Mysterion

Mysterion is a character in the episodes, "The Coon", and "Coon 2: Rise of Captain Hindsight" voiced by Trey Parker. They are a student at South Park Elementary in Mr. Garrison's fourth grade class who hides behind a pseudonym, 'Mysterion'. They unveiled himself after the Coon persuaded them to for the good of the town. Due to the way the characters' facial characteristics are—their eyes, lack of noses, and mouth — it was initially unclear who Mysterion was.

Although fans often debate Mysterion's identity, Trey Parker and Matt Stone claim in the commentary for the episode of the Season 13 DVD that even they don't know Mysterion's true identity.

Costume
Mysterion looks very much like a child superhero, as he wears a pair of white underwear briefs over his base suit, which is an off-lavender and has a bright green 'M' on the front of it. Around his waist, there is a plain, thin black belt with a dark grey, standard buckle. Brown boots adorn his feet. There is a dark blue cloak that drags on the ground wrapped around his neck and provides a shield for his/ her hair or any defining features. This cloak has a bright green question mark made of some type of sturdy material attached to a spring that just out from the top of Mysterion's head. Finally, a black half-mask that covers his face from the bridge of the nose up.

Bodily Features
Unfortunately, there are little clues as to what features Mysterion possesses that makes him distinctive. Like most children in South Park's animation style, Mysterion has a perfectly round head, an averagely sized body, two tilted oval eyes with black pupils, and a frown. He is extremely agile, and can run away quickly enough to disappear while a string of fireworks are blowing up.

Weapons/Tools
Mysterion seems to be more of a hand-to-hand combat fighter, as we see when he or she fights with Professor Chaos and General Disarray. There is no evidence of there being any type of weapon on his or her person. The only tool we had seen Mysterion to use was a strand of firecrackers, which is illegal in the state of Colorado, in order to escape from the Coon. Mysterion made it to the top of buildings with the use of ladders, stairs, or elevators.

Identity

 * Main article: Mysterion Suspects

Cartman named Craig, Kyle, Kenny, Stan, Clyde, and arguably Wendy as suspects, and during the unmasking Cartman claims he'd "knew it all along; [he] even said so before!" However, Mysterion is shown confronting Kyle, ruling him out. Mr. Garrison points out Mysterion is a member of his class. No female had been listed as a suspect on Professor Chaos and General Disarray's wall of Mysterion suspects, which implies Mysterion as a male, and in addition, the amateur drawing of Mysterion shows a clearly male character with a masculine form and jaw, as well as a very deep voice. Also, the underwear worn are 'male' underwear, even farther ruling out Wendy or any other female student as a suspect.

He is able to move around without aid, so he cannot be Jimmy or Timmy. Also, he remained extremely calm under pressure, so odds are he's not Tweek. Clyde was shown sleeping in class the day before Mysterion and the Coon (Eric Cartman) met, which some fans claim he was tired from his activities as Mysterion. This is probably a red herring to show everyone's disinterest in the Coon, since most in the class were falling asleep.

In the Season 13 DVD, the deleted ending of The Coon reveals that the boy unmasked at Town Hall was Kyle, and he was arrested as a result. Mysterion, however, appeared to Kyle outside his cell and revealed his face, repeating the gag again. While this would also dilute both Garrison and Cartman's clues, it is a general rule of thumb in fiction for deleted scenes to be non-canonical.

Mysterion could also be Stan, since Stan and Kyle are close friends and saying that Kyle is the smartest in class would be something he would say about his friend. Also, Mysterion shows his face to Kyle meaning he trusts him with his secret which also leads to Stan, as well as Stan appearing to be almost the only one interested in Cartman's speech on the Coon in class. Further pointing to Stan is the ability to obtain fireworks despite illegality in Colorado, as Stan had got some from Jimbo and Ned at least once before.

The fact that Mysterion's face remains hidden for most of the episode is consistent with a running gag involving Kenny, and Kenny's often-portrayed heroism (usually resulting in death, as it almost did for Mysterion) is also consistent. However, the City Hall crowd instantly recognized Mysterion after revealing his face, and the only time Kenny had his parka off in public for an extended period of time was when he was on the baseball team. This means while the crowd might have recognized Kenny, it would probably have taken them a few seconds.

In the preview clip and promo image for "Coon 2: Rise of Captain Hindsight" Mysterion is seen alongside Stan and Kenny, leaving the only candidates as Craig and Clyde. However, the Mosquito hero's voice sounds much like Craig and is likely him or Kevin Stoley, in which case Mysterion would be confirmed as Clyde. As a result of this, it is expected that Mysterion's identity will be confirmed by the end of the episode.

Allusions to Superheros/Supervillains
Mysterion seems to share similar characteristics with DC Comic's Batman and a distinctive icon of an enemy of his, the Riddler.

The Spirit
Some of Mysterion's quotes are very similar to those of The Spirit. One such example is the quote, "The city needs my help. It cries for protection, and I will answer the call to save her".

Batman
Bruce Wayne speaks with a low voice when in the guise of his alter ego, Batman, to mask his voice. Mysterion did this as well so none of his/her classmates or the people s/he knew as a regular child would recognize his/her voice. The contact that Mysterion had with the police was similar to that of Batman's partnership with the police commissioner of the city of Gotham, James Gordon; both of them report to their respective informants for relaying information about crime. Also, Mysterion's manner of disguise and choice of words allude to Batman's, for they both hide their defining features, especially around the face, and consider themselves symbols of their cities/towns. They both speak only when necessary and tend to spend more time alone, prowling the streets for crime.

The Riddler
Supervillain, the Riddler, who is recognizable by his trademark question marks, shares his icon with Mysterion, who wears it atop his/her cloak. While the question marks mean different things in regards to each of them, they are very similar in appearance, with the exception that Mysterion's is bright green, while the Riddler has been shown with purple, black, and green question marks adorning his clothing.

Quotes

 * "I’m an angel keeping watch over the city at night. As violence and darkness take over the streets, I work to rid the city of crime. I’m the symbol this town needs."


 * "I might be Craig, and then again, I might not be. My identity must remain a secret. You cannot know."


 * "I assume you must be Cartman because you’re fat."


 * "Kyle hates Eric Cartman. Are you saying you’re Eric Cartman?"


 * "I cannot stand here and make idle conversation any longer. The city needs my help. There are innocents to protect."


 * [Inner dialogue] "I could no longer sit by and watch as my city became a cesspool of crime. I have lived in South Park all my life. I decided it was up to me to keep this town safe. Nobody at school knows my double life. To them, I’m just another fourth grader, but tonight, I am Mysterion."


 * "There’s some graffiti on the bridge again. I think those sixth grade kids are doing it. And that guy at the movie theater’s harassing Mexicans again."


 * "The city needs my help. It cries for protection, and I will answer the call to save her."


 * "Do not be afraid. I mean you no harm."


 * "I cannot be unmasked, for then I would stop being a symbol. I need help. Somebody who can do background checks for me, do some investigating."


 * "Because I think you are the smartest kid in class."


 * "This isn’t your usual M.O., Chaos."


 * "Citizens, tonight has shown me that I have no choice but to unmask myself."


 * "As long as my identity is a mystery, this will just happen again and again. It has to end. I will show my face."