For many the 1990s were the Age of Irony, with hipster cultural touchstones like Spy magazine and the TV show “Strangers With Candy” helping make snark the preferred flavor of the day.
“The Simpsons” was also a big player in that area, yet arguably no cartoon series before had been quite so postmodern as “The Ren & Stimpy Show,” which premiered a couple years after it in 1991.
While Matt Groening’s creation still chugs on decades later, way past its pop-phenomenon peak yet remaining a valuable Fox commodity, John Kricfalusi’s was short-lived — and his own control of it even shorter.“Happy Happy Joy Joy” is both an homage to an inspired endeavor and a cautionary tale illustrating how even the greatest popular success can be brought down by unchecked ego, perfectionism and “artistic temperament” at the top.
Feature debutants Ron Cicero and Kimo Easterwood’s documentary is a very
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