Chances are, whether you are a casual television watcher, an occasional one, or someone up-to-date on the latest shows (whether it’s via cable, antenna-based, Direct Star TV, or … some other means), you have heard something or other about the South Park premiere from this past Wednesday, October 5th. Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the show’s creators, have been all over television lately, thanks to their South Park premiere, as well as a 60 Minutes interview and an upcoming documentary on their creative process. More importantly, however, this South Park episode was the follow-up to arguably the duo’s most shocking spring finale to date, which aired last June and left a lot of people wondering about the direction and future of the beloved animated series. So, did the premiere deliver?
To answer this question, it’s necessary to go back to the last episode of the spring, entitled “You’re Getting Old.” Simply put, this episode was both bewildering and depressing for hardcore South Park fans like myself. It began with Stan (one of the boys around which the show is centered) turning ten, and becoming a cynic. At first, this was hilarious, as Stan began to see and hear everything as “crap” (literally). It seemed like Matt and Trey were taking a typical stab at the entertainment industry for producing crap, such as Kevin James’s recent family comedy The Zookeeper (and let’s be honest, did anyone see the preview for this movie and not laugh at how terrible it looked?). In the blink of an eye, however, the episode turned shockingly serious, as Stan alienated himself from his friends and his parents divorced after a conversation that sounded a lot like Matt and Trey talking to their audience, expressing the idea that the ridiculousness had to stop somewhere. I never thought a South Park episode would get me emotional, but this one came upsettingly close.
The new premiere started with an air of decided ridiculousness, as Cartman put burgers in his pants and tried to get out of school for having Aspergers Syndrome (think about it). Soon enough, however, the episode addressed the issues that it had left hanging at the end of the spring finale, and I have to say, it really seemed like Matt and Trey themselves weren’t quite sure how to handle things. For the most part, this episode went back-and-forth on the question of whether or not things in South Park will start off on a new path or revert back to normal. To be fair, Matt and Trey have been very clear in various interviews that they did not necessarily intend the “You’re Getting Old” episode to be so seriously perceived as an introspective commentary … they appear to have been aiming more toward a critique of Hollywood and TV in general for producing terrible movies and show ideas. So, it seems like they were caught off guard by fans’ reactions, and wound up having to “fix” things to some extent.
All in all, the newest episode was mostly satisfying. They addressed the issues, threw in a lot of humor, and seemed to indicate that things will wind up getting back to normal, as (SPOILER ALERT) Stan’s parents reconciled their differences and Stan found ways (with a little help from whiskey!) to cope with his cynicism. It wasn’t the best episode we’ve seen recently, but its most encouraging factor was that it was fun, light and ridiculous. This was pretty reassuring to a lot of fans that wondered if Matt and Trey were getting tired of their usual antics. It looks as if the most beloved animated show on television will be just fine.
Clacked by Guest Clacker
on Oct 07, 2011 @ 16:25 EST5EDT
