Top 10 Times South Park Parodied Pop Culture

Season 20 of “South Park” was one long serialized story about internet trolling and the 2016 American presidential race. It did however introduce us to “member berries”. Playing off the word “remember”, these little fruit snacks were constantly providing a source of nostalgia for anyone who would listen. The entire concept was essentially a recurring gag poking fun at film and television reboots. The show even treats us to J.J. Abrams (who rebooted “Star Wars” and “Star Trek”) rebooting the national anthem.

Do you remember a time when social media wasn’t a thing? Prior to the world of Instagram and TikTok, the biggest thing in “social media” was something called Facebook. Sharing photos and status updates with your friends and family seemed like the coolest thing to ever hit the web. So when the obsession hit “South Park”, Stan didn’t want anything to do with it and insisted he was [b-roll: “not getting sucked into that”]. Well, he did (literally) and in doing so, we were given a fantastic ode to the movie “Tron” and a message about how online “friends” shouldn’t be seen as some kind of status within our society.

Simply put: “South Park’s” “Fishsticks” episode was clearly made to poke fun at Kanye West. But that’s not the only thing being made fun of here. Cartman and Jimmy’s joke becomes a national sensation, popping up everywhere. Ye’s obsession with dissecting the joke to an extreme degree can also be seen as a reflection of internet culture. Online communities often obsess over screen grabs from television and movies, and insist that tiny pieces of dialog hide much bigger truths than what appear on the surface. It’s a very subtle but effective jab at obsessive culture.

Another great aspect to the show “South Park” is how it often can both pay tribute to and mock something all in the same episode. Such was the case with this memorable season six gem. The target? “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. The four boys set out on a “quest” to return a videotape to the rental store when things go a little awry. Several boys essentially portray the lead characters from the famous saga, all while Butters becomes a hilarious version of Gollum. Sure, the “adult” film bit is certainly new, but between the costumes, the questing, and Jimmy’s Gandalf impression, there’s plenty here to see.

In season 17, “South Park” released a trilogy [xref1] of episodes all focused around the biggest shopping day of the year: Black Friday. The storyline involved all the kids in town having been split into two factions over whether to buy the new Xbox or Playstation. The entire thing played out while relentlessly mocking all things “Game of Thrones” and Black Friday. From the ridiculous need to go on garden walks, obsessions with nudity [xref2], and far more, the episodes perfectly dialed into everyone’s obsession with the era-set drama. The episodes even included a fantastic parody of George R.R. Martin himself.

If anyone ever had any doubts on what the creators of “South Park” think of Disney, all they had to do was watch this one episode. The show pokes fun at the nature of the “Jonas Brothers” and their relationship with the house of mouse. They take the very “G-rated” nature of the band and spin it in a very “R” friendly manner. To push the narrative even further, Mickey Mouse is depicted as an angry boss who puts his staff through the wringer. This culminates at the end when Mickey becomes a Godzilla-like monster and wreaks havoc. It wouldn’t be the last time the show would mock Disney but it was certainly a memorable first outing.

Long before people were obsessed with what the Kardashians were up to, the paparazzi were picking apart anything and everything related to Britney Spears. At one time, it seemed that everything from who she was dating, to what she had for lunch was being scrutinized by everyone. “South Park” highlighted the ridiculousness of the media by parodying their addiction to Spears. Showing how they care far more about her exterior image than her mental health, it’s the boys who truly sympathize and go to extreme lengths to help her.

While Butters' virtual reality experience in “Grounded Vindaloop” was a hilarious spoof (xref), one of the best episodes in the show’s history, “Make Love, Not Warcraft” is a stunning example of how to mock video games while simultaneously embracing them. With the help of the folks over at Blizzard, “South Park” seamlessly integrated real game footage of “World of Warcraft” into the episode. That alone would have been amazing. But when you have game makers openly mocking those who play their biggest hit, all within the episode, you can’t help but be impressed. Additionally, we get to see the end result of the boys having played “World of Warcraft” non-stop for months. It’s a perfect combination of satire and great storytelling.

There was a time when Netflix was the only player in town when it came to online streaming services. Thanks to their large catalog, they faced virtually no competition. But that was then, and this is now. From Amazon Prime, to Disney+, there’s now no shortage of streaming services taking a piece of the pie that once belonged to Netflix. Playing on the word “streaming”, “South Park” gave us a story that was a literal battle over a stream of water. It mocks the current online video market by the name alone, but the “Streaming Wars” specials were filled with countless jabs and nods to the real thing.

Pokémon has been around for a long time, and continues to be quite popular today. But early in the show’s run, it seemed everywhere you turned, you’d see something about Pokémon. Kids loved it and parents didn’t understand it. This is what made it perfect fodder for a show like “South Park”. The episode “Chinpokomon” ruthlessly mocked how confusing aspects of the Pokémon world were to people who weren’t a part of it. Throw in lightspeed spoken dialog, and all together, it made for the single best parody “South Park” may have ever done.