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South Park S27E05 Thoughts: FCC, Trump/JD Vance, Israel/Gaza & More

South Park S27E05: "Conflict of Interest" hit hard, from a dig at FCC Chair Brendan Carr to JD Vance, Trump/abortion, Israel/Gaza, and more.

As much as we would've loved getting a new episode last week, there's just something that feels right about Trey Parker and Matt Stone's South Park returning the night after late-night host Jimmy Kimmel returned to ABC after a controversial six-day suspension. It's that whole "First Amendment" and "Freedom of Speech" thing that we're big fans of over here at Bleeding Cool TV's home satellite. Earlier today, we learned that S27E05: "Conflict of Interest" would see Kyle and Cartman at odds over a prediction markets app that's blowing up with their classmates. Though they weren't mentioned in the official overview, the two preview images confirmed that Satan and Trump would also be appearing. As for what else we might be getting, it's tough to say because Parker and Stone might be looking to make this episode as current to what's been going down as possible – and there's been a lot going down since the last new episode of South Park, "Wok is Dead." With that in mind, here are our random real-time thoughts on tonight's episode:

South Park Season 27 Ep. 5: "Conflict of Interest" Real-Time Thoughts

Can we assume that we're getting an update on Satan's pregnancy?

Kipling visited the class to promote Webelos, which led to a debate over whether Kipling was a boy or a girl. That's when we turned the topic to betting/odds apps. Kyle's not too thrilled that there are bets on whether his mother, Sheila, will blow up a hospital in Gaza.

That brought us to FOX "News," as prediction apps are betting on whether Trump and Satan's baby will be a boy or a girl.

After a reality check from mini JD Vance about what he will have to give up, Trump decides it's time for a "home remedy abortion" for Satan – before Satan reminds him that his followers wouldn't be too thrilled.

As Kyle looks to have the bet about his mom taken down, we see just how useless Donald Trump Jr. is before FCC Chair Brendan Carter enters the scene – only to become a victim of Trump's "Wile E. Coyote"-like abortion attempt involving stairs and a rope.

It's interesting to see how Cartman enflames both sides of the bet against Kyle's mom to make a sweet profit. Is anyone else seeing a ten-ton metaphor there regarding the very same thing going down in politics and the media?

Holy crap. The moms are leaning on Sheila to see where she's leaning because of the ongoing bet. That's just cold.

Meanwhile, Trump whipped up a "Plan B" soup, but Carr ate it, causing him to "shit rocket" around the room before flying outside of The White House.

I'm guessing Parker and Stone aren't big fans of the FCC, and Carr, in particular.

Next up for Trump: a whole lot of cats and cat litter for a "Toxoplasmosis drop"—except the pile of cat shit and litter ends up taking out Carr (see our previous statement).

Meanwhile, Cartman is seeing his plan to score big on the bet endangered by Sheila making her way to Israel, with Don Jr. once again proving pretty useless.

It looks like Carr has toxoplasmosis and will lose his "freedom of speech" if the parasite reaches his brain. That's when Vance revealed his plan to convince Trump to abort Satan's child – a plan that Carr keeps (accidentally) thwarting. It seems Vance isn't letting anyone keep him from being next in line for The White House.

JIMMY KIMMEL REFERENCE: "We can do this the easy way or the hard way": Vance to Carr, warning Carr to back off whatever it is he's doing to screw with Vance's plans.

In the end, Sheila makes her way to Israel just in time to rip into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his actions in Gaza and for giving Jews a bad name as the camera pulls back…

South Park Creators Discuss Animated Series' Origins

Parker and Stone checked in with hosts Doug Herzog (former network executive at MTV, Comedy Central & FOX) & Jen Chaney (TV critic at New York Magazine/Vulture) on Basic!, a podcast series offering a look back to the glory days of basic cable history. While we don't want to spoil the episode for you because it's definitely a must-listen for fans interested in knowing a lot of the behind-the-scenes happenings, there were some highlights that we wanted to point out. First up, MTV passed on the series outright, while FOX was only interested if the series could be adjusted to focus on a family and not four kids (looking to apply to South Park what they thought it was about The Simpsons that made it work).

And at around the 21:20 mark, we have to give Herzog a ton of credit for throwing himself on his creative word by admitting that he tried to stop Parker & Stone from killing Kenny every week. That conversation segued directly into how Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo (S01E09), helped "mainstream" poop, as well as a great anecdote about how many a piece of poop was a bridge too far for one Comedy Central executive.

And then, starting around the 28:20 mark, the trio discusses the "The Gauntlet" short created for the 2020 MTV Movie Awards, spoofing Russell Crowe's Gladiator and John Travolta's Battlefield: Earth. When word hit that the short ended with a Cartman/toilet paper joke that wasn't too flattering to L. Rob Hubbard (author of Battlefield: Earth), Dianetics & Scientology, Isaac Hayes (Chef), who was a Scientologist, asked the show's creators if a Scientologist rep could see the short before it aired. Now, we get the backstory on how The Church of Scientology learned what was in the brief at the same time as the rest of us did.

Parker and Stone produce the long-running animated series alongside Anne Garefino and Frank C. Agnone II. Eric Stough, Adrien Beard, Bruce Howell, and Vernon Chatman also produce, and Christopher Brion serves as the creative director of South Park Digital Studios. Here's your chance to check out the entire episode for yourselves – a "must" for any South Park fans:

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