The 25th Anniversary Concert is exactly what it says on the tin, and it absolutely works.
For 25 years, and have had fans in stitches with their that takes the genre ‘irreverent’ to a whole different level.
Cartman, Kyle, Stan and Kenny have since 1997, with , , a feature-length film and pandemic specials under their belt, this doesn’t seem likely to slow down any time soon.
In celebrating the milestone anniversary, the show’s creators – along with some very special guests – took to the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in the show’s home state of Colorado earlier in August, and fans across the pond were treated to the televised show on 26 August.
The South Park 25th Anniversary Concert saw hundreds of fans pack into the open-air amphitheatre for a night of some of the series’ most best-loved songs, from Uncle F****r to the Oscar-nominated Blame Canada.
It also features special guests from the bands Primus – who created the show’s iconic theme song – and Ween, who penned track The Rainbow, as well as an extra surprise that we won’t spoil here.
For South Park fans, this concert has everything you need: the songs, belted across the amphitheatre with a live band and backing singers, are given extra magic as the characters beam onto the rocks and the massive screen in the background.
Watching the crowd enjoy the show, singing along to absolutely reprehensible lyrics, also brings you in to the moment and helps you feel a part of the incredible 25 years Trey and Matt have had since first bringing their characters to life fresh out of college.
South Park is a lot of things, but one label you wouldn’t usually put on it is emotional.
This is not true for the concert: you can see the creators are genuinely emotional of all they’ve achieved, and how their ludicrous idea as young adults has reached millions of people and even across generations in the decades since it first aired.
A highlight of the show was hearing Trey and Primus bassist Les Claypool reflect on how the theme song came to be – and playing each version of it from down through the years.
But this emotion is only a small part – in general the South Park 25th Anniversary Concert is just genuinely good fun and a good time.
Hardcore South Park fans will absolutely adore it, and those who have come in and out of the series over the years will recognise plenty of the tunes, and remember why they were first drawn to the show in the first place.
It’s not groundbreaking, it’s not mindblowing, but it is everything the fans will love – and why would you want any more?
The South Park 25th Anniversary Concert airs on Comedy Central UK at 11pm
