In late-1992, after having all they could take with John Kricfalusi, Nickelodeon kicked him off The Ren and Stimpy Show and took it into their own hands, well they put it in Bob Camp's hands. It was the worst later seasons ever, it caused the end of civilization as we knew it.
Actually I'm bullshitting, though with grade A elitism still alive and well it felt like it, for all I know millions of fans prefer the younger crowd. The reasons people hate the Games era of Ren and Stimpy are as substantial as those for Magical Girl Friendship Squad, as in maybe one but that's really about it.
Aside from some minor differences, the spirit was kept in the switch, and the only people otherwise are those who try to look cynical but would go on to suck Owen Dennis' likely shriveled Walls and simp for an albino kid. The Games era is where I was introduced to the show proper, only thing earlier was when I caught commercials for Adult Party Cartoon when I used to watch Spike TV with my folks. Around that time I also watched The Sopranos...
As of yet, and now that John K. was put out to pasture, it seems the Games era of the show is now like the second revival of The Twilight Zone, Mr. Meaty and Magical Girl Friendship Squad, either you like it or you don't.
Today's episode is typically considered to be the worst episode in the show, or just this era. I have seen this episode plenty of times before and all I can says is... people are stupid.
The episode was directed by Ken Bruce, a name I mainly recognize from Fairly Odd Parents. But that's not all that weird, did you know the creator of Hey Arnold! actually helped on some later era episodes of Ren and Stimpy?
The Episode
The things people seem to hate about the episodes are disturbing. People don't seem to realize that the show had plenty of disturbing moments in other episodes, at least of some equivalence, if you single anything out here, you probably only saw a handful of episodes before then.
The episode deals with Ren and Stimpy getting adopted by an old woman from the pound, this is basically a spiritual remake of the pilot Big House Blues in that regard, if that episode was like a lost episode. The style basically gives that idea.
One thing you may notice is that the characters and a bit of the art direction look slightly different here. That's because this was one of two episodes to be outsourced to one specific studio, Wang Film Productions (the other was Lair of the Lummox.) Some familiarity does shine through however, but the opposite is just as well.
The conflict is that Ren and Stimpy are treated like actual pets and run the risk of getting stuffed some time down the road. It kinda reminds me of Foe Paws in terms of that, but any sensible person would pick this over that, and since this was when John K. left the show I'm not going to go over one certain coincidence.
Some jokes land, like the revelation regarding a stuffed dog, others don't, but that's just par the course for the show as a whole, how can you fault this episode on that?
We mainly get gags regarding pet tropisms and Ren and Stimpy escaping after finding themselves in a cemetery, and it all ends with the old woman getting killed by her butler and the two getting stuffed per the conditions of a will.
So What Went Wrong?
The only thing I've seen brought up on the episode was the dark moments. Are you telling me every cartoon nut is a squeamish coward? They'd probably get a heart attack if they ever saw Hard Times for Haggis, bringing up that two-part buzzword they had used many a times before. Or maybe they have and I just don't know.
I'd like to consider every episode of Ren and Stimpy to be in a bubble, no episode has any continuity, anything can happen and be back to normal by the next episode. Both have died before, even under more twisted circumstances, and I find it commendable the writers took this route, really goes to show they have faith in what a kid can handle.
But let's be real, the dark moments range from tame to just about the same when you take into account the other episodes, Anthony's Dad for instance in terms of the constant suspense, Hermit Ren basically being about insanity, possibly more that I haven't looked back into yet.
I dunno, I guess I didn't find that much wrong with this episode.
Self-Promotion
Stay tuned as I check out every episode of Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon.
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