South Park, "Handicar"

In its depiction of disabilities, South Park walks a very fine line. When it does touch on the subject, usually through the disabled characters Jimmy and Timmy, the show mostly displays a positive message of inclusion rather than pity. But, those same episodes get a lot of laughs at the expense of the characters and their, shall we say, slowness (both physical and the other way). That was most exemplified four years ago in “Crippled Summer” (the one with the summer camp for disabled kids not-so-subtly named “Lake Tardicaca”), and it’s highly evident once again in this episode. It’d be mean and disgusting if the show were less clear in its message of acceptance

This episode features two returning characters from that previous episode: Nathan and Mimsy, the scheming rival of Jimmy and Timmy and his dim-witted lackey, respectively. This time, they’re trying to sabotage Timmy’s nascent ridesharing app, clearly based on Lyft and other such services. Their plans find allies in several transportation entities, from rival apps and regular taxis that are losing business, to car companies whose luster is fading. But, of course, every one of their attempts blow up in their faces.

This episode has things we’ve already see on the show, and not just the same cartoony territory as “Crippled Summer.” The commentary on ridesharing services is almost word-for-word the same free market stance that's been featured before (well, not word-for-word, but it was so similar that it registered with me mentally as a such). But the episode hammers the point home by featuring Tesla, a company facing what arguably can be called legal sabotage in our world, as one of the bad guys trying to shut Timmy down. It’s a move whose brilliance is commendable; I mean, how many shows can intertwine such cartoonish slapstick with legitimate legal commentary? This isn’t just timelier than other shows, it’s much smarter. And yet it doesn’t overwhelm the episode so that it becomes preachy at all.

It’s the cartoon stuff that kind of lost me, mostly because the show it was spoofing—Hanna-Barbera’s Wacky Races—is one I am not familiar with. But that’s okay, because Mimsy and Nathan’s continuous slipups are quite funny, even though deep down I know I shouldn’t be laughing (especially one scene that you’ll know when you see it). I also enjoyed the little things: the Matthew McConaughey running gag that seemed pointless until a redeeming payoff, and a split-second jab at Ben Affleck, adding to the inexplicable running feud Trey Parker and Matt Stone have had with the actor throughout the show’s run.