South Park tried to teach us a lesson last night, and lesson-teaching is something a TV show should usually try to avoid, because it usually makes for lousy storytelling.
That proved to be the case for South Park. Stan and his pals were irritated by a motorcycle gang that kept roaring around town, and drowning out everyone’s conversation. The South Park gang started yelling at the gang, calling them a crude, three-letter word for homosexual that begins with “f.” (If you think I’m being squeamish for not printing the word, too bad — I’m not going to further spread the use of it.)
The underlying idea was, as one character noted, “f–” isn’t a slur on gay people among “kids today”: “Just because a person is gay doesn’t mean he’s a [f--].” The motorcycle gang, however, took great offense at the insult and roared off to the library, where we were treated to a long, tedious taxonomy of the offending word, stretching back to the 16th century. (Warning: This clip uses the word.)
I wasn’t buying this whole line of reasoning — that word now just means, as was stated last night, anyone who’s “an inconsiderate douchebag.”
Putting in a guest-star turn (well, in cartoon form, anyway) was Emmanuel Lewis, who got banged up quite a bit, but appeared, bloody and unbowed, as the “Head Editor” of the dictionary helping to draft a town proclamation about the new, common usage of the offending word.
The show proclaimed at the end it was “making history,” and given how only moderately funny the half-hour was, I tended to think Trey Parker and Matt Stone were being moderately serious.
The criticisms of motorcycle noise, public rudeness, and hurt feelings among various people got all tangled in the usual South Park fun. (The biggest laugh I had was when Cartman secretly pooped on the gang’s bikes and one member innocently sniffed the air and remarked, “Smells like that new Famous Bowl at KFC.”)
Personally, I thought it would have been funnier and timelier if South Park had used the motorcycle gang to satirize Sons of Anarchy (which is where I thought the episode was going, until I noticed the episode title). But alas, it just wanted to go to some easy gay-baiting.
Did you watch? What did you think?
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Comments (1-30) of 115 Add your comment
dude, stop writing such fwordy columns.
It was hilarious. I agree with them 100%. Bikers like that are inconsiderate d-bags and should be labeled as such. There’s a motorcycle event held every other Friday in the summer in my town and this episode captured exactly how it feels to be trying to enjoy a nice evening and have it ruined by a bunch of buttholes on unnecessarily loud bikes. And they really do stay stopped at intersections and rev their bikes over and over until they are ready to go again. Thank you South Park, you just showed what many people were already thinking.
It wasn’t gay baiting at all?
The episode was great! Very funny and very smart. Your review sir on the other hand is terrible, you should change your career. Try dish washing.
hahahaha!
Seriously though, if you don’t know what the episode is about, consider changing careers.
THIS!
If there was any gay baiting, it was just an added bonus. Boosh.
It may not have been “gay baiting”, per se, but it really came off as Matt and Trey getting their kicks from using a taboo word, like the sh*t and n-word episodes. I wasn’t a fan of the episode, because as much as it does mean “inconsiderate d-bag” to some, it still has the very distinct anti-gay meaning to many.
That being said, the noises the bikers made (especially in the library scene) and Emanuel Lewis were very funny…
Poorly written article. Don’t watch south park because you obviously don’t understand the humor. And with that being said, don’t comment on the episodes either
If you think Mr. Tucker is a bad media critic, or doesn’t like South Park in general, you obviously haven’t read many of his columns and you obviously weren’t paying attention when you read this article. Don’t offer comments on opinion pieces you can’t understand. It really might be better if you stop reading altogether; you don’t do it very well.
Please do not review TV shows again or at least tell Google news not to index you.
The episode was awesome. What a waste of space on ew.com. Hire a real writer with a brain. What a f–
I’m gay and I loved the episode. Yeah people use the “f-word” a lil too much but hey, I tell my friends to stop being so straight when they’re being boring, stupid, and lug-headed haha Stop takin South Park so seriously.
I agree, I’m gay to and I found the episode to be hilarious. I even use the f-word to describe d-bags all the time. The word is only derogatory if you let it be.
Chris, so the people who get beaten up while being called the f-word are just letting it be derogatory? The word is still tied to homophobia and violence that is actively taking place. I understand what South Park was trying to do, but I don’t think they succeeded because they failed to acknowledge that that word is currently used with violence against people like us.
Like Nate said, the guys on South Park just wanted an excuse to use the word F–, just like S—-. Keep in mind that they have been the word F– throughout the 13 seasons so having this type of outrage now is quite stupid. To quote Kyle, “I learned something today.” which is that the word F– has been in negative connotation to just about anyone throughout the centuries and has been passed over from group to another, which was the point of this episode when the Gay Community in South Park teamed up with the heterosexual neighbors and passed the word F– to another group as history has shown in the episode. It shows how easily interchangable racism can be in history.
South Park is one of the few shows that can try and teach a lesson and get away with it b/c instead of getting all preachy, they show the absurdities of culture. almost in a Curb Your Enthusiasm manner. Growing up, bundle of sticks was a common term for me and my friends and it really wasn’t until I got to college that I realized certain parts of society found bundle of sticks to be an offensive term. I found the episode hilarious just like nearly every other episode, including those which have made fun of my own race, sex, religion, etc. South Park is what it is, and you should either appreciate it or not. Don’t pick and choose which topics they can lampoon and which ones they can’t.
Amen to all the comments here. I hope the columnist reads them. And I hope he never reviews South Park again.
I think you’re an old man who doesn’t understand comedy. Suggesting that instead of writing an honest episode that also says something, they should of done a satire (the easiest and uninspired form of comedy) of Son’s of Anarchy. SP has always tried to make the point words are our servants not masters… they only have as much meaning as we give them.
I’m a gay guy, and I loved the episode. I do agree that most young people today seem to use the “f” word as a replacement for “douchebag”, and I’m fine with South Park promoting that usage. The word is never going to leave our lexicon, so all we can do is take ownership of it and skew its meaning.
Yeah, Ken Tucker, you seriously did not get this episode. Not only was it hilarious, but it was dead on about our culture and the various meanings of the “F” word. It means whatever we want it to mean. In Britain, it refers to cigarettes. In America, it often refers to d-bags. And they’ve done exactly what they set out to do: spark some good discussions about it. And make us laugh. Well done, boys, well done.
I agree that the episode wasn’t that funny, but, as someone born in the ’80s, I understand their point that “bad words” just aren’t as big of a deal to our generation as they were to previous generations. It’s the same with the b-word and the n-word. Older generations are so busy trying to stop the usage of them, they fail to realize the words have lost much of their power as slurs.
You’re in idiot. By your second paragraph it was obvious that you didn’t understand the episode. Throughout the show the four boys were making fun of people who didn’t understand the new meaning of the word. YOU. YOU Ken Tucker. YOU are the people they’re making fun. I don’t understand how you don’t get it.
so Ken you had not problem w/SP trashing dead celebs (among many other topics they took on), but you get your panties in a bunch about THIS? F-OFF!!!!
I thought it was great, and I know some “f” people and their bikes. They were texting me the whole episode saying, oh crap, now people are going to yell this at us, but they were laughing the whole time. I agree – don’t review South Park if you aren’t going to find anything they say or do funny.
Go watch F***y Guy instead, you bald old fart- it’s more your speed obviously!
You and everyone else criticizing Ken, you’re all just stupid. He’s actually a big fan of South Park and he’s written many posts praising the show. And he usually ridicules Family Guy and criticizes how it’s nowhere near as good as South Park. So big deal, he didn’t like one episode. Why is that a reason to be so nasty?
You took the words right out of my mouth.
I am a big fan of South Park and I agree with Ken. This episode was not funny in the least bit. It just felt like the entire show was screaming MESSAGE so loud that it forgot to be funny. And, the making history thing at the end? Just random, over the top nonsense.
Yikes. I agree with many of the commenters here about words having only as much power/meaning as we give them and words sticking around so people might as well take ownership of them, etc. And I also thought it was a funny episode; not their funniest ever, but still funny. BUT there’s no call to be so rude to Ken Tucker. Dude gave his honest opinion, which is his job. It’s not his job to like everything everybody else likes. We can discuss calmly whether he missed the entire point or has different comedy tastes than we do, but we don’t need to tell him to change jobs. That’s ridiculous. Ken Tucker, I may disagree with you sometimes, but I respect your opinions and appreciate your two cents, especially when we’re on opposite sides of a debate because it’s always healthy to understand different points of view. I didn’t think of the episode as gay-baiting, but I can see now how it might come across that way. Personally, I was focused more on making fun of those obnoxious biker gangs, which I found hilarious because I hate them too, and the episode DID capture exactly what it’s like to have your day interrupted by their attention-whoring engine-revving.
it was an ok ep but really-there should have been @ least ONE swipe @ sons of anarchy!it WAS an ep featuring a bike club and that is one of the more intriguing show on tv.it was funny but c’mon-the jokes were right there!
This is just like Isaac Hayes getting miffed when the Scientology episode aired – make fun of everyone except my own personal little niche. Then it’s not funny. Get bent, Tucker.
you are exactly the type of person south park is making fun of in this episode. Im glad you didnt like it
I thought the episode was great! Sure, there are lots of cheap laughs from using a taboo word. But, South Park also has a message that words only have the meaning we give them and language changes with usage.
Wow, this actually was a very funny and relevant episode of South Park.
Yes, no one can argue that F@g is a work used sometimes in a derogatory way against gays. but it also is a cigarette and to be honest. most people don’t use it in those way anymore.
South Park hit it dead on, inconsiderate Douchbags are F-g’s. it is time to not consider it gay slang anymore.
common day use is shifting, whether people want to admit it or not. people under the age of 30, and much more under 20, agree with South Park.
Sad thing is that your commentary just doesn’t get how funny the episode was. it really was a great one.
I could really relate to this. I live in the city that is the home of Harley, and can’t stand sitting outside in the summer. I have been calling them Harley F**** for years. Thank you South Park for letting everyone know what obnoxious d-bags they are.
Ken Tucker you sir are a idiot.