South Park has never been shy about poking the political bear, but its 27th season has ratcheted up the stakes with a brashness that’s left both its targets and its fans buzzing. The second episode of the season, titled "Got a Nut," aired on August 6, 2025, and quickly became a lightning rod for controversy, lampooning Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, President Donald Trump, and Vice President J.D. Vance in ways both absurd and uncomfortably pointed.
For those who missed it, the episode’s most talked-about moments revolved around a cartoon Kristi Noem, who was given the full South Park treatment: heavy makeup, exaggerated lips, and, in a recurring gag, a face that literally melts off her head. The show’s creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, didn’t stop at physical caricature. Noem’s character is seen in a recruitment video for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), where she shoots a dog—a direct nod to her real-life admission in her 2024 memoir, No Going Back, that she shot her 14-month-old hunting dog Cricket. The episode then doubles down, showing her leading an ICE raid at a live "Dora the Explorer" concert and shooting another dog, before culminating in a scene where she leads a raid in heaven, instructing agents to “only detain the brown ones.”
It’s the kind of boundary-pushing satire that South Park has made its name on, but not everyone finds it funny. Kristi Noem herself responded swiftly and sharply. On Glenn Beck’s podcast, she dismissed the show’s depiction as "lazy," saying, "But you know, I just think it’s — yeah, it never ends. But it’s so lazy to just constantly make fun of women for how they look. Only the liberals and the extremists do that. If they wanted to criticize my job, go ahead and do that, but clearly they can’t, they just pick something petty like that." According to TNND, Noem’s frustration centers on the show’s focus on her appearance rather than her policies or actions—a criticism she’s voiced before, particularly after the uproar over her dog-shooting anecdote.
The episode’s satire didn’t stop at Noem. President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance also made appearances in the animated universe. Trump, who was depicted in bed with Satan in the season premiere on July 23, 2025, drew a sharp rebuke from the White House. Spokesperson Taylor Rogers issued a statement, saying, "This show hasn’t been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention. President Trump has delivered on more promises in just six months than any other president in our country’s history – and no fourth-rate show can derail President Trump’s hot streak." The statement, reported by TNND, underscores the administration’s frustration with what it sees as unfair and outdated satire.
Vice President Vance, on the other hand, seemed to take the ribbing in stride. He posted an image of his cartoon likeness from the episode on X (formerly Twitter), commenting that he "finally made it." It was a rare moment of levity amid the political jabs, and a reminder that sometimes, the best response to satire is a sense of humor.
But the ripple effects didn’t end there. ICE itself joined the fray, sharing an image from South Park as a recruitment tool on its official X page. The show’s creators responded in kind, posting, "Wait, so we ARE relevant?" It was a cheeky retort that highlighted South Park’s enduring knack for staying in the cultural conversation, even as critics question its relevance more than two decades into its run.
The episode’s irreverence sparked a broader debate about the role of satire in today’s political climate. As The Advocate pointed out, late-night monologues and SNL skits may poke fun at politicians, but South Park’s brand of absurdity—complete with ICE raids in heaven and Satan’s anatomy as a plot device—captures something uniquely chaotic about the current moment. John Casey, writing for The Advocate, argued that "only South Park is fighting Trump in the language of our unreal, absurd, and chaotic political moment." It’s a sentiment echoed by many fans who see the show’s willingness to go to extremes as a necessary counterweight to the sometimes sanitized humor of other late-night staples.
Of course, not everyone agrees. Critics, including those at the White House, see South Park’s tactics as desperate grabs for attention, lacking the nuance or depth to engage seriously with the issues at hand. The depiction of Noem, in particular, has drawn fire for what some see as a focus on gendered criticism—mocking her appearance rather than her policies. Noem herself has leaned into this argument, suggesting that "only the liberals and the extremists" resort to such "petty" attacks.
Yet, as the episode’s content makes clear, South Park’s satire isn’t limited to surface-level jabs. The show lampoons Noem’s high-profile media campaigns for ICE, her controversial decision to shoot her dog, and even the broader machinery of immigration enforcement. The scene where Noem leads ICE agents in heaven, instructing them to "only detain the brown ones," is a pointed (if uncomfortable) commentary on racial profiling and the politics of immigration—one that’s likely to spark debate regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.
Meanwhile, the show’s depiction of Trump in bed with Satan—a gag that drew official ire—was a deliberately over-the-top metaphor for the moral compromises and alleged scandals that have dogged Trump’s presidency. Whether viewers see it as biting satire or juvenile provocation, it’s hard to deny that South Park is pulling out all the stops this season.
All of this raises a bigger question: Is South Park still relevant? The debate has been raging for years, with critics and fans alike wondering whether the show’s shock tactics still resonate in a world where political reality often seems stranger than fiction. The show’s own creators seem to revel in this uncertainty, responding to ICE’s recruitment post with a wink and a nod: "Wait, so we ARE relevant?"
For now, at least, the answer seems to be yes. Whether you love it or loathe it, South Park’s 27th season has managed to capture the national conversation, forcing viewers—and politicians—to grapple with uncomfortable truths, laugh at the absurdity of it all, and maybe, just maybe, see the world a little differently.
In a media landscape saturated with safe jokes and predictable punchlines, South Park’s willingness to go for the jugular (and the ridiculous) is as polarizing as ever. But as the latest episode proves, the show still knows how to get people talking—and sometimes, that’s its own kind of relevance.
