Ricky Church reviews the first two episodes of Clone High season 2…
After 20 long years and a cancellation due to controversy, Phil Lord and Chris Miller have returned to their roots as HBO Max (or Max as it is now known as) has brought Clone High back for more episodes with old and familiar clones. The two-episode premiere, making up ‘Let’s Try This Again’ and ‘Sleepover’, are great reminders as to what originally made Clone High so funny and fresh back in 2003, but how does it stack up in the modern day now?
The premiere ‘Let’s Try This Again’ wastes no time catching up on not only the premise of the show, but on the dramatic events of what was its series finale as all the clones were frozen just as Abe Lincoln was about to declare his love for either Joan of Arc or Cleopatra while also setting the stage for why the clones are being unfrozen now (and also poking a bit of fun at the cancellation and whether this second attempt will even work out). From there we’re thrust into the world of 2023 and introduced to a new batch of clones that have been growing up since the originals were frozen, creating a bit of a clash between the two groups as some have to adjust to today’s youth culture and modern sensibilities.
A bulk of the episode’s humour derives from that clash with how ‘nerds’ and ‘outcasts’ are suddenly the cool kids who run the school and now it’s cool to care about important topics like activism. Obviously Cleopatra can’t stand no longer been the queen bee of high school, but the surprise comes from Abe whose naivety and desperation to fit in lands him in all sorts of trouble as he uses terms that are no longer socially acceptable while a more “problematic” character like the womanizing and misogynistic JFK is suddenly viewed as a sex positive free spirit.
The comedy in how different the norms are is well utilized while giving funny commentary on cancel culture and how prominent it has become, from Abe trying and hilariously failing to post a social media apology video (on an app called Flip Flop no less) to Topher Bus changing his name due to the acts of his “clonefather” to everyone eventually cancelling each other because their specific needs weren’t being met. There’s plenty of humour to show that despite the two decade gap between Clone High‘s first season and its revival, there is a great deal of material to mine from as the original clones have to adjust to the modern day. Only a couple gags in each episode go on for just a little too long, such as Cleo’s self-mutilation as she realizes Joan will be more popular and accepted than her.
It’s great to see Abe, Joan, JFK and Cleopatra back together and while Ghandi, who was a huge if not the sole reason why Clone High was cancelled in the first place, is sorely missed the characters do fine without him propping them up. The lack of his presence is even made a joke as Abe’s obliviousness, a hallmark of his character, doesn’t make him realize Ghandi is still frozen. Topher Bus, really a clone of Christopher Columbus whose genocidal legacy has been rightly re-examined in recent years, is a bit of a commentary himself on including a potentially controversial character while this time the show skirts around the controversy by having him change his name. The new season is apparently not afraid to take shots at itself as some light-hearted jabs are made to its original run while Will Forte, Nicole Sullivan, Christopher Miller and Phil Lord all slip back into their characters of Abe, Joan, JFK, Principal Scudworth and Butlertron with ease. And though it is an adjustment not to hear Christa Miller as Cleo, Mitra Jouhari does a pretty good job of putting her own spin on the former queen bee.
As for the new characters Frida, Harriet Tubman, Confucius and Topher fit very well into the world of Clone High. Each of them have their own individual quirks that matches the heightened, crazy personalities of all the clones, though it’s not really until the second episode ‘Sleepover’ where we get to learn more of the new clones as the premiere rightly focuses more on the characters we know and love.
Harriet and Frida have a fun friendship and Confucius stands out as the social media obsessed guru while Topher, despite his attempt to distance himself from his clonefather and anything that could get him cancelled, his behaviour in the second episode doesn’t fall quite far from the tree. Ayo Edebiri, Vicci Martinez, Kelvin Yu and Neil Casey all do great work and though Christa Miller isn’t Cleo anymore her new character Candide Sampson, Scudworth’s new and literal oversight manager, is a good foil for Scudworth and she gives Sampson a funny personality.
Fans of Clone High‘s original run should enjoy these two new episodes as the same tone and feel remain while updating it to feel more like the modern day. Creators Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Bill Lawrence have managed to tackle Clone High‘s return with nuance and freshness that should appeal to new viewers as well as old. All in all, there’s a lot to look forward to on the very next special episode of the show.
Rating: 8/10
Ricky Church – Follow me on Twitter for more movie news and nerd talk.
