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South Park (1997-Present)

Few television shows, let alone cartoons, explode into mainstream media and television. South Park barreled through the censors and crash landed on Comedy Central with an hysterically crude thud. Not since Beavis and Butthead have viewers seen an animated adventure that caused both controversy and side-splitting laughter.

The satire that drove the humor in South Park was a direct punch in the face of conservative America, and the show never once hesitated to poke fun at serious topics and social issues, usually in an over-the-top manner. Homosexuality, religion, politics--no topic was safe from the comedic lashing South Park would lay down. The animation was incredibly remedial, but that didn’t stop millions of viewers from tuning in each week. While many companies were spending big bucks for unprecedented graphics and top notch animation, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of South Park, opted to go for simplicity and let the stories sell themselves.

The episodes themselves were not silly, nor were they ignorant. They were far from typical cartoons. The plots for each episode were extremely smart. A lot of the criticism the show drew came from those that didn’t see the underlying themes of many of the shows. While many episodes, on the surface, seemed rough, rude and ridiculous, so many of those same episodes hammered down on the importance of really serious issues—just in an underhanded sort of way. The show has become a cultural phenomenon, and has spawned feature length movies, video games, CDs, toys, tees and so much merch, it would fill up the South Park Cows stadium.

Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and Kenny rocked the ratings each week. Adding in recurring characters like Chef, Mr. Hankey, Mr. Garrison, and of course, Kyle’s mom, was just the formula for success that Comedy Central needed. The show really put Comedy Central on the map and in doing so, became its highest viewed show ever. As we draw near to the conclusion of the recap of South Park, I must bid you, the readers, a fond farewell. So, in the words of Eric Cartman, “Screw you guys—I’m going home!”

Want more South Park?  Visit the official site or watch full episodes online. Sweet.