They saved Kenny

Israel’s vaccine campaign gets the ‘South Park’ treatment

PM Netanyahu praises scene; ambassador to the UN says ‘SNL’ should learn pandemic humor from the episode

Citizens of South Park are saved by an 'Israel Air' plane carrying hundreds of vaccines. (Screenshot: South Park Studio)
Citizens of South Park are saved by an 'Israel Air' plane carrying hundreds of vaccines. (Screenshot: South Park Studio)

Citizens of South Park are saved by Israel’s vaccination campaign in this week’s episode of the longstanding animated series known for its crude language, surreal comedy, and social commentary.

In the episode, a militant group, mocking QAnon supporters in the US Capitol riot in January, attempts to stop the main characters from getting their teacher vaccinated.

That is until a plane with “Air Israel” printed on it, stylized in the El Al Airlines font, appears out of thin air and distributes “enough vaccines for every adult in town.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted to the clip by saying that “even in South Park they already know — in Israel we are coming back to life!”

It was unclear whether Netanyahu watched the rest of the episode, as many replies to the tweet pointed out the ironic nature of the joke.

Earlier in the “Vaccination Special” episode, a man waiting in line to be vaccinated complains to a guard that “in Israel they vaccinate everybody,” after not being allowed in.

“So then go to Israel,” the guard responds.

“I tried, I couldn’t get in,” the man replies, possibly referring to Israel’s immigration policy or, more relevantly, its pandemic-era ban on entry.

Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, reacted to the skit by saying that NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” show can learn “how you do pandemic humor when it comes to Israel.”

He was referring to a February episode of SNL during which Michael Che cracked that “Israel is reporting that they’ve vaccinated half of their population, and I’m gonna guess it’s the Jewish half.”

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