Liam Hoofe reviews the tenth episode of South Park season 20…
With the dust having settled to some degree around the surprise US election victory of Donald Trump, the world is now beginning to ask how things could have been had Hillary triumphed in November. Two people who will definitely be doing that are Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the writers of South Park, who at the eleventh hour had to change an episode of the 20th season of their show, and it would appear the season’s whole direction.
When your vision for a series relies on what was essentially a prediction, it is easy for some things to go wrong, and it is highly likely that somewhere out there is a script, or an idea of how season 20 was supposed to end. Instead the duo had to do the best with what they could, giving us the episode ‘The End of Serialization as We Know It.’
South Park has always been able to poke fun at itself and the title of this episode alone is a clear indication of that. Parker and Stone are clearly well aware of the flaws of this season and have done what they had done, in the process supplying with an enjoyable, if underwhelming finale to what was looking to be one of the show’s finest seasons.
Perhaps as the Danish troll tells Gerald on the bridge ‘Maybe this is a new, post funny era of satire’ and that in a world where Donald Trump has been elected President of the United States satire itself is done and dusted; satirists like Parker and Stone can not beat the ridiculousness of the real world. Even Mr Garrison’s portrayal of Trump doesn’t seem that funny, purely because it doesn’t feel particularly exaggerated.
There were still plenty of great moments in ‘The End of Serialization as We Know It’. Gerald’s final duel with the Danish troll was fairly tense, and Kyle and Ike’s trolling provided a fair few laughs. But the episode couldn’t wrap up the season in a rounded way – this problem being best highlighted by the blink and you’ll miss it cameos of the Member-Berries at the end of the episode. The little critters had shown so much promise in the early episodes, but Parker and Stone clearly did not know what to do with them after altering their plans.
The title could also be a hint that show may revert back to self-contained episodes next season, but I’m okay with them continuing this trend of a continued narrative. Perhaps next time however they could try and not depend on something that in hindsight, was clearly 50/50. I have to admire them for taking a chance, after 20 years on television South Park is still trying to push people’s buttons and break boundaries, which is more than can be said for a lot of its counterparts.
As an individual episode ‘The End of Serialization as We Know It’ was an above average episode of the show, with some really great moments, as the finale of this season, it was a bit of a let down.
What did you think of the Season 20 finale? Let Liam know on Twitter – @liamhoofe
Originally published December 8, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
