‘South Park’s Manbearpig Regularly Scares Children at Casa Bonita
One of South Park’s rare mea culpas involved ManBearPig, the grotesque creature that was first introduced in Season 10 as a way for the show to parody Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth climate-change panic. But more than a decade later, ManBearPig was revealed to be a 100-percent real and super cereal threat to people’s lives in a Season 22 episode.
“We just felt like, of all of our episodes, that one has not aged very well,” Matt Stone itted during a 2019 interview. “And we came up with a funny idea how to use ManBearPig as a parable.”
Don't Miss
Even the real Gore publicly claimed that he was “impressed” by the show's about-face on the subject of ManBearPig, calling the episode “a hell of a statement by South Park” during an audience Q&A segment of The Daily Show.
While ManBearPig hasn’t been seen on South Park for quite a while, apparently he makes regular appearances at Colorado’s goofiest Mexican restaurant.
Stone and Trey Parker famously bought and renovated the giant pink Denver landmark known as Casa Bonita, pouring a staggering amount of money (roughly “infinity dollars”) into bringing the novelty restaurant back to life. The eatery now includes a number of references to its new owners’ work, including a statue of Cartman, who somehow wasn’t banned for life after being dragged away by the cops that one time.
Also, ManBearPig is a key part of the new and less asbestos-filled Casa Bonita mythology. The original Casa Bonita featured a live “gorilla” that would participate in shows and run through the dining area.
The gorilla, named Chiquita, was even a boss that players had to beat in the Casa Bonita level of the video game South Park: The Fractured But Whole.
But the Casa Bonita map now notes that the mysterious gorilla may or may not be being paid a living wage.
A new sign proclaims that “ManBearPig Is Real,” which should becomes very apparent to diners when he, not unlike his predecessor, starts running between tables.
And the famous beast is even available for photo-ops with visitors.
@fairygodmotherfairytales
Judging from the images and videos posted online, this version of ManBearPig seems less like a bloodthirsty, existential threat, and more like a chill dude who’s even willing to wear red short shorts in the name of modesty.
