Ren Tries to Snap Stimpy's Neck - Dark Toons

[@ChannelAwesome]

What should we cover on a future episode of Dark Toons? Watch more Dark Toons here - bit.ly/35ryYZS Watch more Nostalgia Critic here - bit.ly/3bQVcH5 Doug and Rob are LIVE on Twitch - www.twitch.tv/channelawesome

[@book4life556]

The fresh Vegetable mystery 1936.

[@Dr.Gold-Dry-Bowser]

How about some dark Looney Tunes?

[@MadameChristie]

Cybersix!

[@cofagrigusfan24]

how about Fishing for Trouble from CatDog while not dark, it is just bizarre, even for CatDog standarts

[@breannastallings9397]

Channel Awesome I love your videos

[@alecfoisy58]

Fun fact: After this episode aired, Nickelodeon got a LOT of fan mail from children saying they loved Ren.

[@th3azscorpio]

I heard about this! That's really cute, and really sweet!

[@godsclown4419]

That's cute but...also in a bit way disturbing considering what happens in the episode-

[@xXSpongeBroBrownPantzXx]

@@godsclown4419 you gotta feel bad for ren yknow

[@theKingofDragons420]

@@xXSpongeBroBrownPantzXx ya ik it not his fault the creator have a problem to himself

[@curtisleblanc5897]

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwe

[@s.g.7572]

"They call him God, but he's as mortal as we." Damn that's a good line!

[@elizabethescalante8114]

Damn, that was poignant. The same can be said about Sonic when compared to his friends.

[@sober_katz]

sometimes it's so hard for me to believe this was a kids show LOL

[@orangeslash1667]

@@sober_katz If it wasn't for Nickelodeons restraints, It could have been even worse. John K is that unhinged.

[@BugsyFoga]

Ren and Stimpy often pushes boundaries , so it of course was gonna end up here .

[@albertgein3082]

And don't think it was really made for little kids so he broke that rule ... 8m glad its tho

[@albertgein3082]

And don't think it was really made for little kids so he broke that rule ... 8m glad its tho

[@LUNCHLEAMs]

Wow, Foga, weren’t you the person who gave Caddicarus George of the Jungle for the ps2

[@ThreadBomb]

The thing is, Ren & Stimpy was not a kids' show. It's obviously aimed at an older age group who want to see a dark parody of the stuff they watched as kids.

[@ECL28E]

It's creator, John Krisfalusi also pushed boundries. Personal boundries... He's a gross creep, IRL

[@PetProjects2011]

"Dear Stimpy, I have a boyfriend, but he is always mean to me..." Is her boyfriend John K.?

[@aidanredding8058]

Depends. Is she an adult? If so then no, it's not him.

[@willeysingleton3057]

Thanks for pointing out that this guy should not be put on the pedestal he owns.

[@Tyler-ph2eg]

Johnathan Karsh

[@isaacvazquez627]

I think John K would serve as an example of what happens when a person takes "quality over quantity" to the extreme: An obsessive perfectionist who is unable to finish a single project on his own, who was never able to meet deadlines.

[@patbuttramssuperfan]

@@isaacvazquez627 I agree.

[@JustADioWhosAHeroForFun]

Ren and Stimpy are the early foundations to building Adult Swim

[@LooneyCartoonMan]

But it had an adult animated TV spin-off in 2003 on Spike TV called Adult Party Cartoon.

[@thedude5295]

@@LooneyCartoonMan That was so, so bad. Probably the most disappointing thing in 2003 after all the build up. Didn't it only last like 3 or 4 episodes?

[@LooneyCartoonMan]

@@thedude5295 IKR?

[@RedOnly]

Ren & Stimpy, Beavis and Butthead and Aeonflux shown as a block on MTv in mid 90's were the real start IMO

[@thedude5295]

@@RedOnly Idiot Box before either of them.

[@psychobillynumbnuts1]

Another disturbing one was when Stimpy was looking thru his favorite singer's window and saw him eating the piano's players head off. When the singer confronts Stimpy, Stimpy cries for him to eat his head off too (which he does), and the next scene was Stimpy lying in bed with Ren with his head a brutally mangled

[@JoopiterGD]

that sounds like a creepypasta

[@psychobillynumbnuts1]

@@JoopiterGD Not lying. Its on KZbin called The Mantis Man

[@JoopiterGD]

@@psychobillynumbnuts1 how did that even get past the storyboard phase?!?!?!?!

[@psychobillynumbnuts1]

@@JoopiterGD The creators knew that it was a huge hit for not only kids, but adults too. They were trying to push the limits on how far they can take it for a kids cartoon when they found out parents were protesting for the cartoon to get off of Nickelodeon

[@th3azscorpio]

And the one untamed world segment, where a dead Ren was being taxidermied... That scene still fucks with me.

[@donavandunn9824]

"They think he's a god, but he's as Mortal as we" Jesus this was in a kid show?

[@sliver-fox-thot-patrol]

Yep. I remember when that episode was on TV. I was no longer allowed to watch it after that haha

[@chrissonofpear1384]

JC Superstar?

[@undead890]

It was the best kids show! I used to watch it all the time when I was a kid.

[@gothicMCRgirl]

Ehhh, if we go by today’s standards, it would be considered a teens show, kind of like Regular Show. Back then basically every cartoon was considered a “kid’s show” just on virtue of being a cartoon. Even cartoons that were for adults were still seen as pretty childish (like the Simpsons). It’s kind of hilarious, but even though this show opened the floodgates for modern day cartoons, it also was detrimental in the sense that now cartoons need to be even stricter on their content, and if you want your cartoon to be for kids, there’s just certain topics and themes you’re not allowed to discuss, otherwise your rating gets bumped higher for an older audience. If Ren and Stimpy were to come out today, it would be on adult programming, like Adult Swim.

[@sliver-fox-thot-patrol]

@@gothicMCRgirl Until parents learned the hard way films like Rock and Rule and Heavy Metal weren't for kids. The 90s were great.

[@angryteen1012]

"My hands, they're dirty!" Basically 2020 summed up in one scentence

[@kaitiecolbert8597]

So there is an episode of Hey Arnold called “Helga on the Couch” where Helga goes to see a child psychologist and they go into her back story and you see that she had this traumatic childhood and I think if I remember correctly, they hinted at her mom being an alcoholic. Anyway, it was kinda dark and it made me laugh as a kid but I also felt a lot of sadness watching it. Hey Arnold has a lot of really dark episodes but I’d really like to see that one particularly reviewed.

[@hidan407]

@@jbwarner8626 I used to hate helga because of how she treated her sister but being almost 30 now, I just feel sorry for the bullshit she had to deal with.

[@brandonprater4613]

9:12-9:16 You are not wrong about the bug arms. In the fan-mail reading scene, one of the letters asks(not knowing what Ren is) if he is a mosquito. Personally, I love how what the letters say play a part in Ren's decent into madness. The foreshadowing is just awesome!

[@pundertalefan4391]

Wow. There ya go. I never put that together.

[@KirbyProductions]

How did Doug FIND THE SHARP SHIFT FUNNY IT JUMPSCARED ME.

[@GBmovieluv]

Did both for me

[@bigmaus2216]

Same

[@Mariorox1956]

I got a bit of a spook too. After that initial shock, it's kinda funny

[@kazbramble8254]

Exactly

[@bigmaus2216]

Mariorox1956 agreed

[@thefreakmachine]

Ren and Stimpy tought me that if you lose all your sanity from the start maybe it won't be a big issue later.

[@hailmammonmoments7568]

Underrated comment. Underrated mantra for 90s kids.

[@thefreakmachine]

@@hailmammonmoments7568 Thanks!

[@h-bitgraphics3858]

I reaaally don’t think that’s the moral you should be taking away from this 😰

[@NeoKingGhidorah]

Speed Demon from the Powerpuff Girls is a super dark episode of a kids show.

[@Alejandroigarabide]

Try "Mexico a-go-go" and "Mount Fuji-Whiz" from "Legend of the Three Caballeros". A hint: Donald Duck dies and must escape the underworld. Also... Donald drinks liquid memories from a dead ancestor's brain. That's dark for a Donald Duck cartoon.

[@kazbramble8254]

Just wanted

[@renroxhrd]

Just reccomended that episode

[@Morganatic272]

Tough love was really dark and real too

[@rainpooper7088]

“Call the girls… *CALL THE POWERPUFF GIRLS!”*

[@Entrominal]

God I really hope that when qurentine is over Doug still does stuff like this. You can really tell this is something he absolutely loves analysing animation. It is just so wholesum to see how genuinely excited he is to describe it to someone else. The way a music nut would describe the flow of the music and how the peice creates a picture or story. Or how a person who loves thematic relevece and story telling gets estatic describing character archs/psychology. Or how an artist talks of the meaning and emotion of a peice. I definitely can relate to that being the first two, and love when someone else who is so passionate about some art form gets to describe it.

[@Selrisitai]

I think it's very telling, the way you talk about the _craft_ in every artistic endeavor. . . except for "art," AKA, drawing/painting, at which point you switch from craft (flow creates a picture or story/character arcs and psychology) to the abstract, E.G., "meaning" and "emotion" of a piece. I personally like drawings for the same craft-related reasons I like all other media, and an abstract, vague notion of "what it means" is tertiary at best.

[@aidanhever3369]

Here are other Nicktoons with dark and twisted episodes: - Angelica's Worst Nightmare (Rugrats) - The Ghost Bride (Hey Arnold!) - Dark Harvest (Invader ZIM) - The Return of Raggedy Android (My Life as a Teenage Robot) - The Ultimate Enemy (Danny Phantom)

[@ThreadBomb]

Anyone remember Cow & Chicken? Episodes "No smoking" , "Chachi, the Chewing Gum Seal", "The Karate Chick"

[@glowworm2]

@@ThreadBomb Cow and Chicken was one messed up show--and I'm quite certain that they were influenced by Ren and Stimpy.

[@arielruh7773]

That's life ( fairy odd parents

[@kungfuenthusiasm6592]

glowworm2 oh it’s a guarantee lol CN needed there own crazy ass cartoon and we got the red guy lmao

[@Tornado1994]

-Wimp on a Barby(Rocko's Modern Life).

[@Viriditas87]

Me: "1 a.m., can't sleep, let's see what's up on KZbin." Also me: "Uh, new Dark Toons episode. Who needs sleep anyway!"

[@louisduarte8763]

SLEEP IS FOR THE WEAK! [snores]

[@platypusbunneh]

11:25 "Yeah- probably could have done without the fire." *Ren is screaming* That was hilarious xD

[@Ragan31687]

That panning shot to Ren’s eyes is a freaking jump scare. Made me flinch real hard.

[@kamikaze4172]

Wait, Ren trying to snap stimpy's neck is the darkest? Not when he blew up Australia? Or when he threatened to gouge out Stimpy's eyes out?

[@SpaceCase132]

I think it has to do with both the contrast from the beginning of the episode and the atmosphere of the scene itself.

[@kamikaze4172]

@@SpaceCase132 That might be it

[@AnInsideJoke]

I think the one about the eyes being gouged out was because that exact line was cut from the episode, and only released later as a deleted scene (you're talking about the one with Stimpy and Ren's Stimpy-like cousin where he goes nuts after they wreck too much of his stuff, right?).

[@juanfisi]

Or when he tortured a frog all his life and then brutally murdered his psychiatrist?

[@randomcringeyyoutuber6750]

@@juanfisi we don't talk about adult party cartoon

[@carvercordes]

I always loved that Ren's hands went from having 4 fingers to 5 and back to 4 in just a few shots and how differently they were rendered in such a short time. MADNESS!!!

[@AverageSuperNova]

Nothing better than refreshing the homepage and seeing a Channel Awesome video posted 8 seconds ago

[@williamfulenwider7332]

That is nice it's annoying when youtube doesnt even tell you till 15 minutes later

[@th3azscorpio]

One of the great things about Ren and Stimpy's humor, was it's timing. Perfectly placed moments, the pacing, the we'll timed reactions, are what made it a step above the rest. I loved this shows ability to catch you off guard. The characters could be drawn cutely one moment, and then grotesque, dark, and truly fucked up the next. Another example, is the rubble nipple salesman episode.

[@MTTT19]

Here’s a disturbing one: Boo Boo Runs Wild

[@sam4gaming135]

_My boo boo got blown to boo bits!_

[@kylehandlon1641]

thas fer adults

[@SithArbiter1157]

Funny thing, that was made by the creators of Ren and Stimpy!

[@angrytheclown801]

I thought that was disturbing due to how bad it was.

[@johnsouto5221]

Matt Thornton it’s not dark, but it’s as funny as it is disturbing.

[@shanadaniels461]

My Mom didn't like me watching Ren and Stimpy either.

[@maggiekoch9348]

Same here. My mother thought they looked horrid, and this episode would have given her palpitations due to the pitch-black, psychotic tone shift.

[@shanadaniels461]

@@maggiekoch9348 As a kid I don't remember seeing anything dark themes or tones in Reb and Stimpy just some gross outs.

[@squishyty918]

shana Daniels My mom was fine with Ren and Stimpy but she didn’t like spongebob. Makes sense

[@scottchaison1001]

@blameitonjerry No.

[@scottchaison1001]

@blameitonjerry No.

[@kingvideogames]

6:51 The good sign of a joke is that even when you are spoiled on what the joke is, seeing or hearing it played out still makes you laugh. This is a good joke.

[@glowworm2]

This actually made me laugh out loud like Doug did.

[@KeeperOfUntoldDreams]

So many people weren't allowed to watch this as kids, but, as a kid, my mom would watch it with us. Not to monitor us or anything, just simply because she loved the show too. My parents loved a lot of the same shows I did, hell, they introduced me to South Park at four years old.

[@CheeseBlaster]

that's good parenting right there

[@KeeperOfUntoldDreams]

@@CheeseBlaster They knew I didn't understand the adult jokes, so they weren't concerned.

[@CheeseBlaster]

oh I wasn't being sarcastic, I genuinely find that awesome

[@KeeperOfUntoldDreams]

@@CheeseBlaster I get it, I was just clarifying. I wasn't a sheltered kid for the most part, so I was raised on raunchy adult comedy.

[@CheeseBlaster]

cool dude

[@ingeborg-anne]

Loving this series, honestly. That is, the "Dark Toons" series. Ren and Stimpy creeped me out so much as a kid that I never watched it.

[@psychobillynumbnuts1]

Another episode thats WAY worse than this one, is when theyre singing a country song about the satisfaction of hanging. Singing how you should frame a friend to hang with you. All in brutally disturbing details. Even the name of the song is brutal, called The Lord Loves a Hangin'

[@ArialWingdings]

Yeah, the episode was called Out West. I've watched it... um... more times than I care to admit.

[@pundertalefan4391]

Woah. XD

[@imunoriginalokay4400]

I love that episode, the song is a banger

[@wakiloon]

I still feel Stimpy's Fan Club is worse. It really goes into Ren's psyche and how he just wants to "feel loved and important"

[@epicgamer127thehedgehog2]

The Mickey Mouse cartoon “runaway brain”

[@Sabretoothsquirrel]

Oh, shit! That one fucked me up!

[@jacoblakins6628]

I suggested that one too!

[@RandomCartoonFan2639]

Isn’t it hard to find

[@autumnsavage4589]

The part that scared me the most in Ren and Stimpy (my favorite part ever because I had the monologue memorized when I was 7) was actually in the episode where ren's cousin came over, and after Ren got home and Sven and Stimpy were playing don't wizz on the electric fence, He had this whole creepy monologue about how "I'm gonna hit ya. AND YOU'RE GONNA FAALLLLL." And I still have that scene memorized by heart to this day

[@NJGuy1973]

And apparently Ren had a collection of rare diseases that he kept in jars.

[@Kip450]

"I might be a pyro." -Doug 2020

[@benjaminwebster4482]

When Ren starts freaking out and Stimpy's head is sliding past in the background, I always though that meant that he had already killed him and the guilt was just driving him insane.

[@th3azscorpio]

It was his guilty conscience, and his love for his best friend stopping him.

[@dxgaming4200]

This one really scared me as a 4 year old... Especially 10:41. “Just one...quick...TWIST.”

[@GBmovieluv]

I watched Ren and Stimpy starting from when I was 6 years old. I remember the part when his head was throbbing scared me so much. The older I got the more I understood why it was so scary to me knowing I've had to go through some (in simplest terms) brain surgeries so you could say the pain seemed relatable on an exaggerated level. Funny how that nor the gross humor stopped me from watching

[@maggiekoch9348]

That demonic line read coupled with the chilling visuals....this is psychological horror in cartoon format.

[@sandwichgod692]

Actually, John Kricfalusi primarily voices Ren in this episode, however, Billy West does provide Ren’s voice during the secret oath segment.

[@xXSpongeBroBrownPantzXx]

Yeah he kind of got it wrong

[@epicgamer127thehedgehog2]

The Disney cartoon “education for death”

[@sky-sx5gt]

this show isnt from disney. its from nickeloidan.

[@kungfuenthusiasm6592]

magic dust Doug isn’t just doing nick shows with this so next liaise could be something else

[@chriskrichie566]

The ren and stimpy method of never drawing the same drawing twice and exaggerating emotion is my favorite.

[@Tadicuslegion78]

I feel like Man's Best Friend was way darker and crazier.

[@kenhollis6197]

Somewhat, but Nickelodeon refused to air it.

[@Jackie-McCann]

That episode was pretty much banned on Nickelodeon.

[@psychobillynumbnuts1]

@@Jackie-McCann Not really. I remember that episode had a ton of reruns

[@KingExalted]

John Liquor getting his shit kicked in by a mentally unstable Chihuahua

[@DeadMoon1986]

More possibilities: 'Ed Is Dead' Rocko's Modern Life 'Haunted Train' Hey Arnold! Or rather ANY of the urban legend episodes... 'Who Killed Who?' Billy & Mandy

[@Melvinshermen]

DeadMoon1986 also invader zim dark harvest Tales of Worm Paranoia what a cartoon dude doug should done this cartoon is ren and stimpty ( the orginal ) was more Fuck up Any aaaa real monsters epsidoe i can not make top on my head Oh speak of Rocko modern life to heck and back that is other one Cow and chicken No smoking

[@arielruh7773]

That's life from fairly odd parents maybe?

[@epicgamer127thehedgehog2]

The invader zim episode “dark harvest”

[@JustinWahlne]

Saberspark's got an episode on that.

[@kazbramble8254]

It had to change it

[@brenderee4698]

What's it about?

[@kazbramble8254]

Zim eating organs to seem more human and replaces organs with object

[@brenderee4698]

@@kazbramble8254 oh. Yikes.

[@mattdarrock666]

4:19 ''I'll do it!'' Such an innocuous moment and yet it got a weird laugh out of me...

[@lowrider993]

They always live in a different type of home every episode, or they're homeless

[@Equ3strianGam3r]

When it comes to Ren and Stimpy the episodes I remember most are the one with Ren's cousin Sven and Stimpy's Invention with the Happy Happy Joy Joy song. Seeing Ren bash himself over and over in the head with a hammer to get the Happy Helmet off is something I don't think I'll ever forget.

[@tylerjohnson990]

When an animatronic gets into your office in FNaF 2: 6:51

[@kriticalitylives]

There was always something crazy about Ren And Stimpy. It could either be insanely weird, or incredibly sinister. Thats particularly why it grabbed so many people.

[@Branjero]

5:40 Also good is when Stimpy catches him and when Ren is startled you can faintly hear the sound of something wet drizzling on the floor. This defnitely implies that Ren just peed and emphasizes how hypocritical he often is in the show. This is my favorite Ren & Stimpy episode. My friends and I still quote it to this day.

[@th3azscorpio]

I thought that was the sound of pen dropping... Good catch tho! The level of detail is why I love this show so much.

[@Asaylum117]

Honestly. Nickelodeon in the 90's went wild with their animated shows. Ren and Stimpy took a much darker and disturbing humor. While Rocko's Modern Life took a much more adult and more cartoony type of humour and when looking back at shows like that as an adult, you sometimes wonder how the hell Nickelodeon even allowed to air shows like this on a kids network?

[@poweroffriendship2.0]

Back in the day, kids shows always get away of slipping some dirty jokes whether if it's subliminal or explicit.

[@kungfuenthusiasm6592]

How did animaniacs,tiny toons or freakazoid get away with hidden jokes?

[@Thespeedrap]

90 s ruled miss those days.

[@SynZ777]

The 90's was the crude and edgy era.

[@imunoriginalokay4400]

The funny thing is most rockos modern life episodes have a TV Y rating which means it was suitable for 2 year olds to watch

[@muffinchip6894]

*character gets eyes torn out/ contemplates murder or dies* NC: scenes like that just make it funnier

[@PapasKoolaideria]

I definitely recommend looking at Nasty Patty from Spongebob Squarepants. It features Mr. Krabs and Spongebob murdering the health inspector with a “nasty patty” of theirs, then trying to bury the body by hitting it into the ground. Then they get picked up by the cops who are oblivious to the situation, which makes them have to throw and hide the body into the trunk. Pretty dark stuff for such a usually happy and ecstatic show.

[@spencers5898]

Thing is, that episode is pretty tongue-in-cheek. Like, sure the humor skews a bit darker than usual, but it's still humor. The intent all the way through is clearly to make you laugh. Whereas something like this is very much intended to unsettle or outright scare.

[@PapasKoolaideria]

Spencer S Agreed

[@complex6753]

@@PapasKoolaideria possibly he can watch the episode where squidward realizes he has no good memories

[@kevins8071]

I remember back in the day. They got Billy West to come to our college to talk about Ren and Stimpy and voice acting in general. Mind you, this was the height of the cartoon show. He was very gracious and even sang happy, happy, joy joy for a little kid who asked.

[@kungfuenthusiasm6592]

Tragic that today,he hates talking about the show now specially with all the shit that came out bout John k

[@TheEman590]

@@kungfuenthusiasm6592 Actually, he doesn't mind. He even talked on theTalkin' Toons podcast and to myself when I met him at Comic Con that he does sill have some good memories about Ren & Stimpy in spite of his rocky relationship with John K.

[@ends15]

Count Duckula. The title sequence used to scare the crap outta me. And they used to be like the last show on Nickelodeon in the weekends before they would switch to Nick at Nite so that really would leave a weird feeling when I have to sleep on a Saturday

[@alexbaum2204]

We must be right around the same age. I can draw all of my fear for movies and cartoons back to one night. New York City, with my dad, five years old and up past my bedtime (8:00 in the middle of the summer is gonna be tough), and some channel was playing the premier of Fright Night. At the time, I was obsessed with vampires and stuff, so I begged my dad to let me watch. We sat there on the couch and, to my credit, I made it all the way to when Chris Sarandon is stalking the girl in the night club. My dad had had enough. He called it (perhaps at the worst possible time) because he could tell I was scared absolutely shitless. I’d lied up until that point and kept going, but I must have been a mess by that point. I think my dad’s original intention was to teach me a lesson about not biting off more than I could chew by trying to look tough. But he probably had no idea I’d last that long and finally just probably felt bad. But I never got to see the girl get saved and the good guys win. So a couple years later, even a stupid thing like Count Duckula’s opening theme totally creeped me out. Turns out that I really love the scares. Good and truly scary horror movies are incredibly few and far between, but I love a good one and will sift through plenty of crap to find one. I’m glad that’s how I got my start and that I found Count Duckula so spooky. Final note, my dad and I would eagerly anticipate Sunday mornings to watch Ren & Stimpy together. Huge laughs. Me for the boogers and funny faces, my dad for all the 50’s and early 60’s references. This particular episode that is being reviewed definitely sent me to bed (at that point it had been moved and aired on Saturday night) with an uneasy feeling. I didn’t understand why they’d try to scare kids. My 6 year old brother had been told to leave right when the creepy music set in as Ren was reading the letters. By then a veteran parent, my dad wasn’t going to make the same mistakes he had with me. Sorry to write so much. The memories came flooding back.

[@bones22j]

Here’s the thing, Ren and Stimpy wasn’t even violent like say...Tom and Jerry. Or Looney Tunes. I mean they actually performed murderous acts on characters in them shows. And I feel like Nikolodeon wanted to sell Ren and Stimpy toys and merchandise (I even had Ren and Stimpy slippers lol) and since the show became sort of taboo and parents didn’t let their kids watch it, it slowly faded away. I loved Ren and Stimpy. I was pissed when it got taken off the air😤

[@angrytheclown801]

Part of why they took it off the air was John K's behavior. He was impossible to deal with and always turning episodes in extremely late. Sure, after they took it from him and the merchandising affected the show's lifespan, but listen to Billy West talk about John K. You can hear the venom dripping from his lips.

[@scientistservant]

@Lenin Dominguez Why? He's an awful person.

[@KyrstOak]

@Lenin Dominguez Why are you capitalizing every word?

[@cthulhufhtagn2483]

That's what bothers me about it. I was never allowed to watch it (evidently for good reason), so I didn't really know what it was until I saw this short. Something like Tom and Jerry _is_ far more violent, but there's rules. If Jerry gets crushed by a hammer, we all know he'll be OK. And even if he isn't, it will still make some semblance of sense. This...would you have been surprised if Ren had killed Stimpy? No. This is the sort of world that my child self would imagine myself in and not sleep for a week, one where reality can and does crumble at any second. Even as an adult, trying to make sense of this video disturbed me.

[@Pooky1991]

I remember some of the worst violent acts in the show were those off screen. Like the Baboon episode and others where Ren gets attacked or the one where Stimpy gets his head bitten off and a few others. The sounds of tearing and screaming were somehow more horrifying than the violent scenes actually shown on screen

[@cdrombelyk796]

4:18 when Ren sticks his arm up, he says "I'll", but it could be mistaken for "Heil", and with the arm position, that's a tug at the neckline.

[@animefan77]

I always thought the darker moments of the series weren’t the bizarre creatures, the often threatening positions they were put in- it was the freak outs. Ren, especially when he freaks out- you realize he’s not just some perpetually angry jerk with a hint of gold, he’s a genuinely unstable individual who’s true insanity is shown through these moments. And they’re not these over the top loony moments where the character runs around and uses a chainsaw, Ren’s are often non-violent, often sounding much more reserved, uncharacteristically pleasant and restrained, yet his expressions tell that’s he’s on the verge of blowing up into something worse. Like when he’s tittering on tearing Stimpy and Sven- but decides to graphically explain what he’ll do to them like an abusive dad...over wrecking his dinosaur eggs and bacteria collection. Or in this episode, in a fit of homicidal jealousy, he contemplates murdering Stimpy with the dialogue of a Shakespearian serial killer....over fan letters favoring Stimpy over himself. The reasons for them are ridiculously petty, but the freak outs are darker and realistically restrained enough to contrast with the gross, silly, over the top world around them, thus they always stand out when Ren gets moments like this. It doesn’t work on the Adult Show where Ren does go all out crazed- it’s not as creepy as the restrained possibility of snapping, with the imagination filling the gaps.

[@th3azscorpio]

This is why I love Ren. He's one of the most intense characters I've ever seen in western animated media.

[@Snaffdude]

The episode when they're firemen and the horseman shatters his legs and drags himself by his arms is something I STILL feel guilty laughing at "Tell me mr Horse, what are your feelings about that fall?" .... "No sir, I didnt like it"

[@jonescalypso]

I wasn't allowed to watch Ren & Stimpy as a kid (I saw a few sparatic moments once in a while, but not enough to fairly judge the show) So I especially appreciate you breaking down elements of it here, and what all went into it - how influential it was, etc. Thanks, Critic :)

[@WEB-0813]

HELLO AGAIN CRITIC!! I’ve been commenting on all the Dark Toons episodes so far, and I love all of them. While I personally haven’t seen Ren and Stimpy, I’m still glad to hear of any Dark Toon. Still love your analysis of all of the little specifics in the cartoons mixed with your comedy. I don’t want to keep this too long, but would still like to say that I loved the episode, and I hope you’re doing well during this pandemic.

[@brianpierson7658]

I didn't have Nickelodeon till after I was grown up. I remember as a kid stopping over at a friend's house and watching Ren and Stimpy for the first time and thought it was the craziest show I'd ever seen. I wished I could have seen more of it back when I was a kid.

[@michaelbolcato192]

Buy the DVDs of the show, they’re extremely cheap.

[@SkiKoala]

Ren's Space Madness rant (oh my beloved ice cream bar) is my favorite moment from the series.

[@JamesAWilliams]

06:52 That actually scared me a little just now.

[@donvitocorleone2098]

Ren and Stimpy was already messed up. The adult party cartoon made it worse.

[@tassadar7945]

Both in content and quality.

[@scientistservant]

I absolutely hated the adult party cartoon lmao

[@francisfatta]

Yeah that’s where it went too far

[@epicgamer127thehedgehog2]

I think the adult party cartoon is under rated and good

[@francisfatta]

Epicgamer127 the Hedgehog are you kidding? That cartoon was where things were starting to cross the line. It showed stupid unnecessary nudity, stimpy having a baby (and showed it), and ren constantly torturing a frog and then mauling that horse guy. That show is one of the most unpleasant, cruel, and sickening things I’ve ever seen.

[@hedgeearthridge6807]

14:22 I never saw this before on the TV aired ones, but I'm absolutely dying laughing. The detail is just so wonderfully excessive, just for a spit-second joke. It's so good!

[@ltmmoviereviewsharrison3462]

You should do the rockos modern life episode where heffer ends up in heck.

[@Garfewloid]

Yeah BOIIII

[@Alejandroigarabide]

There's an episode of "Legend of the Three Caballeros" where Donald Duck dies, and the next episode takes place completely in the Underworld, as Donald and friens try to escape back to the world of the living. I already made a comment on this video elaborating, but i'll just say 3 things: -They say "dead", "death" and "die" a lot in this episodes ("Mexico a-go-go" and "Mount Fuji-Whiz"). -Donald and friends drink liquid memories from Donald's dead ancestor's brain, Clinton Coot. -You'll never guess who is in charge of hell in this universe.

[@tremorsfan]

Heck? Don’t you mean he-

[@TheGoldenDunsparce]

Peaches' Modern Life~.....

[@Goldstar_]

@@tremorsfan "Censors!" 😁

[@colli_wolly]

Watch the 1939 Christmas animated short “Peace on Earth”. It was one of (if not) the first cartoon I saw as a kid that had some really dark imagery. It haunted me back then, but looking at it now, it is a 9 minute masterpiece.

[@karatechopkitten]

Is that the one that shows a war torn landscape, and I think, mice living in a soldiers helmet?

[@FuriousMan226]

Speaking of masterpiece, “Peace on Earth” was actually voted one of the 50 Greatest Cartoons ever in 1994.

[@Nasser851000]

ren and stimpy is one of those cartoons that sticks with you forever XD

[@donvitocorleone2098]

What about the adult party cartoon?

[@kryptonitespider-bitedynam7305]

@@donvitocorleone2098 that fucking sucked

[@Jimenopolix]

Oh, it stuck with me... for the wrong reasons... I only saw two episodes, and I couldn't take any more...

[@th3azscorpio]

Indeed. It's was one of my earliest, and favorite childhood memories.

[@irkenpony17]

for me it's a positive that it's stuck on me. everything about R&S inspires me from animation, voice acting, commitment, writing, the dark and light humor. tis pretty great, just not the whole Totally Controlling stuff that John did, that's how he got booted off. :/

[@vgngolley341]

6:53 I legit laughed so much during that scene

[@Wberdly555]

Ren jumpscare

[@koolaidkush8421]

At 4:20 Ren seems like he’s doing a Nazi salute. From the way he is standing, the way he extends his right arm with a straightened hand, and most importantly the way he says “HEIL... do it”. Little subtle remarks that go over the viewers heads. Maybe im digging too much i to it but still, im very surprised how this show even appeared in nickelodeon.

[@th3azscorpio]

Lol I caught that too. This was never censored out either.

[@m_udwhitman2649]

Ren sounds as Peter Lorre Stimpy sounds as Larry Fine is absolutely pure genius. I think problem with Billy West voiced Ren was he sounds like a parody version of Peter Lorre and not sound-alike and I know how extremely hard it is sound as closely as the original actors or actresses

[@avatarmary]

"I may also be a pyro" So you'd be a firebender?

[@imunoriginalokay4400]

So you'd be a tf2 character?

[@bsperoz]

6:50 You weren't kidding...IT GOT ME TO LAUGH!

[@nicknoga564]

Mr. Horse in the Rubber Nipples episode was the only other character that could go toe-to-toe with Ren in terms of darkness. “Maybe I should make another mistake... maybe two more...”

[@aliciab33]

My mother haaaated us watching this, so my dad would say he was watching it and we just happened to be there because of one tv. Not technically a lie since he laughed as hard as anyone at it and mimicked "you eeediot" with the best of them.

[@Nickel_The_Wise]

*How easily I could.. end the farce.. with THESE hands.* This was one of the scarier episodes in both tone and execution to me as a kid, I knew what was going on and what Ren was thinking about doing was super scary, at least. I've never studied film, animation, any of that stuff, so stuff has only ever occurred to me thru example and THIS was definitely an example of being thrown headlong into dread.. at least for that moment. You had kickass insight as usual, Doug, I didn't even KNOW John K did Ren initially, that's weird. You oughta look into that one episode where Ren and Stimpy stay in a haunted house with a hangdog ghost that uh.. well, you know what happens~

[@Nickel_The_Wise]

Actually, strike that! If another Ren and Stimpy episode should be discussed for its dark tones, do Hermit Ren. I grew up in a household of unusual turmoil and moodiness, so the music and tone of that whole thing kinda fit, plus it goes to a REAL dark place for a bit towards the end. Also, it was the work of animation director Chris Reccardi, a unique take on the shows look, but also a man we sadly lost last May; his work could use a peek-see, it was different to say the least, and I think I heard he was also behind the episode's score too.. I think.

[@zenmanlovesgames9906]

I love the little history lesson at the beginning. I never knew this about animation! Thank you so much!

[@the-nina-beans88]

Oh I remember this episode. This was paired with the episode with ren’s cousin visiting. And it was the only VHS tape of the show my dad had for me and my sister to watch. Funny how the series 2 darkest episodes would be free form my sister and I to watch when we visit our dad for the weekend

[@howdy000]

Wow.. after all these years I didn't even notice they switched Ren's voice! Lambs to the slaughter....

[@didgereemedia194]

5:45 holy crap, I thought that was Tara Strong. It sounds like here Twilight Sparkle voice

[@Jarod-vg9wq]

0:10 hey me to I loved beetle juice, courage, Scooby doo zombie island, and even Halloween specials as a kid.

[@VhsGutter]

Fun Fact this episode marks the last time John K would voice Ren for the original run... only Ren's dark moment.

[@CCCM89]

16:25 I should think pretty much anything from the O Canada block of shorts would qualify. they're all surreal and just that right amount of creepy to give a kid nightmares, especially when they air at or around midnight. There's also Courage the Cowardly Dog. virtually anything in there has an amount of Adult Fear, but The Revenge of the Chicken from Outer Space is just fantastically surreal and creepy .

[@kaimade27]

I like when doug does these videos, you can really tell that he's enjoying it and that makes me happy :D

[@StickySauce101]

nah, darkest is Ren's insane monologue in that episode about "Don't Whizz On The Electric Fence" - "First, I'm gonna tear your lips out. Yeah, that's what I'm gonna do. And then I'm gonna gouge your eyes out. Yeah, that's what I'm gonna do. Yeah, you're scared, huh? Next, I'm gonna tear your arms out of the sockets.."

[@lordhirudo5311]

There were a few moments in Adventure Time that really fit the bill for this series. Particularly the Magic Man and Marceline’s Dad episodes.

[@achsdu17]

Love this new series you started. I really appreciate the study and your thoughts of dark animation. I love how the recent Micky Mouse cartoons took a lot of inspiration from Ren & Stimpy.

[@RedOnly]

I remember Ren &Stimpy being so forbidden it eventually was only shown on MTv. Letting me watch it in '93 is how my dad got cool parent points when he and mom were trying to win kid prize. HA!! They thought they were manipulating me!!

[@Roger_Smith_Staniel]

That moment in ren and stimpy was AMAZING. So nuts

[@MrAnimater_Vr]

I'm definitely going to start watching this show I want to be an actual animator and I'm really feeling this animation style. My folks didn't want me to watch this series when I was a kid and I think I should thank them because I wouldn't get this type of comedy but as an adult just these clips alone made me bust a gut

[@Enter_the_Toshiverse_1996]

My mom let me watch this, sometimes she'd watch with me. When I was a little kid, my mom would sometimes sit and watch the cartoons with me, whether it was Teen Titans or Spongebob or Justice League or Yugioh or Avatar the Last Airbender or even Ren and Stimpy, she would watch them with me. And sometimes when they'd show an episode I had already seen multiple times, she would've also seen them enough to guess what's gonna happen. Now that I'm an adult, we don't really do that anymore because my mom is more of a fan of older cartoons like Tom and Jerry or the Smurfs, but it was one of the most fond parts of my childhood knowing she liked watching the same cartoons I liked

[@th3azscorpio]

You had a pretty cool mom.

[@KirbyProductions]

Also, when he said you won’t find that kind of murder in kids cartoons now a days, but what about in Teen Titans Go to the movies where the cast PUSH BRUCE WAYNE’S PARENTS INTO THE MURDERER. So I mean it’s off screen but still it’s disturbing

[@TheWesinatorvids]

Kirby Productions I think the difference is how quickly TTG’s scene goes by. It’s gone in a flash and your focus is already drawn to something else, whereas in Ren and Stimpy you’re slowly taken through his entire thought process. His motivation, how he holds the power to end a life in his hands, what that means, how he would do it, etc. It’s the contemplative nature of it that makes it darker.

[@maggiekoch9348]

@@TheWesinatorvids Exactly...It's the self-awareness of one's darkest impulses that makes scenes like this so nightmarish, especially in a show not entirely and explicitly aimed at adults. The closest I have ever come to that type of disturbed line of thought was in a 1945 murder mystery that walked the reader through the villain's ice-cold scheme of how he would commit the crime, reflecting on his own hideous self-composure when he realizes how easy he finds it.

[@ThreadBomb]

There's also the visual presentation. TTG is cute. Ren & Stimpy is cute after five years on meth.

[@irkenpony17]

@@ThreadBomb in Infinity Train, the metal version of the protagonist was "forced" to murder a bad guy by pushing his back against a moving train Wheel, but there isn't Red blood because they are both non human (they just look all silver and chrome). Only reason it slipped in was because CN asked if the character was human, and if it wasn't they didn't matter... sooo it didn't matter but it was still dark AF since we can see the action very clearly :T

[@elimDBZ]

5:50 I love how critic used the image Ed from Cowboy Bebop to reference Melissa Fahn's most famous role, however her most famous role nowadays would be Neptune from the Hyperdimension Neptunia games.

[@FunkyFong]

Ren and Stimpy I loved watching that show I wish more shows were crazy like that one

[@BEEZEBEORA]

I actually been really enjoying these Dark Toons videos, your very passionate about the videos you watch and it really shows with the topics you bring up and the things you will notice. Absolutly love to see these. (Also you mentioned your mom not wanting you to watch this as a kid, and It was the same in my house too haha, absolutly relate to that)

[@RWQFSFASXC-qc5fq]

I don't know if anyone mentioned this already but, the Invader Zim episode: Dark Harvest is a pretty dark episode of a kids show.

[@irkenpony17]

yep, lots of people mentioned it. which is probably good cuz it might get picked

[@baneoftheundead8064]

Doug: "Sometimes the background can do the talking for you". Japanese Animators: "No shit".

[@Moonwalker4ever87]

Ren and Stimpy was wild af for a kid show. They got away with more stuff back in the day that they couldn’t do today

[@th3azscorpio]

Which is why it was awesome.

[@Dan-zc3ou]

I never menaged to put it into words but this episode is a picture perfect representation of how i feel watching famous and beloved youtubers, streamers and gamers.

[@sofig1237]

Donald's Dilemma. That's a great one.

[@andrewponder3855]

Grandma really likes some Ren and Stimpy episodes, when I was growing up they had Stimpy goes to Hollywood and Robin Hoek on VHS. I got to watch Ren and Stimpy when I went to my grandparents.

[@MrMovieRecaps]

Very Dark indeed but we love them nonetheless lol!! Keep it up Doug!!

[@TheOpinionatedNobody]

Well yea if your story is a nice romantic picnic and then someone just jumps in screaming bloody murder while burning alive it will probably make it more interesting.