South Park Tackles Colin Kaepernick’s National Anthem Protest Head On In Its Premiere

Potential spoilers below…

South Park kicked off its milestone season 20 premiere last night with an episode that has already risen to the top of the show’s best episodes list. Trey Parker and Matt Stone addressed the Colin Kaepernick National Anthem protest, but they also incorporated J.J. Abrams into the storyline in hilarious fashion. Since they consider J.J. Abrams the best content aggregator in the film world, they brought him in to reboot the National Anthem so that everyone would be happy. The end result? Fans had no clue what to do – sitting, standing, and kneeling caused everyone to go up and down.

The first episode of the season was one that tackled its topic more directly than others. It went straight for the jugular by mocking Kaepernick and Abrams directly. It then raised the ante by taking the topic of protest to the elementary level where Randy (Stan’s dad) ends up betting on who will take a knee and who won’t take a knee.

Parker and Stone are known for their biting satirical comedy so much to the point that we almost use their show as our guide for perspective. And the majority of the times it hits the nail on the head and exposes the reality of cultural situations exactly how they are versus how they are being perceived by the masses. I can honestly say that I have used their take on a specific situation as a compass of perspective. Is that the right way to go about it? Probably not. But it just shows the impact of their writing and unapologetic delivery. Kaepernick’s National anthem protest got the exact treatment it deserved, because at the end of the day with trending movements like this, we have to have a laugh about it. Parker and Stone know this and capitalize on it.

There’s a big season ahead for South Park – one sure to piss off a lot of people. Just watch the seasons compilation below and you will see what I’m talking about:

Are you ready for the new season’s mayhem? What topics do you think they will take on next? It’s almost impossible to know where the creative duo will take the show, but it is guaranteed they won’t back down from any topic they examine. From anal probes to gay dogs to sex changes, Parker and Stone enjoy the task of understanding things through their “innocent” characters.

Bring it on, season 20.

[H/T South Park]