Last year’s revival of Clone High, which brought the cult classic animated series back after two decades, has been canceled once again. While the revival was meant to be a proper continuation of the genetic comedy, fans will be let down once again. The original series is remembered as one of the best examples of an adult animated series.
While this news is a disappointment to many, it probably won’t be a shock to others, given the reboot’s poor reception and its perceived failure as a continuation. As such, the Clone High reboot quickly became an example of how not to bring back a classic series. Here is a breakdown of the series, its history, and why the reboot flopped.
Clone High Has Received a Second Cancellation
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According to Variety, the revival of Clone High was canceled after only two seasons. The series was initially intended as a revival of the cult classic for a modern audience, even bringing back most of the original cast for good measure. Despite the sudden cancellation, the executives at MAX expressed their gratitude to the team for creating the show and their efforts.
This probably isn’t a surprise for many streaming fans; MAX is perhaps one of the worst offenders for cancelling series. One possible explanation for the revival’s failure is the outright disastrous reception to a series released around the same time, the Scooby-Doo spinoff Velma. The scale of the backlash towards this show probably soured executives’ opinions towards adult animated comedies and killed their faith in any related projects. As for the revival itself, it received a mediocre reception for not living up to the original show’s standards.
What Was the Series?
For those out of the loop, the original Clone High was an animated sitcom for MTV, the network that created the classics Beavis & Butthead and Daria. The series was created by the duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who would go on to create the universally acclaimed Into the Spider-Verse, a film that many believed revolutionized animation. The series followed a group of clones of famous historical figures such as Abraham Lincoln, Gandhi, and Cleopatra as they attended high school; historical in-jokes, witty humor, and satire of teen dramas ensued.
While the series was canceled after one season, it gained a large and passionate cult following over the years. Like many nostalgic cartoons, the show also became a fountain of memes. The show gave viewers the memes of Gandhi’s “Say what?!” line, everything about JFK, and the ironic “Nothing bad ever happens to the Kennedys!” The series’ vindication by becoming an internet phenomenon likely helped it gain a cult following and inspired executives to revive it on MAX.
Why did the MAX Revival Fail?
In 2021, MAX announced their plans to listen to the fans by announcing a long-awaited revival of Clone High. Through shows such as Primal and Smiling Friends, MAX had proven its ability to create stellar adult animated series, so it had the cards stacked in its favor. The revival would begin with our characters escaping cryo-sleep after twenty years in-universe and reintegrating into the modern era. Several new characters, such as Harriet Tubman, Frida Kahlo, Confucius, and even Christopher Columbus (now Topher Bus), joined; however, the series deuteragonist Gandhi was removed from the revival due to the controversies his character had created in India.
Despite everything going for it, the revival was sadly not the success MAX expected. While the new season wasn’t outright despised, many fans believed it lacked the same spark as the original did while missing the point. Ironically, the series’ third season received a slightly warmer reception before the ultimate cancellation of the revival. Fortunately, the careers of the series’ creators and cast members, such as Will Forte, seem to be thriving elsewhere.
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