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| Overall | Art | Animation | Character Design | Music | Series Story | Episode Story | Reviewer | |
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| Buy | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 8 |
 Ggultra2764
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[series:3257#1552] |
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Flip Flappers is an original entry in the magical girl genre focused on middle school student Cocona and her interactions with the energetic Papika as both adventure in the alternate world of Pure Illusion taking on enemy creatures and acquiring magical powers from the amorphus gems that are left behind by the creatures when defeated. The one thing that sticks out with Flip Flappers is its gorgeous animation when the series is taken over to Pure Illusion. The scenery of Pure Illusion offers up some rather creative and bizarre environments and enemies that Cocona and Papika encounter in their adventures that include a colorful landscape where our two heroines start to develop rabbit-like characteristics and a gloomy version of their school that traps the two girls in a time loop. There are a variety in the types of threats that Cocona and Papika have to confront within Pure Illusion that allow for some variety in the type of choreography seen in action scenes throughout the series from a typical superhero-powered battle to even a mecha fight. The animation has some shortcomings with character designs looking a bit on the simple side for details in certain regards and some of the animated sequences looking a bit jerky with movement. But these don't detract too heavily from the rather unique presentation offered with Flip Flappers. Moving past presentation, Flip Flappers' storytelling is mostly straightforward with focusing on Cocona and Papika's adventures. The first half of the series is mostly focused on the two girls collecting the amorphus gems they acquire from defeated enemy creatures, learning more about the world of Pure Illusions, developing their relationship, and crossing paths with a rival organization also seeking out the amorphus gems for mysterious reasons. There are hints dropped in early episodes that Cocona and Papika may have a closer connection than what it would seem on the surface. The second half gradually explores these developments (and what is revealed leads to a dramatic twist for the series compared to its more light-hearted mood) and the motives of the rival organization in question, which eventually build up to a climactic battle that tests the bond that our two heroines established with one another throughout the course of the series. The revelations mostly make sense when looking back on some of the hints dropped, though there are a few unclear elements to the plot that Flip Flappers regrettably does not address in its finale. Minor issues aside, Flip Flappers was still a solid entry in the magical girl genre having a creative alternate world that Cocona and Papika have their adventures in and offers up an engaging plot focused on exploring the bond and connections that our two heroines have with one another. A solid recommendation if you are a fan of magical girl titles. Last updated Thursday, December 29 2016. Created Thursday, December 29 2016. | ||||||||
| Unevaluated |
 Stretch
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[series:3257#628] | ||||||
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(Two episodes watched): Well, I for one was annoyed to be taken on an episode long trip through some unexplained state of mind, or reality, or something or other, known only as 'Pure Illusion'. I was impatient for some sort of explanation of WTF was going on here, perhaps because if I found myself in the same situation I think I would be distinctly anxious that I might have lost my mind or been permanently separated from the world I know. We get a few hints of what's going on at the end, but I still cannot guess what Pure Illusion is, what purpose it might serve, whether it is manmade or not, whether magic is involved, etc, etc. Crazy stuff alone is not cool; without a semblance of an explanation of what's going on it is a nuisance and drives me away. Telling a story seems to be a low priority here. This show has an FLCL feel top it, but the jokes are pretty lame. In short, neither funny nor interesting. This episode put me off to such an extent that I didn't really want to watch any more. Except, that is, that I did have a slight curiosity about what this Pure Illusion business might be, so perhaps I'd watch episode two after all. But some sort of credible plot would need to come together in a hurry, and my hopes were not high about that happening. I watched episode two, but was frustrated to find that not until the very end does any sort of explanation come together, and for the most part it would have to (hopefully) wait until episode three. Basically, another LSD trip-like experience (I imagine). It annoys me that Papika is basically an airhead, and doesn't it occur to anybody that even in the normal world she is riding a flying surfboard? I think this show isn't telling us nearly enough to cause us to become intrigued; for me at least, the lack of data and excess of psychedelic imagery causes me to become confused and frustrated, and when that happens I see little point in remembering what has happened so far. I noticed that at one point in the second trip through Pure Illusion my mind was wandering, perhaps because it was more fun to daydream than to try to make sense of Flip Flappers. When Cocona concluded that "It was fun!", even though she had been injured, I could only scratch my head. This show is clearly not for me. Last updated Monday, April 30 2018. Created Wednesday, October 12 2016. | ||||||||
Other Sites
| Name | URL |
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| Official Japanese Series Web Site | http://flipflappers.com/ |
