[8.2/10] I like both parts of this episode. On the one hand, I like Stan’s goth phase and break-up angst. It captures the silly but sincere sense of being overwhelmed by pain as a teenager well, as well as the amusing games of telephone that kids place with one another in these circumstances. There’s also a pretty nice takedown of middle class kids acting grim and declaring that life is meaningless in high school (not that this could ever have applied to me or anything). The combination of the goth kids reflexive disdain and reduction of everything to Justin/Britney wannabes, while at the same time declaring that all true non-conformists must do as they do, is pitch perfect. (I got a particular kick out of the one goth kid’s declaration that he would never go live in a third world country with “all the conformists” as an implicit critique of that privilege.)
And I like Butters’s half of the episode too. Sure, pointing out the mercenary nature of breastaurants makes for an easy target, but there is some juice to pointing out the crappiness of weaponizing and commoditizing affection like that, for all sides. There’s also some sad humor to Butters’s naive sincerity to the whole thing, and how adorable he is when trying to act like a good boyfriend.
I particularly love the two stories coming together. Butters is heartbroken (though kind of over nothing), but doesn't let it ruin his lust for life. It’s a little simplistic, but he recognizes that his pain if a reflection of having meaningful feelings and experiences, which makes him feel human and alive. It’s enough to snap Stan out of his funk in one of the show’s more poignant moments.
Overall, this is definitely the show pitching its fastball, with two amusing stories and a rare bit of heart to boot.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2019-03-24T15:05:16Z
[8.2/10] I like both parts of this episode. On the one hand, I like Stan’s goth phase and break-up angst. It captures the silly but sincere sense of being overwhelmed by pain as a teenager well, as well as the amusing games of telephone that kids place with one another in these circumstances. There’s also a pretty nice takedown of middle class kids acting grim and declaring that life is meaningless in high school (not that this could ever have applied to me or anything). The combination of the goth kids reflexive disdain and reduction of everything to Justin/Britney wannabes, while at the same time declaring that all true non-conformists must do as they do, is pitch perfect. (I got a particular kick out of the one goth kid’s declaration that he would never go live in a third world country with “all the conformists” as an implicit critique of that privilege.)
And I like Butters’s half of the episode too. Sure, pointing out the mercenary nature of breastaurants makes for an easy target, but there is some juice to pointing out the crappiness of weaponizing and commoditizing affection like that, for all sides. There’s also some sad humor to Butters’s naive sincerity to the whole thing, and how adorable he is when trying to act like a good boyfriend.
I particularly love the two stories coming together. Butters is heartbroken (though kind of over nothing), but doesn't let it ruin his lust for life. It’s a little simplistic, but he recognizes that his pain if a reflection of having meaningful feelings and experiences, which makes him feel human and alive. It’s enough to snap Stan out of his funk in one of the show’s more poignant moments.
Overall, this is definitely the show pitching its fastball, with two amusing stories and a rare bit of heart to boot.