2/5 Only One-Third of Product
  by Wally Waffles (Utah, USA)
The original DVDs of this series sell for roughly $32 a piece in Japan (as "Oh!Mikey"). I had been waiting ages for these to go on sale at Amazon Japan, when I accidently discovered that ADV Films was releasing this series in America as simply "The Fuccons." Well, ADV Films has much experience importing anime, so surely they would handle this appropriately, right? WRONG!

I got to the last episode of Volume 1 and realized the title displayed "Episode 45" or something like that, when I couldn't possibly have watched forty-five 3- to 5-minute episodes in less than an hour! I started the disk over and checked the episode numbering, and sure enough, every few episodes the numbering would skip.

Well, what the hell happened??!! Sure, some episodes of Oh!Mikey aren't all that funny, but that's no reason to skimp out with a DVD that runs only 52 minutes long!

As for the English dubbing, meh, what can I say? It's a(n American) *English* dub which always sucks, and the voice actors didn't speak at break-neck speeds like in the Japanese version which is part of the insanity of the Fuccons.

UPDATE - 2007.11.24:
Okay, I've viewed volumes 1-3 of the American release of this series and found that, despite the idiotic skipping of episodes, the first 52 episodes of "Oh!Mikey" are all collectively present on "The Fuccons" volumes 1-3. (Episodes 1-52 were originally distributed in Japan on Volumes 1-4 of "Oh!Mikey".)

Volume 1 contains the following epdisodes:
1 - Our New Life in Japan
2 - The Teacher's Visit
3 - The Teacher's Visit Continued...
4 - Mikey's Cousin
5 - Mikey Goes Shopping
8 - Mikey's Date
9 - A Heated Exchange
10 - Mikey And Milk
14 - Let's Go on a Picnic
15 - Mikey and the Ghost
23 - The Chill Wind of Structual Reform
24 - The Lady Tutor
33 - A Family Crisis
35 - A Courageous Stance
38 - Fly, Mikey!
40 - Mikey's Grandparents
42 - Grandma Comes to Japan

Regarding Vol. 0: Meet the Fuccons, which I haven't viewed, I get the idea that it's the actual "Vermilion Pleasure Night" shorts which preceeded this series (which were distributed on DVD in Japan as "The Fuccon Family").

Oh, and by the way, this series is NOT animated, neither is it "still photographs"; it consists of scenes of 90% motionless mannequins, filmed in front of a rolling camera, with crazy voice-overs.

3/5 A bizarre little show
  by Das Book (MD, USA)
I'll admit, I got a chuckle or two from this odd little Japanese show (and I do mean "little," since each episode is only about five minutes long--"The Fuccons" originated as a recurring skit on a Japanese variety show called "Vermillion Pleasure Night"), as well as the occasional outright laugh. For the most part, though, I found "The Fuccons" to be strangely unfunny considering the amount of hype that it's generated, both in its native Japan and in the US. Don't get me wrong, it's not the stereotypical view of Americans that I object to; on the contrary, I found that to be one of the highlights of the show, and although the humor is meant to poke fun at Americans, it's never mean-spirited, more the sort of ribbing that exists between close friends. Nor do I object to the use of mannequins; some of the funniest jokes were visual ones, like the scene where the kids are at the playground and there's no attempt to hide the fact that the kids are quite obviously lashed to the merry-go-round by the wrists and ankles or standing upright on the seesaw. Rather, I think the show's biggest failing is that, unlike certain other imported Japanese television shows that tend to veer too far from the source material ("Shin-Chan" being a prime example), "The Fuccons" is maybe a little TOO faithful; the jokes are almost always translated word-for-word from the Japanese, and as a result, the jokes more often than not simply fall flat because they involve word choices that are unintuitive to the American ear. This is especially obvious in the episode near the end where the family visits Mikey's grandparents; I don't think I laughed once during that episode. The show also seems to suffer in places from a strange conceit that the humor of a situation arises from the situation itself, rather than from the characters' reactions to it, which stands in stark contrast to most American television shows. (For example: Mikey is on the lawn. His mother is watering. Mikey says, "I'm getting wet!" His mother says, "Don't stand where I'm watering!" They laugh, the scene ends, and that's the entire joke.) But on the plus side, there's very little content that could realistically be considered offensive, and as I've stated before, "The Fuccons" is good for at least a few honest laughs. Definitely worth a look if you've got a few extra bucks to blow this week.

3/5 Unique...Odd...Humorous.
  by alightinsideme (Virginia , USA)
I just got this at bestbuy tonight. Ive never seen any commercials for it, but read that it was a popular hit on japanese tv. And i was looking for anything i could find that had something to do with japanese contemporary life, culture, society, etc; the only things i found were first Lost In Translation and this odd show on dvd.

It was 5.99 so i gave it a try...So far ive seen 9 of the episodes, which are real short. About 5 minutes, more or less, each.

I was dissapointed becouse i realised these "mannequins" were literally that. Motionless dumbies, like something you'd find in a scary department store. I really didnt expect they'd actually use mannequins in this show. And they dont walk around....THEY'RE FROZEN MANNEQUINS ...not to be confused with marrionetts.

I thought this show's characters were done in CGI, all computer generated, but using a real-life backdrop of modern day japan.

The first two episodes or so were just kind of confusing for me, i didnt know if i was annoyed, or if i was still giving this show a chance.

But so far i feel now im glad i kept watching it, cuz i was introduced to
Teacher Bob" and his Mom. LOL.

Thats the suttle simplicistic genuious shining through in this show, and for me, it all starts when Teacher Bob takes a visit to Mikey's house to meet and talk with him and his mother and father....accomanied by Bobs Mom.

To me its not fall-outta-your-seat hilarity....i wouldnt call this show even 'hilarious' to begin with. But its still kinda funny. Its the kind of humor that you laugh a lot on the inside and lough out loud here and there.

If you like japanese pop culture or are fimilar with their 'unique' sense of humor, then i think you'll appreciate it. I for one do. So far, so 'OHKAY', is what i think. Im despret for anything current in japanese culture, in ways of movies and music, and fashion. So i just take it all in.

The family is sort of a mocked-up exaggeration of a 50's nuclear family...or something...kinda having fun with the sorta Leave It To Beaver, Danna Reed , Nick At Night/ Tv Land family of that era.

By the way , the sets and places used in the show are fresh and sterile looking. Like its all a lifesize doll house come to life...sort of.
And the characters do show some movement...in a way...for instance, youll suddenly see a door open , suggesting someone is opening it themselves, or youll see someone moving back in forth on a swing. lol. I dont think they invested too much money on this show, but either way its paying off i think.

As you might have noticed, the dvd comes with the choice of watching it with japanese language with english subtitles, or just English voice dubbing.

I wanted to experience this show in its original way, so im watching it with original japanese language.

It took me a little bit to get used to...Heck, im still getting used to this ...8 more "episodes" to go lol. ( I wish atleast they could of made the episodes longer...thats the one thing ill really critize about this show. Ill be open minded to the strange style and even with the lifeless mannequins...but these "episodes" are more like brief skits...and yes i heard that this show original started out as little short features...still...i wish they were longer. Oh well.)

I think ill end up liking this show a lot.
And so far , i owe it all to Teacher Bob....and his mom.

4/5 Strange (yet good) humor -- ohohohohohoho!
  by M. Thom
Volume one of "The Fuccons" will have a lot of repeat episodes for people who watched the volume #0 release (which contains a scattered few episodes as a preview). However, there are also several new ones which are incredibly good. They have rediculous scenarios throughout the series, although the episodes are just shy of three minutes each.

For people who do not have any knowledge of Japanese culture, some of this will go completely over their heads (in particular, the teacher-visit, the "ghost" episode, the reference to Japanese theme parks and Sunday's being the only free day, etc.). Also, despite the TV14 rating assigned to the disc, there is an episode which, in the English subtitles, uses the 'F' word multiple times (I know this wouldn't bother some people, but others might be showing it to younger children).

You have to go into it expecting stupid humor. Most of the "storylines" are fairly pointless, and a lot of the humor is based on absolutely nutty scenarios involving drowning mannequins, grandparents with absolutely no memory whatsoever (and it's apparently always been this way), failed attempts at elementary-school romance, a cousin with no manners and a borderline bi-polar disorder, and some sexual innuendo between the father and the tutor. If you don't like insane laughing, "The Fuccons" is not for you, as this is the trademark of the show.

If you're unsure as to whether you would like "The Fuccons" or not, I highly recommend you purchase volume #0 first to see what you think about the twisted humor. This show may be construed as offensive to some American audiences, as it basically jabs at Americans in general (as well as their inability to function in Japanese society). This is definitely not for everyone, and requires a certain "taste" to appreciate.

1/5 Horrible show,
  by
How could anyone in the right mind say this crap was funny? It's the most unfuuny thing iv'e ever seen in my entire life. It's so unbelievably annoying, It's maddening. And I thought it would be good based on the preview, which was funny, but god was I wrong.

This show is a waste of money!!!