Once again, Trey Parker and Matt Stone pull no punches with this latest season of “South Park”. This time, the characters of South Park take on Facebook addiction, “Jersey Shore”, Tiger Woods’ sexual addiction, the Food Network and also celebrating their 200th episode and bringing back the 200 celebrities characters they offended. If you enjoy and love the series, you’re definitely going to enjoy this audacious and hilarious fourteenth season of “South Park”.
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TITLE: South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season
DURATION: 308 minutes (14 episodes)
BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition, Dolby TrueHD: English 5.1,, Dolby Digital English 5.1, English Stereo
RATED: NOTE RATED (Note: Episodes have Crude Content, Language May Offend)
COMPANY: Comedy Central/Paramount
RELEASE DATE: April 26, 2011
Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone
FEATURING THE VOICES OF:
Trey Parker (voice of Eric Cartman, Stan Marsh)
Matt Stone (voice of Kyle Broflovski, Leopold ‘Butters’ Stotch, Kenny McCormick)
Mona Marshall (voice of Sheila Broflovski, Linda Stotch)
April Stewart (voice of Liane Cartman, Sharon Marsh, Britney Spears, Wendy Testaburger, Principal Victoria)
All fourteen uncensored episodes from South Park’s fourteenth season are now available in this exclusive three-disc set. Join the boys as they publish award-winning novels, struggle with a ban on fried chicken, fight off an invasion from New Jersey, and reveal the true identity of Mysterion. For them, it’s all part of growing up in South Park!
When an animated series continues for so long, you often hear, “this series is not as enjoyable as before” or “the series has lost its magic” and for “South Park” creators, Trey Park and Matt Stone, I’m sure that it’s not an easy to task to maintain the humor, come up with something fresh, new and relevant to today but also to give what their finicky fans want each year.
Back then, “South Park” could rely on its characters and focus on Stan Marsh and his relationship with girlfriend Wendy, Kyle Broflovski being a Jew, Kenny McCormick being poor or his many untimely deaths and as for Cartman, everything audacious that you can think of. And there was only so much the creators can do by focusing on these characters’ own storyline that they began to introduce more and more characters and sure enough, people started to love the character of the naive Butters Stotch, the handicapped young comedian Jimmy Valmer and the handicapped Timmy who keeps yelling out his own name.
But it’s those episodes that are bold and unexpected that wins the fans over and it’s those episodes that takes pop culture that are so relevant to people today and really mess with it. From going after Tom Cruise, Britney Spears to Director Steven Spielberg and Director George Lucas or taking on the popularity of “World of Warcraft”, for the fourteenth season of “South Park”, Parker and Stone continue that formula by taking on topics such as the fans of NASCAR racing, the people of New Jersey (ala “Jersey Shore”), the popularity of Facebook, hoarding, medicinal marijuana and more.
“South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season” also takes a step forward with its overall look and incorporates more CG with the usual animation we are used to seeing from the series.
But if there is one thing for sure, this latest season of “South Park” continues to press the button on how far a TV show can go on television, will doubt offend many (as well as entertain many) and if you are a loyal fan of the series, you will no doubt laugh hysterically and enjoy these latest 14-episodes.
“South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season” features a total of 14-episodes on two Blu-ray discs. Included are:
Disc 1:
- Episode 1401 – Sexual Healing – When the rich and successful men want to have sex with many women (due to Tiger Woods), the nation’s top scientists must stop the epidemic. But meanwhile, the boys of South Park Elementary are diagnosed as sex addicts.
- Episode 1402 – The Tale of Scrotie McBoogerBalls – The boys are given one of the most notably banned books of all time as a reading assignment but feel that the book is not as vulgar as the things they say in their own personal lives.
- Episode 1403 – Medicinal Fried Chicken – Cartman feels there is a crisis in South Park when all of his favorite fried chicken restaurants become medicinal marijuana shops.
- Episode 1404 – You Have 0 Friends – Everyone is into Facebook except Stan, in which his family and friends start to make him join FB. Meanwhile, when Kyle friends a person who has 0 friends, Kyle starts to notice that all his friends remove him because of it.
- Episode 1405 – 200 – It’s the 200th episode of “South Park” and 200 celebrities led by Tom Cruise file a class action lawsuit against the town of South Park.
- Episode 1406 – 201 – Part two of the 200th episode special as Mecha Streisand tries to destroy South Park.
- Episode 1407 – Crippled Summer – Jimmy and Timmy go to summer camp at Lake Tardicaca and are prepared to take on their rivals Nathan and Mimsy. Meanwhile, Towelie has a drug addiction.
Disc 2:
- Episode 1408 – Poor and Stupid – Cartman wants to be a NASCAR driver but he thinks it’s not possible because he doesn’t fit the criteria of being poor or stupid.
- Episode 1409 – It’s a Jersey Thing – When a Jersey family moves to South Park, more Jersey people start to move to town and the people of South Town prepare for war. Meanwhile, Kyle and his mother have a secret.
- Episode 1410 – Insheeption – Stan is sent to the counselor for having a hoarding disorder.
- Episode 1411 – Coon 2: Hindsight – The Coon has started at team known as Coo and Friends, but when Captain Hindsight grabs all the headlines, Coon becomes jealous.
- Episode 1412 – Mysterion Rises – Mysterion takes over Coo and Friends and must save the people from the Gulf from the dark lord, Cthulu.
- Episode 1413 – Coon vs. Coon and Friends – Coon shows that he is more evil than the dark lord, Cthulu and takes revenge against his former teammates.
- Episode 1414 – Creme Fraiche – Randy becomes so sexually obsessed with the Food Network that he becomes the school’s chef. Meanwhile, his wife Sharon starts to use the shake weight.
VIDEO:
“South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season” is presented in 1080p High Definition and continues to be a colorful and vibrant series.  The colors continue to be bold as last season on Blu-ray but if there is one thing that I did notice with this latest season is the use of more CG, especially in the 200th and 201st episodes and the “Poor and Stupid” episode, there is a good amount of CG utilized but granted, you can see the banding on the gradients but personally, I don’t think fans are going to quibble about the banding at all. If anything, they will be satisfied with the vibrant colors and how crisp and clear everything looks in HD via Blu-ray.
AUDIO:
As for audio, audio is presented in Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 , Dolby Digital English 5.1 and Stereo. You’ll definitely hear good use of the surround channels on the more action-driven episodes such as the 201st episode with Mecha Streisand or the accident prone Cartman competing in NASCAR but the audio was clear in dialogue but definitely more of an improvement compared to last season’s release when it comes to surround channel use. And as usual, the opening theme is also crisp and clear but for the most part, for the fans who have never heard “South Park” with a lossless soundtrack, they will definitely be pleased to hear (and also see) the difference from watching it on television.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
“South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season” comes with the following special features:
DISC 1
- Mini-Commentary – Note: Mini-Commentary is accessed by selecting setup. Although not a full commentary for every episode, each episode does have a mini commentary by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The two definitely give insight to every episode and what prompted to have the storyline and what was in their heads at the time. Really good insight from the minds of Parker and Stone.
- Deleted Scenes – (6:05) Featuring deleted scenes from the series (some fully rendered, others that are sketches).
DISC 2
- Bonus Episode: #1302 “The Coon” – For those who missed the 13th season and missed the introduction of Cartman’s superhero persona “The Coon”, this episode is included so people can understand what is going on with the three “The Coon” episodes in season 14.
“SOUTH PARK” is one of those series that I’ve watched since my college years that I can’t seem to stop watching. No matter how far the series goes, how offensive the series may get, I don’t really get upset. It’s because the series is known for pushing the button and taking things as far as Comedy Central will allow them.
Of course, on this Blu-ray (and also on the DVD) edition of “South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season”, these episodes are uncensored and are filled with profanity. But it’s what makes “South Park” the type of series it is and personally, I find it refreshing to have an animation targeted for adults and with this latest season, Trey Parker and Matt Stone definitely dared to go farther in surprising people with its content.
If anything, Matt Stone and Trey Parker have been good at taking what is popular at the moment and crafting a story around it. From Tiger Woods’ infidelity and sex addiction, the popularity of Jersey Shore and how they view a woman like Snooki, people’s addiction to Facebook and NASCAR and there are no punches pulled, the in-your-face comedy especially uncut is so hilarious, over-the-edge and no doubt people are going to be offended. But it’s already something that is expected for “South Park” and if you enjoy comedy that pushes the button, gets foul-mouthed and is mature, you’ll definitely enjoy this latest season of “South Park”.
Perhaps my favorite episodes are the “You have 0 Friends”, “It’s a Jersey Thing” and “Creme Fraiche”. It was absolutely hilarious to see how far they would go when taking on the topic of “Facebook” and “Jersey Shore” but the final episode of the season, “Creme Fraiche” was surprising. For one thing, showcasing Randy’s obsession with the Food Network (in a sexual manner) and doing it with kids around (so wrong…) and of course the hilarity of women using the “Shake Weights” but in this case, how it squirts out liquid when you reach the daily workout goal was just funny.
And I know there are people out there get so offended with “South Park” and I’m not going to defend it. You either love the comedy or you don’t.
For me, after all these years, while some seasons have their good years and bad years, there are many “South Park” episodes that still manage to make me laugh and I continue t0 be amused with the episodes that Trey Parker and Matt Stone are able to create and see what else they have in their heads in terms of creativity and creating something unique and bolder than any previous episode.
A lot of the episodes from the fourteenth season has generated plenty of comments of “oh, crap…that is so f’d up”. But it’s all about comedy and if one is sensitive to these jokes, then “South Park” is definitely not for them. But for those who have been long time fans, part of the enjoyment of the series is seeing how far Parker and Stone can go.
For those debating whether or not to get the Blu-ray or DVD release, you do get the better PQ with the more vibrant colors and lossless audio track, plus you do get the mini-commentaries as well via Blu-ray. Granted, the series is not exactly the most detailed animated series in the world but still, the mini-commentaries do give you excellent insight on the mindset the guys were in when creating the show and I have found that to be intriguing and fun to listen to.
And with this latest release, for special features, you also get the deleted scenes and a bonus episode of last season’s “The Coon”. And for those who want to enjoy the series uncut and uncensored, this Blu-ray release (and the DVD as well) are the way to go!
Overall, I’ve found the 12th season of “SOUTH PARK” entertaining. I found the series entertaining then and entertaining now and no signs of slow down. If anything, each year, the crew manages to push the button. Of course, for those who take this series a bit too seriously, “SOUTH PARK” is not a series to take seriously, it’s a series you just want to sit back, laugh and be surprised of what Parker, Stone and crew have prepared for you.
Fans can definitely prepare for some surprises in this fourteenth season of “South Park†and even more of the “oh, crap that’s really f’d up!†moments.  If you really enjoy “South Park”, you will definitely enjoy “South Park: The Complete Fourteenth Season”.
