For the past few years, South Park's been getting pretty bleh, but tonight's episode was a pretty good shot at Glenn Beck, and also threw a little jab at Sarah Palin. So, if you don't normally watch it (and aren't easily offended by the usual non-PC South Park stuff), you may want to check this one out. Ya know FOX is getting ridiculous if even a show that inspired the term "South Park Republicans" is making fun of their shit now.
This'll be a pretty short 'n' fast 'n' artless diary, because, really, there's not a lot that can be said, but Reader's Digest Condensed Version spoilers will follow after the fold for the curious who don't wanna wait for the rerun or don't actually want to watch the show for whatever reason.
The basic plot had the kid who did the school announcements being killed in a terrible (and moronically absurd) misunderstanding, and Cartman conniving his way into the job. Cartman being his usual sociopathic self, he abuses the privilege and turns the morning intercom announcements into a radio (and then TV) shock-jock show, which he uses to spread all sorts of irresponsible rumors about 4th grade class president, Wendy Testaburger. She's just doing a responsible job, but to get attention (and because he's an asshole) he accuses her of being a slut, imposing socialist tyranny on the school, murdering Smurfs, etc.... or does he, since, like Glenn Beck, he's "just asking questions."
Cartman does the whole Beck shtick -- the chalkboard with the letters that spell things out, the obnoxious insistence that he's not really claiming anything but only "asking questions" and therefore has no responsibility for anyone believing his lies, selling books filled with slander, acting like a narcissistic lunatic ass-clown... he even starts developing Beck's "used Q-Tip" hair coloring, just in case anybody had any doubts this is a Beck slam. A lot of the stupider kids in the school (including Smurf-loving Butters) believe everything Cartman says just because he has access to a microphone. Just like Beck's real audience.
Then Cartman makes a movie about Wendy killing Smurfs, which leads Cartman's followers to harass Wendy and pee on her house. So, she finally goes on his show, pretends what he's saying is true, claims Cartman was in on the whole thing, and (shades of Sarah Palin) resigns as class president so she can promote her new book, Going Rogue. Cartman's stuck being the class president and cries when the new morning-announcement kid (a Casey Kasem knockoff) starts making up stuff about him. The end.
South Park hasn't done anything that's really hilarious in years and this doesn't change that, but this time they at least picked a worthy target, and it was amusing enough.