Characterizations, in song and gameplay

[sekritomg]

Taking a break from playing SOT to have an anxiety attack, so I'm taking a break from that by writing some brief meta.

For a while I've had the idea that "What Would Brian Boitano Do?" is the keenest articulation of South Park's view of its main characters. I think there are shades of this in the game and I think it's pretty consistent. The thing that initially got me on about it was the first verse. It's so painfully indicative of how I think the show would like you to view these characters. To wit:


STAN: What would Briano Boitano do if he was here right now? He'd make a plan and he'd follow through, that's what Brian Boitano would do.

I highlighted that part about making a plan and following through because that is so Stan to me! It's decisive, active, and confident. It's his first thought: What would the person I most idealize do? I will also do something.

KYLE: When Brian Boitano was in the Olympics, skating for the gold, he did two Salchows and a triple-Lutz while wearing a blindfold.

That's so Kyle, to offer a useless bit of trivia. Kyle is by no means stupid (though, SOT spoiler: he's apparently stupid enough not to realize that the desks at school don't have compartments) but he's overly reliant on memorizing facts and depending upon technicalities. This is interesting information about Brian Boitano, I guess, if indeed it is factual and not just song lyrics. But it offers nothing about what Kyle is going to do to extract himself from the situation he is in. This is interesting in light of the rest of the movie, in which he is largely impotent in regard to his mother and afraid to cross her. His big lyrical declaration is something completely inconsequential.

CARTMAN: When Briano Boitano was in the Alps, fighting grizzly bears, he used his magical fire breath and saved the maidens fair.

This is just patently inane, over-the-top, and ridiculous. It's puerile and absurd. It's the fantasy version of something a hero would do.

The big "want" song in SP: BLU is "Up There," but this song identifies its characters' motivations as well:

CARTMAN: I want this v-chip out of me; it has stunted my vocabulary

KYLE: I just want my mom to stop fighting everyone

STAN: For Wendy I'll be an activist too, 'cause that's what Brian Boitano would do

Again, in this set of statements, Stan's is the only one that speaks to a determination to go forward with any kind of plan. He has ambitions where Cartman and Kyle have mere desires. Cartman's desire, to have his v-chip removed, demonstrates at least an ambition he might develop, i.e. removing the v-chip. Kyle's line, on the other hand, is truly pathetic. He just wants his mom to stop fighting everyone! It's so abstract and small and sad, something he has no control over. Removing the v-chip is a concrete goal, at least. (One Cartman never accomplishes, by the way, though it is later deactivated by coincidence.) Lest you think I hate Kyle, I don't; there's something beautiful and human in his pathos. He's a small, petty, trivial boy who just desires to be good and to have things be good and right. It's kind of heartbreaking.

I think it's good I'm writing this out now because I'm playing the video game (which is amazing) and have noticed that the characterizations of these three boys I'm positing here are reflected up to where I am in the game. I know that Cartman and Kyle become unlocked later on, but I'm abut 10 hours into this and so far they have largely paralleled each other in terms of functionality: sitting on thrones, hiding behind goons, screaming about what they want. Bring me this, bring me that, etc.

Stan, on the other hand, is cast from his first appearance as a fighter. In his first major quest, he needs your help, but he will not let you do it for him. I tried to get this done myself, but the game will not physically let you fight his battle on his behalf; he must be there to fight with you.

I can't get Kenny's role in the game to fit with any kind of characterization theory, but I will note that during the "What Would Brian Boitano Do?" song, he is dead and does not participate.

Comments

[negniahn.livejournal.com]

trey's addition of "i've never seen a man eat so many chicken wings" is a keen insight into trey's valuation of chicken wing eating abilities in his fellow men

[sekrit-omg.livejournal.com]

I totally just referenced that in my mpreg fic, too!

[negniahn.livejournal.com]

OMG
im sorry im not reading that right now. im saying this to both you and myself. im sorry that the unvierse wants me to read about intercellular calcium chelation with BAPTA wtf is that

[sekrit-omg.livejournal.com]

That sounds terrible! It's a dumb fic, so, it'll still be dumb tomorrow.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_confunded_/]

I haven't gotten that far in the game. I'm so excited to meet Stan and Kyle though and revel in every little tiny thing they do/say like you and Holly are! So far I only have Kenny and Butters... and yeah, I'm not really sure how Kenny's personality is reflected in his role, mostly because I think Kenny uses characters like the Princess and Mysterion to totally rewrite his personality and get completely and utterly in the zone of someone completely different (he even has Karen calling him her sister and has yet to break character in any way, from what I've seen). But all that aside, I prefer using Kenny over Butters as a companion just because Butters never shuts the fuck up. Right now I'm recruiting the goth kids... not sure how long after that I meet Stan, but I hope it's soon! I did invade his room, though, of course, to weep over how cute it is with all its Broncos merchandise.

[sekrit-omg.livejournal.com]

Well, now that you're done with the game, how did the S/K interactions shape up for you? Overall I thought the thing was rally well-done and I've been preoccupied by it for a while now. Plus it was fun! But more importantly on a fan porn level, it's got me thinking a ton about the characters and their interactions. One of the reasons I've held onto SP for so long is because it really does seem like these kids have unique and interesting little personalities, and I think this game really bolstered that for me.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_confunded_/]

Aside from how one-note all of the girls were, I really loved how most of the kids had their personalities explored a little bit more in this game. I think maybe the reason why the last season or two have been so bad is because they were putting most of their effort into writing this game? Hopefully? But, yeah, I loved the S/K interaction, and I thought their roles in the game and in each other's little sphere really spoke to how I already feel about them. I already made a post on Tumblr gushing about how cute and heroic Stan was with his sword (and the shoulder thing he does after fights) and his super badass moves and one-liners. And paramecie pointed something else out to me, that Stan's moves are all very up close and personal with the enemy, whereas Kyle attacks from a distance (and is really good at golf)... and I think that makes sense, for them. I also loved Kyle being the benevolent elf king and Stan being his right hand/bodyguard/knight... so perfect. But beyond Stan and Kyle, it really made me appreciate Cartman, Butters, and Kenny again, and I actually don't hate Tweek anymore. I lived for the Facebook posts and the stupid side comments all the characters made. I really enjoyed the ending too, with Kenny being the final boss and her intricate backstory (and Cartman genuinely appreciating the thought put into it haha). I also liked that some kids broke character fairly often, others only once in a while (like Stan and Craig), and others were SO INTO IT, like Kyle and Kenny, that they never broke character. It makes so much sense to me that Kyle would take it more seriously than everyone else to the point of correcting people when they used modern terms, but that when shit got real, he was okay with using PowerPoint, haha.

There were a bunch of quests and scenes that I REALLY could have done without, though. Like, do we really need to rape a nine year old with alien dildos? And do we really need one of the first quests to be about "saving Princess Kenny from being raped" with Butters saying "Kenny's being raped right now" every five seconds on the way upstairs? It was also totally unnecessary to have to listen to your parents having sex for like a full twenty minutes during the underpants gnomes quest. And having to strip for a pedophile. And shoving every single girl into the same exact personality type that Trey gives to anyone with a vagina, even if that personality type goes against the personalities most of those girls have already been established as having. I was also disappointed that they didn't put more effort into doing house layouts (like not putting Ike's room in, and Cartman not having a basement even though it's constantly featured in the show as an important place).

So... yeah, it was problematic in more ways than one. But overall the interaction of the kids and the fact that M&T finally went back to writing them as KIDS who have elaborate imaginations and really take playing pretend seriously MOSTLY made up for the things I didn't like about the game. I would have much rather had a game that was purely cute kids-playing-pretend stuff, but that's way too much to ask. Basically, it reinforced why I hate Trey Parker, but reminded me strongly of why I love South Park and the characters in it. I'm definitely excited for all the fic this game will surely inspire! And I'm sorry for this long comment. I enjoyed the game more than it probably sounds like I did.

[sekrit-omg.livejournal.com]

I think I more or less agree with all of your points, and don't mind long-ass comments. At this point I anticipate a lot of unwelcome gross-ass stuff in SP. I could have done without the Mr. Slave's ass level, really, even though it's actually a firmly established location from the show. The aline dildo probe stuff was fine by me in the end? I mean, I didn't necessarily enjoy that level, but I'm pretty neutral on that. That and the parents fucking -- this kind of stuff is gratuitous and seems not to make a lot of narrative sense, but I'm used to tuning out the parts of SP that I'm not that into. Same with the farting, I suppose. I'm not that into farting and don't really find it funny, and am not totally sure why these grown men still find it hilarious? But then it's like, I dunno, joke's on me for caring about this show that is centered around farting, if that's the case.

I had read in some review that the "don't let them rape Princess Kenny" thing is specifically a response to a number of rape references in video games or fantasy scenarios, and I suppose that makes sense to me on some level, particularly the level on which Cartman would internalize this. I don't forgive South Park for its problematic elements, but I also feel like at this point the show has gotten away with so much that we've all enabled it to the point where it can't be stopped. I guess if I truly wanted to make a point about my disliking their handling of things I'd have to stop watching the show or writing porn about it. But the positive elements you refer to (kids being kids! interpersonal relationships!) keep me invested and I guess I'm willing to tolerate the bad in order to enjoy the good

I'm actually very interested to hear why there was no option to play as a girl. Did the press not ask this in any context? I suppose it makes sense on one level that the kids would be playing in a male-gender-specific context, but personally when I play games I tend to play as female so it did feel weird not to have that option. Ultimately it's a show about little boys, which is some of what I like about it, but I wish there was accountability through someone at least pressing M&T on why you can't play as a girl in this game, or why they feel the need to make the girls' portion so petty and frivolous. But SP seems to have no accountability anywhere, so I don't know what else to say about it.

Positives, though

[sekrit-omg.livejournal.com]

Nhaingen and I actually talked about the Stan-melee/Kyle-range discrepancy. Stan was truly my favorite aspect of this game, other than the actual playing experience, which I actually loved. His comments were great and I loved his dorky little moves and how he used Sparky so extensively. Butters was adorable, too, and I am fascinated by Kenny -- the fact that Karen refers to him as "my sister the princess" is fascinating to me, especially since she's not RPing. It's fascinating that Craig united with Clyde, and satisfying to me that this game maintains the fandom understanding that Clyde is a universally acknowledged loser.

I just had so much fun playing this game. It gave me tons of ideas for fics and I think it proves my point that M&T make much better products when they have a) more time to refine what they are doing and b) work with other people who can help them revise. I agree that a more extensive exploration would have been good, and that I wish I could have been able to go into everyone's room and rifle round all of their drawers. I also prefer when SP content is focused on the kids and their interacts. Overall I have always believed that SP's keenest insight is playing ridiculous media tropes totally straight, and I think they did an excellent job with that here.

I am not someone who plays a lot of games, but I played this over four days from start to finish and I honestly feel like it was a great experience and totally worth it. Above all it makes me really excited to keep being in the fandom and writing about these characters! Maybe I'll revisit this game/fandom later on and just be like "what the fuck was I thinking," but for now I'm delighted overall. This is a flawed franchise and it's never going to be ideal, but I think some of that frustration is what fuels my interest. I also feel like it is at least clear that someone (Trey probably) is emotionally invested in these characters and knows who they are. I remember watching them on 60 Minutes a few years ago and seeing a segment where Trey was writing a script, for the episode about Cartman's stuffed animals. At the time I just remember thinking, "wow, he seriously knows the name of all of Cartman's stuffed animals," and thinking that was the most touching and awesome little thing. In some senses I got that feeling again playing this game.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_confunded_/]

Re: your first reply - yeah, I really wish being a girl was an option. Like, I get it in the sense that the boys think girls are gross and would be reluctant to just let some girl play their humans vs. elves game without putting up a fight about it. I'd be fine with not playing a girl if that's where the girl problems ended, even though I also usually like to play as a girl. But that coupled with the personalities of the other girls being ignored in favor of making them as one dimensional and catty as possible really pissed me off. We GET IT, Trey, you hate women and your issues run deeper than you will ever admit to. We get it. Ugh.

But, complaining aside....

Stan was my favorite too. Everything he said and did was so perfect for him. And I loved that Kyle controlled the forces of nature and Stan controlled animals, like they were ~one with the Earth~ in their own respective ways, and animals and nature have a symbiotic relationship where one wouldn't exist perfectly without the other (like S/K!). And then Cartman represented the humans who will come in and fuck everything up for nature and the animals just by being awful humans. But I'm probably overthinking this haha. I totally agree about Karen and Kenny, I loved that, and it might just be Karen wanting to be involved in the game, but it also could have just been her having respect for Kenny's gender swap and it didn't matter to her whether it was a game or not. Either way it was adorable. And yes, Clyde is a joke. I loved how he was too cowardly to actually be a boss himself. It was so Clyde.

The game basically had everything I enjoy doing in a game. It was an RPG with a silent protagonist that had a main storyline but also a lot of fun side quests and items to collect (I'm still upset about only finding 29 Chinpokomon). I love that shit. And I loved that the forest was like the Lost Woods from Zelda, where you can just get stuck forever if you don't know where to go. It's actually the first game I've ever completed with a turn-based fighting system and party members... I quit Kingdom Hearts because I didn't care for turn-based fighting and hated Donald (who was essentially Butters in that game - only Butters is a decent healer and Donald was a piece of shit). But I enjoyed it in this, and I loved that they made fun of it by having the kids make snide comments. Like they clearly all got together and decided to do turn-based fights, but they're still all like "ugh just go already" "are you waiting on me?" and texting impatiently. And Stan was the most impatient buddy, Jesus, I'd take two seconds to decide what to do and he'd already be like "do you mind if I update my status while I wait for you to go?". Calm the fuck down Stan, I'm thinking! But I thought that was a nice touch. I wish kids in real life were this invested in playing pretend outside! Minus throwing broken bottles and knives at each other, obviously.

Yeah, I totally agree that M&T are capable of creating awesome stuff with time and other people to help out. BoM and this game are both testaments to their ~true potential~. The only problem is that when it comes to SP the show, they revert back to lazy writing and procrastination more often than not and forget to put their hearts into it. I think this game had more heart in it than the last five seasons of SP combined, save for a few select episodes. I definitely think Trey is emotionally invested in at least a good handful of the characters still, and I do give him credit for that, I just wish he'd leave some of his personal shit out of it. Hopefully the game also reminded THEM of what makes South Park good, and they'll start doing more episodes like that.