Go God Go
Encyclopedia
"Go God Go" is the 12th episode of the 10th season
of the American animated television series South Park
. It originally aired on Comedy Central
in the United States on November 1, 2006, and is part one of a two-part story. Part two is titled "Go God Go XII
", which aired a week later. In "Go God Go", Cartman
is unable to wait the three weeks until the Wii
video game console is released, and attempts to freeze himself
to get closer to the release date, but accidentally ends up much later in the future, in the atheistic
world of 2546.
The episode was written by South Park creators Matt Stone
and Trey Parker
, and was directed by Parker, and was rated TV-MA in the United States. With religions often forming the subject matter of South Park, this two-parter satirizes atheism, as well as famous evolutionary biologist and atheist Richard Dawkins
, whose bestselling book The God Delusion
was published in the months before the episode's broadcast.
is unable to wait three weeks until the Nintendo Wii
console is released, causing him extreme insomnia
and other symptoms (like hallucination
, looking at the clock). He tries to go into cryonic suspension
by getting in his refrigerator
but his mother catches him. He finally gets Butters
to freeze him in the mountains.
Concurrently, Mrs. Garrison resists being forced to teach the school's evolution
curriculum, and mischaracterizes the theory, stating that man is "the retarded offspring of five monkeys who had butt-sex with a fish-squirrel." In response, the school administrator's hire outspoken evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins
as an assistant teacher to help Mrs. Garrison present the evolution lesson. After some initial friction between the creationist Garrison and atheist Dawkins, a romantic interest soon develops.
During their date, Mrs. Garrison converts to atheism
. Mrs. Garrison is convinced by Dawkins that religion is based on logical fallacies
by claiming that one cannot disprove the existence of God
in the same way that one cannot disprove a Flying Spaghetti Monster
. Garrison comes to believe there is no great mystery to life, exclaiming that, "Evolution explains everything and God is a spaghetti monster". Mrs. Garrison is very thankful for this. Later they go back to Mrs. Garrison's house where they have sex. The next day in class, Garrison informs the students of his changed stance on evolution, prompting Stan to argue that one can have faith in both God and evolution. Because of this, he is forced to sit in a corner wearing a dunce cap that says “I Have Faith”. Later that night, as Dawkins and Garrison are cuddling in bed (surrounded by various erotic toys), Dawkins and Mrs. Garrison realize that they must get rid of religion and end religious wars forever.
By this time, Eric Cartman has become cold enough to enter suspended animation, and a freak avalanche buried his body. In a montage that spoofs the opening credits of the late-1970s TV series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
, it is revealed that Cartman ultimately remains frozen for over five centuries, until being discovered and thawed out by members of the Unified Atheist League (UAL).
In the year 2546, the entire world is atheistic and dedicated to rationality and science. Atheism is divided into several denominations
. These factions are at war with each other over who has the right answer to the Great Question. Cartman is told that their inspiring leader from the past, Richard Dawkins, showed them the way, but it was his "beautiful wife", Mrs. Garrison, who showed how one must be a dick to people they don't agree with. The UAL explains what happened to him and that his family and friends have been dead for over 500 years, but he does not care about it. However, Cartman is horrified to learn that no one in the future plays video games, including the Wii.
On their way to the Ancient Technology Museum in search of a Wii console, the UAL comes under attack by a rival group, the United Atheist Alliance (UAA). After a fierce battle that leaves all the UAL members dead and Cartman a UAA hostage, the group is contacted by yet another faction, the Allied Atheist Allegiance (AAA) -- who are super-intelligent sea otter
s at war with the humans of the UAL and UAA over world domination and the Great Question. The Otter King threatens to smash Cartman's skull "like a clam on my tummy."
, an interviewer had asked, "May I assume you two are atheists, since you make fun of religious beliefs so often?" Surprised by the question, Parker and Stone emphatically said that they did not consider themselves to be atheists—leading to a phone call shortly thereafter from their friend Penn Jillette
, an outspoken advocate for atheism who had seen the interview and was evidently disappointed to learn that the two were not "on the Atheist team." Their subsequent conversations with Jillette about atheism and related topics (e.g., the difference between "atheism" and "agnosticism
") gave rise to the idea of satirizing the "militant" or "evangelical" atheism as represented in the episode by Dawkins and Garrison.
At Nintendo's 2007 E3 press conference, a clip of the episode where Cartman tells his mother he must have a Wii was included in a montage of clips about the demand for the Wii.
Also, on the Season 10 DVD Commentaries, Parker and Stone mention that, due to this episode, they actually received free Wii systems from Nintendo.
, in a Q & A session at the Free Library of Philadelphia said: "I would have thought they could at least have got an actor that could do a proper British accent
." On his website, Dawkins states: "I’m buggered if I like being portrayed as a cartoon character buggering a bald transvestite. I wouldn’t have minded so much if only it had been in the service of some serious point, but if there was a serious point in there I couldn’t discern it. And then there’s the matter of the accent they gave me. Now, if only I could be offered a cameo role
in The Simpsons
, I could show that actor how to do a real British accent."
The German title of the episode is "Gott ist tot", which translates to "God is dead
", a widely-quoted statement by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche
.
South Park (season 10)
Season 10 of South Park, an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, began airing on March 22, 2006. The tenth season concluded after 14 episodes on November 15, 2006...
of the American animated television series South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
. It originally aired on Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
in the United States on November 1, 2006, and is part one of a two-part story. Part two is titled "Go God Go XII
Go God Go XII
"Go God Go XII" is episode 1013 of Comedy Central's South Park, which aired on November 8, 2006. The episode is a continuation of the previous episode, "Go God Go"...
", which aired a week later. In "Go God Go", Cartman
Eric Cartman
Eric Theodore Cartman is a fictional character in the American animated television series South Park. One of four main characters, along with Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Kenny McCormick, he is generally referred to within the series by his last name...
is unable to wait the three weeks until the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
video game console is released, and attempts to freeze himself
Cryonics
Cryonics is the low-temperature preservation of humans and animals who can no longer be sustained by contemporary medicine, with the hope that healing and resuscitation may be possible in the future. Cryopreservation of people or large animals is not reversible with current technology...
to get closer to the release date, but accidentally ends up much later in the future, in the atheistic
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
world of 2546.
The episode was written by South Park creators Matt Stone
Matt Stone
Matthew Richard "Matt" Stone is an American screenwriter, producer, voice artist, musician and actor, best known for being the co-creator of South Park along with creative partner and best friend, Trey Parker....
and Trey Parker
Trey Parker
Trey Parker is an American animator, screenwriter, director, producer, voice artist, musician and actor, best known for being the co-creator of the television series South Park along with his creative partner and best friend Matt Stone.Parker started his film career in 1992, making a holiday short...
, and was directed by Parker, and was rated TV-MA in the United States. With religions often forming the subject matter of South Park, this two-parter satirizes atheism, as well as famous evolutionary biologist and atheist Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
, whose bestselling book The God Delusion
The God Delusion
The God Delusion is a 2006 bestselling non-fiction book by British biologist Richard Dawkins, professorial fellow of New College, Oxford, and inaugural holder of the Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford.In The God Delusion, Dawkins contends that...
was published in the months before the episode's broadcast.
Plot
CartmanEric Cartman
Eric Theodore Cartman is a fictional character in the American animated television series South Park. One of four main characters, along with Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Kenny McCormick, he is generally referred to within the series by his last name...
is unable to wait three weeks until the Nintendo Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
console is released, causing him extreme insomnia
Insomnia
Insomnia is most often defined by an individual's report of sleeping difficulties. While the term is sometimes used in sleep literature to describe a disorder demonstrated by polysomnographic evidence of disturbed sleep, insomnia is often defined as a positive response to either of two questions:...
and other symptoms (like hallucination
Hallucination
A hallucination, in the broadest sense of the word, is a perception in the absence of a stimulus. In a stricter sense, hallucinations are defined as perceptions in a conscious and awake state in the absence of external stimuli which have qualities of real perception, in that they are vivid,...
, looking at the clock). He tries to go into cryonic suspension
Cryonics
Cryonics is the low-temperature preservation of humans and animals who can no longer be sustained by contemporary medicine, with the hope that healing and resuscitation may be possible in the future. Cryopreservation of people or large animals is not reversible with current technology...
by getting in his refrigerator
Refrigerator
A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...
but his mother catches him. He finally gets Butters
Butters Stotch
Leopold "Butters" Stotch is a fictional character in the animated television series South Park. He is voiced by series co-creator Matt Stone and loosely based on co-producer Eric Stough. He is a fourth-grade student who commonly has extraordinary experiences not typical of conventional small-town...
to freeze him in the mountains.
Concurrently, Mrs. Garrison resists being forced to teach the school's evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
curriculum, and mischaracterizes the theory, stating that man is "the retarded offspring of five monkeys who had butt-sex with a fish-squirrel." In response, the school administrator's hire outspoken evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
as an assistant teacher to help Mrs. Garrison present the evolution lesson. After some initial friction between the creationist Garrison and atheist Dawkins, a romantic interest soon develops.
During their date, Mrs. Garrison converts to atheism
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
. Mrs. Garrison is convinced by Dawkins that religion is based on logical fallacies
Formal fallacy
In philosophy, a formal fallacy is a pattern of reasoning that is always wrong. This is due to a flaw in the logical structure of the argument which renders the argument invalid...
by claiming that one cannot disprove the existence of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
in the same way that one cannot disprove a Flying Spaghetti Monster
Flying Spaghetti Monster
The Flying Spaghetti Monster is the deity of the parody religion the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster or Pastafarianism...
. Garrison comes to believe there is no great mystery to life, exclaiming that, "Evolution explains everything and God is a spaghetti monster". Mrs. Garrison is very thankful for this. Later they go back to Mrs. Garrison's house where they have sex. The next day in class, Garrison informs the students of his changed stance on evolution, prompting Stan to argue that one can have faith in both God and evolution. Because of this, he is forced to sit in a corner wearing a dunce cap that says “I Have Faith”. Later that night, as Dawkins and Garrison are cuddling in bed (surrounded by various erotic toys), Dawkins and Mrs. Garrison realize that they must get rid of religion and end religious wars forever.
By this time, Eric Cartman has become cold enough to enter suspended animation, and a freak avalanche buried his body. In a montage that spoofs the opening credits of the late-1970s TV series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV series)
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is an American science fiction adventure television series produced by Universal Studios. The series ran for two seasons between 1979–1981, and the feature-length pilot episode for the series was released as a theatrical film several months before the series aired....
, it is revealed that Cartman ultimately remains frozen for over five centuries, until being discovered and thawed out by members of the Unified Atheist League (UAL).
In the year 2546, the entire world is atheistic and dedicated to rationality and science. Atheism is divided into several denominations
Religious denomination
A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name, tradition, and identity.The term describes various Christian denominations...
. These factions are at war with each other over who has the right answer to the Great Question. Cartman is told that their inspiring leader from the past, Richard Dawkins, showed them the way, but it was his "beautiful wife", Mrs. Garrison, who showed how one must be a dick to people they don't agree with. The UAL explains what happened to him and that his family and friends have been dead for over 500 years, but he does not care about it. However, Cartman is horrified to learn that no one in the future plays video games, including the Wii.
On their way to the Ancient Technology Museum in search of a Wii console, the UAL comes under attack by a rival group, the United Atheist Alliance (UAA). After a fierce battle that leaves all the UAL members dead and Cartman a UAA hostage, the group is contacted by yet another faction, the Allied Atheist Allegiance (AAA) -- who are super-intelligent sea otter
Sea Otter
The sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
s at war with the humans of the UAL and UAA over world domination and the Great Question. The Otter King threatens to smash Cartman's skull "like a clam on my tummy."
Production
Trey Parker and Matt Stone briefly describe one part of the inspiration for "Go God Go" in their director commentaries for the Season 10 DVD. During an appearance by the pair on TV's NightlineNightline
Nightline, or ABC News Nightline is a late-night news program broadcast by ABC in the United States, and has a franchised formula to other networks and stations elsewhere in the world. It airs weeknights, usually for 31 minutes. Created by Roone Arledge, the program featured Ted Koppel as its main...
, an interviewer had asked, "May I assume you two are atheists, since you make fun of religious beliefs so often?" Surprised by the question, Parker and Stone emphatically said that they did not consider themselves to be atheists—leading to a phone call shortly thereafter from their friend Penn Jillette
Penn Jillette
Penn Fraser Jillette is an American magician, comedian, illusionist, juggler, bassist and a best-selling author known for his work with fellow illusionist Teller in the team Penn & Teller, and advocacy of atheism, libertarian philosophy, free-market economics, and scientific skepticism.-Early...
, an outspoken advocate for atheism who had seen the interview and was evidently disappointed to learn that the two were not "on the Atheist team." Their subsequent conversations with Jillette about atheism and related topics (e.g., the difference between "atheism" and "agnosticism
Agnosticism
Agnosticism is the view that the truth value of certain claims—especially claims about the existence or non-existence of any deity, but also other religious and metaphysical claims—is unknown or unknowable....
") gave rise to the idea of satirizing the "militant" or "evangelical" atheism as represented in the episode by Dawkins and Garrison.
Nintendo's response
The week of November 5, 2006, a poll on Nintendo.com asked "How bad do you want a Wii?" With the responses being "Bad", "Way Bad", and "Worse than Cartman," with the third choice holding out with 80% of the votes.At Nintendo's 2007 E3 press conference, a clip of the episode where Cartman tells his mother he must have a Wii was included in a montage of clips about the demand for the Wii.
Richard Dawkins' response
Richard DawkinsRichard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
, in a Q & A session at the Free Library of Philadelphia said: "I would have thought they could at least have got an actor that could do a proper British accent
British English
British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...
." On his website, Dawkins states: "I’m buggered if I like being portrayed as a cartoon character buggering a bald transvestite. I wouldn’t have minded so much if only it had been in the service of some serious point, but if there was a serious point in there I couldn’t discern it. And then there’s the matter of the accent they gave me. Now, if only I could be offered a cameo role
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, I could show that actor how to do a real British accent."
Episode name
There was some confusion regarding the episode title. Originally, many cable and satellite providers listed it as "Go, God, Go! Part II," despite the lack of a "Go, God, Go! Part I." When the episode was broadcast, the official South Park website simply listed it with the generic title "TBA". Several days after its initial broadcast, it was officially designated "Go God Go."The German title of the episode is "Gott ist tot", which translates to "God is dead
God is dead
"God is dead" is a widely-quoted statement by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. It first appears in The Gay Science , in sections 108 , 125 , and for a third time in section 343...
", a widely-quoted statement by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
.