| "Imaginationland Episode II" | |||
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| South Park episode | |||
Butters runs away. |
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| Episode no. | Season 11 Episode 11 |
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| Directed by | Trey Parker | ||
| Written by | Trey Parker | ||
| Production code | 1111 | ||
| Original air date | October 24, 2007 | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| List of South Park episodes | |||
"Imaginationland Episode II", or "The Drying of the Balls" (as it appears on DVD), is episode 1111 (#164) of Comedy Central's animated TV series South Park. It originally aired on October 24, 2007.[1] It is the second episode in a three-part story arc that won the 2008 Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program for One Hour or More. The three episodes were later reissued together, along with previously unreleased footage, as the uncensored Imaginationland: The Movie. The episode is the second episode to be rated TV-MA LV.
Contents |
Butters briefly hallucinates he is home, but finds he is still in Imaginationland. A variety of evil creatures, including monsters, horror movie murderers, and comic book super-villains burst through the destroyed barrier gates and kill the terrorists who freed them before turning their attention on the good creatures. The Mayor urges everyone to flee to the castle in the Gumdrop Forest. Before he can try to get Butters home, the Mayor himself is impaled by a Xenomorph. Before the Mayor dies, he tells Butters to go to Castle Sunshine and to watch out for the evil characters. Meanwhile Cartman has a dream concerning his frustration with Kyle NOT sucking his balls.
Butters is then on the run from one evil character after another. When the evil characters have finally ended their rampage and argue about their next move, Butters ends up on the run with the Lollipop King and Snarf from Thundercats. The three encounter the evil creatures who have captured Strawberry Shortcake, and watch from a safe distance. The creatures assault, torment and jeer her and Jason Voorhees (Trey Parker) gouges out one of her eyes. Just as a Minotaur orders them to kill her, the Woodland Christmas Critters from Cartman's Christmas story appear, claiming they can do better – or rather, worse. They want to make her eat her eye, then give her AIDS by urinating in her eye socket, before raping and killing her. They set off to find some AIDS in the forest, much to the stunned surprise of the other evil characters who are horrified by how truly evil the critters are (Jason mutters, "Man, I do not want to meet the kid who dreamt those things up!").
Meanwhile, Kyle and Stan are being interrogated at The Pentagon. The kids learn of a portal into Imaginationland that had been built during the Cold War and is controlled by the government (à la Stargate). The portal powers up when the boys sing the Mayor's Imagination song which, as they soon find, is difficult to remember (although the lyrics were simple, the correct intonations are required).
Cartman breaks into the Pentagon and convinces the officials to let him drag Kyle away for the promised teabagging in the conference room. Cartman gloats too long and an alarm interrupts them (though, naturally, he believes Kyle is responsible because he is trying to get out of the bet). The American government sent in a group of soldiers and Kurt Russell into Imaginationland. They radioed back information that they found a group of "talking woodland Christmas critters." Stan, remembering the critters from the Christmas story written by Cartman, quickly tries to warn them to flee, but the Woodland Critters gang rape the soldiers. A moment later, ManBearPig breaks through the portal into the Pentagon. He kills two workers and grabs Kyle by the neck. An injured employee reverses the portal, and Manbearpig and Stan are sucked in. Due to the way ManBearPig held Kyle, he is asphyxiated and pronounced dead, as not even two zaps from a defibrillator get his heart going again. Despite of wishing for Kyle to be dead in earlier episodes, Cartman is actually distraught of Kyle's death, angry that Kyle will not suck his balls if he's dead (copying the drowning scene from The Abyss almost verbatim). Refusing to leave his balls 'unsucked', Cartman manages to revive Kyle with CPR. However, Kyle, once again, remains unaware that Cartman saved his life.
In Imaginationland, Butters, the Lollipop King, and Snarf arrive at the Castle (similar in architecture to Rivendell). The guards suspect Butters is connected with the terrorist attack and bring him before the Council of Nine, consisting of the nine most revered of all imaginary characters: Aslan, Gandalf, Glinda, Jesus, Luke Skywalker, Morpheus, Popeye, Wonder Woman, and Zeus. The council meets with Butters, and determine that he is "The Key", a legendary hero who will save them all, much to Butters' disappointment. Butters does not like this, but the Council tells him that he has no choice but to help them if he ever wants to go home again. The good characters of Imaginationland prepare for battle with the evil characters.
Back in the Pentagon, the general, seeing that their imaginations have run wild, orders for a nuke to be launched through the portal. At this point, Kyle awakens in the hospital with Cartman at his side, whose plans for him are still going forward as the episode ends.
Shortly after "Imaginationland" was originally broadcast, the site also featured T-shirts and hooded sweatshirts based on the episode. It featured Butters in a floating bubble, asking "Do I have to be the key?"[2]
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