Free Willzyx

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“Free Willzyx”
South Park episode
Kyle meets "Willzyx".
Episode no.	Season 9 Episode 138
Written by	Trey Parker
Directed by	Trey Parker
Original airdate	November 30, 2005
Season 9 episodes
South Park - Season 9 March 9, 2005 – December 7, 2005
Mr. Garrison's Fancy New Vagina Die Hippie, Die Wing Best Friends Forever The Losing Edge The Death of Eric Cartman Erection Day Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow Marjorine Follow That Egg! Ginger Kids Trapped in the Closet Free Willzyx Bloody Mary

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List of South Park episodes

"Free Willzyx" is episode 913 of the Comedy Central series South Park. It originally aired November 30, 2005.

1 Plot
2 Production
3 References to pop culture & historical/current events
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Plot

The boys are at Sea Park in Denver where they are watching the antics of Jambu, an orca. While the other boys go elsewhere, Kyle wants to study the whale in more detail; while getting a closer look at Jambu, Kyle is surprised to hear the whale speak. Jambu's voice is actually being provided by one of the hosts of the whale show, Brian. He and his partner, Mike, are bored and taking great delight in playing a practical joke. "Jambu" tells Kyle about his dream to one day go to space in a big rocket ship. Kyle runs off to find the other boys. He brings them back to the tank, but for now Jambu remains silent. The bored hosts realize that their audience has returned. They claim that Jambu, whose real name is 'Willzyx' (pronounced "Weel-zee-ack"), will die unless he returns to his wife and family's home on the moon. That's enough for the boys; when they get back home they rally the other boys to help them liberate Jambu. They put together a plan that involves the pool from Clyde's backyard, Timmy's wheelchair, the Russian government and all of their skateboards. The boys sneak into Sea Park and manage to free Jambu. The next morning at the Sea Park, Mike and Brian start panicking when they realize that the boys from South Park are responsible for the whale-napping.

In Russia, the government is looking for a way to raise money and they take a call from Kyle who wants to hire them to take Willzyx to the moon. When they give their price of $20 million, Kyle tries to explain what they are really trying to do. The Russians interpret his explanation as a prank call from George Bush. The boys decide to shop around for a third world country with a cheaper space program and they need to hide the whale. Since everyone is on the lookout for the whale, if it remains outside, eventually someone will see it. At the Sea Park in Denver, protesters from the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) have gathered to applaud the whale liberators. Brian and Mike are in South Park looking for the whale; they find the pool behind Clyde's house, along with a broken fence. While looking at the pool, they find whale feces, but see that the whale and the boys are gone. The whale is inside, in Kyle's bedroom to be exact, where the boys are keeping him wet. Kyle is on the phone with the Japanese while Jimmy, Timmy and Tweek are at the Chinese Embassy, but everyone's price is too high. Stan and Craig are in Mexico, where they find that MASA (Mexican Aeronáutica y Spacial Administración) will take their whale to the moon for $200. Brian and Mike find out that the boys are going to Tijuana.

The boys are on the road to Tijuana when their truck is stopped by Brian and Mike. The hosts are about ready to tell the boys the truth, when the police arrive, but the ALF comes to their rescue as the whale is saved in a hail of gunfire. Mike and one of the police officers are killed by the ALF during the firefight. The ALF leader drives the van for the boys as they resume their trip to Tijuana. In Tijuana, the rocket is being prepared. The ALF leader and the boys crash through the Mexican border, and the boys work on getting the whale into the water. They get the whale into the water and the ALF is declaring victory when, to their surprise, the manager of Sea Park and everyone else present watch the Mexican rocket get launched into space, with a whale in tow while a mariachi band plays to celebrate Mexico's first successful space project. The boys celebrate their victory back home; meanwhile, on the moon, the asphyxiated whale lies dead. The end credits roll over this shot in silence (apparently as a sign of respect to the late Keiko, who had played Willy in Free Willy).

[edit] Production

This is the only episode where very realistic drawings of the kids were shown, portrayed as a police artist sketch.[1] Nico Agnone, a relative of one of the animation crew members and former voice of Ike Broflovski and the kindergarten students, was the model for Stan and Kyle according to the South Park Studios FAQ. The image was drawn by Storyboard/Production Artist Supervisor Adrien Beard and Storyboard/Production Artist Valerie Fletcher.

[edit] References to pop culture & historical/current events

The episode's title and general concept are a parody of the film Free Willy
In the opening scene, right after Jambu "waves" at the crowd, the Twister II, a wooden roller coaster at Six Flags Elitch Gardens, can be seen in the background. Six Flags Elitch Gardens is right next to Ocean Journey (which Sea Park is based upon), in Denver.
When Kyle's mother states that she is "taking Ike to the new Harry Potter movie", she refers to the film Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire released during the making of this episode.
The theme played by Mexican musicians while the rocket launches is "Jarabe tapatío" (The Mexican Hat Dance) which was also played in Casa Bonita (South Park episode).
Actually it is true that Russian Federal Space Agency can send a tourist to the moon, but it will cost $100 million and they won't land on its surface.^[1]
Referring to current events, when the boys are on the phone with the Japanese space program they have to explain that they want them to take the whale to the moon and that they don't want them to eat the whale (see Whaling in Japan).
When the boys are presenting the plan to free the whale to the rest of the kids, they use a "Jazzerstep" platform to stand on.
The background during the credits of Jambu lying dead on the moon is a direct parody of the ending credits of Space Cowboys
Jambu is a parody of the whale Shamu found in SeaWorld.
The music that plays over the first scene with the Russians is the intro theme music with the chants of Jedah Dohma, from the Capcom fighting game series Darkstalkers.