Top 10 South Park Fan Theories

Along with his misfortune of having to bite the dust virtually every episode back in the early days of South Park, another notable running gag revolving around Kenny is how poor his family is. One interesting fan theory suggests that the reason why his family is so disadvantaged is that they’ve had to pay for countless funerals for their son over the years. Given that Kenny has died over 100 times throughout the show’s run, and that an average funeral today costs about $8,000, that puts the McCormick’s in about $800,000 worth of debt and counting.

As long as there have been families of more than one child, there’s been sibling rivalry. Brothers and sisters at each other’s throats for countless reasons that often seem immaterial. For Randy and Sharon Marsh, the two aren’t brother and sister but do seem to have an awful lot of arguments. Could there be more to the story? An oddball theory claims that these two are in fact half-siblings, with Grandpa Marsh being the father to both of them. Fans picked up on Sharon referring to Grandpa as her own father, and we learned at one point her maiden name was Kimble, meaning she wasn’t an original Marsh. It’s a bit of a stretch, but certainly nowhere near as implausible as some of the others on this list.

If you’ve watched this show long enough, you’ve probably wondered why someone like Eric Cartman can be so… Cartman-like. He’s a selfish kid who has an over-inflated ego originating from a mother who rarely says no to him. Yet, with all that confidence, Kyle is always the one who calls him out for who he really is. A well thought-out theory behind Cartman’s behavior mentions the idea that deep down in those so-called big bones of his, is a self-loathing, insecure child who can’t accept who he really is. Lashing out in any direction, particularly at Kyle, serves as a coping mechanism.

Is there a possibility that Charlie Brown and Linus are merely Stan and Kyle, just from a different era? Some fans do seem to think there’s a distinct possibility that the two universes are in fact the same. Both cartoons feature characters who are rude, have inconsistent relationships with their parents or adults in their life, and both shows do tend to center around young, pre-teenage children. The antics of the Snoopy gang may seem mild compared to those on “South Park”, but that comic strip also was birthed into the world in the 1950s when entertainment was far more reserved. And if not, we still have the “MadTV” parody bit.

Much like their predecessor “The Simpsons”, “South Park” is yet another long-running animated program where no one seems to age. Seriously, how can Maggie on “The Simpsons” still be a baby after all these years? With “South Park” openly acknowledging current events and political opponents, it’s clear they are aware of the passage of time, but never seem to age. One wild theory is that the same curse that denies Kenny the ability to die, also affects everyone else in town. The idea is that time is somehow held in stasis around the town, while still allowing them to experience and remember world events. But having recently seen a glimpse at the kids future, maybe this is one curse that was finally lifted.

The earlier seasons of “South Park” featured Officer Barbrady as the town’s main law enforcement officer. Very quickly it became apparent that he wasn’t all that great at his job. Consistently making mistakes and ignoring crimes, he was more like the town fool than an officer of the law. Hence the reason why fans have theorized that Barbrady is not in fact a cop at all. They insist he really is the town fool; the townspeople are aware of this and simply let him believe he’s the one enforcing the law. With Harrison Yates unofficially replacing Barbrady, it is possible the town finally gave up and got someone else to try and take care of the town.

Let us count the weird things that have happened in this town. Aliens, giant robots, ManBearPig, hypnotic Chinpokomon toys; the list goes on. With so many unusual events happening in a single place, some fans believe the town is in fact some kind of supernatural experiment. Take season 7’s “Cancelled”, where it’s discovered that life on Earth is in fact a reality television show, and expand far beyond that. Could some larger force be throwing all of these crazy things at a single town to try and learn how humans will react? If the show does ever come to an end, we’ll all be watching to see if this one ends up being true. It wouldn’t be the first time the town, or earth for that matter, was a part of an experiment…

If Cartman hates Kyle so much, then why does he continue to hang around him after all of this time? It could be related to our previous entry about Cartman’s psyche. Or it could be something as simple as childhood love. Is it possible that Eric Cartman could be in love with Kyle? What do some young kids do when they want to express attraction to someone else? Pull their hair? Call them names or make fun of them for some reason? Cartman’s insistence on continuing to be around Kyle could be nothing more than a schoolyard crush. After all, it’s entirely possible when you consider how he saved Kyle’s life in season 10’s “Smug Alert!”

As insane as everything appears to be on this show, there’s a theory that it’s all in Butters’ head. The story goes that adult Butters is retelling his time in “South Park” to a therapist. Given how gullible the young boy is, it wouldn’t be too difficult for any of his friends to make up a crazy story to him, and have him believe it. Remember how Cartman convinced him the world was ending? If Butters does believe everything he’s being told, it is plausible that his retelling of the story could be completely skewed and “South Park” is a normal town.

There’s no doubt the realities of the real world compared to those of “South Park” are so far apart. If you sidestep the social commentary and embrace a popular theory, you’ll find that this town is in fact exactly what we all should expect. Children see the world differently than adults. Their imaginations can muster up the craziest ideas when they let their imagination flow. Our #1 fan theory suggests everything we see and experience on the show is merely a depiction of the world through the eyes of a child. If it is, then these kids sure have one heck of an imagination. The theory becomes all the more plausible when considering that the following song was played during the end credits of the 1999 feature film “South Park: Longer, Bigger & Uncut.”