Æon Flux is What Adult Animation Should Look Like

[@RandalltheVandal]

Seems this old video has gotten a second wind in the algorithm, so just wanted to say thanks for watching. If you stick around and subscribe, just know that right now my focus is on making my own independent films (one of which is already available on the channel), so I'm not posting videos regularly anymore. If you do subscribe, I hope you enjoy what I end up making.

[@adamkeasey655]

Your video probably did more to revitalize interest in Æon Flux than the rest of the collective internet combined.

[@Crash_2099]

It’s a good video. The algorithm chose you.

[@oanaalexia]

better late than never...

[@JesusRaves]

crazy that this video is so good yet so under appreciated

[@libbyshimmz]

@@JesusRaves As with most things in life that are cool, lol

[@JimStubblefieldGuitarist]

Drew, the composer of Æon Flux, is a player in my weekly Zoom D&D game. He’s a genius.

[@Spermicidee]

You can't just drop that and not elaborate my dude

[@jacobhamilton2473]

Bruh.............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

[@KillerQ13]

Strangely I don't own the DVD box set but I do own the Eye Spy CD released by Drew (with fun copyright avoidance) because ironically I couldn't pirate it in 2007. :D Interesting to see this comment.

[@fadplastic]

Easily one of the best soundtracks to a TV show. Super dynamic and original, whimsical at times but also strange and alien. Future Jazz meets Danny Elfman at a Japanese S & M bar.

[@deathrabbit8710]

Hey buddy, can you tell him hey from all of us here on KZbin? Drew is awesome. We'd love to hear about his tabletop exploits.

[@rtstrong]

"War" is my personal favorite because how it bounces between character to character, give each one a build up and then killing them off without remorse. Everyone is the hero of their own story but when you're time is up, your time is up.

[@CaitiffPrimogen]

War has many great moments, but I laughed long and loud at it's take on the "Indiana Jones vs the swordsman" fight

[@rmacarron]

"War" was obviously an inspiration for "The Demiurge" episode, which is definitely one of, if not, the best one

[@andrewcrossman2165]

Criminally underrated ; the music, the sound the picture, the story everything about this is masterwork. It's haunting it's beautiful. It's disturbing all the same time. It makes me sad that so few feels the same way.

[@ClaimClam]

Looks like a show Dan Schneider and his Hollyweird pervert buddies would love

[@thefearofg0ds758]

The worst thing is that when Aeon Flux was on air, a lot of us took it for granted and didn't realize we were seeing a style that we would never see again. The 90's was filled to the brim with weird edginess we assumed would last forever so Aeon Flux wasn't as striking as it is now when looking back(with how lackluster animation has become).

[@Death_By_Rebirth]

Well, technically we see the style again in Reign the Conqueror, but I know what you mean. The thing about it is that it was original, just like a lot of shit was back then. But there is a lot of weird original shit that comes out now on KZbin. Like, ok... the birthplace of Aeon Flux, Liquid Television. If they were making it today, there's a bunch of stuff out now that would be right at home on there, ranging from Umami's Interface to god damn Skibidi Toilet. Meat Canyon is killing it, and who can forget classics like Salad Fingers? All different, weird styles. Though it is true, Aeon Flux was something special

[@casualbularchy4850]

Here’s hoping more mature, dark, serious adult animation is made in the next decade.

[@longwlenguyen4214]

moviemetalhead Yeah but those two are too serious and confusing in a bad way and the animation is not that eye driven mind blow, I prefer something deadpan like Wes Anderson or hyper surrealism like Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius, Aeon Flux have all those formula, because it is not just both drama and weird but its also making fun of others melodramatic movies and tv shows for being un humane pretend to be a drama to force the audience to watch with their eyes rather than allow them to feel it in heart, mind and soul.

[@SirArthurTheGreat]

@@longwlenguyen4214 This is also just an issue with art in general, very few things are truly one of a kind

[@basedbattledroid3507]

Love Death and Robots is a good indication we're going to have some of that

[@GlipGlig]

Bojack Horseman fits that description kinda well, but it's still pretty light-hearted & is a comedy show, because when you have adult animation it can never just be serious, it seems to always have to be a comedy. Another one is Moral Orel, which I personally love way more. First two seasons are overall lighthearted, with some serious tones, but season 3 completely explores this serious angle with little to no comedy & god damn, is it a masterpiece.

[@Perroden]

Go live life if you want dark and depressing. ILl never understand why so many ppl love dark depressing themes.

[@not.so.gloomy.sunday5970]

The fact that this show is so unknown to American/European audiences highlighted how different the mechanism of internet popularity is/was in different regions. Coming from a country where media piracy used to be a norm until recent years, I've seen this show many times and it is considered one of the first go-to shows for beginners in alternative animation. Moreover, the amount of "underground" content was much higher in our internet as there was no difference between legal and illegal consumption, at least among people who were interested in weirder media

[@vodkasour8385]

Heh ,, I pirated this the second it was available back when Limewire was a thing,,,, I rewatched them so much, then suddenly one of my younger friends decided to get me the box set because he hated how (at the time ) we couldn't watch it on the (then new) HD tv lol .....I was 13 when it came out originally on Liquid Television, the only other thing good to come from Liquid Television was the Office Space shorts featuring Milton but that's only because we would have never gotten the movie Office Space lol Still don't understand how Aeon Flux isn't some Legend Anime with the "supposed anime fans" up there with the Studio Ghibli stuff Akira and the like (Shrugs....fkn Weird )

[@Ani-Oluwa]

Can you drop a list of weirder alternative media like this for someone like me who is really into that kind of content but from a third world country and don't know how to find them

[@Scorch1028]

You had to be somewhere between 13 and 20-years old in late-1994 to fully appreciate Aeon Flux's break through originality. Aeon Flux which debuted at the about the same time as MTV's "Oddities", defined the Developed World's "youth zeitgeist" of that time period. People who are too young to remember when the Aeon Flux cartoon was new may appreciate the show today, but back in the early to mid 1990s, MTV dominated youth pop-culture TV viewership like no other channel had ever done before or since.

[@chaseman94]

Actually Aeon Flux debuted on MTV Liquid Television in 1991.

[@-8h-]

Disagree with your first sentence.

[@benjaminkeith1417]

Note: it made it's way to Canada by I want to say 97/98 but...I'm old (38, joke) so maybe it was 95/96...I legit don't remember haha.

[@luzsyd]

Bitch l am older and loved it ... sound design and esthetics matter.

[@cocobutter3175]

I was born in 89 and remember aeon flux. I loved staying up and catching it on MTV. But to be honest, the Maxx was my favorite for some reason. Did I fully understand them? No. But I loved them. And I can look back now and fully appreciate them.

[@kaitlinsiegel2590]

There’s nothing else like Aeon Flux. Totally underrated and so influential. It’s nearly perfect. Thanks for talking about it! You’re not alone! 😗

[@benjaminkeith1417]

There’s nothing else like Aeon Flux" ... "The Maxx": at the TIME: was AS original despite NOW we could say Aeon since no genre came OUT of Flux: is "more original" where the Maxx inspired copycats...well...til today. aka Motion Comic's.

[@hulkhatepunybanner]

@@benjaminkeith1417 *It seems Flux may have influenced the fast-action, female-lead movies of the early 2000s. Resident Evil, Underworld, Ultraviolet. Pandemic diseases, corporate baddies, superhuman characters.*

[@bluedestiny88]

Reign: The Conqueror, I’d wager is similar to Aeon Flux given it’s the same animators

[@aaronlishus897]

Omg Right!

[@kaisarr7632]

Mtv was the best first of its kinds to being adult animated programming to a mainstream audience with liquid television and Aeon flux.

[@jasonguill2096]

We were asked in school what our favorite t.v. show was. I told the class "Liquid Television" and was subsequently laughed at. I've wish they would put the entire series on dvd. The whole show was great, but Aeon was the best.

[@glndlbro83]

"Go forth, and multiply." Last words spoken by Trevor Goodchild and, sadly, the last we would ever see of this strange and fascinating series.

[@Tigerman1138]

glndlbro83 Aron chooses to go into stasis with Trevor as the advanced-humans fo back to their planet.

[@wolfgang6442]

That was Honestly the most shocking/questionable ending I've ever seen for me at least

[@longwlenguyen4214]

Wolfgang 644 yeah, End sinister were very existential or in evolution theory.

[@benjaminkeith1417]

That was from the DVD (alot of lines were re-recorded): on the TV Version Originally he repeats the Line from the beginning of the Episode: making the ORIGINAL ending of Flux being... (Which I preferred): *"The Evolution, Revolution...may the best man win..."*

[@rl3045]

Watched Aeon Flux when I was kid in the 90s. Absolutely loved it.

[@tagreene06]

Aeon flux holds a special place in my heart. Part of my childhood

[@meowana6789]

true, why Aeon Flux isn't iconic and widely loved in internet is beyond my understanding. quality and depth is just on another level of what majority of nowadays animations can offer

[@rodsling]

Man, mtv used to stimulate animators by giving them lotta freedom but a low budget... so you got 10 min to tell the story... it left so many open questions that even trying to guess the ''what was that'' scene, lead you to another thing even more stimulating. Aeon flux was a complete visual pleasure.

[@MikeD-hn9hf]

The power of a constraints-led approach in action! Many big hollywood budget films could have done with a few more financial constraints and perhaps not have ended up AAA steaming messes ...

[@jacksquatt6082]

Thanks for drawing more attention to Aeon Flux. I first saw it at 2AM on MTV back in the 90's, and it blew my frickin' mind. My first episode was Thanatophobia, and Trevor's ending monologue always stuck in my head. A decade later when The Dark Knight came out in theaters, everyone thought I was crazy when I tried to tell them where the Joker's quote originally came from. "What doesn't kill us only makes us stranger."

[@michaelputman9832]

Glad that younger viewers are discovering this unique gem from the 90s. I never wanted to miss an episode or short on MTV back then. I loved how the show didn't get you long sci-fi exposition of what was going on. If you didn't get something, well, figure it out, or just wonder about it, since it's supposed to be a future alien world after all, and so of course you have culture shock while you are immersed inside it...

[@RandalltheVandal]

Meanwhile, in the live action movie: A wall of expositional text followed by a three minute long voice over containing even more exposition. And that's just the first 5 minutes.

[@Li_Tobler]

@@RandalltheVandal Ugh, I know right! The weirdness and understatement were amongst those things that made the animated series so memorable, intriguing and awesome

[@danhayek]

Every element of it was amazing to my young mind. Even the music still sounds incredibly futuristic and surreal. I miss that show!

[@wynfrithnichtwo8423]

The movie had no involvement of Peter Chung and the other creators of Aeon Flux. In fact Peter was severely embarrassed by the movie.

[@josiahz21]

Back when mtv was good. Not to mention maxx and the oddities. My face was glued to the screen.

[@conatcha]

I remember when I watched a short excerpt of the cartoon and I was so intrigued about it that I bought the whole DVD set without even watching some more or having further information about it. Never regretted it. It turned out to be my favorite cartoon in my adult age. There are so many things happening in a single episode that you always find something new every time you re-watch it. Its multi-layered plots are intriguing and fascinating. The movie was visually stunning but the plot is just another meh worn-out hollywood sci-fi story. I also recommend the PS2 video-game (which tries to approach the weirdness of the series) and "The Herodotus File" book.

[@Hypernefelos]

I love Aeon Flux. I used to watch it back in the 90s, and I've been rewatching it again from time to time afterwards. One point that I believe is overlooked is that its distinct visual style is owed to its influences being not so much American or Japanese as European. Comics and animation there (particularly in France) tended to be more unusual in style and more philosophical in script. I recommend the 1987 film Gandahar, which one can easily find on KZbin.

[@RandalltheVandal]

Yeah, I read an interview where Chung talked about how his art style was inspired by paintings. Interesting stuff.

[@nofanealbni]

The character design is very reminiscent of Austrian artist Egon Schiele

[@longwlenguyen4214]

Rob L Peter Chung did said he was inspired by both Moebius abd Egon Schiele

[@benjaminkeith1417]

Oddly "Nighthood" of all things is a good comparison lightly to the "French" ish animation style. Good Thought.

[@faustovrz]

@@RandalltheVandal I always associated the character design wit the Mannerist movement, "El Greco", The Burial of Count Orgaz, The Holy Trinity.

[@sinistersaint]

I talk about this show all the time; I revisit it every once in a while because of how unique and nostalgic it is. Thank you for giving it some love!!

[@chall3810]

I remember my older cousin used to watch this among other shows when he'd lounge about my house. At the time I was 5 and with Disney being my only exposure to animation this show haunted my dreams for years. No joke, this show gave me nightmares. I never forgot it and I haven't seen it since. The only thing I remembered besides the creepy animation was that the main character always died at the end. Till today, I wasn't sure if it was a figure of my imagination or if it was actually true till the narrator mentioned it at 6:54. A 30 year old mystery has been closed on my childhood

[@RandalltheVandal]

Lol, glad I could solve that for you

[@m56214]

Yeah Aeon Flux creeped me out too I would have like it if the characters didnt have lacrimal caruncle

[@tonyhutto3049]

@@RandalltheVandal me too, I've almost forgotten aeon flux, except that I could remember the fly on the eye when I was trying to create a motif for the band. ("What was that?...something Flux, ion...)

[@lillith7257]

Figment*

[@davids9027]

Thanks for promoting the apparently forgotten Aeon Flux. I watched Liquid Television in order to catch this creative animation and figure out what the heck was going on. I never had a clue but watched it anyway.

[@thezec]

I really like some of Trevor’s monologues, almost Shakespearean I bought the DVD about 10 years ago after watching it online after remembering them rerunning them on mtv back In 2003 but they put them on at like 2:30am so didn’t watch them fully...decided to rewatch the episodes today and see if anyone had done some positive reviews on KZbin. I hope this show gets more exposure, it’s so underrated.

[@Deathknightofdeath]

I could not agree more. I remember this show blowing my mind as a young teenager and I still regularly watch it. I too am surprised it isn’t more popular. Thank you for making this video to honor it.

[@EddyKansas]

Aeon Flux is hands down, both my favorite animation and series . The lack of exposure for the show is truly regrettable. Thank you for making this video. I highly recommend seeking out the many text interviews Peter Chung did regarding Aeon Flux, they are absolutely fascinating and show just how much thought went into making the series.

[@RandalltheVandal]

Thanks! I definitely intend to do that. Though, it would be helpful if you had any links to some of the text interviews. Sometimes everything doesn't pop up on Google, you know? Also, feel free to share this video around as an Aeon Flux fan recruitment tool. I want this series to get more attention just as much as you do.

[@EddyKansas]

@@RandalltheVandal Got you covered chief, these are the ones I've read: monican-spies.livejournal.com/44607.html www.artofthetitle.com/title/aeon-flux/ formerpeople.wordpress.com/2014/02/28/aesthetics-in-flux-a-conversation-with-peter-chung/ There are definitely more out there though. For sure, you've made a really good video to get someone excited about the show. Oh, and actually, for ages I've been using the Bennett video to recruit, I think I even have a high rated comment there. Anyway, in conversations I use it as an example of how not to do art analysis whenever that comes up, which lets me talk about the actual show!

[@RandalltheVandal]

@@EddyKansas Thanks for the links! and nice! that's how to do it! Yeah, I hated his video. He communicated his opinion poorly, it was full of cringey skits, he seemed to go out of his way to misinterpret the show, and worst of all, he did it all with a forced "angry" attitude that just made him look like an ass. Maybe he's a cool guy irl, but that video is dogshit.

[@benjaminkeith1417]

@@EddyKansas While I agree Episode's like The Demiurge really allow alot of interpretation (The dying for ***n's sins etc option/concept) Just remember one thing they coped out to on the DVD for... "Chronophasia" = *Oh well um...this is one of the moments the writers out baffle themselves.* (The MTV Producer whose name escapes me) Chung Himself: *Yeah haha, all we know here is the baby is coming.* But...even without INTENT: you can make a argument: you can still ADD context: meant or not XD.

[@vginsprdsobepr9698]

I loved Liquid Television on MTV. Aeon Flux was the most popular short for good reason.

[@mars8916]

Aeon Flux is a classic, I have been writing to Wisecrack for ages suggesting they cover it. This was a great video, my only difference of opinion is that I really like Aeon and Trevor's voice acting, I think they capture the weirdness perfectly

[@RandalltheVandal]

Wisecrack wouldn't do it justice. They rarely do anything justice because their content is just so sanitized and made for general consumption (also probably why you'll never see it on their channel unless it gets popular because they only care about covering trending topics for more views). IMO, I'd rather see an independent KZbinr analyze it than some online media company like Wisecrack. It'd feel more genuine coming from a single person.

[@mars8916]

@@RandalltheVandal Perhaps, however i think they often cover material that is not mainstream. I have seen them do deep dives on movies like Tetsuo : the iron man that are over an hour long.

[@kellengrant9047]

Aeonflux was one of my favorite movies when I was little and when I saw this cartoon a few years ago, I just loved it! I'm so gald you made this video.

[@Drew791]

Aeon Flux holds a special place in my heart and mind. I was 8 years old watching the shorts air live on Liquid Television. This animation will always stick in my head for the rest of my life.

[@liamace1107]

"Hands down, Æon Flux is the best non-sitcom adult animation that has ever been made in the US" As far as television series go, you're unfortunately very on point. There have been some great movies though like Mary and Max, It's A Beautiful Day and Anomalisa.

[@bostonscharwarth7408]

Ralph bakshi also made some bangers, check out Wizards!

[@bam3405]

Mary and Max is Australian though... We're going to ignore all the great movies and shows coming from America like The Midnight Gospel, Castlevania, Invincible, Hit Monkey, Smiling Friends(It's absurdist black comedy not really a sitcom imo), The Isle of Dogs, 9, and many more. Those are just some recommendations off the top. Also Bojack is a sitcom, but it's more of a breakdown and dissection of the sitcom formula rather than a boring repeat. Just my two cents

[@slorenz5626]

Mostly anime is forgettable is wild that Americans puts anime in a pedestal 😆

[@redsun9261]

​@@slorenz5626 Random anime is just as worthless as a random movie and TV series. It is only a one in thousands which is a timeless masterpiece, like every other kind of art.

[@Ghorda9]

@@redsun9261 i wouldn't say one in a thousand, more like one in a hundred. you just don't hear about most of them

[@Tigerman1138]

I remember being college watching this, Daria, Beavis & Butthead, and this show was my favorite. It was everything you said and more. I always loved her totally antihero/non-taking of sides. First one I saw was with the two exotic creatures with feathers and how at the end Irma was flying off with the male only to have a small insect bite her and we realize her joys may be shortly lived.

[@benjaminkeith1417]

@@ncshuriken In full, Trevor, “Go to hell.” Aeon, “Will you fly me there? (Kiss) Some people aren’t meant to be together.” So many good ending lines.

[@haruko1501]

No, that ep with the feathered creatures was so sad. It was definitely the most heartbreaking ep of Aeon Flux

[@Alpha-T800]

Thanks for this! Great analysis. I grew up as a young teen watching Aeon Flux and it’s still impactful even today.

[@AzyrealLal]

Loved aeon flux growing up. Started watching in elementary school, and was a major inspiration for me. I was really proud of noticing similarities between Rugrats and aeon flux as a kid. Color pallette, sounds and the way they draw tongues. Later in life I learned they were created by the same guy! Just wanted to share

[@jimboswamps5602]

Loved the shorts ! Then they made them longer and it blew my mind! Hearing her speak was amazing!

[@ArnnelMalcolm]

Aeon Flux was one of the first weird animation shows I found when diving through animation. It absolutely blew me away and I've been obsessed with it since I was a teen. The Maxx also had an awesome animation and interesting story. Really, it makes me wish MTV had continued to ezplore running through the adult animation scene.

[@rablezezze6715]

Brings me joy that I see some one covering this!!! One of my favourite adult animated series.

[@devine999]

this show is what got me started working in Animation. I've been working in it for 25 years now. This and The Maxx. they were on around the same time.

[@noneofyourbusiness1114]

How do u go about getting into the animation industry and what's that like?

[@AiRbaL2000]

Got any stylized sci fi mature animation in the works?

[@devine999]

@@AiRbaL2000 I wish, well...not like Aeon, but I do have something cool coming out next year. Something different.

[@tnh723]

I actually liked their voices, Tevor and Aeon's. We stayed up late for it and didnt care if it was an episode we had already seen more than a few times already. We never knew how good we had it. This show and The Maxx

[@antwill7916]

Video taped every episode when I was younger. Also ripped the DVDs... but a few years ago, I realized it was on iTunes, and immediately bought all 3 seasons (Season 1 is the Pilot, Season 2 are the 5 early shorts where she dies each episode, and Season 3 seems to be the full season that ran). Im kinda glad this didn't catch on with the millennials cuz, despite the movie, Aeon Flux was pure 90's MTV after hours gold. This and Cowboy Bebop were quality animation viewing at its best.

[@jpbell82]

CBS All Access is streaming the longer episodes, but not the LiquidTV stuff. It's totally worth the trial or even a full month of service just for Aeon. This series has a special place in my heart, and it makes me happy to see someone drawing attention to it.

[@ImUpsetThatYouStoleMyUsername]

saw the first part of an episode when i was 7 as i was leaving a friends house and was absolutely mindblown. he's spot on though, it's layered with all kinds of esoteric symbolism.. you could almost consider it as symbolic as poetry. Probably why it doesn't have a huge following, frankly it's high-brow.

[@amandasutton3717]

I loved Aeon Flux as a kid. The visuals were so wild, even if I was too young to watch it at the time (8 or 9?).

[@Dr0dd]

Thank you for talking about this, giving it some exposure! It sure is strange how completely this show got buried. It seemed like not even 10 years ago there was still a lot more interest in it, even on the internet. For the record, there used to be more videos, especially uploads, but most of those got scrubbed for copyright. An upload of the show's intro even had a million views.

[@armchairgravy8224]

Liquid Television on MTV was insanely influential on late 80s-early 90s animated storytelling. Aeon Flux was one of many ground breaking vignettes.

[@delightfullypiquant765]

Aeon Flux was so unique for the time - so ahead of its time. I’m still surprised that more studios didn’t try to emulate it. one thing i do disagree with is the voice acting, i quite liked it. sure, the voice acting was rough around the edges, just like the animation, but Aeon and Trevor’s voice carried weight and panache. not like the same recycled voice actors of today. the live action movie was a heartbreak, it wasn’t even that bad, it was just that it didn’t bear any resemblance to Aeon Flux. anyway, liked your video, keep up the good work. just subscribed.

[@RandalltheVandal]

thanks

[@Shinobubu]

I have never forgotten Aeon Flux. It's a part of my youth and inspiration in becoming an artist.

[@desenova9135]

Strange to think, that as a child I remember glimpses of this show, but fully remembered it because of its artstyle, which inspired one of my favorite cartoons as a kid, Phantom 2040. When I discovered there was a dvd collection, I jumped on it. This show is the cult classic of cult classics, with a beauty in those who know of it, and something just odd, yet burns into your mind the moment you see it. Just like H.R. Giger's art direction for Alien, Peter Chung is completely unchallenged in his style. It is a shame that this isn't bigger within nerdom. The action and stories were layered and unfiltered; the voice acting is superb; it's weird in all of the good ways, and uncomfortable ways as well, pushing those envelopes well beyond their seams.

[@chillausmc]

I remembered Liquid Television and purchased the Mtv dvd in a bookstore. Years later found the same set you have. I hope no one ever watches the live action movie. Thanks for the time and effort it took to put this video together. I will watch Aeon again soon.

[@Kny8]

I was obsessed with this show. I have both the vhs and dvd, even the live action movie. My favorite episode is “A last time for everything”.

[@paulcronie5110]

It was absolutely amazing being a teenager in the 90s and having your mind blown by the discovery of Aeon Flux! The anticipation you felt as each weekend drew closer and you would get to watch another episode! I completely agree with you, Aeon Flux is a masterpiece. It was so weird for me to hear you say in your video that you had just discovered Aeon Flux (4 years ago), because Aeon Flux has been in my life, and on my mind for around 30 years haha. But im so glad people are still discovering this work of art. I used to record the episodes each week on VHS. Then, sometimes while rewatching them, i would be struck by a certain image, & pause the tape so I could draw that image. I love the artwork so much. You will see that one of the influences was the artist Egon Schiele, who I came across in art class in high school but didnt connect the influence of his art on Aeon Flux until much later in life. I have been meaning to buy the DVD, because I also cannot find Aeon Flux anywhere online to watch. I've forgotten some of the episodes, so it will be amazing to rewatch everything again. Great video, & analysis of this amazing series, I hope it introduced Aeon to a lot of others! 🙂

[@riangfys5241]

I've been obsessed with Æon Flux since I was a teenager. So glad to find this video.

[@dr.c7679]

loved aeon flux, but also fell in love with tron uprising. same feel and beautiful world building.

[@basedbattledroid3507]

I only discovered this show late last year and it's already my favorite thing ever televised.

[@lechugalechuga44]

I was too young to watch it back when it aired, but I remember my mom was a big fan and in my case, being fascinated by the art style. Watching your video reminded me that I wanted to watch it lol

[@TheWayfarerFamily]

I remember this show from mtv when I was younger, was really attracted to it’s bizarre world but was too young to grasp it. I found this show AGAIN back in 2004, and it has remained beloved. There is nothing like it. Love the stories, the themes, the detail and the quirky characters and the art style. It’s so experimental and wonderfully weird, it’s a shame peter chun couldn’t revive it or produce further worlds. He did take part in another series about Alexander the Great with a similar style... also interesting. But it is nothing compared to Aeon Flux. Also... I watched the show so many times that the voices of aeon and Trevor in particular actually ADD to the strange world in a strangely theatrical way... for me at least.

[@RandalltheVandal]

Yeah, I've gotten several comments from older fans who say the voice acting adds to the weirdness for them. I guess I just haven't warmed up to it that much yet.

[@wmhaynwwsmn]

Where did you find it

[@TheWayfarerFamily]

@@wmhaynwwsmn I have the old DVDs still, sure it’s available somewhere on blue Ray. It’s definitely floating around online somewhere. Found a download site a few years ago. Not sure how it will be received now. Maybe you have to have that nostalgia around it to fully appreciate it...

[@itsalwayshalloweenexceptwh5118]

I saw the animated aeon flux in the early 2000's and I was probably too young to appreciate it. It thought it was bizarre, weirdly gross, artsy fartsy but also pretty interesting. It reminds me a lot of the animated Phantom series (I don't know if they're related somehow). I'm glad Aeon Flux exists though, because I'm sure it inspired more thought provoking animation for adults. My favorite animated show intended for adults is The Venture Brothers.

[@pb2325]

This show was massive in the 90s but there was no way to binge watch them. Anime also blew up around the same time.

[@robertnewman4854]

You have no clue how glad I am to see that this review is higher in the search results than that paste eater BennettTheSage's video. This series really need some positive attention.

[@RandalltheVandal]

"paste eater" lmao, good one

[@ChangedMyNameFinally69]

Too bad his still has more views. Him and the rest of the Channel Awesome drek were cancer to Internet criticism

[@KOTEBANAROT]

four years later but i always love to dunk on bennet, worst reviewer ive seen. his smug aura coupled with zero understanding of the themes and messages mocks me

[@6amsunset_]

since seeing the movie many months ago, the series has been in my watch list. two days ago I finally started watching and I finished it yesterday. I was shocked, surprised, amazed, mind blown, and I instantly bought the DVD set box. i couldn't have asked for anything more

[@ICE-SICK-ILL]

Hey man I'll say without a doubt this is the first time I've seen your channel and I can respect your view on Aeon Flux. My dad showed me Aeon Flux when I was younger and I truly truly love it. And I agree why doesn't it have a much bigger cult following it should!

[@in_10z]

As a HUGE fan of the Aeon series when it came out (and now), this was an awesome review and overview of the amazing series. Thank you!

[@I4r5]

Don't agree on the voice acting, I personally think it's one of the best voice acting ever made, especially for Aeon and Trevor. It's a very personal opinion on both sides.

[@wolfgang6442]

Same too on that, they bounced of quite well with each other

[@yauselva]

Aeon Flux is the best animation ever mate, and there is an OST to follow. Watched it on old dead Mtv (RIP). I simply love every aspect of it, and Trevor is one of the deepest "villains" I can remenber

[@user-bj2lu9qt3o]

Here's the fan base. From the very first hour on Mtv. It blew my mind. They did a series? They talk? Sorry, no, that doesn't work for me. Aeon Flux is the shorts to me. And it's perfect that way. A perfect piece of art that needs no further line. Thanks for this, very well done.

[@user-bj2lu9qt3o]

@@ncshuriken Nice comment. You made me interested in the series - maybe I should give it a try. Though I don't think you necessarily have to be drugged to have ideas like that. 3:05 Rugrats were actually before Aeon. To me, especially the bodies, remind me of Egon Schiele's art.

[@tommy1138]

@@user-bj2lu9qt3o The entire DVD set is only 12.95 on Amazon. Easily worth it. The standard episodes are every bit as weird as the shorts, there's just more story, character development and dialogue to chew on.

[@alexboyd2693]

I've loved Aeon Flux since I saw the first episode on Liquid Television over thirty years ago. Such an intriguing show. I wish there was more of it as well.

[@cramerfloro5936]

I just watched the movie and while looking at the Wikipedia page to see it's release date, I saw that it's based on an animated series and immediately came here to see what the original is all about

[@link4444swords]

Fan of animation. Never heard of Aeon Flux until now. Really grateful to find out thanks to you. Western animation has always deserved more.

[@jamesnowpresents]

I'm so happy you made this video! I remember watching Aeon Flux as a kid and it had a significant impact on me. It was one of the reasons I wanted to try and create art and animation! I agree! I can't believe there isn't a larger following. Thank you so much for this! :D

[@SeanMcGown]

I remember when they first came out. They were mesmerizing. I liked Scavengers Reign more recently.

[@ladygrey4113]

Scavengers reign mentioned!

[@lkeke35]

Thank you for this. I was searching for information about the show, and came acorss this video. its been some twenty years since I watched this show, and it is a sad thing that its gotten no love since it's last airing.

[@RandalltheVandal]

You're welcome. Stay tuned for when I upload my 30 minute video deconstructing the live action movie, detailing why it turned out so bad and how it buried the show.

[@InfiniteDarkMass]

This is incredible, I just got to the point where you first talk about the hallucinogenic effect (around 4:44) and got a massive Deja Vu. "Wait, I've seen something simiral just yesterday! What was it?" After a minute of deliberation I remembered - yesterday I watched "POV: The Anime forces itself on you" I was disappointed by it all being one big ad at the end, but it still had some interesting stuff, including the scene at 4:13, which came as a surprise, and is the scene I was reminded of.

[@eddiehjalmarsson5966]

This has been one of my favorite shows since I saw an episode on MTV as a kid in the late 90's/early 2000's

[@jwheeler1106]

Well what I’ve always loved about Aeon Flux is in an era where independent animators thought the only option for an animated series was comedy, here Peter Cheung took an entirely different approach and went serious.

[@katzenjammer626]

Wow, been years since I remembered about this shows existence. I remember being both fascinated and weirded out by this as a kid. I relly wish western animation had more shows like this. Luckily in the past couple years it seems that western animation aimed at more adult audiences that do not rely on comedy are in the rise. -Season 5 of Samurai Jack. -Lastman (this one's amazing, really check it out) -Castlevania (which producers said that they've got more videogame adaptations like this in the making) -Love, Death and Robots. -Primal. -Undone. I hope this trend continues and becomes more common in the following years.

[@IndieGuvenc]

interface

[@tomatedesign1976]

I owned both the VHS and the DVDs of this, and have to say there should be a degree of "Han Shoots First" outrage over some of the changes.

[@michelleomealy1389]

I remember watching this on Liquid TV..always thought it was way beyond any thing I had seen before. Introduced it to my daughter who has become a fan.

[@deletedwaffles]

I was obsessed with Æon Flux as a kid. Use to watch this late at night when everyone was asleep and I was so sucked into it. It had short segments on an MTV animation show called Liquid Television (also a very cool showcase of bizarre animated media). This and The Maxx were probably two of my favorite adult animated western shows.

[@christophersnyder3241]

That was an awesome show in the early days of Mtv, for sure. The meanings of the characters demeanor are very deep, based on love is more powerful than deception and cannot be compromised.

[@cdmarkandu]

Well done for bringing this to KZbin !!! This series was amazing!!!

[@333kenshin]

Amen dude. I recently came across Dead Fantasy and Haloid and was impressed by the equally frenetic and inventive action, and then realized I'd seen it decades earlier on LiquidTV. As a kid I saw bits of Pilot at a friend's house before my family got cable, and it left such an impression that years later, I stayed up late every weeknight in the off chance they'd show Aeon Flux

[@RandalltheVandal]

Dead Fantasy and Haloid were made by the late Monty Oum who went on the animate fight scenes in Red vs Blue and RWBY. You should check those out if you haven't. Some of his best work is in those shows.

[@JDEvans2009]

Loved watching these growing up in the 90s, still living with great love in the memories.

[@themapplesperiod]

There definitely needs to be more discussion about this online. The show is truly mesmerizing and weird. Always shows and rarely tells. I'd like for nothing more than a netflix series to be made continuing the story.

[@jeanklare8209]

I remember watching the Aion Flux pilot on my small screen CRT TV in the early nineties as a student, coming home drunk to my crappy student appartment late a night. It was something else, indeed. Somethig I'd never seen, and I'v never seen since.

[@migthulhu]

I watched these episodes when they were first broadcast and taped them along with the other Liquid Television shorts. Absolutely my favorite.

[@RandalltheVandal]

so you have tapes of the original versions? Dude, you need to find a way to upload or share that. There's a lot of people, including myself, who would love to have access to the broadcast versions of episodes like End Sinister. I don't think the changes to the dialogue in the director's cuts are bad, but I am curious as to what the original versions were like.

[@chaseman94]

The reason why I stayed up late on Sunday nights around 1991-1993.

[@danielhinton6954]

Does end sinister still end abruptly? I had a torrented version that had really shoddy picture quality in the final episode and it ended a few seconds before it's supposed to.

[@eyek96]

I watched the entire series as a kid! It completely warped my understanding of how messed up a story can be and many things seem too tame since I also have that DVD box at home XD

[@MrTibbs90]

I loved the movie. I never knew there was originally animated shorts. But, I was watching Cartoon Network and Space Ghost Coast to Coast in the late 90's.

[@ElfHostage]

14:27 All 10 episodes are now on Paramount+ 🔥

[@KeeSomething]

Excellent! I've always been curious about the show due to its distinct artstyle. I'm gonna pick it up on DVD next time I'm out.

[@starfthegreat]

Someone I follow posted an Aeon Flux GIF on Twitter and I immediately knew I needed to watch it. I found a good torrent, and wow what a gem! I really hope more people get to watch it eventually

[@MehdiHusain]

I sometimes have to check if I didn’t just dream that show up. As Trevor Goodchild would put it, « What doesn’t kill us makes us stranger. »

[@dustycatt]

Good video! I would also add that the humour in this show is great. There was something hilarious about aeon's clumsiness in combination with her overall coolness. And I would say this theme continued in dialogue as well

[@alchemygathering9049]

Watched Aeox Flux when I was 6. I think it embedded in my psyche and is responsible for my personality 🔥

[@wpkzz]

Hey Randal, nice critique and exposition. As you, I am amazed that it is much more famous, but mostly, I thought IT WAS. You see, maybe it is because I am much older than you, but all the cool teens of the 90's here in Mexico KNEW this show. So I am surprised that it is no longer known in the USA. We saw it on the MTV back in the days and it was soo popular people had t-shirts with the characters on it.

[@soozhime]

We'll I don't like Evangelion but Æon Flux was one of my favorite things to watch on the old MTV (I want to buy the DVD I didn't know existed xD). It was really nice to see your video :)

[@johnnyfountainS]

*hugs my Aeon Flux dvd box set*

[@soozhime]

😂

[@longwlenguyen4214]

@@soozhime I sorta agreed with you despite I respect Evangelion creator direction but I feel all the characters are too forcing and fanservice unlike Aeon Flux sexiness liberation serve her interest only and males gaze her for her not them.

[@jkjoegunz]

I have, for 25 years, been trying to remember the name of this show(I saw it as a child). The movie and the Japanese animation kind of threw me off, I never thought that they was based on a "western" animation. You have my heartfelt thanks for helping reintroduce me to this series.

[@RandalltheVandal]

You're welcome!

[@djcisjenner]

My sister was born in '87, me in '99. When I was maybe 4, my parents put on a VHS of home movies of her as a kid for me. After about 30 minutes, the VHS cuts to two episodes of Liquid Television that she had taped over her baby videos. I wore that thing out by the time I was 7. Definitely shaped who I am as a person today. Aeon made me gay

[@phuckyou6314]

What? A cartoon influenced your sexual preferences?….

[@stax5ave380]

​@@phuckyou6314 you didn't think kids could be influenced by art ?

[@strikertedits]

Ikr so childish I hope I a joke

[@djcisjenner]

@@phuckyou6314 yes i saw how cool women could be i’m a lesbian buddy 🩷

[@KittyCatMo]

Thank you so much for putting this out there. Criminally underrated. Loved the show and shorts and sure do miss Liquid Television.... what a cool different time it was back then

[@RandalltheVandal]

You're welcome

[@peterkoinzell7983]

When one of the problems with the show are that the episodes aren't long enough. I personally didn't find the voice acting bad, now that you mention it, it is kinda bad but I had just found it weird and weirds not bad to me. Everything about the show felt really off the cuffs almost. Like complete artistic freedom was used here with seemingly no interest in being the same to anything or normal for anyone. I recommend Primal and season 4 Samurai Jack if you like this one. These 3 are rare masterpieces in my mind when everything else these days is so mundane.

[@DarkManifest]

How wonderful to see Aeon Flux getting a little of the recognition it deserves! I've never sees its weird creativity and philosophical depth matched by any Western animation since. Aeon herself is also a very rare example of a female antihero. It's just such a great show in many ways and I wish we could see more like it.

[@laynefangs]

I had meant to watch this series - I really like Peter Chung's art style in the Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury

[@RandalltheVandal]

Yeah, I saw he was involved in that! It's just a shame he hasn't been able to make another Aeon Flux style TV show yet. I feel it'd be really popular if released on a streaming service.

[@chrisbird4913]

Simply having knowledge of evolution means we affect it's direction, either way, to deliberately revert to a naturalistic lifestyle or to adapt our environment or adapt our physiology to fit our environment, it is the knowledge of the paths existence that would force a conscious choice.