Top 10 South Park Characters You Forgot Were Awesome

In the early seasons, Pip was a major character, albeit controversial. His solo episode Pip from Season 4 became one of the most hated. Its a retelling of Great Expectations, featuring no major South Park players except Pip. The character was written to be annoying, which is reflected in how intensely the others mistreat him. Pip was basically the original Butters, but with much less endearing traits. Its been way more than 10 years since his comical death in episode 201. Now, though, its challenging not to feel nostalgic for the little British boy. He deserved better!

For years, the pupils struggled with Garrisons less-than-adequate teaching style. After Garrison ran for President, Ms. Nelson was his replacement. It was a blessing for the students since she was competent at her job - a rarity in South Park. Unfortunately, she wasnt around for that long. Like her much earlier predecessor, Ms. Choksondik, Ms. Nelson suffered an untimely death. In this case, COVID was the cause. This happened in 2021, not long after Donald Trump lost his presidency. Its no coincidence. She died so they could bring back fan favorite Garrison.

Season 1 ended with one of the shows most famous cliffhangers, focusing on the identity of Cartmans missing father. One of its central characters was mad scientist Dr. Alphonse Mephesto, who loves to genetically engineer animals similar to Doctor Moreau. This usually involves giving them more buttocks, but his skills were also used to discover Cartmans dads identity. He stuck around as a prominent side character until Season 4. Then he started to fade into obscurity. Now, Mephesto is simply a background character, whose zany antics are left to the imagination.

Introduced in the first episode, Veronica Crabtree became a hilarious side character. She drove the boys to school every morning, a favor theyd repay by regularly insulting her. Thankfully for them, her hearing was so poor that they always got away with it. This made her a regular character in the early seasons, but as time went on, she became less prominent. One of her most notable episodes was City on the Edge of Forever (Flashbacks), where she comically nearly drove the school bus off a cliff. Eventually, in Season 8, she was murdered by serial killer Michael Deets and hasnt returned since.

Since Season 4 in 2000, the main characters have been in the 4th grade, making it one of the longest school years in history. Initially, they were taught by Diane Choksondik, taking over from Garrison. While she was a better teacher, she could barely control the children. This prompts her to climb the mountain Garrison has escaped to, where she learns discipline secrets. Ultimately, shed only last a few years, getting killed off in Season 6. Its never confirmed how she died, but her surname is a strong hint.

Before the introduction of the divisive character PC Principal, the school was run by Principal Victoria. She had the job for at least 18 seasons before getting replaced. Throughout most of this time, she was among the only capable faculty members at South Park Elementary. The reason shes fired is only vaguely explained, but its clear they wanted to bring in PC Principal. Since Season 19, shes not had a single speaking role, meaning shes almost entirely retired. Its a shame for a lot of longtime fans, especially the ones not fond of PC Principal, but on the other hand, it reflects the inevitability of change in life.

In the early seasons, Satan occurred frequently, usually to wreak havoc on South Park. Satan first appeared in the Season 1 episode Damien, where he almost beats Jesus before taking a dive. Hilariously, hes in a toxic relationship with former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Satan and Hussein then became major antagonists of the 1999 movie, until Kenny convinces Satan to ditch his toxic tyrant boyfriend. As the show progressed, his prominence declined. His arc concluded in Season 22, when he tried helping the boys stop ManBearPig. In the end, the Lord of Hell was fatally wounded by the monster, which caused his soul to ironically ascend to heaven.

For a long time, Officer Barbrady was the entire South Park police department. The series never shied from joking about how incompetent an officer he is. It was frequently the source of conflict in episodes, like in Chickenlover where he has to learn to read so save the town. In Season 7, the Park County Police Force was introduced, and Barbrady started to fade into the background. He made a comeback in Season 19, only to get fired. Somehow, he manages to get his job back the same season. Since then, hes only had brief cameos, but hasnt spoken a line in years.

If you eat a lot of fiber on Christmas Eve, you might get lucky and spot the magical Christmas deity Mr. Hankey. Since Season 1, he lived in the sewers of South Park, but would come out once a year to spread Christmas cheer. Hilariously, only Kyle and Chef could see him initially, but when the residents begin to believe, he appears in front of everyone. As time went on, he went seasons without appearing, until Season 22, where he was banished to Springfield from The Simpsons. Fascinatingly, he was originally meant to be the shows main character. While we all like him, we have to admit that itd be a much worse series.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

The Son of God Rarely Appears in Newer Seasons, But He Should Rise Again

Malkinson Deserves More Respect

When Is Asses Of Fire 2 Coming Out Already?

One of the many iconic episodes from Season 5 was Towelie, which introduced its titular character. As his name suggests, hes a talking towel, but dont say that to him or hell retaliate. Since then, hes been the focus of a few episodes, like A Million Little Fibers, where hes the primary character. He appeared again in Season 14, but then vanished until Randy opened Tegridy Farms. Given their primary product, it makes sense that Towelie immediately signed up to help. So while he still appears occasionally, its been years since the last Towelie episode, all of which are side-splittingly funny.

Who is your favorite retired South Park character? Is it the iconic Chef, or the lesser-known Lemmiwinks? Let us know in the comments below!