One TV show genre that always manages to thrive is teen dramas. In almost every generation, this genre has not only survived on television, but often flourished, be it classics such as dawson’s bay, degrassior more modern rates such as 13 reasons why And Euphoria. While the show’s risqué nature has changed somewhat with the advent of streaming, teen drama’s imagery and storylines have not changed much since their inception. As with any popular medium, there have been many parodies in the genre, such as summer camp sets. Humid hot American summer or classic Not another teen movie.
One parody stands out, however, as it is not a parody of a movie, but an entire TV show that matches its theme. Phil Lord And Chris Miller classic series Clone High. Released in 2002, the series featured brilliant gags, razor-sharp wit, and an engaging and unique art style that took it far beyond mere parody. After a season of great episodes, the series was abruptly canceled and remained dormant for over twenty years until it was finally revived on HBO Max. After two decades, does the show really deserve a sequel? Or, like his clones, has his time simply passed?
“School of clones” has become a parody to a new level
Clone High is essentially a parody of teen drama shows. It focuses on the love triangle, presents each episode as a “very special episode”, and generally builds its jokes around parodies of teen dramas of the time. As mentioned earlier, teen dramas were popular when the show was released. Beverly Hills, 90210 ventilation at the same time. However, Clone High cleverly does not put all eggs in one basket; while half of the show’s jokes and storylines stem from teen dramas, the show’s offbeat concept introduces an entirely different source of jokes: history. As the name suggests, the show features clones of historical figures whose core team consists of clones of Abraham Lincoln (Will Forte), Joan of Arc (Nicole Sullivan), Gandhi (Michael McDonald), and much more.
Unlike other parody shows that have to rely on one source or genre to pull off all of their jokes. Clone High has two. Whenever the teen drama jokes get old, the show might switch to historical references and vice versa. This makes the show feel a lot smarter than other shows of this type. No wonder, given that two of its three creators have created some of the funniest and most original films and TV shows to date. However, as previously mentioned, the series still operates much like its own teen drama. One of the most common plot points used in teen dramas is the idea of living up to huge expectations, feeling inadequate to fit in with the hole that society has in store for you, and Clone High has a unique opportunity to comment on this within its concept. As clones of real people, the characters experience a very literal sense of not living up to expectations and not being able to become the people they are meant to be. The show uses it for humor like everything else, but occasionally lets a bit of genuine drama and sincerity shine through. It is this drama that is used in the series in a different way, which is ahead of its time.
Clone School was incredibly ahead of its time.
One huge benefit that streaming has brought to animated shows is that it has allowed plots to become much more serialized. Whereas in the past, animated shows could sometimes dive into overarching plots and maintain the canon (Maude Flanders is known to have remained dead in The Simpsons) has often been the exception rather than the norm. At present, the opposite is more often the case; while adult animation shows like Family man and the aforementioned The Simpsons obsolete in their old formats, newer shows like Bojack rider And Rick and Morty they are now expected to include season-long (or even series-long) expansive storylines. However, even before there was streaming Clone High experimented with sustained storylines with many intertwining romances and gags. High melodrama was used mostly for comedy, but the fact that it did it at all at a time when regular weekly viewing wasn’t expected is impressive in itself.
What’s also impressive about the show is its unique art style. The characters are bordered by thick, purposeful outlines and usually consist of strange evocative shapes and sharp angles, a style similar to old school UPA cartoons as well as other cartoons of the time such as Cool girls And Samurai Jack (which by the way also received a well-deserved revival). This attention to unique style is not only needed to stand out from the crowd, it also works very well within the tight confines of adult animation of the time. Thanks to the characters’ already dynamic basic posture, where the characters barely move while speaking (a necessary constraint on the show’s budget at the time), it rarely looks offensive or ugly to the eye as it can in other static animated adult shows. Resources can be reused to some extent instead of having to redraw every single character, and with large readable shapes the eyes are never lost or confused. It’s a similar style philosophy, South Park adhered to, with great effect. However, one of the main reasons why Clone High really deserves a second chance due to the unfortunate circumstances that surrounded his initial downfall.
The unfortunate fate of the original “Clone School”
At this point, you may be asking yourself, “Why can a show that sounds so perfect be canceled after just one season?” The reason for this is a bit unusual. There are a few bad jokes and cultural artifacts that could definitely be fixed with a modern re-evaluation, but that’s not the reason the show was cancelled. And it wasn’t some terrible creator-based controversy like the one Rick and Morty suffered under Justin Roiland. The cancellation was not caused by any particular weakness or mistake by the authorities, but by the basic concept of the show itself.
It was previously mentioned that among the main characters was the character Gandhi, a boisterous freestyle clown who contrasted with the serious and powerful figure he was cloned from. While the character is certainly funny, his presence unfortunately drew the ire of Indian viewers who took offense at the mockery of such an important figure in the country’s history. Hunger strikes were planned, as well as direct protests outside the MTV offices. The show’s creators have struggled to come up with solutions to the problem (including a plan to instead deny that Gandhi was a clone of Gary Coleman, of all people), but in the end it didn’t matter. The controversy might not have been the only reason for the show’s cancellation (animation is quite expensive, and even very well-received shows have not saved from the ax before), but it was undoubtedly a factor in the decision not to do so. continue the series. Despite plans for more seasons, the show flopped before it even had a chance to really move, all because of one character controversy - a truly unfair shake-up for a show that deserved so much more.
For twenty full years it was the end of history, the brutal climax of one of the most witty and entertaining adult animated shows of the 2000s. The show has become a cultural artifact, especially in the shadow of its creators who have become big names in Hollywood with highly successful projects such as 21 Jump Street The Lego MovieAnd Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (which actually includes an easter egg for Clone High, oddly enough) Now that another season has finally seen the light of day (of course Gandhi has already been removed), more viewers may finally get a chance to get to know the series and it may have its true day under the sun. In an age where ugly, pesky adult animated shows look like clones of other better shows, Clone High paradoxically, it may just be part of the original great content we need.
Source: Collider
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