One of many earlier working gags on Matt Stone’s and Trey Parker’s animated sitcom “South Park” was the repeated, comedic demise of Kenny McCormick. Kenny (Stone) was the perfect good friend of Stan (Parker), Kyle (additionally Stone), and Cartman (additionally Parker), and he gave the impression to be probably the most … worldly of the 4. Kenny’s face was often lined largely by an outsize orange coat, and all of his dialogue was muffled and incomprehensible. Later, it could be established that Kenny was extremely impoverished and that he appeared to know much more about intercourse, medicine, and crime than an eight-year-old should.
For the primary six seasons of the sequence, from 1997 to 2002, Kenny died in nearly each single episode. Kenny’s deaths have been often very demonstrative, with the younger boy being impaled on a flagpole or reduce in half by a chainsaw. When Kenny died, one in every of his associates would briefly reply, “Oh my God, they killed Kenny!” (with one other chiming in with “You bastard!”). Each Kenny’s demise and the reactive line of dialogue originated in Stone’s and Parker’s 1992 quick “Jesus vs. Frosty,” in addition to of their a lot slicker 1995 quick movie “The Spirit of Christmas.” Kenny’s demise was an affordable, stunning solution to get laughs, and it was largely efficient. So as to add to the grimness of Kenny’s many demises, his corpse would usually be seen being picked at by rats.
Kenny was additionally miraculously resurrected at the start of each episode, usually with no fanfare in any way. Generally, he merely appeared out of skinny air. Then, like clockwork, he would die as soon as once more. Nobody appears to have remembered that he had died many instances earlier than.
Finally, Stone and Parker stopped killing Kenny, and the character now lives to the tip of most “South Park” episodes. This, after all, begs the query: what number of instances did Kenny die? Fortunately, we’ve entry to these numbers.
The variety of instances Kenny died on the South Park TV sequence
As talked about, Kenny died usually for the first six seasons of “South Park.” He was spared in “Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo” (December 17, 1997) as a present of Christmas mercy, however he was murdered fairly usually past that.
Certainly, typically Kenny died a number of instances in an episode. In “Pinkeye” (October 29, 1997), Kenny died when a satellite tv for pc fell on him. When he was being embalmed, a Worcestershire sauce incident introduced him again to life as a zombie. Kyle then ended up chainsawing zombie Kenny in half, killing him once more. In an epilogue, Kenny as soon as once more dug out of his grave, solely to have his gravestone fall on him. Then a aircraft crashed into him. Recall that in 1997, a sure model of “shock” humor was simply coming into vogue (largely spearheaded by the success of “South Park”) and lots of comedians started telling jokes that took worn-out Eighties sitcom tropes to violent extremes. Kenny’s demise was meant to be whimsically stunning in its informal violence.
The continuity of Kenny’s deaths is intentionally toyed with usually. Generally, Kenny’s demise is an enormous deal, and characters weep for his loss. Different instances, it is so commonplace that Stan and Kyle nearly sigh their “They killed Kenny” line and stroll away as if nothing occurred. Within the episode “Summer season Sucks” (June 24, 1998), there’s a flashback to when Kenny was in kindergarten, and he dies within the flashback. He’s, nevertheless, positive again within the current.
Counting all of the a number of deaths over the primary six seasons of “South Park,” Kenny died or was killed 98 instances. This does not depend the deaths Kenny skilled within the present’s title sequence, as these can be troublesome to depend appropriately.
Kenny’s deaths within the South Park film and in shorts
In the 1999 feature film “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut,” Kenny dies early within the movie when he by accident units himself on hearth after setting his personal flatulence alight. On the hospital, the physician (George Clooney) by accident replaces his coronary heart with a baked potato, and he dies on the working desk. The movie, nevertheless, follows Kenny into Hell, the place he turns into associates with Devil (Parker) and consoles the Lord of Darkness over his abusive relationship with Saddam Hussein (Stone). Kenny does briefly return to Earth throughout the movie’s climax, bids his associates farewell, and ascends to Heaven. That counts as two deaths.
As talked about, “South Park” started as a pair of Christmas shorts, and a Kenny-like character is killed in “Jesus vs. Frosty.” (The character referred to as Kenny in that quick resembles the eventual Cartman.) Within the 1995 follow-up, Kenny was correctly named and he likewise died when Santa Claus by accident killed him with a psychic blast.
There have been additionally, all through its historical past, quite a few bumpers, shorts, specials, and unique advert spots that Stone and Parker made, and Kenny died in lots of them. These have been executed for “The Tonight Present,” the MTV Film Awards, the film “The Aristocrats,” and different such particular occasions. In all of the shorts and specials, about 22 in all, Kenny died an extra 14 instances. Jay Leno’s chin even killed him as soon as.
If one wished to be particularly liberal, one may additionally embody the few “South Park” video video games, all executed with Stone’s and Parker’s participation. Kenny, in the middle of the video video games’ tales, was offed one other 14 instances. 98 (TV sequence) + 14 (specials and shorts) + 14 (video video games) + 2 (the film) = 128. Kenny has died a complete of 128 instances. Once more, this isn’t counting the title sequence from seasons 7 by 11 the place he was killed by Dying. If you would like, tack on these further 71 situations, making a grand complete of 199.
Why South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker stopped killing Kenny
After some time, Matt Stone and Trey Parker started to tire of killing Kenny, and even took his demise very severely within the episode “Kenny Dies” (December 5, 2001). Kenny was hospitalized after being recognized with muscular dystrophy, and his associates needed to face the disappointment of truly shedding a good friend. Tragically, Stan was out of the room when Kenny truly handed, and Kenny’s final phrases have been “The place’s Stan?” Stan grew to become deeply depressed after that.
On a DVD commentary monitor, Parker and Stone defined that Kenny had change into an excessive amount of of a comic book “prop,” and his demise was changing into tiresome for them to jot down again and again. In addition they had change into followers of newer characters like Butters (Stone) and Tweek (Stone) and wished to present them extra display screen time. After “Kenny Dies,” Kenny was out of the present for the majority of the present’s sixth season. He primarily stayed lifeless, save just a few appearances as a ghost. Within the sixth season finale, “Pink Sleigh Down” (December 11, 2002), Kenny was introduced again formally (once more, with no fanfare in any way), and he has stayed alive (largely) ever since.
Cheekily, Stone and Parker determined, a few years later, to canonically clarify why Kenny died so many instances. In “Cartman Joins NAMBLA” (June 21, 2000), Kenny dies, however his dad and mom give start to a bit brother … that additionally they title Kenny. Opposite to this clarification, nevertheless, are the occasions of the episode “Mysterion Rises” (November 3, 2010). In that episode, it is defined that Kenny’s dad and mom belonged to a cult that worshiped the powerful Lovecraftian Elder God Cthulhu. Kenny, by their participation, grew to become cursed, nay fated to die day-after-day, solely to get up, totally clothed, the next morning. The immortality curse additionally entailed that anybody who witnessed his demise would overlook about it. Kenny is stabbed to demise in that episode as properly. Nobody remembers it.
