After 27 seasons, it seems that South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are looking for a change. According to a new interview, the pair claim to be shifting their focus away from popular targets like Donald Trump.
Changing the Formula?
Since the 20th season, the character of Mr. Garrison has largely been the stand-in for Donald Trump. To some it has been a well-suited parody of the former President, especially considering his current run for office. But the pair expressed that they’re ready to move on from lampooning the Republican candidate.
“We’ve tried to do South Park through four or five presidential elections, and it is such a hard thing to—it’s such a mind scramble,” Stone shared in a recent interview with Vanity Fair. “Obviously, it’s important, but it kind of takes over everything, and we just have less fun.” Parker added, “I don’t know what more we could possibly say about Trump.”
Double Standard?
Although the Trump/Garrison character has provided plenty of cannon fodder for the creators, there has been a notable absence: President Biden. Though in the past they had briefly touched on sitting presidents in single episodes.
Examples of this can be seen in episodes such as 2006’s “Mystery of the Urinal Deuce” and 2008’s “About Last Night”. Both of which hit on candidates and sitting Presidents, it seems that the current president, Biden has been notably absent over the last four years.
According to the pair, the decision reflects a broader trend in the creators’ recent endeavors. An example of this is their purchase of Casa Bonita which played a role in a few episodes over the years. But is that the case?
Apologies to Al Gore
For some viewers, it’s hard not to notice some important tonal shifts over the years. One clear example of this is the shift in their treatment of former vice president AI Gore. Back in 2006’s “ManBearPig” episode, the show mocked the former VP’s climate hysteria via the character ManBearPig.
Years later in the 22nd season, the pair created a mea culpa for the former VP in “Time to Get Cereal”, which showed that ManBearPig was real. Many, such as NBC and Vox pounced on the episode as it clearly shifted the narrative created ten years prior to its airing that ManBearPig was real indeed; even brutalizing Luficer in a street fight.
Though many didn’t realize it, it may have been the start of a new trend for the pair.
Will This Shift Continue?
As mentioned above, there has been a noticeable absence of President Joe Biden from the show. This is a stark contrast to the show’s history of mocking every sitting President since Bill Clinton. Fans and viewers on X didn’t miss the memo and have taken notice.
Others also join in on the thread on X. For example, a user by the name of Cursed World noted that the pair are holding back their mockery of the left. Though some may claim that isn’t the case – with episodes jabbing at woke media culture, as seen in Disney’s Star Wars – some feel that those are easy targets for the pair.
This was also called out by another user, MoonMilk64. In their comment they mentioned Trey and Parker’s strategic mockery and who they avoided.
Finally, another user pointed to this tonal shift compared to earlier seasons of the show. User Quimn3719331 made the comment that the pair wouldn’t touch obvious targets such as President Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris. However, they also mentioned it could be that the pair were unsure how to make Garrison back into the Trump stand-in.
Either way, it seems that fans are at least divided.
Going on for almost three decades isn’t easy. This is clearly seen in the state of The Simpsons, where the quality, or lack thereof, of the show has been a major pain point for viewers. There has been a shift in the show since it moved from episodic storytelling to its current long-form format.
Either way, it will be up to both Trey and Parker to chart the course for the long-running series without running out of steam.
