I've been a fan of South Park for some time. Their movie was absolutely brilliant — both as a parody and as a satire. No less than the Grey Lady herself has noticed the sublime writing of the show:
This sounds almost ingratiatingly sane. If "South Park" is one of television's great comedies, it's not great for being reckless; it's great for being a series of funny, topical parables.
Take the end of "The Passion of the Jew." After the holy war subsides, Stan tells fans of the Gibson movie: "If you want to be Christian, that's cool, but you should follow what Jesus taught instead of how he got killed. Focusing on how he got killed is what people did in the Dark Ages, and it ends up with really bad results."
Article comments
1 - Matt Paprocki
Don't get me wrong, this is the funniest show on TV, but I can't help but think how badly this show is dating itself. Will the "You Got Served" episode still be funny 5 years from now? Once the whole Passion thing blows over, will that episode still hold itself together? The first season or 2 wrren't so much social satires as they are now. Yes, I beleive they are funnier this season than ever before, I just hope the DVD's are as hiliarious so that the next generation can laugh like we are.
2 - AdultAnimationFan
Keep in mind that The Simpsons also has episodes that satire current events, but many (including myself) still find repeats of 10 year old+ episodes hilarious.
I think South Park's social satire episodes will still be funny 10 years from now, BUT, as with the Simpsons, if people's only exposure to these shows is the DVD's 10 years from now, they may not get all the jokes, but the DVD's are for current fans (and possibly to turn people TODAY into fans, not people 10 years from now).
3 - Jim Carruthers
"South Park" is still very funny, but as Eric says, it is too dated, which won't age well. The current series has really avoided self-reference (though I note the welcome return of "oh my god, you killed Kenny" this week).
What has suffered in the show are the characters such as Chef, Jimbo, Mr. Mackey, and so on. Oh, and there should be more Terrance and Philip.
4 - Matt Paprocki
Yeah, but the Simpsons rarely have entire episodes based completely on social events/things. There may be a few in-joke here and there, but for the most part their just storylines. Even when there's a special guest (which seems to happen far too often now) they are a character and no themselves. Who is actually going to remember You Got Served in 10 years? Hell, most people don't even remember it today.
Oh, and Jim....I'm not Eric. =:)
5 - HW Saxton Jr.
While the references to current events
may date the show to some extent,I do
think it will matter in the long run.
Classic Warner Bros. cartoons from the
30's/40's/50's are chock full of social
and cultural events of the day, but are
still as funny as ever. Good comedy is
timeless.
6 - HW Saxton Jr.
The above should read "do not think" not
"I do think". My goof.