Original air date:
September 17, 1988

I guess cartoons really were this formulaic to have a weird opening joke, cut to intro, cut to actual plot - Dilbert does usually incorporate the pre-intro content into the plot.

Characters:

Jon sees himself, like any good pet owner, as a parent! I hate this clown. I really hate this clown. We've all been the all-nighter sod who has to deal with a tiny annoyance that would normally not even bother us to have to fix, and while not terribly humorous, I can't help but smile. Garfield's very flat delviery of heavy jokes is nostalgic for me, and I really love it.


Humour:

Clown-derived jokes and tropes as abuse on Garfield is pretty much the entirety of this episodes's humour . . . . It works! The premise of Garfield's torture coming from a misunderstanding and then is reinstated due to an intentional hiring of the clown is the kind of delirium-inducing situation that I can enjoy.


I think this first section of the first episode of Garfield and Friends - minus the cringey intro - would be a great pull for kids to continue watch the show.

i was not expecting this, good bonus. I'm not terribly familiar with this show but considering it's Garfield, I can get what the basic idea must be. The clown is apparently new to the show though, that sounds like a questionable decision.