Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

South Park: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Oh My God! They Revived 'South Park!'

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 1, 2017

It's early-run 'South Park' in high definition! Paramount and Comedy Central have boosted the show's first eleven seasons with brand new 1080p, 1.78:1 aspect ratio presentations, matching up with seasons 12-20 which were previously available in HD and on Blu-ray. The net result is very positive and fans will find it a good leap forward in presentation over older broadcast and home video presentations.

Sweeeeeet.

What's really great about re-watching season one after all these years is that the show really hasn't changed all that much. Certainly improvements to the animation process are evident, tweaks in voices are clearly audible from then to now, the character roster has greatly expanded, but that core charm, irreverence, and social satire and outright nasty jabs were all evident from day one. Season one, of course, serves as an introduction but it really never takes the show any time to get off the ground. From episode one onward, the show feels essentially the same as it does today in tone and tenor, in its quick wit, sharp tongue, and well-rounded yet very distinct characters. Season one introduces a number of side characters who would become fan favorites and series mainstays, such as Jesus and Satan, Terrence and Phillip, and Mr. Hankey. The season tackles alien abduction, obesity, hunting, homosexuality, gender roles, celebrity culture, and always comes back to that biting irreverence and freedom to make anything and everything a target.

The following episodes comprise season one:

Disc One:

• Cartman Gets An Anal Probe: At the bus stop, Cartman tells Stan, Kyle, and Kenny the story of his dream about alien abduction from the night before. Turns out it may not have been dream, though, as strange things begin happening around town, particularly in the local cattle community.
• Weight Gain 4000: Eric Cartman has won the "National Save Our Fragile Planet" contest. His prize will be given to him by Kathie Lee Gifford, in person, and it will be televised. The mayor sets preparations in motion to welcome her and put the town's best face forward. Meanwhile, Cartman decides to lose weight and get in shape by guzzling a weight gain bodybuilding shake in preparation for his big moment. At the same time, Mr. Garrison plots revenge against an old foe.
• Volcano: Jimbo and Ned take the four boys on a hunting trip. After getting their guns and beer and blasting everything they see, they begin to hunt -- or perhaps are hunted by -- a legendary woodland creature named "Scuzzlebutt."
• Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride: The boys learn that Stan's new dog Sparky is gay when they see him mount the neighborhood's most ferocious pooch and any male dog it comes across. In order to better understand his dog's behavior, Stan and his friends turn to Big Gay Al to learn about the gay birds and bees. Oh, and in this episode, Jesus' TV call-in show is cut off for an episode of Marty's Movie Reviews.
• An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig: The boys decide to genetically engineer a new creature by mixing pig and elephant DNA together. They travel to the Genetic Engineering Ranch, and seek Chef's advice, to learn how. Meanwhile, Stan's sister Shelly takes out her frustrations for having to wear new head gear on her weaker younger brother.
• Death: Stan's grandfather wants to die, and he wants Stan to kill him. Meanwhile, the town parents revolt against the popular animated program Terrance and Phillip.
• Pinkeye: Kenny's dead corpse is reanimated and a case of pinkeye creates killer zombies all around town. Meanwhile, Cartman dresses up as Hitler for Halloween.

Disc Two:

• Starvin' Marvin: When the boys learn about starving African children from the obese Sally Struthers, they want to help to get a free wristwatch but wind up with a living, breathing Ethiopian child instead. At the same time, Dr. Mephesto's genetically engineered turkeys are running amok through South Park.
• Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo: It's Christmastime in South Park, which means it's Chanukah time at Kyle's house. Kyle's parents force him to deny the existence of Mr. Hankey, the singing poop who lives in the toilet. Meanwhile, South Park scrambles to remove any and all holiday symbols to promote inclusivity.
• Damien: A new student named Damien arrives in school. But he's not there to learn. He's there to usher in a new era of evil for his father, Satan, who is scheduled to fight Jesus in a highly publicized boxing match right in South Park, Colorado.
• Tom's Rhinoplasty: Mr. Garrison wants a nose job to make him look like David Hasselhoff. His class gets a substitute teacher, Miss Ellen, whom the boys, particularly Stan, crush on, much to Wendy's chagrin.
• Mecha-Streisand: At an archaeological dig, the boys unearth a valuable, magical artifact that brings Leonard Maltin and Barbara Streisand to town, leading to an ultimate showdown of monstrous proportions that could spell the end of the sleepy Colorado mountain town.
• Cartman's Mom Is a Dirty Slut: Cartman has been absent from school, spending time playing tea in the back yard. Stan, Kyle, and Kenny videotape it for nefarious purposes. Meanwhile, Cartman goes in search of his father.

South Park: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

South Park: The Complete First Season has been reformatted to HD and a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, and the results are quite nice. The pilot episode does retain the ~4x3 ratio and is certainly a lot more rough around the edges, lacking crispness and vibrant color and showing a number of sharp edges and artifacts, but the image cleans up, and moves to 1.78:1, immediately thereafter in episode two. While things are not quite as sharp and texturally adept as newer, native HD seasons, the boosts to clarity and color are very impressive. The series' trademark textural surfaces are nicely revealing. Lines are clean and crisp and image clarity is fantastic. Colors are enthusiastically vibrant, with core greens, reds, blues, and oranges popping and dazzling in every scene. There are still a few flaws, the occasional burst of interlacing artifacts, for example, but on the whole the image is quite good and a serious step up from the DVD. That said, the live-action Parker and Stone intros are simply upconverts (and they show it), and one flashback sequence appears to remain in SD. Still, fans are going to be ecstatic.

South Park: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

South Park's first season opens with the following text: "Season one & part of season two are censored here as they were when they originally aired. Unfortunately those early episodes weren't archived with split audio tracks so this is how they'll live forever." But fear not, there's still plenty left uncensored. Even the main menu repeats the toe-tapping jingle about Kyle's mom being a you-know-what. Hear the F-word in the fireside chat prior to the Pig and Elephant episode. It's of course not to the raunchy standards of later seasons, but the humor is as biting as ever, no matter how colorful the language may or may not be.

The season's Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack is rather front-heavy but effective and enjoyable. As with the video presentation, episode one is of a lesser quality, lacking authoritative command of elements and little sense of wide and organic space. The track does improve quite a bit thereafter. As the image opens to 1.78:1, so too does the sound seem to engage further out to the sides. Musical clarity is excellent and its reach extends well out to the left and right, whether the opening title theme song, Chef's interludes, or general score. Effects are likewise robustly positioned with more dynamic intensity and vigor, including crude elements like fart and pooping sounds. There's a fair, but not powerful, low end push when the volcano rumbles in "Volcano." Serious surround usage is very sparse; the track certainly favors the front end almost exclusively. The track opens to its most expansive during Mr. Hankey's introduction from inside the Broflovski bathroom toilet. Dialogue is presented clearly with firm front-center positioning.

South Park: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

South Park: The Complete First Season contains audio commentary tracks on all episodes and a trio of additional features on disc two.

• Audio Commentaries: Trey Parker and Matt Stone offer full-length episode commentaries rather than the "mini commentaries" of later seasons. There's a nice blend of story discussion, plot construction, irritations and influences, making various scenes, and plenty more. The added length is most welcome. These tracks were not previously available on the season's DVD releases.
• Jay Leno's Appearance on South Park (1080p upconverted, 2:55): The late night host appears in a South Park short, speaking to the class which turns the discussion to his prominent chin.
• Music Video (1080p upconverted, 2:04): Cartman "O Holy Night." Cartman sings the song, with some outside influence.
• Music Video (1080p upconverted, 1:01): Ned "O Little Town of Bethlehem." The Vietnam vet plows his way through the tune.

South Park: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Back where it all began. South Park's first season remains amongst its best. It's a bit rough around the edges compared to how the show looks and feels today, but this new HD presentation gives the classic season new life. South Park: The Complete First Season's Blu-ray features excellent video and audio in addition to a few extras, notably episode-length commentary tracks across the board. Very highly recommended.