South Park, "#REHASH"

This season isn’t actually the first time South Park has featured a continuing narrative. In addition to some two- and three-parters, there have been moments where episodes hint at an ongoing in-show continuity. The season has been much more deliberate and upfront about it, though. And this episode, which attempts to tie all the pieces from the season together, ends up making an absolute mess.

It’s hard to really nail down any one thing that the plot is about. It features Randy returning as Lorde and having a personal crisis over sexualizing his (her?) image (as well as digs at Iggy Azalea, Nicki Minaj, and Miley Cyrus for doing the same), Cartman imitating YouTube star Pewdiepie, Stan and Kyle feeling out of touch with Ike and other younger kids' interest in YouTube commentary videos, and musician holograms on the loose. Yes, the show that makes waves for being so timely is not only making jokes about something from two-and-a-half years ago, but also trying (and failing) to mine humor from Michael Jackson jokes that are close to a decade out of date.

There’s not much that’s funny, and not much of a point, either. If there’s one at all, it’s that Trey Parker and Matt Stone hate today’s pop culture. However, they're not only simply rehashing the great 2011 episode "You're Getting Old" (badly, I might add), but they're revealing that their own outlook is even, shall we say, crappier than Stan's was in it. If Kyle and Stan speak for Stone and Parker (and as the show’s voice of reason, I think it’s fair to say they do), then the show’s creators are coming off like grumpy old men, this episode nothing more than a wrinkly fist of rage at kids these days.

At one point, a nameless evil corporate character says that “commentary is the content.” Judging by the tone of this episode, I’m guessing Stone and Parker disagree. But if they feel that way, why did they make a whole episode so devoid of humor or substance and settle for just trashing current entertainments they don’t like? Maybe there is a point, and we’ll have to wait and see what it is next week (between the abrupt ending and the fact that this whole season has been connected, I’m assuming the season finale will conclude everything). But it’s going to have to be a great episode to make up for this pitiful penultimate chapter.