Ep 188: Mr Hankey 5: The QUINTessential Watchalong Special
Watch along via our video podcast, available on Youtube.
Every December, Privy Christmas demands that we revisit one very specific cultural artifact: Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo. And no, we are not talking about his lesser, clearly derivative cousin Nutty the Friendly Dump. We do not acknowledge Nutty here.
This year marks Installment Five of our annual Mr. Hankey check‑in, which lands us squarely in South Park Season 6 (2002)—a time capsule from an era when low‑rise jeans were dangerous, America was traumatized, and animated feces were making geopolitical commentary.
A Brief Hankey Recap (For the Uninitiated)
Up to this point, we’ve learned some important things about Mr. Hankey:
He is sentient
He is magical
He loves Christmas music
He can summon trains made entirely of poop
South Park, as a series, only enters my life once per year through Mr. Hankey. Everything else the show does exists in a foggy cultural haze. But Mr. Hankey? He is tradition.
Why 2002 Matters
When this episode aired, I was in second grade. Which is wild, because my son is now older than that—and I am watching a cartoon where Santa’s sleigh gets shot down over Iraq.
Between Mr. Hankey’s last appearance and this one, a lot happened:
Kenny actually died (like… for real this time)
9/11 happened
The United States entered the War on Terror
Naturally, South Park decided the best way to process this moment in history was a Christmas special.
Bold choice.
Red Sleigh Down: When Christmas Goes Tactical
The episode, Red Sleigh Down, is a clear parody of Black Hawk Down and Three Kings—two war films that shaped the post‑9/11 media landscape.
The premise is simple and unhinged:
Cartman decides Iraq deserves Christmas
Mr. Hankey provides magical poop‑based transportation
Santa goes on a humanitarian mission
Santa immediately gets shot down
As one does.
The sleigh crash is treated with all the seriousness of a war film, complete with radio chatter, wounded reindeer, and Santa reporting:
“Reindeer all dead. Santa very sad.”
Which is… devastating, honestly.
The Mr. Hankey Problem
Here’s the honest critique: this is a light Hankey episode.
We learn new lore—Mr. Hankey can:
Animate sewer systems
Manifest poop trains
Enable international travel
But emotionally? This one belongs to Santa and Jesus. Hankey is more of a facilitator than a star.
I could’ve used more Christmas poo.
So… What’s the Message?
Shockingly, it lands.
Despite the chaos, the crude jokes, and Santa being tortured like a POW, the episode closes on a sincere sentiment:
Christmas, at its core, is about Jesus.
Santa himself says it.
Which is wild, considering everything that happened ten minutes earlier.
Final Flush
Red Sleigh Down is messy, fast, offensive, occasionally uncomfortable—and somehow still earnest. It’s a perfect snapshot of early‑2000s America processing trauma through satire… starring a talking piece of feces.
Would I rank it among the greatest Hankey episodes? Probably not.
But as a piece of bathroom‑adjacent Christmas culture?
It absolutely earns its place.
