South Park Season 28’s Divisive New Episode Doubles Down On Major Controversy

South Park Season 28’s Divisive New Episode Doubles Down On Major Controversy By  Cathal Gunning Published 26 minutes ago Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies, television, culture, and politics online and in print since 2017. He worked as a Senior Editor in Adbusters Media Foundation from 2018-2019 and wrote for WhatCulture in early 2020. He has been a Senior Features Writer for ScreenRant since 2020. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

Despite the pushback that the show faced in season 27, South Park season 28, episode 4 proves once and for all that the show is not done with criticizing the current administration. South Park season 28 ended a 12-year trend with episode 4, “Turkey Trot.” The show’s first Thanksgiving special since 2013, the episode focused on the titular local event.

Since the town of South Park was struggling to find local businesses that could afford to sponsor the Turkey Trot, the mayor eventually ended up taking money from Saudi Arabia to pay the race’s $5,000 prize. As Cartman schemed to get Tolkien to join his race team alongside Kyle, Stan, and Kenny, the show took aim at a major US administrative official.

Pete Hegseth, the Trump administration’s controversial US secretary of Defense, showed up in South Park to liberate the billionaire Peter Thiel from the town’s police station. Thiel was arrested an episode earlier after he kidnapped Cartman, as AI deepfake videos led the local police to erroneously believe Thiel was involved in a child exploitation ring headed by Studio Ghibli’s Totoro.

South Park Season 28 Episode 4 Brings Back Its Kristi Noem Parody

Kristi Noem with prisoners behind her in South Park season 27 episode 2

While Thiel did appear in “Turkey Trot,” the episode’s main storyline didn’t focus on South Park season 28’s AI satire. Instead, the primary plot of the episode revolved around Hegseth’s blundering attempts to lay siege to the titular town, with the Secretary of Defense spending more time and attention on content creation than serious strategizing.

South Park’s parody of Hegseth was ruthless, portraying the political figure as an inept, arrogant blowhard who was incompetent and cowardly. His focus on getting social media attention instead of garnering meaningful victories, along with his moronic assumption that the Turkey Trot race participants were “an Antifa insurrection,” made Hegseth out to be a hopeless fool.

However, he was not the only member of the Trump administration who came under fire in “Turkey Trot.” While South Park seasons 27 and 28 have longer breaks between episodes than earlier seasons, this hasn’t stopped the series from calling back to earlier episodes. One gag in the Thanksgiving special did just that.

In season 27, episode 2, “Got a Nut,” Kristi Noem, the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, was depicted as a clueless, violently deranged zealot who spent most of her screen time shooting dogs. Noem later claimed that she hadn’t seen the episode but complained that it only satirized her appearance, which was patently incorrect.

South Park Season 28 Episode 4 Doubled Down On Mocking The Trump Administration

The recurring gag of Noem shooting dogs was based on a controversial anecdote from her memoir in which Noem admitted to doing the same. The gross gag came back in “Turkey Trot” when Noem’s Department of Homeland Security joined forces with Hegseth’s Department of War, invading South Park in a failed attempt to free Peter Thiel.

As Noem took aim at the innocent runners in the Turkey Trot, she missed the townspeople entirely and ended up shooting a random dog to death instead. In a gag that could have been borrowed from South Park season 1, judging by its gross-out, violent humor, Noem and Hegseth’s combined forces descended on South Park and achieved nothing.

Both Noem and Hegseth’s portrayals implied the pair were more interested in creating social media content that would make the Department of Homeland Security and Department of War look impressive than actually achieving any of their goals. This devastating critique peaked with the song “Pete Hegseth Is A ****ing Douche.”

This track played over Hegseth pointlessly terrorizing the townspeople with tear gas during the Turkey Trot, only for both departments to be promptly kicked out by the chief of police when they finally arrived at the station. Noem escaped, but Hegseth was arrested, setting up the finale’s storyline.

South Park Season 28’s Noem and Hegseth Spoofs Set Up A Larger Storyline

Donald Trump in the Oval Office in South Park

Hegseth’s imprisonment by the town’s police—alongside Thiel—is clearly setting up a literal “South Park vs the Trump government” finale. While South Park season 28 did reverse PC Principal’s character arc and turn him into an overly zealous Trump acolyte, the rest of the town resents the chaos and idiocy on display in the show’s spoof of the Trump administration.

Throughout seasons 27 and 28, Trump, his Vice President JD Vance, Noem, Hegseth, and his billionaire backer Thiel have all been portrayed as the villains of the series. Since South Park abandoned Mr. Garrison’s version of Donald Trump in favor of a straightforward parody of the President, the show has switched to portraying him as a more uncomplicated villain.

This seems to set up season 28’s finale, wherein South Park, the town, will face off against members of the Trump administration in much the same way that, in reality, South Park the TV series has faced off against the government in recent months. Despite numerous shows being canceled for criticizing the President’s administration, South Park season 28 is doubling down.

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South Park

10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-MA Animation Comedy Release Date August 13, 1997 Network Comedy Central Showrunner Trey Parker Directors Adrien Beard Writers David A. Goodman, Nancy M. Pimental, Kenny Hotz, Philip Stark, Dave Weasel, Dan Sterling, Susan Hurwitz Arneson, Trisha Nixon, David R. Goodman, Tim Talbott, Pam Brady, Robert Lopez, Dani Michaeli, Kyle McCulloch, Karey Dornetto, Jonathan Kimmel, Jane Bussmann 9 Images Kyle arguing with other students while Jesus stands in the background in South Park season 27 episode 5Donald Trump and Satan departing Air Force One from South ParkA Labubu doll from South ParkKristi Noem with prisoners behind her in South Park season 27 episode 2Mr Mackey dressed in an ICE uniform in South Park season 27 episode 2JD Vance and Donald Trump standing together in South Park season 27 episode 2The characters in South Park, especially Cartman, look shocked while staring a phoneCartman looks sad wearing a Woke is Dead t shirt on South Park season 27Canadian wave a Canadian flag on a battlefield in South Park season 27Close

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• Trey Parker Eric Cartman / Stan Marsh (voice)
• Matt Stone Kyle Broflovski / Kenny McCormick (voice)

Franchise(s) South Park Genres Animation, Comedy Creator(s) Matt Stone, Trey Parker Powered by Expand Collapse

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How do you feel about South Park's decision to double down on its criticism of the Trump administration despite the controversy and show cancellations?

Cathal Cathal Cathal #JD414179 Member since 2023-10-24 0 Reviews 0 Ratings Following 0 Topics 0 Users Follow Followed 0 Followers View 26 minutes ago Viewers may admire South Park for sticking to its guns and continuing to criticize the Trump administration despite the potential backlash and consequences. They may see it as the show standing up for its creative vision and exercising its right to free speech. Reply / Post Images Attachment(s) Please respect our community guidelines. No links, inappropriate language, or spam.

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