South Park (season 13)


release year: 2009
genre: animated comedy
viewing setting: home DVD, 1/10-17/20

synopsis: This show revolves around the odd adventures of four kids (and a large supporting cast) in a fictional Colorado town where damn near anything can happen.

impressions: I watched these back when they came out fifteen years ago, but hadn't kept up with anything after early season two from 1998. So here I am catching up, and delving into new material I'd never seen before. This season's satire targets include...well, you can look at the episode briefs below to see. This is one of those shows that you either know about and watch(ed) or else never have and never will. It's loosely-continuous, meaning that someone could die in one episode and be fine in the next, and it's often a biting satire of popular people and events of the time. It's also crude, with profanity and other references that will drive away critics...which I suspect is the point. This show is basically a way to satirize and make fun of whatever's in the news each week, and then wipe the slate clean for the next episode. Episode briefs:
  • (1) (episode 182 overall) the Jonas Brothers and evil Mickey Mouse
  • (2) Cartman becomes a superhero vigilante
  • (3) recession fever hits the town
  • (4) Terrance and Phillip get upstaged by twin sisters
  • (5) Jimmy comes up with the fishsticks joke
  • (6) the Pinewood Derby is taken far too seriously
  • (7) Cartman decides to go to Somalia and become a pirate
  • (8) Ike begins to see and hear dead celebrities
  • (9) Butters goes into the kiss-selling business
  • (10) the boys form their own wrestling company
  • (11) the Japanese go nuts with whale-killing
  • (12) obnoxious motorcyclists invade the town
  • (13) Cartman takes over the morning announcements
  • (14) (episode 195 overall) too many people pee in the water at the water park


    • acting: n/a but it's pretty impressive when you consider that two guys basically provide almost all the different voices.

    final word: This was groundbreaking stuff, and people typically either love it or hate it. Like Beavis and Butt-Head there's some clever humor and satire hidden there, for those with the patience and intelligence to find it...though with the bold and brash nature of this show, it's a lot easier to find.

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