10 TV Shows That Went Too Far (In Completely Unexpected Ways)

It’s hard to argue that South Park has “gone too far” when the show’s creators/ BASEketball stars Trey Parker and Matt Stone (we’re never going to stop shoehorning in any available excuse to spotlight that underrated flick) have made it their mission statement to offend as many viewers as possible on purpose. The R-rated adult animation prides itself on leaving no target untouched, regardless of potential controversy.

With the showrunners earning themselves a fatwa each for depicting the Prophet Muhammad and scripting episodes with titles like “The Wacky Molestation Adventure”, it’s hard to imagine that there’s much South Park could do to go too far.

But go too far they indeed did (we’re not sure that’s grammatically right, but it’s the truth) with season ten’s last episode, the sports movie parody Stanley’s Cup. Following series protagonist Stan Marsh as he attempts to coach a kid’s hockey team to victory and inspire hope in an ill child, the episode ends with… both attempts failing. Miserably.

The creators loved this “sweet and weird” denouement, but even hardened fans of the show’s uber-bleak sense of humour struggled with such a hopelessly cruel punchline and the episode remains more divisive amongst the fanbase than many of the show’s more explicit and violent chapters.