South Park: good show or too preachy?

[Guerrilla22]

I'm sure everyone has noticed how preachy South Park has gotten, I like the show, however I could do without some of the preaching, especially since a lot of the messages seem to be from a somewhat conservative viewpoint.

[Severian]

Yeah...every episode of this filthy, filthy cartoon has to end with a preachy little libertarian moral recited by some cartoon tyke. Otherwise I usually like it, too.

[Jesus Christ!]

i think it's good and would be stupid if it didn't have morals at the end. Then it would be liek "drawn togther" which is the worst fucking show ive ever seen.

[OneBrickOneVoice]

I used to like South Park alot but now it's lost alot of its flare along with the Daily Show and Family Guy. The only time I really watch tv anymore is for the news and hockey lol.

[peaccenicked]

South Park is funny, the moral endings are merely a cover up for the crudeness in the show.

[LoneRed]

Originally posted by Jesus Christ!@Apr 21 2006, 07:30 PM
i think it's good and would be stupid if it didn't have morals at the end. Then it would be liek "drawn togther" which is the worst fucking show ive ever seen.
no... Family Guy is still worse

[Hegemonicretribution]

I don't personally look for morality in south park, and if I did stumble across some, I would like to think that I wouldn't take it seriously. I always took those little endings as generally satirical, ironic little pieces of humour.

I actually quite disliked the older south parks, but have seen a few of the newer episodes at friends houses, and found them to be rather funny. Part of me watches the show to see how far badly drawn cartoons can push it, and part of me watches it for the ridiculous messages and views it represents, not one part of me watches it seriously.

[bloody_capitalist_sham]

Yeah i remember reading an interview with matt stone and he said they have to have a moral last part or the show wouldnt be on telly.

Go figure

[VermontLeft]

i never fucking got south park.

i just couldnt get over the bad animation and the wierd ass, i dont know, style or whatever.

also the voices are fucked up and it never seemd that funy to me.

but whatever, if you like it watch it, although now that i hear that its conservative or "libertarian" im definitely not motivated to start watching! :P

[RebelDog]

I think your best to ignore the politics of South Park and just enjoy it, because it can be exceptionally funny. Its irreverence is its greatest asset. As for losing its touch, I disagree. I watched the very latest episode 'Manbearpig' last night and it was very good. It had all the usual silliness and the main theme was taking the piss out of Al Gore. The latest series has been among the best in my view.

[Hegemonicretribution]

Originally posted by [email protected] 27 2006, 11:05 PM
Yeah i remember reading an interview with matt stone and he said they have to have a moral last part or the show wouldnt be on telly.
I suppose in a way it is similar to Jerry Springer, people do not watch for a lame and ironic moral wrap up, they watch for the stuff that leads up to it.

If people take the messages they get from cartoons seriously then maybe they shouldn't be allowed a telly :P

[Floyd.]

1) Mormons (dum-de-dum-dum-dum)
2) Scientologists

This alone justifies the existence of the show!

[Raul]

The preaching is what makes the show good. Without all of the preaching, it would just be stupid humor. It shows the hypocrisy of people and it goes into subjects other shows would not. I find it funny. :)

[More Fire for the People]

South Park is shit because they're serious. They advocate the message "racism isn't okay but we should tolerate racism". No the fuck we shouldn't.

[Jimmie Higgins]

Originally posted by Hopscotch [email protected] 29 2006, 07:20 PM
South Park is shit because they're serious. They advocate the message "racism isn't okay but we should tolerate racism". No the fuck we shouldn't.
I can't get past the libertarian self-rightiousness hackery of the show. "Family Guy" or "the Daily Show" may have the occasional joke that offends me but "south park" themes tend to always be:

1. Misanthropy (people are just stupid and irrational - except for the show creators and corporations)

2. Everybody is bigoted so racism dosn't matter; hoo-ray, this gives us justification to make fun of jews and black people and homosexuals!

3. Religion is stupid (ok, this one isn't too bad for me - then again, Ayn Rand was anti-religion and that won't be enough to make me enjoy "Atlas Shrugged".

4. When people try and change the world, things only get worse because (see the first point about misanthropy). So it is best not to try and change things... the implication being that it's best to leave everything to the market and large corporations.

If you don't believe me, please let me know of any episodes where the target of the satire is big business or the chaos of capitalism... I can't think of any, but without even being a regular watcher of the series, I can recall at least 5 different episodes where they make fun of social movements and protesters.

In social satire, there are two kinds of comedy:
A) the comedy of superiority (making fun of people around or below you who just don't get it - "who are these people?")
B) the comedy at superiority (making fun of our supposed betters "to take em down a peg")

South Park consitantly makes fun of people the creators feel are not as enlightened (i.e. libertarian) as them. The Simpsons and the Daily Show tend to save their vitriol for our self-proclaimed superiors (despite the fact that the Daily Show, like South Park is run and created by people who are libertarian in political orientation).

[More Fire for the People]

Gravedigger, good points but The Daily Show isn't targeted towards libertarians. Perhaps you are thinking of Real Time with the libertarian host Bill Mahr.

[Jimmie Higgins]

Originally posted by Hopscotch [email protected] 29 2006, 07:47 PM
Gravedigger, good points but The Daily Show isn't targeted towards libertarians. Perhaps you are thinking of Real Time with the libertarian host Bill Mahr.
No, I didn't mean targeted to libertarians, I mean the show creators are libertarians. A few weeks ago I heard an interview with the executive producer of the Daily Show and Colbert Report and, when asked about the political orientaion of writers and actors on the show, he said that most tended to be (I'm assuming small-"L") libertarians.

After hearing that, I can see it. Remember, even (big L) Libertarians criticize the war, both Republicans and Democrats, and even the excesses and corruption of big-business like Enron and Halliburton.

I suppose in the current politcial climate and the fact that most writers of shows like the Simpsons and Daily show are probably a few years out of Ivy League or other eliete colleges, it's either Libertarian or Democrat.

The other thing the producer said that I was kinda shocked by was the Stephen Colbert is actually a pretty devout Catholic even though he created the "This Week in God" segment that mocks religions.

But I really don't limit my entertainment to people who have the same world-view as me (although it's nice when art or entertainment does have this like the Clash or Dead Prez or other left-win bands). South Park is just way to self-rightious with their bad politcs for me to enjoy the show.

[Lawton]

Its just a bit of fun. I like it.

[Red Menace]

Originally posted by [email protected] 17 2006, 06:16 PM
I'm sure everyone has noticed how preachy South Park has gotten, I like the show, however I could do without some of the preaching, especially since a lot of the messages seem to be from a somewhat conservative viewpoint.
how is it conservative?? ;)

[Severian]

Originally posted by Gravedigger+Apr 29 2006, 02:19 PM--> (Gravedigger @ Apr 29 2006, 02:19 PM)
Hopscotch [email protected] 29 2006, 07:47 PM
Gravedigger, good points but The Daily Show isn't targeted towards libertarians. Perhaps you are thinking of Real Time with the libertarian host Bill Mahr.
No, I didn't mean targeted to libertarians, I mean the show creators are libertarians. A few weeks ago I heard an interview with the executive producer of the Daily Show and Colbert Report and, when asked about the political orientaion of writers and actors on the show, he said that most tended to be (I'm assuming small-"L") libertarians.

After hearing that, I can see it. Remember, even (big L) Libertarians criticize the war, both Republicans and Democrats, and even the excesses and corruption of big-business like Enron and Halliburton. [/b]
I don't think it comes through to the shows much.

The message of both the Daily Show and the Colbert Report seems solidly liberal to me. Certainly they are pro-Democratic Party. When they make fun of Democrats, it's usually for ineffectiveness, for not being better able to beat Bush and the Republicans.

And they're not against the war in Iraq as some libertarians are; Stewart especially makes it clear he just thinks Bush is waging the war ineffectively. That's a typical liberal position.

And unlike South Park, they do sometimes make fun of business policies and decisions, and imply support for liberal economic policies. That's atypical for libertarians, who could more accurately be named "propertarians."

Libertarians typically blame everything bad on the state, not on business or the market.

Stewart had some anti-Bush conservative on who criticized Bush for being pro-"Big Government"; Stewart clearly didn't agree with this guy that government should have much less economic and social role. While any libertarian woulda.

Edit: I just remembered, they had a field interview with a New York libertarian once. They made merciless fun of him, with his project to hand out toy guns in Harlem, which was soundly rejected by Harlem residents. The Daily Show showed footage of an apparently spontaneous counterdemonstration that formed when he went to hand out toy guns there.

[bringitdownnow]

Originally posted by Jesus Christ!@Apr 21 2006, 07:36 PM
i think it's good and would be stupid if it didn't have morals at the end. Then it would be liek "drawn togther" which is the worst fucking show ive ever seen.
give me a break man,
southpark AND drawn together are both hella funny and i think that you guys are all kinda lame if adults must sit around and talk about wether a tv show is funny or not...

[Wiesty]

south parks hilarious, they can take anything in society, and make a satire of it

[Red Axis]

South Park is a racist show made up by a bunch of immature people who were probably sitting around in the Neo-Nazi club when they were kids.

[Red Menace]

Originally posted by Red [email protected] 1 2006, 07:21 PM
South Park is a racist show made up by a bunch of immature people who were probably sitting around in the Neo-Nazi club when they were kids.
How the hell is it racist?

[che's long lost daughter]

Originally posted by [email protected] 29 2006, 04:40 PM
1) Mormons (dum-de-dum-dum-dum)
2) Scientologists

This alone justifies the existence of the show!
Floyd??? :o You are alive????



South Park is a racist show made up by a bunch of immature people who were probably sitting around in the Neo-Nazi club when they were kids.


How can you say it is racist? Maybe you base that on anti jew jokes but don't you think it is just showing what is really happening in real life and the creators are just making fun of the situation? The show is a satire for chrissakes. Not because we people are into politics, we expect every show we watch to be political too. South Park is meant to mock almost everything that is politically correct. It was created to make people laugh. And all we need to do is to enjoy and laugh at it. This is out of the topic but if people enjoy watching porn for the purpose of arousal, they shouldn't expect porn to be political in case the viewers are politically inclined.

[socialistpunk]

I only like it when it takes the piss out of the american goverment and cristanity because it some times goes too preachy and i hate it for that. But its good when Kenny dies in funny ways like bleeding to death from save the panet activists which is kind of fucked up.

[*[email protected]*]

I just change the channel to somthing else when it gets to the end. The ending morals are always predictable.

[Red Heretic]

Originally posted by Red [email protected] 1 2006, 11:01 PM
the Neo-Nazi club
Uhhh... dude. The writers are Jewish....