Ren
& Stimpy - Seasons Three and a Half-ish
Picture: B-
Sound: B- Extras: C Episodes: C-
After John Kricfalusi was squeezed out of touch with his
creations and replaced by Bob Camp and Games Animation, things changed very
quickly. After Games had finished up
all of Spumco's shows that were then in production, they moved on to new ideas,
and also grabbed a large chunk of material used for their initial output
directly from John and others at Spumco, using their stories and often not
giving proper credit where it was due.
This box set is made up of episodes from this awkward time, where it
seems few knew exactly which direction the show should head in. It should be noted that these episodes also
happen to be the worst that ever happened to reach the air - the gems are few
and far between. Thankfully, it seems
that the third set, like the first, happens to be another capsule for some
decent laughs. Now, we look at the
second box set of his most popular creations with Ren & Stimpy - Seasons
Three and a Half-ish.
Some things had definitely changed by that point, and a
lot was for the worst, but it's hard to argue that those episodes are
definitely superior to anything unloaded on Seasons Three and a Half-ish. I'm a good deal less enthusiastic about this
collection than I was for the prior set, though my expectations were set about
as high for both. One episode in
particular that I'll again draw attention to is "Ren's Retirement". In my review for Seasons One and Two
(elsewhere on this site) I noted that it was a great episode and one I was
greatly looking forward to watching again after not having seen it for such a
long time. It turns out that my opinion
of the episode was far more forgiving prior to my rewatching it once I got this
set. It drags on for quite some time,
with no real laughs anywhere. Some
things were amusing, and the concept behind it is a great one... but the timing
and execution were so off that it was hardly viewable. So is the way of many of these episodes -
going by on a good idea until it runs out of steam and leaves the viewer
stranded.
Still, on the up side - John K. and crew are back to
provide commentaries, and the newly painted artwork for the interior jackets is
superb. Who knew that a painting of Ren
with a little moustache and looking more Lorre-esque than ever while smoking a
cigarette could be a reason to buy a DVD?
You all know that if you're a fan, picking this set up is still required
of you... even if it is just going to sit on the shelf for the most part and
look pretty.
Now to repeat this for round two - the picture quality is
especially excellent in my opinion - things look just right for the cartoon,
with clean lines, sharp colors and little to no blurring. The image is 1.33 X 1 full screen as was originally
intended, since this is a television cartoon.
The sound is Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo and is as equally pleasing as the
video quality. All is well with the
technical stuff, so get back there and enjoy those cartoons (if you can).
The extras this time around though are a slightly
different story. Instead of another
documentary-type deal, the folks over at Paramount have expanded the number of
commentaries to 11. The catch is that a
lot of these aren't quite as enjoyable as those in the first set. This has a lot to do with the inferior
quality of the episodes overall, and a lack of people who actually had much at
all to do with the episodes playing before them. Some are still somewhat interesting to hear, while others take on
a new life, and become the only things that bar an episode from going
completely down the crapper.
As a fan of the show, this will be staying in my permanent
collection. If you're not huge on the
characters and only want a taste to remind you of times past, pick up the first
and move on after that if you still need your fix. If you don't need that fix immediately and you like your humor
with an adult tinge, the Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon should be headed
out in the fairly near future and ready for purchase.
- David Milchick
