Top 10 Times The South Park Creators Backtracked
#9: Cartman's Dad
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The first season of the show ended on a big cliffhanger about who Cartman’s father was. When the show returned, and after fans got punked by an April Fools joke, we learned that Cartman’s mom was actually his dad. The entire thing was thought to have been over until Season 14 came along. It was here that the creators decided to change Eric’s lineage. We learn his real father was also the dad of Eric’s longtime nemesis, Scott Tenorman. It’s not entirely clear why they chose to change this, but it certainly was a much bigger twist than the original reveal.
#8: Restarted Killing Kenny
As one of the original running gags, viewers got to watch beloved Kenny McCormick die in almost every episode all throughout the first four seasons. However, later in Season Five, the creators killed him off permanently, as they had become bored with constantly having to shoe-horn in a Kenny death every week. Replaced by Butters, fans wondered if they’d see the hoodie-wearing blonde boy again. Near the end of Season Six, Kenny finally returned, although his deaths became more sporadic from that point on. Given how popular the character was, it was nice to see him brought back. His numerous deaths and returns would also be given more insight in the “Mysterion” episodes in season 14.
#7: A Shift In Storytelling
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If you’ve watched this show since it first hit the air, you’ve undoubtedly noticed how the storytelling has evolved considerably. Although the show still can touch a nerve for some, the core of where the humor is coming from has changed. Having started the show in their late 20s, what they found funny then is not the same as what they laugh at now in their early 50s. Audiences also see a lot more stories around Randy and the adults of South Park, which is closer to Stone and Parkers’s own age now. The humor is still there, it’s just matured much like the duo themselves.
#6: Not Out To Attack The World
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Similar to our previous entry, the natural progression of the show has seen stories unfold as a response to the world around us, versus just flat out mocking whatever came to mind. For example, Trey Parker co-wrote the season three episode “Rainforest Shmainforest” simply because he had a terrible experience in Costa Rica. Many of the early seasons featured fewer episodes poking fun at current events, and more stories that seemed designed to poke the bear of controversy. Having evolved as writers and storytellers, the creators have found a better way to use their comedic talents while still remaining topical.
#5: “Inception” Dialogue
Even the most creative individuals can accidentally lift materials from someone else. Such was the case for the Season 14 episode “Insheeption,” which poked fun at the movie “Inception.” In what was apparently an honest mistake, the show used some snippets of dialog that had been previously written and used for a parody skit on CollegeHumor. When Stone and Parker couldn’t get a copy of “Inception” to review, they watched parody videos on the web and the dialog must have stuck with them. Matt Stone went on record and apologized, citing the show’s six-day production time as a reason for the oversight.
#4: Wanting to Pull “Make Love, Not Warcraft”
Find any Top 10 list of “South Park” episodes, even our own, and you’ll find the beloved “Warcraft” episode on it. “Make Love, Not Warcraft” was a 10th season gem that saw the show creators collaborate with Blizzard Entertainment to create the episode. But at the time, Parker hated it and practically begged his co-creator and fellow producer Anne Garefino to pull the episode. It’s apparently a common occurrence for Trey on the day before an episode goes live.
#3: Pulling An Episode’s Re-Broadcast
It’s been a rare occurrence to see the show pull the plug on an episode. Season Nine’s “Trapped in the Closet” is often cited as the one that saw its rerun pulled. However, Parker and Stone made it clear this was not their doing. They did, however, approve another pulling of a re-broadcasted episode, “Bloody Mary.” The episode centers around Randy’s alcoholism, and unusual behavior around a Virgin Mary statue. It was supposed to re-air near Christmas, and given the religious nature of the episode, the network asked them about pulling the rerun, to which they agreed. It was an uncommon case of fatigue combined with a bit of common sense, but still a rarity among so many other episodes.
#2: Donald Trump
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During his campaign, and his reign as president, Donald Trump took all kinds of jabs from countless comedians across the globe, and “South Park” was no different. Garrison had become the show’s own analog for Trump and had attacked him repeatedly. However, much like the rest of the world, jokes about the former “Apprentice” star became less and less funny as his real-life behavior kept going further over-the-top than anyone had expected. After putting so much time and effort into mocking Trump, the show pumped the brakes and diverted their attention elsewhere… for the most part. Sometimes they couldn’t not comment on Trump.
#1: Al Gore
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He was half man, half bear, and half pig. ManBearPig was “South Park”’s analogy for climate change and was the show’s biggest backtrack to date. An entire episode around the mysterious creature popped up in Season 10 where the boys shrug off Al Gore’s belief that MBP was real. So when it returns to “South Park” in Season 22 to terrorize the town, the boys have to concede that they were wrong and that ManBearPig is definitely real. It was something the creators didn’t have to do or even acknowledge, but given how much had changed in the world since, it was nice to see them step up and admit when they were wrong. Al Gore himself even gave them props for the move.
