[8.0/10] Leave it to South Park to mash up The WIzard of Oz and a journey to Canada in such a memorable fashion that it only takes about fifteen minutes and still manages to be hilarious and memorable. I remember watching this live, and the big hubbub was about the show integrating longtime quasi-character Saddam Hussein into the big reveal just days after he was captured by U.S. forces. But even without the juice of that topical jolt, this is a stellar episode.
Matt & Trey give the boys strong motivations. Kyle wants to go to Canada to retrieve Ike after the mysterious new Canadian Prime Minister declares that all Canadian adoptees must return to their birth parents. Cartman is roped into the escapade because completing that mission is the only way to stop the town of South Park from being charitable to the Broflovskis on Xmas instead of buying their kids presents. And amusing enough, Stan goes on the trip for his friend, but worries about not having an Xmas adventure (and the punchline is that even after all they do, laments that he didn’t have one.)
The early part of the episode has its issue, mostly centered on the unfunny City Wok stereotype guy, but the plot device to kick things off is strong, and once they get to Canada it’s a blast. The Wizard of Oz song parodies are delightful, and the various Canadian denizens the boys meet who also want to make requests of the new Prime Minister add a fun energy to the trip.
The Saddam reveal still works even divorced from the immediacy of his capture, and framing Scott the Dick in the Wicked Witch role is inspired. I particularly love the ending here, where Kyle gets his brother back by showing his birth parents how much Ike means to him in light of how far he traveled and risked to retrieve his brother, and the running joke of Cartman demanding that he and Kyle “throw down” if they miss Xmas, only to start crying like a baby when he gets one mild smack from Kyle, is just perfect.
Overall, this is another outstanding Xmas outing from South Park, one that uses the holiday as a jumping off point for a truly crazy adventure with an amusing concept and a good throughline. There’s no place like South Park!
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-12-26T01:49:08Z
[8.0/10] Leave it to South Park to mash up The WIzard of Oz and a journey to Canada in such a memorable fashion that it only takes about fifteen minutes and still manages to be hilarious and memorable. I remember watching this live, and the big hubbub was about the show integrating longtime quasi-character Saddam Hussein into the big reveal just days after he was captured by U.S. forces. But even without the juice of that topical jolt, this is a stellar episode.
Matt & Trey give the boys strong motivations. Kyle wants to go to Canada to retrieve Ike after the mysterious new Canadian Prime Minister declares that all Canadian adoptees must return to their birth parents. Cartman is roped into the escapade because completing that mission is the only way to stop the town of South Park from being charitable to the Broflovskis on Xmas instead of buying their kids presents. And amusing enough, Stan goes on the trip for his friend, but worries about not having an Xmas adventure (and the punchline is that even after all they do, laments that he didn’t have one.)
The early part of the episode has its issue, mostly centered on the unfunny City Wok stereotype guy, but the plot device to kick things off is strong, and once they get to Canada it’s a blast. The Wizard of Oz song parodies are delightful, and the various Canadian denizens the boys meet who also want to make requests of the new Prime Minister add a fun energy to the trip.
The Saddam reveal still works even divorced from the immediacy of his capture, and framing Scott the Dick in the Wicked Witch role is inspired. I particularly love the ending here, where Kyle gets his brother back by showing his birth parents how much Ike means to him in light of how far he traveled and risked to retrieve his brother, and the running joke of Cartman demanding that he and Kyle “throw down” if they miss Xmas, only to start crying like a baby when he gets one mild smack from Kyle, is just perfect.
Overall, this is another outstanding Xmas outing from South Park, one that uses the holiday as a jumping off point for a truly crazy adventure with an amusing concept and a good throughline. There’s no place like South Park!