For the first time in its 23-year run, South Park will air a one-hour special that naturally focuses on the most incendiary and controversial topic of the moment: the pandemic.
In a new teaser released by Comedy Central on Tuesday, “The Pandemic Special” features the resident of South Park as they struggle to cope with “2020 problems,” which appear to go beyond the coronavirus. While the pandemic takes a front seat as Randy tries to use the global disaster to fuel his legalized weed sales, and Cartman refuses to wear a mask, the children also find themselves returning to a strange new school environment where their teachers are police detectives?
Here’s the official synopsis:
Randy comes to terms with his role in the COVID-19 outbreak as the on-going pandemic presents continued challenges to the citizens of South Park. The kids happily head back to school but nothing resembles the normal that they once knew; not their teachers, not their homeroom, not even Eric Cartman.
Given South Park’s penchant for skewering “both sides” of the political aisle, the special will undoubtedly be a lightning rod for controversy as it barrels into the contentious debate surrounding the pandemic. Unlike other hot topic issues satirized by the show, there is a real and ongoing death toll, which will be a tricky minefield for South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone to navigate. That’s particularly the case after recent revelations that President Donald Trump is on tape admitting to journalist Bob Woodward that he knew about COVID’s deadliness while simultaneously downplaying its severity to the public.
South Park: The Pandemic Special airs September 30 at 8 PM EST on Comedy Central.
(Via South Park)