Margaritaville (South Park)
The 184th overall episode of the series, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 25, 2009, as an Easter special.
Kyle Broflovski is portrayed as a Jesus-like savior working to save the economy, and Stan Marsh spends much of the episode trying to return a personal Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville machine.
"Margaritaville" reflected Parker and Stone's belief that most Americans view the economy in the same way as religion, in that it is seldom understood but seen as an important, elusive entity.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by 2.77 million households in its original airing, making it the most-watched Comedy Central production of the week.
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.
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.
Eventually, he goes all the way to the United States Treasury, where a group of associates "consult the charts" and tell him the mixer is worth $90 trillion.
[3] Parker and Stone originally planned for their economy-related episode to involve Cartman dressing as a superhero named "The Coon" and fighting the recession.
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.
[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.
[2] Within a week of "Margaritaville's" original broadcast date, the online retailer Zazzle and South Park Studios, the official South Park website, released T-shirts and hooded sweatshirts based on "Margaritaville", including shirts with Randy dressed in rags saying "Finger-pointing gets us nowhere!"
"Margaritaville" is a satire and commentary on the global recession affecting much of the industrialized world at the time of the episode's broadcast on March 25, 2009.
[6] Parker and Stone believed many viewed the economy as an important, elusive entity without truly understanding how it works, and felt it mirrored faith in religion.
[4] The duo had difficulty writing the script due to their limited familiarity with religion and Christian history, and they relied heavily on executive producer Anne Garefino for help.
[2] The scenes in which Stan explains how his Margaritaville blender was purchased on a payment plan that was eventually combined into securities sold to the banks required particular assistance from Stone's father.
[7] "Margaritaville" is also the name of a popular 1977 song by Jimmy Buffett, who has been the butt of South Park humor in the past.
[4] In its original American broadcast, "Margaritaville" was watched by 2.77 million overall households, according to the Nielsen Media Research, making it the most-watched Comedy Central production of the week.
Tucker also said of Cartman's blaming the Jews for the recession, "Among its many achievements, South Park has exposed anti-Semitism to such relentless ridicule over the years, it deserves some sort of humanitarian award".
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.
[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".
[15][16] 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[17] Parker and Stone decided to submit "Margaritaville" for an Emmy Award because they had received a large amount of positive feedback about the episode from adults and older viewers.
The sets included brief audio commentaries by Parker and Stone for each episode,[21] 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.
