South Park (season 13)
Encyclopedia
The 13th season of South Park
, an American animated television comedy series, originally aired in the United States on Comedy Central
between March 11 and November 18, 2009. The season was headed by the series creators Trey Parker
and Matt Stone
, who served as executive producer
s along with Anne Garefino. The season continued to focus on the exploits of protagonists Stan
, Kyle
, Cartman
, Kenny
and Butters
in the fictional Colorado
mountain town of South Park.
The season was the first of three new seasons Parker and Stone agreed to produce for the network under a renewal deal. It consisted of fourteen 22-minute episodes, which aired in two groups of seven episodes separated by a six-month gap. Prior to the season's premiere, all South Park episodes were made available for free viewing on the official series website, South Park Studios. The 13th season was the first to be broadcast in high definition
and in widescreen. Continuing their practice from previous seasons, Parker and Stone wrote and produced each episode within the week before its broadcast date.
The 13th season satirized such topics as the ACORN scandal
, Japanese whaling
, piracy in Somalia
and the marketing tactics of the Walt Disney Company
. Celebrities were spoofed throughout the season, including the Jonas Brothers
, Kanye West
, Carlos Mencia
, Paul Watson
and Glenn Beck
, all of whom publicly responded to their portrayals. The episode "Fishsticks
" attracted particular media attention due to rapper Kanye West's declaration that its jokes about his arrogance were funny but hurt his feelings. "The F Word
", in which the central characters attempt to change the definition of the word "fag", was especially controversial and prompted complaints from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. A broadcast of "Pinewood Derby
" in Mexico was pulled, allegedly due to its depiction of Mexican President
Felipe Calderón
. "Fatbeard
" was praised by the crew of the USS Bainbridge
, which was involved in the 2009 rescue
of the MV Maersk Alabama
from Somalian pirates.
The 13th season received mixed reviews: some critics called it one of South Park' s strongest seasons, while others claimed the series was starting to decline in quality. The season maintained the average Nielsen rating
viewership for the series, around 3 million viewers per episode. The episode "Margaritaville
", which satirized the global recession then affecting much of the industrialized world, won the 2009 Emmy Award
for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour)
.
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Series creators Trey Parker
and Matt Stone
were the executive producers of the 13th season of South Park, along with Anne Garefino. The season was distributed by Comedy Central
, where the series has aired since its inception in 1997. Frank C. Agnone II served as supervising producer, while Eric Stough
, Adrien Beard
, Vernon Chatman
, Bruce Howell and Erica Rivinoja worked as producers. Saturday Night Live
cast member Bill Hader
, who had previously worked as a consultant on the show, was credited as a producer starting in season 13. Hader said of his role with the show, "It's really Trey and Matt who kind of write everything, and you're just in the room kind of helping them. Basically, I'm friends with them and they're just nice enough to invite me into the room and let me goof around." Ryan Quincy served as director of animation during the 13th season.
and 15, were each to consist of 14 episodes. Stone said of the announcement, "Three more years of South Park will give us the opportunity to offend that many more people." Parker and Stone also announced they would partner with Comedy Central to create a Los Angeles–based digital animation studio called South Park Digital Studios, which would serve as the center for all digital extensions of the South Park franchise and other animated projects.
Prior to the broadcast of the 13th season, Parker and Stone made every episode from the previous 12 seasons of South Park available for free viewing on the official series website, South Park Studios. New episodes from the 13th season were made available for one week after the original airdate, then removed for 30 days, after which they were returned to the site permanently. The episodes were uncensored and ad-supported, so no membership fees were required to view the shows. In a statement, Parker and Stone said, "We got really sick of having to download our own show illegally all the time. So we gave ourselves a legal alternative."
Two months before the 13th season premiered, South Park Studios announced that it would be the first season to be broadcast in high definition
and presented in widescreen. Episodes from previous seasons were also converted to high definition. The season's episodes first aired in the United States on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. Eastern Standard Time
on Comedy Central, and were repeated Wednesdays at 12 a.m., Thursdays at 10 p.m. and 12 a.m., and Sundays at 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., all EST. The first seven episodes of the season aired from March 11, 2009, premiering with "The Ring", and ended on April 22 with the mid-season finale "Fatbeard
". The season returned with seven more episodes, resuming on October 7 with "Dead Celebrities
", and ending on November 18 with the season finale, "Pee
".
" and "Pee" were both still being finished the day before the episodes were first broadcast. Parker and Stone said "Dead Celebrities" was a particularly challenging episode to make—they were up all night working on it the day before it aired, and did not finish until 11 a.m. on its broadcast date. Some critics have said that this short turnaround process helps South Park stay fresh and allows the show to address current events in a timely fashion.
The 13th season introduced the characters Katie and Katherine, stars of a television show, The Queef Sisters, that consists largely of vaginal flatulence
jokes. They are female equivalents of long-time characters Terrance and Phillip, who are initially angered at the competition from Katie and Katherine, but end up romantically involved with them. Season 13 also marked the final appearance of long-time supporting character Gordon Stoltski, the third grade student who read the morning announcements for South Park Elementary. In the episode "Dances with Smurfs
", Gordon is murdered while reading the announcements by a gunman who mistakes him for a truck driver who slept with his wife. Some critics found the scene disturbing and inappropriate in the light of recent school shootings in the United States.
The running gag of killing protagonist Kenny McCormick continued, though he was killed only three times during the season: in the episode "The Ring", he contracts syphilis after engaging in oral sex; in "W.T.F.", he is shot by a rocket launcher during a professional wrestling match; and in "Pee", he drowns in the urine that inundates the water park. During the final half of the season, aliens were hidden in images throughout the episodes as part of a contest offered by South Park Studios. Viewers able to find the alien in the episode could enter a contest, with the grand winner getting an animated version of himself or herself placed in the South Park opening credits starting the next season. In December 2009, Matthew Klinner was announced winner of the contest.
, which began receiving increasing international media attention in 2008; the Somali pirates are portrayed in a sympathetic light in the episode. "Dances with Smurfs" parodied the political commentary of Glenn Beck
, a nationally syndicated radio show host and Fox News Channel
political pundit. In the episode, Cartman makes outrageous claims with no basis in fact under the guise that he is simply asking rhetorical questions and seeking further discussion, a practice for which Beck has been criticized.
The episode "Whale Whores
" addressed the controversies surrounding Japanese whaling
, condemning not only the whalers who engaged in the practice, but shows like Whale Wars
and activists like television celebrity Paul Watson who profit from fighting whaling. "Butters' Bottom Bitch
" featured a scene in which Butters
visits an ACORN
office seeking benefits for prostitutes working for him, a reference to a similar 2009 scandal
. The episode "Eat, Pray, Queef
" demonstrated a double standard between rights of men and women by showing the South Park men, who have no problem with farting, strongly objecting to vaginal flatulence from women. The season finale, "Pee", satirized the disaster film
genre, especially the movie 2012
, which was released five days before the episode aired. Cartman interprets the large number of minorities at his favorite water park as a sign of the 2012 phenomenon
, the prediction that cataclysmic events will occur in the year 2012, which is said to be the end of the Mayan Long Count calendar
.
"The Ring" featured parodies of the pop-rock boy band
Jonas Brothers and a foul-mouthed, greedy, physically violent Mickey Mouse
, satirizing the Walt Disney Company
's exploitation of family-friendly morals to disguise its profit motive. "The Coon
" served as a parody of dark-toned comic book movies, like The Dark Knight
(2008), The Spirit
(2008) and Watchmen
(2009). "Dead Celebrities" mocked numerous recently deceased celebrities, including Michael Jackson
, Billy Mays
and David Carradine
, as well as the show Ghost Hunters
. "Dances with Smurfs" mocked the 2009 James Cameron
film Avatar, suggesting the plot borrows heavily from the film Dances with Wolves
and comparing Avatar's blue aliens to the cartoon Smurfs
. The episode "W.T.F.
" parodied professional wrestling in general and World Wrestling Entertainment
in particular, highlighting the soap opera aspects of wrestling storylines and fans who believe the stories are real.
. In response to fan requests, the full 90-second version of the song was made available for download on South Park Studios the week the episode aired. The season finale, "Pee", features a tune sung by Cartman, "(Too Many Minorities) Not My Water Park", in which he despairs over the large number of African-American, Hispanic-American and Asian-American patrons at his water park. Among other topics, Cartman expresses his anger about long lines full of minorities and park employees speaking Spanish rather than English. The episode "Eat, Pray, Queef" features "Queef Free", a charity single recorded by the men of South Park after they realize women should be free to queef just as men are free to fart. The song has been described as a parody of such celebrities-for-charity songs as "We Are The World
".
The 13th season also featured or spoofed real-life songs and bands. The episode "Fishsticks", which prominently featured rapper Kanye West, includes a two-and-a-half minute song, "Gay Fish", that parodies West's "Heartless
". "Gay Fish" satirizes the rapper's tendency to rely on audio processing to correct his mistakes in pitch
. After "Fishsticks" aired, the full song was made available for download on South Park Studios. Several fake Jonas Brothers songs, with lyrics about the band members' physical attractiveness, were written for "The Ring". Some songs also emphasize the band's belief in sexual abstinence, with lyrics like, "Who needs sex and drugs and partying when we can cook a meal and sit around and watch Netflix
?" The strongly erotic reactions of the young girls at their concert parody the frenzied female fan reactions the Jonas Brothers tend to elicit, even though their image projects wholesomeness and chastity. In the episode "Whale Wars", Cartman plays the video game Rock Band
and performs a rendition, praised by critics, of the Lady Gaga
song "Poker Face
". On March 16, 2010, Rock Band developer Harmonix released this version of the song (along with the original version) as downloadable content for the game. In "W.T.F.", during an audition for the boys' professional wrestling league, one of the participants sings a Broadway
-style number—parodying the song "Nothing" from A Chorus Line
—about why he wants to be a wrestler. The episode "Fatbeard" received considerable press attention after Ike stated in a letter he would "vomit his balls out through his mouth" if he had to hear anything more about Susan Boyle
, the Scottish amateur singer who had recently gained worldwide attention for her performance of "I Dreamed a Dream
" on Britain's Got Talent
.
said South Park continued to be the "best animated comedy show on TV" during its 13th season. He said the season had some low points, particularly "Eat, Pray Queef", but that episodes like "The F Word" and "Dances with Smurfs" delivered significant social commentary. Isler described "Fishsticks" as a well-timed, hilarious episode that became a "phenomenon". Ben Flanagan of The Tuscaloosa News said the 13th season was one of the strongest yet for South Park, and that the series continued its tradition of entertainingly combining gross-out comedy with social satire. He wrote, "Whether they tackle the Jonas Brothers, Somali pirates, Kanye West, The Dark Knight, the current economic woes or just the frequent greed and foolishness of the human race, the show continues to solidify itself as not only the funniest show on TV, but the best."
Not all reviews of the season were positive. A.V. Club
writer Sean O'Neal called it "one of the more hit-or-miss seasons of South Park in the show’s history", but said he was confident the series could do better and that it had yet not entered the "staggering animal begging to be put out of its misery stage of a show's lifetime". He described the season as a "weekly exercise in South Park schizophrenia", with some episodes faring better than others, although he said the first half of the season was generally strong. Josh Modell, also of the A.V. Club, agreed that the season was uneven, with several episodes "you kinda shrugged your shoulders at", but others like "Butters' Bottom Bitch" that he found "pretty damn funny".
"Fishsticks" particularly attracted media attention, and some critics declared it one of the best episodes of the season. In the episode, Jimmy writes a joke that becomes a national sensation, while Cartman tries to steal the credit. A fictionalized version of rapper Kanye West fails to understand the joke. He cannot admit that he does not get it because, in reference to a perceived ego problem on the part of the real West, he considers himself a genius. On September 13, 2009, during the MTV Video Music Awards
, West interrupted an acceptance speech by country singer Taylor Swift
, walking on stage, grabbing the microphone and praising her competitor Beyoncé Knowles
. The incident received considerable press coverage and, as a result, Comedy Central rebroadcast "Fishsticks" for two straight hours on September 15.
"The F Word" was especially controversial, even by South Park standards. In the episode, the South Park boys attempt to change the official definition of the word "fag" from an anti-homosexual
slur to a term describing loud and obnoxious Harley
bikers. The uncensored word is voiced casually and very frequently throughout the episode. A.V. Club critic Genevieve Koski argued that "The F Word" advocates a philosophy that language is ever-changing and that taboo
words receive their stigma purely due to social circumstance. Although some LGBT
activists accepted that the episode had noble intentions, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation nevertheless objected to it, claiming that it still used "fag" as a means of insulting others and could be unintentionally harmful to the gay community. Some critics praised the episode and said it addressed an important and difficult issue, whereas others felt the satire was ineffective and unfunny.
Some celebrities who were spoofed in 13th season episodes responded to their portrayals. The day after "Fishsticks" aired, West wrote on his blog, "South Park murdered me last night and it's pretty damn funny. It hurts my feelings but what can you expect from South Park!" West thanked the South Park writers in his blog entry and acknowledged he has a problem with his ego, but said he was trying to change. The blog post drew substantial media attention; Daniel Kreps of Rolling Stone
said: "Many have tried, all have failed, but in the end it only took four animated children from Colorado to topple Kanye West's ego." Carlos Mencia
, host of the Comedy Central show Mind of Mencia
, was also spoofed in "Fishsticks". He is portrayed as knowingly stealing credit for a joke he did not write, which is a reference to accusations other comedians have made that Mencia plagiarizes jokes from other people. After the episode aired, Mencia wrote on his Twitter
feed, "They just made fun of me on South Park. I thought it was hysterical. Catch the rerun."
In "The Coon", Butters suspects heavyset comedian Bruce Vilanch
is Cartman's superhero alter ego based on his physique. After the episode aired, Vilanch sent a card to Parker and Stone thanking them for referring to him. Shortly after "Whale Whores" aired, Paul Watson said he was not offended by his portrayal in the episode, and was glad South Park brought the issue of dolphin and whale slaughter, and the Japanese role in it, to a large audience. After Billy Mays appeared in "Dead Celebrities", his son Billy Mays III said he loved the episode and found its portrayal of his father tasteful and respectful. Jason Hawes
and Grant Wilson
, the stars of Ghost Hunters
who were also mocked in "Dead Celebrities", said they loved the parody and encouraged fans to watch the show on their Twitter accounts. The day after "Dances with Smurfs" originally aired, Glenn Beck discussed the episode on his radio program
and said he took the parody as a compliment. The Jonas Brothers' publicist specifically forbade reporters from asking the band members about their portrayal in "The Ring". Nevertheless, Nick Jonas
said, "We are always open to make fun of ourselves."
"Pinewood Derby" drew considerable media attention in Mexico when it first aired due to its depiction of Mexican President Felipe Calderón
. The episode was due to air in Spanish on MTV Latin America
on February 8, 2010, but it was pulled a few hours before the scheduled time. Media reports indicated the decision stemmed from the episode's depiction of Calderón irritating the international community and frivolously spending alien-provided "space cash" on water parks. MTV said the South Park creators did not get a special permit needed to broadcast an image of Mexico's flag, but the explanation was met with skepticism by Mexican South Park fans, some of whom accused MTV of censorship.
"Fatbeard" included prominent references to the April 2009 hijacking
of the MV Maersk Alabama
by Somalian pirates. The crew of the USS Bainbridge
, the Arleigh Burke–class
guided-missile destroyer that participated in the rescue of Richard Phillips from Maersk Alabama, contacted the South Park creators to commend them on the episode. Ensign Jonathan Sieg, the Bainbridge public relations officer, wrote, "Pretty much everyone onboard our ship—from Captain to seaman—is a huge fan of South Park, and when we heard about the episode 'Fatbeard', as you can imagine, we were thrilled and very interested to watch."
involving Jon Stewart's ongoing feud
with CNBC
and pundit Jim Cramer. The 13th season of South Park received its lowest viewership in the episodes "Dances with Smurfs", seen in 1.47 million households; "W.T.F.", seen in 1.37 million households; and "The F Word", seen in 1.99 million households. However, "The F Word" was the highest rated show of the season among viewers between ages 18 and 49, and outperformed The Jay Leno Show
, NBC
's primetime talk show. The season finale, "Pee", was seen in 2.87 million households, which made it the most watched cable show of the night. Likewise, "The Coon", seen in 3.27 million households, was the most watched cable program among ages 18 to 49 the week it aired. Several episodes from the 13th season of South Park were the most watched Comedy Central shows the week they aired, including "Margaritaville" (2.77 million households), "Fatbeard" (2.59 million households), "Eat, Pray, Queef" (3 million households) and "Fishsticks" (3.1 million households). The latter two episodes were watched by over 1 million more viewers than the network's second-highest-rated shows in their respective weeks.
because they had received a large amount of positive feedback about the episode from adult viewers. Since most Emmy voters are older, they decided "Margaritaville" stood the best chance of winning. Stone joked, "If an Emmy voter were to watch this, they might think the show was smarter than it was, so they might be fooled into voting for us." "Margaritaville" ultimately won the 2009 Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program for Programming Less Than One Hour
against competing nominees Robot Chicken
, The Simpsons
and American Dad. The victory marked the third consecutive Emmy win for South Park, which won in the same category in 2007 for the 10th season
episode "Make Love, Not Warcraft
", and won the award for Outstanding Animated Program for Programming One Hour or More
for the 11th season
episode "Imaginationland
". Parker, Stone, Agnone, Stough, Beard, Howell, Rivinoja, Chatman, Hader and Quincy were all recipients of the Emmy.
In February 2010, "Whale Whores" was nominated for a Genesis Award
in the television comedy category. The Genesis Awards honor news and entertainment media for outstanding work that raises public understanding of animal issues. "Whale Whores" ultimately lost to the Family Guy
episode "Dog Gone."
(as a three-disc set) and Blu-ray
(as a two-disc set). Each set included all 14 uncensored episodes in 1080p
video and Dolby TrueHD
sound, as well as brief audio commentaries by Parker and Stone for each episode, seven deleted scenes, codes for unlocking a character and challenge levels in South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play! on Xbox Live Arcade
, and a special mini-feature, Inside Xbox: A Behind-the-Scenes Tour of South Park Studios, describing the show's animation process.
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...
, an American animated television comedy series, originally aired in the United States on Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
between March 11 and November 18, 2009. The season was headed by the series creators 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 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....
, who served as executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
s along with Anne Garefino. The season continued to focus on the exploits of protagonists Stan
Stan Marsh
Stanley Randall "Stan" Marsh is a fictional character in the animated television series South Park. He is voiced by and loosely based on series co-creator Trey Parker. Stan is one of the show's four central characters, along with his friends Kyle Broflovski, Kenny McCormick, and Eric Cartman...
, Kyle
Kyle Broflovski
Kyle Broflovski is a fictional character in the animated television series South Park. He is voiced by co-creator Matt Stone. Kyle is one of the show's four central characters, along with his friends Stan Marsh, Kenny McCormick, and Eric Cartman...
, 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...
, Kenny
Kenny McCormick
Kenneth "Kenny" McCormick is a fictional character in the animated television series South Park. He is one of the four central characters along with his friends Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Eric Cartman. His oft-muffled and indiscernible speech—the result of his parka hood covering his...
and 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...
in the fictional Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
mountain town of South Park.
The season was the first of three new seasons Parker and Stone agreed to produce for the network under a renewal deal. It consisted of fourteen 22-minute episodes, which aired in two groups of seven episodes separated by a six-month gap. Prior to the season's premiere, all South Park episodes were made available for free viewing on the official series website, South Park Studios. The 13th season was the first to be broadcast in high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
and in widescreen. Continuing their practice from previous seasons, Parker and Stone wrote and produced each episode within the week before its broadcast date.
The 13th season satirized such topics as the ACORN scandal
ACORN 2009 undercover videos controversy
The ACORN 2009 undercover videos controversy refers to the news media and political uproar following the release of videos in 2009 purporting to show encounters between a young couple and workers in several offices of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now , where the ACORN...
, Japanese whaling
Whaling in Japan
Whaling in Japan may have begun as early as the 12th century. During the 20th century, Japan was heavily involved in commercial whaling until the International Whaling Commission moratorium on commercial whaling went into effect in 1986...
, piracy in Somalia
Piracy in Somalia
Piracy off the coast of Somalia has been a threat to international shipping since the second phase of the Somali Civil War in the early 21st century...
and the marketing tactics of the Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
. Celebrities were spoofed throughout the season, including the Jonas Brothers
Jonas Brothers
The Jonas Brothers are an American boy band. The band gained its popularity from the Disney Channel children's television network. From the shore region of New Jersey, the band consists of three brothers: Paul Kevin Jonas II , Joseph Adam Jonas , and Nicholas Jerry Jonas...
, Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
, Carlos Mencia
Carlos Mencia
Carlos Mencia , born Ned Arnel Mencia, is a Honduran-born American comedian, writer, and actor. His style of comedy is often political and involves issues of race, culture, criminal justice, and social class...
, Paul Watson
Paul Watson
Paul Watson is a Canadian animal rights and environmental activist, who founded and is president of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a direct action group devoted to marine conservation....
and Glenn Beck
Glenn Beck
Glenn Edward Lee Beck is an American conservative radio host, vlogger, author, entrepreneur, political commentator and former television host. He hosts the Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks...
, all of whom publicly responded to their portrayals. The episode "Fishsticks
Fishsticks (South Park)
"Fishsticks" is the fifth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 186th overall episode of the series. It was originally broadcast on Comedy Central in the United States on April 8, 2009. In the episode, Jimmy writes a joke that becomes a...
" attracted particular media attention due to rapper Kanye West's declaration that its jokes about his arrogance were funny but hurt his feelings. "The F Word
The F Word (South Park)
"The F Word" is the twelfth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 193rd overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 4, 2009...
", in which the central characters attempt to change the definition of the word "fag", was especially controversial and prompted complaints from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. A broadcast of "Pinewood Derby
Pinewood Derby (South Park)
"Pinewood Derby" is the sixth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 187th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 15, 2009 and in the United Kingdom on April 17, 2009...
" in Mexico was pulled, allegedly due to its depiction of Mexican President
President of Mexico
The President of the United Mexican States is the head of state and government of Mexico. Under the Constitution, the president is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces...
Felipe Calderón
Felipe Calderón
Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa is the current President of Mexico. He assumed office on December 1, 2006, and was elected for a single six-year term through 2012...
. "Fatbeard
Fatbeard
"Fatbeard" is the seventh episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 188th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 22, 2009 and in the United Kingdom on April 24, 2009. It was the...
" was praised by the crew of the USS Bainbridge
USS Bainbridge (DDG-96)
USS Bainbridge is an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer in the United States Navy. She is the fifth ship to carry that name, and the 46th destroyer of a planned 62-ship class...
, which was involved in the 2009 rescue
Maersk Alabama hijacking
The Maersk Alabama hijacking was a series of events involving piracy that began with four Somali pirates seizing the cargo ship southeast of the Somali port city of Eyl. This event ended with the action of 12 April 2009. It was the first successful pirate seizure of a ship registered under the...
of the MV Maersk Alabama
MV Maersk Alabama
MV Maersk Alabama is a container ship owned by Maersk Line Limited and operated by Waterman Steamship Corporation....
from Somalian pirates.
The 13th season received mixed reviews: some critics called it one of South Park
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
viewership for the series, around 3 million viewers per episode. The episode "Margaritaville
Margaritaville (South Park)
"Margaritaville" is the third episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 184th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 25, 2009. The episode is a satire and commentary on the global...
", which satirized the global recession then affecting much of the industrialized world, won the 2009 Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour)
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming less than One Hour)
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program is a Creative Arts Emmy Award which is given annually to an animated series which is judged to have been the best...
.
Episodes
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Crew
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 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....
were the executive producers of the 13th season of South Park, along with Anne Garefino. The season was distributed by Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
, where the series has aired since its inception in 1997. Frank C. Agnone II served as supervising producer, while Eric Stough
Eric Stough
Eric Stough is the animation director and producer of the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning television series South Park. He was also the animation director of South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut and has worked with Parker and Stone on Orgazmo, Team America: World Police and the Broadway hit The Book...
, Adrien Beard
Adrien Beard
Adrien Beard is an American storyboard artist and voice actor. He can currently be heard on the animated cartoon TV series South Park as the voice of Token Black. In addition to voice roles, Adrien Beard also works as the art director and lead storyboarder on the show.-External links:...
, Vernon Chatman
Vernon Chatman
Vernon Chatman is a television producer, writer, voice actor, stand-up comedian, musician and a member of PFFR, an art collective based in Brooklyn, NYC....
, Bruce Howell and Erica Rivinoja worked as producers. Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
cast member Bill Hader
Bill Hader
William "Bill" Hader is an American actor, comedian, producer and writer. He is best known for his work as a creative consultant on the hit show South Park and as a cast member on Saturday Night Live and for his supporting roles in comedy films such as Superbad, Hot Rod, Tropic Thunder,...
, who had previously worked as a consultant on the show, was credited as a producer starting in season 13. Hader said of his role with the show, "It's really Trey and Matt who kind of write everything, and you're just in the room kind of helping them. Basically, I'm friends with them and they're just nice enough to invite me into the room and let me goof around." Ryan Quincy served as director of animation during the 13th season.
Development
South Park was set to expire in 2008, but in August 2007 it was announced the series would be renewed for at least three more seasons, extending it through 2011. The new seasons, 13, 14South Park (season 14)
The fourteenth season of South Park, an American animated television comedy series, originally aired in the United States on Comedy Central between March 17 and November 17, 2010. The season was headed by the series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who served as executive producers along with...
and 15, were each to consist of 14 episodes. Stone said of the announcement, "Three more years of South Park will give us the opportunity to offend that many more people." Parker and Stone also announced they would partner with Comedy Central to create a Los Angeles–based digital animation studio called South Park Digital Studios, which would serve as the center for all digital extensions of the South Park franchise and other animated projects.
Prior to the broadcast of the 13th season, Parker and Stone made every episode from the previous 12 seasons of South Park available for free viewing on the official series website, South Park Studios. New episodes from the 13th season were made available for one week after the original airdate, then removed for 30 days, after which they were returned to the site permanently. The episodes were uncensored and ad-supported, so no membership fees were required to view the shows. In a statement, Parker and Stone said, "We got really sick of having to download our own show illegally all the time. So we gave ourselves a legal alternative."
Two months before the 13th season premiered, South Park Studios announced that it would be the first season to be broadcast in high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
and presented in widescreen. Episodes from previous seasons were also converted to high definition. The season's episodes first aired in the United States on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. Eastern Standard Time
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
on Comedy Central, and were repeated Wednesdays at 12 a.m., Thursdays at 10 p.m. and 12 a.m., and Sundays at 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., all EST. The first seven episodes of the season aired from March 11, 2009, premiering with "The Ring", and ended on April 22 with the mid-season finale "Fatbeard
Fatbeard
"Fatbeard" is the seventh episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 188th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 22, 2009 and in the United Kingdom on April 24, 2009. It was the...
". The season returned with seven more episodes, resuming on October 7 with "Dead Celebrities
Dead Celebrities
"Dead Celebrities" is the eighth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 189th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 7, 2009...
", and ending on November 18 with the season finale, "Pee
Pee (South Park)
"Pee" is the thirteenth season finale of the American animated television series South Park, and the 195th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 18, 2009...
".
Writing
Continuing their practice from previous seasons, Parker and Stone wrote and produced each episode within the week before its broadcast date, although as in previous seasons, only Trey Parker was listed as writer in the end credits. The duo conceived a list of episode ideas at the start of the season, but said they preferred to wait until the last minute to start working. Deadline pressure, they explained, energized them as if they were doing a live show. Stone said of the practice, "We kind of need that [chaos] to work. We're, like, 'We have to do something right now. It's going on the air in just a few minutes.'" For example, three days before the broadcast of the season premiere, "The Ring", the script was only half-finished and the animation was incomplete. Likewise, they did not start work on "Whale Whores" until five days before the episode aired, and the scripts for "MargaritavilleMargaritaville (South Park)
"Margaritaville" is the third episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 184th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 25, 2009. The episode is a satire and commentary on the global...
" and "Pee" were both still being finished the day before the episodes were first broadcast. Parker and Stone said "Dead Celebrities" was a particularly challenging episode to make—they were up all night working on it the day before it aired, and did not finish until 11 a.m. on its broadcast date. Some critics have said that this short turnaround process helps South Park stay fresh and allows the show to address current events in a timely fashion.
The 13th season introduced the characters Katie and Katherine, stars of a television show, The Queef Sisters, that consists largely of vaginal flatulence
Vaginal flatulence
Vaginal flatulence is an emission or expulsion of air from the vagina that may occur during or after sexual intercourse or during other sexual acts, stretching or exercise. The sound is somewhat comparable to flatulence from the anus but does not involve waste gases and thus often has no specific...
jokes. They are female equivalents of long-time characters Terrance and Phillip, who are initially angered at the competition from Katie and Katherine, but end up romantically involved with them. Season 13 also marked the final appearance of long-time supporting character Gordon Stoltski, the third grade student who read the morning announcements for South Park Elementary. In the episode "Dances with Smurfs
Dances with Smurfs
"Dances with Smurfs" is the thirteenth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 194th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 11, 2009...
", Gordon is murdered while reading the announcements by a gunman who mistakes him for a truck driver who slept with his wife. Some critics found the scene disturbing and inappropriate in the light of recent school shootings in the United States.
The running gag of killing protagonist Kenny McCormick continued, though he was killed only three times during the season: in the episode "The Ring", he contracts syphilis after engaging in oral sex; in "W.T.F.", he is shot by a rocket launcher during a professional wrestling match; and in "Pee", he drowns in the urine that inundates the water park. During the final half of the season, aliens were hidden in images throughout the episodes as part of a contest offered by South Park Studios. Viewers able to find the alien in the episode could enter a contest, with the grand winner getting an animated version of himself or herself placed in the South Park opening credits starting the next season. In December 2009, Matthew Klinner was announced winner of the contest.
Cultural references
The 13th season also continued a South Park tradition of lampooning celebrities and timely issues. The episode "Margaritaville" satirized the global recession affecting much of the industrialized world at the time of the episode's broadcast. Parker and Stone said they had long planned to do an episode about the recession, but did not want to rush it because they wanted to make sure the script was strong. "Fatbeard" was based on real-life piracy in SomaliaPiracy in Somalia
Piracy off the coast of Somalia has been a threat to international shipping since the second phase of the Somali Civil War in the early 21st century...
, which began receiving increasing international media attention in 2008; the Somali pirates are portrayed in a sympathetic light in the episode. "Dances with Smurfs" parodied the political commentary of Glenn Beck
Glenn Beck
Glenn Edward Lee Beck is an American conservative radio host, vlogger, author, entrepreneur, political commentator and former television host. He hosts the Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks...
, a nationally syndicated radio show host and Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
political pundit. In the episode, Cartman makes outrageous claims with no basis in fact under the guise that he is simply asking rhetorical questions and seeking further discussion, a practice for which Beck has been criticized.
The episode "Whale Whores
Whale Whores
"Whale Whores" is the eleventh episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 192nd overall episode of the series. It aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 28, 2009...
" addressed the controversies surrounding Japanese whaling
Whaling in Japan
Whaling in Japan may have begun as early as the 12th century. During the 20th century, Japan was heavily involved in commercial whaling until the International Whaling Commission moratorium on commercial whaling went into effect in 1986...
, condemning not only the whalers who engaged in the practice, but shows like Whale Wars
Whale Wars
Whale Wars is a weekly American documentary-style reality television series that premiered on November 7, 2008 on the Animal Planet cable channel. The program follows Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, as he and his crew aboard their various vessels harass Japanese...
and activists like television celebrity Paul Watson who profit from fighting whaling. "Butters' Bottom Bitch
Butters' Bottom Bitch
"Butters' Bottom Bitch" is the ninth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 190th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 14, 2009...
" featured a scene in which 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...
visits an ACORN
Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now
The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now was a collection of community-based organizations in the United States that advocated for low- and moderate-income families by working on neighborhood safety, voter registration, health care, affordable housing, and other social issues...
office seeking benefits for prostitutes working for him, a reference to a similar 2009 scandal
ACORN 2009 undercover videos controversy
The ACORN 2009 undercover videos controversy refers to the news media and political uproar following the release of videos in 2009 purporting to show encounters between a young couple and workers in several offices of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now , where the ACORN...
. The episode "Eat, Pray, Queef
Eat, Pray, Queef
"Eat, Pray, Queef" is the fourth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 185th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 1, 2009...
" demonstrated a double standard between rights of men and women by showing the South Park men, who have no problem with farting, strongly objecting to vaginal flatulence from women. The season finale, "Pee", satirized the disaster film
Disaster film
A disaster film is a film genre that has an impending or ongoing disaster as its subject...
genre, especially the movie 2012
2012 (film)
2012 is a 2009 American disaster film directed by Roland Emmerich. It stars John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Thandie Newton, Danny Glover, and Woody Harrelson. It was produced by Emmerich's production company, Centropolis Entertainment and was distributed by Columbia Pictures...
, which was released five days before the episode aired. Cartman interprets the large number of minorities at his favorite water park as a sign of the 2012 phenomenon
2012 phenomenon
The 2012 phenomenon comprises a range of eschatological beliefs that cataclysmic or transformative events will occur on December 21, 2012. This date is regarded as the end-date of a 5,125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar...
, the prediction that cataclysmic events will occur in the year 2012, which is said to be the end of the Mayan Long Count calendar
Mesoamerican Long Count calendar
The Mesoamerican Long Count calendar is a non-repeating, vigesimal and base-18 calendar used by several Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures, most notably the Maya. For this reason, it is sometimes known as the Maya Long Count calendar...
.
"The Ring" featured parodies of the pop-rock boy band
Boy band
A boy band is loosely defined as a popular music act consisting of only male singers. The members are expected to dance as well as sing, usually giving highly choreographed performances. More often than not, boy band members do not play musical instruments, either in recording sessions or on...
Jonas Brothers and a foul-mouthed, greedy, physically violent Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
, satirizing the Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
's exploitation of family-friendly morals to disguise its profit motive. "The Coon
The Coon
"The Coon" is the second episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 183rd overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 18, 2009...
" served as a parody of dark-toned comic book movies, like The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight (film)
The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
(2008), The Spirit
The Spirit (film)
The Spirit is a 2008 American superhero noir film, written and directed by Frank Miller and starring Gabriel Macht, Eva Mendes, Sarah Paulson, Dan Lauria, Paz Vega, Jaime King, Scarlett Johansson, and Samuel L. Jackson. The film is based on the newspaper comic strip The Spirit by Will Eisner...
(2008) and Watchmen
Watchmen (film)
Watchmen is a 2009 superhero film directed by Zack Snyder and starring Malin Åkerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Patrick Wilson. It is an adaptation of the comic book of the same name by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons...
(2009). "Dead Celebrities" mocked numerous recently deceased celebrities, including Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, Billy Mays
Billy Mays
William Darrell "Billy" Mays, Jr. was an American television direct-response advertisement salesperson most notable for promoting OxiClean, Orange Glo, and other cleaning, home-based, and maintenance products on the Home Shopping Network, and through his company, Mays Promotions, Inc...
and David Carradine
David Carradine
David Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
, as well as the show Ghost Hunters
Ghost Hunters
Ghost Hunters is an American paranormal reality television series that premiered on October 6, 2004, on Syfy . The program features paranormal investigators Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson who investigate places that are reported to be haunted. The two originally worked as plumbers for Roto-Rooter as...
. "Dances with Smurfs" mocked the 2009 James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
film Avatar, suggesting the plot borrows heavily from the film Dances with Wolves
Dances with Wolves
Dances with Wolves is a 1990 epic western film directed by and starring Kevin Costner. It is a film adaptation of the 1988 book of the same name by Michael Blake and tells the story of a Union Army Lieutenant who travels to the American frontier to find a military post, and his dealings with a...
and comparing Avatar's blue aliens to the cartoon Smurfs
The Smurfs
The Smurfs is a comic and television franchise centred on a group of small blue fictional creatures called Smurfs, created and first introduced as a series of comic strips by the Belgian cartoonist Peyo on October 23, 1958...
. The episode "W.T.F.
W.T.F.
"W.T.F." is the 10th episode of the 13th season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 191st overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 21, 2009...
" parodied professional wrestling in general and World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
in particular, highlighting the soap opera aspects of wrestling storylines and fans who believe the stories are real.
Music
Several original songs written by Parker and Stone were featured in the 13th season. The episode "Fatbeard" features a song, "Somalian Pirates, We", in which Cartman and his crew of pirates sing in the style of the Golden Age of PiracyGolden Age of Piracy
The Golden Age of Piracy is a common designation given to one or more outbursts of piracy in maritime history of the early modern period. In its broadest accepted definition, the Golden Age of Piracy spans from the 1650s to the 1730s and covers three separate outbursts of piracy:the buccaneering...
. In response to fan requests, the full 90-second version of the song was made available for download on South Park Studios the week the episode aired. The season finale, "Pee", features a tune sung by Cartman, "(Too Many Minorities) Not My Water Park", in which he despairs over the large number of African-American, Hispanic-American and Asian-American patrons at his water park. Among other topics, Cartman expresses his anger about long lines full of minorities and park employees speaking Spanish rather than English. The episode "Eat, Pray, Queef" features "Queef Free", a charity single recorded by the men of South Park after they realize women should be free to queef just as men are free to fart. The song has been described as a parody of such celebrities-for-charity songs as "We Are The World
We Are the World
"We Are the World" is a song and charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World...
".
The 13th season also featured or spoofed real-life songs and bands. The episode "Fishsticks", which prominently featured rapper Kanye West, includes a two-and-a-half minute song, "Gay Fish", that parodies West's "Heartless
Heartless (Kanye West song)
"Heartless" is a song by American hip hop artist Kanye West, released on November 4, 2008 digitally as the second single for his fourth studio album, 808s & Heartbreak. It debuted at the number four spot on the Billboard Hot 100 where it eventually peaked at number two and reached number-one on the...
". "Gay Fish" satirizes the rapper's tendency to rely on audio processing to correct his mistakes in pitch
Pitch (music)
Pitch is an auditory perceptual property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.Pitches are compared as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies,...
. After "Fishsticks" aired, the full song was made available for download on South Park Studios. Several fake Jonas Brothers songs, with lyrics about the band members' physical attractiveness, were written for "The Ring". Some songs also emphasize the band's belief in sexual abstinence, with lyrics like, "Who needs sex and drugs and partying when we can cook a meal and sit around and watch Netflix
Netflix
Netflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
?" The strongly erotic reactions of the young girls at their concert parody the frenzied female fan reactions the Jonas Brothers tend to elicit, even though their image projects wholesomeness and chastity. In the episode "Whale Wars", Cartman plays the video game Rock Band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
and performs a rendition, praised by critics, of the Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
song "Poker Face
Poker Face (Lady Gaga song)
"Poker Face" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga from her debut album, The Fame. Produced by RedOne, it was released as the album's second single in late 2008 for some markets and in early 2009 for the rest of the world...
". On March 16, 2010, Rock Band developer Harmonix released this version of the song (along with the original version) as downloadable content for the game. In "W.T.F.", during an audition for the boys' professional wrestling league, one of the participants sings a Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
-style number—parodying the song "Nothing" from A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. The book was authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante, lyrics were written by Edward Kleban, and music was composed by Marvin Hamlisch....
—about why he wants to be a wrestler. The episode "Fatbeard" received considerable press attention after Ike stated in a letter he would "vomit his balls out through his mouth" if he had to hear anything more about Susan Boyle
Susan Boyle
Susan Magdalane Boyle is a Scottish singer who came to international public attention when she appeared as a contestant on the TV programme Britain's Got Talent on 11 April 2009, singing "I Dreamed a Dream" from ...
, the Scottish amateur singer who had recently gained worldwide attention for her performance of "I Dreamed a Dream
I Dreamed a Dream
"I Dreamed a Dream" is a song from the musical Les Misérables. It is a solo that is sung by the character Fantine during the first act. The music is by Claude-Michel Schönberg, with orchestrations by John Cameron...
" on Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent is a British television talent show competition which started in June 2007 and originated from the Got Talent series. The show is produced by FremantleMedia's TalkbackThames and Simon Cowell's production company SYCOtv. The show is broadcast on ITV in Britain and TV3 in Ireland...
.
Reviews
Ramsey Isler of IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
said South Park continued to be the "best animated comedy show on TV" during its 13th season. He said the season had some low points, particularly "Eat, Pray Queef", but that episodes like "The F Word" and "Dances with Smurfs" delivered significant social commentary. Isler described "Fishsticks" as a well-timed, hilarious episode that became a "phenomenon". Ben Flanagan of The Tuscaloosa News said the 13th season was one of the strongest yet for South Park, and that the series continued its tradition of entertainingly combining gross-out comedy with social satire. He wrote, "Whether they tackle the Jonas Brothers, Somali pirates, Kanye West, The Dark Knight, the current economic woes or just the frequent greed and foolishness of the human race, the show continues to solidify itself as not only the funniest show on TV, but the best."
Not all reviews of the season were positive. A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
writer Sean O'Neal called it "one of the more hit-or-miss seasons of South Park in the show’s history", but said he was confident the series could do better and that it had yet not entered the "staggering animal begging to be put out of its misery stage of a show's lifetime". He described the season as a "weekly exercise in South Park schizophrenia", with some episodes faring better than others, although he said the first half of the season was generally strong. Josh Modell, also of the A.V. Club, agreed that the season was uneven, with several episodes "you kinda shrugged your shoulders at", but others like "Butters' Bottom Bitch" that he found "pretty damn funny".
"Fishsticks" particularly attracted media attention, and some critics declared it one of the best episodes of the season. In the episode, Jimmy writes a joke that becomes a national sensation, while Cartman tries to steal the credit. A fictionalized version of rapper Kanye West fails to understand the joke. He cannot admit that he does not get it because, in reference to a perceived ego problem on the part of the real West, he considers himself a genius. On September 13, 2009, during the MTV Video Music Awards
MTV Video Music Awards
An MTV Video Music Award , is an award presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in music videos...
, West interrupted an acceptance speech by country singer Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift is an American country pop singer-songwriter, musician and actress.In 2006, she released her debut single "Tim McGraw", then her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America...
, walking on stage, grabbing the microphone and praising her competitor Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles , often known simply as Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child...
. The incident received considerable press coverage and, as a result, Comedy Central rebroadcast "Fishsticks" for two straight hours on September 15.
"The F Word" was especially controversial, even by South Park standards. In the episode, the South Park boys attempt to change the official definition of the word "fag" from an anti-homosexual
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
slur to a term describing loud and obnoxious Harley
Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson , often abbreviated H-D or Harley, is an American motorcycle manufacturer. Founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during the first decade of the 20th century, it was one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression...
bikers. The uncensored word is voiced casually and very frequently throughout the episode. A.V. Club critic Genevieve Koski argued that "The F Word" advocates a philosophy that language is ever-changing and that taboo
Taboo
A taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any area of human activity or social custom that is sacred and or forbidden based on moral judgment, religious beliefs and or scientific consensus. Breaking the taboo is usually considered objectionable or abhorrent by society...
words receive their stigma purely due to social circumstance. Although some LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
activists accepted that the episode had noble intentions, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation nevertheless objected to it, claiming that it still used "fag" as a means of insulting others and could be unintentionally harmful to the gay community. Some critics praised the episode and said it addressed an important and difficult issue, whereas others felt the satire was ineffective and unfunny.
Celebrity reactions
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
said: "Many have tried, all have failed, but in the end it only took four animated children from Colorado to topple Kanye West's ego." Carlos Mencia
Carlos Mencia
Carlos Mencia , born Ned Arnel Mencia, is a Honduran-born American comedian, writer, and actor. His style of comedy is often political and involves issues of race, culture, criminal justice, and social class...
, host of the Comedy Central show Mind of Mencia
Mind of Mencia
Mind of Mencia is an American television comedy series on the cable channel Comedy Central. Hosted by Carlos Mencia, it aired from 2005 to 2008.- History :...
, was also spoofed in "Fishsticks". He is portrayed as knowingly stealing credit for a joke he did not write, which is a reference to accusations other comedians have made that Mencia plagiarizes jokes from other people. After the episode aired, Mencia wrote on his Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
feed, "They just made fun of me on South Park. I thought it was hysterical. Catch the rerun."
In "The Coon", Butters suspects heavyset comedian Bruce Vilanch
Bruce Vilanch
Bruce Vilanch is an American comedy writer, songwriter and actor. He is a six-time Emmy Award-winner Vilanch is best known to the public for his four-year stint on Hollywood Squares, as a celebrity participant; in the entertainment industry he is best known as head writer for the show...
is Cartman's superhero alter ego based on his physique. After the episode aired, Vilanch sent a card to Parker and Stone thanking them for referring to him. Shortly after "Whale Whores" aired, Paul Watson said he was not offended by his portrayal in the episode, and was glad South Park brought the issue of dolphin and whale slaughter, and the Japanese role in it, to a large audience. After Billy Mays appeared in "Dead Celebrities", his son Billy Mays III said he loved the episode and found its portrayal of his father tasteful and respectful. Jason Hawes
Jason Hawes
Jason Conrad Hawes is the founder of The Atlantic Paranormal Society , which is based in Warwick, Rhode Island. He is also one of the stars and co-producers of Syfy's Ghost Hunters, which is in its seventh season.-Family:He and his wife have five children - three girls and twin boys...
and Grant Wilson
Grant Wilson
Grant Steven Wilson is the co-founder of The Atlantic Paranormal Society , which is based in Warwick, Rhode Island. He is also one of the stars and co-producers of Syfy's Ghost Hunters, which has just been renewed for its seventh season.-Personal life:He and his wife Reanna have three sons...
, the stars of Ghost Hunters
Ghost Hunters
Ghost Hunters is an American paranormal reality television series that premiered on October 6, 2004, on Syfy . The program features paranormal investigators Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson who investigate places that are reported to be haunted. The two originally worked as plumbers for Roto-Rooter as...
who were also mocked in "Dead Celebrities", said they loved the parody and encouraged fans to watch the show on their Twitter accounts. The day after "Dances with Smurfs" originally aired, Glenn Beck discussed the episode on his radio program
Glenn Beck Program
The Glenn Beck Program is an American talk radio show hosted by commentator Glenn Beck on Premiere Radio Networks. Since its inception as a nationally syndicated show in 2002, the program has become one of the highest rated radio programs...
and said he took the parody as a compliment. The Jonas Brothers' publicist specifically forbade reporters from asking the band members about their portrayal in "The Ring". Nevertheless, Nick Jonas
Nick Jonas
Nicholas Jerry "Nick" Jonas is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actor best known as one of the Jonas Brothers, a pop-rock band he formed with his brothers Joe and Kevin. The Jonas Brothers originally started as an attempted solo singing career for Nick, but the record producer liked the...
said, "We are always open to make fun of ourselves."
"Pinewood Derby" drew considerable media attention in Mexico when it first aired due to its depiction of Mexican President Felipe Calderón
Felipe Calderón
Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa is the current President of Mexico. He assumed office on December 1, 2006, and was elected for a single six-year term through 2012...
. The episode was due to air in Spanish on MTV Latin America
MTV Latin America
MTV Latin America is a cable television specialty service aimed at residents in Hispanic American countries. It was launched on October 1, 1993 as MTV en Español. The channel is a Hispanic American version from MTV...
on February 8, 2010, but it was pulled a few hours before the scheduled time. Media reports indicated the decision stemmed from the episode's depiction of Calderón irritating the international community and frivolously spending alien-provided "space cash" on water parks. MTV said the South Park creators did not get a special permit needed to broadcast an image of Mexico's flag, but the explanation was met with skepticism by Mexican South Park fans, some of whom accused MTV of censorship.
"Fatbeard" included prominent references to the April 2009 hijacking
Maersk Alabama hijacking
The Maersk Alabama hijacking was a series of events involving piracy that began with four Somali pirates seizing the cargo ship southeast of the Somali port city of Eyl. This event ended with the action of 12 April 2009. It was the first successful pirate seizure of a ship registered under the...
of the MV Maersk Alabama
MV Maersk Alabama
MV Maersk Alabama is a container ship owned by Maersk Line Limited and operated by Waterman Steamship Corporation....
by Somalian pirates. The crew of the USS Bainbridge
USS Bainbridge (DDG-96)
USS Bainbridge is an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer in the United States Navy. She is the fifth ship to carry that name, and the 46th destroyer of a planned 62-ship class...
, the Arleigh Burke–class
Arleigh Burke class destroyer
The Arleigh Burke class of guided missile destroyers is the United States Navy's first class of destroyer built around the Aegis combat system and the SPY-1D multi-function phased array radar. The class is named for Admiral Arleigh "31-Knot" Burke, the most famous American destroyer officer of...
guided-missile destroyer that participated in the rescue of Richard Phillips from Maersk Alabama, contacted the South Park creators to commend them on the episode. Ensign Jonathan Sieg, the Bainbridge public relations officer, wrote, "Pretty much everyone onboard our ship—from Captain to seaman—is a huge fan of South Park, and when we heard about the episode 'Fatbeard', as you can imagine, we were thrilled and very interested to watch."
Ratings
The 13th season of South Park generally maintained the average Nielsen rating viewership for the series, around 3 million viewers per episode. The season premiere, "The Ring", was seen in 3.41 million households. That would prove to be the largest individual viewership for any Comedy Central show that season, outperforming even a highly anticipated and publicized episode of The Daily ShowThe Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
involving Jon Stewart's ongoing feud
Jon Stewart's 2009 criticism of CNBC
On March 12, 2009, television personality Jim Cramer appeared as a guest on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. The host of CNBC's Mad Money, Cramer appeared in response to host Jon Stewart's highly-publicized week-long criticism of CNBC...
with CNBC
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
and pundit Jim Cramer. The 13th season of South Park received its lowest viewership in the episodes "Dances with Smurfs", seen in 1.47 million households; "W.T.F.", seen in 1.37 million households; and "The F Word", seen in 1.99 million households. However, "The F Word" was the highest rated show of the season among viewers between ages 18 and 49, and outperformed The Jay Leno Show
The Jay Leno Show
The Jay Leno Show is an American comedy show created by and starring Jay Leno, that aired from September 14, 2009 to February 9, 2010 on NBC following the May 29, 2009 conclusion of Leno's first tenure as host of The Tonight Show...
, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's primetime talk show. The season finale, "Pee", was seen in 2.87 million households, which made it the most watched cable show of the night. Likewise, "The Coon", seen in 3.27 million households, was the most watched cable program among ages 18 to 49 the week it aired. Several episodes from the 13th season of South Park were the most watched Comedy Central shows the week they aired, including "Margaritaville" (2.77 million households), "Fatbeard" (2.59 million households), "Eat, Pray, Queef" (3 million households) and "Fishsticks" (3.1 million households). The latter two episodes were watched by over 1 million more viewers than the network's second-highest-rated shows in their respective weeks.
Awards
Parker and Stone decided to submit "Margaritaville" for an Emmy AwardEmmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
because they had received a large amount of positive feedback about the episode from adult viewers. Since most Emmy voters are older, they decided "Margaritaville" stood the best chance of winning. Stone joked, "If an Emmy voter were to watch this, they might think the show was smarter than it was, so they might be fooled into voting for us." "Margaritaville" ultimately won the 2009 Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program for Programming Less Than One Hour
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming less than One Hour)
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program is a Creative Arts Emmy Award which is given annually to an animated series which is judged to have been the best...
against competing nominees Robot Chicken
Robot Chicken
Robot Chicken is an American stop motion animated television series created and executive produced by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich along with co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root. Green provides many voices for the show...
, 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...
and American Dad. The victory marked the third consecutive Emmy win for South Park, which won in the same category in 2007 for the 10th season
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...
episode "Make Love, Not Warcraft
Make Love, Not Warcraft
"Make Love, Not Warcraft" is the eighth episode of the tenth season of the animated television series South Park, and the 147th episode overall. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 4, 2006. In the episode, Cartman, Kyle, Stan and Kenny enjoy playing the popular...
", and won the award for Outstanding Animated Program for Programming One Hour or More
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming One Hour or More)
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program is a Creative Arts Emmy Award which is given annually to an animated series or special which is judged to have been the best...
for the 11th season
South Park (season 11)
Season 11 of South Park, an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, began airing on March 7, 2007. The 11th season concluded after 14 episodes on November 14, 2007. This is the first season to have uncensored episodes available for DVD release...
episode "Imaginationland
Imaginationland Episode I
"Imaginationland Episode I", or "Kyle sucks Cartman's Balls" is the tenth episode of the 11th season of Comedy Central's animated television series South Park. "Imaginationland' premiered on October 17, 2007. It is the first episode in a three-part story arc that won the 2008 Emmy for "Outstanding...
". Parker, Stone, Agnone, Stough, Beard, Howell, Rivinoja, Chatman, Hader and Quincy were all recipients of the Emmy.
In February 2010, "Whale Whores" was nominated for a Genesis Award
Genesis Awards
The Genesis Awards are awarded annually to individuals in the major news and entertainment media for producing outstanding works which raise public awareness of animal issues. Presented by The Humane Society of the United States, the awards show takes place every March in California...
in the television comedy category. The Genesis Awards honor news and entertainment media for outstanding work that raises public understanding of animal issues. "Whale Whores" ultimately lost to the Family Guy
Family Guy
Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
episode "Dog Gone."
Home release
The season was released by Paramount Home Entertainment in the United States on March 16, 2010, on both DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
(as a three-disc set) and Blu-ray
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
(as a two-disc set). Each set included all 14 uncensored episodes in 1080p
1080p
1080p is the shorthand identification for a set of HDTV high-definition video modes that are characterized by 1080 horizontal lines of resolution and progressive scan, meaning the image is not interlaced as is the case with the 1080i display standard....
video and Dolby TrueHD
Dolby TrueHD
Dolby TrueHD is an advanced lossless multi-channel audio codec developed by Dolby Laboratories which is intended primarily for high-definition home-entertainment equipment such as Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD. It is the successor to the AC-3 Dolby Digital surround sound codec which was used as the...
sound, as well as brief audio commentaries by Parker and Stone for each episode, seven deleted scenes, codes for unlocking a character and challenge levels in South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play! on Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
, and a special mini-feature, Inside Xbox: A Behind-the-Scenes Tour of South Park Studios, describing the show's animation process.
External links
- South Park Studios – official website with streaming video of full episodes
- The Comedy Network – full episodes for Canada