South Park has been a hot topic since before it first premiered on Comedy Central. The show itself was initially launched as a short comedy animated film that featured the obscurity of the series that we know today. From those first animated features, the series exploded with seasons, and a theatrical movie was released.
All of that happened before they eventually released over 300 episodes, as well as a handful of specials on Comedy Central and Paramount+. Below, we’ve detailed every special from the franchise to the series as a whole and the episodes in between.
The Pandemic Special
While South Park released episodes exclusively since it started, outside the full-length musical movie, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, that’s not the case anymore. When Season 24 of South Park approached, Viacom teased that creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker were creating 14 movies for the service. However, the South Park creators clarified what fans could expect from all future specials. The Pandemic Special was South Park‘s first attempt at tackling the COVID pandemic. Needless to say, with a unique blend of comedy and information, they didn’t disappoint.
South ParQ Vaccination Special
The Pandemic Special and South Parq Vaccination Special were the first specials from Stone and Parker. They were released before their so-called “movie deal” on Comedy Central and are less monumental than the specials that follow. However, the first two South Park specials were the only ones considered episodes of the TV show. While the first unique streaming special kept up with the tradition of Randy and his special weed releases. It felt as though the show was preluding to longer-length features.
Post COVID
Post COVID was the first South Park special that premiered on Paramount+ as part of the big deal the creators made with Viacom. It was estimated to be worth somewhere around $900 million. Meanwhile two years earlier, HBO acquired the streaming rights to South Park’s episodes at the time, estimated between $500 million and $550 million. As the first special on Paramount+ and a premiere on Comedy Central, it wasn’t on a cable network. The overall special had a much more comfortable vibe that felt more detailed and high-budget than previous efforts.
Post COVID: The Return of COVID
Post COVID: The Return of COVID, as the comedic Star Wars-style title suggests, was the sequel unique to Post COVID. It was also the final special released on Paramount+ as part of the 24th season of the series. Overall, Post COVID: The Return of COVID featured our favorite boys from the town as adults, investigating Kenny’s death in a dystopian future.
Streaming Wars Part 1
The Streaming Wars specials were among the most exciting and thorough of them all. They honestly can’t be compared to any other show in its genre. Additionally, they were an incredible refresher of what could be done with pure inspiration. They used their classic characters versus a real-life event to heavily inspire audiences.
Overall, The Streaming Wars featured some of the most outrageous content that South Park has shown in a while. Cartman got the breast surgery he implied on his mother. Then there was the return and expansion of the ManBearPig character. Another weed farm popped up as competition for Randy among other things.
Streaming Wars Part 2
Out of all the specials, The Streaming Wars was the first that wasn’t associated with a specific season. Its events took place between seasonal events. As the Streaming Wars and Streaming Wars Part 2 were released over a month apart, it built anticipation for fans. They featured a bunch of cliffhangers that had fans eager for more.
While Streaming Wars Part 2 was a conclusion to the two-part special, it felt closer to a movie in terms of length and plot. The Streaming Wars Part 2 has been the most recent release from the franchise between specials and episodes. Still, new episodes and specials are on the way as the show was extended to Season 30. Only 4 of 14 specials have premiered of the 14 that the creative duo behind the adult cartoon signed on for.
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