In a scathing Thanksgiving special that aired on Wednesday, the long-running animated series South Park set its satirical sights on former Fox News host and Trump administration figure Pete Hegseth, lampooning him as a social media-obsessed bully in his debut on the show.
A Mission Gone Awry in South Park
The episode sees the show's version of Donald Trump dispatch his Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to the fictional town with a simple command: "Don't just make a bunch of content. Like, actually go and do something." However, Hegseth's mission immediately goes off the rails. He mistakenly identifies a community Thanksgiving-themed fun run as an Antifa uprising, triggering a massive and unnecessary military response.
This blunder attracts the unwanted attention of South Park's depiction of Kristi Noem, the real-life governor who has been previously portrayed in the series as an over-Botoxed, image-obsessed ICE agent, earning the nickname "ICE Barbie". Noem arrives on the scene, telling Hegseth, "At ease, soldier," before framing the town's 'Turkey Trot' as a "civilian uprising."
A Bitter Clash Over Content and Control
The episode quickly devolves into a petty squabble between the two caricatures, more focused on online clout than public safety. "We're just here to assist in any way that we can. That's what Homeland Security does," Noem asserts.
Hegseth, however, is more concerned with his personal brand, interrupting her to shout, "Be sure to like and subscribe, guys!" He then corrects himself, declaring, "No, no, no, no, no - this is not your content! Be sure to like and subscribe to the Department of War!"
The absurdity escalates as a montage plays, showing Hegseth invading the town to a parody of the song 'Danger Zone'. The lyrics leave nothing to the imagination, bluntly stating, "Hegseth is a f***ing d***he," and mocking him for "Acting like a tough guy, posting it around the world... Making lots of content, like a little teenage girl."
Social Media Reaction and a Scooby-Doo Ending
The unforgiving nature of the political satire caused an immediate stir on social media. One viewer on X commented, "Man South Park is out for blood with pete hegseth," while another admitted, "That Pete Hegseth song on South Park is stuck in my head now," accompanied by laughing emojis.
By the episode's conclusion, the incompetent Hegseth meets a fitting end, landing in a jail cell alongside Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, who had been established as an antagonist in the previous episode. In a style reminiscent of a foiled Scooby-Doo villain, Hegseth rants, "You son of a b***h! The president will come for us. South Park's gonna pay for this. They're all gonna pay!" before the credits roll.
Hegseth is merely the latest public figure to receive the signature South Park treatment, with creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker having previously targeted other Republicans like JD Vance and Charlie Kirk. The broadcast of this episode comes amidst significant corporate changes, as Paramount secured the rights to the Comedy Central series for $1.25 billion in July.
In a curious real-world parallel, on the same day the episode aired, the actual Pete Hegseth announced that 500 more National Guard troops would be deployed to Washington, DC, following an incident where two National Guard members were shot near the White House.
