Ah, South Park. Just when I thought you weren't relevant anymore and about an inch away from diving into Simpsons-unable-to-bow-out-gracefully-territory, you come out with a hilarious socially relevant episode that only you could do.

This week's episode, "Best Friends Forever," basically goes like this: Cartman wants, desperately, passionately, to have a PSP, but he doesn't get one. Kenny gets one, though, and becomes ensconced in a game called Heaven vs. Hell. He plays for weeks without a stop until he gets to Level 60... when he gets hit by a truck and dies.

In Heaven, St. Peter informs him that Heaven is in serious danger of attack from the orcs of Mord..uh, Hell. The only one who can stop them is Kenny and a special golden PSP. Quote, "Basically, you're Keanu Reeves." Down in Hell, our favorite homosexual demon, Satan, is building up his army but upon findng out "they have a Keanu Reeves" wants to abolish the whole thing. He is convinced otherwise and launches an attack on Heaven.

Kenny and the angels get ready for battle. When, suddenly, Kenny disappears. Flashback to Earth. Kenny in a hospital bed, surrounded by doctors and his parents. The doctors inform his parents that he is in a permanent vegetative state and is being kept alive by a feeding tube.

When Cartman finds out that Kenny is being kept alive and therefore without the possibility of getting his PSP, he goes to the Colorado Supreme Court and asks them to order a removal of Kenny's feeding tube. The Court is initially skeptical but Cartman insists he knows what Kenny would want. He is, after all, his "B.F.F." Kenny's feeding tube is removed. But Kyle and Stan are outraged. They know Cartman is just after Kenny's PSP so they come up with a wonderful idea. "Let's inform the media!"

You can figure out what happens next on your own. Or watch the episode. It's hilarious.

What is most impressive about the episode, not the least the speed at which they wrote and produced it, but the extreme postmodernism of the whole thing. From the frenzy to get a PSP, to the Last Starfighter references, the Matrix, the Lord of the Rings, Terry Schiavo, this episode sprayed the pop culture all over the place and it was a joy to watch. Usually South Park is enclosed in its crass little world, even last week's "Die Hippie Die" was classic South Park (hippies overrun the town, start a massive music festival, and the only one who can stop them is Cartman, of course), but when they branch out and touch on exterior issues, it's brilliant. Still!