The general consensus among fans of South Park is that season 5’s “Scott Tenorman Must Die,” in which Cartman swears revenge against a ninth-grader who tricked him into buying his pubes, is the show’s finest hour. Series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have ranked this episode among their favorites, and it frequently tops critics’ lists of the show’s greatest installments.
There’s no denying that it’s a fantastic episode – it’s quintessential South Park – but at the same time, this show has fantastic episodes in spades. So, here are 5 reasons why Scott Tenorman Must Die is South Park’s best episode and its 5 closest competitors.
Why It’s The Best: It’s As Horrifying As It Is Hilarious
One of South Park’s primary M.O.s is shock humor. This is when something is so horrible and unexpected that it becomes funny. “Scott Tenorman Must Die” is arguably the show’s greatest use of shock humor.
There’s plenty of shock value in gags like the hidden voyeurs spying on Mrs. Tenorman, Cartman’s various plans to mutilate Scott, and of course, the final stinger, but it’s never so shocking that it becomes unfunny.
Competitor: Good Times With Weapons (Season 8, Episode 1)
The season 8 premiere “Good Times with Weapons” opens with the boys buying martial-arts weapons at the Park County Fair and quickly transitions to a spot-on parody of the anime style with a wider aspect ratio as they pretend to be ninjas. The style promptly returns to the standard cut-out look when one of Kenny’s throwing stars ends up in Butters’ eye.
Violence hasn’t been bluntly depicted to an effect this great outside of a Scorsese movie. The episode is chock full of hysterical material, from Cartman’s unfortunate “wardrobe malfunction” to the “Let’s Fighting Love” theme song that mixes Japanese and English lyrics.
Why It’s The Best: It Brings Out The Best And Worst In Cartman
Trey Parker and Matt Stone have said that “Scott Tenorman Must Die” was a landmark moment for South Park because it brought out the worst in Cartman. As he fed a kid his mom and dad, Cartman’s evil was elevated. This episode pushed the limits of what the creators could do with him.
Exploring the boundaries of Cartman’s sociopathic mind has always been the best thing about this character. He’s pure evil, and “Scott Tenorman Must Die” is the best demonstration of that. In the end, the message is clear: don’t mess with Cartman.
Competitor: Smug Alert! (Season 10, Episode 2)
Trey Parker and Matt Stone are at their most incisive when they feel really passionately about what they’re satirizing. This is particularly apparent in season 10’s “Smug Alert!,” in which the duo lampooned the self-righteousness of people who drive hybrid cars. With the perfect balance of social commentary and character moments, “Smug Alert!” represents South Park at its finest.
Everything about this episode, from Gerald’s smarmy “Thanks!” to Stan’s “gay little song” to San Franciscans enjoying the smell of their own farts, to the cloud of “smug” drifting from Los Angeles following George Clooney’s Oscar acceptance speech, worked hysterically.
Why It’s The Best: The A-Plot Is Compelling Enough Not To Need A B-Plot
Most sitcom episodes have an A-plot (a main storyline) and a B-plot (a subplot to cut to throughout the A-plot), and indeed, South Park usually sticks to this format. For example, while Cartman and Kyle argue over The Passion of the Christ, Stan and Kenny attempt to get their money back from Mel Gibson.
But in “Scott Tenorman Must Die,” there is no B-plot. And you don’t notice that there’s only one storyline, because that one storyline is so compelling and well-structured that a B-plot isn’t necessary.
Competitor: Super Fun Time (Season 12, Episode 7)
Some of the best South Park episodes don’t have a larger sociopolitical point to make and just have fun – or, in this case, a super fun time – with the crazy world that the characters live in. In season 12’s “Super Fun Time,” when Mr. Garrison and the class go on a field trip to an old-timey pioneer village, they’re taken hostage by a crack team of robbers on the lam, and the staff’s refusal to break character creates complications.
Meanwhile, Cartman becomes Ferris Bueller to Butters’ Cameron Frye to convince him to live in the moment and break the rules from time to time. From Garrison’s utter lack of heroism to the revelation that the team robbed a Burger King, “Super Fun Time” is delightfully absurd and deliciously dark from beginning to end.
Why It’s The Best: Its Focus Is On Character, Not Social Commentary
There’s a lot of merit in South Park episodes whose focus is social commentary. “Margaritaville,” “Best Friends Forever,” and the “Black Friday” trilogy are among the show’s funniest and smartest installments.
But South Park is at its best and most timeless when it simply focuses on its characters as they make decisions and those decisions have consequences and they’re forced to act. “Pre-School” and “AWESOM-O” are prime examples of this, but the character-focused storytelling in “Scott Tenorman Must Die” is the sharpest.
Competitor: Make Love, Not Warcraft (Season 10, Episode 8)
In “Make Love, Not Warcraft,” the boys become addicted to World of Warcraft and embark on a quest to eradicate a jerk who’s been killing other players. The training montage in which the boys get more and more out-of-shape and unhealthy as they avoid the outdoors and play the game 24/7, set to music with the same intensity as a training montage in which Rocky Balboa trains for a title fight, is hilarious.
Plus, the use of dramatic clichés in the Warcraft scenes, like Randy dying in Stan’s arms while sitting in a PC store with a headset on, makes this a spot-on satire of both gaming and fantasy stories.
Why It’s The Best: The Final Moments Are Beautifully Dark
The plot twist at the end of “Scott Tenorman Must Die” works spectacularly, because we follow along with Scott outsmarting Cartman, expecting Cartman to have something up his sleeve, without quite knowing what.
And then, in a series of beautifully dark moments – from Cartman’s chillingly calm monologue to Scott’s discovery of his mother’s severed finger, wedding ring and all – it becomes hauntingly clear. As a pitch-black comedy, this show has a lot of plot twists, and this is by far the most effective.
Competitor: Casa Bonita (Season 7, Episode 11)
If the widespread praise for “Scott Tenorman Must Die” tells us anything, it’s that South Park fans love episodes that show us the extreme lengths to which Cartman will go to get what he wants. Although feeding Scott his own parents will always be Cartman’s most heinous act, locking Butters in an underground bunker for a week is a close second.
The great thing about “Casa Bonita” is that, while we can understand why Cartman wants to exact such vicious revenge on Scott, his reason for kidnapping Butters is so trivial: he just really, really likes the Mexican-themed “eatertainment” restaurant where Kyle is having his birthday party.