Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

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

PS4? Xbox One? The Wii U is where it's at.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman September 6, 2014

Don't let the fact that, after seventeen seasons, South Park has dropped its episode total for a single season lower than any of the previous sixteen seasons. That's not an ominous sign that the series is tanking or heading out to pasture. While this latest season is home to only ten total episodes -- several less than the previous record-holding eighteen in season two, a few below the previous low of season one's thirteen, and four fewer than the standard fourteen that comprised seasons eight through sixteen (and season five) -- it remains rich and relevant, irreverent and incredibly funny. Sure, more is always better -- how could one not want to experience more antics with Cartman, Kyle, Stan, Kenny, and the entire South Park gang -- but less is still something, and even a second of South Park remains better than hours of most of the drivel on television these days. And no matter the minutes allotted to this particular season, it keep the core of what makes the show great, blending pop culture, politics, and poor taste humor into one uproariously funny show, but one that's also complex and meaningful below its fart-infested, potty-mouthed façade.

Lower learning.

While season seventeen includes several episodes that don't really amount to much -- stories that are more about crude jokes than they are either subtle or overt satire -- it's still a rather eclectic collection of episodes that eviscerate everything from NSA spying to Black Friday shopping. Cable monopolies, government whistleblowers (Cartman fancies himself an Edward Snowden type at one point), "stand your ground" self-defense laws, self-image and self-esteem, puberty, religious conflict, and grisly television dramas are all the focus of various episodes across the season. Season seventeen will undoubtedly be remembered, however, for the "Black Friday" Trilogy in which the town's children become divided over whether to buy the Playstation 4 or Xbox One video game console, going so far as to war-game a strategy for victory in the same fashion as one of television's most beloved programs, all in the shadow of the "Black Friday" sales frenzy and the zombie-like consumerism that comes with it. The season is a little light on the political satire, long a series staple, never really delving all that far beyond the first episode that focuses on NSA spying. Still, there's plenty of off-the-cuff goodness here that rates about as well as anything the series has done to date. And don't forget about South Park: The Stick of Truth!

Season Seventeen highlight episodes include:

• Let Go, Let Gov: Cartman is furious that the government is spying on everyone's calls, and he becomes suspicious that there may be an NSA agent posing as a student at school. Rather than tweet about it, which is so out of date and inneficient, he makes use of a new technology -- sponsored by Alec Baldwin -- that instantly uploads his thoughts to the Internet. He decides the best way to stop the government snooping is to infiltrate the NSA and blow the whistle on the agency's ways. Meanwhile, Butters believes the government to be his lord and savior, and DMV literature is his bible.
• Informative Murder Porn: South Park students are upset about the "murder porn" that dominates television and preoccupies their parents' every thought, concerned that it will eventually influence real life murders around town. Stan's parents, for example, are really into them and use them as an aphrodisiac. That same night, tragedy befalls South Park: a first grader's mother is murdered. Now, the entire school has banded together to stop the stream of "murder porn" on South Park's television screens. Kyle brings to the students' attention an app that will block their parents' programs with passwords relating to a popular video game. Stan makes use of it, and the parents hit a brick wall. Their only solution: learn how to play Minecraft or lose the spark they've found in the bedroom.
• World War Zimmerman: Cartman is suddenly interested in Token. After a nightmare in class and a chat with Counselor Mackey, he imagines himself in the role of Brad Pitt in World War Z, but his version of the story involves the aftermath of the George Zimmerman murder trial in which African Americans riot following the not guilty verdict. His fear: Token will blame him personally for the verdict. His only hope: prevent the "outbreak" of violence at all costs.
• Ginger Cow: Cartman once thought only humans could be "ginger." He has now learned that bovines, too, can be "ginger." Or that he can make them "ginger." Cartman takes his classmates to see his latest creation, a "ginger" cow. It's a fake, of course, and those who know Cartman best know it's fake, but the round South Park resident eggs his friends to photograph it, anyway, and upload the pictures to the Internet. What could possibly go wrong? How about the end of days? Or maybe world peace? Or something. Or nothing.
• The "Black Friday" Trilogy ("Black Friday," "A Song of Ass and Fire," and "Titties and Dragons"): In these Game of Thrones-themed episodes, Cartman informs his friends that the next-generation of gaming devices -- the Playstation 4 and the Xbox One -- are coming. He has devised a way for them all to receive their new Xbox One on the cheap: the mall is offering 80% off all Black Friday purchases to the first 30 customers to shove their way inside. If they can strategize and beat the other shoppers, the consoles will be theirs for an unbeatable price. Unfortunately, the camp breaks into two factions, one committed to the Xbox One and the other, led by Princess Kenny, dead-set on getting the Playstation 4.

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

South Park: The Complete Seventeenth Season offers viewers a crisp, handsome 1080p transfer. The animation looks beautiful in high definition; the simplicity allows for excellent clarity and definition of the basic shapes and lines that make up the show, with special attention paid to various surfaces that enjoy a bit more texturing than basic facial and clothing details. The image produces a beautifully simple color palette, with nicely presented reds, greens, oranges, and other bright colors that jump off the screen. Light banding is evident in a couple of places, and there are a few times when the animation style is altered to an Anime appearance and others when cruddy live action Internet video of Black Friday stampedes are inserted into the show, but otherwise it's smooth sailing and a gorgeous picture throughout.

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

South Park: The Complete Seventeenth Season features an enjoyable Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The opening theme music is lively and nicely spaced, supported by even, well pronounced bass and an effortless surround element. Supportive sound effects are varied and precise throughout, playful but satisfying in delivery and stage presence, including explosions, punches, and other action-oriented effects. Atmospherics are never really fully realized, but there are several nice moments, including a wide, stage-filling dialogue reverberation heard near the end of the "Ginger Cow" episode. General dialogue plays cleanly and evenly through the center channel.

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

South Park: The Complete Seventeenth Season contains a few extras on both discs.

Disc One:

• Deleted Scenes (HD, 5:23): From "Let Go, Let Gov," "World War Zimmerman," "Goth Kids 3: Dawn of the Posers," "Ginger Cow," and "A Song of Ass and Fire."
• #SocialCommentry: A "trivia track," in essence, with pop-up comments in the form of tweets. Included with each episode.
• Mini Commentaries: Trey Parker and Matt Stone briefly discuss each disc one episode.

Disc Two:

• #SocialCommentary: Included with each episode.
• Mini Commentaries: Trey Parker and Matt Stone briefly discuss each disc two episode.

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

Sometimes South Park really is nothing but irreverent humor, but sometimes its satire is so smooth and accurate and on-point that the show can also be, and is frequently simultaneously, one of the most clever, meaningful, and thought-provoking programs on television. Matt Stone and Trey Parker have mastered the art of modern humor, making a show that's accessible to the masses yet smarter than that it appears. In many ways it's perfect television, equally capable of raw entertainment and topic education alike, even if that entertainment and education don't really fit their classic dictionary definitions. South Park: The Complete Seventeenth Season is no different, episode count lowered or not. There are a few duds, as there always are and probably always will be, but the bulk of the season's ten-run string ranks right up there with the best the series has ever offered. Here's hoping for at least seventeen more seasons and 170 more episodes. Paramount/Comedy Central's Blu-ray release is excellent. It offers strong video, quality audio, and a few fun little extras. Highly recommended.