RJ Writing Ink

Hey guys, RJ Writing Ink here. As of today, I’ve decided to do my reviews for The Mandalorian away from my blog. Much like what I did with The Bad Batch and South Park, I will now post them on The Game of Nerds. I’ve been writing reviews for them for a few years now, and I have gained more views on there than I would otherwise. As such, I’ve taken to posting my reviews for those shows on their site rather than here.

So, if you want to see my reviews for any of those shows going forward, please go to The Game of Nerds blog. I appreciate it, and I know the people who run the blog will feel the same. Just be prepared for the reviews to come out later, as they have to space posts out to generate traffic.

I’ve also been writing for D&A Anime Blog as a contributor. They put out a request for more writers a few months back, and I responded. I’ve done a few one-off posts about anime news, fan theories and works, and reviews for shows like Chainsaw Man and Tomo-Chan is a Girl! My Tomo-Chan reviews have proven to be very popular. Go read them if you want my thoughts on one of the best rom-com anime of the Winter 2023 season and 2023 in general. It’s a lot of fun to watch! 

Links to both sites will be provided below!

My Game of Nerds Stuff

My D&A Anime Blog Stuff

This was just one of the many songs that played at the second of two concerts held at the Red Rock Ampitheatre in Colorado last Saturday, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of South Park.

South Park is famous for many things. They don’t pull punches on anything, nothing is too sacred for them to make fun of, and they make every episode in less than a week. However, another excellent aspect of the show is the incredible music. From Isaac Hayes’ “Chocolate Salty Balls” to “Gay Fish” to the iconic opening song, South Park has enough hit songs to comprise several albums. My

What’s my favorite song, though? While I’m partial to “Let’s Fighting Love,” that’s nothing compared to “Kyle’s Mom.”

Kyle’s Mom really is a bitch! Happy birthday, South Park

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Come on Down to South Park & Meet Some Friends of Mine

Come on Down to South Park & Meet Some Friends of Mine

— Read on thegameofnerds.com/2022/08/13/come-on-down-to-south-park-meet-some-friends-of-mine/

Happy 25th birthday, South Park!!

America, Heck Yeah!

America, Heck Yeah!

— Read on thegameofnerds.com/2022/07/04/america-heck-yeah/

Something I wrote for the Fourth of July for the Game of Nerds.

South ParQ Vaccination Special Review

Back in September, South Park tried to make us laugh at just how bad things got for us in 2020. Their solution? An appopriately named “Pandemic Special“. While it was a good idea in concept, it was trying to cram everything bad about 2020 into sixty minutes of TV. In other words, it ended up falling flat in its execution. I still don’t know what the Aesop for it was! Thankfully, the world’s gotten marginally better in those six months. We got vaccines rolling out, Trump’s out of office, and things are slowly returning to normal. Which means South Park had to follow up with a vaccination special.

Like last time, it was trying to juggle multiple plot threads, but the vaccination special did it a little better.

Everyone Wants a Shot at the Vaccination Special

The good news: the COVID-19 vaccinations are rolling out as I write this. However, the bad news is that there aren’t enough to go around. Which means who gets a shot at vaccination, which is driving the people of South Park nuts. They have the Walgreens set up like an exclusive night club that only lets the elderly in, who waste no time in rubbing it in everyone’s faces. I found the whole thing to be a dark, but hilarious, representation of the frustration people are feeling in America right now. People are struggling to get shots, even the ones that should be considered essential workers like teachers. That anger will eventually boil over, which is what happens with the kids teacher, Ms. Nelson. After a prank involving ketchup done by Cartman and Kenny pushes her too far, the kids teacher refuses to work until she gets a shot.

So, the classic quartet of South Park boys does something I’m surprised I haven’t heard about in the news yet. They get into their local Walgreens and outright steal the vaccinations for their teachers. From their, though, the boys become split over who should get them, with their “broship” looking like it might sink. For good.

Unlike the Pandemic Special, the Vaccination Special seems to do a better job with keeping a somewhat coherent story. I think. Honestly, I was more interested in Mr. Garrison in the special.

Mr. Garrison is Back

Before Mr. Garrison was the show’s stand-in for Trump, he was the teacher of the kids of South Park. Until he got fired several seasons ago for being a jerk. Having lost the election, Mr. Garrison returns to South Park and tries to act like he never left, despite his actions making him utterly despised by everyone in town. Except for the Whites and the QAnon people, who are convinced he’s just biding his time to regain power.

I’ll be honest: I liked seeing Mr. Garrison come back, as I was curious about how he would fit into the show in a post-Trump America. However, did they really have to resort to using the White family again like before? It wasn’t funny the first few times, and it isn’t funny now. Well, seeing them try and use a fake tutoring business to feed kids their nonsensical conspiracy theories was funny, but nothing else was. Eventually, Mr. Garrison gets fed up with the Whites and the other conspiracy theorists and admits that he doesn’t care anymore. He just wants to get his old life back.

What happens next, I’m still not entirely sure, but it’s one of the trippiest fourth-wall breaks I’ve ever seen. I think Mr. Garrison made a deal directly with Matt and Trey to fix everything in town. And it works.

Vaccination Special Saves Everyone. Except Ms. Nelson

In the end, all the problems of the special get resolved when Mr. Garrison gets everyone in town vaccines straight from Israel. Just like that, he’s redeemed in the eyes of the town. Status quo is God, after all.

Speaking of status quo, Mr. Garrison’s return also means that Ms. Nelson is no longer needed. In a tragic irony, she ends up dying of COVID right before she can get a shot. While this may seem like a cruel jab to some over the fact that people are still dying while waiting to get COVID Vaccinations, it makes sense in the context of the show. Ms. Nelson was a flat character with almost no purpose outside of teaching, so she had to be written out. Mr. Garrison’s back to being teacher again. And everyone celebrates being vaccinated.

Overall, the Vaccination Special was every bit as nonsensical as the Pandemic Special was. However, it also ends on a much more positive note. Yes, the road ahead will still be long and hard, but the end may be in sight at last. If we’re lucky, things can return to a sense of normality before the year’s out. Ultimately, I think that’s the message of the Vaccination Special, and if that’s the case, then it delivered way better.

I Give “South Park: The Pandemic Special” a 3/5

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South Park: the Pandemic Special Review

At the time I’m writing this, it’s only been an hour since the premiere of South Park: the Pandemic Special, and I’m still coming down from the laughter high it gave me. And considering how my highlight from the previous night was seeing the two guys running for President yell at each other, I needed this pick-me-up. All of America needed this pick-me-up. They needed this Pandemic Special, and it tried to deliver. It also served as a reminder that this year is the worst since 1968. Now, let’s breakdown what made this Pandemic Special mostly work.

South Park is Miserable And It’s All Randy’s Fault

The cold opening showing South Park in pandemic mode reminds the audience of how bad things have gotten for America. Shops remain closed, people are dying, and life sucks for everyone. The only ones happy are Cartman and Randy Marsh. The former because he’s happy to not be in school, and the latter because his weed farm is booming. And being Randy, he first rubs it in people’s faces, and then announces his Pandemic Special to make an extra profit.

If this took place last year, I’d have just groaned at Randy’s stupidity and see how it played out. However, the writers seem to be aware of how many fans don’t like Tegridy Farms, and decided to use that to their advantage. In the special’s synopsis, it says that Randy comes to terms with his role in starting COVID-19. Turns out they weren’t joking. Remember how Randy went to China last season? Well, he and Micky Mouse got high on weed, they found a bat, and, well…

But then it turns out it was a Pangolin. That he also did it to while high. In other words, Randy Marsh is responsible for ruining 2020, which would be hilarious if it weren’t for how miserable we all are, and the fact that the show spent the better part of its last season focused on Randy’s stupidity. As a result, Randy then spends the rest of the Pandemic Special trying to cover his tracks and keep himself from being blamed, only to make things so much worse.

The Great Chain of Misery for 2020

The special is South Park’s attempt to address an entire years worth of misery in the span of an hour. While I don’t think that they managed to hit everything right, I also know how monumental a task that is. Life has gotten so ridiculous that it can be hard to make fun of at this point. Still, they at least try, and I think that’s what counts.

While Randy’s trying to keep his part in COVID-19 a secret, the rest of the special deals with the myriad of garbage this year has thrown with us. There are free big issues that primarily focuses on, though. The first is the debate over whether school’s should reopen, something that Cartman adamantly opposes. It’s not that he’s concerned about his health, though; he just likes being out of school and ignoring classes on Zoom. Nonetheless, he’s right to be worried. Every time we try and open a school, it seems like someone catches COVID-19, and everyone has to quarantine. In this case, the kids have to spend two weeks stuck at school and watched by Police Officers.

Which brings me to the next issue: the fact that no one trusts police anymore. Thanks to the heinous actions of several cops in 2020, confidence in them has hit rock bottom. And since the cops in South Park are so trigger-happy, they make things worse by shooting themselves in the foot by accidentally shooting Token. Then they use insane troll logic to quarantine the whole school because of COVID-19. Which leads to the students escaping and results in the police going to town.

As hilarious as it is, it highlights just how badly things to change with police in our country.

Finally, there’s the big, underlying issue that is explored through the kids: the desire to return to a normal life. With how miserable 2020 has been, we all want to wake up and find everything’s gone back to normal and we can enjoy our lives again. And the fact that it may be months or years before that happens is not something everyone can cope with. Stan even breaks down in tears near the end over it. But then, the Pandemic Special gives us the Aesop of the story, I think.

The Aesop of the Pandemic Special

Okay, I’m not sure if this is the moral of the story, but it’s what I got from it: that we shouldn’t give up hope. I know it’s cheesy and cliche, but we all have to remember that everyone’s been suffering through this year. But no matter how bad things may get, we can’t just give up hope, and that we need to remember to look on the bright side of things. Or at least learn to laugh at our misery.

I think that’s what they were going for, but aside from a few moments, it didn’t always work in its execution. In fact, the very end has the show give a genuine plea for people to get out and vote Trump out of office. If South Park is willing to abandon their philosophy of making fun of everyone, then we know that something is wrong with this country. For the love of all that is good, people, vote Trump out of office!

I Give “South Park: The Pandemic Special” a 3/5

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In a year where everyone’s lives have been effectively screwed over by the universe, one show will rise up to challenge all the crap 2020 has thrown at mankind. By making us laugh at just how terrible this year has been! Wednesday, September 30th, 2020: South Park returns. And if they can’t save us from this year, then I don’t think anyone can!

We Need South Park Now More Than Ever

While everyone’s year is going to be doing to be different, as a whole, 2020 has felt like a nightmare for everyone on Earth. Riots and protests grip the streets; faith in law enforcement’s at an all-time low. The West Coast is burning down. And it seems like we’re nowhere near ending the COVID-19 Pandemic! Add in the high profile deaths, and it seems like there’s no hope. So what can South Park hope to do about that?

A lot, actually. Fans who have been around long enough may remember what South Park did in the aftermath of 9/11. As the Nostalgia Critic on YouTube states in his review, America was gripped by fear; the same kind of fear many are living with in 2020. So South Park did the smartest thing possible: they made us laugh. They made people take a look at how crazy life had become, and had a good, long laugh about it. It might not seem appropriate in such a dark time, but it’s when things are darkest that we need to remember how to laugh.

In other words, I’m hoping South Park can repeat that success while tackling all the awful things that have happened this year.

COVID-19, the Police, and Returning to School All At Once

This is the official synopsis of the hour long special:

Randy comes to terms with his role in the COVID-19 outbreak as the on-going pandemic presents continued challenges to the citizens of South Park. The kids happily head back to school but nothing resembles the normal that they once knew; not their teachers, not their homeroom, not even Eric Cartman.

South Park Studios

So, it looks like South Park plans to go after the three biggest issues Americans are dealing with: COVID-19, the Police being hated, and the question of how safe it is to open schools up. And in typical fashion, they’re fusing them all together. They’ll probably also reference the high profile deaths, as well.

I, for one, am looking forward to this hour long special, and you can bet that I plan to review it when the time comes. We need some laughter in our life right now! And if this is the only South Park we get this year abecause of the Pandemic, then I hope it blows us away!

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My Picks for the Most Heinous Fathers in Fiction

They are the pinnacle of horrible parenting at it’s absolute worst. Happy Father’s Day everyone, and today, I wanted to take a look at some examples of characters that I consider to be the worst dad’s in fiction. Whether they neglected their children or were verbally or physically abusive to them, these are the deadbeats that Child Protective Services would love to put behind bars. That is, if they could.

Also, it goes without saying, but I despise each and every one of these guys. Okay, maybe not one of them.

Tywin Lannister

I cannot lie: I have a grudging respect for the Patriarch of House Lannister for being one of the smartest characters in Game of Thrones. As the head of House Lannister in the first half of the show, Tywin manipulated events to ensure his family would remain on top. No matter how immoral the methods may be (*cough* Red Wedding *cough*). Yet for all his talk of the importance of family, Tywin failed to practice what he preached. While each of his kids got scarred by their dad’s neglect, it was Tyrion who got the worst of it.

From the moment he was born, Tywin sought to make Tyrion’s life a living hell, all by virtue of being a dwarf. From denying him his birthright to allow him to be framed for the assassination of Joffrey, he went out of his way to be rid of his son. So, can you blame some of us for cheering when Tyrion killed his father as payback for all the abuse? Considering how he was going to have Tyrion killed, I’d say it was justified.

Aku

He is the shape-shifting master of darkness, the Shogun of sorrow, and the mortal enemy to Samurai Jack. Aku is one of the most evil beings in cartoon history, with atrocities that span centuries of tyrannical rule. However, it turns out he’s also… a dad? In the penultimate episode of the show, we learn that he left part of his essence with a cult that worshipped him. And when the High Priestess drank it, she somehow got pregnant and gave birth to Aku’s half-human daughters, the last of which was Ashi, Jack’s companion and love interest.

Now, Aku’s more or less on here because of all of his past actions. He didn’t have enough time to develop a real relationship with Ashi. However, in the short time he knew of her existence, he used his essence to control her body against her will and become his unwilling puppet. Fortunately, Ashi proved that her heritage didn’t define her and overcame her father’s control, which led to Aku’s downfall and Jack getting back to the past at last.

Darth Vader

As a Sith Lord, Darth Vader was responsible for countless atrocities in the name of his master, many of which would physically and emotionally scar his children, Luke and Leia. The first movie alone saw him order the deaths of Luke’s Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru, torture Leia, and force her to watch as her home planet was destroyed. Then came Empire where he cut off Luke’s arm, and then proceeded to shatter his son’s world with this now famous scene.

I would also hold the fact that he was absent from his kid’s lives for twenty years, but to be fair, he was led to believe that they were dead. He may have redeemed himself in his final moments, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Vader was a bad dad.

By the way, this is the one that I don’t hate. I’m more disappointed in Vader.

Mr. Stotch

If you thought that I would put Randy Marsh on this list as the dad I hate most on South Park, guess again. While I find some of Randy Marsh’s antics annoying, I understand that he’s just an idiot and doesn’t mean any harm. Most of the time. The dad that I hate the most has to be Mr. Stotch.

Mr. Stotch is, in my eyes, the epitome of a dad that is far too strict with the way he treats his son, Butters. He will rail on Butters for the most minor of mistakes, real or imaginary, and his main form of discipline is to simply ground Butters. In the context of the show, it’s played for laughs, but if this was in real life, Mr. Stotch would be arrested by Child Protective Services. When I got to fight him in South Park: The Fractured But Whole, it felt cathartic to give him his just desserts.  

Fire Lord Ozai

And here he is, the man I consider to be the epitome of terrible fatherhood, Fire Lord Ozai. I could write an entire article on why Ozai was not just a horrible dad, but a horrible person in general, and overall waste of human DNA. Instead, I’ll just paraphrase all of the horrible things he’s done:

• Jealously tried to have his wife’s ex-boyfriend (and true love) killed
• Was willing to kill his own son to appease his equally abusive father
• Murdered his own father in order to usurp his brother’s birthright and become Fire Lord
• Challenged his own son Zuko to an Agni Kai just for talking out of turn, and then permanently scarred him and banished him when he refused to fight.
• Was emotionally abusive to Azula and pushed her into becoming a cold-blooded, sociopathic perfectionist, contributing to her eventually loss of sanity.
• Was going to burn the entire world to the ground to create a new world where he ruled as a god-king

All said, Ozai was, without a doubt, the worst father that I had ever seen on TV while I was growing up. Everyone universally agreed that the world would be better off without him, with Zuko even encouraging Aang to kill him. While he would have deserved it, I think that Aang’s punishment was far more fitting. Taking away his bending forever, stripping him of all his power, and leaving him to rot in prison for the rest of his life was a fate worse than death. And a fitting punishment for such a sad, pathetic bully. Good riddance.

Happy Father’s Day, Everyone!

So, now that that’s out of the way, I want to say thanks to all the wonderful fathers out there. And I hope that seeing these failures of parenthood in action will make you appreciate your old man even more.

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South Park, Season 23, Episode 10, “Christmas Snow” Review

Since its inception, South Park’s been intrinsically tied to Christmas. In fact, if it weren’t for that video Christmas Card Matt and Trey made in college, South Park wouldn’t exist. Therefore, it feels appropriate to end its 23rd Season with a Christmas episode. However, don’t let the name “Christmas Snow” or the return of the official intro fool you. This finale’s about a different kind of Christmas snow.

Return of the Original Intro

Firstly, I felt surprised to see the normal South Park intro make its return. Given the season’s theme of faux spin-offs, I thought we wouldn’t see it again. At first glance, one would think this mean’s that Matt and Trey ran out of fake spin-off ideas. Thus, they went back to their usual routine. However, this proves to be a red herring, as once we get into the episode, we see why.

In an effort to curb car accidents, Santa has booze banned in South Park for the holidays. As a result, the grown-ups have no pick-me-up to get them through the stress of the holidays and become miserable. So they turn to another big guy in a red suit and a beard. And it’s someone I haven’t been a fan of this season: Randy Marsh.

Tegridy Weed Christmas Snow

I guess Matt and Trey couldn’t stay away from Tegridy Farms, even if not everyone liked it. They even take the time to reference the fact that some of the Tegridy Farms episodes weren’t that well-received. The moment of self-mocking passes, though, as Randy gets into the meat of the episode. Inspired by the snow falling on the ground, he and Towelie use their leftover weed to create what they call “Christmas Snow”.

The moment I saw the white stuff on the marijuana, I thought it was either mold or cocaine. Much to my amusement, it turned out to be the latter. While the Mayor freaks out since cocaine is very illegal (and dangerous), Randy nonchalantly fixes the problem. In what I can only assume is a jab at the efforts to legalize weed, Randy does a quick montage, comes back and says “Okay, coke is now legal”.

As hilarious as that scene was, I couldn’t help but feel a little disturbed at the implied undertones. Next to marijuana, cocaine is one of the most illegal drugs in the world, yet the people of South Park snort that Christmas Snow like there’s no tomorrow. At least the show reminds us of how bad coke is, so I think it evens out in the end.

Of course, none of this goes over well with Santa.

Santa Grinches the Coke

Maybe he’s genuinley trying to keep the people of South Park safe, or he’s mad at them running Mr. Hankey out last year. Either way, Santa refuses to let the grown ups get high on the road. Thus, in a reversal of the Dr. Seuss story, Santa Grinches everyone’s cocaine, leading Randy to chase him off a cliff.

What happens next is, in hindsight, one of the funniest things I’ve seen all season. Randy convinces Santa to try his Tegridy Christmas Snow, and the jolly man loves it. Then Jesus shows up and starts trying it as well. The trinity of South Park is sitting in the woods, snorting on that Christmas snow. As a result of loving it so much, they decide to share it with everyone. So, Jesus spreads the coke in the air as actual Christmas snow. It’s so weird and so funny. I think.

So That Happened.

To be honest, I didn’t think that this episode was that funny at first. However, after sleeping on it, I admit that the premise of “Christmas Snow” is pretty funny. I was just letting my dislike of Tegridy Farms get in the way of that. At the least, it beats the literal crap-show that was “Turd Burglars” which I refuse to discuss anymore.

That said, I honestly hope that next season, South Park puts its focus back on its original stars, the four boys of South Park. At the least, I hope that this is the last time we see Tegridy Farms. It’s a joke that’s run its course a thousand times over!

I Give “Christmas Snow” a 3.5/5. And that’s me being generous. Happy Holidays, South Park

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South Park, Season 23, Episode 9, “Basic Cable” Review

Ever since Disney+ came out last month, I’ve been binging all things Star Wars off it. It’s all to prepare for The Rise of Skywalker. Until that movie, though, the hot thing everyone’s talking about is The Mandalorian and Baby Yoda. Which is why South Park uses the nuances of streaming services as a reason to gush over the show.

Given how many times they referenced it in their show, I think its safe to say that Matt Stone and Trey Parker are big fans of Star Wars. They love it so much, that it’s led them to harshly criticize any problems they have with the franchise. The whole premise of the classic episode “Jakovasaurs” was to express their distaste for Jar Jar. Yet they seem to sing nothing but praise for The Mandalorian and Baby Yoda in their latest episode, “Basic Cable”. If South Park says something’s good, then it has to be.

Like the rest of the season, the episode’s based around a fake spin-off, this time focused on Scott Malkinson. He’s the kid with the lisp and diabetes and all he wants is to get Disney+. That desire becomes two-fold when he gets a crush on the new girl in class, fellow diabetic Sophie Gray. She loves The Mandalorian and thinks its the best thing since Empire; and she isn’t wrong. So Scott thinks the best way to win her heart is to watch The Mandalorian with her.

Cable Hates Baby Yoda and Streaming

There’s just one small hiccup to Scott’s plan: his dad works for the local cable company and refuses to do streaming. Instead he stubbornly clings to basic cable and says that it’s all anyone needs to watch. To be fair, Mr. Malkinson does bring up some valid points about the rise of streaming. It’s forcing cable out of existence, and ensuring that people don’t watch anything together anymore. However, his efforts to improve cable’s success are undermined by the show stereotyping cable’s incompetence. They did this years ago with the episode “Informative Murder Porn”, but here the incompetence is genuine.

In true South Park fashion, Mr. Malkinson and the other cable guys refuse to better themselves. Instead, they decide to shut down everyone’s access to streaming services. This ends up foiling Scott’s plans to woo Sophie. However, Sophie reveals that she wasn’t into Scott like that and just wanted to watch Baby Yoda and The Mandalorian.

In the end, the entire town of South Park gets cut off from their streaming. Despite everything, though, the episode ends on a positive note. Scott forms a genuine bond with Sophie over their diabetes, giving him hope for the future. It then turns into an ad for The Scott Malkinson Show, complete with ad and phone number. The show even goes the extra mile: dial the number, and you’ll be directed to the prices for the various spin-offs South Park’s done this season.

A Roaring Good Time

Ever since Disney+ came out, I’ve been thoroughly invested in it and The Mandalorian. As a result, I could relate to this episode a lot, and thus find the humor in what was happening. In fact, I think this was my second-favorite episode of the season. If you haven’t seen it, go watch it sing praise for Baby Yoda!

I Give “Basic Cable” a 5/5. I loved it and Baby Yoda.

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An Important Message

Shortly after the episode went up, South Park’s Twitter account posted this message

Help him out. For Karpman!