The triumphant return of 'South Park'

It is no secret that the last couple of seasons of “South Park” have been sub-par, straying away from the traditional self-contained twenty-minute episode and utilizing a broader, multi-episode story arc, barring a few notable exceptions such as the Mysterion and Imagination Land arcs. But season twenty-one seems to have returned the show to its Original format with its own isolated story arc and social issues.

The last two seasons

Season nineteen of “South Park” approached gentrification, watching the quiet little mountain town become politically correct and give way to upscale restaurants, SodaSopa and Whole Foods, and then the shocking 2016 presidential election over the course of ten episodes.

Season twenty broached online trolling and Internet privacy in lieu of the national net neutrality controversy in the same amount of time. They were the first two seasons of "South Park" ever to carry a story arc over an entire season. Unfortunately, they were not received as well as the original eighteen seasons.

The new season (so far)

Season twenty-one of "South Park" shows hope for the original format, though. Season twenty-one has failed to exhibit the same connection between episodes as its two immediate predecessors, seasons nineteen and twenty.

Season twenty-one, episode one talked about white nationalism and racial tensions between white people and other white people in the technological revolution, while the second episode prodded the relationship between North Korea and the United States, targeting the U.S.

President in particular.

However, there was no sight of Randy’s cable television show from episode one in episode two, nor was there any sign of Alexa nor the "South Park" blue-collar workers. The two episodes, while maintaining tropes from previous seasons, such as the relationship between Tweek and Craig or Cartman and Heidi, which are more akin to Kenny dying or Stand and Wendy’s relationship, failed to make any real connection between one another.

What’s in store for 'South Park' fans?

What does this mean for the rest of the "South Park" season? Perhaps the show’s creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, have returned to their roots, following the format that made their show an international super-hit in the late 1990s, 2000s and the better part of 2010s.

Maybe season twenty-one ties together in a way that has yet to be seen. It is hard to tell this early in the season, but one thing is for sure: the new season is hysterical thus far, and old and new "South Park" fans alike will enjoy it.