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No Nicktoon has inspired such controversy and interest as “Ren and Stimpy”. Created by John Kricfalusi, a maverick cartoonist who worked on Ralph Bakshi’s “New Adventures of Mighty Mouse”, the show centers around wheezy Chihuahua Ren Hoek and borderline-retarded Stimpson J. Cat (Stimpy). The most “far out” of the original three episodes, episodes typically stretched the boundaries of good taste. Close-ups of boogers and other bodily fluids are normal and are, in some cases, directly related to the plot, like when Stimpy pukes hairballs all over Ren in the pound, thus enabling the two to escape the pound safely.

Ren and Stimpy was so different from any other cartoon on the air because Kricfalusi worked to bring back the style and tone of old 1950s Warner Bros. and Hanna Barbera cartoons. Wacky character designs and canned music made the series look perfectly retro – a relief after the more rigid designs of the 1980s. Also included in the show were short retro spoofs of commercials, including such memorable supporting characters as Powered Toast Man and Muddy Mudskipper.

Of the three original Nicktoons, Ren and Stimpy became the breakout hit of the bunch, even though it initially had the fewest episodes. It also appealed to more than just kids – the show became a big hit on college campuses, much like Spongebob Squarepants nearly a decade later. That popularity even sparked the music channel, MTV, to give the show a primetime run. In summer 1992, the show became the cornerstone of Nickelodeon’s new block of programs for it's Saturday night primetime lineup, SNICK.

However, the show quickly ran into problems behind-the-scenes. After agreeing to a large order of new episodes, the show ran behind on production and many problems regarding the tone of the show. Nickelodeon eventually ended up firing Kricfalusi and his Spumco production team from the show, and assembled a new production team headed by Bob Camp. The official reason was that Kricfalusi was going overbudget and missing deadlines, a plausible reason given that Kricfalusi wrote, directed, and voiced in the show. Kricfalusi denies this, citing that Nickelodeon wanted to tone down various aspects of the show, particularly Ren Hoek himself.

The new “Games Productions” episodes – many of them completions of earlier shows begun by Spumco - began airing in 1993 and did not attract the large audience that Spumco’s shows did. Nickelodeon eventually aired five seasons of the show and then ended it in November 1996. Spumco and Kricfalusi moved to other projects, such as “The Ripping Friends” for Fox Kids.

Surprisingly, TNN/Spike TV revived the show in 2003. Specifically aimed at adults, the new episodes were produced by Spumco and John Kricfalusi, and named “Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon”. Again, only six episodes were aired before, being completely off the air that same year.

[Written by Toon Zone community member, Matthew Williams]

· Premiered: August 11, 1991
· 54 Episodes, 5 Seasons
· Spin-off series, "Ren & Stimpy Adult Cartoon Party"

This is anunofficial web site and not endorsed by Nickelodeon Networks or Viacom International. All characters and names are © copyright 2006 Viacom International, Inc.. All original page content is © copyright 2006 Toon Zone.