#6: Kenny McCormick: South Park
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ehj_L-SujSs

Another one I simply couldn't do without. Kenny always has and always will be my number one driving force towards the series of South Park. Growing up in a rather strict, religious upbringing-(shocking to think of, right?)-I was never allowed to watch South Park, but of course at that time South Park was just starting at it was everywhere. Everyone knew the characters, regardless if they had actually watched it or not and I was no exception. Of course, I frequently sneaked over to my friend's house to watch it, unbeknownst to my parents, but that's another story. Fact is, well before I ever saw the series or even had a remote interest in it, I was in love with the character of Kenny. I think it was a combination of shock value along with just liking the design of the character with the hidden face but whatever the reason I had a bizarre magnetic pull towards the little doomed, orange parka wearing kid.

As I got older, South Park became more and more of a favorite series for me and while I think it's gone in a direction that I personally don't enjoy as much anymore, I do still find it funny but I do sort of pine for the older days when it was more about weird things happening in to four kids in a podunk, nowhere town and not just standing on a soap box over things that will be dated a week after it's initial airing... or about Butters and Randy, but most of all I'll miss Kenny dying. Man, that's dark isn't it?

I guess it should come as no surprise that I have a weird obsession/sense of humor towards the subject of death and perhaps Kenny's constant dying in early South Park caused that. In any case, while I loved the character most of that love came from seeing just how he'd inexplicably die in the episode. Sure, I understand that the joke could get old as they did it in EVERY episode, but ending it entirely is kind of a shame. It leaves him with little to know purpose, I feel, but again this is just my opinion. The show does still manage to make me laugh and I still enjoy Kenny, I just miss a lot of older elements of the series and in it's own way I feel Kenny is the perfect allegory for the creators of South Park itself. Constantly trying to keep to kill it off but it won't stay dead and realizing that it can never die they simply submit to it's unending purgatory and let it live on as a dry shell of it's former self... Happy Holidays everyone!