Ren's Brain
| "Ren's Brain" | |
|---|---|
| The Ren & Stimpy Show episode | |
 | |
| Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 8 |
| Directed by | Chris Reccardi |
| Story by | John Kricfalusi Richard Pursel |
| Production code | RS-414 |
| Original air date | October 7, 1995 |
"Ren's Brain" is the eighth episode of the fifth season of The Ren & Stimpy Show. It originally aired on Nickelodeon in the United States on October 7, 1995. It is the final episode of the series to be conceptualized at Spümcø, as well as the last with the involvement of writer Richard Pursel and the episode's director and storyboarder Chris Reccardi.
Plot
Stimpy operates a
Ren awakes, but does not realize his situation; he sees the time and gets to work, able to drive without problems. Stimpy enters to find Ren's brain missing; he replaces Ren's brain with a
Stimpy plays with Ren's body in the backyard. He sprinkles cat litter on him and watches him run into walls and hits himself with a spoon while Ren hits himself with wood. Meanwhile, Ren is able to work with no issue, apparently able to function normally with just his brain; he had an unusually lucky day at work, gaining a promotion from his employer Stabco. He finds Stimpy with his body, but is too stupid to realize it is his body, believing it to be another Chihuahua, even when hearing voices from the telephone after assaulting him. Stimpy tries to restrain him and sedate him with a needle he prepared. Ren's body manages to broadcast the event on television, killing the entire population of the United States and the world (including Stimpy) from shock at the sight and destroying Earth ("Thus endeth the Republican Party as we know it!"). Ren's brain is the only survivor of the incident, flying in space and realizing what had happened, as he angrily calls Stimpy and his body idiots for the episode's events and ending the episode.[1]
Cast
- Ren – Voice of Billy West and John Kricfalusi (reused line from "Svën Höek")
- Stimpy – Voice of Billy West
Production
Showrunner Bob Camp attempted to direct the episode as part of the third season, as he had with most leftovers from Kricfalusi, with Spümcø alumni Jim Gomez and Kricfalusi's former protege Mike Kim respectively producing storyboards and supervising layouts; it never went into fruition as production of the third season turned out to be as chaotic as when Kricfalusi was present.[5] He reluctantly let Chris Reccardi, the most capable draftsman that he was able to be hire into Games, to direct the episode as his final outing in the series before Nickelodeon quietly cancelled the series. Reccardi's unit had suffered and eventually closed due to immense conflicts; his wife Lynne Naylor had left the studio the same way she did at Spümcø due to these reasons, but he nevertheless wanted to direct one final episode. Reccardi worked on the episode's storyboards and took over direction all by himself, neglecting rest to make the episode as good as he can.[4]
The episode eventually aired during a Nickelodeon-"commissioned" fifth season, with Reccardi departing immediately after its production. It is the last work Reccardi did on anything related to Ren & Stimpy before his death in 2019.[4]
Reception
American journalist Thad Komorowski gave the episode four and a half out of five stars, calling it one of Reccardi's best episodes as director.[6]
Books and articles
- Dobbs, G. Michael (2015). Escape – How Animation Broke into the Mainstream in the 1990s. Orlando: BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1593931100.
- Komorowski, Thad (2017). Sick Little Monkeys: The Unauthorized Ren & Stimpy Story. Albany, Georgia: BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1629331836.
References
- ^ a b c d Komorowski 2017, pp. 407–408.
- ^ a b Komorowski 2017, p. 227.
- ^ Kricfalusi, John (September 20, 2005). The Ren & Stimpy Show: Season Five and Some More of Four – Ren's Brain commentary. Paramount Home Entertainment.
- ^ a b c Komorowski 2017, p. 293.
- ^ Komorowski 2017, p. 292.
- ^ Komorowski 2017, p. 408.
