Even now, the very idea of following up FLCL seems pretty surreal. This is a show that meant a lot to a lot of people, and any sequel, spinoff, or extension has the unenviable task of both living up to the expectations of those who watched the original, and also updating its sensibilities for a world that has drastically changed in the decade plus since it aired. Yet, despite the waves of anxiety the very announcement generated, it’s irresponsible to not give Progressive the praise it deserves.

Prog’s protagonist is, smartly, a new face for the franchise. Hidomi is similar to original FLCL protagonist Naota in one very important way, which is that she is a teenager struggling with what is undeniably for many people the most difficult phase of their lives. To be fair, that applies to a lot of anime protagonists, what makes Hidomi interesting is her sheer stoicism. Putting on an apathetic air is something that will be familiar to a lot of teenagers (and ex-teenagers), Hidomi works on the same basic principles here that similar characters do elsewhere in the medium--when she actually does show emotion, it means a lot more--but above and beyond that, we learn bit by bit that this girl is weird. It’s made pretty explicit by halfway through the series that Hidomi is actually aroused by violence and more than once, in the horrifically surreal dream sequences that open each of the first three episodes and later while being forcibly transformed into a genki girl (it’s complicated), she seems to express a desire for the world to end. In other words, as far as depressed millennial and Gen Z teens go, she’s fairly typical, in what I must imagine is a deliberate decision.

There are of course other characters, but the big one is returning antagonist Haruko, who sets up shop as Hidomi’s homeroom teacher and the second episode casts her as a sort of evil youth camp preacher, it’s really pretty spooky to see her “class” under her spell, reminiscing over things that didn’t happen while looking at a yearbook full of crude crayon drawings, and I suspect that more than one old fan of the franchise will find themselves, perhaps just slightly, eerily reflected in that classroom.

It’s probably no surprise that Progressive is not overly keen on tipping its hand--this is FLCL after all--but what is surprising is where the series eventually goes. It’s not quite an attack on the original, and it’s not disrespectful enough to be called a skewering, but Prog definitely views its predecessor with a suspicious, cocked eye. Haruko is never portrayed even remotely sympathetically here until the very end of the series, and her characterization here peels back the eccentric mannerisms that endeared her to so many, revealing them as (alternately) the manipulative or defensive mechanisms of an ultimately pretty insecure person who uses a quirky shell to get what she wants or deflect criticism respectively. That is a harsh take on a very beloved character, so it’s probably not a surprise that for the reason of Haruko’s character arc alone, Prog is not going to sit well with everyone, but it’s important to note that this kind of pick-apart isn’t doable without having a fair amount of love for the source material in the first place. You can’t criticize a character like Haruko without understanding her, and Prog understands her very well.

Part of that understanding comes in the form of Jinyu. Jinyu is an interesting character, who we learn, about halfway through the series, is in fact a sort of split-off being formed from Haruko’s personality. She’s stonefacedly stoical, well meaning and occasionally actually wise, and she drives a 50s-style car instead of a Vespa scooter. She also has Kamina-style geometric shades, in what I must imagine is some kind of visual gag about her character. She is in many senses Haruko’s opposite and provides an interesting foil to Haruko up until the latter eats her, reuniting the two halves.

Somewhat less surely placed in the story is Ko Iide, Hidomi’s classmate and main love interest. He’s certainly a likeable character, at least if you have a soft spot for idiots (and I very much do), and Haruko’s attempts to manipulate him into being the next Naota are interesting, but on his own he almost rather seems (especially in the second half of the show), like a damsel in distress. Which is a strange complaint to make about a male character, but it’s the truth.

So where does all this go? Well, a strange, surreal romp that lives up to the original as best it can. To be sure, it is not as out-there animation-wise and not as well-directed, but to be even surer, rather few things are, and it’s hard to complain when there are so many gorgeous individual moments. The last two episodes especially look fantastic, with 5 being drawn in a different art style completely (and looking lovely for it) and 6 just being a treat.

Other than said romp, and the metatextual angle about its relationship to the original (which some will love, others will loathe, and I suspect many will just not care about), it doesn’t do a ton else, which is maybe the show’s only major fault. It also kind of makes Progressive--even moreso than usual for this sort of thing--a game of expectations. If you were hoping for something to surpass its predecessor, a la Diebuster, you were probably disappointed. But as someone who went in not really knowing what to expect at all, I found its rough relationship with the audience refreshing, the extra tidbits of worldbuilding intriguing, and its main protagonist incredibly relatable and in a weird way, fun.

Prog is not the original FLCL, it won’t enter your life like Haruko did to Naota and fuck it up and then leave you wondering what happened. Prog is more like an old friend who’s changed a lot since you last saw them, but they’re still the same person underneath. For that reason, any fan of the original owes it to themselves to at least give the thing a shot, even if you don’t like it, it’s hard to argue that it doesn’t inspire strong feelings, which to me, is what FLCL is all about.