You're Getting Old

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"City Sushi"

"You're Getting Old"

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"You're Getting Old"
Episode no.	Season 15 Episode 7
Guest stars	Bill Hader
Production no.	1507
Original airdate	June 8, 2011
Episode chronology Previous Next "City Sushi" "Ass Burgers"
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"You're Getting Old" is the seventh episode of Season Fifteen, and the 216th overall episode of South Park. It aired on June 8, 2011.

Synopsis

Just after Stan's 10th birthday, his worldview starts to change and so do his friendships.

Plot

Spoiler warning! Plot details follow.

At Stan's 10th birthday party, one of his presents is the latest CD from a "Tween Wave" band. Sharon forbids Stan from listening to it, and promptly takes the CD away. Later, Randy and Sharon argue over the CD. Randy decides to sit down and listen to the CD (which, to the viewer, is the sound of farting and drum beats). He claims to enjoy the CD, but the other parents of the boys forbid them from listening to "tween wave" after playing The Police's album Synchronicity as an example of what they consider to be good music. To the boys, though, it sounds just as the "tween wave" music does to Randy. That night, Stan secretly listens to the confiscated music but discovers, to his confusion, that it now sounds like "shit". Stan confesses this to Kyle the next morning.

Afraid that something is wrong with him, Stan goes to Dr. Caroll, who initially tells him that his musical tastes are naturally changing as he grows up. During these tests, however, Stan begins to view everything he sees and hears as feces, leading the doctor to diagnose him with being a "cynical asshole". From ice cream to movie trailers, in Stan's view everything appears to be shit and he is unable to find joy in any activity. Kyle, Kenny and Cartman stop hanging out with Stan, because they think he is "a major buzzkill". After a fight at the movies, Kyle berates Stan; but as he speaks, his appearance morphs into a large talking pile of feces. Stan reacts with horror, then calmly walks away, apparently ending their long friendship.

Meanwhile, Randy (in order to hold on to his childhood dreams of becoming a rockstar) starts performing Tween Wave music at the local bowling alley under the name "Steamy Ray Vaughn," shitting his pants as part of the act. A pair of old farmers watch his performances and become dismayed at the damage Randy is doing to his "britches". During a duet with a woman billing herself as "Steamy Nicks," Sharon barges in and drags him home, resulting in a huge argument. Sharon complains that life with Randy keeps getting more ridiculous, while in the background the two old farmers break into the Marsh home and steal Randy's britches, feeling that they have "suffered enough". Randy reveals that the reason he does so many weird things (like getting into fights with other dads at baseball games, playing World of Warcraft obsessively, and becoming a celebrity chef) is because he is unhappy. Sharon says she is also unhappy; the two agree that they have grown apart and do not feel the same way about each other anymore.

A montage of scenes are shown with no dialogue as Fleetwood Mac's Landslide plays: Kyle comes upon a despondent Stan but walks away without saying anything; Sharon and Shelly pack up the kitchen; a real estate agent puts up the Marsh home for sale; Randy drives a U-Haul away and looks back wistfully; Sharon and the children unpack boxes in a new apartment; the police recover Randy's britches from the weeping farmers; Kyle and Cartman share a smile while playing Xbox together. Finally, the song ends as Stan lies alone on his new bed. The credits roll in silence.