Line #32 TearJerker/CloneHigh


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5	As the theme song said, [[WesternAnimation/CloneHigh these teenage clones]] will make you [[WaxingLyrical laugh and shiver and]] '''[[WaxingLyrical cryyyy]]''', especially with these moments:
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8	[[folder:Season 1]]
9	* Every time Abe goes on about how much he loves Cleo in front of Joan. Poor Joan just can't catch a break.
10	* From the first episode: poor Van Gogh calls the school's teen crisis hotline as he's alone in his room, curled up in a TroubledFetalPosition. He pours his heart out, only for Ghandi to put him on speaker and broadcast his secrets to what looks like the ENTIRE student body, who laugh as Van Gogh admits the only thing keeping him holding on is that nobody knows how lonely he is. The tears of rage Van Gogh cries as he asks Ghandi how he could do something like that are just icing on his {{Woobie}} cake.
11	-->'''Van Gogh''': Dammit Ghandi, how ''could you?''
12	-->'''Ghandi''': Hey, [[LackOfEmpathy Mahatma Ghandi's anti-violence; not anti-comedy]]!
13	* Abe refusing to high five Ghandi in front of Cleo. While Gandhi saying that he "[[ARareSentence never thought the world would see Abe Lincoln dissing Mahatma Gandhi]]," and the two of them having kitschy friendship lockets, is hilarious, Ghandi [[SincerityMode looks and sounds genuinely hurt]] that his best friend finds him embarrassing.
14	-->''"'Best Dudes Forever,' Abe? 'Best Dudes Forever??'"''
15	* ''Litter Kills; Literally'' is what happens when the writers parody [[TonightSomeoneDies a cliche]] so hard that it [[CrossesTheLineTwice does a complete 180]] and [[SpringtimeForHitler becomes the saddest episode of the whole series]], mainly because the episode is less about Ponce himself as much as it is watching JFK be so completely broken up over his death (and if you personally lost a close friend at a young age, the episode will be impossible to watch).
16	* To a lesser extent, Joan [[BeAWhoreToGetYourMan pretending to be a slutty airhead to trick Abe into liking her]]. It's kind of sad to see a character as self-respecting as her be desperate enough to act like everything she hates if it means attracting the man she loves. The ditzy laugh she puts on when she tells JFK he's so funny is heartbreaking. And it still doesn't work.
17	* The clones being expected to live up to their original incarnations is only funny because it's genuinely sad. Teens being expected to live up to the expectations of their elders is not uncommon, and these teens have to live up to some of the most important figures in written history. Even the show's theme song acknowledges this.
18	-->"''Why, there's so much to live up to / Expectations are so high...''"
19	-->"''I can't escape my name. / Clone High / That's the price of fame.''"
20	** Gandhi in particular, whose namesake is extremely highly regarded in his home country to this day (to the point that it was what got the show canceled). He's almost ''proud'' of the fact that he snapped under the pressure and became a party animal.
21	*** Making it worse is the fact that "party animal" is just what ''he'' thinks of himself, he's actually an unpopular social pariah who's utterly desperate for popularity and acceptance, to the point that he was apparently Cleo's foster brother originally, until she convinced her parents he wasn't good enough for her image, and he was transferred to another family. Abe is the only person who treats him with any real respect. In a moment of dark irony, this makes him a downplayed LighterAndSofter high school version of an Untouchable, the outcasts his clone father spent his life supporting.
22	** Joan admits that she became a cynical, angst-filled, atheist {{Goth}} because she felt that she could never live up to the real Joan's image. When she hears what she believes is the voice of God (really broadcasts from a Christian rock station that her bent retainer was picking up), she's ''thrilled.''
23	** Abe is desperate to live up to the original Lincoln's reputation (unlike most of the clones, he hero-worships his clone father, even covering his room with portraits of the man), but has zero leadership skills due to his awkwardness and total lack of self-assurance.
24	** Van Gogh inherited his clone father's depression, to the point that he spends many a night alone in his room, crying. When he tries to reach out to the school's hotline for help, [[{{Jerkass}} Gandhi]] mocks him and puts him on speaker phone at a party, so that everyone can laugh at his misery. [[spoiler: Thankfully, he gets the last laugh and paints a revenge mural of Gandhi.]]
25	** To a lesser extent, Cleo only knows the historical Cleopatra as a beautiful, glamourous, seductive, powerful ruler; as a result, she focused only on her looks and popularity, and became a [[AlphaBitch vain, promiscuous queen bee]].
26	*** It goes deeper than that: as one commenter on [=YouTube=] pointed out, Cleo's only parent is her abusive, alcoholic foster mother, who never shows her any genuine love or affection; it's very likely that Cleo's promiscuity is (partially) due to having never received any love or validation at home.
27	*** It gets worse. Like most of the clones, Cleo only embodies the pop culture idea of her clone original; many contemporary records state that the Cleopatra history remembers wasn't particulary physically beautiful -- she was considered attractive because she was an intelligent and savy woman in an era when that wasn't common. Cleo threw away all the aspects her clone mother embodied just to cling to a false image of her. What's more, as shallow as Cleo's foster mom is, she very likely ''encouraged'' it.
28	* We actually do catch a glimpse of a clone of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, and while mainly a FunnyBackgroundEvent, it does offer some Fridge Sadness. While most of the clones have to deal with living up to their clone parents’ legacy, imagine it the other way around: having to live with being the genetic copy of one of the most monstrous and despised men in history. At least he presumably learned how to cope with it, [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments by becoming an advocate for peace and love]].
29	* In the makeover episode, Joan running off sobbing after Abe spends all day giving her a series of horrible makeovers (and ''still'' is oblivious to the fact that she's in love with him). It leads to an exchange that, in spite of its pariodic nature, is still rather sad:
30	-->'''Joan''': Leave me alone, Abe! I used to feel good about myself. And then I met ''you!''
31	-->'''Abe''': But Joan, you're so close! I can almost see the beauty that is locked away inside of you! Hidden far, far below the surface, where no one can see it!
32	-->'''Joan''': (sobs) I don't want to be beautiful! I just want ''you!''
33	* Joan admitting (through tears) that she never had a mother to teach her how to do normal "girly things", like put on makeup. Even [[AlphaBitch Cleo]] is moved.
34	* At the end of the final episode, Abe throws away his opportunity to have sex with Cleopatra when he realizes that he's in love with Joan, only to find Joan in the quick freezer with JFK post-coitus. She and Abe share a heartbroken gaze as he's about to profess his love for her, only to be cut off by Scudworth freezing them where they stand with the Board of Shadowy Figures and virtually everyone else. The end.
35	** Then there's the FridgeHorror of what's to become of Scudworth and Mr. B., now that they have to live with the fact that they've left dozens of people in suspended animation.
36	[[/folder]]
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38	[[folder:Season 2]]
39	* The way Gandhi is written out of the show come Season 2 is pretty upsetting, as the poor guy is seemingly left to languish on ice indefinitely -- combine that with a [[FreezeFrameBonus brief shot of his redacted name on a file in the new opening]], and it creates the impression that the SBSF actively chose not to thaw him out because they considered him [[YouHaveFailedMe a failure to live up to the standard set by his clonefather]]. Sure, the guy was a bit of an obnoxious oaf, but he certainly didn't deserve ''that''.
40	** The worse part is that, when Abe talks about him to Confucius, he thinks that Ghandi has been "avoiding" him. Yeah, Abe has no clue what really happened to his best friend and believes that he doesn't seem to want to hang out with him anymore. One must wonder (and dread) how Abe would react if he knew the truth...
41	** "Clone Alone" reveals that Candide had erased everyone's memories of Gandhi with her "Memory Eraser Ray"; indeed, when she mentions Gandhi to Joan, all the latter can say is "who?".
42	* Season 2's second episode reveals Toots was KilledOffscreen in a "freak clarinet accident" sometime in the 20 years Joan was frozen. She went from having Toots--a well-meaning and loving father figure--as a foster parent to having the cold and uncaring Candide as her only family.
43	** It's worse than that: it's hinted that Candide had Toots ''murdered''.
44	* Episode six of season 2, "Saved By The Knoll", has to be the biggest tearjerker of the second season and the whole show:
45	** It is revealed that from the fire from the previous episode, the Grassy Knoll restaurant burned down; while it was played for laughs, with how much the restaurant has good memories for the cast and how the food was horrible, the restaurant owner reveals that this isn't a memorial for the restaurant, but for his wife who died in the fire. While not focused on, it's heartbreaking to know that the restaurant owner's wife died because of the fire, and in the previous episode, Joan had said nothing of lasting consequences went wrong...as the owner begged for help, and asked where his wife was.
46	** It is revealed that Joan has a disease called Psylly Legs, where too much nostalgia can threaten her health to the point where she can die. Joan is not only saving the Grassy Knoll to preserve the memories of her past, but because her life depends on it.
47	*** The fact that not once Ghandi was mentioned in this episode. When Joan and Abe are talking about memories of hanging out and eating at the Grassy Knoll, not once was Ghandi mentioned despite being close friends with both of them in Season 1 and him also hanging out at the restaurant with them. While Joan was not the closest to Ghandi and could be annoyed with him, they were still friends, and it is heartbreaking that she would not even remember him when a place she used to hang out with him is being destroyed, and the fact that Abe, Ghandi's best friend did not mention him (especially when he did in the first episode of that season) is also heartbreaking. Then it's revealed that Candide erased all memory of Ghandi from the heads of the first batch of clones...
48	** JFK and Harriet dealing with the fact that because they kissed, they may have feelings for each other; neither of them wants to hurt Joan, so they kiss to see if they actually have any feelings for each other; they find that they don't feel anything for each other, but realize that the kiss could be seen as a betrayal by Joan, so they decide to keep it a secret. Unbeknownst to them, Abe saw the whole thing; not wanting to stress Joan because of her disease, he decides to keep it to himself despite he and Joan promising not to keep any secrets from each other.
49	** The ending of the episode is bittersweet and heartbreaking: the Grassy Knoll has been saved, and all of Joan's friends know about her disease and promise not to coddle her, but support her; things seem to be looking up...and then JFK and Harriet confess that they kissed, just to see if they have any feelings for each other (they thankfully don't). Joan is devastated, and cannot decide if she should forgive them; then she learns that Abe knew they kissed and kept it a secret. Joan is devastated, feeling that the Abe she knew in the past would not do that, and her view of Abe is damaged (if not destroyed). Seeing her disease make a resurgence because of this, Joan decides to take her doctor's advice that she previously ignored: she needs to accept that things change, and and she has to grow and get over it. When Abe ask what that means, Joan tells him that she needs to let go of their friendship and move on. Abe is devastated, and the episode ends with Joan and her friends eating at the rebuilt Grassy Knoll, while Abe looks at them from outside the restaurant, with tears in his eyes.
50	*** What makes this worse is that Abe really ''did'' try to do the right thing. It would've been so easy to just reveal the kiss to Joan because of his feelings for her, to use this opportunity to break up JFK and Joan to get together with Joan. But Abe never even ''considered'' doing that; he was just concerned about her health, and decided to keep the secret despite his reservations. Unfortunately for Abe, Joan felt more betrayed by him keeping the secret than JFK and Harriet kissing in the first place, to the point that despite feeling understandably betrayed by JFK and Harriet, she was able to forgive ''them'', but could not forgive Abe. It is heartbreaking that Abe tried to do the right thing and be a good friend to Joan, only for it to backfire on him in the worst way possible. You really want to give Abe a hug after losing his best and only friend in this episode.
51	* "Spring Broken" reveals that Confucius is his foster family's UnFavorite. His foster mom takes the rest of the family on an expensive vacation and tells him not to get lost in the desert because "no-one will be around to care", and he later reveals that his parents are always travelling the world without him. It's a wonder the kid's as upbeat as he is.
52	* "For Your Consideration" reveals Mr. Butlertron's DarkAndTroubledPast. It turns out that he calls everyone Wesley not as a reference to ''Series/MrBelvedere'', but because it was the name of his adoptive human brother, who died [[ItMakesSenseInContext trying to baptize him]].
53	* "Clone Alone" ends with Candide showing the ''entire class'' the footage of Joan sabotaging them in the death maze and nearly killing them, which causes everyone to turn on her. The season began with Joan dating JFK, at the top of the social ladder, and seemingly happy for the first time in her life; when it ends, she and JFK have broken up and she's lost every friend she has, with not even Abe coming to her defense.
54	-->'''Joan''': Uh...could we get that memory eraser ray going again?
55	[[/folder]]
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57	[[folder:Season 3]]
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59	[[/folder]]

Context TearJerker / CloneHigh