The following is a statement from Bennett Joel, writer for Monkeytown
It was announced earlier today that the third episode of the second season of Monkeytown would be titled "The Snortlesons" and would be released on October 1. It was also announced that "The Snortlesons" would be the final episode of Monkeytown. There will not be a third season of the series, and Season 2 will only have three episodes. This decision was made shortly before Season 1 ended, when it became clear that, after the summer of 2016, there would be simply not enough free time to produce the series.
Two days after Season 1 ended, a nine-episode second season was commissioned. However, the slightly impromptu 2015 Christmas special pushed back Season 2's time table a bit, and the ambitious nine-episode order was reduced to approximately five episodes. When Season 2 premiered in March with "The Funeral", hopes of a full second season were still strong. The second episode, "Fake-A-Wish", was meant to be the first in a season-long arc exploring Karen's battle with cancer, parallel to her and Buck's deteriorating marriage. An outline was sketched, detailing Season 2's uniquely complex and richly serialized network of story lines. All the while, there was still the looming knowledge that Monkeytown would have to end sometime in the summer of 2016, which became a tight deadline.
After "Fake-A-Wish", the glorious floodgates of the Season 2 masterpiece were meant to open. Sadly, a mixture of procrastination, laziness, and a small case of writer's block resulted in a massive delay following "Fake-A-Wish". Soon, it was already June and no more episodes had been produced. It was realized that the dream of a normal length season was out the window, so we had to improvise. A third and final episode was quickly drafted, combining most of the aspects of the three previously planned installments. After several bumps in the road and a painfully sluggish writing process, filming finally began in July 2016. The first scene was filmed before the episode was even done being written. Writing ended in August 2016, and filming concluded shortly after. The filming deadline had been painstakingly met, yet there was still the task of editing the episode. Editing began in August and is expected to conclude shortly before October.
The episode remained untitled for most of its time spent in the production stages. It was difficult to find the perfect name for such a momentous episode. After all, it isn't just the final episode in Monkeytown, it is also likely to be the last episode created by Stuffie Studios. The first working title was "Monkeytown Forever", modeled after the Judge Mia series finale, "Judge Mia Forever". I personally spoke against this choice, as it was a bit of a mouthful, and didn't make much poetic sense. Other names were bounced around, until late September, when "The Snortlesons" was finally decided upon.
"The Snortlesons" is a perfect title for this episode. The episode takes Monkeytown's entire premise and boils it down to the bare bones structure: The four members of the Snortleson family. Taking place one year after "Fake-A-Wish", this episode cuts straight to the chase. It is truly the explosive swan song of this boisterously dysfunctional clan of monkeys, slightly dimming the spotlight on the supporting characters to emphasize the backbone of the series. The episode will contemplate how realistic a future with the Snortleson family truly is, a future that might not be the happiest or the most normal. Karen is continuing her bought with cancer, which comes to a heart-wrenching end. Buck is struggling to forgive Karen for her scandalous transgressions, all while battling a shocking ghost from his past. Jasmine will explore the prospects of her upcoming adult life, including the continued drama of her token love triangle. Bradley, however, is a different story. The only one who isn't in his own era of transition, Bradley is forced to watch his family drastically warp and change around him, which ultimately leaves him on his own isolated island, wondering what happened to the life he once knew. In this hour-long finale event, the roller-coaster chronicles of the Snortleson family comes to a exciting, hilarious, and tear-jerking conclusion that you never would've expected.
Watch "The Snortlesons" on October 1, 2016, Monkeytown's grand finale before the curtains close on the Miaverse for the last time.
Writing that expands and enriches the world of Judge Mia.
