“Clerks : The Animated Series” Based on characters created by Kevin Smith; Created by Kevin Smith; Developed by David Mandel, Scott Mosier, and Kevin Smith; Starring Jeff Anderson, Jason Mewes, Brian O’ Halloran, Kevin Smith, Kevin Michael Richardson, Alec Baldwin, Charles Barkley, Tara Strong, Walter Flanagan, Bryan Cranston, and Bryan Johnson.
In the early 2000’s I was recently graduated from high school, moved out, and building my DVD collection (hey guys, do you remember DVDs?). I was also in the throes of what bordered on an unhealthy obsession with all things Kevin Smith (an ailment I’ve never fully recovered from, and don’t really want to). As a result I made a stop after work to a Media Play (Hey guys, do you remember Media Play?) looking for a copy of “Chasing Amy,” the only hole in my otherwise complete collection of Smith’s work, or so I thought.
Unfortunately they didn’t have any copies of “Chasing Amy” I would have to wait to own what would become perhaps my favorite of all Smith’s films, but they did have a two disc set of the complete “Clerks: The Animated Series.” Not to be confused with the “Clerks” live action series which only went to pilot and was decidedly awful. You can watch it below if you want to, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.
“What the hell is this?” I excitedly asked the store employee. He answered with a shrug and walked away in true Randal fashion. Needless to say, I bought the set and took it home, disappointed that I didn’t find what I was looking for (I feel you Bono) but glad that I had discovered something else, something of which I had not previously been aware.
Of course I went home and gobbled up all six episodes. Upset that the series, and subsequently myself, had been robbed of any further episodes. The series picks up after the events of the “Clerks” movie and showcases the continued adventures of Dante and Randall, as well as Jay and Silent Bob. Unlike the movie, the animated series is in full color. Other differences between the series and the movie include obvious tone and content changes (there is no cursing or nudity) and the dynamic dope-dealing duo exchange selling dope for selling fireworks.
The series took the titular clerks and put them in situations that commonly lampooned other popular movies and television tropes. Sadly it was cancelled after only two episodes had aired and only six episodes were produced. The network cited poor ratings as the reason for cancellation but that could have been due to their unexplainable decision to air the series out of order. They aired the fourth episode first, followed by the second episode. You’d think that with a cartoon this might not be an issue, but with “Clerks: The Animated Series” it absolutely was. The series was often self referential, relying on previous episodes for the humor to work. This is especially the case with the second episode titled “The Clipshow Wherein Dante and Randal are Locked in the Freezer and Remember Some of the Great Moments in Their Lives.” The episode may have a title that would make Fallout Boy blush, but it was funny, in that it lampooned the classis television trope of doing flashback episodes utilizing clips from previous episodes to fill a half hour.
Since this was only the second episode of the series, it utilized flashbacks from only the previous episode, as well as from the second episode itself. The joke doesn’t really work if you haven’t seen the first episode, which no one had, because the network hadn’t aired it.
After cancellation, the series went to DVD, where it did find a home, specifically in my home. The series was also aired in its entirety in several places, including Comedy Central, the channel that has a knack for taking unappreciated series and giving them a second life.
Smith has talked on numerous occasions about the possibility of bringing the show back to air, or even potentially doing a spin-off series. But due to problems with ownership between Miramax and Disney, nothing has as yet come to light and with Smith working on other projects like the upcoming “Yoga Hosers,” “Moose Jaws,” “Clerks 3,” and “Mallrats 2” the window of opportunity for more animated stuff may have closed.
The Constant Viewer can hope that perhaps the assured success of the latter two films might spark network interest in the material, or that Smith with do what Smith does and make the damned thing himself. Only time will tell. Until then, all six episodes are available on DVD or on YouTube, you can watch one of them below.
Snoogans.