Review written by Christian Garcia
On the 5th Day of Christmas, good Cee Gee gave to me: A Very South Park Christmas!!
For today's review, we're going down to South Park and having ourselves a time!
Background:
South Park is the best animated comedy on television today and has a great reputation for their Christmas specials! Rather than choose just one, I thought I would take a look back at my favorite ones as they do have quite a few.
My Thoughts:
I am going to review each special in the order in which they aired. I will say now, if you are not a fan of South Park or don’t have the stomach for some of its humor, I totally understand if you do not check any of these out. If you are a fan, I’m sure you’ve already seen these and have fun looking back on them with me.
Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo (S1 Ep9)
The first South Park Christmas special is considered by many fans to be one of South Park’s most classic episodes and one that helped the show surge in popularity. It introduced the world to one of its most unlikely Christmas icons, Mr. Hankey. When it originally aired, it was the highest rated episode of South Park up until that point and creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone believe it played a crucial role in the show becoming the phenomenon that it was.
The special itself feels like a tribute/parody of the classic Charlie Brown Christmas but of course coated with the South Park humor. Kyle feels excluded being the only Jewish kid among his friends and not being able to celebrate in the Christmas festivities. He sings the classic song, “The Lonely Jew on Christmas”. His only solace is his visit from Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo. Sadly, none of his friends or family believe that Mr. Hankey is real, and it leads to a lot of misunderstandings and toilet humor. It also serves as a clever satire on political correctness and religious sensitivity which helps it hold up, especially in the PC climate of today.
It's classic old school South Park at its finest and a special worth checking out every year.
Mr. Hankey’s Christmas Classic (S3 Ep15)
Mr. Hankey’s Christmas Classics is not a story driven episode because, well there is no story. It’s just a fun half hour of funny Christmas music numbers performed by the inhabitants of South Park. They feature the ear worm inducing “Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel” performed by Kyle, “Carol of the Bells” by Mr. Mackey, and a very funny Christmas medley performed by Jesus and Santa Claus.
This is a special to put on when you want to just kick back, relax in cozy PJs, drink some cocoa and listen to some funny and at times insane Christmas songs. The songs are based off the album Mr. Hankey’s Christmas Classics and they are arranged and put together very well. I even have the album on my Christmas Spotify list and it plays in rotation every year.
I also want to point out the final number where Mr. Hankey and the South Park gang sing “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” which features a touching tribute to late voice-actor Mary Kay Bergman, the original voice of the female characters. The song itself is a nice final number but the tribute is a nice touch that keeps me coming back to this special every year. Oh, and we mustn’t forget the post credit fight between the news anchor and the frizzies…
A Very Crappy Christmas (S4 Ep17)
In this special, we see the boys teaming up with Mr. Hankey and his new family to spread Christmas cheer to South Park. The town’s Christmas spirit is down with them focusing more on family and togetherness rather than on shopping and presents. The boys decide to create their own animated Christmas special to spread Christmas cheer. However, they soon find out that creating an animated special is not as easy as it looks.
This episode is a fun one because it puts the boys through the process that creators Stone and Parker went through to create The Spirit of Christmas, their original short that led to the creation of South Park. It was fun watching them reference the original piece even mocking how the boy original voices sounded. I also love the opening scene where Kyle and Ike wait for Mr. Hankey. It’s subtle with them just sitting and waiting while a beautiful instrumental version of Silent Night plays. It’s a simple scene but it’s one that always gets me in the Christmassy mood.
We also get to meet Mr. Hankey’s family with his alcoholic wife, Autumn, and their nuggets, Cornwallis, Amber, and Simon. We even see Cornwallis struggle to with his place in the world which leads to a funny song number with his father known as “The Circle of Poo.”
This episode packs the fun hijinks of South Park, a fun tutorial on animation, and is one to get you back in the Christmas spirit.
Red Sleigh Down (S6 Ep17)
Now imagine a Christmas special that includes Santa, Mr. Hankey, Jesus, and guns, you’re getting exactly what it sounds like. This special hilariously parodies the film Black Hawk Down, as the boys, Santa, and Mr. Hankey attempt to bring Christmas to the people of Iraq. The plan goes awry and results in Santa getting shot down in Iraq and the boy and Mr. Hankey having to enlist the help of Jesus Christ to rescue him. This episode also marks the return of Kenny who had been absent for all of the 6th season.
There is not much more to say than that this is a more chaotic and fun Christmas adventure that I always tune into every Christmas. It has action, humor, death, resurrections, and even a Poo-Choo train.
Woodland Critter Christmas (S8 Ep14)
Last, but most certainly not least is the special that I and most fans agree is the best of them all: Woodland Critter Christmas. This episode features Stan and the hijinks he gets into when he encounters a crew of Woodland Critters who love Christmas. And as Forrest Gump says, “and that’s all I have to say about that.”
A big part of why this special is so great is because of the twists and turns that it has, and I would not dare spoil for anyone who hasn’t seen it. The first viewing of this special is an experience that will have you laughing and going wtf many many times. If you’re a fan, you’ve already seen this special, probably a bunch of times. The most fun one will have watched this special is the first time watching it and then watching a friend’s reaction when they watch it for the first time. It is not only the best Christmas episode but is easily one of the best South Park episodes ever. This is a special that I always take time to watch every year.
Sorry I couldn’t talk more about it but trust me just watch it and I promise you that the experience alone is worth it.
Conclusion:
South Park has proven for years why they are the best animated comedy on TV and their Christmas specials have played a major role in that popularity. Their clever writing and satire have created Christmas experiences that I absolutely love and I cannot recommend these episodes enough, especially Woodland Critter Christmas! If you love the outlandish humor of South Park, these are the specials for you!
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