Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

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

Worst season ever.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 18, 2017

South Park may have once been the little crude engine that could, bleeped but fearless in pushing the animated envelope. Today it's mostly taken for granted, twenty seasons in but still innovating and rewriting the rules not with every season, but seemingly with every episode. Always full of wit, insight, and maybe even prescience into the way the modern world works -- for better for for worse -- it's always been right there to shed some witty, wise, and foul humor onto any subject, person, or trend. Season twenty offers more of the same as it takes on both the 2016 presidential election and the world of social media, particularly the acts (art?) of the Internet troll. It's typically convoluted and chaotic, but it's also empty. Matt Stone and Trey Parker don't usually lack imagination, but season twenty is largely without the wit, charm, and cadence of the show's best -- which is essentially all previous 19 seasons -- and it fails to capitalize on the subject, which is at once both too diluted and too stuffed for its own good.

Season twenty overflows with good ideas and, in typical South Park fashion, finds the excessive humor and the biting insight in the depressing state of the world. But it's too much. An arc is fine. A season-long arc is even better. But the subject matter -- Internet trolling -- isn't that subject for a ten-episode arc. It's too drawn out, beaten down and propped up time and again with ever-increasing irrationality and randomness that only diminishes the return rather than enhances the narrative. The season does, at its peak, find the fitting social insight into the subject, lampooning it and having a say in the real-world problem with classic over exaggeration and stylized excess in support. Even as individual bits and some of the arcing elements maintain enough humor to please, the message loses depth along the way, the episodes begin to drag, and even as it approaches the climax it seems like Matt and Trey are struggling to find a way to keep the storyline alive to get to the end. The season's final few seconds are its best, but they're not worth the tiresome journey along the way. This would have worked much better in a far more condensed three- of four-episode arc. It's not like there isn't a shortage of material for Matt and Trey to draw upon these days.

The following episodes comprise season 20:

Disc One:

• Member Berries: The South Park girls volleyball team is playing a big, televised game. But it's not the game that's drawn interest. One of the students has decided to sit for the National Anthem. And another. And more. Their protest: the trolling they are receiving on the Internet. The individual they believe to be behind the attacks: Eric Cartman. The solution: Congress decides to reboot the anthem and J.J. Abrams is brought in to make a new one. Meanwhile, Presidential candidate Garrison frets over the possibilities of both winning and losing the election.
• Skank Hunt: The hunt for the Internet troll continues, even as the identity has been revealed to the audience. Meetings are held to tackle the problem and secret plans to take out Cartman, whom the boys believe to be responsible, are hatched. Meanwhile, various students disrupt Counselor Mackey's life as they threaten to quit social media over the trolling.
• The Damned: The Internet troll's actions have resulted in the unthinkable: suicide. The news sends the troll into a panic. Meanwhile, Garrison and Hillary Clinton debate to disastrous results for the man who wants to lose.
• Wieners Out: Danish retaliation over the trolling is inevitable, and the troll is in grave danger. Meanwhile, the boys decide they need to be more respectful to the girls by attending a volleyball game and rooting them on, but several of them, led by Butters, stage their own, masculinely unique, protest during the anthem.
• Douche and a Danish: The Danish threat to trolling continues, including the construction of a super-website that will identify trolls and release everyone's most private Internet browsing histories. The rift at school only grows larger. Garrison turns to crude, decidedly un-politically correct stand-up comedy to try and lose the vote.

Disc Two:

• Fort Collins: The troll's true identity begins to take shape by way of emoji analysis. Things come to a head when it appears the Danes are close to revealing everyone's Internet history.
• Oh, Jeez: In a shock to the world, Mr. Garrison is elected President of the United States. Fort Collins continues to burn, and the Danes promise a worldwide web history release in moments. With the troll's identity revealed to the powers that be, an unlikely ally emerges who enlists the troll to infiltrate Denmark and stop the release of everyone's Internet history. Cartman plans an escape for himself and his girlfriend.
• Members Only: The troll continues operations in Denmark. President Garrison is faced with a crisis. Butters has a change of tune. Kyle discovers the troll's identity.
• Not Funny: Trollface launches. Panic ensues. The possibility of escaping to Mars sounds really nice. A truth in Denmark comes to light.
• The End of Serialization as We Know It: Cartman has a change of heart about Mars. TrollFace faces its greatest threat from right in the heart of South Park.

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

South Park: The Complete Twentieth Season features a 1080p presentation much in-line with other seasons that have released to Blu-ray over the years. The image is colorful, though certainly lacking much nuance. Primaries are adequately bold: reds, blues, and greens tend to dominate as part of clothes and larger splashes. There's plenty of pop and even less rich, less lively shades are also stable and pleasing. Detailing is excellent. The Blu-ray again captures the show's construction paper origins, visible in larger swaths of surface area like clothes or walls. The image is clear and sharp. A few minor bugaboos intrude at times. Banding is occasionally visible and heavy while light aliasing messes with a few shots, but overall image stability and accuracy are very good.

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

South Park: The Complete Twentieth Season features a basic, few-frills Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The presentation is largely dominant along the front with much of the surround activity light at best and practically nonexistent at worst. But it serves the program's needs well enough. Music, whether opening title theme, light score, or popular beats, all present with a nice, aggressive edge, solid clarity, and plenty of width. Core effects clarity -- some of the basics around the school, clanking keys on a keyboard, some various action scenes -- deliver enough basic clarity to satisfy requirements. Dialogue drives much of the season, and it's presented with an agreeable front-center placement as well as quality detailing and prioritization.

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

South Park: The Complete Twentieth Season contains a few extras on both discs, the most notable being a nearly hour-long Comic-Con chat with Matt and Trey.

Disc One:

• South Park: By the Numbers (1080p, 1:10): A barrage of statistics and clips from the show.
• South Park: The Fractured But Whole E3 2016 Game Trailer (1080p, 2:12): Advertising the upcoming video game.
• South Park: We've Been There (1080p, 1:04): South Park grows up with a little girl, showing many of the series' most famously crude moments.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p, 11:09): Scenes from several of the season's episodes.
• Season Commentary (1080p, 19:38): The creative duo behind the series discusses the season to clips from the show.
• #Socialcommentary (1080p): On-screen tweets shed some 140 character insights into each episode.

Disc Two:

• Comic Con 2016: Extended Panel with Matt & Trey (1080i, 54:55): The series' popular creators sit down to discuss the show's history, humor, insight and social relevance, influences, story lines, production structures, and more. The duo answers fan questions as well.
• #Socialcommentary (1080p): On-screen tweets shed some 140 character insights into each episode.

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

South Park's 20th season disappoints. A wonderful core idea is at the middle of it, but for the first time Matt and Trey have slipped up, making too much of an effort and dragging a plot line far too long for the show's own good. Pacing and humor suffer, and it's the least rewarding season of the run, even if it's packed with excellent ideas throughout. South Park: The Complete Twentieth Season's Blu-ray release is fine, typical of previous seasons in terms of tech specs and extras. Worth a look and recommended for South Park completists.