Clone High (seasons 1, 3-present)

Clone High (seasons 1, 3-present) So, our historical leaders had their own children?! Say WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT? Genre: Animated sitcom Comedy drama Satire Science fiction Running Time: 22–23 minutes Country: United States Canada Release Date: November 2, 2002 - April 13, 2003 (season 1) Febuary 1, 2024 (season 3) Network(s): MTV (season 1, U.S) Teletoon At Night (season 1, Canada) Max (seasons 2-present, U.S) Created by: Phil Lord Christopher Miller Bill Lawrence Distributed by: MTV Entertainment Studios Nelvana (season 1) Doozer Productions Lord Miller Productions Touchstone Television (season 1) ShadowMachine (seasons 2-present) Starring: Will Forte Phil Lord Michael McDonald (season 1) Christa Miller Christopher Miller Nicole Sullivan Neil Casey (seasons 2-present) Ayo Edebiri (seasons 2-present) Mitra Jouhari (seasons 2-present) Vicci Martinez (seasons 2-present) Kelvin Yu (seasons 2-present) Seasons: 1 Episodes: 13

Clone High (occasionally referred to in the U.S. as Clone High U.S.A.) is a Canadian–American adult animated science fiction sitcom created by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Bill Lawrence and produced by Doozer, Lord Miller, MTV Entertainment Studios, and Teletoon.

Summary

As the intro explains, in the 1980s, a mad scientist and his robot friend dug up the dead bodies and remains of famous people and made clones of them using their DNA. Most of the main cast in the show are teenage clones of historical figures (Abe Lincoln, Joan of Arc, Gandhi, Cleopatra, and John F. Kennedy) who all attend Clone High High School while being secretly monitored by the Secret Board of Shadowy Figures.

Why Nothing Bad Ever Happened To These Seasons

1. The premise is very unique and cool. This show not only exceeds in originality, but it even works. It appeals mostly to those who seem to be very interested in history and those in adult and teen animation.
2. It takes a funny approach to teen drama in a very satirical way.
3. The show takes the most famous people in history from a new perspective, introducing them as the dork (Abe Lincoln), the hottie (Cleopatra), the clown (Gandhi), the jock (JFK), and the goth (Joan of Arc). Keep in mind that this show was released in 2002, where cartoons based on those characters are good because they do it more interestingly, Clone High is a prime example of this.
4. The voice actors experiment with the characters based on famous people by making them sound funny. This is one of the reasons why JFK and Gandhi are considered to be the best characters in the show.
5. The animation and art style are considered a love letter to not only shows like the 90s-2000s Cartoon Network shows (i.e. The Powerpuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy), but also 30s-50s cartoons made by UPA thanks to being animated by the amazing Rough Draft Studios. Along with Jam Filled Entertainment since the revival which has inspirated motion of season 1, despite it not being hand-drawn.
6. Besides the historical figures, the show also takes comedy, drama, and romance in a new perspective...using historic figures as you guessed it, clones.
7. Lots of memorable characters such as:
   • Abe Lincoln (despite being unlikeable character, then finally he redeemed in season 3 that he no longer being a loser and idiot butt-monkey)
   • Joan of Arc
   • Gandhi
   • Cleopatra
   • John F. Kennedy
   • Confucius
   • Harriet Tubman (despite being unlikable)
   • Frida Kahlo
   • Topher Bus
   • Mr. Butlertron
   • Principal Scudworth
   • Candide Sampson
8. Speaking for the characters, there is a few characters (except Harriet) are redeemed after season 3 are redeemed after season 2 like, Confucius, Frida and Topher Bus (since he is okay character).
9. The humor and jokes are very funny and over the top as it tries to see how much it can get away with any of the offensive jokes.
10. Funny references to other pop culture media, such as Mr. Peanut.
11. The theme and ending songs are amazing, performed by Abandoned Pools. The soundtrack is very nostalgic for people who grew up in the 2000s.
12. Some scenes/jokes/quotes have become memes.
    • "Say WHAAAAAAAT?"
    • "Nothing bad ever happens to the Kennedys!"
    • "Gandhi's missing kidney, to where the other says "I miss him."
    • "You got big breasts."
    • It also spawned the "my day be so fine, then BOOM" meme.
    • "I like your funny words, magic man."
13. There are a lot of funny and ironic jokes such as the scene where Jesus shoots himself in the foot with a nail gun, Julius Caesar telling him to be careful with the nail gun, and the scene where JFK is driving a car and says that nothing bad ever happens to the Kennedys then his car flips over.
14. It has a recurring theme of how the clones aren't able to be themselves because they are clones of historical figures, and how they are all expected to live up to the legacies of the people they are clones of in which they struggle, the theme song also explains this too.
15. Then in the 3rd season, it was improved with qualities what it ever done after 2nd season with the characters being more fleshed out, the writing getting better, and the comedy reverting back to season 1's jokes.
16. Memorable soundtrack such as: The Christian Rock Song.

"Dinger!" Qualities

1. The second season of the 2023 revival is lackluster as it lacks the charm and humor of the first and third seasons.
2. The revival animation by Jam Filled Entertainment while good, is still not as good as the first season which was hand-drawn animated by Rough Draft Studios.
3. Some may find the fact that using historic figures is offensive, this element caused a backlash in India.
4. The show used to be canceled after this season for 20 years until it got a revival by Max in 2023.
   • The reason it was canceled is due to how Gandhi was depicted, it angered viewers in India and caused them to protest. In response to the backlash in India, the show ended.
5. There are a few unlikeable characters:
   • Abe. While he is not bad, he was being a loser, idiot and Butt-Monkey for entire series. Thankfully, he was redeemed in season 3.
   • Harriet, she is the worst character, she is a neat freak, wants things done her way and she never shut up. Even in season 3, she is cheating with Confucius.
6. Some jokes aged poorly, like Eleanor Roosevelt being an offensive lesbian stereotype, and the entirety of the ADD episode.
7. The love triangle between Abe, Cleopatra, and Joan is very frustrating to many people, mainly because Abe is oblivious to Joan having feelings for him due to being in love with Cleopatra. And only realizes that he had feelings for Joan in the final episode. Thankfully, Joan and JFK got together in said final episode.
8. The season 1 finale left a huge cliffhanger, it wasn't until 20 years later in 2023 when it got finally resolved.

Reception

Clone High received mixed reviews at release, but as time went on, it became one of the best adult cartoons of all time and deemed an "underrated gem." It currently has 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and an 8.1 on IMDb.

Trivia

• The show's art style was the main inspiration for that of Total Drama.
• Two of the show's characters, JFK and Abe, both made cameos in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse as a poster in two scenes at Time Square where Gwen and Peter B. Parker were explaining their backstories. Click here for the two images that feature the poster in the background.
• Even though people believed that the show was canceled due to low ratings, they soon realized that it was due to the portrayal of Gandhi as a comic relief. The portrayal of Gandhi offended Indian people so much that about 100 people held a hunger strike at MTV's Indian offices. As a result of this massive backlash, MTV canceled the show very soon and it lasted only one season before the show received a reboot. The fast cancellation was disheartening for both audiences, fans, and the crew who worked on the show.
• Will Forte, Abe Lincoln's voice actor, reprised his role as the character in The Lego Movie and its sequel The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part.
• Around late 2020, there was an opportunity for fans of the show to have JFK's voice actor, Christopher Miller, say anything they wanted if they voted early for the election that took place that year.
• In 2023, the show received a second season serving as a revival reboot by Max.
• There might be possible rumors that Gandhi might return in the revival if it gets a fourth season.

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