We all know that South Park is famous for lampooning social issues to point out the absurdity of certain culturally accepted narratives/ideologies. But even the best critics are straight up wrong sometimes. What episodes can you think of where the point they’re trying to make is simply incorrect? What issues did they take on that are just too complex or nuanced for their “just use common sense” approach to work?
For me, season 9 finale “Bloody Mary” is the most blatantly wrong. The basic conclusion of “with discipline, so-called ‘alcoholics’ can still drink, just in moderation” has to be the most obvious inspiration for the “my goodness, what an idea. Why didnt I think of that?” meme since “you’re depressed? Just cheer up!” If you can go from heavy drinking every day to drinking socially/in moderation, you are not an alcoholic.
Their framing of AA is even worse imo. If you hadnt guessed already, I’m an alcoholic that is salty at this episode lol. I’ve been thru treatment and been made to go to AA meetings, but I don’t go to meetings now and even walked out on the meetings they made me go to because I did not desire to stop drinking and didnt want to disrespect the people sharing by reading thru it in front of them. But even with my conscious rejection of AA, I can still acknowledge that their message is correct and their method is more tried and true than literally any other approach towards treating alcohol abuse. Its also not religious or anything like a cult. There are no mentions of God in the twelve steps. Anywhere that the episode mentions “God” in the twelve steps, the actual text says “higher power,” and theres an important distinction there. There’s a big misconception out there that AA is a Christian organization, but that is not the case at all. Your “higher power” can be anything you want. It could be the Christian God. It could be Allah. It could be the Pastafarian Spaghetti Monster. It could be the group itself, it could be your family, your friends, your goals, etc. Anything that one can surrender control to because their life has become unmanageable. That might sound cultish to you, but cults usually demand things from their followers, whether it’s time, money, sex, or anything else useful to them. AA requires absolutely nothing but a desire to stop drinking. It literally doesnt even demand sobriety to attend meetings. They just ask that you dont share if impaired. And if “desire to stop drinking required” clashes with “doesnt demand sobriety” to you… well, thats kind of the entire reason that South Park and the “just have discipline” approach are completely wrong about this disease. Also, cults generally have charismatic leaders, a strict hierarchy, and a good deal of secrecy from the outside world. Again, AA has none of this. They aren’t even an official centralized organization. It’s a series of groups formed and run by and for people in the area who need it. There is no profit for the people leading AA meetings or any incentive to do it that is consistent with any cult. It’s just to help people using the method that has worked for almost a hundred years.
And yes, addiction is a disease (even regardless of the physical dependence that develops), contrary to Stan’s claim that “no, cancer is a disease. My dad just needs to drink less.” The episode frames Stan as the straight man dealing with the idiots who believe in alcoholism, but to anyone with any study of or firsthand experience with addiction, he just comes off as the ignorant non-addict who assumes that everyones brain works as normally as his.
The final conversation in the episode between Stan and Randy (which ironically is presented as Randy’s “come to jesus” moment) really sheds light on how ineffective Stan’s approach will be in the long run. He tells Randy that he likes to drink, “so have a drink once in a while. Have two!” as if going 5 days with no drinks proves that he has the discipline to drink responsibly only once in a while. Its funny “discipline” is the buzzword cure they present because anyone who has ever been addicted or been around a recovering addict knows that once they start talking about discipline or will power, its all over lmao. Its literally the most cliche flimsy excuse to NOT get legitimate treatment for addiction. And then when Randy says that maybe he’s the type of person who has to have it all or nothing (which is what an addict is), Stan says no, all or nothing is easy. But anyone who has dealt with substance abuse will tell you that neither all nor nothing are easy lol. Again, that’s kind of the whole reason that people feel the need to seek help with this sort of thing.
The episode ends with Stan and Randy literally walking off into the sunset as if the problem is solved, but Randy is still indicating that he wants to drink as much as possible (“what about twenty [beers]?”) and trying to rationalize it (“does vodka count?”). So the problem is solved by… Randy’s good decision to not drive home drunk this one night? Or Stan telling him no when he verbally expresses to Stan that he still wants to get shitfaced the same day that Stan supposedly permanently convinced him to drink in moderation? What about the next time Randy wants to get plastered and Stan isn’t there to tell him not to drink more or drive home? Btw that next time is gonna be the next day.
I understand that South Park is hardly the show to always have happy endings. But I feel like the one framed as the voice of reason in the show is usually the one that’s actually being reasonable. And tho things don’t always end happily, it’s usually made fairly obvious if the ending is good or bad. But this one seems like the creators genuinely think they’re just smarter than all alcoholics, and the way they present recovering alcoholics kind of supports this. The AA people in this episode say that the meetings are now the most fun thing they do now that they don’t drink. But everything I’ve ever heard from people with years of sobriety is about how much more enjoyable every part of life is now. I know that’s hard to believe (hell, if i could really believe that maybe I’d go to meetings lol), but there is a real sense of positivity from the veterans of the AA community. This depiction really adds to the sense that this episode is written by non alcoholics about how easy it is to simply not be an alcoholic, yet alcohol is still necessary to enjoy life, thus we must drink responsibly. Except it’s poorly thought out and written by people with no experience, whether it be firsthand or scientific. Its reductionist and judgmental in a way that comes across as completely sincere. Does anyone else have an example of them being this ignorant and wrong? Some others that come to mind are comparing gender confirmation surgery to trans racial or trans species surgery and that sex addiction is really just guys being dudes. Hmmm, being ignorant about addiction seems to be a theme here…
First off, thanks for sharing your story. I agree with you the “discipline” aspect of the message is too simplistic and obviously easier said than done. I agree they missed the mark on the final Stan/Randy message. The whole notion of Randy embracing that he’s diseased to the level of being helpless in a wheel chair is pretty funny though. That’s a semantic debate though I would say, whether alcoholism should be considered a disease. I see it as more of a condition personally, but I dunno if the word really matters.
I think the most notorious “bad take” in South Park’s social commentary is Manbearpig, to the point that even Matt and Trey have walked it back and made him real.
Another one they’ve basically walked back is the Harley rider “fag” point. If you listen to the audio commentary, they talk about how they missed the mark. The fact that they don’t have characters use “gay” and “fag” anymore as a substitute for lame/bad/etc speaks volumes too.
Randy in the wheelchair is absolutely hilarious (as is the shaved head) and using “helplessness” as an excuse to just binge drink is definitely the biggest trap in recovery to me. But it is scarily true that once we start we really just cant stop, at least for the day. There is a motto that verges on the cliche that says “one is too many and a thousand is not enough,” but it really is true. Thats why Stan’s “have a drink once in a while. Have two!” line really pisses me off. Cuz my thinking is what the fuck is the point of one or two (or three or four) drinks? If im cut off there then I’ll just be anxious to drink more for the rest of the night and I’d be better off not drinking at all. Call it a disease or a condition or bad choices, but i dont think normal people think that way (at least thats what ive been told). Hell, i had three more drinks while writing this just to make me feel normal.
Was manbearpig originally some sort of denial of climate change? I havent seen the original episode in a while. I assume making it real means acknowledging that Al Gore was (at least mostly) right about climate change.
I actually love the Harley Rider=fag episode lol. The line that “fag” is just too much fun to say rings true to me. The good feeling of using it has nothing to do with gay people (for me at least) but I stopped using it years ago since thats what it technically means. SP used at least some historical evidence to show that it has always been a word for people that society is annoyed by. I think Harley riders might just not have been a big enough demographic to have assigned the new definition to. It was enough to make the point but not enough to make the sentiment stick. With a currently anti-gay slur, we’d need an immensely hatable demographic with enough people to replace the LGBTQ+ community as a target. And they cant be too disadvantaged in the current material world. Maybe crypto or NTF bros. But some form of crypto might actually become the new system in the coming years, so could be back to the drawing board… ah, ever changing humanity
Yes to your manbearpig question, originally they were equating climate change to a fictional creature that didn’t exist (while also making fun of Al Gore for having a hero complex).
As for “fag”, the issue is that there’s just too much baggage, hate and trauma associated with the word for gay people. It’s like the N word but for gay people. It’s just alarming to hear come out of a straight person’s mouth no matter the intent. So, if you call a Harley rider a fag, or anyone really, and a gay person hears it, they’re still gonna think you’re a homophobe for using it. Like you said, it’s too difficult to shift the word onto another group at this point. That being said, it was a funny idea for the episode, and Matt and Trey were definitely well-intentioned which is appreciated, but the idea doesn’t work in reality and isn’t something anyone should actually take seriously or follow.