Season 2 Episode 7 – City on the Edge of Forever (Flashbacks)

 

Season 2 Episode 7 – City on the Edge of Forever (Flashbacks)

A clip show… South Park style!

Original Airdate

17th June 1998

Guest Stars

  • Henry Winkler (of Happy Days fame) as the Kid-Eating Monster
  • Jay Leno as Himself
  • Brent Musburger as Scuzzlebutt's leg

Synopsis

After Ms. Crabtree’s bus crashes, the boys reminisce on their past adventures, while Ms. Crabtree has her own adventures in the world of stand-up comedy.

Kenny's Death

Taken by the big black monster and never seen again. Bonus death – killed by Fonzie in a flashback.

My Thoughts Back Then

I knew what a clip show was, in large part thanks to the several clip shows of my then-favourite show The Simpsons, so watching this on video in late 2004, aged 13, I knew what I was getting into, and even though I knew the clips were altered, it didn’t stand out for me that much. So I liked it, but this is one of the less memorable episodes from Season 2, the whole bus on a cliff story stuck with me though.

My Thoughts Now

Trey and Matt are now hosts of a home video-only cooking show, Bakin’ Bacon with Macon (the pig) – I don’t know if it’s pork or turkey bacon they use here, especially as Matt is Jewish (as most South Park fans know) – some Jews do eat pork though, and neither Trey nor Matt are very religious at all.

We’re on the school bus and the class is a racket, plus 8 year olds can’t eat a whole cake! That behaviour would have wound me up at the time if I had been on the bus, I’d have joined in with Ms. Crabtree and told the class to SHUT UP!

The road is closed, and a risky detour appears – the bus falls off and after crashing down a hill and into a river, falls into a cliff edge. Nice to see a bus has a video machine, how convenient (would suck lots of the battery though). Ms. Crabtree’s behaviour is reinforced by the training video – makes me wonder what Otto from the Simpsons would do here.

The bus continues to rock, while Ms. Crabtree looks for help. A truck driver appears, and she treats him like a school child, that’s no way to ask someone for help.  Back on the bus, the first flashback goes back to Cartman’s alien abduction from Season 1 Episode 1. Only there’s an ice cream truck now, AND STAN AND WENDY KISS?! I also noticed the difference between the pilot and then-current animation quality with the clip.

One of the boys gets off the bus, who is dressed like a Star Trek team member, and a big black monster, which Ms. Crabtree warned the class about, eats him. Liane and Sharon are now worried about their sons, and no-0ne knows where they are (talk about an incompetent school!) And we get out second flashback, to Volcano and Scuzzlebutt, but no Patrick Duffy as a leg, and more ice cream! And now, the Kathie Lee Gifford assassination attempt from Weight Gain 4000, it’s a green alien, and Stan and Wendy kiss again, and more ice cream? AND A RIPPED CARTMAN?!

I find it weird as an adult finding that none of the talent agents in Denver find Ms. Crabtree normal or not disturbing – she even gets onto the NBC Jay Leno show! Back in South Park, All the parents are angry at Mr. Mackey, and go looking for their kids, actually being parents for once (Kevin McAllister is also missing too) – wait, Kenny remembers his encounter with the Grim Reaper, only this time he flips him and…. Kills him? And then pulls out an ice cream.

The black monster grabs Kenny and runs off with him, and NO CARTMAN, PIZZA ISN’T DELIVERED TO EXURBAN DENVER CLIFFS! And Happy Days wasn’t part of South Park, Cartman clearly watches too much TV. The bus is about to conk out, but Ms. Crabtree seems to no longer care about the kids on the bus, and more about her romance with her agent Marcus. Wait… the bus has a full TV? Top notch! Randy and Gerald are on TV, singing to get their sons back, and then ALL the parents plus Mr. Garrison. Speaking of parents, we get another flashback, and Cartman’s Dad is John Elway of the Denver Broncos!

The bus finally falls, snaps, and everyone lands in ice cream… and it’s all Cartman’s dream (hence all the ice cream and John Elway!) Beetles? Yuk! Dreams can be weird, it was Stan’s dream (Cartman dreamt inside Stan’s dream, Inception 11 years before it came out!)

An enjoyable parody of clip shows, but there’s better episodes of Season 2, that’s for sure

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