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"Reverend Jack" is the eighteenth and penultimate episode of the fifth season of The Ren & Stimpy Show. It originally aired on Nickelodeon in the United States on December 9, 1995.

Plot

Cast

• Ren – Voice of Billy West
• Stimpy – Voice of Billy West
• Jasper – Voice of Harris Peet
• Reverend Jack Cheese – Voice of Frank Gorshin

Production

"Reverend Jack" is the third and last episode in the series to be directed by Craig Bartlett, who had successfully pitched Hey Arnold! to Games Animation while working as a story editor to Rugrats at Klasky Csupo; he was given directorial work on The Ren & Stimpy Show before production of the series can officially start, with the episode premiering shortly before. He was told not to tamper with the episodes' writing whenever he directed, serving as what he considered a "mechanic" role. Reverend Jack Cheese is an unsubtle caricature of series creator John Kricfalusi; aside from a similar appearance, Jack's mental instability and abuse of his subjects (in this case Ren and Stimpy) is evidently taken from his impression according to crew members at Games Animation. Jack's constant harassment of Ren and Stimpy taking over his act is also a jab on Kricfalusi manipulating public favor against Nickelodeon and Games Animation, subjecting them to harassment from individuals with no involvement and knowledge in the situation.

Reception

American journalist Thad Komorowski gave the episode four out of five stars, calling it an outstanding episode that would not work without sufficient knowledge of its in-jokes, while also a clever parody of cults.

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.

Reference

1. Komorowski 2017, p. 266.
2. Komorowski 2017, pp. 266–267.
3. Komorowski 2017, p. 413.

• 1995 American television episodes
• The Ren & Stimpy Show episodes
• Parody television episodes