Stanley's Cup
Encyclopedia
"Stanley's Cup" is episode
1014 (#153) of Comedy Central
's South Park
. It originally aired on November 15, 2006. This is the season finale
of Season 10 of South Park. It parodies the 1992 film The Mighty Ducks
.
bicycle is towed away for parking ticket
s. This is a problem, since he needs the bike for his newspaper
route (which is how he earns money). He is given an opportunity to get his bike back, but to do so he must do community service
by coaching the Park County
Pee-Wee hockey
team.
As coach
, he quickly runs into a whole host of problems — foremost, one of the kids
has leukemia
, which has already spread to his bone marrow. Stan's father becomes shocked that he would take such a job, and thinks that he is trying to "make up" for what happened when Stan was four, when he missed a shot on an empty net, which resulted in a tie for the big game. (Stan cannot even remember the event, though he claims to remember "going to Shakey's afterwards.")
Nelson, the boy with cancer, takes a turn for the worse, and asks Stan to win a game for him. However, his team isn't very good — though neither are their opponents, the Adams County
team (despite Adams' team having far better discipline) — and the team ties, 0-0. This makes Nelson become "not worse, but [he's not] any better. It's almost as if his cancer is...tied."
The team is then invited to play against the superior Denver County team, at the Pepsi Center
, with the same basic premise — the idea being that if Stan wins, Nelson will have enough hope to survive. Thinking about all the various underdog movies, the team decides to believe in themselves and get a good player — Ike, based solely on the fact that he's Canadian
(he actually does play better than the other players). Stan's father confronts Stan about playing at the Pepsi Center — the same place where Stan did not win his game years ago, while he still cannot remember it — and while he initially says he will not be there to watch Stan "destroy himself", he then decides (without any actual prompting from Stan) to go anyway.
When they get to the Pepsi Center to play in the intermission of a professional game, the other team does not show up, and Stan worries that since they cannot play, it could result in Nelson's death — but the Colorado Avalanche
let the Pee-wee team play the final period of their game against the professional team of the Detroit Red Wings
, because they went through a lot of "emotional changes". Detroit and Colorado had been tied at 2-2, but with Stan's team playing the final period, Detroit wins 32-2; additionally, the Red Wings simply assault the children, injuring many severely (and knocking 30 shots in the goal). Nelson dies in the hospital, one of the kids tells a shocked Stan that he hates him, and Randy snaps in anger over the loss of the Pee-wee team. The episode concludes with a spot on Red Wings' coach Mike Babcock
, triumphantly jumping in the air to the song We Are the Champions
, as described by Trey Parker on the commentary, "the happy ending put on for the other character".
rated this episode 9.1. "There were many things that were absolutely hilarious about the episode, but we found the fact that it played out like an underdog sports movie to be the best part".
Episode
An episode is a part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program. An episode is a part of a sequence of a body of work, akin to a chapter of a book. The term sometimes applies to works based on other forms of mass media as well, as in Star Wars...
1014 (#153) of Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
's South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
. It originally aired on November 15, 2006. This is the season finale
Season finale
A season finale is the final episode of a season of a television program...
of Season 10 of South Park. It parodies the 1992 film The Mighty Ducks
The Mighty Ducks
The Mighty Ducks is the first film in The Mighty Ducks trilogy, produced by Avnet–Kerner Productions and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures and originally released on October 2, 1992. In the UK and Australia, the film was titled Champions...
.
Plot
The episode begins as Stan'sStan Marsh
Stanley Randall "Stan" Marsh is a fictional character in the animated television series South Park. He is voiced by and loosely based on series co-creator Trey Parker. Stan is one of the show's four central characters, along with his friends Kyle Broflovski, Kenny McCormick, and Eric Cartman...
bicycle is towed away for parking ticket
Parking violation
A parking violation is the act of parking a motor vehicle in a restricted place or for parking in an unauthorized manner. It is against the law virtually everywhere to park a vehicle in the middle of a highway or road; parking on one or both sides of a road, however, is commonly permitted....
s. This is a problem, since he needs the bike for his newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
route (which is how he earns money). He is given an opportunity to get his bike back, but to do so he must do community service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
by coaching the Park County
Park County, Colorado
Park County is the 17th most extensive of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county was named after the large geographic region known as South Park, which was named by early fur traders and trappers in the area. The geographic center of the State of Colorado is...
Pee-Wee hockey
USA Hockey
USA Hockey is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic Committee as the governing body for amateur ice hockey in the United States and is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation. The organization is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and has...
team.
As coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
, he quickly runs into a whole host of problems — foremost, one of the kids
Child
Biologically, a child is generally a human between the stages of birth and puberty. Some vernacular definitions of a child include the fetus, as being an unborn child. The legal definition of "child" generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger than the age of majority...
has leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
, which has already spread to his bone marrow. Stan's father becomes shocked that he would take such a job, and thinks that he is trying to "make up" for what happened when Stan was four, when he missed a shot on an empty net, which resulted in a tie for the big game. (Stan cannot even remember the event, though he claims to remember "going to Shakey's afterwards.")
Nelson, the boy with cancer, takes a turn for the worse, and asks Stan to win a game for him. However, his team isn't very good — though neither are their opponents, the Adams County
Adams County, Colorado
Adams County is the fifth most populous of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado of the United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the county population was 441,603 in 2010 census, a 21.4% increase since 2000 census. Adams County is named for Alva Adams, Governor of the...
team (despite Adams' team having far better discipline) — and the team ties, 0-0. This makes Nelson become "not worse, but [he's not] any better. It's almost as if his cancer is...tied."
The team is then invited to play against the superior Denver County team, at the Pepsi Center
Pepsi Center
Pepsi Center is a multi-purpose arena in Denver, Colorado, United States. The building is home to the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association, the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League, and the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League...
, with the same basic premise — the idea being that if Stan wins, Nelson will have enough hope to survive. Thinking about all the various underdog movies, the team decides to believe in themselves and get a good player — Ike, based solely on the fact that he's Canadian
Sport in Canada
Sports in Canada consists of a variety of games. Although there are many contests that Canada value, the most common are Ice hockey, Lacrosse, Canadian football, basketball, soccer, curling and baseball...
(he actually does play better than the other players). Stan's father confronts Stan about playing at the Pepsi Center — the same place where Stan did not win his game years ago, while he still cannot remember it — and while he initially says he will not be there to watch Stan "destroy himself", he then decides (without any actual prompting from Stan) to go anyway.
When they get to the Pepsi Center to play in the intermission of a professional game, the other team does not show up, and Stan worries that since they cannot play, it could result in Nelson's death — but the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
let the Pee-wee team play the final period of their game against the professional team of the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
, because they went through a lot of "emotional changes". Detroit and Colorado had been tied at 2-2, but with Stan's team playing the final period, Detroit wins 32-2; additionally, the Red Wings simply assault the children, injuring many severely (and knocking 30 shots in the goal). Nelson dies in the hospital, one of the kids tells a shocked Stan that he hates him, and Randy snaps in anger over the loss of the Pee-wee team. The episode concludes with a spot on Red Wings' coach Mike Babcock
Mike Babcock
Michael "Mike" Babcock, Jr. is a Canadian professional ice hockey head coach of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League and former player. He serves as head coach of the Red Wings. He also served as the head coach of Team Canada in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver...
, triumphantly jumping in the air to the song We Are the Champions
We Are the Champions
"We Are the Champions" is a power ballad written by Freddie Mercury, recorded and performed by British rock band Queen for their 1977 album News of the World. One of their most famous and popular songs, it remains among rock's most recognisable anthems...
, as described by Trey Parker on the commentary, "the happy ending put on for the other character".
Cultural references
- The episode's plot parodies the 1992 film The Mighty DucksThe Mighty DucksThe Mighty Ducks is the first film in The Mighty Ducks trilogy, produced by Avnet–Kerner Productions and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures and originally released on October 2, 1992. In the UK and Australia, the film was titled Champions...
with additional pointed references to The Bad News Bears trilogy. - The episode's title is a reference to the Stanley CupStanley CupThe Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
.
Reception
IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated this episode 9.1. "There were many things that were absolutely hilarious about the episode, but we found the fact that it played out like an underdog sports movie to be the best part".
External links
- Stanley's Cup Full episode at South Park Studios
- Stanley's Cup Episode guide at South Park Studios