Mysterion Rises
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"Mysterion Rises" is the twelfth episode of the fourteenth season of animated television series ''
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...
'', and the 207th episode of the series overall. It aired on
Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...
on November 3, 2010, and is the second of a three-part arc that began with the episode " Coon 2: Hindsight". The episode was written and directed by series co-creator
Trey Parker Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative part ...
, and was rated
TV-MA The TV Parental Guidelines are a television content rating system in the United States that was first proposed on December 19, 1996, by the United States Congress, the American television industry, and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ...
-LV in the United States. In its original American broadcast on November 3, 2010, "Mysterion Rises" was watched by 3.263 million viewers. According to Nielsen ratings, "Mysterion Rises" was seen by 2.85 million overall households. This episode revealed the secret identity of Mysterion, which was deliberately left unresolved in "The Coon" and "Coon 2: Hindsight."


Plot

The episode starts off with comic-like recap of the previous episode ("Coon 2: Hindsight") before turning into a
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
-like title screen. The group is now led by Mysterion, although still called "Coon and Friends" (because it "pisses Cartman off beyond belief", which Mysterion finds extremely funny), and hold a bake sale to aid those in the Gulf affected by
Cthulhu Cthulhu is a fictional cosmic entity created by writer H. P. Lovecraft. It was introduced in his short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published by the American pulp magazine ''Weird Tales'' in 1928. Considered a Great Old One within the pantheon ...
's arrival at the end of the previous episode, meeting a strange man who state their efforts to stop Cthulhu are futile. Coon and Friends then return to find that Captain Hindsight has ransacked their base looking for incriminating photos of him with
Courtney Love Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, Love has had a career spanning four decades. She rose to promi ...
. The boys reveal the pictures are fake and solely constructed by
Eric Cartman Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to as just Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main characters, ...
as
blackmail Blackmail is a criminal act of coercion using a threat. As a criminal offense, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a thr ...
, but Hindsight is too conflicted to believe them. Mysterion tells Hindsight that if he does not believe them, he has no choice but to pull the trigger. All the other heroes are shocked by this show of what can only be fearlessness or foolishness as Mysterion tells them to leave. While doing so, Human Kite (
Kyle Broflovski Kyle Broflovski () is a fictional character in the adult animation, adult animated sitcom ''South Park''. He is voiced by and loosely based on series co-creator Matt Stone. Kyle is one of the series' four central characters, along with his frie ...
), among others, all too shocked to keep up the act, off-handedly calls Mysterion by his real name,
Kenny McCormick Kenneth "Kenny" McCormick is a fictional character and one of the four main protagonists in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', alongside Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Eric Cartman. His often muffled and incomprehensible speech—th ...
, to calm down. Hindsight soon reveals that he believes having perfect 20/20 hindsight to be nothing more than a curse, but Kenny easily makes it look like a joke compared to his own curse, namely, his familiar inability to die. It is revealed that every time Kenny dies, he simply wakes up in his bed the next day restored to full health. Furthermore, nobody seems to be able to remember his death, even if they witnessed it first hand. While this occurs, Cartman is at the airport to make his way to
Cthulhu Cthulhu is a fictional cosmic entity created by writer H. P. Lovecraft. It was introduced in his short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published by the American pulp magazine ''Weird Tales'' in 1928. Considered a Great Old One within the pantheon ...
, who delayed Cartman's flight by
defecating Defecation (or defaecation) follows digestion and is the necessary biological process by which organisms eliminate a solid, semisolid, or liquid waste material known as feces (or faeces) from the digestive tract via the anus or cloaca. The act ...
on the runway. After beating up a little girl (Cartman incorrectly tells the audience that she is a villain), Cartman arrives at Cthulhu's location and tries to get the attention of Cthulhu, so he can get revenge on his former team. However, Cthulhu is uninterested and leaves Cartman. Cartman then decides to be cute and adorable to manipulate Cthulhu. After introducing himself as "the little Coon" and rubbing Cthulhu's belly (much like Mei from ''
My Neighbor Totoro is a 1988 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten. It stars the voices of Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto and Hitoshi Takagi, and focuses on two young sisters a ...
''), Cartman befriends Cthulhu. He then calls a press conference and declares them the new, and this time trademarked, "Coon and Friends". Along the way to South Park, Cartman and Cthulhu are shown destroying a
synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...
and
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. By then, after deliberating over his situation, Hindsight decides to remove his powers and resume being news reporter Jack Brolin, but after seeing an innocent person with an injured arm crying for his help, Brolin realizes that "Hindsight" should not have removed his powers. Back at South Park, Coon and Friends learn about the
cult of Cthulhu "The Call of Cthulhu" is a cosmic horror short story by American writer H. P. Lovecraft. Written in the summer of 1926, it was first published in the pulp magazine ''Weird Tales'' in February 1928. The story is a founding document of the Cthu ...
, and they discover that Kenny's parents were a part of it. Kenny, who is understandably shocked, goes to his house to question them as Mysterion. During this, Mosquito reluctantly reveals himself to be Clyde, when his mother ordered him to take out the trash, and taking off a
vuvuzela The vuvuzela is a horn with an inexpensive injection-moulded plastic shell about long, which produces a loud monotone note typically around B♭ 3 (the first B♭ below middle C). Some models are made in two parts to facilitate storage, ...
on his nose as if it was a mosquito's proboscis. Kenny's parents were only indirectly involved with the Cult of Cthulhu (they only went for the free beer), and he forces them to tell him whereabouts of the South Park chapter. Together with the other heroes, they go to the Cult meeting, and notice familiar faces (Mr. Adler, the
Goth Goth or Goths may refer to: * Goths, a Germanic people Arts and entertainment * Gothic rock or goth, a style of rock music * Goth subculture, developed by fans of gothic rock * ''Goth'' (2003 film), an American horror film * ''Goth'' (2008 f ...
Kids, and the ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
'' fans). Kenny, however, becomes alarmed over a line they say: He abandons his friends and confronts the Goth kids in an alley about what it means. The leader of the cult then shows up and asks for the Goth kids' assistance in dispensing of Mysterion. Coon and Friends show up too late, as the leader takes Kindergoth's switchblade and stabs Kenny in the chest. At this point, Human Kite turns out to be Kyle when he exclaims "You bastards!" in reaction to Kenny's death. Inevitably, Kenny wakes up in his bed, unharmed. The rest of the Friends show up at his bedroom door asking him why he ran away from the cult and that they have to defeat Cthulhu, completely unaware of the fact that he just died. Kenny sighs in disappointment, ending the episode.


Cultural references

"Mysterion Rises" was written and directed by series co-founder
Trey Parker Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative part ...
. It first aired on November 3, 2010 in the United States on Comedy Central. Like all South Park episodes, "Mysterion Rises" was first conceived by Parker and fellow co-founder
Matt Stone Matthew Richard Stone (born May 26, 1971) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and ''The Book of Mormon (musical), The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his cre ...
within a week of the episode's broadcast date. The episode's title is a play on the title for ''
The Dark Knight Rises ''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is the final instal ...
'', the final film in Christopher Nolan's Batman film trilogy, which was announced only days before the episode aired. Cartman interacting with Cthulhu while on his belly and the animation sequence while flying with Cthulhu are references to the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes characters
Marc Antony and Pussyfoot Marc Anthony and Pussyfoot are animation, animated characters in four Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' shorts. Three cartoons focus on the dog and kitten pair: ''Feed the Kitty'' (1952), ''Kiss Me Cat'' (1953) and ''Cat Feud ...
and the film ''
My Neighbor Totoro is a 1988 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten. It stars the voices of Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto and Hitoshi Takagi, and focuses on two young sisters a ...
''. The song playing during the flying sequence is also a parody of the Totoro theme song. In this episode there is a parody clip of
LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. ( ; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and ...
' "Rise" commercial for
Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...
(giving the episode title a double parody). The line "I am not a role model" was originally used by
Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT and CBS Sports. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "the Bread Truck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", ...
, hence the wink at the end. The goth kids believe the rise of Cthulhu will be like a never-ending
Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN (stylized as NIИ), is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988. Its members are the singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Trent Reznor and his frequent col ...
concert, and hope Cthulhu will bring an end to
The Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company. Launched on April 18, 1983, under the na ...
.


Reception

Sean O'Neal of ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
'' gave the episode a C+ rating. Ramsey Isler of
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
gives the episode an "impressive" 8 out of 10. He complains that the episode had very few laugh-out-loud moments but praised the show for experimenting with new visual styles and presenting a more ambitious vision than the past few episodes.


Home media

"Mysterion Rises", along with the thirteen other episodes from ''South Parks fourteenth season, were released on a three-disc
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
set and two-disc
Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
set in the United States on April 26, 2011.


References


External links


"Mysterion Rises"
Full episode at South Park Studios * {{South Park episodes, 14 South Park season 14 episodes Deepwater Horizon oil spill Cthulhu Mythos stories South Park episodes in multiple parts Television episodes about immortality