South Park: 10 Most Disturbing Episodes
6. World War Zimmerman - Season 17, Episode 3
The satire in South Park has never really aired on the right side of subtle, but World War Zimmerman's approach to its source material was akin to taking a sledgehammer to a newborn baby.
In a parody of World War Z, Cartman begins suffering from a series of nightmares that show the downfall of civilization as a result of the verdict on the George Zimmerman trial - with the zombies being replaced with outraged African Americans who are rioting in protest.
A fairly dicey premise to begin with, the episode wildly swings from shocking to genuinely impactful at a moments notice, and rarely gives the viewer a chance to breathe. The final one-two punch of Zimmerman's highly comical execution, followed by Cartman 'standing his ground' and point-blank shooting Token is some of the most biting and downright nasty content the show has ever produced.
World War Zimmerman is arguably one of the show's finest hours due to its uncompromised brutality and meaningful social commentary, and proof that despite all the puerile humour, South Park is a show that always has a message and isn't afraid to go to dark places to get its point across.