Grid Effect

Well, that was…underwhelming. It’s been awhile since our last South Park recap, so we understand the premium on being controversial after that long of a hiatus, but while we love the premise they decided to use, and the invocation of Magic Johnson, but the execution left something to be desired.

We were hoping for some form of campaign parody, and that it would be dealt with evenly, as opposed to just undermining one side and gently mocking the other (I’m looking at you, SNL), and we fully expect them to touch upon that in the next seven episodes so that isn’t the sole reason for why we’re unimpressed. The main reason for our disappointment is the predictability of most of the dialogue.

For example, Cartman’s outburst on the plane over AIDS being worse than cancer. While it’s a darkly comical suggestion, it just felt like they didn’t deliver with it. There is such an array for situational humor there, that they skipped over for over-zealous screaming and outrageousness. The majority of the episode felt like this.

That isn’t to say the episode was without its highlights. Kyle berating Cartman in front of Magic over his use of the phrase “HIV positive”, along with Cartman trying to defend why he infected Kyle with HIV, and Kyle being incapable of controlling his laughter at the news that Cartman was HIV positive, but those three moments just saved an otherwise confusing twenty-two minutes. Not confusing in the sense that we didn’t understand what we were watching, but confusing as to why we were watching it in the first place.

Your random, weekly celebrity mocking on this week’s South Park

This seemed to happen in their last cycle of episodes, they came out with the “Le Petit Tourette” episode, which had one shining moment (Stan or Kyle at the Tourette’s support meeting) but felt underwritten and mismanaged otherwise. But that same cycle of episodes gave us the “Imaginationland” trilogy which is arguably Parker and Stone’s magnum opus. So my expectations are still high, even if they were unmet last night.

The reason for our high expectations probably stems from the strike that left us in a comedy drought ever since January. Sure, FNL and The Wire have their moments (especially the latter), but as far as scripted half hour comedies are concerned, no Weeds, Curb or The Office have left us pining for something to laugh at on the small screen. Last night’s episode, for the most part, wasn’t it.