Goin' Back Down to 'South Park': A Reflection on the Show’s Resurgence

By El Weiss

Image Sourced through Comedy Central

Premiering on August 13th, 1997, Matt Stone and Trey Parker’s South Park revolutionized both animation and satire. Spanning over 27 years with 27 seasons, the show’s roaring success has become a testament to what it truly means to make a mark on pop culture. Whether you’ve seen the show or not, you’ve most certainly heard of it. With the debut of the 27th season this summer, it’s become more present than ever. 

Centered around Donald Trump thus far, Season 27 pointedly crafts commentary around his dictatorial nature. As a seasoned South Park watcher, the poignant comparison between Trump and Iranian dictator Saddam Hussein adds another level of unignorable depth. If you’re new to the South Park universe (or aren’t as chronically online as I am), in the 1999 film South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut, Hussein and Satan are depicted in an abusive romantic relationship. Skipping forward to 2025, in the debut episode of the new season, Satan makes comments comparing Trump to his past lover, Hussein. 

It’s quite evident that the White House isn’t pleased by the implications in the slightest. Or more likely, the several scenes of Trump being shown with a micro penis and, in later episodes, mental breakdowns over the lack of approval from American citizens. 

“This show hasn’t been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers stated following the premiere. 

However, we have seemingly forgotten that South Park goes both ways. Despite frequently taking digs at conservatism, especially as extremist right-wing ideology rises, no political ideology or societal event goes untouched. Matt Stone famously said, “I hate conservatives, but I really fucking hate liberals." While not directly stating their political beliefs, other than stating their disdain for the two-party system, they have commented that they are relatively moderate. 

It’s easy to have mixed feelings on this. Should creators, especially those in satire, be responsible for taking a stance? The power of South Park lies in its nuance and ability to play both sides. It pushes satirical boundaries using playful animations designed to invoke thought and discussion. 

PC Principal is a prime example of the commentary established about “wokeness,” a theme that becomes central to the plot and has been developed on since his character debut in 2015 (Season 19). He aims to bring social awareness and political correctness to South Park Elementary School via his role as principal. Poking fun at left-wing woke culture, his character is portrayed as a liberal extremist who will engage in violence, even towards children, to push his agenda. We see a change in his character with the start of Season 27. He renames himself Power Christian Principal and invites Jesus Christ into the school after he faces pressure from the Trump administration to do so, symbolizing the growing attack on the freedom of speech. Following his shift in personality, Eric Cartman becomes disheartened over the death of wokeness (even though he has historically poked fun at it), displaying the sinister state the United States is in. Cartman serves as a rhetorical device for the growing change in the nation. 

Image Sourced through Comedy Central

Two particular episodes come to mind when analyzing South Park’s lengthy history of societal commentary. While sadly considered more left-leaning in ideology, even if the concepts explored shouldn’t be regarded as political but rather as human rights, the following two episodes are prime examples of how the deeper themes go ignored. 

Season 8 episode “The Jeffersons” revolves around Michael Jackson, who moves to South Park with the intention of concealing his identity and starting a new life. Besides jokes targeted at Jackson’s allegations of inappropriate relations with children, it casts a magnifying glass on the justice system. Upon finding out a rich black man has moved into South Park, the police go up in arms and strive to find and frame him due to his race. After seeing that he appears to be light-skinned (I recommend further researching Jackson’s medical history with vitiligo for stronger context), they forgo the operation due to his “socially acceptable” appearance. Stone and Parker embed themes of corruption of the justice system and targeting of minorities, even earlier on in the show. 

The recent episode from Season 23, “Mexican Joker,” isn’t the first episode touching on immigration, and won’t be the last as the current administration continues to crack down on immigrants. At the surface, the episode seems like an average glimpse at Cartman’s infamous pranks. He calls the US immigration services on Kyle Broflovski, stating he is illegally in the country following a disagreement. ICE brings Broflovski to a detention center, where Cartman is shortly brought to as well after pissing off Jimmy Valmer, prompting him to do the same thing Cartman had originally done to Broflovski. Time and time again portrayed as the character with the most social awareness, Broflovski prompts ICE agents to understand that what they are doing is wrong and that they will raise a “Mexican Joker.” At the time of the episode’s release, the Mexican community was (and still is) targeted by immigration agents. While Broflovski intends to communicate the resentment and trauma that detained children will have towards the United States, the agents take it at face value and only take away that they have to prevent the detained, in particular children, from becoming “evil” and supervillains as they hyperfixate on Broflovski’s comparison to DC Comics universe character the Joker. 

Looping back around to the creator’s intention to leave no relevant political or societal event aside, a 2006 quote from Parker in an interview with Reason affirms that they indeed play both sides.

 “The show is saying that there is a middle ground, that most of us actually live in this middle ground, and that all you extremists are the ones who have the microphones because you’re the most interesting to listen to, but actually this group isn’t evil, that group isn’t evil, and there’s something to be worked out here.

While this reflection-centered analysis covers the basics, it’s impossible to cover every episode and its corresponding commentary. South Park is an exploration of modern-day America and a connection to current events through the lens of humor. When consuming media, it is our role as viewers to understand the deeper implications of what we are observing. At the end of the day, your favorite TV show or movie might be more nuanced than you originally thought. South Park is political commentary catered to the entirety of the economic and societal beliefs spectrum, and it’s time to stop ignoring that.