The Fuccons centers on an American family who have relocated to Tokyo after the father, James Fuccon, receives a job transfer. The family consists of James, his wife Barbara, and their eight-year-old son Mikey, who attends an American school in Japan. What makes the series immediately distinctive is that every character is portrayed by a mannequin, filmed in real locations with minimal off-camera movement, their frozen smiles and glassy eyes creating a stark contrast with the absurd and often darkly comic situations they inhabit.

The series originated as recurring sketches on the late-night Japanese variety show Vermilion Pleasure Night before becoming its own program, airing on TV Tokyo from 2002 to 2005 across eight seasons totaling 104 episodes, each running approximately three minutes. The narrative structure is non-continuous, with episodes presenting bizarre, outlandish conflicts that are resolved—or more often, left unresolved—by the end of each short segment. A signature device is that every episode concludes with all characters laughing hysterically, regardless of how grim or unsettling the preceding events may have been.

Mikey Fuccon is a kind-hearted but exceptionally naive third-grader who becomes the frequent victim of the strange events unfolding around him. His parents present a cheerful facade that barely conceals their neglectful and self-absorbed natures. James, a 40-year-old salaryman, is flirtatious and prone to outlandish suggestions, while Barbara, in her mid-thirties, bosses Mikey around and believes the world revolves around her. Both have engaged in extramarital affairs, and their parenting often veers into emotional abuse played for surreal laughs. A recurring love triangle develops between Mikey, his sweet-natured classmate Emily, and his manipulative 12-year-old cousin Laura, who secretly harbors romantic feelings for Mikey despite their familial relationship. Laura frequently torments Mikey with pranks and threats to return to America, alternating between protectiveness and cruelty. Other regular characters include Teacher Bob, a man so shy he communicates by whispering to his mother who interprets for him, and the British twin brothers Tony and Charles, who speak in unison before inevitably contradicting each other and arguing.

The setting of Japan is integral but rarely emphasized beyond the basic premise of cultural dislocation. Mikey attends an American school, and most characters are fellow expatriates or international residents. However, one notable narrative arc departs from the Fuccon family entirely to focus on the Kawakitas, a poor Japanese family whose unemployed, alcoholic parents and nihilistic worldview provide a starkly serious counterpoint to the Fuccons surreal comedy. Other arcs include Mikey becoming engaged to Princess Isabella of the Blueberry Kingdom, the arrival of a private tutor named Tracy who delivers suggestive lessons about love, and various episodes involving kidnappings, demonic possessions, and near-drowning incidents, all delivered with the same unvarying mannequin smiles. The series gained a cult following internationally when ADV Films licensed it for North American distribution with an English dub, and it later aired on the Anime Network and G4.