Clerks

Bought the 6-episode DVD "Clerks" earlier this week -- there is some very funny stuff in it. Not only are all the actors from the film "Clerks" supplying the voices, but there are some great cameos as well. Judge Reinhold, James Woods, Kids in the Hall and Sat Night Live alumni and a recurring character played by Alec Baldwin. It has its moments and it's too bad it was cancelled, but it really could've done much much more being on a pay channel versus a network channel who always need lessons tagged on at the end of a comedy show. Some of the commentary is interesting too. It includes Kevin Smith and the actors and writers. "Clerks" is worth renting - or if you're a fan, buying! Although it's not groundbreaking humor, some of the stuff was pretty funny (satirizes both popular and obscure movies and tv shows) and other stuff falls kind of flat. But worth checking out. My grade: 8 out of 10, a B-. A line that didn't make it into the animated series: "Try not to suck any d--- on your way across the parking lot."

My "Clerks" story.

I saw the first episode of "Clerks" ever broadcast (I think it was the 4th episode made). I didn't know there was a movie called "Clerks." But I loved the show. And I also watched the 2nd episode of "Clerks" (which was the second episode), and loved it even more. How absurd! How hilarious to make the 2nd episode a clip show!

I was disappointed to learn it was cancelled, but I bought the video of all the episodes, and after watching all of them, I saw the original movie "Clerks" as well. Sure, the movie was better, but I think they pulled off the show quite well without using the dirty words.

Bottom line: Watch "Clerks" the movie, and watch "Clerks: The Animated Series" too.

Clerks is one fantastic cartoon, which is why some fans of the film may have been turned off. I know I was at first. But by the third episode it was obivious that the creators wanted to make a CARTOON SERIES, not twenty minute segments of a sequel to the cult original. After this realisation my enjoyment increased ten-fold. The show looks great, with excellent animation and character design. The six stories are strong and contain great dialogue and set pieces. I love all of Kevin Smith's films, and this complements them perfectly, while still being it's own thing. The show could have (and should have) been huge, and if you need any more proof buy the dvd and see how the first six episodes of this cancelled series hold up to the first six episodes of the simpsons, south park or family guy.

The 'JAPANAMATION FEVER' set piece alone is worth the asking price!

It's really too bad that Clerks was up against the two highest rated events of the summer season- Survivor on CBS and the NBA Finals on NBC. I'm sure that the unfortunate scheduling contributed heavily to the lack of ratings; in some markets, including mine, the second episode wasn't even shown, because of the heavyweight competition. (Luckily, my local station sent me a videocassette of ep. 2.)

Both episodes of Clerks were hilarious, but not uniformly so. There are parts of both episodes that dragged, and parts of both that actually kind of shocked me. (Randall explaining to the jury how alike they and Dante are; the Indian convenience store). My friends and I, while enjoying the show immensely, realized there was no way the average viewer would even understand much of the cartoon, let alone appreciate the in-jokes and find the whole affair funny- in fact, there are parts of each that many would find downright offensive. While we wish the show would have continued (and perhaps with more equal competition, the show could have matured into something really good), perhaps it's best that the shows just come out on video for the benefit of the converted.

My main problem with the show was the stylistic similarity to "The Critic"- most of the jokes were not only pop-culture based, but they were essentially non-sequiters, contributing nothing to the story. Their use in the original movie fit in with the feel of the film- that of bored coworkers who are just killing time. They felt awkward, though, nestled in the sitcom-like plot of the cartoon.

All in all- recommended for the Clerks fans out there; everyone else may want to see the movies before seeing the cartoon.

I greatly enjoyed this entertaining and criminally short lived animated series. Sure it was different from the 1994 movie (which was very good), but I still like it. A definite plus was having Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith reprising their roles. I also particularly liked the animation. And I can't believe ABC just canceled it after two episodes. What were they thinking? Good thing Comedy Central has aired the series from time to time, otherwise I would've missed out on it and not bothered thinking about getting the DVD. I found every episode hilarious, but the last one was my absolute favorite. Had ABC not been so foolish I think this series would still be in production today.