"South Park: The Complete Ninth Season"
Comedy Central
$49.99
Now available
Grade: B+
Who knew that Trey Parker and Matt Stone's cute, foul-mouthed cartoon kids would still be making headlines after all this time? Comedy Central just released the ninth season of the popular show on DVD, and it contains some of the series' best and most controversial bits.
The most notable show in the set is "Trapped in the Closet," the Scientology episode that resulted in the departure of musician/Scientologist Isaac Hayes. Hayes, who voiced Chef, the children's cafeteria cook, quit "South Park" shortly after the episode aired. Too bad, considering the strength of the character, but it's a testament to Parker and Stone's artistic courage that put the show on the air. In any case, any opportunity to diss Tom Cruise, John Travolta and R. Kelly in the same episode is totally worth taking.
Another controversial highlight is the Emmy Award-winning "Best Friends Forever," which tackled the Terry Schiavo debate in the zany, exaggerated way only "South Park" is capable of doing. When Kenny dies, Heaven gives him command of its army in a war against Hell. But Heaven loses its general when South Park doctors bring the boy back to a persistent vegetative state. Kind of puts things in a new light, doesn't it?
There are definitely moments in the set where "South Park" crosses the lines of decency. This includes an episode in which mentally challenged Jimmy has a problem accidentally "pitching the tent" in social situations.
Another episode has Mr. Garrison going for a sex change and uses presumably real footage of the operation. All said, that kind of material is pretty par for the course in a Parker/Stone project. Those who haven't been that offended by the pair before likely won't be offended here either.
Much of the show's humor comes from its episodes absurd premises. In the aforementioned sex change episode, Kyle decides to become a black basketball player and his dad decides to become a dolphin. When Kyle's dad, a lawyer by trade, threatens to sue a sports stadium for not offering dolphin restrooms, the stadium worker retorts, "You're a law-phin?"
In all, the DVD box set holds 14 episodes on three discs. Like previous "South Park" box sets, season nine is minimal in the way of bonus features. There are no documentaries or deleted scenes to be found here. Parker and Stone do commentaries on each episode, but these do not stretch much beyond the first five minutes of any given episode. That's disappointing, considering the amount of controversy that surrounded "Trapped in the Closet."
Parker and Stone have kept the "South Park" show alive all these years by keeping the show relevant. The show's twists and perspectives on current issues give it an edge that should keep it going for many more years to come. The DVD set may be lacking in extras, but those looking for a good laugh could do much worse than to pick up this latest release.
