South Park Season 12 XII Episode 10 ‘Pandemic’

I am writing this entry in order to say what I think about the most recent South Park episode, and I will get to that in a bit. But first, a few words about those damn annoying video game commercials that dominate the best half hour of my week. Immediately before each South Park premier, there are full trailers, 1-2 minutes long, of brand new video games. Granted most of the games look sick, but I don’t have any modern systems (too distracting, $$$.) Hence these commercials are useless to me, as they likely are for much of the more mature audience that SP should like to cultivate. Notice I qualify the term “mature” by only using it relatively. For instance, consider the following true statement: Relative to the normal ten-year-old demographic, I have more mature taste and therefore, don’t appreciate long-assed video game trailers.

Now on to my usual task. This week’s episode, #1210, “Pandemic” was the first in a multi-part series. These multi-episode stories have become a staple of the SP diet. While most series have been funny, it is a tricky medium in which to operate. Stretching out a funny idea is one of the essential elements of SP-(think raping of Indy.”) Stretching these ideas to death can be useful, and hilarious (think woodland critters). The plot of episode 1210 contained a prime example of pushing a joke to the max, and I think it was funny. But I don’t think it ranks too high on the overall hilarity meter.

The over-bludgeoning of the Peruvian Pan-Flute band idea was typical of SP in its relevance to modern life. I live in NY and, in traveling around the city, I have encountered dozens of these groups. Back in ’99 I even bough a copy of “Sounds of the Andes.” The music was terrible, boring, repetitive, relaxing in that way that makes you want to be un-relaxed. But at least I did my part in preventing the Palelta Muerta.

The plot-stretching necessary for a multi-part series often cause over-stretching; whether this will be the case, we have yet to see. Also, as an unfortunate side-effect, these drawn-out series present me with a new difficulty in describing and critiquing the episode. At this point, It may be a little premature to just the episode by itself, since this episode was to be continued . . .-even though it didn’t say it.

Also notable in this episode was the Cloverfield-inspired camera work of Randy Marsh. In the past few seasons Randy has really come into his own as a character, and as a geologist, he recognizes his duty and documents the cataclysm. Hopefully he will have a meaningful and interesting series of events to record. Will They Defeat the Furry Death? How will Craig play into all this? Will Kenny die? Can’t wait til tonight to find out.

South Park Season 12 XII Episode 9 ‘Breast Cancer Show Ever’

‘Breast Cancer Show Ever,’ was an important episode. It was old skool and it was funny as hell, but that’s not why it was important. This episode was important because it revealed a certain truth about Cartman, a truth about the whole South Park world, maybe even a Universal Truth. The truth is: Cartman is pure evil; “[a] fat little lump that must be destroyed.” For those of you who watched “The X-Files” (not that I watched the X-Files) this was like when the writers first told you for sure that aliens were out there. The show professed it in the credits, you always knew it, but now you know that they know that you know it.

Cartmans’ downright evilness is an important milestone. But this episode had a more interesting milestone, one which, unlike Cartman’s evilness, SP has never truly acknowledged before. That is the evilness of Butters. Butters is a bit of a pawn, a bit of a sweetheart. But he will follow orders unquestioningly: teachers’ orders, parents’ orders, Cartman’s orders. In this episode, Butters aligns with the Dark Side. He fully supports Cartman in the fight against Wendy. And this isn’t one of the fat boy’s silly plans to go to Casa Bonita or SuperFunThyme, this was a violent plan and Leopold Butters Stotch bought in. He openly wishes harm upon Wendy.

Is this a permanent shift in the boy’s psyche? In the previous episode he also acts as Cartman’s henchman. This is not new for Butters but for the fact that he committed a grievous sin, the likes of which South Park has never seen. In all the mafia movies, cop movies, and Leslie Nielsen movies I’ve seen, I can’t recall ever seeing someone get shot in the dick. Butters did it at least three times. To an extent, this is a new low. But in classic Butters fashion, he shoots them accidentally. Is he forever fated to be the unwilling accomplice of evil? Only time, and more episodes, will tell, but for now, residents of South Park should think it best to steer clear of the little blond boy.

South Park Season 12 XII Episode 8 ‘The China Problem’

The Mid-Season Premier was good, not great. Funny, but not hilarious. South Park is overshadowed by its own greatness. How can every single episode live up to the all-time best? Episode 1208 does not live up to the best, but it is funny in its own right.

The episode combines two classic elements from the South Park repertoire. The first of these elements is blatant racism. Cartman and Butters’ imitation of Chinese people will certainly outlive the overall funniness of the episode itself. “Herro Preese” will be forever etched in the annals of television history.

The other recognizable classic South Park element is the over-the-top nature with which the episode addresses its core point. It’s not enough to merely make the joke that Indiana Jones was raped (by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas). Not enough to show the rape, once, or even twice. South Park had to rape Indy over and over again.

Repeatedly reenacting various famous rape scenes accurately, effectively and tastelessly: this is the essence of South Park. The film re-creates memorably grotesque scenes from Boys Don’t Cry, The Accused and Deliverance. These are the kinds of scenes that haunt people for life, and South Park neatly packages them in cartoon form, for all to see and enjoy.

Don’t watch this episode with your little brother, or your parents, or your girlfriend. Don’t watch this episode with anyone you wouldn’t want to see you cry, laugh and vomit at the same time.