THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)
Fun Stuff => ENJOY => Topic started by: Tom on 20 Nov 2007, 22:36
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I've decided I don't like South Park, who else doesn't like it?
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I think they are excellent at satire overall. Especially in the later series.
However, I feel uncomfortable with the whole South Park Republican (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Park_Republicans) mind-set they have inadvertently spawned. It does make me uncomfortable that their targets now seem to be left-leaning and I can't help wonder whether their merciless lampooning of anti-war celebrities isn't insidious. I don't see enough criticism of the powers that be in America (or indeed on a world wide scale) in South Park and far too much skewering of those who are actively trying to establish a dialogue regarding a morally bankrupt administration responsible for death, terror, espionage and global catastrophe.
Having said that, I understand that true satire can't afford sacred cows. I just can't help but shake the notion that their abject hatred of liberalism in becoming more prevalent than their alleged disgust for the excesses of the right-wing.
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I really hate South Park. I always have, and will probably always continue.
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I think that it's exactly what it is supposed to be: entertaining. And that is all.
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I think they are excellent at satire overall. Especially in the later series.
However, I feel uncomfortable with the whole South Park Republican (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Park_Republicans) mind-set they have inadvertently spawned. It does make me uncomfortable that their targets now seem to be left-leaning and I can't help wonder whether their merciless lampooning of anti-war celebrities isn't insidious. I don't see enough criticism of the powers that be in America (or indeed on a world wide scale) in South Park and far too much skewering of those who are actively trying to establish a dialogue regarding a morally bankrupt administration responsible for death, terror, espionage and global catastrophe.
Having said that, I understand that true satire can't afford sacred cows. I just can't help but shake the notion that their abject hatred of liberalism in becoming more prevalent than their alleged disgust for the excesses of the right-wing.
I pretty much agree with this statement. Now though, I find the better episodes are the ones ripping more on popular culture than on politics. The Trapped in the Closet episode always gets me.
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The character of Cartman is the best representative of how I feel about jews, therefore I love the show.
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I didn't vote because I fall somewhere between 'gold' and 'shit' with my feelings. I like the show, and I definately don't care, but sometimes there are just some really sucky episodes that make you not want to watch anymore.
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it certainly has its moments, but "shit" reflects my feelings much more accurately than "gold."
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I voted don't care. Sometimes it gives me a laugh and sometimes it makes me sick to the stomach. I also don't go out of my way to watch it unless someone sends me a link to a certain video.
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I really love South Park. A lot. Although the manbearpig episode made me cringe a little bit because while it was really funny, I still am confused and a little upset when people try to deny global warming.
But the Imaginationland 3 parter was amazing. This season is really great so far. In general, I think that they just want to make fun of extremists which I'm totally for. I hate Barbara Streisand AND Pat Robertson and anyone who doesn't have any sense of moderation and needs so strongly to associate themselves with parties and tags that we've made up to make things easier for us.
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Up until this latest (latest for me in Australia) season it was good. I've only seen a few episodes of the latest season and they've all been random and stupid (cartman freezing himself and waking up in the future just to get a Wii is a prime example.)
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That's the second to last season. This season has been brilliant episode after episode (the one with the lice is kind of a let down, as well as the latest one). Imaginationland was brilliant.
But yeah, I've only started liking it recently. Before, I didn't really get the point.
Then I realized that it was all some kind of joke.
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The show has recently been struggling in my eye. I am a big fan of seasons 7 through 9. However, recently they have focused too much on satire and not enough on creating new, funny material.
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South Park for me has always been funnier in concept than in execution. I'll hear a plot outline and think "hey, I bet that's really funny!" and then I'll watch it and while I recognize the relative cleverness of some of the humor, I don't laugh, because it's not really all that... funny. Last episode I actually laughed at was the Trapped in the Closet episode, of course.
I did laugh at Team America. Parker and Stone were originally pursuing music in university, and the songs they write are often great.
I really don't get the whole "South Park Republican" thing. I don't know why you'd want to code "libertarian", and I don't know how much credit to give to South Park as far as the upsurge in libertarianism amongst the young (I'd probably attribute it to backlash against white male guilt). It figures that Andrew Sullivan would coin the term. But I suppose I'm "biased", being the stalwart statist that I am.
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I really enjoy South Park... sometimes. It's a remarkably inconsistent show and I truly hated the early years. Randy Marsh, however, is inexplicably hilarious to me.
As for the term "South Park Republican" and Libertarianism, I think the better question is why wouldn't you want to code Libertarian? Remember that to the average American there's really only two types of highly visible Libertarians out there: boring private property policy wonks who just might be atheists and the guys who just might be atheists and really wish there were more weed and guns to pass around. It renders a lot of discussion pretty shrill and pointless right from the get go.
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It does make me uncomfortable that their targets now seem to be left-leaning and I can't help wonder whether their merciless lampooning of anti-war celebrities isn't insidious.
I usually just assume the idea is that everyone always goes after conservatives because it's a fairly easy target, especially in youth culture, so they go the other way. And, realistically, how often do you see decent satire of the left outside of the occasional Daily Show bit? Remember that "Republican Version of the Daily Show" Fox News tried to peddle that weakly tried to mock liberalism? No one does, likely because it was pathetic. I don't think South Park writing can be beaten outside of Colbert and sometimes Stewart in the political arena.
(not to revive a near dead thread or anything)
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I don't watch it very much, but occasionally when I'm bored I'll switch it on and have a laugh or two. Mostly because I am from Colorado, and it seems the jokes (about Colorado) are really funny to me, so that's why I enjoy it. Usually though if it gets too political or whatever I'll change the channel, not because I'm offended by it, but because if I want to see that kind of commentary I'll go watch Jon Stewart.
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I'm surprised I didn't see this thread before, but I dislike South Park a lot. Mostly because as a political science student, it frustrates me to no end seeing people call South Park 'social commentary' when none of the political or social statements made on that show have been anything other than blindingly obvious. Like in the Katrina episode, where they said that people should stop shifting blame and just help the people who were affected. Really? That's your big revelation on the subject? Way to go out on a limb there, guys. Not to mention that they frequently don't even bother with a message and just turn one of the parties involved into gay alien crabs or something idiotic like that. It really pisses me off that they're so smugly certain that people need to hear their opinion and then they say absolutely nothing of merit or value.
Then of course there's the fact that due to the show's popularity the media has to bend over backwards to talk about how great it is. The thing that really convinced me was the World of Warcraft episode winning an Emmy. There was nothing remotely original about that episode, they just spouted the same cliche about MMO players ad nauseum, and then at one point Cartman sprays his mother with shit. Fantastic. The fact that South Park has ever been considered for any award of any kind is just proof of how fucking far the standards for television have fallen.
And then of course, there's the fact that they spend the large part of every episode detailing this overarching and often extremely simplistic metaphor for whatever issue is the subject at that point and then 9 times out of 10 come out and explain that metaphor in excruciating detail because they apparently feel that their audience is too stupid to understand their hamfisted attempts at subtlety. Sorry, but I have better things to do with my time than be condescended to by a couple of arrogant jackasses acting behind a troupe of cartoon fourth graders.
I feel better now.
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The WoW episode, to me, was a great genre parody. I think what they proved they could do in that episode is take tired cultural cliches and turn them around. They've proven they love montage sequences in the series, but in that episode in particular, it struck me as creative to take the typically perceived lethargic act of playing video games/MMOs and turn it into the equivalent of a Rocky training sequence. The rest of the episode struck me in a similar way.
Also, I believe the seemingly obtuse recapitulation of the "moral" or subtext to the episode is a parody or joke in it of itself. Of course, I could be dead wrong there, because this technique was also used in the earlier episodes when the writing was genuinely complete shit.
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@Storm Rider: I believe you're mistaking labels incorrectly placed by viewers for the intentions of the writers. I haven't ever thought that their desire was to subtley comment on politics. Yes, they deal with very obvious topics and pick very obvious opinions about those topics to portray, but the fact that they can do that and invent such a convoluted plot is what makes the show interesting for me. Consider the episode about the "Hare Club for Men" - they took the simple question of "why do we dye eggs for Easter?" and wrote a plot with such a ridiculous amount of humorous puns and references I don't see how one isn't impressed by that. I think the show is just plain well-written.
Obviously not all of the episodes are good, though. The Guitar Hero episode had a few decent jokes, but was otherwise terrible.
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I like it when I'm blasted and accidently tune in to one of the more surreal episodes, but apart from that, I don't give a dicks toss really. They've had up and down moments, in the long haul I don't think they've done that badly.
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I voted Gold because this show I think growing and watching this show has helped me to learn to take everything with a grain of salt and more than a little dirty humor. I'm not saying that I agree with everything said by these guys and in several cases I've been completely in opposite view and pissed off with these guys, but I really think this show had been an important and at least somewhat beneficial part to our society over the past decade. It also cuts away a lot of that bi-partisan bullshit that's coming through a lot in the past few years and at least the last two very divided elections. There isn't always a black and white point of view and to say that you are one or the other and not anywhere in between is and uneducated point of view and in general just blind following of established tradition.
That all being said I haven't been keeping up recently, and I haven't even seen all three of the imagination land episodes.
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The Guitar Hero episode had a few decent jokes, but was otherwise terrible.
Aw, c'mon, Herion Hero!!?! Hilarious!
Also, the last episode for this season was really well done. I've actually heard that Trey and Matt enjoy doing episodes where the kids are just being kids more, rather than the political fluff. The episode last aired is definitely a knockout in that regard.
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The WoW episode, to me, was a great genre parody. I think what they proved they could do in that episode is take tired cultural cliches and turn them around. They've proven they love montage sequences in the series, but in that episode in particular, it struck me as creative to take the typically perceived lethargic act of playing video games/MMOs and turn it into the equivalent of a Rocky training sequence. The rest of the episode struck me in a similar way.
I thought the WoW episode was pretty shit, not because of any of the content, per se (although it was both unfunny and totally obvious) but because they collaborated with Blizzard in making it. It's like when a celebrity shows up on SNL with his cast impersonator. It's not funny because it's claimed to be satire but all the edges are softened with the purpose of making sure the subject of its ridicule comes out with an unbruised ego and no hard feelings. Satire is all about edges. The WoW episode was an exercise in self-congratulation on the part of Blizzard.
haven't ever thought that their desire was to subtley comment on politics.
You must not be watching the right show.
I voted Gold because this show I think growing and watching this show has helped me to learn to take everything with a grain of salt and more than a little dirty humor. I'm not saying that I agree with everything said by these guys and in several cases I've been completely in opposite view and pissed off with these guys, but I really think this show had been an important and at least somewhat beneficial part to our society over the past decade. It also cuts away a lot of that bi-partisan bullshit that's coming through a lot in the past few years and at least the last two very divided elections. There isn't always a black and white point of view and to say that you are one or the other and not anywhere in between is and uneducated point of view and in general just blind following of established tradition.
I'm aware of the "no politics" rule here, but still, it's inaccurate to depict Parker and Stone as centrists, they're not, they're enamored of a particular strain of conservatism. Difference is not such a virtue that anarchocapitalist politics are to be considered valuable simply because they aren't well represented in the major parties. Indeed, in the coming decades it may very well gain prominence in the Republican party, in small part because of this show.
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"You must not be watching the right show."
The key word was subtle.
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I thought the WoW episode was pretty shit, not because of any of the content, per se (although it was both unfunny and totally obvious) but because they collaborated with Blizzard in making it. It's like when a celebrity shows up on SNL with his cast impersonator. It's not funny because it's claimed to be satire but all the edges are softened with the purpose of making sure the subject of its ridicule comes out with an unbruised ego and no hard feelings. Satire is all about edges. The WoW episode was an exercise in self-congratulation on the part of Blizzard.
I never really thought they were making fun of the game itself though, in the least bit. Mostly, I felt they were addressing the cultural phenom that are MMOs, and, as I said, parodying a genre of cinema/story to make their point interesting.