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Clubhouses (South Park)

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"Clubhouses (South Park)"

"Clubhouses" is the 25th episode of Comedy Central's animated series South Park. It originally aired on September 23, 1998.

Plot

Stan and Kyle set out to build a clubhouse (tree house) so they can play Truth or Dare with Wendy and Bebe. Stan plans to dare Wendy to kiss him, and Bebe, who has a crush on Kyle, plans to do the same. Kyle is reluctant to play, as he has no interest in girls, but is assured by Stan's lies, telling him that it's just "so we can make them eat bugs." Cartman and Kenny learn of Stan and Kyle's plans and set about building their own clubhouse based on the schematics for "Ewok Village 2000." Naturally Kenny, as the worker, does the lion's share of the labor- for example, skipping school to wait for the hot tub guys to call. Meanwhile, Cartman, foreman of the project, slacks off by eating Cheesy Poofs and watching American Gladiators.

Meanwhile, Stan's parents' marriage begins to break down. Randy and Sharon divorce due to constant bickering despite Mr. Mackey's attempts at marriage counseling. Sharon does not seem to dwell on the break-up too long, however, and introduces Stan to a new stepfather, Roy, who promptly moves into the family home. Initially Roy seems wholesome and understanding but he quickly loses patience at Stan's failure to "cut him some slack," especially following repeated demands for Stan's help chopping firewood.

Stan is banned from watching Terrance and Phillip by his mom and is made to watch Fat Abbot ( a Fat Albert parody, but more profane) instead. It always starts with Fat Abbot saying "Hey! Hey! Hey!, What's going on Rudy?" Stan and Kyle like this show at once.

Meanwhile, Cartman and Kenny complete their clubhouse first, and Kenny manages to get two runaway girls to hang out with them. Their attempts to get the girls to play Truth or Dare ultimately fail. Stan and Kyle eventually finish their clubhouse despite not being allowed to use nails.

Eventually, Sharon tells Stan that he must go to visitation with his father, calling Randy a "bastard" when discussing the subject with Stan. For his part, Randy Marsh is apparently enjoying single life. He has bought a red Corvette convertible, is wearing an earring, flirts with girls at traffic lights and turns up at a party in Cartman's clubhouse organized by the runaway girls. Like Sharon, Randy assures Stan that nothing is more "important" to him as his son, but speeds away before Stan can even react to this statement.

Later on, the girls come over to to Stan and Kyle's clubhouse to play Truth or Dare. Following Chef's advice, Stan attempts to play it cool; however Kyle jumps in and picks dare. Wendy dares him to "kiss Bebe on the lips." Pressured, Kyle goes through with it but freaks out and runs out screaming, "Sick!" Subsequently, Bebe breaks up with Kyle (who was unaware they were actually going out) and instantly replaces him with Clyde. Stan and Clyde play Truth or Dare with Wendy and Bebe. At last Stan gets to ask for a dare, expecting to be asked to kiss Wendy. However, Wendy and Bebe confer, and dare Stan to "Take this twig and jam it up your peehole." By the end of the episode, Randy and Sharon have gotten back together as Stan sets them up for a meeting in his clubhouse. Having met in a clubhouse years before while playing "Truth or Dare?", they have a passionate reconciliation, with Sharon admitting she still loves Randy and dares Randy to "do her" right in the clubhouse. As Randy and Sharon start to make love, Roy winds up hanging from a tree in a bear trap, an idea Stan got from watching Fat Abbot.

Kenny's death

Kenny dies in a mosh pit at the party organized by the runaway girls at Cartman's clubhouse. For the only time in the series, Cartman is the one who says, "Oh my God! They killed Kenny!" as neither Stan nor Kyle were present. Of course, not being present would never stop Kyle from saying "You bastards!" which he does as he walks by, possibly unaware of what compelled him to say it, but it may be directed toward Cartman and Kenny for stealing the treehouse idea.


Cultural References

  • Fat Abbot physically resembles Fat Albert, but is not as fat and has a habit of calling people (even his friends and people he is comforting) bitches.
  • One of the girls that Kenny brings home wears a shirt that has DVDA on it, referring to a sexual position or the band with the same name of Matt Stone & Trey Parker.
  • This episode contains biting satire on the topic of divorce that is sharply critical of the way adults behave in divorce situations, often at the expense of their children. Sharon, for example, informs Stan that the divorce is "pretty much" all his fault. When Stan questions Sharon's claim that Stan is "the most important thing" to her, Sharon clarifies thusly: "Now Stanley, you have to understand how divorce works. When I say, 'you're the most important thing to me,' what I mean is, you're the most important thing after me, and my happiness, and my new romances." She also refers to Randy as a "bastard" right in front of Stan.
  • The episode also touches on the hostility many children may have towards their new stepfather or stepmother when their mother or father remarries and the popular image of stepparents as being abusive (e.g.: the wicked stepmother/stepfather). The Roy character talks in a tone that is relaxed but says and does actions that could be considered demanding or even abusive and thus feeding into the Wicked Stepfather myth.

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