'South Park' vs. Lucas and Spielberg: Too far?

Never mind "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report," the most welcome Comedy Central program this election season just might be "South Park."

The series has been on a roll for the past four/five seasons, and whether turning an alien invasion into an examination of immigration, or leprechauns into targets of terrorism, "South Park" has been presenting relatively reasoned examinations of cultural issues.

Until, perhaps, last night. "South Park" has missed out on skewering this summer's pop-culture events, and last night, the episode was on the attack. As dark and twisted as "The Dark Knight" was, "South Park" was just as aggressively over the top.

Returning with new episodes as part of its 12th season, "South Park" didn't level its aim at presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain (fingers are crossed for such an episode to be forthcoming). Instead, the series had Hollywood heavyweights George Lucas and Steven Spielberg directly in sights.

Oh, there was also a paranoid Cartman convinced that China's Olympic opening ceremony telegraphed an attack on the United States, but Cartman's mockery of Chinese stereotypes was almost an afterthought after Matt Stone and Trey Parker completely dismantled the worldwide hit "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

"We all saw it happen," says the handicapped Jimmy, discussing "The Crystal Skull" as if it's a personal tragedy. "Do you remember that scene with Indiana in the refrigerator? It didn't make any sense, Stan."

From there, an excited Stan sits down to watch the latest film in a dream sequence/nightmare, but soon has to warn Indiana Jones that Spielberg and Lucas are nearby. And then in a series of film parodies, Indy's pants come off.

The boys of "South Park" spend much of the episode struggling to come to grips with the raping of Indiana Jones. In its rave review of the episode, IGN wrote that "South Park" went "beyond offensive and into some sort of hyper-offensive stratosphere," all of it hilarious.

Indeed, each scene builds upon the other, with Spielberg and Lucas eventually becoming two rednecks in the woods who demand Indy "squeal like a pig" as the pair humiliates and degrades a cinematic icon. A Stormtrooper gets it even worse, prompting the "South Park" police to lock up the directors to prevent such travesties from happening again.

Not that anyone didn't see this coming. Parker and Stone tried to warn Spielberg and Lucas from even making a fourth "Indiana Jones" flick. Back in 2002, the series took the two to task for re-editing their films for the worse, hoping to prevent a ruining of "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

But was continually -- and graphically -- having Spielberg and Lucas violently rape Indiana Jones too far? "He's gonna do it right there!" shouts a cartoon Spielberg in one scene, holding back Indy's hands over a pinball machine. Or was seeing a Stormtrooper completely defiled still easier to swallow than having to watch Shia LaBeouf swing like a monkey, or worse, inserting aliens into the film?

Show Tracker put a call in to Lucasfilm to try to get their thoughts (ha!), but in the meantime, do you side with "South Park," or those behind the "Crystal Skull" on this one? Coming a few days after The Times' Hero Complex wrote that "Indy 5" is still a possibility, it might be time to make your voice known. 

-- Todd Martens

Photos: http://www.southparkstudios.com/

Comments

[Johnny]

What do you expect from the folks who brought us "Hankie The Christmas Poo"?

[i hate south park]

south park is stupid. they have the right to make it and people have the right to watch it, but there is no way in hell i let my kids watch it. rape is never a funny topic. ever since i heard the sick one about the kid in his dad's bed i knew that south park was something totally trashy.

unfortunately, my 18 like it and thinks it's funny *rolls eyes*

[avoca]

South Park rocks! It is perfect genius. I feel sorry for anyone who chooses to be offended by it. Their loss.(And, I understood this review just fine..it was "spot on"!, who are these people picking it apart?"Na na you got the names messed up, oh boy, I'm smarter and you have the job Todd! Proof the world is f'd" Too funny.

[Kyle]

I thought it was a great episode but I have seen better. The rape scenes went a little too far but the show is known for its explicit and graphic humor so I don't understand why it is such a huge deal. I Totally agree with the message though; it should have been left alone.

[Drew]

First, what the hell kind of choices are those the author provided for the poll question? Second, if you're offended by the South Park episode, then too damn bad. Get over yourself. No one guaranteed you a lifetime of never being offended. So you're offended. So what? You'll live.

[fanny go lightly]

My god!

Get a life, it's a cartoon, it didn't happen. Worry about things that actually happen.

I bet most people out their don't worry about where their kids are playing or whether their kids are taking drugs or stealing or vandalizing other peoples property.

There is something called the OFF SWITCH or channel changer.

If you don't like it then change channel or better still GET A LIFE.

There is nothing wrong with a bit of mockery.

Turn on a comedy show and 99% of them mock the rednecks in Nebraska. Yes they know who they are....

People don't write in and whine about that.

People make fun of the mexican's. I don't see the mexican's complaining.

People make hateful comments about Obama Barrack. Does he give a crap. No and many of those comments are down right racist and they are being made by real uninformed idiots.

Let these guys have a bit of fun making fun of other people. There is nothing wrong with Sattire.

[Twig Boy]

how stupid, you laugh and don't care about all the racism that's been in the episodes like the making fun of Chinese, Afghani, Africans, Rednecks, and Gays and whatever other groups made fun of - but then when it's rape - oh no that's too far.

Part of the fun in South Park is that no group is really protected, they know that they have to make fun of everyone otherwise it becomes bad. If you only select a few groups and make fun of them its unfair - but if you make fun of all groups then it's perfectly fine. Plus they're not making fun of rape here they're just saying something allegorical.

The show has all sorts of themes, they've made light of murder, child paedophilia, drunk driving, racism, stealing, maiming, it goes on. So long as they continue to do this, when no one else will, it's fine.

[FilthyHarry]

Too far? Are you insane? Are you aware of what SouthPark has done in the past? Suggesting that skewing Spielberg & Lucas is some how too far is just ridiculous, ESPECIALLY in light of the far more blatantly yet nonetheless run-of-the-mill (for SouthPark) racist plot line about China. Sheesh! talk about mixed up priorities. I think Spielberg & Lucas will be just fine, and I'm sure it won't stop them from raping Indy again in Raiders 5.

[Kevin]

Because it was MALE rape - no one will really care. But if it was FEMALE rape the government would have gone after this. Oh the freedom of the West, isn't it great?

[miguel]

while watching this ep i laughed so hard i actually threw up a lil bit of spaghetti.

[mmouse]

Thank goodness, there are still some non-obama zombies in America!!! Its so great to hear normal people not being afraid of offending someone who has some entitlement that makes them more important than everyone else. I'm afraid the days of free speech for all, not just the obama-chosen is soon to be over. I will cherish all the insensitive, rude, irreverant words written freely here today!

[Jonathan]

Nope, I just thought it was a clever way of poking fun at the 4th Indy movie. That's about how me and friends felt after seeing it: like we'd seen something terrible that took away some of our innocence. The rape scenes made me cringe a little, but not much more than when I was watching the Crystal Skull.

[T]

No longer a fan of the show so I don't watch it. Was funny many years ago but the show has jumped the shark. It's like they are trying too hard to be funny. Should have quit when they were ahead....

[sgh]

I thought that whole thing was disgusting. I only saw a few seconds of it while channel surfing and unfortunately saw them trying to take his pants off and a few minutes later I flip through the channel again and they are raping him! They should take that show off the air. I can't believe they let that crap on the airwaves on Comedy Central. Maybe they should move it to Skinemax or something. Another reason to cancel my cable service and just watch shows on iTunes and Hulu.

[Jake]

I agree. It's despicable what those guys did to Indiana. To rape a movie icon like that. Spielberg and Lucas, you should be ashamed of yourselves.

[Darrell]

I personally think the episode where Sadam is having anal sex with Satan beat this one.

[Vanessa]

Seriously they've already made an episode about going "too far" when they made that episode with family guy & The Simpsons.

What makes this that different? It's a good movie but I found that episode like any other. I thought that scene kind of stupid, but nothing I could hold against it.

[Keir]

It was a lazy, forced and ill-contrived attempt at humour. It didn't help that I doubt grade school kids \knew who Indiana Jones is by now to get worked up by past exploits; my students certainly aren't familiar with the original Star Wars films.

[jwsct]

Such consensus on the divinity of Trey and Matt constitutes conformity at it's lowest level.
Truth? I can't find dissenting opinion in this echo chamber. How can Trey and Matt be so unquestionably dead on by the standards of those who vaulty "question everything" to it's ludicrous conclusion?

In reality, this string of comments is such 18-30 year-old testosterone induced acid reflux, it is hard to imagine you ever seeing the cesspool created by your regurgitated "sophisticate" slop.

Great. The Aristocrats goes mainstream, and we have nothing left to satire. Dung succumbs to diminishing returns, and leaves us blank, banal, and squirming in our own sartorial saliva.

Trey and Matt foul the air and your nostrils inhale perfume. The sycophants suck-up the satire like a vacuum hoovering up rover's vomit. The Chunkier the better.
It is here you all drink your own bathwater and declare it vintage.

Wake up! The South Park emperors have no cloths, just rancid old undies, retreaded endlessly with patchwork skidmark coverings.

I can't wait for the fodder flung at this post. You're so predictable...lemmings really. And smelly one at that.

[fabian]

rape is not a laughing matter, yet speilberg and lucas did something much worse in 'crystal skull.' stone and parker may have depicted fictional rape, but lucasfilms raped classical fiction.