In 1994, Kevin Smith’s gritty black-and-white picture “Clerks” was a hilarious indie film sensation — the politically incorrect story of a pair of convenience store-working buddies and the drug-dealing duo of Jay and Silent Bob who leaned against the outside walls of the grimy building.

With “Clerks II,” Dante and Randall are back. This time, they’re captured in living color and they’re no longer working at the convenience store. Instead, they’re in fast-food hell, flipping burgers at a McDonald’s-like cow-themed chain restaurant called Mooby’s. Jay and Silent Bob are back, too.

And, most importantly, writer/director Smith is back in form after the dismal misstep of “Jersey Girl,” his ode to family after becoming a father.

Some sentimental goo spills over into “Clerks II” in the form of a flirtation between Dante and the female restaurant manager. But that’s more than offset by the outrageous, offensive humor that involves, among other topics: beastiality, masturbation, sex with pickles, drugs, Anne Frank and Helen Keller, geek culture and racist terms.

Almost by definition a hit-and-miss affair, there’s something in “Clerks II” that will make every viewer burst out laughing but feel queasily guilty about finding it funny.

Smith’s story this time is a long-delayed coming-of-age tale.

Good guy Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran) has gotten himself engaged to a beautiful, very perky woman (Jennifer Schwalbach Smith, the director’s wife). They’re planning to leave New Jersey and move to Florida, where her family is helping them buy a home.

That, of course, is highly disturbing to his best friend, motormouth Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson), who figures he’ll spend the rest of his life hanging out with Dante, drifting through their menial jobs. Still up to his old tricks, Randal tortures young co-worker Elias (Trevor Ferhman) and insults customers.

Among those who get Randal’s treatment are Wanda Sykes and frequent Smith collaborators Jason Lee and Ben Affleck, who, mercifully, only has a cameo appearance.

The final major player in this little fast-food drama is restaurant manager Becky Scott (Rosario Dawson), who has her eye on Dante but doesn’t want to break up his new relationship.

Oh, yeah. Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) are still in the dope-dealing business outside Mooby’s. But they’ve been busted and been through treatment, so they’re selling what they no longer use.

The movie’s big question then is: Will Dante leave? But its themes are more about the nature of friendship and, more importantly, the joy of making fun of just about everything and puncturing holes in contemporary culture.

And “Clerks II” hits those targets more often than not.

Admittedly, O’Halloran and Anderson aren’t great actors and Smith retains the blocky, almost amateurish shooting style he brought to “Clerks.” But that’s part of the fun of the picture that has the surprisingly gentle feel of a look back at some old friends a decade later.

That kind of nostalgic movie almost never works. But in Smith’s hands, the look back gets overwhelmed by the humor.

A fair warning here: “Clerks II” is one of those sequels that is much better enjoyed if you’ve seen the original. Besides, if you haven’t seen the first one, you owe it to yourself to catch it. It’s that good.

And when Smith returns to black-and-white and the scene of the crime in the final sequences of “Clerks II,” everything will make perfect sense.

Even if you haven’t seen “Clerks,” there are still lots of edgy laughs in “Clerks II.” It’s one of the funniest movies of 2006.

Reach L. Kent Wolgamott at 473-7244 or at kwolgamott@journalstar.com.