Volcano (South Park episode)

Infobox Television episode
Title = Volcano
Series = South Park


Caption = Scuzzlebutt weaving a basket.
Season = 1
Episode = 3
Airdate = August 20, 1997
Production = 103
Writer = Trey Parker
Matt Stone
Director = Trey Parker
Matt Stone
Guests =
Episode list = List of "South Park" episodes
Season list = Infobox South Park season 1 episode list
Prev = Weight Gain 4000 (production)
Cartman Gets an Anal Probe (airdate)
Next = Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride (production)
Weight Gain 4000 (airdate)"Volcano" is the second episode of Comedy Central's animated series "South Park". It originally aired on August 20, 1997. Though this was the third episode produced, it is often listed as the second, since it was the first to air after "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe".Fact|date=September 2008

Plot

Stan's Uncle Jimbo and his war buddy Ned take Stan, Kenny, Kyle, and Cartman on a hunting trip in the mountains. When they arrive in the wilderness (just outside of South Park), Jimbo gives each of the boys a gun, a can of beer, and a pack of cigarettes, and the hunting festivities begin.

It soon becomes apparent that Jimbo and Ned's idea of hunting is to slaughter every living thing in sight via military weaponry. They get around the regulations by yelling "It's coming right for us!" in order to exploit the loophole that they can kill any animal in self-defense. Stan proves to not have the proper temperament to enjoy hunting (or at least Jimbo and Ned's idea of hunting), and finds himself unable to shoot a living target when provided the opportunity. While hunting the boys realize that one of the nearby mountains is rumbling, a fact Ned and Jimbo ignore until it is too late.

Back in town, at the "South Park Center for Seismic Activity", the sole resident geologist (later established as Stan's dad Randy) discovers that the mountain is a volcano and going to erupt. He reports his findings to the Mayor, who becomes even more shocked when Chef realises that the boys are camping on the same mountain. The Mayor then directs one of her aides to make appropriate calls about the crisis.

Meanwhile, on the mountain, in an attempt to pour gasoline into the fire while the boys are roasting hot dogs, Ned accidentally sets himself on fire, eventually destroying Jimbo's jeep. Later, Jimbo tells the story of how Ned lost his arm in Vietnam. and offers the boys some gin, only to become upset when the boys decline, saying it "tastes like pee". However, Jimbo appears impressed with Kenny, who drinks some gasoline straight from the can.

Then, Cartman tells the story of Scuzzlebutt, a mutant creature that has a piece of celery in place of one of its hands, and Patrick Duffy for a leg, with the boys in considerable doubt. Cartman then decides to dress up as the creature the next morning in order to convince and scare them.

The next morning, Stan is woken up by Kyle, who tells him that he can't find Cartman and that Jimbo is hanging out with Kenny. Stan then finds Jimbo, Ned, and Kenny fishing with grenades, and tells them that Cartman is missing, forcing them to cut their fishing short with a rocket. As they make their way back to land, Jimbo proclaims Kenny as his honorary nephew, which upsets Stan.

At a lower elevation, some of the townspeople are organizing a search and rescue mission for the hunting party (yet unaware that the mountain is about to erupt) while other South Park residents dig a trench, under the guidance of the geologist, to divert the lava away from the town. As they do this, they are shown an education film called "Lava and You", which assumes that if a person ducks and covers if threatened by lava, it would pass harmlessly over the would-be victim. Only Chef realises how ridiculous this is.

Meanwhile, the hunting group is searching for Cartman. Jimbo sees a ram and is about to shoot it, but Kenny fires at it first, prompting Jimbo to give him a bigger gun, and making his favoritism with Kenny more apparent. The boys then find Cartman in his Scuzzlebutt disguise, who becomes convinced that he has scared them. His plan backfires, however, when the others start shooting and giving chase. Eventually, they catch up with Cartman at the base of the mountain. Jimbo tells Kenny to kill "Scuzzlebutt", but Stan, willing to redeem himself in his uncle's eyes, takes Kenny's gun and takes aim, only to find he is unable to shoot his target as before. Jimbo takes the gun away from Stan just as Cartman manages to get his costume off.

Suddenly, the mountain erupts, and the hunting group tries to flee only to find themselves trapped on the other side of the trench. The real Scuzzlebutt then appears, shocking Cartman in particular. Even Chef and Mr. Garrison are familiar with Scuzzlebutt. Jimbo apologizes to the boys about their seemingly imminent deaths, but then Scuzzlebutt weaves a wicker basket, carrying the hunting party to safety. The lava then flows through the trench and, due to the geologist's miscalculation, destroys Denver. Stan then kills Scuzzlebutt in a misguided attempt to prove he can kill something and make Uncle Jimbo proud just like he was with Kenny. Unfortunately, Jimbo is less than impressed, telling Stan that he will always be his nephew, and saying that "some things you do kill and some you don't." Stan doesn't understand, since earlier in the episode, Jimbo would have shot an endangered species, and the boys decide that hunting is stupid and go home to watch cartoons.

External links

* [http://www.southparkstudios.com/guide/103/ Volcano] at the South Park Studios Episode Guide