‘South Park’ Probably Done With ‘Member Berries’ and Garrison-Trump
Like most, South Park had to readjust in the wake of 2016’s election, and decided to simplify. Now, creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker reveal that Season 21 will do away with last year’s staples altogether, including a Trumped-up Garrison and those meme-able “Member Berries.”
Parker and Stone haven’t yet put together the September 13 premiere (work usually begins the week of), though the pair have previously expressed an interest in moving away from topical parody, and getting back to core cast and the surrounding town. As such, Season 21 won’t feature the Mr. Garrison Trump surrogate very often (if ever), as the character was essentially trapped offscreen by the real-life presidency. Stone explained to The Hollywood Reporter:
Last season we really tried to do a serialized thing, and it was just really hard. In some ways it was cool and in some ways it trapped us. The way we do that show is not compatible with full serialization. We’re going to do the first show (this season) and maybe don’t have to sitcom wrap it up at the end.
Season 21 also famously introduced the “Member Berries” (‘memba?); sentient high-pitched fruit that offered constant pop culture nostalgia, and were revealed as part of the plot to install Garrison/Trump as President. Like Garrison, they were never meant to end up in the role they did, and Parker says they likely won’t be seen again:
Now that Spielberg is doing Ready Player One — which is like the most Member Berry thing ever invented — we can’t out-Member Berry that. All the Member Berries left our show to go be on that.
We’ll likely get a stronger sense of Season 21 in the coming weeks, but how else might South Park get back to basics in its third decade?