Review: South Park “Mexican Joker”

 

 

Overview (Spoilers Below)

Randy, who hasn’t worked as a geologist since sometime in season four, is still living the high life on his independent weed plantation, Tegridy Farms. And let me tell you, times are good. The state of Colorado is smoking more weed than ever, so much merchandise is being unloaded on Tegridy tours, and Towelie is living in the house with the Marsh’s, guiding Stan every step of the way. But when Randy talks to his accountant, Stan, the numbers aren’t anywhere close to their projections. If these trends continue, the farm might start losing money.

Turns out, many of the citizens of South Park have begun growing their own weed. The Scotch’s are doing it, so is Counselor Mackey, as well as a few dozen more of Randy’s former customers. This makes him mad, very mad. He gave up everything to become a successful grower and now a few fair-weather bad guys are doing their best to ruin it for him.

Eric Cartman is also angry, and a little bit sad. He feels nostalgic for the good old days… until he finds out about ICE, the horrible government agency that restores his faith in humanity. Once he learns a single call could get an entire family thrown into a detention camp, he immediately blows in the Broflovski family. It’s a fun joke for Eric until Kyle goes missing for more than two weeks. At that point, Stan discovers what Eric did and decides to call ICE on the Cartman family.

With Kyle and Cartman reunited in a shabby detention center, they are forced to work together. Kyle screws the pooch when he informs the guards they’re potentially creating a “Mexican Joker.” Because the center is located adjacent to South Park, the guards take the Mexican Joker threat way too seriously and their ensuing panic soon erupts into mayhem. But just before the main guard is about to release everyone, Kyle flubs it again by assuring him the Mexican Joker doesn’t exist. Relieved, the jailer flees the scene and strands Eric, Kyle, and dozens of Mexican children.

Randy handles his rage in an even darker way. After an ugly fight with Towelie in which he accuses Randy of being a towel, Mr. Marsh makes a deal with a corporate marijuana operation—something he swore he’d never do. MedMen Enterprises arms Randy with explosives which he uses to get payback on all those smarmy, home-grown traitors. His message is clear: “Anybody who didn’t die in the many explosions better start buying their weed from Tegridy Farms again because Randy Marsh is not taking prisoners.”

 

Our Take

No joke. This season premiere may have been a little too aggressive, and a shade too ambitious. Now that Randy has blown up half the town, and Eric basically admitted to recreating the Holocaust for Kyle, how can the intensity go anywhere but down? This felt more like a penultimate episode as opposed to a season premiere.

I’m glad to see the continuation of Randy’s plantation plot. Even though recreational marijuana has been legal in Colorado for quite a few years, it’s even more relevant and relatable now that more and more states and municipalities are legalizing and decriminalizing weed, or at the very least, putting it on the ballot. It’s also fun to see how Randy and Towelie are all in on this endeavor while Sharon and the kids couldn’t care less and outwardly despise country living.

It was only a matter of time before Tegridy got some serious competition. That’s one of the problems with legalization; the entire enterprise transforms into a buyer’s market. While the quality of home-grown ganja will never measure up to scientifically farmed products, it’s certainly a hell of a lot cheaper, and the South Park-ians aren’t exactly known for their refinement.

Still, it’s hard to believe how quickly Randy cut a deal with MedMen after vowing to remain independent. While this partnership will indeed cut down on home growers in the short-term, I guarantee Randy will soon regret making this deal.

I saved the detention center discussion for last because it’s a lot harder to talk about. As comedy writers, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have the freedom to discuss hot button topics on their national platform. It’s sad to say, but some people might only have become aware of these detention camps because of South Park. And while they handled the issue with satirical grace, I still felt uncomfortable hearing jokes about something so heinous. To the creator’s credit, they didn’t “go low” and portray some of the harshest aspects of child centers, but they certainly pushed the envelope to an appropriate degree. I’m hoping the rest of the season—since Kyle and Cartman are still there—continues to be poignant, yet tactful.

Because of these two explosive plots, there were times when it felt like they leaned into the outrageous and forgot to be funny. Then again, South Park has always had trouble with this delicate balance. That’s why some episodes are way better than others.