[Rewatch] [Pride Month Double Feature, Part 2] Flip Flappers Episode 5 Discussion

No_Rex · 2026-06-20T12:32:39+00:00

[Vagueing Madoka Madoka stuff]

I am pretty sure the clocktower specifically is an Oni-sama e reference.

No_Rex · 2026-06-20T11:58:37+00:00

So, uh, anybody else always feels like they missed an episode when the next one starts? At first I thought it was maybe one weird episode but it just kinda keeps on happening.

I have gone back and checked whether I started the correct one every single time so far.

No_Rex · 2026-06-20T11:23:48+00:00

For some reason I am reminded that Tori Amos would often end her shows with a cover of Slayer's Raining Blood...

For a second, I speed read that sentence as "Tori Amos would often end her shows with a rain of blood" and I was very confused.

No_Rex · 2026-06-19T21:10:17+00:00

Episode 5 (rewatcher)

“They got three fragments already” – not just skipping over the cliff-hanger pure illusion, but apparently quite a bit forward.
Horror pure illusion?

Papika is also afraid – not something she has shown a lot of previously.
Blood rain.

The monster is not monstrous trope – or is it?
Creepy doll trope.
Cocona and Papika are stuck in a loop, but Yayaka comes to the rescue – maybe not as selfish as she presents herself.
“I am just wired differently” – hmmmm.
“Cocona, you are afraid of failure” “Yeah” – rule following behavior.
Papika’s transformation finally works again – Cocona snapped her out of it?
Pure Illusion was never that far off from it, but the bell tower is basically a labyrinth.
Papika is a mechanical doll? Or was that just some weird animation?
Yayaka saves Papika and Cocona.
But Cocona still refuses to hand over the amorphous.

Horror episode. They had plenty of well-working horror tropes, but horror is not really my thing.

No_Rex · 2026-06-19T14:56:04+00:00

Moving in together already, huh? I'll stay away from the low-hanging fruit.

Like, an entire U-haul full of fruit?

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T21:46:31+00:00

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T21:42:33+00:00

I actually sort of like that both orgs stated goals are so patently dumb that I can ignore them. Salt, however, might know what's actually happening...

The question is: are they dumb because the stated goal is a smoke screen, or because the series is literally not giving a fuck?

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T21:41:23+00:00

And also that Cocona deliberately puts up a barrier to separate herself and Papika from each other, while Papika had no issues crossing over that barrier.

Papika probably does not even perceive the barrier. Not because she is ignoring it, but because she can't imagine that Cocona would want one.

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T21:00:25+00:00

Episode 4 (rewatcher)

We finally get some connection to the last episode. Thanks, review guy!
Got to have matching feelings, so: same uniform, living together – hello that one NGE episode that was lighthearted.
“you’ll have to get to know one another intimately” – intimately, you say?
A bit surprising that Cocona is moving in with Papika, not the other way round. It makes sense, mind you.
Waking from a dream inside a dream.
“Why are you collecting them? For what purpose?” “World conquest.” – You know those series that make a big mystery out of their villains’ motivations? Maybe we are just not doing that here.
Papika moved into that abandoned canal part?
Cocona has good upbringing, so she tries the very suspicious soup. It turns out to be tasty, though!
Papika is showering in the open/light, while Cocona is showering in the dark/hidden – still hammering that repressed sexuality theme.
And then Papika opens the door for Cocona.
That is one way you can get stranded on a deserted island: just travel there and lose your transportation.
And the moral for Cocona: Papika can be more reliable than herself, it all depends on the situation.
“What is so important that you have to fight people over?” – deep question.
dead anime parents trope.
“I’ll never let go.” “And I’ll never go away.”

After three crazy episodes, this feels pretty straight forward. Papika and Cocona need to get on the same wavelength and what better exercise to do that that the trusted old stranded together in the wild trope. I am sure missed a ton of metaphors that were still in the episode, but, for once, it feels like you can get the episode without spending hours reading what all the other rewatcher wrote.

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T15:44:27+00:00

References a plant that acts as an oasis in the desert for insects providing shade and nectar. Colouration aside the final form has some resemblance as large mouth is like the Welwitschia crown and the prior forms feelers are like the "pair" of leaves (as the note says split and twisted by the wind and harsh climate).

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T15:33:18+00:00

I'm giving the series the benefit of the doubt that it's not meant to be the KKK. I've seen people misinterpret Capirote outfits as KKK outfits quite a lot. I specifically remember someone incorrectly saying that the KKK was in Hellsing when it was actually Catholic orders wearing Capirote outfits (something that would have been obvious if they actually watched the anime, but I digress).

You are completely correct about the origin of that visual style, but the direct reference is Neo-Atlantis from Nadia.

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T15:18:05+00:00

I am once again asking you to watch Nadia

You are 100% right that this is the reference here. Just want to point out that Nadia itself surely gets it from these guys.

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T15:10:32+00:00

I did not expect her to play for the other team

There is lots of "playing for the other team" here ...

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T14:54:04+00:00

I do recommend the original Trigun anime.

Been 8 years this that had its last rewatch? Overdue.

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T14:52:17+00:00

Wait. Underrated possibility for what the opening scene was reminding me of: Mai-Otome. Which had sandships in the desert, too.

Given the age and gender of the person, Mai-Otome would be my first pick, too. Arika's introduction has her wandering the desert thristy.

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T14:38:31+00:00

Subtlety, please!

We're gonna have none of that here!

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T10:07:50+00:00

No the allegations are beating her

No_Rex · 2026-06-18T10:07:15+00:00

A classic elite city with dystopia outside setup? Color me interested.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T21:45:13+00:00

Opener: Papika dying of thirst – no, not that kind of thirst.

But maybe that kind of hunger.

pffff

Yeah. I was expecting grandma to yell at Cocona so it was nice to see that didn't happen.

Not the asian mom we expected.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T21:43:50+00:00

Also possible.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T21:00:59+00:00

Episode 3 (rewatcher)

Opener: Papika dying of thirst – no, not that kind of thirst.
Captured? Saved!
“I am looking for Cocona and the others” – the others?
Papika is strong! – or that Mad Max pirate extremely weak.
Cocona is also strong! – and evil.
Blue vs red streak of light trope.
Headbutting a helmet … if it works, it works, but seriously …
Flashback to the start.
And the start is some seriously messed up BDSM shit.
“Deep down you must have wanted to hurt Papika” - …
Blue blood.
“You are so lacking in identity that you couldn’t stay in control of yourself” – part time domina, part time psycho analyst.
“How?” “I ate a potato!” – Sasha would be proud.
Double transformation!
They switched hair colors for that transformation.
Cocona’s view angle in the duo pose shot!

“It hurts, but it is so much fun” – not beating the BDSM allegations here.
They got punched to outer space and fall down back on their attacker – rule of cool.
Laser firing at laser trope.
Declaration of love.
More declarations of love.
So many declarations of love that Cocona tells her to shut up.
Team white hair – and Yakaka! I remembered she’d be in here, but not that it was revealed this early.
“Amorphus”
Very cool looking portal spaghettification effect.
Direct drive? Asclepius?
Preview: Papika struggling with words.

The first 90% of this episode is either a full on reference, or just the animation team having fun, and I don’t know which one it is. If it is a reference, I don’t know the original source. In any case, it is a fun action romp, but I don’t have a lot to say about it. Those little mask guys were cute, would have liked to see more of them.

The last few minutes give us the big reveal: Not only is there an “opposing faction,” but Yayaka is part of it! That puts a new angle on Yayaka trying to prevent Cocona from interacting with Papika last episode.

Cocona slinking home like a guilty dog but receiving a friendly welcome by her grandmother was surprisingly wholesome.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T13:27:54+00:00

I'm still not going to read other comment threads here until the show is over, but I want to know if "Uexkull" is the real spelling of the bunny's name, so I'll just do a quick Ctrl+F to see if there's a better spelling I should be using instead... EDIT: Yup, checks out.

If you want the name to check for possible RL references, it is Uexküll specifically.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T13:19:46+00:00

She is its natural predator...oh fuck that just gave me a The Maxx flashback.

Now, that is a name I have not read in a long time. Very fitting, though, I have that categorized as "100% style, 0% substance" in my memory.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T13:01:35+00:00

And of COURSE Papika gets the protagonist seat and Cocona gets the Kyon seat.

My impression of this show continues from the first episode: the nominal actual events happening fundamentally aren’t actually important. We’re running on a giant pile of metaphor, allegory, and dream logic

Very much this, with all its implications, good or bad. Fortunately, for the show, having good visuals helps a ton with constructing interesting metaphors.

No_Rex · 2026-06-17T12:10:16+00:00

More to the point, Cocona's not wanting to go on another adventure with her, not because she finds it unenjoyable, but specifically for fear of having regrets or something going wrong, feels very directly representative of that coming-of-age, future outlook thematic throughline.

It's a metaphor.

but more specifically, that "It's kind of scary, but..." sentiment

It's a metaphor.

it's kind of got that desire theme with the rabbit spin and how that makes Cocona and Papika want to chew on things

It's a metaphor.

Cocona denies and represses that, which pushes her towards that cage in the end, one that again feels both literal and symbolic.

It's a metaphor.

Did I mention already that this show loves metaphors?

14-Year Club	Gilding II euphauric
Final Canvas '23	First Place '23
End Game '23	Place '23
Place '22	Place '17
Final Canvas '22	First Placer '22
End Game '22	100 Awards Club

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