Having picked up plenty of controversy in 2004 for airing this episode as the third part of season eight, many people - in light of the recent "Trapped in the Closet" incident - totally forget how outraged people were at this. Mel Gibson is presented as a sadomasochist who is as stupid as he is depraved, Cartman becomes the next Hitler (marching Christians through the street while chanting Nazi phrases) and Christians are made to look like complete idiots. A lot of harsh material for a television show, but they got away with it.
In my opinion it's one of the funniest episodes ever, and worth watching alone for the Mel Gibson appearance towards the end. That's just classic "South Park." Of course, Trey and Matt as always are good sports and take time to poke fun at themselves, too - Stan mentions how the last time they asked for a refund at a theater was when they went to see "BASEketball" in 1998.
If you're a Christian, a "Passion" fan or a Mel Gibson die-hard you'll probably be offended by this - but if you can open up a bit and take it as a joke, you may find yourself laughing a whole lot more than you'd expect.
In my opinion it's one of the funniest episodes ever, and worth watching alone for the Mel Gibson appearance towards the end. That's just classic "South Park." Of course, Trey and Matt as always are good sports and take time to poke fun at themselves, too - Stan mentions how the last time they asked for a refund at a theater was when they went to see "BASEketball" in 1998.
If you're a Christian, a "Passion" fan or a Mel Gibson die-hard you'll probably be offended by this - but if you can open up a bit and take it as a joke, you may find yourself laughing a whole lot more than you'd expect.