Margaritaville (South Park)
"Margaritaville" | |
---|---|
South Park episode | |
Episode no. | Season 13 Episode 3 |
Directed by | Trey Parker |
Written by | Trey Parker |
Production code | 1303 |
Original air date | March 25, 2009 |
"Margaritaville" is the third episode of the
The episode was written and directed by series co-founder Trey Parker, and was rated TV-MA L in the United States. Parker and Stone long planned to create an episode about the economy and considered making it the season premiere, but decided they needed more time to craft the script, and instead opened the season with "The Ring", a spoof of the Jonas Brothers boy band. In their original idea for an economy episode, Parker and Stone considered having Cartman dress as a superhero who fights the economy. That idea was ultimately scrapped, and elements were transferred to the season's second episode, "The Coon".
"Margaritaville" reflected Parker and Stone's belief that most Americans view the economy in the same way as
According to
Plot
At dinner, Randy explains to Stan that the economy is failing due to people spending their money on luxuries. He continues his hypocritical tirade while making himself a margarita in a Margaritaville-brand mixer, the noise of which drowns out his voice for part of the tirade.
People in South Park are struggling with the recent economic downturn, and many people on the street are castigating those whom they would blame. Eric Cartman blames the Jews, claiming they hid the money in a "Jew Cave", but Randy convinces everyone to reduce their spending to only the "bare essentials" in order to propitiate the Economy, justifying his own frivolous purchase by adding that the essentials include margaritas. His recommended changes make the town resemble first-century Galilee.
Kyle Broflovski becomes annoyed, responding that the Economy is not actually angry with them, and that they should be out spending money, and continues to preach that the economy only exists as a mental construct, and that people have lost their faith in it because of the recession. He then convinces his friends that if they want the economy to be strong, they must have faith in it. Upon hearing of this heresy, Randy and his makeshift economic council decide that they must kill Kyle. Cartman, in his desire to obtain a copy of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, says that he will deliver Kyle to Randy and his friends in exchange for the game.
In a scene resembling that of the Last Supper, Kyle and his friends go out for pizza, where he laments that he feels they will not be able to get together like this anymore because he thinks one of his friends will betray him. The next day, Kyle sets up a table with a credit card machine in the town and begins "paying everybody's debts" with his American Express Platinum Card. Kyle's mother begs him to stop because he will be in debt for life, but Kyle feels he must help everybody in the town. After paying for the debts, he passes out and the people carry him to his bed.
Soon enough, the economy takes a turn for the better. Malls and shops start opening again for business, and the now debt free people start purchasing again. Randy is shown buying the new Margaritaville with a salsa dispenser ("You pour salsa into the top, and then it dispenses out the bottom!"). The news incorrectly acknowledges President Barack Obama for the sacrifices he made and credits him for bringing these improvements in the economy, leaving Kyle flabbergasted.
As a
Production
"Margaritaville" was written and directed by series co-founder
Parker and Stone originally planned for their economy-related episode to involve Cartman dressing as a superhero named "The Coon" and fighting the recession. Eventually, Cartman would discover the recession stemmed from the sale of Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville blenders, and he would have to battle singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett and investor Warren Buffett, who would be portrayed as Jimmy's brother. Eventually, the idea was scrapped, and the superhero elements were incorporated into the episode "The Coon", which aired just before "Margaritaville". The opening scene of "The Coon", in which Cartman discussed the poor economic state of the nation and the election of U.S. President Barack Obama, were left remnants of the original economy-related idea. Certain elements of the original idea, such as the Margaritaville blenders, were eventually incorporated into "Margaritaville".[4]
As with most South Park episodes, Parker, Stone, and their team created the episode within a week of its broadcast date.[5] The script was not finished until late March 24, the night before the episode aired.[4] "Margaritaville" featured a 70-second shot which panned over several characters speaking about the recession on pedestals before finally settling on Randy wearing robes and preaching about the economy. It was the longest shot in South Park history to that point, although it would be surpassed later in the season by "Dances with Smurfs", which featured an 86-second single shot in which a South Park elementary student is murdered while reading the morning announcements.[2]
Within a week of "Margaritaville's" original broadcast date, the online retailer
Theme
[The script] was one of those things where we just kept talking around it and around it, trying to figure out what it was. And we had this idea for a long time how the economy is really like religion and how it's all based on faith. If you have faith, it exists, and if you don't, it doesn't.
Trey Parker,
South Park co-creator[4]
"Margaritaville" is a
The Margaritaville blender itself served as a metaphor for consumerism and the tendency of Americans to buy luxuries that they do not need. Stone said, "We didn't want to make an episode where it was like, 'Oh, those Wall Street guys took our money.' It was one of those things where we all screwed up and nobody really knows what's going on, but it has something to do with buying shit like Margaritavilles."[2] The Margaritaville also serves as a metaphor for the housing bubble.[7] Parker himself actually owns a Margaritaville, of which he said, "It's pretty stupid because it really is just a blender".[4]
Cultural references
The episode's title comes from the Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville blender featured in the episode, which serves as a metaphor for the housing bubble.
Cartman says he wants the soon-to-be-released Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars game for the handheld game console Nintendo DS. The game was released within a week of the original "Margaritaville" broadcast date. Representatives from game developer Rockstar Games told video game blog Kotaku they liked the reference, and did not know in advance it would be in the episode.[10]
Reception
Parker and Stone themselves were not entirely pleased with the final result of "Margaritaville". Although they liked the idea, they felt the main storyline involving the economy and the subplot involving Stan and the Margaritaville blender did not come together in the end as the duo originally hoped they would when they started writing the script.
Financial writer Roger Nusbaum said the episode was not only "humorous" but provided a decent analysis of the recession. He particularly praised Randy's inclusion of margaritas with the barest of necessities; Nusbaum said most people tend to take on absurd expenses that they fail to realize are unnecessary, even as they discuss the plight of the economy.[12] Brad Trechak of HuffPostTV called "Margaritaville" a highlight of the season.[13] Mike Fahey of Kotaku said the episode had "a clever little plot".[10] Zac Bissonnette of BloggingStocks said of the episode, "It isn't quite as trenchant as some of the other Wall Street satire that's been making the rounds, but it's definitely worth watching".[7] Carlos Delgado of If-magazine said the episode included many excellent moments, including the headless chicken method of making economic decisions, but otherwise felt "Margaritaville" was not as strong as previous episodes like "The Ring". Delgado said, "Maybe I'm too depressed about the current economic situation, who knows, but although 'Margaritaville' was well-written and poignant, I wasn't bursting out in laughter every two minutes".[9]
In 2016, the episode was highlighted in the academic journal Religions.[14]
The segment in which the bankteller says "Aaand... it's gone" has become a popular internet meme.[15]
Catholic Answers apologist and speaker Trent Horn has referenced the episode as an accurate depiction of the satisfaction theory of atonement, with Kyle representing Jesus taking all of the town's debt upon himself[16]
Emmy Award
Parker and Stone decided to submit "Margaritaville" for an
Home media
"Margaritaville", along with the thirteen other episodes from South Park's thirteenth season, were released on a three-disc DVD set and two-disc Blu-ray set in the United States on March 16, 2010. The sets included brief audio commentaries by Parker and Stone for each episode,[20] a collection of deleted scenes, and a special mini-feature Inside Xbox: A Behind-the-Scenes Tour of South Park Studios, which discussed the process behind animating the show with Inside Xbox host Major Nelson.[21]
References
- ^ "Episode guide". South Park Studios. Retrieved 2009-03-27.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c d e f Stone, Matt (November 2010). South Park: The Complete Thirteenth Season: "Margaritaville" (Blu-ray Disc). Paramount Home Entertainment. Audio commentary.
- ^ Morrow, Terry (March 12, 2009). "Morrow TV: Looking at 'South Park' ... Other shows of note". Scripps Howard News Services. The Reporter. Archived from the original on March 12, 2022. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g Parker, Trey (November 2010). South Park: The Complete Thirteenth Season: "Margaritaville" (Blu-ray Disc). Paramount Home Entertainment. Audio commentary.
- ^ Lewinski, John Scott (2009-03-31). "Creative Chaos Keeps South Park Timely, Tack-Sharp". Wired. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
- ^ a b c Tucker, Ken (2009-03-25). ""South Park" solves the economic crisis". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
- ^ a b c Bissonnette, Zac (2009-03-26). "South Park takes on the financial crisis". BloggingStocks. Archived from the original on 2009-04-10. Retrieved 2009-03-26.
- ^ a b c Perman, Cindy (2009-03-27). "South Park Explains the #%^&-ing Economic Crisis". CNBC. Retrieved 2012-03-12.
- ^ a b Delgado, Carlos (2009-03-26). ""TV Review: South Park – Season 13 – "Margaritaville"". If Magazine.
- ^ a b Fahey, Mike (2009-03-26). "Cartman plays Judas for Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars". Kotaku. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (2009-03-31). "Kids' Choice Awards, Penguins of Madagascar and WWE RAW lead cable". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on 2012-07-19. Retrieved 2009-04-01.
- ^ Nasbaum, Roger (2009-03-31). "South Park weighs in on the financial crisis". Newstex.
- ^ Trechak, Brad (March 15, 2010). "'South Park' Will Skewer Tiger Woods". HuffPostTV. Archived from the original on February 4, 2013. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- .
- ^ Zach (2021-08-24). "And It's Gone". Know Your Meme. Retrieved 2021-01-21.
- ^ "Reincarnation, Trolley Problems, and Atonement Theories". Catholic Answers. Retrieved 2022-07-22.
- ^ "Little Dorrit, Tina Fey top Creative Emmys". CBC News. 2009-09-13. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
- ^ "COMEDY CENTRAL(R) honored with 14 Primetime Emmy(R) Nominations - A New Record for the Comedy Channel" (Press release). Comedy Central. 2009-07-16. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
- Emmys.com. 2009-07-16. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
- ^ Foster, Dave (December 14, 2009). "South Park Season 13 (R1/US BD) in March". DVD Times. Retrieved February 24, 2010.
- ^ Liebman, Martin (March 5, 2010). "South Park: The Complete Thirteenth Season Blu-ray Review". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved March 25, 2010.
External links
- "Margaritaville" Episode at South Park Studios
- "Margaritaville" at IMDb