South Park (season 20)

The twentieth season of the American animated sitcom South Park premiered on Comedy Central on September 14, 2016, and ended on December 7, 2016, containing ten episodes.[1] As with most seasons of the show, all episodes are written and directed by series co-creator and co-star Trey Parker.

South Park
Season 20
DVD cover
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes10
Release
Original networkComedy Central
Original releaseSeptember 14 (2016-09-14) –
December 7, 2016 (2016-12-07)
Season chronology

Like the previous two seasons, this season features an episode-to-episode continuity, but unlike the previous two, the continuity is more linear, as if the whole season is one story arc. This season featured recurring themes focusing on Internet trolls, nostalgia, and the 2016 United States presidential election.

This season also had planned "dark weeks", weeks where no new episodes would air, which has been done since the 19th season. These were after episode three, episode six, and episode eight.[2]

Marketing

To promote the season, Comedy Central had mobile billboards placed in key locations in seven cities around the United States. Each billboard featured an image from the series that bore a connection to the location in which it was placed.[3]

All of the billboards included the caption "We've Been There." In some of the locations, personnel of the organizations were displeased to have the billboards outside their locations and asked the billboard operators to leave, including the Los Angeles and both Washington, D.C landmarks. Comedy Central's Chief Marketing Officer Walter Levitt stated, "That was all expected, and we completely understand why. We knew it was risky. We did this stunt because we thought it was a great way to remind South Park fans of all the amazing moments of the past 19 seasons and truly a perfect way to celebrate the 20th season."[3]

Episodes
See also: List of South Park episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date [4]Prod.
code		US viewers
(millions)
2681"Member Berries"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerSeptember 14, 2016 (2016-09-14)20012.17[5]
The national anthem is rebooted by J. J. Abrams. Mr. Garrison attempts to throw the 2016 presidential election against Hillary Clinton. Cartman is believed to be an Internet troll known as Skankhunt42 who attacks local girls on the school message board, but Gerald Broflovski is revealed to be the real troll.
2692"Skank Hunt"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerSeptember 21, 2016 (2016-09-21)20021.58[6]
Gerald begins to expand his trolling globally. The boys decide to take down Cartman, who they still believe is the troll. The girls plan to take action against the boys thanks to the damage Gerald has caused.
2703"The Damned"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerSeptember 28, 2016 (2016-09-28)20031.79[7]
Cartman and Heidi begin spending time with each other as they both are isolated from others with social media. Gerald faces consequences for his trolling and Mr. Garrison prepares for the presidential debate.
2714"Wieners Out"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerOctober 12, 2016 (2016-10-12)20041.82[8]
Kyle attempts to bring the feud between the boys and girls to an end. Gerald feels the pressure of his trolling after his secret starts to be exposed.
2725"Douche and a Danish"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerOctober 19, 2016 (2016-10-19)20051.32[9]
Gerald attempts to stop a troll locating website with the help of some other trolls. Garrison goes too far at one of his presidential rallies.
2736"Fort Collins"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerOctober 26, 2016 (2016-10-26)20061.41[10]
Cartman fears that Heidi will discover his past. Randy and Mr. Garrison attempt to destroy member berries, and Gerald's troll team faces dire consequences.
2747"Oh, Jeez"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerNovember 9, 2016 (2016-11-09)20072.03[11]
Mr. Garrison is elected President and the member berries are responsible. Gerald is sent to Denmark as a spy to eliminate Troll Trace but he is betrayed. Cartman asks Butters for help to prevent Heidi from finding out his secret.
2758"Members Only"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerNovember 16, 2016 (2016-11-16)20081.79[12]
Mr. Garrison deals with the aftermath of being elected President. Gerald attempts to escape the wrath of being captured by Troll Trace, and Cartman and Heidi prepare to go to Mars together.
2769"Not Funny"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerNovember 30, 2016 (2016-11-30)20091.45[13]
Butters tries to convince Cartman that Heidi might turn her back on him, while Kyle and Ike deal with their mother's frenzy after Gerald gets Ike framed for being the troll. Gerald discovers the Troll Trace leader's true intentions.
27710"The End of Serialization as We Know It"Trey ParkerTrey ParkerDecember 7, 2016 (2016-12-07)20101.82[14]
Kyle and Ike team up and gather multiple groups to take down the Internet and Troll Trace. Cartman tries to stop the SpaceX program.

Reception

The season received mixed reviews from critics and fans.[15][16][17]Jesse Schedeen with IGN rated the entire season an 8.4 out of 10, noting "Season 20 proved that South Park has lost none of its edge over the years, as the show targeted everything from Donald Trump to the dangerous allure of nostalgia. Though the finale failed to properly tie everything together, South Park's ability to adapt and course-correct to real-world developments served it well this year."[18]

Home media

This season was released in its entirety on DVD and Blu-ray on June 13, 2017.[19]

References
  1. Longo, Chris (September 13, 2016). "South Park Season 20 Release Date and New Clips". denofgeek.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  2. "Watch Full Episodes of South Park online". Archived from the original on September 29, 2016. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  3. Parker, Ryan (September 27, 2016). "'South Park' Irks White House, Scientology With Trolling Mobile Billboards" Archived 2016-10-02 at the Wayback Machine. The Hollywood Reporter.
  4. "Watch South Park Episodes Online Season 20 (2016)". TV Guide. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  5. Welch, Alex (September 15, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story' premiere wins the night". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 17, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
  6. Welch, Alex (September 22, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story' experiences major drop". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  7. Welch, Alex (September 29, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story' dips once again". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  8. Welch, Alex (October 13, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story: Roanoke' bumps up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 16, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
  9. Welch, Alex (October 20, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: Third presidential debate wins the night". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 22, 2016. Retrieved October 22, 2016.
  10. Welch, Alex (October 27, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story' holds steady". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 28, 2016. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
  11. Welch, Alex (November 10, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story' ticks back up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 12, 2016. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  12. Welch, Alex (November 17, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'American Horror Story: Roanoke' season finale holds steady". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on December 21, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  13. Welch, Alex (December 1, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'Vikings' returns strong, 'Queen Sugar' ticks back up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  14. Porter, Rick (December 9, 2016). "Wednesday cable ratings: 'South Park' ends its season on top". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on December 10, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  15. Longo, Chris (December 8, 2016). "South Park Season 20 Finale Review". Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  16. Hugar, John (January 5, 2017). "What Went Wrong with Season 20 of 'South Park'?". Archived from the original on July 10, 2018. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  17. Miller, Matt (December 8, 2016). "South Park's 20th Season Was a Failure. Trey Parker and Matt Stone Know It". Archived from the original on January 21, 2018. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  18. Schedeen, Jesse (December 15, 2016). "South Park: Season 20 Review - IGN". IGN. Archived from the original on December 28, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.
  19. Lacey, Gord. "South Park - Season 20 Announced!". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on 12 April 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
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