For the longest time, South Park co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone were hesitant to keep their conservative Libertarian views to a minimum on the show. In the first few years, it worked the same way King of the Hill did. They even outlasted that show which went off the rails once Mike Judge jumped ship to work on movies like Idiocracy and Extract. But anyone who tuned into The Goode Family got the feeling it was just a burn-off during the summer of 2009 as Judge told tired 1990s liberal jokes like a Rich Hall impression show of George Burns and W.C. Fields performing on TikTok.
Yes, Parker and Stone went many years and kept things mostly neutral treating Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservative with the same disdain. They’ve publicly said they don’t like Republicans or Democrats, but I’ve heard that same rhetoric from the same people who veer right on the political aisle 90-95 percent of the time. But by 2015, there seemed to be a huge tonal shift in the show as it showed more criticism of liberal and leftist views. Even though they made the show That’s My Bush, they seemed to give President George W. Bush a pass a lot during his administration while they focused more on mocking President Barack Obama.
It was obvious by 2016 where the show was heading and as they focused on more serial stories, most of the episodes seemed more painful as they focused on stories that were more topical but still dated. Some speculation was they were more focused on The Book of Mormon to concentrate on the show as the seasons were cut down to 10 episodes and then with the pandemic, they were even shorter. Beginning with the 21st season in 2017, reviews began to get worse of the once-wonderful show.
And it was here where I stopped watching. But when I saw that an “event special” titled “Joining the Panderverse” was appearing on Paramount-Plus, I thought what the hell. Then I remembered why I stopped watching. I have to say, I never really did like Randy Marsh. He worked best when he was a minor character. Voiced by Parker, Randy has become the avatar for the resentment that Parker and Stone have toward a changing world. They realized their mistakes of having their views spoken through the young children.
But that’s the problem. People tuning in are wanting to see the kids, not the adults. As for their mistakes, to quote a popular episode, “Simpsons did it!” Just as The Simpsons seemed to focus more on Homer and Marge, they’ve regulated Bart Simpson, who used to be the star of the show, to a supporting character. Even in the B plot of Panderverse, Randy just comes off as an annoying grumpy old men upset he can’t find a handyman to fix something. Yes, there’s some issue about handymen making a lot of money because no one knows how to fix anything anymore. I guess they think men today don’t know how to do things in the DIY era.
The A plot revolves around the multiverse, something Stan and Kyle who have basically become an elementary school version of Statler and Waldorf are bitching about how overused it is, even though multiverses have been in movies and TV for years before the MCU. An episode of Community explored this as did Sliding Doors and Run Lola Run to name a few. But considering that Parker and Stone have filled the void of Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer since they no longer make big movies, they think they are making a statement by referencing everything recent ad nauseam.
They’re not. They’re basically a bunch of glorified geeks griping about how they don’t like Star Wars or Indiane Jones anymore. Oh, heavens to murgatroyd! Just about every other middle-aged geek who only likes the original trilogy of Star Wars acts this way. I give them kudos for not mentioning Andor. But they’re main beef seems to be with Kathleen Kennedy, even though people will say they’re making fun of the people blaming Kennedy for this.
And I give them a little bit of wiggle room there. Kennedy has become the most hated woman in the SW universe because Cartman appears as a version of her who wants everything as a woman and gay. I guess this is because a woman in Rise of Skywalker was gay. No one said anything about how Oscar Isaac played Poe Dameron as gay for Finn. I haven’t seen the latest Indiana Jones movie, but they’ve been down this road before back in 2008. Yes, The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull had some issues, but why spend a whole TV special complaining of another movie?
I would’ve liked to have seen more of the alternative South Park where it’s all women and gay. I think that might have made for a more interesting episode. I basically don’t care for Randy anymore. He reached his peak when he kept getting in fights at little league games. And that was back in fucking 2005!
And I know people will say I just didn’t get the joke. No, I got the joke. People are mad when popular shows or media are changed to reflect current trends. But our media is a reflection of changing times. That’s why you don’t have “Me So Solly” jokes anymore. That’s why Blackface is frowned upon and has been for decades. Parker and Stone are too busy beating a dead horse like Jared did that one episode. It’s not always the joke as much as the delivery. And when you have to keep nudging people saying, “See what we did! See what we did!” it loses its overall effect.
I don’t think Kennedy is going to lose any sleep over the episode. She’s 70, looks like she’s 50 or younger, has a networth of $250-300 million and has a filmography as a producer that Parker and Stone would only hope to have. Yes, she does shoulder some of the blame for how the Star Wars sequels have been. But I’m sure that has more to do with Corporate Daddy Disney. About 20 years ago, people who grew up on the original trilogy hated the prequels. Now, Millennials love the prequels and The Clone Wars series.
I see in 15-20 years, people will look at the sequels better. People hated The Empire Strikes Back and now it’s considered the best of the franchise and one of the best movies ever made. A lot of classics are hated in their contemporary times. I think Parker and Stone are actually fed up with South Park and it has reflected in the quality of the show. And that’s turned off the people who enjoyed it in the first place. If Panderverse is any sign of the recent seasons, it looks more like a show for InCels, people who believe in the Big Lie and those that missed the point in Taxi Driver and Fight Club.
I’m just wondering if we should ask Parker and Stone where they were on Jan. 6, 2021.
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 