursuit and acceptance of donations from third world dictators and the allocation of these donations away from treatment towards furthering her theistic views.

'''Yugoslavia'''

Hitchens argued that the choice in Yugoslavia was between a multi-ethnic plural democracy in Bosnia and the fascistic, religiously inspired ethno-cleansing driven by Slobodan Milosevic. As such, defending that multi-ethnic democracy was morally essential and of far greater importance than any leftish concerns about a ‘new imperialism’.

'''Iraq'''

Like Yugoslavia, Hitchens regarded the intervention in Iraq as a conflict between secular democracy and theocratic fascism. Far from arguing against left-wing ideology, he argued that it was a moral necessity to support Iraqi and Kurdish left-wing secularists. He draws parallels with the left's response to the Spanish civil war, where (he argues) neutrality is not an option. In his view, the anti-war left have abandoned the principles of secularism, liberal democracy and feminism by allying themselves with the ‘insurgents’ who despise these key principles.

At the moment, Hitchens regards himself as ‘single issue voter’, concerning himself almost exclusively with the battle between the forces of secular democracy and theocratic fascism. As for domestic affairs, he does come out of retirement every now and then, usually to attack religion. Whether this single-issue focus will remain indefinitely remains to be seen. If it doesn’t, there is little reason to believe his support for neo-conservativism will survive the cross-over from foreign affairs to the domestic.

== Bibliography ==

* ''Thomas Jefferson: Author of America'' (Eminent Lives/HarperCollins: 2005) ISBN 0060598964

* ''Love, Poverty, and War: Journeys and Essays'' (Thunder's Mouth, Nation Books; 2004) ISBN 1560255803

* ''Blood, Class and Empire: The Enduring Anglo-American Relationship'' (Pub Group West, 2004)

* ''Why Orwell Matters'' (Basic Books, 2002), also published as ''Orwell's Victory'' (Allen Lane, 2002)

* ''A Long Short War: The Postponed Liberation of Iraq'' (Plume Books, 2003)

* ''Letters to a Young Contrarian'' (Basic Books, 2001)

* ''The Trial of Henry Kissinger'' (Verso, 2001)

* ''Unacknowledged Legislation: Writers in the Public Sphere'' (Verso, 2000)

* ''No One Left to Lie To: The Triangulations of William Jefferson Clinton'' (Verso, 2000)

* ''The [[Elgin Marbles]]: Should they be returned to Greece?'' (with essays by Robert Browning and Graham Binns) (Verso, March 1998)

* ''Hostage to History: Cyprus from the Ottomans to Kissinger'' with new Afterword (Verso, 1997)

* ''[[The Missionary Position]]: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice'' (Verso, 1995)

* ''For the Sake of Argument: Essays & Minority Reports'' (Verso, 1993)

* ''Blood, Class, and Nostalgia: Anglo-American Ironies'' (Farrar Straus Giroux, 1990)

* ''Imperial Spoils: The Curious Case of the Elgin Marbles'' (Hill & Wang, 1988)

* ''Cyprus'' (Quartet, 1984)

==External links==

*{{imdb title|id=0279077|title=FLCL}}

{{wikiquote}}

*[http://www.production-ig.com/project.php?id=23 Production I.G.], co-producers of FLCL

===Hitchens' work===

*[http://www.gainax.co.jp/flcl/index-e.html Gainax], co-producers of FLCL

* [http://www.hitchensweb.com/ The Christopher Hitchens Web], columns, articles, interviews, etc.

*[http://synch-point.com/production/flcl/index.html Synch-Point], North American distributors of FLCL

* Christopher Hitchens, [[Vanity Fair]], March 2005, [http://makethemaccountable.com/articles/Ohio_s_Odd_Numbers.htm "Ohio's Odd Numbers"]

*[http://www.foolycooly.net FoolyCooly.net], fan site with [http://s11.invisionfree.com/foolycooly_net_forum forum]

* Christopher Hitchens, [[Vanity Fair]], 9 November 2004, [http://www.vanityfair.com/commentary/content/printables/041109roco03 "Kissinger Declassified"]

*[http://j-revolution.com/?page=anime/flcl/index J-Revolution], FLCL section

* Christopher Hitchens, Slate, 21 June 2004, [http://slate.msn.com/id/2102723/ "Unfairenheit 9/11 - The lies of Michael Moore"]

*[http://www.emgmonthly.com/v7/page.php?p=ani/flcl.txt Sexual metaphor in FLCL], analysis with extensive screenshots

** [http://www.overcast.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/f911/hitch-moore.htm A point-by-point rebuttal of Hitchens' critical review]

*[http://nandaba.net/flcl/ Easy Target @ Nandaba.net], FLCL fan site

* Christopher Hitchens, ''Grand Street'', Autumn 1985, [http://chomsky.info/onchomsky/1985----.htm "The Chorus And The Cassandra"] - defending Chomsky against his critics

*[http://oaf.anre.org Over-Analyzing FLCL], "the site that thinks ''way'' too much about FLCL"

*[http://www.melodysoft.com/foros/flcl/ FLCL Discussion Forum], bi-lingual (English/Spanish) forum

==Other==

* [http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=4&ar=6 Fraternally yours, Chris]. By [[Norman Finkelstein]]. [An article which explains how Hitchens' flight from the left had less to do with heartfelt, deep-seated convictions, and more to do with making nice to those in positions of power.]

[[Category:Absurdist fiction]]

*[http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1496347,00.html When Christopher met Peter] Feature in ''[[The Guardian]]''

[[Category:Anime]]

[[Category:1949 births|Hitchens, ChristopherFLCL]]

[[Category:British journalists|Hitchens, ChristopherGainax]]

[[Category:British essayists|Hitchens, ChristopherManga]]

[[Category:Shows on Adult Swim]]

[[de:FLCL]]

[[pt:Christopher Hitchens]]

[[es:FLCL]]

[[sv:Christopher Hitchens]]

[[fr:FLCL]]

[[is:FLCL]]

[[ja:フリクリ]]

[[pl:FLCL]]

[[pt:FLCL]]

[[sv:FLCL]]