THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
Yes. Big plans in fact. But expect those to mostly happen with the fifth generation of video game consoles.
Hmmm, sounds intriguing. I’ll see if I could work that in.
Man's Best Friend: An Alternate 1990s and Beyond
- Thread starter THE KINGFISH
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Chapter IX: Shine
THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
How Season Three of Ren & Stimpy Broke the Mold, Part I
Excerpt from the Stefanimania interlog, 13 October 2013
So, the year is 1993, and Spümcø is now humming along. And with Season 3 production just exploded, as in, we meet production deadlines at warp speed compared to before. Back in Seasons 1 & 2 we were constantly playing deadline parkour with the episodes, hell, I think we were late on the second-ever week of the show’s run. And in the end we only got 6 and 12 episodes respectively to each season. Not very efficient, I know. But after Nick bailed us out one last time and we got a raised budget, we took every advantage we got to fix everything wrong about the studio - every nook and cranny - when John didn’t have swaying power on the CDB of course. And because of that, Spümcø had tripled its size by the time Season 3 began production. Nickelodeon had ordered 20 episodes for Season 3, and we were on track to meet those expectations for the Fall.
Granted not all of this was a good thing. Even though we had to move more slowly in hiring a bunch of people on board after some rough ones last season like “Stimp Racer”, the animation quality took a noticeable hit compared to the earlier seasons. John Kricfalusi’s ego may have made each and every episode painful to make, but it was that same ego that produced a cartoon that stood apart from the rest with its off-the-walls expressions, ultra detailed backgrounds, and shocking boundary-pushing.[1] These latest episodes admittedly were a slight step down from previous ones, not helped by the fact that the writing became more of a mixed bag after adopting the visual script process.
Take the episode “Bloody Union Scabs” for example, which was written by Vincent Waller, George Meyer and John Swartzwelder. Basically, after a 1900s worker’s strike gone wrong, Ren and Stimpy are hired as non-union workers at the “Dog Water” factory. But after realizing that collecting canine drool is dehumanizing work, they side with the unions and this gets them arrested by the feds. There’s a lot of very dry and intellectual humor about how the United States treated workers and leftists in the early 1900s - which while great for a more smart-cracking show like The Simpsons - felt very out of place in a manic, grotesque cartoony show like Ren & Stimpy. The thing that saves the episode from being a stinker though is this hilarious running gag that Kricfalusi and Dutch concocted, where after the feds get the duo - they’re confronted by this parody of J. Edgar Hoover who hates the unions because he thinks they’re after his literal scab collection, to which after learning the factory owners give in to the strikers’ demands - he goes totally insane and rips off all his scabs from his skin and hides with them deep underground in a bunker.[2] It even goes further to the far future where Ren and Stimpy are seen as these idols for creating a communist utopia and when Hoover wakes up to this - he isn’t horrified by communism, he’s horrified by how sparkling clean and scab-free everyone’s skin is. Even today, I can’t stop laughing when I see that joke every time I rewatch this episode, it’s pure comedic gold.
Still, John K was absolutely livid. Beforehand, when Spümcø was the house of John K worship, he could easily shoot down any expansion plans or an episode that would air on time would get entangled in his desire for purity to his insane standards. And I would convince John time and time again “the layouts look fine” or “the animation looks fine” he just wouldn’t budge and would complain about how the sketches or colors look like they were done by “a f*gg*t with arthritis”. But Spümcø was no longer just Kricfalusi’s studio - it was now Bob Camp’s studio, it was now Lynne Naylor’s studio, it was now the studio of a group of talented people working together to make the world of animation a far more vibrant place. Yet John wanted that control back, and he was gonna try with the sequel episode to “Yodelin’ Yaks” - “The Yodelin’ Yaks Strike Back”.
Kurt Cobain and his associate Steve Albini would come into the studio all roughed up. I would look outside the studio and there was this swarm of paparazzi outside the building. And then Kricfalusi - already stressed by the situation would just peak out the door and yell “FUCK OFF, SCRAM” to the crowd. I even overheard Albini say “Finally someone with balls!” To which Kricfalusi responded “and I have nothing but my old man to thank.”[3] Anyways, Cobain and Albini would come into the studio to drop off a recording of the song that would be for the episode - “The Watchman”. Since “The Watchman” was a bit more of a challenge to write around - this would involve a group effort. And so we got to work asking the question - how the hell do you top Yodelin’ Yaks? John - who insisted on working on this episode - would also add his own little touches that were absent in the first “Yodelin’ Yaks”.
Last season, we had plans for a Yak episode that had nothing to do with Yander, Rex or Pex. I believe it was something along the lines of “Kilted Yaksmen” or something like that.[4] But sadly, it didn’t get to be made because of the studio being touched up and different episodes like “Stimp Racer” and “Star Chores” being greenlit instead. But going into producing Season 3, we figured since it was about “KILTED Yaksmen” - we just went “hey, this would be a great idea for a Yaks sequel.”
We tossed around some ideas to tweak the story to fit Nirvana, since the original script was about Ren and Stimpy trekking across Canada on Yaks to claim unclaimed land in the middle of nowhere. Dick Dutch pointed out the implications of the band members being “submissive”, much to my annoyance. “Kilted Yaksmen” was thus changed to be more like the last Yaks episode. Of course we risked the sequel being a repeat of the first Yaks. With all the rough drafts some writers like Chris Reccardi and Richard Pursel were giving us, it honestly seemed underwhelming and disappointing to us that some of us on board just seemed to give us the first Yaks but in Canada and with Canadian stereotypes. Luckily however, Dick Dutch came up with the idea of having them get the magical object - the Mythical Moose-Track Poutine - and for them to go on this ridiculous adventure to force feed it to everyone in order to make everyone happy. This was a huge improvement, but it still felt derivative of “Stimpy’s Invention”. And that’s when Kricfalusi came in.
Kricfalusi - ever the tryhard - would not let the opportunity to inject his usual brand of censor bending to the show. He commented that the whole “making everyone happy with poutine” plot was “pinko commie nazi propaganda” and had the balls to suggest that Canada would become this Nazi-esque tyranny. He acted out these scenes of Mounted Police goose stepping across the world - shooting globs of poutine into people’s mouths. He even went as far as to have a gag where they place a badge with the American flag onto people who are rude, which Dutch and I desperately tried to talk Kricfalusi out of. Kricfalusi - remembering his father’s military history - thankfully agreed and pulled out that joke. Yet the whole “Evil Canada” stuff was kept in since Dutch and I agreed that it had the potential for comedic genius.
We had multiple references to the Nazi propaganda film Triumph of the Will put in the “Canada takes over” sequence, especially the shot of the Mounted Police marching across the globe and the Canadian Maple Leaf being turned into a Swastika-like symbol. Dutch also had the brilliant idea to reference the “Springtime for Hitler” sequence from Mel Brooks’ The Producers - particularly its end shot with the cannons and Evil Canada flags going up and shooting the baffled audience with the poutine to make them applaud. Finally, Kricfalusi and Reccardi used the remaining “Kilted Yaksmen” material to put together a silly song that contrasted with the visuals well about how Kilted Yaksmen often keep big dirty yaks, wear women’s clothing, and how they’ll probably go to hell. Though sadly, that last part was censored everywhere except home media releases.[5] Yet even then, it finally felt like we were making magic together once again.
The Yodelin' Yaks Strike Back
Excerpt from ALLmanac, the online encyclopedia
Plot
It starts with Ren and Stimpy searching in a snowy Canadian village for Yander the Yak - disturbing hibernating animals (including a moose that says "FREAK OUT, SCRAM!!!") and not getting help from the overly nice and polite Canadians. They need Yander once again to find another mythical food item - the Mythical Moose-Track Poutine. After Ren insults their love of hockey, he gets beaten in a game of hockey as if he were the hockey puck before he is smashed through a log cabin window - complete with a grotesque closeup of his glass-bruised face. Yander finds that it is Ren, who proceeds to take care of him. Stimpy then finds Yander and convinces him and his minions Rex and Pex to join him once again. Yander is hesitant, given how everywhere he goes people mock him for his yodeling - much like the real life Kurt Cobain after "The Yodel Song". But after Stimpy promises to "get his horns sharpened", Yander agrees on the spot.
Much like beforehand, the group encounters a series of great challenges - including a long trek through the Canadian tundra and "snow jungles" - the latter of which Ren steals the water canteen from Stimpy, only to swallow a swarm of stinging bees. When the group finally finds the poutine in an unmarked cave, they become scared and paranoid that guards like last time will try to kill them, so they fight over it. But after a chunk accidentally flies into Ren's mouth, he becomes uncharacteristically nice and compassionate. Stimpy takes a bite and so do the rest, and they all feel a rush of euphoria and Canadian pride. They decide to spread the joy of the Moose-Track Poutine while singing the Kilted Yaksmen anthem - a goofy take on "God Saves the Queen" that includes lyrics about keeping after dirty yaks, wearing women's clothing and dealing with harsh wild life. All the while, Canada transforms into an ultra-happy, totalitarian, fascist dictatorship that takes over the entire world by force-feeding people the poutine.
After the song's end, the episode cuts to a bleak world where everyone has forced smiles and all buildings look like brutalist log cabins. Armed, smiling guards with fat Americans acting as vicious guard dogs patrol the streets.[6] Anyone who isn't happy enough is exiled to "the meanest place on Earth": America. Ren and Stimpy are starting to get sick of being happy all the time and they start frowning. However, this catches the attention of a guard resembling a mix between Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels and former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, who has his American Guard Dog kick them like a football while screeching like an Eagle.[7] The pair are beaten apart by football quarterbacks, before being further beaten with batons by pigs who are police in a dirty street. The Yaks - all disguised as the Sex Pistols - come up to the duo and claim they have a plan to take down the Canadians - by singing a song that would bring in the Great White Rumble. Yander and the Yaks perform a song - specifically Nirvana's 1993 folk/hardcore punk single "The Watchmen". This summons a horde of vampiric Polar Bears that suck the fat out of all Americans while beating every Canadian with a hockey stick - destroying the dictatorship.
Everyone now feels rather sad and grumpy. This is when Ren feels comfortable enough to say: "You know what? I think the Maple Leafs are a bunch of hot dog lickers!!" This causes a huge physical brawl in a cloud of cartoon fighting. As the Yaks look on, Rex and Pex shrug and say "Yakety yak, don't talk back!" before they all join in on the fighting as the episode irises out.
The Trouble With Kricfalusi and Dutch
Excerpt from Win, Lose, or Drawing: Secrets of Animation Past (2022)
I understood what John was thinking when he tried putting in a Holocaust joke in Ren & Stimpy. He wasn’t trying to make light of the Holocaust - he was trying to make fun of how evil and tyrannical a society that makes forces everyone to be happy would be. And to be honest, I at least had respect for how he realized that joke wasn’t appropriate - because at least it showed he had limits and standards like the rest of us, no matter how twisted they might be.
What I didn’t understand was why John leaped head first into blatant gay jokes like “You’re the pitcher, I’m the catcher” in “Onward and Upward”.[8] I cooked this episode up with John and Vincent Waller, basically it was an episode making fun about how rich, snobbish people weren’t as prude and classy as they pretended to be. But the script that John and Vince made at first was… well I don’t know where the fuck to begin. I mean the only jokes are basically Ren and Stimpy are eating literal vomit and shit as they try to move up from low class life to high class life. So I got a hold of John and told him, “John, this is a fantastic turd nugget of genius we’re workin’ on, but I think we need to do some turd polishing.” And he was happy to take my advice.
So we changed up a lot of things about “Onward and Upward”. We figured that since the duo were trying to act like old money rich folks, we figured that it would be cool to set this episode in Victorian England - to really drive home the contrast between stuck-up Victorian attitudes and extremely raunchy and grotesque humor. We had the duo act like very snobby upper class lords - looking down on the lower classes for their disgusting behavior and ignorance. Meanwhile, the duo would fancily dine out in a room made entirely of gold - eating all the fancy dishes they can get. But then there’s the twist - the two have actually been in a spittoon in an English pub this whole time - with the implication being that they’ve been eating the spit, mucus and vomit of commoners this entire time, before they’re chased out of the bar by British Policemen.[9] Although my favorite joke of the episode is actually at the beginning, where it starts with the two living in a homeless bum’s mouth and them being disturbed by the loud snoring. Stimpy keeps telling Ren he is scared and needs a goodnight kiss, only for Ren to push him away. Finally, Ren gives in and tells Stimpy to close his eyes for a surprise, only to pull a live rat out of nowhere and trick Stimpy into kissing its anus offscreen. Stimpy then turns to the camera with relief, but his lips are colored brown. I still can’t believe the scene went past the censors, even by Ren & Stimpy standards.[10]
The episode as a whole struggled to get past censors, with many small scenes getting cut. This includes the part where the two ask for dessert, and it’s “salty chocolate ice cream” with visible stench trails. But it’s still one of my favorite Ren & Stimpy episodes that I’ve had the pleasure of working on.
[1] If you want an idea of what the animation looks like with more of an emphasis in quantity over quality compared to the first two seasons, imagine the Season 5 episodes and early Season 3 episodes from OTL - but better due to the inclusion of Carbunkle Cartoons keeping the downgrades in check and the worst of the Games era from creeping in. Kricfalusi-directed episodes are an exception though - being closer to Season 2’s quality.
[2] I should also mention that this totally-not-J. Edgar Hoover is voiced by Charlie Adler, so imagine his voice as being somewhere between Ickis from Aaahh!!! Real Monsters and The Red Guy from Cow and Chicken.
[3] That’s not a good sign with the little we know about John Kricfalusi’s father.
[4] This episode is basically TTL’s closest version of “The Royal Canadian Kilted Yaksmen”. Albeit greatly overhauled as to be barely recognizable from OTL. One of the things it shares in common with OTL’s version is the Kilted Yaksmen anthem.
[5] Speaking of which, the Kilted Yaksmen anthem also had the word ‘hell’ censored IOTL. Except IOTL, just about everywhere has it censored except for some rare online recordings ripped from MTV during the time Ren & Stimpy reran on that channel. The uncensored version can be found here.
[6] If you want a picture of what they look like, imagine the Lummox from OTL’s Season 3 episode “Lair of the Lummox” - basically every negative stereotype about Americans.
[7] I should also mention that he is voiced by veteran voice actor/character actor Hal Smith in one of his final voice acting roles before his death in 1994. Just some interesting facts from TTL.
[8] YEP, that line is still in TTL’s version of the episode.
[9] IOTL’s Adult Party Cartoon version of “Onward and Upward”, it’s way less funny. The jokes simply show the spittoon and bar already while Ren and Stimpy dine on bodily fluids that are clearly shown to be from people vomiting and spitting on them. The punchline being - it’s funny that they’re eating vomit and boogers.
[10] IOTL’s Adult Party Cartoon version of “Onward and Upward” - the execution of that joke was way worse. In the OTL version, Stimpy asks Ren to kiss him, saying “I have needs.” Ren responds by saying he “doesn’t give a rat’s ass about [his] needs.” After he relents and does so, he does this obnoxious muttering as he slowly has a rat’s anus towards Stimpy’s lips by saying something along the lines of “Tee hee, I have him kiss the rat’s ass! See! Rat’s ass!” And yes it shows the actual thing happening.
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THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
Alright guys, I got two more posts coming up so stay tuned - but after that I'm taking a break for Christmas to spend time with family. I will be back the week after with another big wave of updates which hopefully should bring us up to 1994. So enjoy!
Good luck out there and hope you like the little post I recently made on my test thread
you need an special kind of talent to ruin the arisocrats joke yet he pulled it(eric cartman too,xd)
Amazing update buddy, loved the Canadian Yalk episode
THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
Yep. APC managed to do just that by falling into the fatal pit trap that many bad adult cartoons fall into: grotesque = adult = funny.
Look, I’m not a prude - I like a good gross-out humor from time to time. Yet, there’s an art to toilet humor and if you think just showing the gross thing in and of itself is the joke - then you’re doing it WRONG.
You could say it’s the Empire Strikes Back of Ren & Stimpy episodes!
i GENUINELY hate grossout humor, few pulled it and that was an example of not pulling it OTL
Author’s Discussion: What Made Ren & Stimpy Work?
THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
Author’s Discussion: What Made Ren & Stimpy Work?
Alright guys, we’ve now covered what made Nirvana work, what prior cultural context allowed them to succeed, and whether or not they could catastrophically fall from grace in a scenario where Kurt Cobain lived. Now, we must discuss what made Ren & Stimpy work, what caused them to become incredibly popular in its prime, and what caused their catastrophic fall from grace that actually played out in our timeline.
Much like before, prior pop culture knowledge is needed in order to understand what came up until Ren & Stimpy first aired in 1991. Prior to the 1990s, if you were to ask someone in the animation industry when American animation peaked in quality, they would most likely answer that it was between the late 1930s and mid 1940s.[1] Sadly however, this era of American animation was not long for this world. Within a generation after this era ended, the rise of limited animation, the rise of television, and the fall of the Hollywood Studio System would result in the collapse of virtually all animated studios not named Disney or Hanna-Barbera - ushering in an era what is commonly referred to as the The Dark Age of Animation.[2] Limited animation was originally conceived as a backlash to the realism of Disney - with its abstract, visually-distinct and stripped down style. Unfortunately, companies quickly realized that limited animation was extremely cheap to produce, and so as television took off animated series started to just be cranked out.
At first this wasn’t too bad - shows such as Jay Ward’s Rocky and Bullwinkle and Hanna-Barbera’s The Flintstones made up for their less-than-stellar animation with their rather sharp and adult writing. However, television animation would soon end up in the crosshairs of the dreaded Moral Guardians. Initially they mainly targeted advertising in children’s programming, but after reacting to action programs the likes of The Herculoids, Space Ghost, and Fantastic Four - they actively targeted cartoons for their violent content. By the early 1970s, most Saturday morning cartoons were heavily toned down to the point of becoming bland, moralistic gruel - lacking substance.[3] Not helping matters was that while the original Scooby-Doo is seen as one of the few bright spots of this era, the same can’t be said to the other 9 trillion copycats Hanna-Barbera churned out around that time, as the Scooby-Doo formula and other tired writing material was reused to hell and back. All the while, just about every corny joke was followed by a laugh track. Why? Because The Flintstones did so.
The 1980s would see some improvements (no more laugh track, slightly better animation due to Japanese outsourcing, even better animated films), but also more problems. Under the Reagan administration, the FCC would deregulate advertising restrictions placed on cartoons, allowing them to once again depict products. This would cause an explosion of cartoons often regarded as little more than half hour toy commercials - including G. I. Joe, My Little Pony, The Transformers, and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. It was in this environment that a down-on-his-luck Canadian animator named John Kricfalusi - frustrated by the type of atmosphere that was being created at this time - would begin the process of making a certain cartoon.
Having been fascinated by cartoons since he was a child, Kricfalusi would enroll at Sheridan College in 1978 - only to be expelled after one semester due to poor attendance. Starting in 1979, Kricfalusi would work a number of jobs at Filmation, Hanna-Barbera and DiC Entertainment doing layouts, storyboards and animation for each of their cartoons, while also teaming up with Ralph Bakshi to work on Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures. Many of these cartoons - such as He-Man, Heathcliff, and the 80s Jetsons revival - would be scorned by Kricfalusi as “the worst animation of all time”. At the same time, Kricfalusi would come up with two characters - a cat based off a Tweety cartoon and a chihuahua based off a New York postcard - and pair them with a Little Rascals-esque group of kids in a series pitch called Your Gang.
When Nickelodeon first started looking for original, creator-driven animated series and found Kricfalusi’s Your Gang pitch, the executives recommended that Kricfalusi create a series that focused on just the cat and dog characters. And thus Ren & Stimpy was born. The Ren & Stimpy Show would premier on August 11, 1991 as a grotesque black comedy about Ren - a mentally unstable chihuahua, and Stimpy - a happy-go-lucky manx cat - in their misadventures together, becoming Nickelodeon’s first major animated hit. It would receive critical acclaim for its fluid and expressive animation, vibrant art, groundbreaking surreal and grotesque humor, memorable characters, and even the occasional heartwarming and emotional moments - as would be seen in “Son of Stimpy” and “Stimpy’s Fan Club”.
At the height of its popularity in 1992, Ren & Stimpy was the most popular show on cable television. It was Nickelodeon’s animated golden goose long before Rugrats, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly OddParents, and The Loud House were. It was being watched by children and adults alike as it offered a unique viewing experience that was both edgy and entertaining. It also gained the respect of equally influential cartoonists in the industry such as Simpsons creator Matt Groening and Mike Judge - with the former calling it “the only good cartoon on TV” other than The Simpsons, while the latter credited it for MTV giving the green light for Beavis and Butt-Head. However, as Kricfalusi’s ego and unruly behavior with Nickelodeon grew, and episodes missed their deadlines - it became increasingly clear that Spümcø was more troubled than it was worth. Capped off with the infamous banned episode “Man’s Best Friend”, Nickelodeon made the decision to fire John Kricfalusi in September 1992. Production was then transferred to the newly established Games Animation headed by Bob Camp.
This is where the story typically ends, yet the reality is that Ren & Stimpy went on for at least 3 more years - airing its last episode in 1996. So what happened? Well, having gone back and seen the entirety of Ren & Stimpy - including the Spümcø era, the Games era, and Adult Party Cartoon - here is my analysis. While there are plenty of Games era episodes that I personally enjoy - the Games era is largely defined by a shift away from psychodrama episodes and towards more generic wacky, silly type comedy.[4] The animation quality took a noticeable blow - looking over simplistic, while the characters suffered from one-note simplification - Ren going from being a jerk that still sometimes loved Stimpy to just a jerk and Stimpy went from stupid yet optimistic to just stupid, and the jokes went from clever to looking like they came from a Mad Libs book. A lot of this - at least before Kricfalusi’s heinous acts came to light - was blamed on Bob Camp. But quite honestly, he is not at fault for the Games era having a poor reputation compared to the Spümcø era, he was simply trying to make the best of a terrible situation the show was in and how deep of a hole Kricfalusi dug Spümcø into with his mismanagement.
Rather, the real reasons for the relatively lackluster quality of the Games episodes has to do with a variety of factors outside the studio’s control. First, unlike Spümcø, Games Animation did not have access to the outsourcing services of Bob Jacques’ Carbunkle Cartoons. Carbunkle Cartoons was responsible for not only the best animation in the entire show - such as in the 1990 pilot episode or Season 2 - but also for keeping the studios that were outsourced work from the show in check. Without them, the animation quality of Ren & Stimpy would become worse and more inconsistent. This can be seen in studios such as Mr. Big Cartoons and Toon-Us-In - whose animation was just as bad if not worse than Fil-Cartoons’ animation from Season 1.[5] Second, Nickelodeon did not help the troubled production of the show. One of the worst decisions the network made regarding the show was the ordering of so many more episodes to the point where the production crew was forced to create another season and delegate episodes to there. This resulted in the episodes on Season 4 looking extremely rushed, and contributing to the inferior look the Games episodes had to the Spümcø episodes.[6] Lastly, working in John Kricfalusi’s cult-like shadow for so long had detrimental effects once Kricfalusi was fired. While Ren & Stimpy was indeed a group effort of multiple talented artists, Kricfalusi was the ringleader of all the creativity and understandably hogged a lot of the credit for the show’s success. When he was fired - critics, audiences and network executives severely burdened the incoming new management on meeting Kricfalusi’s expectations - putting them under a severe amount of stress. And while Kricfalusi was certainly hard to work with he at least gave the show a solid direction to go off of. Yes it was madness, but there was at least a method to the madness in the Spümcø era.[7] In the Games era, the staff direction became more confused and directionless - and the writing and animation suffered a downgrade as a result.
By 1995, everyone working on the show was thoroughly burnt out. Ren & Stimpy was largely old news by that point. Much of the animation scene had already made numerous copycats of the show such as 2 Stupid Dogs, Eek the Cat, The Brothers Grunt (though that had more Beavis and Butt Head influence as well) and Cow and Chicken. Much of the production team was ready to move on to bigger and better things in the industry. The final nail in the coffin would be the huge spike in popularity of Rugrats that same year thanks to reruns, and thus Nickelodeon washed its hands of involvement with Ren & Stimpy by canceling it in December 1995 (though one last episode would air on MTV in 1996). But in 2002, Viacom would invite Spümcø back to work on a new Ren & Stimpy series - one aimed at adults. One of their networks - Spike TV (“The First Network for MEN”) - had made their own animation block to capitalize on the popularity of the then-new wave of raunchy adult animation defined by Fox’s Family Guy and Comedy Central’s South Park. Said block included “classic” shows such as Gary the Rat and Stripperella. Unlike Nickelodeon, Spike TV pretty much let loose all control on Kricfalusi and Spümcø to pretty much make an EXTREME version of Ren & Stimpy. And it all worked out……. exactly as well as you imagined: terribly.
A lot of online cartoon community YouTubers/animation fans make the case that Ren & Stimpy: Adult Party Cartoon didn’t work because it was way too dark, depressing, disgusting and disturbing compared to the original series. This however, isn’t really true. Oddly - there is a venn diagram between Adult Party Cartoon and the worst of the Games era - they’re both boringly bad. The biggest part of why Ren & Stimpy succeeded in the first place was because it 1) toyed with the audience on what was and wasn’t acceptable for children, and 2) used creative ways to slip material past censors. An oft-cited example of this in action is the Season 2 episode “Rubber Nipple Salesmen” - where Nickelodeon limited the amount of times they could say the word “nipple” without saying it as “Rubber Nipple” (that of course paired with the commentary on the paranoia of the 50s American Dream, but that goes without saying). With Adult Party Cartoon however, episodes like “Onward and Upward” and “Naked Beach Frenzy” treat whatever grotesque or sexual content as the joke in and of itself. These jokes did not succeed in making anyone above the age of 11 laugh, just making them uncomfortable. It also didn’t help that in Adult Party Cartoon, the episodes were stretched out to 22 minutes instead of the original’s 11 minutes - which resulted in said unfunny jokes being as drawn-out and padded-out as humanly possible. Ultimately, due to yet again missed deadlines and advertisers withdrawing ad-revenue, Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon was canceled after 3 episodes and was condemned as one of the worst television series of all time.
Which brings us back to the topic of this alternate history. If someone in the production staff hypothetically rose up with the talent of Kricfalusi and with an efficiency desired by Nickelodeon, how long could the show keep up the act of continuing to shock audiences? Well, after Kricfalusi was fired, the show actually continued to get away with disturbing imagery - as seen in episodes such as “A Yard Too Far”, “Ren’s Retirement”, and “It’s a Dog’s Life” (which mind you is basically a ripoff of “Man’s Best Friend”). The trouble with Kricfalusi is that Nickelodeon arguably let him get away with a lot, but since he kept being late on deadlines - they fired him. Now, whether or not it was “Man’s Best Friend” or Kricfalusi’s Cyberpunk 2077-tier mismanagement of deadlines - having the show crossover with another equally popular piece of media - the band Nirvana - that yields record-high ratings would have a big chance at giving Kricfalusi one more chance, albeit in a slightly reduced role. In the end however - while the show can go on and get away with a lot as long as it brings Nickelodeon lots of money, John Kricfalusi as we know him is simply living on borrowed time. Kricfalusi is going to fight at any moment to keep control, and this renewal will only give him a couple more years before his workplace issues rear their ugly heads. Unlike OTL, I have reason to believe he will not go quietly.
[1] Disney had broken the mold of theatrical animation and released Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - the (almost) first full-length animated feature film - in 1937. This was then followed by Pinocchio and Fantasia in 1940, Dumbo in 1941, and Bambi in 1942. All of them are considered some of the greatest films ever made due to their beautiful animation, musical score and songs, and sheer cultural impact. Fleischer Studios also enjoyed great success with their Popeye and Superman short series, and also were the only other animation studio that rivaled Disney on the animated film front prior to the 1980s, releasing Gulliver’s Travels and Mr. Bug Goes to Town. Warner Bros’ Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies short series - after years of middling success - would explode in popularity with the rise of wacky, screwball slapstick comedy punctuated by the debut of the now-iconic Daffy Duck and later Bugs Bunny - both of whom would spawn numerous timeless cartoons of the period. MGM’s animated division - after a very rough start - would rise to the challenge with the debut of the immortal Tom & Jerry series in 1940, and after the arrival of WB alumni Tex Avery - would result in cartoons that were the perfect foil to the mainstream Disney works with their absurdist, screwball humor. Even the weaker studios of the period such as Walter Lantz Productions, Terrytoons, and Fleischer Studios’ successor Famous Studios were still well regarded and have a cult following to the present day.
[2] There were, of course, other notable studios of the period. These included Filmation - a studio known for having animation arguably worse than Hanna-Barbera with shows like The Archie Show, Fraidy Cat (which was part of their unsuccessful Uncle Croc’s Block), and Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids - although they occasionally produced some better material such as Star Trek: The Animated Series. Then there was Depatie-Freleng Enterprises, known for The Pink Panther Show, some less-than-stellar Looney Tunes shorts, the later animated Dr. Seuss specials like The Cat in the Hat and The Lorax, and some Marvel cartoons towards the end - where they then transitioned into Marvel Productions. Other independent animators and studios such as Chuck Jones, Bill Melendez, Fred Wolf, and Rankin/Bass would make a living producing primetime animated TV specials. On the theatrical front Disney saw no competition apart from Ralph Bakshi - who mainly made animated films aimed at adults like Fritz the Cat or The Lord of the Rings, and the odd independent animated film such as Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure or Watership Down.
[3] Among the so-called rules that they put out included not being able to say “die” or “death” and always having to shoehorn in some type of moral to teach kids. At one point, even basic conflict was prevented, resulting in some of the most dull and boring cartoons ever made.
[4] Much of these episodes are from Season 3 and Season 5. These include “To Salve And Salve Not”, “A Yard Too Far”, “An Abe Divided”, “Stimpy’s Cartoon Show” (I think we all agree that this is the best episode of the Games era), “Ren’s Bitter Half”, “Space Dogged”, “City Hicks”, “Ren’s Brain” (some people call this one of the bad episodes, I thought it was alright), “I Was a Teenage Stimpy”, “Who’s Stupid Now?” (pretty good, but I felt they could have come up with better ways to reference each other’s character traits, like I would have preferred if Ren-Stimpy said “You Eediot” or You Sick Little Monkey” rather than “Where’s My Dinner”), “A Scooter for Yaksmas” and “Sammy and Me”. That said there are also episodes I dislike from these parts like “Circus Midgets” (mediocre), “No Pants Today” (which is just stupid), “Jimminy Lummox”, “Ren’s Retirement”, “Hard Times for Haggis” (Haggis McHaggis is probably my least favorite character in Ren & Stimpy, unless you count APC’s bastardized version of Ren), and “School Mates” (which is absolutely awful, right up there with “It’s a Dog’s Life” and “Aloha Höek”).
[5] I should also mention that the layout process was greatly simplified compared to the Spümcø era. While in the Spümcø era the layouts were very meticulously worked on, the Games era simply had the layout process shipped overseas where the storyboards were simply blown up to larger proportions. It’s a big reason why a lot of Games episodes - especially Season 4 - have animation that looks closer to a UPA cartoon.
[6] It is for this reason that I consider Season 4 to be the worst season of the original Ren & Stimpy - and the worst piece of Ren & Stimpy media were it not for Adult Party Cartoon. I’ve had to slog through stinkers like “A Friend in Your Face”, “Prehistoric Stimpy” (typical lazy “characters but prehistoric” plot), “Farm Hands” (unnecessary return of Ewalt and Abner), “A Hard Day’s Luck” (another Haggis episode), “I Love Chicken”, “It’s a Dog’s Life” (this episode in particular is pure dogshit - not only is it a ripoff of “Man’s Best Friend”, but it has a mean-spiritedness and repulsiveness that dangerously approaches that of Adult Party Cartoon), “The Scotsman in Space” (guess who), “Pixie King”, “Aloha Höek” (this is the worst one, boring, overly-repulsive like “It’s a Dog’s Life”, and pretty much has that “Mad Libs” humor lots of bad Games episodes have), “Cheese Rush Days” and “Galoot Wranglers” (both of which are the most forgettable episodes).
[7] When Kricfalusi was fired, he was initially offered a creative consultant position to keep the show going on. Being Kricfalusi, he refused. However, if Kricfalusi had just swallowed his pride for 5 seconds and accepted Nickelodeon’s offer - then that could have benefited everyone. Nickelodeon would no longer have to deal with Kricfalusi’s antics disrupting the show’s production, while the staff know what they’re doing and the show wouldn’t drop off in quality in the Games era.
THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
Thanks!
As for the reason why animation became more restrained in a time where standards loosened for every other medium - I think that once the perception that animation is just for kids (which is absolutely not true) set in, those Moral Guardians came down harder on cartoons than the United States did on Iraq circa 2003.
THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
I should also add that @TheFaultsofAlts told me that after I finished binge-watching the series over Thanksgiving that Viacom's buyout of Paramount in 1994 effected the budgets of Nick cartoons. It even played a role in Doug getting cancelled and its creator taking it over to Disney. Just some food for thought.
I remember something , also that give Doug back to his creators, so that was a net positive
Headlines for April (and more of March) 1993
THE KINGFISH
Gone Fishin'
ATF Raids Waco religious group, Key Members Taken into Custody
Excerpt from The Chicago Tribune, 1 March 1993 [1]
WACO, Texas - Yesterday, in a dramatic turn of events, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) successfully carried out a meticulously planned operation to raid the Branch Davidians compound, resulting in the apprehension of key members. The operation, which managed to catch the group by surprise, was executed on the grounds of the local group allegedly containing illegal firearms.
The move comes months after the high profile Ruby Ridge in August of last year, and this new raid - which resulted in 5 killed and 38 injured - has received polarizing reactions…
Disney Confirms Cable Service to Be Available on Basic Packages “Within Two Years”
Excerpt from The Wall Street Journal, 2 April 1993 [2]
Stock for The Walt Disney Company saw an unexpected surge today following the announcement that the company’s premium cable service - The Disney Channel - will transition into being a cable network available on basic cable television packages "within two years," a move that deviates from the company's original plan by advancing the timeline significantly. This strategic shift is poised to dramatically increase the channel's accessibility to a broader audience, potentially boosting viewership numbers and advertising revenue.
It also follows the larger series of events in the world of cable television in wake of the massive success of Nickelodeon’s original animated programming. This includes Turner Broadcasting System’s Cartoon Network announcing its own original programming, and rumors swirling of MCA and Paramount Communications’ USA Networks launching an offshoot of the USA Cartoon Express block. Disney President Frank Wells has claimed “The Disney Channel gives the company more opportunities in regards to [its] television content than would be possible on the traditional broadcast networks, and [the company] hopes to continue to entertain viewers as technology marches on.”
Launched in April 1983, The Disney Channel was originally the company’s answer to the proliferation of premium subscription cable television the likes of Home Box Office (HBO) and Showtime…..
United Nations Adopts Resolution 817 - International Occupation of Somalia Authorized
Excerpt from The Washington Post, 9 April 1993 [3]
In a historic decision, the United Nations Security Council has adopted Resolution 817, authorizing a significant escalation of UN Peacekeeping involvement in the ongoing Somali Civil War. The resolution was passed with strong backing of the United States, with the White House making clear its interests in stabilizing the country and providing humanitarian aid to its populace.
Resolution 817 outlines a comprehensive plan for the deployment of multinational forces to key areas within Somalia - focusing on a military occupation of the country for a period of no less than 5 years, the rapid deployment of humanitarian goods, disarmament of militant groups, and the foundation of a stable central government. Resolution 817 also does not rule out significant changes to Somalia’s borders - both internal and external - in order to achieve its key objectives.
The operation would be led by troops from the United States, Ethiopia….
More Sightings of The Woman with White Blonde Hair and Strange Men Appear
Excerpt from Rolling Stone, 18 April 1993 [4]
There’s been a peculiar sight among superfans of the modern day icon Kurt Cobain in the past few months. And that’s this mysterious woman with white-blonde hair. Back in February, paparazzi managed to sneak a photo of the woman with Kurt in the flesh. Since then, there have been wild rumors making the rounds given Kurt Cobain’s surprising lack of hanging with the ladies.
Since that photo, sightings of the woman appear to permeate around downtown Seattle and around the University of Washington. The men she appears with aren’t Kurt Cobain… but they certainly look like Kurt Cobain. This has led to an explosion of conspiracy theories and wild speculation among fan circles and the media. These men may bear a striking resemblance to Cobain, but lack the grunge vibe of Cobain himself, leading some to wonder if this is all a mere coincidence or perhaps even distant relatives.
And the mystery goes deeper, as…..
All Parties of Somali Civil War Issued 48-Hour Ultimatum to Disarm
Excerpt from The Washington Post, 29 April 1993 [5]
This morning, all active parties fighting in the Somali Civil War were given a 48-hour ultimatum to surrender to UN Coalition authorities and disarm its weapons……
[1] IOTL, Branch Davidians leader David Koresh was able to be informed about the imminent ATF raid on the compound when his brother in law working at the postal service was tipped off by a local news reporter on where the raid was going to be. ITTL, minor butterflies mean that this does not happen and the entire group is caught by surprise - avoiding the week long tragedy that happened IOTL.
[2] Blah blah blah “The Disney Channel” became “Disney Channel” in OTL 1997 blah blah blah Ren & Stimpy speeds this up blah blah blah.
[3] Basically, it’s an alternate version of Resolution 814 - which authorized UNOSOM II. But there’s critical differences between 814 and 817. Resolution 814 merely further assists in rebuilding the country, ease the reunification of Somalia, and pass more humanitarian aid. Resolution 817 unambiguously calls for an international military occupation then the enforcement of more humanitarian aid and the reestablishment of a central government.
[4] This will understandably create a different relationship dynamic between the media and Kurt’s relationships.
[5] Since there was a fear among those leading the Somalia intervention of causing too many collateral civilian casualties, I figured that a head start like this would be issued.
Excerpt from The Chicago Tribune, 1 March 1993 [1]
WACO, Texas - Yesterday, in a dramatic turn of events, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) successfully carried out a meticulously planned operation to raid the Branch Davidians compound, resulting in the apprehension of key members. The operation, which managed to catch the group by surprise, was executed on the grounds of the local group allegedly containing illegal firearms.
The move comes months after the high profile Ruby Ridge in August of last year, and this new raid - which resulted in 5 killed and 38 injured - has received polarizing reactions…
Disney Confirms Cable Service to Be Available on Basic Packages “Within Two Years”
Excerpt from The Wall Street Journal, 2 April 1993 [2]
Stock for The Walt Disney Company saw an unexpected surge today following the announcement that the company’s premium cable service - The Disney Channel - will transition into being a cable network available on basic cable television packages "within two years," a move that deviates from the company's original plan by advancing the timeline significantly. This strategic shift is poised to dramatically increase the channel's accessibility to a broader audience, potentially boosting viewership numbers and advertising revenue.
It also follows the larger series of events in the world of cable television in wake of the massive success of Nickelodeon’s original animated programming. This includes Turner Broadcasting System’s Cartoon Network announcing its own original programming, and rumors swirling of MCA and Paramount Communications’ USA Networks launching an offshoot of the USA Cartoon Express block. Disney President Frank Wells has claimed “The Disney Channel gives the company more opportunities in regards to [its] television content than would be possible on the traditional broadcast networks, and [the company] hopes to continue to entertain viewers as technology marches on.”
Launched in April 1983, The Disney Channel was originally the company’s answer to the proliferation of premium subscription cable television the likes of Home Box Office (HBO) and Showtime…..
United Nations Adopts Resolution 817 - International Occupation of Somalia Authorized
Excerpt from The Washington Post, 9 April 1993 [3]
In a historic decision, the United Nations Security Council has adopted Resolution 817, authorizing a significant escalation of UN Peacekeeping involvement in the ongoing Somali Civil War. The resolution was passed with strong backing of the United States, with the White House making clear its interests in stabilizing the country and providing humanitarian aid to its populace.
Resolution 817 outlines a comprehensive plan for the deployment of multinational forces to key areas within Somalia - focusing on a military occupation of the country for a period of no less than 5 years, the rapid deployment of humanitarian goods, disarmament of militant groups, and the foundation of a stable central government. Resolution 817 also does not rule out significant changes to Somalia’s borders - both internal and external - in order to achieve its key objectives.
The operation would be led by troops from the United States, Ethiopia….
More Sightings of The Woman with White Blonde Hair and Strange Men Appear
Excerpt from Rolling Stone, 18 April 1993 [4]
There’s been a peculiar sight among superfans of the modern day icon Kurt Cobain in the past few months. And that’s this mysterious woman with white-blonde hair. Back in February, paparazzi managed to sneak a photo of the woman with Kurt in the flesh. Since then, there have been wild rumors making the rounds given Kurt Cobain’s surprising lack of hanging with the ladies.
Since that photo, sightings of the woman appear to permeate around downtown Seattle and around the University of Washington. The men she appears with aren’t Kurt Cobain… but they certainly look like Kurt Cobain. This has led to an explosion of conspiracy theories and wild speculation among fan circles and the media. These men may bear a striking resemblance to Cobain, but lack the grunge vibe of Cobain himself, leading some to wonder if this is all a mere coincidence or perhaps even distant relatives.
And the mystery goes deeper, as…..
All Parties of Somali Civil War Issued 48-Hour Ultimatum to Disarm
Excerpt from The Washington Post, 29 April 1993 [5]
This morning, all active parties fighting in the Somali Civil War were given a 48-hour ultimatum to surrender to UN Coalition authorities and disarm its weapons……
[1] IOTL, Branch Davidians leader David Koresh was able to be informed about the imminent ATF raid on the compound when his brother in law working at the postal service was tipped off by a local news reporter on where the raid was going to be. ITTL, minor butterflies mean that this does not happen and the entire group is caught by surprise - avoiding the week long tragedy that happened IOTL.
[2] Blah blah blah “The Disney Channel” became “Disney Channel” in OTL 1997 blah blah blah Ren & Stimpy speeds this up blah blah blah.
[3] Basically, it’s an alternate version of Resolution 814 - which authorized UNOSOM II. But there’s critical differences between 814 and 817. Resolution 814 merely further assists in rebuilding the country, ease the reunification of Somalia, and pass more humanitarian aid. Resolution 817 unambiguously calls for an international military occupation then the enforcement of more humanitarian aid and the reestablishment of a central government.
[4] This will understandably create a different relationship dynamic between the media and Kurt’s relationships.
[5] Since there was a fear among those leading the Somalia intervention of causing too many collateral civilian casualties, I figured that a head start like this would be issued.
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AeroTheZealousOne
Monthly Donor
Kind of a hilarious juxtaposition here, come to think of it.
Also hi, this is one of the timelines I lurk on, and I've been enjoying it thus far! Bit of a Nirvana fan, not as big on Ren & Stimpy but still nonetheless an entertaining read! Watched for sure, and looking forward to seeing more as it comes!