Line #8 Recap/SouthParkS5E8Towelie


1	'''Original air date:''' 8/8/2001
2
3	The boys can't stop playing their new Okama [=GameSphere=] until they find it missing one day. To get it back, they must bring an anthropomorphic [[TheStoner pothead]] towel to the government and become involved in a feud between paramilitaries and aliens.
4	----
5	!!"Towelie" contains examples of:
6	* AlienInvasion: At the end of the episode it turns out that [[spoiler: Tynacorp were aliens who were planning to take over the world, while the military actually were a resistance group determined to stop them.]] The boys still don't care.
7	* AnimateInanimateObject: Towelie is a towel come to life through a government project to create the perfect towel.
8	* ArentYouGoingToRavishMe: The military is destroying all towels to stem the threat posed by Towelie. Mr. Garrison is getting out of the shower in a ModestyTowel when the military stampedes in and rips it away. He assumes that they're going to rape him and cries out, "Oh alright, have your way with me if you must! Go on, fulfill your sick pleasures! "... and is immensely disappointed when they leave once the towel's destroyed.
9	* {{Blackmail}}: Cartman finds one of Sharon's used tampons and accidentally blackmails her through his badgering of what it means.
10	* BilingualBonus Okama means Gay in Japanese
11	* BlandNameProduct: The "Okama [=GameSphere=]", a pastiche of the Platform/NintendoGameCube, Platform/PlayStation2, and Platform/{{Xbox}}. The [=PlayStation=] 2 was originally going to be featured in this episode, but the creators couldn't get Creator/{{Sony}}'s permission.
12	* BrakeAngrily: The {{Trope Namer\|s}}. When Towelie won't reveal where the [=GameSphere=] is because he is getting high, Stan tells Kenny to brake angrily to prove that finding it is SeriousBusiness.
13	* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Towelie appears out of nowhere with one of his catchphrases, "Don't forget to bring a towel!" and explains why it's best to do so, painting him as some kind of overly-specific PSA character come to life. After the boys stare at him in stunned silence for several seconds, he changes the subject with another of his catchphrases: "Wanna get high?"
14	* FriendOrIdolDecision: While Towlie dangles the boys over a lava pit, the muscular clone holds out a blunt and offers it to Towlie if he drops the boys and their [=GameSphere=]. Towlie, using his elasticity, [[TakeAThirdOption takes the third option]] and saves the boy and their [=Gamesphere=] while getting high off the blunt.
15	* NoPeriodsPeriod: Subverted. Cartman finding a freshly discarded tampon in the trash at Stan's house kicks off the plot. An extremely embarrassed Sharon bribes the boys with Okama [=GameSphere=] to get them to drop their questions about it.
16	* NoYou: Whenever someone calls Towelie out for being a towel, he responds that the accuser is a towel.
17	* ParodyCommercial: A [[https://southpark.cc.com/clips/152906/towelie-merchandise#source=473fef35-48a7-434c-afc6-207874c7f1a3:603178ce-ecfd-11e0-aca6-0026b9414f30&position=10 commercial]] for Towelie merchandise is shown. Besides the Towelie towel, the customers who like Towelie can get the "I Love Towelie t-shirt", and those who don't like him can get the "I Hate Towelie t-shirt."
18	* RunningGag: The boys are reluctantly dragged into a science fiction plot with Towelie, but only want their [=GameSphere=] back. They repeat "Don't care, don't care" as they are repeatedly fed cliche exposition.
19	* ShoutOut:
20	** The scene with all the previous Towelies, with one begging to be put out of its misery, is taken from the same scene in Film/AlienResurrection.
21	** Cartman does an impression of Karl Childers from Film/SlingBlade in the opening scene.
22	** When Towelie gets high, an instrumental of the ''Franchise/{{Popeye}}'' theme song plays.
23	* SkewedPriorities: The Boys spend the entire episode, after their Okama [=GameSphere=] is stolen, apathetic to what's going on and just want to get back to playing video games.
24	* SubvertedCatchphrase: When Kenny falls into the acid pit, Kyle remarks "Oh my God... our [=GameSphere=]!"
25	* TakeAThirdOption: The beefy Towelie clone tells Towelie that he has to choose between saving the boys from falling into the acid and getting high. Towelie chooses both by stretching enough to take a puff while holding on to the boys - this also allows the boys to grab the [=GameSphere=].
26	* TakeThat: To Comedy Central, who were and still are willing to commercialize any new character that appears on the show. Towelie was intentionally created to be as stupid and annoying as possible, and the ParodyCommercial listed above is a burn of Comedy Central's rabid merchandising. Also doubles as BitingTheHandHumor.
27	* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: The military's plan after failing to capture Towelie is to destroy every towel in a thousand mile radius. They do this by shooting every towel to pieces with automatic rifles. When that fails to destroy Towelie, their next plan was to blow up all of Colorado.
28	* TheyKilledKennyAgain: Kenny falls into an acid pit and dies. Kyle is more worried about the boys' [=GameSphere=], while Cartman is ironically the only one to [[PetTheDog show any concern for Kenny's death]], as you would think it would be the other way around.
29	* TorturedMonster: A failed Towelie clone can only say "kill me."
30	* UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000: The boys are addicted to the game ''[[https://live.staticflickr.com/3092/2791004064_fc1a30c948_z.jpg Thirst for Blood]]''. The screen shows two monsters fighting.
31	-->'''Stan''': Dude, I just cut off your face and ate it!\
32	'''Cartman''': That's... so... cool!

Context Recap / SouthParkS5E8Towelie