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{{Infobox television episode
{{Infobox television episode
| series = [[South Park]]
| title = A Ladder to Heaven
| series = South Park
| image =
| image =
| caption =
| caption =
| season = 6
| season = 6
| episode = 12
| episode = 12
| airdate = November 6, 2002
| airdate = {{Start date|2002|11|06}}
| production = 612
| production = 612
| writer = [[Trey Parker]]
| writer = [[Trey Parker]]
| director = [[Trey Parker]]
| director = [[Trey Parker]]
| guests =
| guests =
| season_article = South Park season 6
| episode_list = [[South Park (season 6)|''South Park'' (season 6)]]<br>[[List of South Park episodes|List of ''South Park'' episodes]]
| episode_list = List of South Park episodes
| season_list =
| prev = [[Child Abduction Is Not Funny]]
| prev = [[Child Abduction Is Not Funny]]
| next = [[The Return of the Fellowship of the Ring to the Two Towers]]
| next = [[The Return of the Fellowship of the Ring to the Two Towers]]
}}
}}


"'''A Ladder to Heaven'''" is the 12th episode of the [[South Park (season 6)|sixth season]] and the 91st overall episode of the [[Comedy Central]] series ''[[South Park]]''. It was originally broadcast on November 6, 2002.
"'''A Ladder to Heaven'''" is the 12th episode of the [[South Park season 6|sixth season]] and the 91st overall episode of the [[Comedy Central]] series ''[[South Park]]''. It was originally broadcast on November 6, 2002.


In the episode, the boys try to build a ladder to [[heaven]] to retrieve a winning ticket [[Kenny McCormick|Kenny]] had before [[Kenny Dies|he died]]. When their efforts are mistaken for an act of childhood innocence, a [[media circus]] ensues.
Kenny died with the winning ticket to a candy store shopping spree, so the boys build a ladder to heaven to reclaim it. Unfortunately, the Japanese start building their own ladder to heaven, the government intervenes and the event is chronicled in a lame country music song. Cartman realizes that he's had a little bit of Kenny inside him the whole time.

This marked the first time co-creator [[Trey Parker]] voiced Kenny in the series as he possessed Cartman's body.


== Plot ==
== Plot ==
[[Stan Marsh|Stan]], [[Kyle Broflovski|Kyle]] and [[Eric Cartman|Cartman]] win an all-you-can-grab candy prize, but cannot claim it without the stub of the ticket they bought. They remember that they gave the ticket stub to [[Kenny McCormick|Kenny]] to hold on to before he last [[Kenny Dies|died]]. Upon visiting Kenny's house, the boys are shown an urn containing his ashes, which they steal during the next night. However, having never heard of [[cremation]], they expect to find Kenny's body and are confused when they find ashes inside. Cartman assumes it must be some kind of chocolate milk powder. He mixes the ashes with milk and drinks them, replacing the ashes with kitty litter.
[[Stan Marsh|Stan]], [[Kyle Broflovski|Kyle]] and [[Eric Cartman|Cartman]] win an all-you-can-grab candy prize, but cannot claim it without the stub of the ticket they bought. They remember that they gave the ticket stub to [[Kenny McCormick|Kenny]] to hold on to before [[Kenny Dies|he last died]]. Upon visiting Kenny's house, the boys are shown an urn containing his ashes, which they steal during the next night. However, having never heard of [[cremation]], they expect to find Kenny's body and are confused when they find ashes inside. Cartman assumes it must be some kind of [[Chocolate milk|chocolate milk powder]]. He mixes the ashes with milk and drinks them, replacing the ashes with kitty litter in the urn.


The boys decide to build a ladder to [[Heaven]] to find Kenny so he can hand them the ticket. However, when questioned about why they are building the ladder, they neglect to mention that candy is involved and merely say they want to see Kenny again. As a result, the adults, thinking that the boys desperately want to see their dead friend again, are touched and the ladder's construction grips the whole country. Singer [[Alan Jackson]] turns up to memorialize the event in song.
The boys decide to build a ladder to [[Heaven]] to find Kenny so he can hand them the ticket. However, when questioned about why they are building the ladder, they neglect to mention that candy is involved and merely say they want to see Kenny again. As a result, the adults, thinking that the boys desperately want to see their dead friend again, are touched and the ladder's construction grips the whole country. Singer [[Alan Jackson]] turns up to memorialize the event in song.


The [[Japan]]ese even start building a rival ladder of their own so that when the boys announce they have run out of stuff to build the ladder the [[Military of the United States|United States military]] arrives and starts to build a reinforced tower in order to beat the Japanese. The ladder eventually reaches above the clouds and the boys are disappointed they don't find no heaven.
The [[Japanese people|Japanese]] even start building a rival ladder of their own so that when the boys announce they have run out of stuff to build the ladder, the [[Military of the United States|United States military]] arrives and starts to build a reinforced tower in order to beat the Japanese. The ladder eventually reaches above the clouds and the boys are disappointed when they see nothing.


Suspicious photos taken of heavenly clouds are reported to the [[George W. Bush|U.S. President]] as indicating a potential factory making [[weapon of mass destruction|WMDs]] run by [[Saddam Hussein (South Park)|Saddam Hussein]], [[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut|now dead]] and [[Probably (South Park)|permanently living in Heaven]]. The [[United States|U.S.]] decides to bomb Heaven, believing Hussein to be building nuclear warheads there. A U.S. representative explains the [[Do the Handicapped Go to Hell?|Satan/Saddam/Chris love triangle story]] to a skeptical [[United Nations General Assembly]].
Suspicious photos taken of heavenly clouds are reported to the [[George W. Bush|U.S. President]] as indicating a potential factory making [[weapon of mass destruction|weapons of mass destruction]] (WMD) run by [[Saddam Hussein]], [[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut|now dead]] and [[Probably (South Park)|permanently living in Heaven]]. The [[United States|U.S.]] decides to bomb Heaven, believing Hussein to be building nuclear warheads there. [[President of the United States|President]] [[George W. Bush]] explains the [[Do the Handicapped Go to Hell?|Satan/Saddam/Chris love triangle story]] to a skeptical [[United Nations General Assembly]].


Meanwhile, Cartman starts viewing Kenny's memories every time something hits his head. After the adults try to tell the boys to get back to their lives and explain cremation to them, Cartman realizes that this is because he drank Kenny's ashes. After getting intentionally hit on the head a few more times, Cartman witnesses Kenny locking up the ticket in a box he kept in his room. The boys retrieve the stub, collect their confectionery and lose all interest in the ladder. The whole misunderstanding is explained and various platitudes exchanged that they all want to believe that they can go to heaven when they die, but the meaning is to enjoy life on earth, which Alan Jackson tries and fails to turn into an umpteenth song. As they all leave, Cartman says that he is happy of just having "poor Kenny" 's memories, but Cartman insults himself in Kenny's words, implying that Kenny's soul really is trapped in Cartman's body.
Meanwhile, Cartman starts viewing Kenny's memories every time something hits his head. After the adults try to tell the boys to get back to their lives and explain cremation to them, Cartman realizes that this is because he drank Kenny's ashes. After getting intentionally hit on the head a few more times, Cartman witnesses Kenny locking up the ticket in a box he kept in his room. The boys retrieve the stub, collect their confectionery, and lose all interest in the ladder. The whole misunderstanding is explained, and various platitudes exchanged that they all want to believe that they can go to heaven when they die, but the meaning is to enjoy life on Earth, which Alan Jackson tries and fails to turn into an umpteenth song. As they all leave, Cartman says that he is happy just to have Kenny's memories, but Cartman then insults himself in Kenny's words, implying that Kenny's soul really is trapped in Cartman's body.


In a final scene, it is revealed that Saddam Hussein ''is'' in fact building a WMD factory, disguised as "Saddam's Heavenly Chocolate Chip Factory", and is lying to [[God]] about it.
In a final scene, it is revealed that Saddam Hussein is in fact building a WMD factory, disguised as a chocolate chip factory, and is lying to [[God (South Park)|God]] about it.


==Production==
==Production==
Singer [[Alan Jackson]] is parodied for his country hit, "[[Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)]] and the exploitation of [[September 11 attacks|9/11]].<ref>{{Cite video | people=[[Trey Parker|Parker, Trey]]|date = November 2005|title=South Park: The Complete Sixth Season: "A Ladder to Heaven" |format=Audio commentary |medium= DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures#Paramount Home Entertainment|Paramount Home Entertainment]]}}</ref>
Singer Alan Jackson is parodied for his country hit "[[Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)]]" about [[September 11 attacks|9/11]], with [[Matt Stone]] saying in the episode's audio commentary that he felt Jackson was "cashing in on the sentimentality of [remembering the 9/11 attacks]".<ref>{{Cite video | people=[[Trey Parker|Parker, Trey]]|date = November 2005|title=South Park: The Complete Sixth Season: "A Ladder to Heaven" |format=Audio commentary |medium= DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures#Paramount Home Entertainment|Paramount Home Entertainment]] |url=https://southpark.cc.com/clips/p2jtdd/creator-commentary-a-ladder-to-heaven|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107013140/http://southpark.cc.com/clips/p2jtdd/creator-commentary-a-ladder-to-heaven|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 7, 2017}}</ref>


==Home release==
==Home media==
"A Ladder to Heaven", along with the sixteen other episodes from ''South Park'''s sixth season, were released on a three-disc DVD set in the United States on October 11, 2005. The sets included brief audio commentaries by Parker and Stone for each episode. IGN gave the season a rating of 5/10.<ref>{{Cite web |title=South Park: The Complete Sixth Season DVD Review |publisher=IGN |date=February 26, 2009 |last=Schorn |first=Peter |url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/10/14/south-park-the-complete-sixth-season |accessdate=January 25, 2017}}</ref>
"A Ladder to Heaven", along with the sixteen other episodes from ''South Park'''s sixth season, were released on a three-disc DVD set in the United States on October 11, 2005. The sets included brief audio commentaries by [[Trey Parker]] and Stone for each episode. ''[[IGN]]'' gave the season a rating of 9/10.<ref>{{Cite web |title=South Park: The Complete Sixth Season DVD Review |publisher=IGN |date=February 26, 2009 |last=Schorn |first=Peter |url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/10/14/south-park-the-complete-sixth-season |accessdate=January 25, 2017}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
* [http://www.southparkstudios.com/guide/episodes/s06e12-a-ladder-to-heaven A Ladder to Heaven] Full episode at South Park Studios
* [https://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/qly8oc/south-park-a-ladder-to-heaven-season-6-ep-12 "A Ladder to Heaven"] Full episode at South Park Studios
* [http://www.southparkstudios.com/guide/episodes/s06e12-a-ladder-to-heaven A Ladder to Heaven] Episode guide at South Park Studios
* {{IMDb episode|0766077}}
* {{IMDb episode|0766077}}
* {{Tv.com episode|207846}}


{{South Park episodes|6}}
{{South Park episodes|6}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Ladder To Heaven, A}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ladder To Heaven, A}}
[[Category:South Park (season 6) episodes]]
[[Category:Aftermath of the September 11 attacks]]
[[Category:Heaven in popular culture]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of George W. Bush]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Saddam Hussein]]
[[Category:Television episodes set in heaven]]
[[Category:South Park season 6 episodes]]
[[Category:Television episodes about spirit possession]]
[[Category:White House in fiction]]

Latest revision as of 15:38, 25 October 2024

"A Ladder to Heaven"
South Park episode
Episode no.Season 6
Episode 12
Directed byTrey Parker
Written byTrey Parker
Production code612
Original air dateNovember 6, 2002 (2002-11-06)
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Child Abduction Is Not Funny"
Next →
"The Return of the Fellowship of the Ring to the Two Towers"
South Park season 6
List of episodes

"A Ladder to Heaven" is the 12th episode of the sixth season and the 91st overall episode of the Comedy Central series South Park. It was originally broadcast on November 6, 2002.

In the episode, the boys try to build a ladder to heaven to retrieve a winning ticket Kenny had before he died. When their efforts are mistaken for an act of childhood innocence, a media circus ensues.

This marked the first time co-creator Trey Parker voiced Kenny in the series as he possessed Cartman's body.

Plot

[edit]

Stan, Kyle and Cartman win an all-you-can-grab candy prize, but cannot claim it without the stub of the ticket they bought. They remember that they gave the ticket stub to Kenny to hold on to before he last died. Upon visiting Kenny's house, the boys are shown an urn containing his ashes, which they steal during the next night. However, having never heard of cremation, they expect to find Kenny's body and are confused when they find ashes inside. Cartman assumes it must be some kind of chocolate milk powder. He mixes the ashes with milk and drinks them, replacing the ashes with kitty litter in the urn.

The boys decide to build a ladder to Heaven to find Kenny so he can hand them the ticket. However, when questioned about why they are building the ladder, they neglect to mention that candy is involved and merely say they want to see Kenny again. As a result, the adults, thinking that the boys desperately want to see their dead friend again, are touched and the ladder's construction grips the whole country. Singer Alan Jackson turns up to memorialize the event in song.

The Japanese even start building a rival ladder of their own so that when the boys announce they have run out of stuff to build the ladder, the United States military arrives and starts to build a reinforced tower in order to beat the Japanese. The ladder eventually reaches above the clouds and the boys are disappointed when they see nothing.

Suspicious photos taken of heavenly clouds are reported to the U.S. President as indicating a potential factory making weapons of mass destruction (WMD) run by Saddam Hussein, now dead and permanently living in Heaven. The U.S. decides to bomb Heaven, believing Hussein to be building nuclear warheads there. President George W. Bush explains the Satan/Saddam/Chris love triangle story to a skeptical United Nations General Assembly.

Meanwhile, Cartman starts viewing Kenny's memories every time something hits his head. After the adults try to tell the boys to get back to their lives and explain cremation to them, Cartman realizes that this is because he drank Kenny's ashes. After getting intentionally hit on the head a few more times, Cartman witnesses Kenny locking up the ticket in a box he kept in his room. The boys retrieve the stub, collect their confectionery, and lose all interest in the ladder. The whole misunderstanding is explained, and various platitudes exchanged that they all want to believe that they can go to heaven when they die, but the meaning is to enjoy life on Earth, which Alan Jackson tries and fails to turn into an umpteenth song. As they all leave, Cartman says that he is happy just to have Kenny's memories, but Cartman then insults himself in Kenny's words, implying that Kenny's soul really is trapped in Cartman's body.

In a final scene, it is revealed that Saddam Hussein is in fact building a WMD factory, disguised as a chocolate chip factory, and is lying to God about it.

Production

[edit]

Singer Alan Jackson is parodied for his country hit "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)" about 9/11, with Matt Stone saying in the episode's audio commentary that he felt Jackson was "cashing in on the sentimentality of [remembering the 9/11 attacks]".[1]

Home media

[edit]

"A Ladder to Heaven", along with the sixteen other episodes from South Park's sixth season, were released on a three-disc DVD set in the United States on October 11, 2005. The sets included brief audio commentaries by Trey Parker and Stone for each episode. IGN gave the season a rating of 9/10.[2]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Parker, Trey (November 2005). South Park: The Complete Sixth Season: "A Ladder to Heaven" (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment. Archived from the original (Audio commentary) on November 7, 2017.
  2. ^ Schorn, Peter (February 26, 2009). "South Park: The Complete Sixth Season DVD Review". IGN. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
[edit]