Critical mass is a tricky thing. You can’t make it happen by sheer force of will or by dropping a viral video at just the right moment.
The mad scientists at “South Park?” The folks behind the Comedy Central series can muster it with one perfectly timed episode.
The enduring creation of Trey Parker and Matt Stone has a knack for sharing thoughts we’re all having on challenging subjects we’re too shy to share in public.
Once the show’s foul-mouthed lads have a crack at it, suddenly it’s acceptable to speak on it loud and clear.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Comedy Central
They did just that earlier this year with “The World-Wide Privacy Tour,” an episode featuring Canadian royalty who looked and sounded just like the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Cultural voices had struggled to critique Harry and Meghan up until then, fearing a similar backlash to what British pundit Piers Morgan faced for defying the royal couple.
Morgan lost a lucrative gig with “Good Morning Britain” for suggesting Meghan wasn’t telling the whole truth about the alleged racism she faced within the royal family and her suicidal thoughts.
The fiery pundit faced an investigation into the comments as well. It wasn’t worth it for other high-profile voices to weigh in on the former “Suits” star.
Cartman and co. had no such fears. And, after South Park’s “Privacy Tour,” it was open season on the royals. The commentary dam had broken. Suddenly, we began to hear stories about how dismissive Meghan Markle was about her podcast gig, for example.
One brilliantly satirical episode made that happen.
We just saw something similar with the premiere of “Joining the Panderverse.” The “South Park”special episode skewered Disney executive Kathleen Kennedy for pushing woke on many Mouse House products, including movie reboots like the short-lived shows “National Treasure: Edge of History” and “Willow,” and franchise extensions like “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”.
It also mocked Hollywood’s aggressive diversity mandates, where classic characters are routinely race-swapped in the name of progress and equity.
US producer Kathleen Kennedy speaks during a press conference during the Morelia Film Festival in Morelia, Michoacan State, Mexico, on October 26, 2023. (Photo by ENRIQUE CASTRO/AFP via Getty Images)
YouTubers and Right-leaning influencers have said as much repeatedly over the past few years, but the subject was mostly off-limits to mainstream journalists. Or, if the topic came up, journalists would dismiss it as the ravings of “right wing trolls.”
Suddenly, the hilarious “South Park” satire had even The Hollywood Reporter weighing in on the topic, exposing it to readers who may not follow the aforementioned YouTube stars. The news site even quoted Gina Carano, the “Terror on the Prairie” star who was famously fired for sharing opinions that clashed with her far-Left industry, in the process.
The magazine wouldn’t share Carano’s views on the subject under normal conditions. When “South Park” brought the issues up, however, it forced the outlet to expand its coverage.
Plus, viewers who never made the connection between inferior Disney content and Kennedy, a veteran Hollywood executive, suddenly did just that.
None of this is new for “South Park.”
The series, which began in 1997, routinely hits controversial subjects sans fear or regret. “The Jeffersons” episode skewered pop superstar Michael Jackson all the way back in 2004, offering an unflinching perspective on the icon’s relationship with young children and plastic surgery overkill.
Even longtime Jackson fans worried about his mental state and accusations of improper behavior with children. “South Park” shouted it from the Comedy Central rooftop, and the public could now reference the series as a portal into difficult conversations around the King of Pop.
The show introduced its “PC Principal” character in 2015, several years before the woke mindset took hold in both Hollywood and the culture at large. The character’s virtue signaling, combined with an aggressive mien that took no prisoners, captured what many would soon fear about the far-Left movement.
Some “South Park” fans even embraced that episode’s title, “Stunning and Brave,” to describe woke theatrics meant to inspire applause (or else…), such as declaring trans star Caitlyn Jenner in such fawning fashion.
Sometimes the “South Park” magic doesn’t happen overnight.
The prime example is the 2019 “Board Girls” episode which skewers trans female athletes competing against biological women. The show featured a Randy “Macho Man” Savage-inspired character who becomes a trans woman and crushes the competition.
“I’m not here to talk about my transition, I’m here to kick some f***ing a**,” the character, who transitioned two weeks prior, says.
South Park ‘Board Girls’ episode. IMDB.
The installment drew some mild media heat at the time, but hardly as much as if it had come out this year or last.
Ironically, a clip from the episode went viral a few months ago, with even “The Clay and Buck Show” bringing it up on their nationally syndicated radio show.
How does “South Park” do it? The series carved a unique niche in pop culture, one that gives it leeway in the raging culture wars. It’s been outrageous for so long that people no longer judge it like other Hollywood content.
It’s just “South Park” being “South Park.”
That, plus the crude and cutesy animation, help it steer clear of cancel culture’s clutches. It helps that the show hits both sides of the cultural and political aisle, to, leaving no one safe from its satire.
The “Panderverse” episode poked fun at conservatives who cry “woke” at every opportunity, for example.
Best of all? Parker and Stone aren’t interested in apologizing for their past “offenses.” Why apologize for sharing what the rest of us already think?
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of HollywoodInToto.com. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at @HollywoodInToto.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.