A show that's been on the air for as long as South Park has had plenty of time to build
up its lore throughout the years. This ranges from lampooning current events to explaining
long running gags such as the details behind Kenny's deaths. Even with the amount of ground
that's been covered, some fans believe that there's even more going on behind the scenes
than the creators are letting on, whether that be details about certain characters
or the entire universe of the show itself. That has us pondering the classic question;
which of these explanations make the most sense and which ones are, as Cartman would say, "weak."
I'm Caleb with WickedBinge and these is South Park Theories: BS to Truthbombs!
With that said, let’s get the theories out of the way that have been debunked. These
theories either have so many holes that they can’t possibly be true… they lack
evidence… or they’ve been confirmed false by creators. These Theories are Bullsh*t.
The show takes place entirely in Butters' memory.
What this theory essentially means is that these are mostly real events that happened
but Butters is recollecting them while talking to a therapist. This would explain why the show has
some grounding in reality but can get really out of control, as these are warped memories
sparked by Butters' trauma. We think this is a funny theory but ultimately it holds no weight
under scrutiny. How and why would Butters be remembering things he wasn't present for? Sure,
maybe he could have found out about those events later, but if it doesn't effect him,
why would he be telling this to a therapist? Not only is this theory pretty leaky to begin with,
the season 22 episode The Scoots all but debunks this theory. This episode actually
was a recollection of events explained by a narrator to the audience but the person
in question turned out to be Kenny. That would mean Butters is recollecting Kenny's recollection
which... this is starting to make our heads hurt. The theory is debunked, end of story.
Officer Barbrady was never really a cop.
Officer Barbrady was portrayed as the only police officer in South Park for the longest time until
Sergent Yates and the police department were introduced in later seasons. This caused some
confusion as Officer Barbrady was rarely if ever seen with the department, leading some
fans wondering what his relationship with them was. This theory suggests that Barbrady was never
working with the actual police department and all the residents of the town were keeping up
appearances out of pity. Barbrady is very slow and gullible so it’s reasonable enough to believe that
someone tricked him into thinking this was his job. While this theory was not necessarily a bad
one at one time, it has been subsequently debunked by season 19 of South Park. This showed Barbrady
was indeed working with the police force even though he was subsequently fired for shooting an
unarmed Latino boy. He may not be a cop anymore but we can say for certain he was at one time.
Moving on from the BS, these theories still have a lot of problems… Not enough
to say they’re completely debunked, but still... These Theories are Full of Holes.
Randy and Sharon are actually siblings.
The parents of Stan and Shelly, Mr. And Mrs. Marsh have had many ups and downs in their marriage,
usually stemming from Randy's fiascos. They do argue quite a bit but mostly stay together, which
does somewhat resemble a sibling rivalry. Really, we're playing Devil’s advocate here. We think
there's no legitimacy to this theory whatsoever. The idea stems from the fact that Sharon sometimes
refers to Randy's father Marvin as her dad. We think that's quite a stretch to say the least.
It's totally plausible to believe that Sharon is referring to Marvin as her father-in-law,
not her biological father. It's not like this is unusual in many relationships.
We can't put this theory totally in the BS section as it hasn't been formally debunked
like our previous theories. Plus, given Matt and Trey's sick sense of humor we're willing
to at least accept the possibility that they would go here. The evidence that's provided so
far though does not give enough weight for us to consider this theory true as of yet.
Kenny is in a coma.
Ever since the finale of St. Elsewhere, a classic theory that befalls any television show is that
it’s all made up in one character’s mind. In this case it’s Kenny who has supposedly been in a coma
from a near death experience since before the series began. The world of South Park is his
warped fever dream based on stories he hears of the outside world. This would explain a few
things, such as Kenny’s many deaths being trauma from the event that put Kenny in the coma in the
first place. Personally, we don’t think that this concept is true for one simple reason… it’s way
too cliché for Matt Stone and Trey Parker. We’re also not sure why Kenny would be dreaming of
scenes and scenarios that he has no involvement in so, much like the theory about Butters,
it crumbles under that logical standpoint as well. Personally, we hope this theory isn’t
true because on top of not making any sense it would be an extremely trite and boring twist.
Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny represent the four horsemen of the apocalypse.
This may sound far-fetched but it has been confirmed that the SpongeBob characters are
based off the seven deadly sins, so it's not out of the realm of possibility. Let's take
a closer examination. Kenny would represent death, that one is pretty straightforward.
Cartman would likely be conquest considering he's constant desire for "authoritah." Kyle could be
war considering how often he fights with Cartman. It's a stretch but it's possible. That leaves Stan
with famine which... makes no sense at all. If anything, Kenny would be famine as well as death
considering his family's low income. We're not going to say that this is total BS as there is
some evidence here but Stan unfortunately causes this theory to crumble in legitimacy quite a bit.
With that said, we’re now into the middle category. Where we
may be stumble onto some truth… Maybe. These Theories are Possible.
South Park is set in the same universe as Peanuts.
This may seem totally out there are first but we actually believe there is enough similarities to
raise some eyebrows. Both South Park and Peanuts are told from the perspective of kids who remain
young despite living through several decades. The Peanuts characters may not be as vulgar as
the South Park kids but they are every bit as cruel and sadistic. Even the art style for both
properties, while very different, use the same technique of very simple character design and
adding layers of depth on top of those simplistic images. There are even moments in South Park which
directly reference Peanuts in many ways, shapes and forms. With all that being said, we still
think this is pretty out there. The adults in South Park may be often stupid but they don't
talk in an incomprehensible "wa wa wa" voice. Peanuts is also usually much more grounded than
South Park aside from some moments with Snoopy and Woodstock. As much as we love both South Park
and Peanuts, we need a little more evidence before we can declare this theory as true.
South Park is purgatory for stupid people.
South Park may be a clear satire of American culture but there are a lot of supernatural
elements at play in the show's narrative. This is a universe featuring singing pieces
of poop and towels with weed addictions so while events in the show mirror our reality,
it's certainly taking place in a world of its own. A few have suggested that South Park is actually
full of dead people who were deemed too stupid to end up in heaven or hell. This would explain why
Satan and Jesus make frequent appearances in town, as it is a common ground where they can
both appear. The problem with this theory is that not everyone in the town is stupid. The
kids in particular demonstrate extraordinarily high intelligence and even a few of the adults
have moments of brilliance here and there. It also doesn't explain how characters (aside from Kenny)
die and don't come back to South Park afterward. I mean, where are they gonna go? Detroit?
These next conspiracies make a lot of sense. In fact,
we think they’re more likely to be true than not. These theories are Probable.
Cartman is in love with Kyle.
One of the most defining aspects of South Park is Cartman's rivalry with Kyle which is the
driving force behind many episodes of the show. Even though they display so much vitriolic hate
toward each other, some have come to speculate that Cartman is secretly in love with Kyle.
Cartman and Kyle partake on many adventures together, usually along with Stan and Kenny,
even if they're arguing all the way. Cartman is incredibly antisemitic and hates Kyle's
know-it-all attitude, but it seems to show signs of caring about him on some level.
When Kyle moves to San Francisco for example, Cartman misses the conflict between the two and
travels many miles to get him back. Cartman even saves Kyle's life in Imaginationland. Granted,
that was so Kyle could suck his balls but that hardly detracts from our point. Cartman's life
in the Future as a devoted Jewish dad may have even stemmed from Kyle's influence.
We think it's undeniable that Cartman cares about Kyle, maybe more than he even thinks.
Kenny's family is poor due to paying for his many funerals.
While Kenny always returns from his many deaths, one thing that is inconsistent
is how long he actually stays dead. Sometimes he's resurrected almost immediately and other
times he's deceased for quite a while. In the cases of his prolonged absences,
Kenny is sometimes given a funeral which must come out of his own parents' pockets. Why would
they do this? Well, Carol and Stewart McCormick aren't exactly portrayed as the brightest or
most financially responsible people in the first place. Their drinking habits,
drug abuse and perpetual unemployment makes them barely able to scrape by and provide for their
family in the first place. We have no problem believing they'd pay for unnecessary funerals
even knowing Kenny will come back anyway. We will say that these funerals are not the only cause of
the McCormicks' financial woes but we believe it is certainly putting gasoline on a roaring fire.
Finally, we’ve reached the truth. Confirmed truth. People have blown
the whistle on these theories with such compelling evidence that it must
be true or a creator confirmed it. These theories are the Truthbombs.
Kenny's deaths are linked to why everyone in the town doesn't age.
One of the most notable gags in South Park are the many deaths of Kenny which the creators
have expanded on through the use of the Coon / Mysterion trilogy. It was revealed there that
Kenny's immortality is due to his parents, Stewart and Carol, made some sort of agreement at a cult
meeting long ago. The specifics are left up in the air, as well as why everyone can't seem to
remember Kenny dying, leaving many answers still open to speculation. One such speculation is that
Kenny is somehow linked to the reason everyone in the town stays the same age. Many long running
shows like The Simpsons or Family Guy feature the characters staying the same age for many years
with no one batting an eye. The difference in South Park's case is that the show is so topical
and constantly evolving with the times that time still seems to be moving forward despite
the characters never looking much older. There are a few cases where there are signs of progression
like how the kids enter fourth grade in a season 4 episode. This suggests to us that characters are
aging, but very slowly. However, this slow aging process does not seem to extend to characters
outside of South Park, as demonstrated by Terrance and Philip becoming elderly. The big twist to this
is the Post Covid special where we do finally see what the kids would be like as adults after having
aged 40 years. What happened immediately before this that sparked this time jump? The "broship"
between the four main characters ended, with no one showing more concern than Kenny. Could Kenny
be aware of that the dynamic between the four is keeping the town from aging like he's aware of
his many deaths? Did the cult meeting that Carol and Stewart attended also have something to do
with this? Whatever the case, Kenny remains South Park's most mysterious resident for a
reason as so many secrets of the show seem to be hidden within the muffled confines of his hood.
South Park is part of a supernatural experiment.
This theory states that a secret organization is using South Park as the testing grounds to
unleash paranormal and outlandish circumstances in South Park as a result. This would explain
why the occurrences in the town are so bizarre, as well as further explaining the circumstances
behind Kenny's immortality and the residents’ inability to age. We're putting this at the top
of our list as all of this has been pretty much confirmed in one form or another. Kenny's parents
did indeed join a secret organization which granted their child immortality. On top of that,
the season 7 episode Canceled explains that South Park, along with the rest of the Earth,
is part of an ongoing reality TV show that made by a group of aliens. We're not sure
if the Cthulhu cult members and the aliens are linked directly, but whether they are or not,
the events of South Park are indeed dictated by secret organizations. As such,
we don't think there's another theory that counts as a bigger truth bomb.
But let us know what you think of these theories… do you think any
of them are truth bombs? Be sure to hit that notification bell and
binge our other South Park videos. But most importantly, Stay Wicked.