# Excelsior! (South Park, 4/26) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 27, 2006, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406 "2006-04-27T02:36:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2006, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/21 "2006-04-27T20:47:32Z")
Maybe Al was actually saying “I’m cereal.” Once again, none of the parents noticed their kids missing for days. I also liked “We will always remember Kid 1, Kid 2, Kid 3, and of course Kid 4.” ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2006, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/22 "2006-04-27T21:06:09Z")
> [@JeffB](#): > > Maybe Al was actually saying “I’m cereal.” > > Once again, none of the parents noticed their kids missing for days. I also liked “We will always remember Kid 1, Kid 2, Kid 3, and of course Kid 4.” Closed captioning used “Cereal” rather than “Serial” And I agree the show has toned down a bit. I wonder if the Scientologists got to them? Though more likely the network. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2006, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/23 "2006-04-27T21:45:14Z")
“Social commentary?” “Controversial views?” Where? ---
**Author:** ![Electronic\_Chaos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Electronic\_Chaos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electronic_Chaos)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2006, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/24 "2006-04-27T23:12:20Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > “Social commentary?” “Controversial views?” > > Where? Al Gore is recently known for raising awareness of global warming. So, if you re-watch the episode, substitute “Global warming” for “Manbearpig.” ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2006, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/25 "2006-04-27T23:23:20Z")
> [@JeffB](#): > > Maybe Al was actually saying “I’m cereal.” I spent the whole episode waiting for the punchline that _had_ to accompany that line, but none was offered. Used to be, when they’d carry something like that throughout an episode, there would be some type of explanatory gag at the end. ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/26 "2006-04-28T00:30:29Z")
I wonder if it was supposed to be a reference to the 2000 campaign when Al Gore was called a “serial exaggerator” and “serial fibber”? ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/27 "2006-04-28T01:51:27Z")
> [@JeffB](#): > > I wonder if it was supposed to be a reference to the 2000 campaign when Al Gore was called a “serial exaggerator” and “serial fibber”? That was the only possibility revealed by Googling “al gore” and “serial.” Beats me. Not much of a joke, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/28 "2006-04-28T03:10:55Z")
I’ll go out on a limb and share my theory on the whole “serial” bit. From Stan’s speech at the end Gore was being portrayed as one of those wierd, loser kids you knew when you were little who had no friends, who had no concept of humor, who ultimately thought that everything always had to be about themselves, and who would basically ‘make’ you be their friend by starting balling if you wouldn’t be. Although I can’t say I knew anyone that actually said “serial” for “serious”, I do remember kids like this that would say certain odd words constantly in a similar manner. I think that’s what they were going for. Overall I thought it was a pretty good episode. I liked them doing this kind of take on Gore. Nothing too topical or obvious. No overwrought social commentary. Sort of like what they did years ago with Rod Stewart (“Poop pants!”). ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/29 "2006-04-28T03:14:02Z")
Still, it was light-years better than last week’s episode \… ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/30 "2006-04-28T03:46:59Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > Overall I thought it was a pretty good episode. I liked them doing this kind of take on Gore. Nothing too topical or obvious. No overwrought social commentary. Sort of like what they did years ago with Rod Stewart (“Poop pants!”). No overwrought social commentary? That’s what everything except the Cartman-treasure-eating part _was_. ---
**Author:** ![Phantom\_Dennis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/51bf81/32.png) [@Phantom\_Dennis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phantom_Dennis)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/31 "2006-04-28T04:01:25Z")
Yeah, better than last week, but that’s not saying much. I think they had a decent episode with the kids trapped in Cave of the Winds and Cartman’s plan to smuggle the treasure out, but it didn’t fill a half hour so they added the nonsense with Al Gore and Manbearpig. If it was satire, I still don’t have a clue what they were satirizing. I guess Manbearpig could equal global warming, in which case this episode would’ve been slightly relevant about 6 years ago. Seriously guys, if you don’t have a good topic for satire, just drop the satire angle and go with a story. You don’t need to lampoon a political figure/celebrety/TV show/fad/social issue _every_ single episode. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/32 "2006-04-28T04:02:23Z")
> [@chorpler](#): > > No overwrought social commentary? That’s what everything except the Cartman-treasure-eating part _was_. So teach me. What is the message? ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/33 "2006-04-28T04:39:26Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > So teach me. What is the message? Are you serious? Al Gore has been doing the lecture circuit on environmental issues, global warming in particular. He’s got [a movie](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUiP6dqPynE) coming out on the subject. Most of the episode was dedicated to saying that global warming is a totally imaginary problem invented to advance a political agenda and that Al Gore is a totally irrelevant figure who is simply using it as a pathetic excuse to draw attention to himself because he has self-esteem issues. ---
**Author:** ![Darkhold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@Darkhold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darkhold)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/34 "2006-04-28T04:41:59Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > So teach me. What is the message? That global warming is absurd as trying to find a mythical Man-Bear-Pig and that Al Gore is a hysterical idiot for running around trying to raise awareness and ‘kill’ it. I have to say I was pretty baffled by it. Usually when they go after someone high profile it’s because they’ve been making a total ass of themselves recently and deserve a few potshots their way. And it used to seem to be a rather minor part of the episode as an aside. That whole Al Gore thing ate up 90% of the ep and wasn’t even funny or relevant. After about 10 mins of it I felt like yelling “Yes I get it. You don’t believe in Global Warming. You’ve told us a dozen times now there’s no need to make a whole ep about how it’s just a myth.” I just get the feeling they saw Al Gore on some type of raise awareness tour giving speeches and got annoyed and felt they had to do an ep about it. ---
**Author:** ![Darkhold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@Darkhold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darkhold)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/35 "2006-04-28T04:43:01Z")
ok beaten by two mins by someone with better info. Nevermind. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/36 "2006-04-28T05:16:15Z")
> [@Darkhold](#): > > TAfter about 10 mins of it I felt like yelling “Yes I get it. You don’t believe in Global Warming. You’ve told us a dozen times now there’s no need to make a whole ep about how it’s just a myth.” You know, I never got that vibe from the show. On the surface, it appears they’re deriding the idea, but the characters who oppose the view that GW is real do so with exaggeratedly absurd statements. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/37 "2006-04-28T11:41:26Z")
I didn’t think the episode was an attack on global warming. It just seemed to me like the Al Gore bit was just the sort of thing they usually do - take an easy-to-make-fun-of celebrity who’s not currently relevant and string together a bunch of non sequiter jokes using him as the punchline. Methinks some of you are reading too much into it. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/38 "2006-04-28T12:20:35Z")
I also thought this episode was too soon after the WV mine cave-ins. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/39 "2006-04-28T15:25:28Z")
> [@Dung Beetle](#): > > I also thought this episode was too soon after the WV mine cave-ins. Did you see their Hurricane Katrina episode? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2006, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406/40 "2006-04-28T15:51:15Z")
Nope. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excelsior-south-park-4-26/354406.md?page=3)