South Park / Tear Jerker

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Poor Butters...

South Park may be known for being so offensive it's funny, but they've also managed to get us teary eyed.

As a Moments subpage, Spoilers Off applies here. All spoilers are unmarked. You Have Been Warned.

For moments specific to a particular entry, go to the following:

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Season 1

"Volcano"

Scuzzlebutt getting killed by Stan at the end. The monster was just a sweet creature who had saved the boys and wanted to make friends with the mayor. The fact that the boys didn't care about his death and the mayor was only pretending to be nice to him because she was on live TV just rubs salt in the wound.

"An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig"

Stan cries at the thought of being sent away until Shelly saves him. 10 seconds later, she kicks his ass yet again.

"Pinkeye"

Stan angrily telling Wendy that he wished she were dead after she accidentally got him humiliated in class. She's visibly upset and remorseful after this.
- And later when Stan sees she's become a zombie and must choose whether to kill her or not.

"Starvin Marvin"

Marvin brings Thanksgiving to Ethiopia after the mutant turkeys get slaughtered.

"Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo"

Kyle's "I'm a Jew on Christmas" song.
Jesus celebrating his birthday alone because everyone was more focused on the holidays than its origin. Especially because it's Truth in Television, minus the Jesus living in the town with them and having his own TV show

"Tom's Rhinoplasty"

Wendy's flashback to "happier times" with Stan whilst silently weeping after being rejected over Ms. Ellen. Although this scene is Played for Laughs with the many shots of Stan puking over Wendy, the music in this scene is quite touching even for a small ballad composed for South Park by Trey's then girlfriend Toddy Walters and her beautiful vocals.

"Cartman's Mom Is A Dirty Slut"

Cartman is genuinely crushed upon being told that he may never know who his father is, to the point that Jimbo clearly feels bad and makes a futile attempt to comfort him. The sad music playing doesn't help.

Season 2

"Ike's Wee Wee"

With some parental concerns mixed in, Mr. and Mrs. Broflovski screaming at (what they think is) Ike getting mauled by a dog. Then they watch the dog get hit by a tanker truck which explodes...
Sheila: Oh, he's dead! He's dead! My little bubbeleh's dead! (starts crying)
Gerald: There, there, (voice breaks) Sheila. There's nothing we can do.

"Chef's Salty Chocolate Balls"

Mr. Hankey's apparent death, and the montage following. The Woobie in Kyle was clearly visible.
Kyle: (weeping) I'll never forget you. You were my best friend after Stan.

Season 3

"Tweek Vs. Craig"

Again mostly Played Forlaughs throughout the episode's subplot but the fact that Mr Adler has PTSD over his wife's death in a mysterious plane accident to the point he attempts suicide by saw blade in the Shop classroom only to be stopped in the nick of time by the brawl that leads to Kenny's accidental death. Whilst holding Kenny's body, he sees a vision of his wife and his family members who have passed telling him to let go of the past to which he promises to move on from her death. Some may consider this subplot somewhat Harsher in Hindsight since lead voice actress Mary Kay Bergman committed suicide a few months after this episode aired.

"Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics"

The cast singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" for two reasons. One, them showing Mary Kay Bergman's characters (she committed suicide shortly before) and the boys saying that they'll be together throughout the years if the fates allow, not aware they'll be together for at least the next twenty seasons.

Season 4

"Cartman's Silly Hate Crime 2000"

Cartman crying for his mom while in juvenile hall. While any other episode before and after would have Cartman crying just to manipulate someone, and that while Cartman crying can usually be pretty funny to watch, his crying in this scene is genuine, and it's one of the only times where Cartman actually shown to have any sort of sensitivity.

"Chef Goes Nanners"

Wendy declares that all of her feelings for Cartman are gone, and she runs off after Stan while Cartman sighs and shuffles offscreen, dejected.

"Fourth Grade"

The "Third Grade" song. Clyde actually cries after hearing it.
After repeated failed attempts to discipline the kids, Ms Choksondik instead compassionately reasons with their desire to return to the Third Grade, pointing out that while there are always times we'd like to return to in the past, what is the need if we already enjoyed them, and that ultimately the way to go in life is forward. This moves the other kids (along with remembering in hindsight that the Third Grade wasn't all that great either).

"Helen Keller! The Musical"

There is this heart-breaking bit where Timmy has to give up his pet turkey Gobbles. And then it has people all down the street, with dead relatives and run-over dogs, and you're just waiting for the joke, but then some lady comes on the screen, and she asks "Have you done the right thing in your life?" and then it pans to the sky. Very sad.
- Then again, that WAS the joke. It was kind of like a parody of those Public Service Announcements. Still, the scene is tragic and maybe even the joke added to the tears.

"Fat Camp"

Cartman gets sent to a fat camp and, being Cartman, figures out a way to exploit the other fat kids by selling them candy. The weeks go by and none of the kids lose any weight. At the end of the episode, the kids' parents angrily take the children home, demanding refunds, until one of the kids speaks out and tearfully confesses that Cartman has been selling them all candy.
Horace: "No, he's right. The counselors've been doing a good job. We've just been cheating. I believe I can lose the weight with exercise and proper diet. I don't wanna make excuses no more."
- One of the campers named Chad comes on screen crying to Cartman about his weight woes; how he is always going to be fat, has been to seven camps, and can't control his eating habits. Made worse when Cartman offers him a chocolate bar calling it a "Friend" and Chad nibbles the bar tearfully.
  Camper: [sobbing] 'Cause I'm always gonna be fat. I don't wanna eat no sweets, but I can't control myself when they're right in front of me like this. [sobs some more. Cartman moves away a bit] All my life I've been fat. I've beh- I've been to seven camps and I swore to my momma that I'd lose the weight. I want to, but I can't help myself. [breaks down]

Season 5

"Cartmanland"

Cartman's grandmother dies and leaves him a million dollars. Rather than save it or donate it to charity, Cartman decides to buy a theme park that only he can enjoy and no one else can come in. The whole ordeal upsets Kyle greatly because he knows people like Cartman do horrible things to people on a daily basis, yet they never get punished for their actions while Kyle himself suffers a nasty hemorrhoid for no reason, even though he does his best to do the right things in life. Kyle also sees Cartman putting up television ads that show off his theme park while still bragging about how no one is allowed to visit it. Kyle then renounces his Jewish faith and believes that if people like Cartman can get away with anything while Kyle suffers for no reason, then there is no god. Towards the end of the episode, Kyle is slowly dying from his hemorrhoid because he gave up the will to live. Stan tells Cartman what is happening to Kyle, but naturally, Cartman doesn't care. Once Cartman starts to feel the effects of Laser-Guided Karma by being forced to sell his park back to the original owner and then losing everything to the IRS for tax evasion, Stan takes Kyle out to the park to witness Cartman's meltdown and seeing it is what brings Kyle back to life.
- What really makes it hurt is when Kyle and Stan attempt to climb over the huge fence to the park to spite Cartman. While climbing the fence, Kyle pops his hemorrhoid and starts sobbing in pain. It seems really stupid (and probably is), but there's just something about the way Kyle breaks down just really makes you feel for him.

"Kenny Dies"

Just the sheer fact that Kenny's usual death is played utterly straight, with the whole cast deeply cut and heartbroken by the revelation he is terminally ill. Note at the time it was made, the intention was to have Kenny Killed Off for Real because his Running Gag had run its course, meaning this was meant to be a proper send off for one of the main characters (even if he ultimately returned a season later).
Stan spends the entire time afraid to face Kenny as he wastes away. He works up the courage to visit him at the end of the episode, and to a triumphant tune, he strides in to the hospital with a present for Kenny and an ear-to-ear grin. However, when he goes to Kenny's room, the scene that ensues is one of the most powerful uses of Mood Whiplash there is.
Stan: Did he say anything before he went?
Kyle: He just said... "...Where's Stan?"
[fade to black]
Cartman crying on Kyle's shoulder after talking to Kenny in the hospital. Eric Cartman crying genuine tears of sorrow.
- He later goes before Congress to plead with them to legalize stem cell research so that Kenny might be helped, singing "Heat of the Moment" by Asia, eventually getting everyone standing and singing along.
  Cartman: My name is Eric Cartman and I live in Colorado. My best friend in the whole world's Kenny McCormick and h-he's sick right now. He's real sick. He's only eight-years-old and the doctors don't think he has very long to live. Look, I realize that using the tissue from aborted fetuses for research is a touchy subject, but... all I know is that if there's a chance - a chance - that stem-cell research can save my best friend's life, well... I guess I owe it to him to try and change your minds. I love Kenny McCormick, and-[chokes up briefly] and I want you to love him too.
- Cartman might be crying from happiness, with him suddenly coming up with a way to make Stem Cell research legal again so he could sell off the aborted foetuses. He had just realised he could use Kenny as emotional leverage. It being Cartman, he considers Kenny's possible recovery a convenient side-effect of him making money. Cartman gets money and Kenny gets better. Everybody wins. Being sociopathic, Cartman can't see what's wrong with thinking that way.
- Cartman doesn't know about the potential of stem cell research, just how much the fetuses are worth, until he visits the research group. This makes it even more twisted, as this means that Cartman is genuinely mournful over Kenny until it becomes profitable. He's so sociopathic, he alienates his feelings.
  - When he's listing the bad things he's done in "The Death of Eric Cartman", the only thing from this episode he mentions is that he convinced a woman to get an abortion so he could build his own Shakey's Pizza. Notably, he does not say anything about exploiting Kenny's illness to do so, which seems to imply that he might actually care about helping him. It could also be due to the rest being unable to remember Kenny's deaths, with Cartman not recalling it in his own memories. And of course, it could be a matter of simple indifference to Kenny's death, as his main goal was to create his very own Shakey's pizza.
According to Parker/Stone, one of the goals was see how far they could go in one episode without telling a single joke. There is some dark humour (hearing "On The Road Again" as a bunch of foetuses are packed up, the Make A Wish foundation being put in its place, Cartman's enthusiasm over dead fetuses, Chef comforting Stan) but none of the dirty and sexual jokes the show was by then famous for.

"Butters Very Own Episode"

It can make you cry like that seeing that kid being treated like crap, and specifically Butters saying "No, I'm lying" after seeing the truth of the matter.

Season 6

In general this season has a stinging harshness to it as to why the boys made Butters their fourth friend: they did so just to fill the void Kenny left. They never actually liked him and just saw him as a Replacement Goldfish for Kenny. This gets the point of having him wear Kenny's old parka and calling him Kenny in "Freak Strike".
- This is made all the worse in "Professor Chaos" where they basically fire Butters as a friend purely because he doesn’t click with their group. It shows just how little they really cared about Kenny, let alone anyone around them by turning the fourth slot into a game a la The Bachelor. Something Clyde rightfully calls out:
Clyde: This whole thing is stupid, you don't pick people you wanna be with by making it into a game!

"Bebe's Boobs Destroy Society"

The way Bebe is treated throughout the episode. The boys all take a liking to her because of her new boobs (though the boys are unaware of this and even Bebe takes a while to catch on) and because of this, her girl friends turn on her and call her a slut with a huge gaping vagina. Then she finds out just how much attention her new breasts are getting her and how the boys regress to a neanderthal-like state and fight over her (what's worse is that she was actually enjoying hanging out with the guys up until that point). Rather than embrace it, she hates her breasts and worries that if guys keep giving her attention for no reason other than them being attracted to her, that she'll grow up to be a horrible person. It gets so bad that she considers having breast reduction surgery.
Bebe: Having boobs sucks.

Season 7

Toilet Paper

Butters being convinced that he TP'd the house and then berating himself for it is pretty sad to watch. And then his parents come in and yell at him for lying, his dad threatening him once they get home, and the scared little boy shyly asks if he can stay in prison.
Well I'm just a little asshole, is what I am. When God made me, he must have not been payin' very close attention, 'cause I turned out wrong! Just plain wrong!

South Park is Gay!

The last scene where Kyle calls out his friends for abandoning him when he didn't want to be metrosexual and trying to pretend it never happened. Stan rudely telling him to get over it almost causes Kyle to leave his friends for their cruelty, but he decides to rejoin them, sounding bitter in the process.

All About Mormons

While an awesome moment, Gary's rant towards Stan is rather sad because he genuinely wanted them to be friends but, due to the latter's hostility, that doesn't happen. The fact that Stan repays the kindness that the Harrisons gave him by insulting them and belittling their faith must have been a gut punch to Gary.

Raisins

Stan's monologue:
Stan: You guys have no idea how this feels. It's like... you always hear songs about a broken heart and you think it's just a figure of speech. But it's true. My chest hurts. I have this... like... sinking feeling where my heart is. It's broken.
- Believe it or not, this is actually Truth in Television. It's called Takotsubo cardiomyopathy - severe chest pain and possible heart failure caused by severe emotional stress.
Butters' "beautiful sadness" speech, where, after Butters finds out the Raisins girl he pined over only liked him so she can get more money out of him at the restaurant, the Goth kids want Butters to be one of them, but Butters declines, stating that his being upset that he got dumped is actually a beautiful thing because the sadness makes him feel human.
- Him crying in the rain (which provides the page image above) is no less heartbreaking.

Season 8

Good Times With Weapons

Butters REALLY gets put through the wringer this episode. First a bit of playtime with the boys ends with Kenny throwing a ninja shuriken into his EYE, and we get to hear the poor baby screaming and sobbing in very real, understandable agony. Then, rather than try and help Butters, the boys elect to drag him around out of sight and dress him up as a dog just to avoid getting into trouble for their actions. Butters makes his way to a hospital, delirious from pain and blood loss and pitifully imitating barking to go along with the ploy, but the doctors can’t see past his disguise and send him to a veterinarian. There the others dogs pee and defecate on the poor child and the vet decides he needs to be put to sleep. Thank God he was treated by end of the episode.

Woodland Critter Christmas

The mountain lion's death. Even though you don't know the Woodland Critters worship Satan yet, it's still depressing when the mountain lion's children cry over her death.
- Plus making Stan feel like a dick for the rest of the episode.

Up the Down Steroid

While it might have been Played for Drama, Jimmy going through a Heroic BSoD (beating up his girlfriend Nancy and even his mother, and breaking down shortly after) is pretty hard to watch.

Season 9

Best Friends Forever

While not to the same extent as "Kenny Dies", it plays very similar.

The Death of Eric Cartman

Although slightly played for laughs, there's something heartbreaking about Kenny breaking down after Cartman eats the KFC chicken skin in the episode's opening. It is also heartbreaking once you consider that KFC is essentially a luxury for Kenny due to his family living in abject poverty and to be deprived of what many consider the best part of the meal, it is gut wrenching to watch Kenny just break down.

Marjorine

Linda Stotch is completely hysterical at Butters' apparent death. She's screaming and sobbing over the adorable blue coffin and Stephen has to hold her back. We know he's alive, but she doesn't.
Something that makes more sense in Hindsight, Butters (dressed as Marjorine) sobs out in the bathroom to the girls "You have no idea how hard it is to be me!" Butters says "me", not "The new girl". He's not acting...

Free Willzyx

The boys become convinced, by a stupid prank, that an orca from Sea World is actually an alien and will die unless he goes home to the moon. They go to quite extraordinary lengths to help it, recruiting the Animal Liberation Front to rescue him and drive them down to Mexico for a cheap space program (the ALF think that they're trying to release him back into the ocean). The sheer horror of the ALF when they realize what's happening is bad enough, but worst of all is the ending. Willzyx asphyxiates on the moon, and the credits roll in eerie silence.

Season 10

The Return of Chef

The whole damn climax and ending, but particularly "Chef... we love you" and then Kyle's usual catchphrase only this time it's so much more. And Cartman's attempt at a Hope Spot makes it even more heartbreaking.
Also the episode's opening having Cartman genuinely in tears as Chef leaves, as he confides to Butters that he's going to miss Chef and doesn't know how to tell him.
The fact that Chef was killed off can upset many of his fans, although it could also count as Nightmare Fuel due to its detailed and horrifying nature.You can even hear him scream in pain as he's dying!
Chef's eulogy. One gets the feeling that this is really Trey Parker and Matt Stone saying goodbye to Isaac Hayes.
Kyle: We are all here today because Chef has been an important part of our lives. A lot of us don't agree with the choices Chef has made in the last few days. Some of us feel hurt and confused that he seemed to turn his back on us. But we can't let the events of the last week take away the memories of how much Chef made us smile. I'm going to remember Chef as the jolly old guy who always broke into song. I’m going to remember Chef as the guy who gave us advice to live by. So you see we shouldn't be mad at Chef for leaving us. We should be mad at that fruity little club for scrambling his brains.

Tsst

This episode reveals that Cartman's mother, Liane, has a lot of personal problems and she's a deeply lonely person with no friends. Worst of all, her son is a psychopath and she isn't strong enough to discipline him, and because of her aforementioned loneliness, she only spoils him because it makes her feel needed by him. Just when it seems like Cartman is about to reform with the help of Caesar Milan, Liane begins to fall for him and he turns her down. She then slips right back into the old routine of letting Cartman run her life.
- Liane re-enabling Cartman's terrible behavior in the ending is eerily reminiscent of someone choosing to stay in an abusive relationship despite being better off for it because the pain of being alone is too great.

Stanley's Cup

Stan coaches a kindergarten hockey team, and one of the team members (Nelson) is suffering from cancer. Nelson ends up in the hospital, and the fate of him depends on whether or not the team wins. Eventually, the team plays against the Detroit Red Wings, but are beaten senseless and lose, so then Nelson, watching the match on TV in the hospital, says "No hope..." and then dies. Sure, it was probably played for laughs, but think about it: This kid just wanted to see his team win for once, but the last thing he saw before he died was his team being brutally beat down and losing.
Every time Nelson says anything, the waterworks will start. It almost comes off like his voice actor didn't know what kind of show this was, because he delivers his lines like this was a serious drama. His performance is so heartfelt that you could be forgiven for thinking they actually got a terminal cancer patient to voice the character.
This line can be very depressing especially the fact no one seems to care about the implications of it.
#6: "Coach please don't let us lose to Adams County, my daddy will beat me again."

Season 11

Cartman Sucks

Seeing the bodies of the gay children who committed suicide can be harrowing to watch.
Heck, this entire episode can be one long Tear Jerker for anyone familiar with religious parents and figures trying to insist their sexuality is evil and can be changed.
Bradley's reaction to realizing he may have romantic feelings for Butters. While his panic and Butters' ignorance is mostly Played for Laughs, it's heartbreaking for anyone that knows how that kind of homophobic Christian damage feels.

Le Petite Tourette

While most of it was Played for Laughs, some of the things Cartman blurted out can actually make you feel bad for him.
Cartman: I cry at night because I don't have a dad!
When Kyle's at the Tourette's building and sees kids who actually DO have Tourettes, one of them, Thomas, gives a very sad story about his dad divorcing his mom simply of his son's illness. Thomas ends the story saying that his mom would probably be better off if he was dead. It makes Cartman's abuse of it all the more infuriating - maybe until you get to the above, but still.

Imaginationland Trilogy

The horrific terrorist attack that unfolds in Episode I, seeing our beloved iconic characters getting brutally maimed and killed is downright heartbreaking for those who grew up watching their films and reading their comic strips, which shows while they may be invincible in their home universe, they are still normal regular people in this universe that are far more vulnerable:
- The horrific scene of Raggedy Ann trying to get her beloved Raggedy Andy to safety only for him to succumb to his bloody wounds is downright heartbreaking for fans of the beloved doll duo.
- Charlie Brown losing his leg is this for Peanuts fans, even the old blockhead can't catch a break.
- The sight of the beloved anime cat Totoro banaged and injured following the terrorist attack.
- Cinderella's worried look upon the terrorists planning to suicide bomb Rockety Rocket to unleash the evil characters from the wall.
- The horrible scene of a Care Bear getting shot dead and beheaded is this for Care Bear fans. The Mayor's horrified pleas of He's just a Care Bear is even more heartbreaking as he whimpers when the madman kills the Care Bear and beheads it to get Butters to finish reading the demands.
- In the uncensored version, we get scenes of the terrorists gunning down poor Dorothy and Toto. She won't be going home to Kansas.
In Episode II, we have the horrible lovely sight of poor Strawberry Shortcake getting brutally tortured by the evil characters who had just broken out and she's scared of why they're doing this to her, implying she's just as loveable and berry sweet as she is in her home universe and the villains literally break her apart before killing her, it's heartbreaking if you're a Strawberry Shortcake fan.
- Kyle being pronounced dead after being crushed by Manbearpig, and Cartman trying to revive Kyle, shouting at him to live.
Episode III is easily by far, more action packed compared to its predecessors. But has plenty of sad moments:
- Butters being terrified when Aslan forces him to bring Santa Claus back to life. Even with Stan arriving by sheer accident wasn't enough as the good imaginary characters force Butters to revive as many good characters as he can in the heat of battle.
- The horrific scene of Popeye getting raped by the Woodland Christmas Critters is this for Popeye fans, had Butters been late on getting him his beloved spinach, Popeye would have died.
- Blueberry Muffin receiving a sword and judging by her worried look, is unsure she'll make it out of the battle alive (she's one of the last good imaginary characters left standing and it's implied her friendship with Strawberry Shortcake is just as powerful regardless of what medium she ends up in.)
- However the Good imaginary characters' victory over the Evil characters is immediately and tragically cut short when Imaginationland (along with the Pentagon officials and generals) gets nuked when the portal to Imaginationland goes haywire and sucks everyone in it's vicinity into Imaginationland, including the nuke (not helping cases is Al Gore wanting ManBearPig dead) that sends the nuke into Imaginationland, destroying it and turning it into a white void. Butters is able to save everyone and bring them all back to life.

Guitar Queer-O

Stan on his Heroin Hero trips are pretty moving, as is his post-meltdown sequence while playing a driving game. And when he makes up with Kyle, that's moving too.

The List

Kyle's treatment throughout the episode. He gets voted the ugliest boy in his class (according to a list the girls made) and his confidence takes a nosedive as a result. He becomes so upset and angered that he very nearly burns the school down.
- The worst part is that he wasn't really voted the ugliest boy. It turned out that Clyde was put at the top of the girls' list so that girls would get to date him for free shoes (as his dad owns the shoe store), despite the fact that nobody thought he was attractive. This moved Kyle to the bottom of the list; if it wasn't for Stan showing up at the last minute, Kyle would've done something that would have seriously damaged his life for nothing.
Nancy Pinkerton. In her youth, she was lauded for her beauty, handed everything and told how special she was just because of her looks. Now that she's older and her looks have faded, she's left with nothing because she never had to develop a personality. She seems to have no spouse, children, friends or family of any kind and is just sadly fiddling with a pencil alone.

Season 12

Tonsil Trouble

Cartman gets a tonsillectomy, and ends up being infected with blood from a donor who had HIV. No matter how rotten Cartman is, no one deserves such a fate. Liane Cartman just completely breaks down upon hearing the news.

Britney's New Look

The episode starts off funny enough, when a "news" segment called "Britney Watch" shows her taking a piss on a ladybug while camping in South Park, with only her face being censored. You can tell Trey and Matt are about to totally rip on her. Then, when the boys get to her hotel room to get an embarrassing picture of her to sell to the news, it shows Britney Spears, completely in tears under severe stress from constantly being harassed and degraded by the press and photographers. When Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Butters (the latter who doesn't want to go through with it) show up, she decides she's had enough, grabs a gun and blows her brains out, right in front of them. She survives, but is unable to see, hear, or smell anything, and can only speak in a weak gurgling noise. Stan and Kyle are horrified when they see what their actions resulted in, and, with the help of Britney's manager, try to get her away from the paparazzi, who are still chasing after her...only for her manager to immediately force her into the recording studio for a singing session, being made fun of by several of the staff. He then forces her to perform onstage, and the audience members make fun of her, too. Finally, Stan and Kyle decide to get her to the North Pole, and the paparazzi follow her all the way there. They then reveal that their purpose is to kill her as a sacrifice for a corn harvest, and proceed to take photographs of her, until she lies on the ground dead. Britney is harassed, humiliated, ridiculed, and her life is completely ruined, and even after the media push her over the edge and force her to go through with killing herself (which ultimately failed), they weren't satisfied until she was finally dead at their feet. DAMN. The "friendly faces everywhere" from the opening song can officially be taken out.
- To make things more painful, the reason seeing the boys sets Britney off? After being hounded by the paparazzi all day, Britney hears her sons are here to see her, and says she feels better. When she sees it's just Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Butters having lied to her guard about being her kids, and her kids aren't there, she realizes all hope is lost.

Major Boobage

Kyle slowly getting more and more worried over Kenny's declining state. There's a chance he probably knows how he's the most at risk of addiction out of all his friends (this is before the "You're Getting Old" mini arc where it's revealed that Stan has an addictive personality).
Cartman hiding all the cats he found, like a rip from an Anne Frank movie.
- At one point an elderly neighbour, who heard rumours about his deeds, visits him at his house to ask if he could take in her beloved pet as well. Cartman refuses at first, since at this point he's already keeping half a dozen up in his attic, but after a moment of looking into the cat's eyes, he relents, before him and the neighbour both break down sobbing.

Breast Cancer Show Ever

After a last ditch effort to get out of the fight by whining to his mom, who confronts Wendy's parents, who tell Wendy to leave him alone, Cartman knows Wendy is powerless to do anything to him and continues mocking breast cancer to rub salt in the wound. Anyone who has ever been bullied should be able to empathize.
Wendy (saddened and shocked): You unbelievable bastard. You beat me but you won't stop. WHY? (gets out of her desk) WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME? (shaking Cartman like a ragdoll) WHY WON'T YOU JUST STOP?!

Season 13

The Ring

Tammy's confession to Kenny. She legitimately feels bad about what she did.
Tammy: Kenny. Listen. Uh, there's somethin' I need to talk to you about. There's a lot of rumors goin' around about me, that I agreed to give a boy a B.J.? Well, it's true. But it was before you and I were together, and it wasn't my fault! See, I was watchin' the Disney Channel, and that show came on with the Jonas Brothers. You know that teenage boy band? Every time I see them I get so tingly. I just completely lose control. And then Dave Darsky showed up and took me to TGI Friday's, and it just happened. But it was only for one second, and I had my eyes closed. I know it's terrible. Can you... can you forgive me, Ken?
Kenny's funeral at the end of the episode.
Father Maxi: And so, as we commit this young child to the earth, let us all be reminded that syphilis is still a deadly disease, and it can be caught even if using protection. This young boy learned the hard way that there's no guarantee... For the world of oral sex is a world...
Cartman: I told him... A woman's mouth is the most germ-ridden place on earth, I said. Statistically the most unsafe place for a man to put his penis, I said.

Fishsticks

Jimmy's sadness over Cartman taking credit for the titular joke, even crying at one point.

Pinewood Derby

There's a man who, when he loses the derby, kills himself in front of his son. Suicide humor isn't unheard of from South Park and usually, it's pretty damn funny. What separates this joke, however, is that the son, with a horrified expression, starts yelling to himself "He's okay!" over and over.
Stan looking at all of the newspaper clippings chronicling his and Randy's "achievements" throughout the episode, looking guilty in each picture he's in.

Fatbeard

Cartman goes to Somalia with Butters, Clyde, Kevin, and Ike. There's one pirate who explains to Butters and Ike why he became a pirate, is scared every day because he fears his family will die, does not want to be a pirate, and can't understand why anybody would want to live like that.
Pirate: Every day, I dream that I can go to school, learn about the world. But my mother, she is dying of AIDS, and there is no money for medicine. My father was killed trying to find food for us. Do you know how I feel every time we try to capture a boat? Scared! And not just scared because I might get killed, but scared because if I don't get something out of it, my family and friends are going to die! I don't want to be a pirate. I don't see how anybody would!
Ike: Oh my God. I feel like an asshole.
- To make things even more depressing, the pirate with the dying mother is unceremoniously killed off at the end of the episode.

W.T.F.

While it's comical in how over-the-top it is, Mr. Connors, the wrestling coach, gives a speech at the end about how the boys' obsession with Professional Wrestling put him on the receiving end of a Trauma Conga Line. Because of them he'd lost his job as a wrestling coach, could no longer afford his dog, wound up homeless and was arrested for theft only to wind up having his jaw broken while in jail.
Mr. Connors: So you see, I have nothing left. Nothing! Not even the will to live.
- On the upshot, his speech got him a standing ovation and landed him a contract with the talent scout that the boys were trying to impress.

Whale Whores

Stan watching in horror as the Japanese kill the whales and dolphins at the aquarium where he's taken to for his 9th birthday. His birthday gifts being a bloodied "I swam with dolphins" shirt and a photo of him with a murdered dolphin just seals the cake.

Dances with Smurfs

The tragic deaths of all the Smurfs in the village at Cartman's hands is downright sad. Making matters worse the deaths were directly caused by Cartman befriending them and even becoming a part of the village itself before betraying them to die via getting crushed to death by his own tractor steamroller (disguised as Wendy to frame her) that obliterates their village. Papa Smurf, Grouchy Smurf, Smurfette and even Baby Smurf were all killed. All over to prove Wendy wasn't fit for student body president.
- Seeing Cartman cry over Smurfette's bloody remains is also this, seeing as he likely had true feelings for her (making her one of the few female characters Cartman had legitimate feelings for), implying he was truly remorseful for killing them, but did so to paint Wendy as the culprit.

Pee

The Minorites in My Waterpark song was supposed to be Played for Laughs, but Cartman just sounds so disheartened in it, just listen to it for yourself.

Season 14

The Tale of Scrotie McBoogerballs

All of Butters' former readers now want him dead as his second book became instrumental in the murders of the Kardashian family. The boys try to rub it in his face that his fame has plummeted, but Butters couldn't care less as he's horrified that his own book got Kim Kardashian, whom he had a crush on, and her family killed.

You Have 0 Friends

Kyle deleting Kip Drordy as a friend on Facebook. It's much sadder than it sounds.
Earlier when he lost all of his Facebook friends for befriending Kip in the first place. Makes you think which one is the bigger Woobie, huh?
- They both are. Kip because everyone avoids him for next to no reason and Kyle, just for being nice to him, loses everyone just for being nice to Kip, just for showing a kid kindness. It makes the ending all the more satisfying when all of the "friends" collected by Stan's vanquished self-aware profile were transferred to Kip. It's rare to find any individual profile with 200,000+ Facebook friends!

Crippled Summer

Towelie trying to overcome his drug addiction.

It's A Jersey Thing

When Kyle discovers his Jersey side Teen Wolf-style.
Kyle: What am I, Mom?

Coon vs. Coon & Friends

Distressed that no one remembers him dying (something that isn't exactly new), Kenny shoots himself in the head in hopes that his friends will remember him committing suicide right in front of their eyes, much to the horror of Stan and Kyle.
- It's not the usual glazed-eyed "Oh my God, they killed Kenny," of the early seasons. Each time Kenny dies in Coon & Friends, everyone else reacts with realistic, and rather heart wrenching, horror.

Season 15

Royal Pudding

Mr Mackey may have been an asshole to the kids doing the dental hygiene play, but he reveals that his father had been killed by tooth decay two years ago.
As absurd as the opening scene of the Canadian royal wedding is, seeing a distraught Ike (watching on live TV) crying out for the princess is genuinely sad.

You're Getting Old

This episode is easily one of the most depressing episodes so far. It starts off initially well, with Stan having his 10th birthday party surrounded by friends and family. He receives a CD from Kyle featuring music that his mother, Sharon, disapproves of (because "it sounds like crap"), and it's taken away. However, Stan has already downloaded the music to his iPod, and begins listening to it, only to realize that he only hears shit. He speaks to Kyle about this, who can apparently hear the music perfectly, and Kyle suggests that he sees a doctor. The doctor administers some tests which consist of playing two music tracks (both of which sound like more crap to Stan), and then comparing a poster of crap to a poster of an upcoming movie to Stan, to which he responds that they look the same. The doctor eventually tells him that he's developing cynicism, which comes with age, and it will entail viewing and hearing things that once seemed great as a child, as crap. Stan continues to go about his life as more and more things appear as crap to him while Randy gets into more youth-related mishaps with the new musical movement (naturally, this is all Played for Laughs, with even a bit of Lampshade Hanging thrown in by Sharon, up until the last five minutes of the episode). Things eventually turn darker as Stan's friends completely alienate him due to his new attitude, and to make things worse, Randy and Sharon begin to argue and acknowledge that neither of them are happy with their lives anymore. The episode ends with Stan seeing everything as crap now, even his former best friend Kyle, while Randy and Sharon begin to sell their house and divide their belongings as they prepare for their upcoming divorce.
- What about when the real version of "Landslide" started playing? Not some usual South Park parody, but the real freaking song as sung by Stevie Nicks. And seeing Sharon packing up the china. It doesn't hit you that there would be no crap-people, no Satan dressed as Britney Spears, no Tom Cruise or government conspiracy to save the day. And that hurt. We have grown up on this show, and to see it come to it's end is painful. That's the Tear Jerker here. That a show we have grown-up with and and loved will end soon.
- Stone and Parker confirmed that the show will continue, which makes you wonder what this episode was all about.
- What generally seems to have happened, among other things, is that Stone and Parker were feeling kind of down from keeping up the frenetic pace of producing 14 episodes per season - actually, split into two micro-seasons per year of 7 episodes each, one in spring and one in fall. They were noticeably cranking out some filler episodes and overall don't seem to have been satisfied with the situation. "You're Getting Old" was the mid Season 15 finale. But then, starting with Season 17, Stone and Parker abandoned this split-season model to make only 10 episodes per season, all aired in fall instead of spread across the year. They explicitly said they wanted to do this to focus on quality over quantity - and seasons since have received widespread acclaim from critics for their quality and innovation. Starting in Season 18, they even started experimenting with making season long story arcs. The point of this long explanation: don't walk away from the above feeling depressed, things were pretty shitty by Season 15, but they got better.

Ass Burgers

Continuing from the previous episode, this one snapped everything back to status quo with the exception that Stan has turned to alcohol to escape the monotony. The poignancy of it all makes it perhaps a greater tearjerker than the episode that preceded it.
Stan being diagnosed with Asperger's despite clearly having depression is tremendously sad since there are actual mental health experts in South Park, yet due to the Adults Are Useless trope, are rendered completely incompetent and unable to help Stan.

Bass to Mouth

What Jenny Simons goes through is rather pitiable. Despite knowing full well how awful Cartman is, she agrees to eat his cupcakes due to feeling guilty for rejecting him and seemingly hurting his feelings. However, the cupcakes turn out to be laced with laxatives, which causes Jenny to defecate her pants in the middle of class, humiliating her and causing her to break down crying. The situation is so traumatic that she ends up attempting suicide, leaving her with a fractured pelvis. Even worse, her boyfriend shows No Sympathy for her and even makes a joke at her expense.

Broadway Bro Down

Shelly's Adorkable new boyfriend drowns to death the first time he took off the life preserver his parents always made him wear.

Cartman does deserve punishment for a lot of things but how can you not feel bad for him as one by one, all his favorite toys are destroyed. The kicker is that his Polly Prissy Pants doll turns out to be the one who killed off his other toys and asks Cartman to kill her. He, with tears in his eyes, complies.
- This isn't the doll gaining sentience like usual SP tradition. This is Cartman, destroying all his favorite childhood toys, in his version of "Growing Up". That's both terrifying and sad at the same time.
The terrified looks on Stan, Kyle, Kenny, and Token's faces as they witness the above and realize it was their teasing from earlier in the episode that made Cartman do this.

The Poor Kid

Everything that happens to Karen. Gives the name of the episode a double meaning.
The abuse the Weatherheads put their foster children through, combined with Mr. Adams' horrified reaction.
Jacob Hallory, the poorest kid in Greeley Elementary, had his dad die five years ago and is mom went crazy from depression that she can't hold down a job. The sight of him eating a moldy piece of bread with a miserable look on his face, while piano music plays, is quite tearjerking, made worse by Cartman bullying him.

Season 16

Reverse Cowgirl

The death of Clyde's mother.
- Then her ghost telling Clyde that he was responsible for her death for not putting the toilet seat down.
- YMMV, because she embarrassed Clyde in front of his friends and school because of the toilet seat, so when she died, nobody watching the episode seemed to give a shit.

Cash for Gold

There's a heartbreaking scene where Grandpa Marsh tells Stan about his dog.
Grandpa: Billy, did I ever tell you I used to have a border collie named Patches?
Stan: Yes, Grandpa.
Grandpa: I loved that dog. She always made me so happy. When she died I didn't let myself get too sad, because I thought I'd always have the memory of her slobbering, happy face... I can't remember what she looked like, Billy.
Specifically it's revealed that Grandpa Marsh has Alzheimer's disease.
Grandpa: She's just a baby after all.
Stan: She's not a baby, grandpa. She's 13.
Grandpa: Shelley's 13? ...Right.
And then tears of happiness at the episode's end. Stan gives his grandpa a framed picture of him and Patches, so he can remember.

Jewpacrabra

Cartman being chained and prepared for sacrifice.
- And then fucking converting to Judaism in the end. Anyone even remotely familiar with Cartman's, um, contentious opinions on the matter can imagine just how indescribably fucked up this is. And yet, the episode manages to pull it off with earnest heart.
  - Not exactly "earnest" as he is terrified into submission and into the religion by his own nightmares. And considering that this didn't last after the episode, the change wasn't exactly all that genuine- like most changes he goes through over the series.

Butterballs

Butters being bullied by his sadistic grandma.
- This is a very special case, because in this episode, the issue of child abuse and bullying is played very seriously. Especially things like her stabbing him with a fork under the table. One of the most realistic portrayals of a child being abused mentally, physically and emotionally... on South Park.
Though not as upsetting as Butters' much more severe abuse, seeing Mr. Mackey and Stan crying after being bullied can elicit real-life "aww"s.

I Should Have Never Gone Ziplining

The boys' Despair Event Horizon. The titular ziplining trip goes From Bad to Worse until Kenny ends up literally dying from boredom with Kyle and Cartman at each others throats, until...
Kyle: Oh my God, they killed Kenny! YOU BASTARDS!
Cartman: No, not they, YOU! Look what your ziplining idea has done! You killed Kenny, YOU're the bastard!
Kyle: IT WASN'T MY IDEA, IT WAS YOURS! YOU KILLED KENNY, YOU BASTARD!
Stan: [being interviewed] And finally, I couldn't hold it in anymore. I said "Stop it!"
Stan: (Stands up) STOP IT! It was me! My idea.
Cartman: (shocked, along with Kyle) You?
Stan: 4 days ago, I came across a brochure for ziplining.(He pulls out the brochure then looks at it for a few seconds.) I thought it would be fun, I only acted like it was an idea we came up with together.
(Kyle and Cartman look at each other in shock)
Kyle: So you intended for us to go ziplining all along? Why, Stan?
Stan: If you signed up 3 friends, you got a free iPod Nano.
(The brochure reads: sign up 3 friends and get a free iPod Nano!)
Kyle: You sold us out, for an iPod Nano?
Stan: I had no idea ziplining was so boring!
Cartman: You... You killed Kenny. (Stan starts weeping.)
Kyle: You bastard! You bastard, Stan!
(Cut to Kenny's dead body, and cut to the three crying. Kyle cries on Cartman's shoulder and Cartman comforts him)
- And this rather somber comment after:
Kyle: How many iPod Nanos is friendship worth? I guess... one.

Raising the Bar

Cartman admits he's fat after Kyle tries to tell him at Wal-Mart at he is. Not absolutely heartbreaking, but this can be seen as rather emotional. (Until the last line of his speech, which veers into narmy territory because he apparently felt the need to pepper it with obligatory F-bombs.)
Cartman: I've been doing a lot of thinking, about what you said at Wal-Mart. You're right, Kyle. I'm fat. All these years, you telling me, and me saying "No, I'm big-boned" or "no, that's just muscle"... It was always just me living in denial. I'm fucking fat, Kyle. I'm fucking fat as fucking fuck.

Season 17

Ginger Cow

Despite being hilarious, Kyle pretending to like Cartman's farts so he won't cease peace in the Middle East is also kind of sad to watch as he cries (particularly when Stan confronts him), knowing Cartman has beaten him.
- And Stan, his best friend, misinterprets Kyle's suffering and accuses him of being a sanctimonious dick. Kyle is truly alone.
When Stan is confronting Kyle about the latter's suffering, Kyle responds "I don't know." When he said that, it sounds like he's about to break down crying.

Titties and Dragons

Cartman, of all people, is absolutely crestfallen by Bill Gates brutally killing the president of Sony to win the meaningless victory of the console wars. He manages to get an Xbox One, but can't find the effort to play it after what happened.
Stan and Kyle have an earlier moment that's heart-wrenching. After Stan gets framed and grounded (thanks to Cartman), Kyle tries to set things right, but ends up getting rejected. This is Harsher in Hindsight when you realize in earlier episodes, it is usually Stan that goes through Hell just to fix any problems between him and Kyle, and in this sequence he finds himself unable to trust his best friend anymore. When he calls for his mother to get Kyle to leave, his voice cracks and rises, making the moment more heart-wrenching. Luckily, Kyle fixes this and promises to get Stan a PS4.

The Hobbit

Wendy gives up her crusade on self-image after Kanye West guilt-trips her by reading a story of how Photoshop helps girls feel better, followed by her tearfully Photoshopping a picture of herself to look like a bombshell.
- And unlike "You're Getting Old" from Season 15, there was no follow-up episode to give this one closure, nor is it ever addressed again, leading one to believe that this is something she's keeping bottled up.
- Timmy photoshopping himself to look like a normal kid, implying that he resents his condition.

Season 18

#REHASH

After Lorde's (really Randy's) disastrous concert, we're treated to a shot of Shelly crying. The look on Randy's face just screams guilt for feeling like he let her down.

Season 19

Stunning and Brave

Cartman is beaten to a bloody pulp by the new PC Principal after trying to frame him for child molestation. When his friends visit him in the hospital to encourage him to come up with a way to get back at him, Cartman just lies there, admitting that political correctness has won and deciding that it's best for him to turn over a new leaf, starting with being nice to Kyle. Of course, Kyle sees right through it and calls Cartman out thoroughly.
Kyle: So you're never gonna call me a dirty Jew again?
Cartman: No. I'm going to call you... my friend. (reaches out a hand)
Kyle: Oh, fuck you! (leaves)
Cartman: ...I guess we never realized how bad he really was.
- The very next episode has Cartman turning all the boys against Kyle and his infamous speeches, so it can be ascertained that this change is not genuine.
Kyle's treatment by Randy and the PC frat boys for his opinions on Caitlyn Jenner, which include shaving him bald, drawing penises on his face and duct-taping him to a tree, before Kyle give in and calls Jenner a hero. It should hit hard for people who are often bullied for their opinions.

The City Part of Town

Jimmy Fallon mocks all of South Park after Mr. Garrison (mirroring Donald Trump's infamous campaign) decides to run for president. Every character is watching and feeling the burn (Butters even has tears running down his face as he watches!). The sadness sets in when Randy - the biggest Manchild in town - just shuts off the TV and says "That's not funny" in a flat voice. The poor guy's spirit was crushed.
Kenny's parents rather bluntly telling Karen they can't buy her anything because of how poor they are. It gets especially depressing when Mr. McCormick rubs it in that getting a job is worthless because the pay is pitiful.

Safe Space

Butters is faced with either working like a slave to filter the negative Internet comments celebrities and Cartman get to avoid feeling remotely hurt, or facing 2 weeks of detention and being grounded. He takes the former, and slowly (and justifiably) begins losing his mind and then tries to kill himself. Think about that, he would rather kill himself than get grounded.
The episode ends on a rather gloomy note, with Reality being hung in public.

Tweek x Craig

During the first montage, Mayor McDaniels looks at a framed photograph of a man and smiles while Peter Gabriel's "The Book of Love" plays. There is no mention of this moment until the second montage when we see that this person, whoever it is, has died. While this brief look into the mayor's personal life may have come from left field, it's surprisingly poignant when combined with A Great Big World's "Say Something". Considering how much she's had to deal with throughout season 19, let alone the events of the entire show, it seems that she finally couldn't hold it in any longer.

Naughty Ninjas

Barbrady is fired for accidentally shooting a Latino-American child in the shoulder because PC Principal called the cops to get rid of Leslie (for talking during assembly, no less) and we find out that he lives alone in a tiny poorly lit studio apartment with his old dog who is sick and needs medicine. They end up evicted and homeless after Barbrady tries and fails to get a new job. He then gets his job back to get rid of the kids playing ninja (The Mayor and other adults think they're part of ISIS because they're idiots) and when Randy tackles him while he's trying to plead with the kids not to be part of ISIS, his gun fires and he accidentally shoots Daveed. They then fire him again and he ends up worse than when he started, despite the fact that it was all Randy and the Mayor's idea.
Barbrady: You know me, I like to help.
- When Barbrady first goes back to his apartment after getting fired, his only concern is taking care of his dog. His voice is softer and solemn and you get the realization this is his life. Unlike everyone else at the Police Department, he actually signed up just to try and make the town a better place. Good luck ever laughing at his old behavior in "Chickenlover" and "Jakovasaurs" ever again.
- The whole episode is a Trauma Conga Line for Barbrady and it's just sad. The unfairness of the whole situation goes well beyond Fiction Isn't Fair territory. To see a good-hearted (if ditzy) man lose everything over an innocent mistake, while genuinely bad people get away with their actions (in not only the same episode, but future ones as well), all in the name of "political correctness" will bring tears to the eye.

Tear Jerker / South Park

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