Helen Keller! The Musical
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| South Park episode | |
| "Helen Keller! The Musical" | |
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| Episode no. | 61 |
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| Airdate | November 22, 2000 |
| South Park - Season 4 April 5, 2000 – December 20, 2000 |
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| ← Season 3 | Season 5 → |
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| List of all South Park episodes | |
"Helen Keller! The Musical" is episode 414 of South Park. It originally aired on November 22, 2000.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The fourth graders are rehearsing for the "Thanksgiving Extravaganza", where they have to perform The Miracle Worker, which is the story of Helen Keller, starring Timmy as the famous deaf and blind girl. Butters comes in, exclaiming that the kindergartners' play is the greatest show he has ever seen. The fourth graders worry that they will be outdone by the kindergartners, so they agree to put extra effort into making their play extravagant. Cartman agrees to adapt the play into a musical, and eventually Jeffrey Maynard, who played the lead in Les Misérables for the Denver Community Playhouse and cannot resist the urge to sing what he has to say, is brought in to help. The kids also decide to have a turkey (who is now apparently Helen's pet) perform tricks for the audience.
Timmy helps to pick out the turkey, and chooses a disabled turkey which he names "Gobbles." Kyle bring it back to the rehearsals, much to the disdain of the rest of the fourth grade. They all agree that the turkey is pathetic, which prompts Jeffrey Maynard to bring in a professional performing turkey. Her name is Alinicia, and her trainer Lamond declares that she will not perform with Gobbles. Alinicia is a very snobbish creature. Lamond tells Cartman that "the other turkey" needs to go, and Cartman agrees to arrange an "unfortunate accident" for Gobbles.
Eventually, Lamond tricks Timmy into letting Gobbles go, by telling him that Gobbles will be subject to terrible mutilation if he is caught being owned by the mentally retarded Timmy. Gobbles wanders off until some men from a turkey processing factory capture him for "processing". Gobbles and the other turkeys are brought to an unloading bay and dumped into a room (where a sign says "Our turkeys are killed humanely"). In a scene that parodies Edward G. Robinson's final moments in the movie Soylent Green, a movie plays which catches the turkeys' attention. Suddenly the movie stops and a buzzsaw emerges from the wall and chops off the heads of the turkeys. Ironically, Gobbles' disability saves him: since he is unable to lift his head off the ground, the saw passes over him without harm. He is then pushed into a truck with the corpses of the other turkeys. Eventually, Timmy finds out the truth, and rushes off to save Gobbles, eventually finding him at the end of Jimbo's gun. Timmy flings himself into the air just as Jimbo shoots, and takes the bullet intended for Gobbles.
In Timmy's absence, Maynard goes on as Helen Keller. He alters the play by singing, even though he was supposed to be incapable of speech (the exact reason why Timmy was the only one who could do it).
After Timmy saves Gobbles, he somehow (despite a speech impediment that only Jimmy Vulmer can understand) manages to convinces Jimbo to go to the Thanksgiving Extravaganza and shoot Alinicia as revenge towards her owner for tricking Timmy into letting Gobbles go. Gobbles goes onstage and jumps through the ring of fire during the grand finale, and the audience is surprisingly impressed.
In the end, when the kindergartners put on their show, they just sing a song to the tune of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" about the first Thanksgiving, set off a small explosion which sends one kindergartner fleeing the stage, and bring a prop horse on stage. The whole thing lasts only about a minute and is rather lame. Everything Butters had said about their skit was true, but it was not nearly as exciting as he had built it up to be. All the fourth graders are mad at Butters for having them go through the trouble of making a big spectacular musical for nothing.
[edit] Kenny's Death
When rehearsing the play, Cartman tries to rig a light so it falls and crushes Gobbles. However, he rigs the wrong light and it crushes Kenny.
[edit] Cultural References
- The storyline of Timmy and Gobbles is similar to A Charlie Brown Christmas.
- The scenes of Butters running down the hall is similar to scenes in The Right Stuff.
- The title of the episode may be a reference to Cannibal! The Musical, which was also created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Another reference to Cannibal! The Musical are the fake beards that the children are forced to wear in their play.
- Several of the songs sung by Jeffrey Maynard are similar to songs from "Les Miserables". When Kenny dies, Maynard sings a parody of "Bring Him Home."
- Cartman makes a reference to Tim Rice writing the lyrics to "The Phantom of the Opera." However, these lyrics were written by Charles Hart and Richard Stilgoe.
- Stan is constantly complaining that his beard is itching him. Milhouse had a similar problem during a school play on The Simpsons in I Love Lisa.
[edit] Notes
- In the VH1 special on South Park, it is mentioned that comedian Jerry Seinfeld had asked to guest on the show. He had been slated for this episode to provide the sound for one of the random turkies, much the same as the unusual way the show had used George Clooney in Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride. Unlike George, Jerry did not get the joke and cancelled his appearance.
| Preceded by "Trapper Keeper" |
South Park episodes | Followed by "Fat Camp" |
