Freak Strike

Infobox Television episode
Title = Freak Strike
Series = South Park


Caption = "Whateva, I'll do what I want!"
Season = 6
Episode = 82
Airdate = March 6, 2002
Production = 601
Writer = Matt Stone
Trey Parker
Director = Trey Parker
Guests =
Episode list = List of "South Park" episodes
Season list = Infobox South Park season 6 episode list
Prev =
Next =

Freak Strike is the 82nd episode of the Comedy Central series "South Park". It originally aired on March 6, 2002. [ [http://www.southparkstudios.com/guide/index.php?season=6 Episode Guide - South Park Studios ] ]

This episode features a completely new opening sequence replacing the “4th Grade” one. It features the boys being made out of construction paper while clips are shown. With Kenny being “dead,” Timmy replaces him and sings his name repeatedly. The new theme is a more country-like version. Butters holds “The Butters Show” sign over the “South Park” sign at the end.

Plot

Seeing an episode of "Maury" where a girl born with no midsection wins a gift certificate, Kyle, Stan, Cartman and Butters decide to try to get on the show with a faked deformity to win themselves a prize. The group decide that Butters should be the one to go on the show, with balls on his chin, which Cartman called "Chinballalitis". He reluctantly agrees, and two geeks in town make fake balls to put on Butters.

Butters then flies, alone, to New York to appear on the show. In the green room, he meets other variously deformed people, who welcome Butters to their "union" (which ensures that US TV talk shows interview their members regularly). Man with Foot on Head tells him that they hate it when people fake a deformity — for example "Lobster Boy", who simply turned out to be a lobster. When they found out about this, they boiled him alive. Butters nervously agrees that he hates fakers too.

On the show, Maury introduces Butters as "Napoleon Bonaparte from South Park." Butters tells Maury that the kids at school make fun of him, and wins a trip to the largest miniature golf course in the world. Stan, Kyle and Cartman are watching the show at home, and Cartman is angry that Butters got "their" prize. He calls "Maury", and tries to get himself on the show. The operator tells him they aren't currently interviewing people with deformities, but are trying to find "out of control kids" for a future episode. Cartman convinces his mom to take him on that show and lie that he's out of control (which, ironically, he is).

Butters is grounded by his parents, who say he embarrassed them on national TV and gave his grandmother a mild stroke. Then, the freaks come to Butters' house looking for him — they want him to strike with them, so that they can take back the lime-light that was stolen from them. Fear of being discovered as a faker leads him to reluctantly agree, and he goes on strike with the group (which includes South Park's Nurse Gollum from the episode "Conjoined Fetus Lady" the Thompsons from the episode "How to Eat with Your Butt" and Kevin, Dr. Mephisto’s odd assistant).

Cartman and his mom go on "Maury". Seeing a teenage girl named Vanity swear, physically beat her mother and boast about her "out of control" way of life, Cartman dresses up as a slutty girl, to try and "beat" her and win the prize. For everything she says, he makes up an even more outrageous story. During this sequence, he says "Whateva! I do what I want!" While the two boast and try to out-do each other, a four month old baby girl named Chantel who likes to take her clothing off comes onstage. While it is clear her habit is not "out of control", as Chantel is just a baby and unaware of what she's doing, she is frowned upon by her mother (and the audience) who believe she is out of control.

At this moment the deformed-people's union hijacks the TV studio's video screen, and broadcast a plea to the audience. They say that they are the "real" freaks, and they should not lose their means of employment to people who are only freaks because they are stupid. The union members, featuring Butters, sing a song about looking for the "True Freak Label" on talk shows, and most of the audience agrees and leave the studio. Cartman is irate that Butters, again, ruined his chance to win a prize. He runs outside and rips the fake balls off of Butters' chin. But the union chase Cartman, who "ripped poor Napoleon's balls right off his chin!", so Butters thinks things might not turn out so badly for him. But at this moment his parents arrive in a taxi, and he knows he's in trouble again.

References