South Park Season 25.4 gets an A for effort, but due to the disappointing lack of funny, it just squeaks by with a C-
South Park Season 25.4 “Back to the Cold War” comes out in the middle of perhaps the most troubling time in American history since 1945. Russian President Putin has invaded Ukraine. Many Ukrainians are suffering, and we are all praying for them. South Park has a different type of prayer. By poking fun at Putin and the Russians. However, while their message is clear, it just isn’t quite as funny as it should be.
TRUTH IS STRANGER THAN FICTION
Within the last couple of seasons, South Park has had some occasional episodes that aren’t as funny as the classic era episodes. And this is the finest example of that. The storyline is lackluster, as the usual series formula that normally works, falls completely flat. South Park is known for its brilliant representation of ideas and events through silly substitution. Here it’s the Russo-Ukraine War presented as dressage, or a horse tournament. And Butters is trying to get his mare, Melancholia, to perform and not poop right before the big jump. The jump doesn’t exist, and Butter’s main competition is a Russian kid, who his father despises as he hates Putin and the Russians.
MR. MACKEY
Meanwhile, Mr. Mackey is stuck in the past. Reliving the 80s and his lost youth through primitive 80’s style hacking of the military; the Cold War bomb drills, and doing his hacking from his childhood room. Which is over-exaggeratedly stuck in the 1980s. It has some merit in the fact that it does touch on current events. But I only found myself genuinely laughing every time Butter’s pony pooped and then proceeded to, uh…. get involved with another pony. South Park is no stranger to crude and disgusting, and this childish goof could not have been more of that. Yet, I could not stop laughing at the silly sequence, and that honestly is the only thing that saves the episode for me.
POLITICAL SATIRE
I also smirked at the end, when Putin’s “nostalgia” is revealed to be a lack of well, penile youth shall we say. And the fact that he is bare-chested with defined nipples and chest hair pokes fun at his real-life strange excursion. Shirtless while riding a horse. It’s amazing to think that that one bizarre incident spawned this crazy satirical mess of Russian spies; Cold Wars, and horses. Honestly, if that psycho watched this episode, he would probably be confused, not angry due to its nebulous representation of what he did (I am of course speaking about Vladimir Putin).
VERDICT
I would give this episode an A for effort. But due to the disappointing lack of funny, it just squeaks by with a C-.
South Park is currently showing on Comedy Central.
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Author
Max Nocerino is a regular Staff Writer for The Future of the Force. He is a passionate Star Wars fan and loves the literature of the galaxy far, far away. Follow him on Twitter where he shares his love of the Force frequently!
