For Your Consideration

For Your Consideration^[1] is the ninth episode of Season Two of Clone High. It was released June 22nd, 2023.

Synopsis[]

After a fight with Scudworth, Mr. Butlertron prepares to leave Clone High for good - but not before telling Joan his epic and award-worthy backstory.^[1]

Plot[]

In an epic and award-worthy paradigm-shifting opus, Clone High presents a groundbreaking and revolutionary epic which is very worthy of winning an Emmy award.

The Secret Board of Shadowy Figures holds their annual Crab Fest, where they celebrate their success on a year's work with Operation Spread Eagle. During the meeting, they eat crabs with Scudworth and Candide and ask them for any input they may have. Principal Scudworth brings up his long delayed plan for Cloney Island and asks The Secret Board of Shadowy Figures if he can use the remaining clones for his theme park, after they use their selected winner for ruling the world. However, The Board does not take Scudworth seriously, as he has some crab stuck in his teeth. The board logs off and with them, goes Principal Scudworth's chances of making Cloney Island a reality.

Principal Scudworth lashes out at Mr. Butlertron for not warning him about checking for crab in his teeth before the meeting. Mr. Butlertron insists that he told him but Scudworth doesn't believe that and tells Mr. B that he does nothing but break promises. Mr. B retaliates to Scudworth, saying that he broke his dramatic, epic, award-winning promise that he made to him many years ago. Scudworth remembers the little promise he made and admits that he forgot all about it, not feeling the need to keep a promise with a lifeless hunk of metal, who can't feel emotions. Mr. Butlertron gets mad and throws a tray of crab against the wall as he rides off in rage.

Mr. Butlertron goes to his closet to recharge, while he dwells on how his entire time working with Principal Scudworth has been in vain. He gets ready to leave Clone High and packs a cardboard box with his belongings; a shirt, a cross necklace, a joint of ham, a yo-yo, a kazoo, an embroidered pillow, a can of oil, and a can of rust-proofing spray. He also drops a baseball, which rolls over to Joan of Arc, as she enters the closet. Joan asks Mr. B for a minute of his time. She laments about her recent breakup with JFK and how she misses having someone who'll love her no matter what. Mr. Butlertron understands the feeling, as he's been seeking companionship his whole life but has failed to ever so so. Joan asks Mr. Butlertron why he always calls everyone "Wesley" and Mr. Butlertron begins to tell her the long, epic, award-worthy story.

When he was a young boy, circa 1920's, Mr. Butlertron went by "Besley" and had a human twin brother named Wesley. Wesley and Besley played with hula hoops together as they made their way down to Mr. Rambler's Ham Farm to steal some ham, grown in angry old man Mr. Rambler's garden. Mr. Rambler fires his shotgun at them but Wesley throws a ham into the barrel of his shotgun and makes it explode onto Mr. Rambler's leg, injuring his knee. Mr. Rambler hops up and down on his good leg and shakes his fist in anger, threatening to call their parents, as the two brothers laugh and run away.

Besley and Wesley sit on the hill together, eating their hams and looking up at the skies. While they do, they talk religion. Wesley is excited to go to Heaven so that he can finally escape his life of poverty, which is only livened by Besley. He promises never to leave his brother's side on Heaven or Earth. After that, they're reminded they have chores to do so they call their hoops and ride them on home.

Wesley and Besley return home to tell their parents, Leslie and Presley about how they shaved the cows, shot all the rabid dogs, collected dust for coffee, and said their anti-witch prayers. Leslie erroneously calls her human child by the name "Besley" and the robot corrects her, saying that he's actually Besley. Leslie laughs and admits that she can never tell her twins apart. She is excited to tell the boys that tomorrow will be their baptism, a preliminary stepping stone to getting the two into Heaven.

However, on the day of the baptism, Leslie and Presley refuse to let Besley go into the lake. Besley is shocked and confused about what's happening right now, saying that he wants to go to Heaven. However his parents explain to him that since he's a robot, he'll never go to Heaven and getting baptized is just gunna make him get all rusty in the water. Besley is shocked to hear he's a robot. Wesley comes to his brother's defense but Leslie breaks the bad news to them, that they're not even brothers at all. Besley begins to cry and Wesley wipes away his tears with a rag, only to find that he's producing no tears. Besley freaks out because robots can't cry and he rolls away, screaming in misery.

Besley goes home to find the box his so-called "parents" purchased him in. He learns that he's a brand-made product called the "Child Robot Butlertron", which Leslie and Presley bought to get a bunch of extra chores done around the house. Leslie admits to her entire time parenting him just being a sham. Out of sadness, Besley leaves and Leslie leaves him with nothing but an Embroidered Pillow that says "When the Going Gets Tough, Get On a Bus". This is exactly what Besley does, as he boards a bus to leave Smalltown, U.S.A. and head to "Anywhere But Here". Wesley chases him down and tries to stop him so they can find a way to fulfill their brotherhood pact but Besley tells him that there's no chance. Besley works up the nerve to tell Wesley that he hates him and never wants to see him again, as he gets on the bus and leaves his life, leaving Wesley crying on the streets.

Back in the present, Mr. Butlertron tells Joan that this was the hardest thing he ever had to do. Joan equates this heartbreaking childhood trauma to her dumping her boyfriend of a few months, as though these are both equally problematic. She says that although dumping JFK was the hardest thing she had to do, she knows she made the right decision, as it's to help her get closer to her true love, Abe Lincoln. Mr. Butlertron tells Joan that the best thing to do in this scenario would be to confess to Abe her feelings but Joan is worried that if she does this right after dumping JFK, Abe will thing she's a whore. The usage of this term triggers another flashback to later on in Mr. Butlertron's life.

After a fight with Scudworth, Mr. B prepares to leave Clone High but not before telling Joan his epic and award-worthy backstory. When he was young he used to hang out with his foster brother named Wesley. They both believed that they were brothers until their Mom revealed Mr B was only bought to give Weasley a brother. He then goes on a bus to Anwhere But Here. Years later Mr B lives in a low class hotel and does sex jobs to pay rent, he hooks up with a lady who cheats on him later. He then goes back to visit Wesley, now a priest. Wesley ends up drowning while trying to baptize Mr B. Years later, Mr B is a famous movie star, to which he meets Scudworth who promises to clone Wesley using a piece of hair Mr B kept if he agrees to work with Scudworth on his Clone project. In the present day Mr B goes to a cliffside to watch the sunset before his power runs out, Scudworth comes to recharge him and reveals the clone of his deceased brother. Mr. B is faced with a friend-or-idol decision, where he must choose between saving Scudworth or a test tube containing a clone of his deceased brother. He ultimately chooses Scudworth.

Characters[]

Major Characters[]

Minor Characters[]

The Secret Board of Shadowy Figures
Candide Sampson
Mr. Rambler
Bus Driver
Baby VCR
Betamax VCR
Abe Lincoln (Non-Speaking Cameo)
George Washington Carver (Non-Speaking Cameo; Flashback)
Van Gogh (Non-Speaking Cameo; Flashback)
Ponce de León (Non-Speaking Cameo; Flashback)
JFK (Non-Speaking Cameo; Flashback)
Cleopatra (Non-Speaking Cameo; Flashback)
Gandhi (Non-Speaking Cameo; Flashback)
Chesley Nestle (Pictured)
Fesley Nestle (Pictured)
Resley Nestle (Pictured)
Mr. Butlertron Nestle (Pictured)

Trivia[]

This episode is currently being submitted as a potential nominee for an Emmy in the 2024 Outstanding Animated Program Award category. [1]
This episode skipped the traditional theme song, making it currently the only episode of the series to have no intro.
This episode heavily delves into the backstory of Mr. Butlertron and tells us all about his past and his character;
- Mr. Butlertron was raised on 222, Dusty Country Road, Smalltown, USA, c. 1920's, by highly religious interracial couple, Presley and Leslie Nestle, as the so-called "twin brother" of their son, Wesley. At this time, Mr. Butlertron went by the name "Besley".
- Mr. Butlertron (Besley) was purchased by Presley and Leslie as a product called the Child Robot Butlertron, so that they could pretend Wesley had an identical twin for the his amusement, but ultimately so they could get more chores done. Wesley and Besley were unaware that the latter was a robot, believing Besley to actually be a biological family member.
- In the 1970's, Mr. Butlertron worked as a pimp and married his hooker, ironically named Purity. Together, they had a Baby VCR. Their marriage ended one day, when Mr. Butlertron walked in on Purity cheating on him with a Betamax VCR, who turned out the be the actual father of their aforementioned baby.
- Mr. Butlertron got his iconic red vest from Wesley, as was the latter's final remain after he drowned.
- In the 1980's, Mr. Butlertron starred as himself in a family sitcom and became rich and famous from it.
- Principal Scudworth first met Mr. Butlertron in the 1980's, where he asked him to work for him and help him with his plans for Cloney Island. Mr. Butletron agreed to help him under the one condition that he clones Wesley for him and bring his brother back to life.
The animation style changes during Mr. Butlertron's various flashbacks to fit the time period they take place in. During his backstory, we see animation that fits the 1930's, 1970's, and 1980's.
Principal Scudworth proposes to The Secret Board of Shadowy Figures his idea for Cloney Island, but is shot down.
Mr. Butlertron's model number is "8133B".
Principal Scudworth breaks the fourth wall, acknowledging how Mr. Butlertron had a flashback to the time he screamed at him over crabs.
Mr. Butletron cries for the first time, demonstrating to himself that he actually does have feelings.
Joan of Arc is the only main character to properly appear in this episode.
- Abe Lincoln appears briefly but has no dialogue and JFK is mentioned in passing a few times. During the 1980's flashback, the fetuses of first generation clones make brief appearances, including Cleopatra and even Gandhi.

Continuity[]

Joan of Arc gripes about her breakup with JFK and her love for Abe Lincoln, which started in "Sexy-Ed".
When Principal Scudworth introduces the fetuses of all the clones he made, among them is the clone of Ponce de León from "Litter Kills: Litterally".

Cultural References[]

In the 1950's Presley reads a newspaper denouncing Polio epidemic as a hoax and how several people refuse to get the vaccine.
- This mirrors the Anti-Vaxxers of the 2020s, exhibiting how history would repeat itself roughly a century later.
Leslie's appearance resembles Olive Oyl from the Popeye the Sailor Man franchise.
The art style of the 1970's flashback closely resembles the work of animator Ralph Bakshi, including his 1972 adult animated film, Fritz the Cat.
The artstyle used for the 80's/90's era resembles that of late 80's/early 90's Saturday-morning cartoons. Mr. Butlertron is drawn akin to Nickelodeon's early-mid 90's cartoons, more specifically Rugrats and Rocko's Modern Life. Butlertron's room contains a portrait of him dressed up as Jem from Jem and the Holograms.
Mr. Butlertron's outfit in the 1980's resembles that of Dave Coulier, best known for his role as Joey Gladstone from the 1980's-90's sitcom, Full House.
Mr. Butlertron's sitcom was filmed, using recording equipment called "Paniversion", a clear parody on Panavision.
Mr. Butlertron once made an appearance on Battle of the Network Stars.
Principal Scudworth was certain that all the Mr. Butlertron models were destroyed during the presidency of Gerald Ford.