(Note: Scroll down and read the update to this post after “Additional” to read about the episode 201 censorship / bleeping).
If I understand this story correctly, the creators of South Park, for episode 200, decided to include the Prophet Mohammed in the episode. This was done, clearly, to take the piss out of all the fundamentalists who get so upset when ever he’s pictured. Surely I don’t need to remind everyone of the Danish cartoon “scandal”?
To take the piss out of the censorship “required”, they have him covered throughout the entire episode. First by a large “censored” sign, then in a U-Haul trailer, and finally a bear mascott costume. So it’s not even him being depicted in South Park cartoon style, but actually just a word/trailer/bear costume they’ve labelled “Mohammed”.
The scary thing is, despite taking this extra step away from it actually being anything like Mohammed, some fundies have actually gotten upset. What … the … fuck? I mean, seriously?
That picture in the top-left is a screenshot from the episode. I am acquiring it at home right now via “offsite backup” and will confirm tonight whether this is how he appears throughout the entire episode or not. If it is, then … seriously?
Here’s a little picture I drew up a few moments ago in MS Paint. Is this offensive too? Seriously? Please, somebody threaten me. I beg you! Right now for me the only way is up.
… and I thought the trolls in my previous posts were eager to be offended. This takes the cake.
.
Additional: It seems that didn’t take the cake. No, episode 201 continued on with the episode and Comedy Central decided to step in and censor it more. What was shown to the public wasn’t the episode as delivered by Trey and Matt. Thanks to Comedy Central, every mention of the word “Mohammed” was bleeped. Is Mohammed a swear word now? It sure seems like it by the treatment of the network. Not only this, but the little speech given at the end of most episodes, was bleeped in its entirety.
That’s right, one VERY long bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep as the kids were talking and giving the moral of the episode. It didn’t even mention Mohammed but, according to Trey and Matt, was about intimidation and fear. Trey and Matt are understandably miffed. The whole point of the episode was completely missed, and to add insult to injury the part where the point was spelled out in plain English was also removed. How ignorant and stupid can these people get, seriously? Now THIS takes the frelling cake!
As you can see by the inclusion of the “Danish” Mohammed pictures I can find (most weren’t actually Danish, but from other countries, that is why I keep using the “scare quotes”), I agree with the bleeped out morals of the episode. We should not be intimidated in to such silly behaviour. It’s all about respect. One should respect other people, but there is no obligation at all to respect other people’s silly beliefs.
The more people stand up and do this, the less we will be intimidated by those whose fundamentalist beliefs would have us shut down.
Bastard Sheep 
He was also represented by a stick figure, a censored bar and inside a U-Haul trailer.
Each time the joke was made someone would ask “Is that ok?” only to be met by a shrug of the shoulders.
The episode is to be continued with the cliffhanger being that Mohammed has to take off the bear head or South Park will be destroyed. So it is going to interesting how far it will go.
Thanks mate. Apparently 200 was last week and 201 is today so hopefully I’ll be able to watch both in a row.
Violins unto Infiddles! An POX to be visited upon your hamster!
I thought the bleep at the at the end was a part of the joke. In the context it was funny.
All we need now is an insider to “accidentally” leek the real version.
All day yesterday I was receiving search engine hits to variations of “why was south park censored”. That night when I got home I watched 200 and 201, and I thought the same thing you did.
My first inklings towards it being a meta joke were due to the word “Mohammed” being bleeped. That isn’t a swear word, it’s not offensive for people to use it. People even take the name or give it to their children in his honour. The bleeping for the entirety of the “morals” was confirmation to me.
I was VERY shocked to discover I was wrong and that it was actually Comedy Central censorship.