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How Shows Like South Park Influence Crypto

by admin October 2, 2025

“South Park” extended its running gag on cryptocurrency in a recent episode, taking aim at prediction markets, trading apps, US regulators and politicians tied to the industry.

Now in its 27th season, the animated series has built its reputation on unhinged satire of global events. Crypto has repeatedly taken some hits.

Not everyone enjoys being lampooned on TV shows — the White House recently condemned its depiction of President Donald Trump in a relationship with Satan — but earlier crypto references were often embraced within the industry as proof of mainstream recognition.

Here are five moments when digital assets crossed into pop culture.

We got Kalshi in South Park before GTA 6 pic.twitter.com/659PZHoAqb

— Kalshi (@Kalshi) September 25, 2025

Prediction market apps Kalshi and Polymarket make it to “South Park.” Source: Kalshi/Paramount+

Bitcoin is the future as NFTs become diseases in “South Park”

“South Park” season 27 episode 5 is centered around prediction markets. It features a parody of Fox News reporting on Kalshi and Polymarket bets: Will President Trump and Satan’s baby be a boy or a girl?

Previous episodes featuring Bitcoin (BTC) include the 2021 post-COVID special aired on Nov. 25, where it’s a mainstream currency — but also a Ponzi scheme.

Bitcoin dipped after Nov. 25, but that was likely due to the emergence of a new coronavirus variant rather than “South Park.” Source: CoinGecko

In December 2021, “South Park” mocked non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as a get-rich-quick craze. The special portrayed an adult Butters — who is a friend and classmate of the four main characters on the show — losing his mind over NFTs, with anyone who listened to him becoming infected and ranting about apes and overnight riches.

“The Simpsons” and “Big Bang Theory’s” Sheldon explains blockchain

In a February 2020 episode titled “Frinkcoin,” “The Simpsons” ran a segment explaining cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.

The bit was narrated by Jim Parsons — best known for playing Sheldon on “The Big Bang Theory” — who broke down the basics of how cryptocurrencies work. It made waves in the crypto community because it skipped the satire and took an educational approach.

Related: Who’s in the running to become the next CFTC chair?

Over a year later, Bitcoin was featured in “The Simpsons” again. This time, the show predicted that BTC would rise to infinity.

Fortune didn’t favor Matt Damon’s Crypto.com ad

Hollywood actor Matt Damon starred in Crypto.com’s October 2021 commercial at the height of Bitcoin’s bull run, just weeks before the asset reached a then-record price.

“History is filled with almosts,” Damon declared. “With those who almost adventured, with those who almost achieved, but ultimately, for them, it proved to be too much.”

He then pointed to explorers and innovators as examples of human progress before concluding: “They calm their minds and steel their nerves with four simple words that have been whispered by the intrepid since the time of the Romans: fortune favors the brave.”

The camera then panned away from Damon, toward a cosmic backdrop with the Crypto.com logo. End of commercial.

Within weeks, Bitcoin hit a then-all-time high of about $69,000. But the following year brought notorious misfortune: the Terra collapse, cascading bankruptcies and a brutal bear market.

Bitcoin’s year following Matt Damon’s Crypto.com commercial in 2021. Source: CoinGecko

By February 2022, crypto was back in South Park’s crosshairs in a post-COVID hour special. “What does Matt Damon say in that Bitcoin commercial?” asked Eric Cartman, the show’s selfish instigator. “Fortune favors the brave!”

“My dad said he listened to Matt Damon and lost all his money,” another kid replied.

“Yes, everyone did,” Cartman said. “But they were brave in doing so.”

Crypto’s Super Bowl takeover

In 2022, the Super Bowl drew the attention of the entire crypto world, as several digital asset companies spent millions on high-profile commercials.

Crypto.com doubled down on its “fortune favors the brave” campaign with basketball legend LeBron James. Trading platform eToro promoted itself with both a commercial and a halftime bingo card minigame.

But Coinbase stole the show with a QR code bouncing around the screen. Viewers who scanned it enjoyed a $15 Bitcoin giveaway and sign-up promotion — a simple marketing campaign so popular it briefly crashed the app.

Related: Elon Musk and crypto: 6 times ‘Dogecoin’s CEO’ rocked markets

FTX’s commercial, starring comedian Larry David, aged far worse. In the ad, David dismissed transformative inventions throughout history, like the wheel and the fork. The final bit of ingenuity was FTX, which he again rejected.

“It’s a safe and easy way to get into crypto,” someone told him.

“Ehhh, I don’t think so. And I’m never wrong about this stuff,” Larry replied. “Never!”

Words then appeared across the scene: “Don’t Be Like Larry.”

Turns out David was right about FTX. Source: Jack Raines

By November 2022, FTX had collapsed into bankruptcy after it was revealed that it had commingled user assets. Founder Sam Bankman-Fried is now serving a 25-year prison sentence.

In a February 2024 interview, David admitted he regretted taking part in the commercial. He said he lost money after receiving part of his salary in crypto.

Elon Musk’s Dogecoin “hustle” on “SNL”

In 2021, Tesla CEO Elon Musk repeatedly tweeted about Dogecoin, each post sending the meme token higher.

Musk was sued in 2022 for allegedly manipulating Dogecoin’s price, but the suit was dropped in 2024. Source: Elon Musk/TradingView

Earlier that year, Tesla had disclosed a $1.5-billion Bitcoin purchase, giving the industry a major stamp of approval from one of the world’s richest executives.

The frenzy peaked with Musk’s “Saturday Night Live” appearance in May 2021, which pushed Dogecoin (DOGE) to an all-time high of $0.76 ahead of the broadcast.

But the episode backfired for investors as Musk called Dogecoin a “hustle” during a skit, and by September 2022, the token had lost roughly 75% of its value against Bitcoin.

Magazine: Quitting Trump’s top crypto job wasn’t easy: Bo Hines

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October 2, 2025 0 comments

Gaming Gear

The Best Disney Park Ride Overlays, and Where to Find Them

by admin September 27, 2025

In case you didn’t know, Nine Inch Nails is currently soundtracking the Tron Lightcycle Run coaster at Walt Disney World, and that is wild when you think about combining the power of Disney with the legendary industrial metal act. There is, of course, synergy, as the music comes from the NIN score for the upcoming Tron: Ares.

Seasonal and promotional ride overlays are now ways to draw in more people to revisit beloved attractions at Disney’s parks or give passholders a reason to come back over and over. Over time some have had more longevity than others, as the most popular overlay continues to be Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion Holiday, which has Jack Skellington and friends take over the West Coast haunt with his spooky Christmas shenanigans. Meanwhile, the haunted version of Space Mountain: Ghost Galaxy seems to have exorcised its spirit—it just might have been a tad too scary, while Star Wars: Hyperspace Mountain stays beating out the rest.

Here is a compilation of some of the most out-there and unique Disney experiences overlays, along with their current statuses at the parks.

Tron Lightcycle Run (NIN Tron: Ares Collaboration)

io9 recently got to experience the Tron: Ares overlay at the Magic Kingdom’s Tron Lightcycle Run coaster (Walt Disney World admission and Lightning Lane were provided), which for the first time features the actual score from the new movie. When we covered the opening of the ride back in 2023, Disney creatives revealed that the on-ride music was a new arrangement based on Daft Punk’s score for Tron: Legacy made specifically for the purposes of the attraction. You can, however, still hear the iconic Daft Punk tracks featured throughout the coaster’s queue and exit areas. Inside the ride itself, the usual Tron blue hue is swapped for Ares‘ crimson aesthetic as part of a new narrative of the ride, as we’re tasked with seemingly working with a program-gone-rogue before deleting it to preserve the grid (perhaps giving us a hint at what Ares will be about).

With the release of Tron: Ares, the coaster transforms into Nine Inch Nails: The Ride in the best way, with their signature industrial instrumentals, which fit perfectly in the world of the Grid gone rogue. It really works as a tonal opposite companion to the Team Blue track that usually plays. If the ride were ever built elsewhere, it would be such a cool dual coaster utilizing both instrumentations. At night the Ares theming looks incredible, to boot.

Haunted Mansion (Haunted Mansion Holiday)

The Haunted Mansion Holiday is what happens when The Nightmare Before Christmas’s popularity gets out of hand (thanks, Hot Topic). Don’t get me wrong, we love the film and Jack Skellington’s frightful festive branding, but we believe it takes over the Haunted Mansion too early. The Christmas-themed overlay goes up in September for Halloweentime at the Disneyland resort, even though the Haunted Mansion is the perfect ride for Halloween. Its ghosts and scares make more sense to continue until the end of October! But I guess those of us in the camp that thinks this incredible overlay of holiday cheer should start in November are in the minority, because the queue for it is always over an hour or even longer during its fall and winter run.

Space Mountain (Rockin’ Space Mountain, Ghost Galaxy, Hyperspace Mountain)

Space Mountain at Disneyland (sorry, Magic Kingdom, and your sad Christmas music overlay) is hands down the champ of seasonal theming. What began with Rockin’ Space Mountain when the coaster got a Red Hot Chili Peppers soundtrack has only glowed up from there. For a while, it was the home of a space specter that might have been too scary during Halloweentime’s Space Mountain: Ghost Galaxy. I can attest from my personal experience that I am still haunted by the memory of the thrilling, creepy music and jump-scare projections of being chased through dead space by a very angry fiery ghost with hollowed eyes. It hasn’t held up residence in the coaster since 2018, though it has gone over to Hong Kong Disney’s Space Mountain variant.

However, Space Mountain’s current reigning seasonal offering is Hyperspace Mountain, where you zoom through the Star Wars galaxy in a dogfight between X-Wings and TIE Fighters, all set to the films’ legendary John Williams score. Its debut predates the opening of Galaxy’s Edge and remains a better experience than Smugglers Run because we want that hyperspeed thrill of being in the fights we grew up watching. You can usually catch it in the spring during Disneyland’s Season of the Force events in the run-up to Star Wars Day.

It’s a Small World (Baby Groot)

It’s a Small World at Tokyo Disneyland recently received new pint-sized guests thanks to Baby Groot and friends. Earlier this year, Avengers fans were able to see Earth’s mightiest and tiniest figures throughout the attraction at the Asia park. Along with Groot, it included Ms. Marvel, Thor, Hulk, and Black Panther, among others. Yet, there’s no word if either of the states’ versions of the ride would ever get this. Perhaps Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom version could, since it definitely needs some love.

It would be too crammed at Disneyland’s original ride, as it currently has more of a permanent addition in the form of iconic characters being given the original ride artist Mary Blair treatment within their corresponding countries. For instance, you can find Cinderella in France, and new for this year, they added Pixar’s Coco heroes Miguel and Dante to the Mexico section of the ride.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout (After Dark)

For Halloween at Disney California Adventure, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout gets infested by monsters after dark. The drop tower attraction overlay is a current Halloweentime staple at the Disneyland resort for those who want to get even more terrified. The storyline takes a turn when various creatures from the collection are let loose, leaving riders to go into a dark monster house version of the Collector’s fortress to rescue Groot.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (September, Holiday Remix)

Speaking of the Guardians, over in Disney World, the Epcot attraction Cosmic Rewind gets a few cute variants. From September 21 through the 30, the ride only plays Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September,” which is usually one of the songs that plays on random rotation from the ride’s usual mixtape, a nod to the Awesome Mixes from the James Gunn movies. It’s such a silly nod to the meme-fication of your parent’s fave disco-era track, but endearing nonetheless. I still haven’t gotten this song on my rides of the mixtape-based coaster and missed this guarantee by a few days recently! I did, however, get to experience the holiday overlay on it, Holiday Remix, which only lasted one year in 2022 and was set to the tune of “Run, Run, Rudolph” but parodied as “Run, Run, Rocket”. Cute!

Jungle Cruise (Jingle Cruise)

The Jingle Cruise is missed at Disneyland. It felt as if nostalgic vintage holidays threw up on the riverboat ride. It’s more of a chaotic added theme that the skippers use as fodder for their Jungle Cruise bits on the fly, as you can see the animals on the ride appear to have gotten into some Christmas cargo. And the holiday puns are always top tier! Every year I wish it would return to Disneyland (it ended on the West Coast in 2017), but thankfully it is still operating during the holidays at the Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise in Walt Disney World.

Living With the Land (Glimmering Greenhouses)

Lastly, Epcot’s sustainable garden and farming zen ride, which is a favorite to decompress on, gets a lovely holiday lights tour overlay during the winter. It makes the relaxing and educational voyage away from the overstimulating bustle of the park even more wondrous to behold as festive key ingredients of holiday dishes from around the world are nerdily described over the course of the attraction. It’s theme park ASMR and chill holiday vibes. I hope Disney never changes this, because this little gem is something completely unexpected yet comforting to bask in at Epcot during Disney World’s busiest times.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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September 27, 2025 0 comments

Gaming Gear

‘South Park’ Season 27: When Does the Next Episode Come Out?

by admin September 4, 2025

Comedy Central/Video screenshot by CNET

If you’ve been around for the start of South Park season 27, you know its rollout has been hectic. The hit animated show had its season 27 premiere date pushed by two weeks and then announced its second installment would drop two weeks after the first. We’re now several weeks in and it’s easier to predict when new South Park episodes will debut.

According to the show’s website, South Park will continue to release episodes every other week at least through episode 5. Episode 4, “Wok is Dead,” airs on Comedy Central later today. The forthcoming installment has a trailer and a description: “Butters experiences the reality of tariffs when he has to buy a Labubu doll for his girlfriend’s birthday.”

While we don’t have additional details on future South Park episodes, another aspect of the show is more definitive: its new streaming home. With the signing of a deal in July, 50 new South Park episodes and the show’s back catalog will be on Comedy Central and Paramount Plus. Forthcoming episodes of season 27 will stream on Paramount Plus in the US the day after airing on Comedy Central. The show is no longer available on HBO Max as of early August.

If you want to watch the 27th season of the show co-created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, here’s what to know.

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South Park season 27, episode 4 release date and streaming details

Episode 4 will air on Comedy Central on Wednesday, Sept. 3 at 10 p.m. ET, 10 p.m. PT or 9 p.m. CT and stream on Paramount Plus the next day (the first three episodes are already on the streaming service). Episode 5 will air on Comedy Central on Wednesday, Sept. 17.

Season 27 episodes will hit Paramount Plus in the US the day after they air on Comedy Central. If you don’t want to wait that long to watch without cable, you might want to consider a live TV streaming service like Philo, Sling or YouTube TV. More on that below.

James Martin/CNET

Paramount Plus has two plans: Paramount Plus Essential and Paramount Plus Premium, which used to be called Paramount Plus with Showtime. Essential costs $8 per month and includes ads and a sampling of Showtime programming. Premium removes ads and unlocks more Showtime titles, among other perks.

Philo

Philo is a live TV streaming service that provides more than 70 channels, including Comedy Central. A subscription costs $28 per month and also includes access to AMC Plus content. Rivals like YouTube TV come with more channels but Philo could be a good fit for you if you like its smaller selection for a lower price.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Sling is between Philo and YouTube TV in price. Sling’s Orange plan costs $46 a month and its Blue plan costs between $46 and $51, depending on where you live. Sling Blue and Orange include Comedy Central and you can compare the rest of their channel lineups here.

James Martin/CNET

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September 4, 2025 0 comments

Esports

Why South Park Season 27 Episode 4 isn’t out this week

by admin August 28, 2025

South Park Season 27 Episode 4 is nowhere to be seen… yet, and there’s a good reason it hasn’t been released this week.

Donald Trump sleeping with Satan, Kristi Noem shooting Krypto out of the sky, Randy Marsh falling head over heels for ChatGPT – yeah, South Park is back.

After a brief, worrying period where the show’s streaming future was uncertain, Matt Stone and Trey Parker locked in a $1.5 billion deal with Paramount. Ever since, the series has constantly occupied the news cycle, with each episode in Season 27 more outrageous than the last; as per usual, nobody is safe, no matter what side of the political spectrum you’re on.

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So, after Towelie’s return last week, fans are keen to watch South Park Season 27 Episode 4. You’ll just have to wait a little while longer.

South Park Season 27 Episode 4 delay explained

Paramount+

South Park Season 27 Episode 4 won’t be released until Wednesday, September 8, due to the show’s production schedule requiring a two-week gap.

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This will continue to be the case for the rest of the season, so don’t expect new episodes of South Park on a weekly basis for the foreseeable future.

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There’s a simple reason: each episode has been extremely topical, whether it’s skewering Kristi Noem and ICE, parodying Charlie Kirk’s debates with college students, or Trump kicking around a baby-faced JD Vance.

Comedy Central

New episodes need to be up to date, but given their incendiary nature, Stone, Parker, and the show’s team require a bit more time to ensure they’re ready for mass consumption. “What they’re doing means this year’s episodes need more time than usual to put together, to finish,” a source told Deadline.

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“So much happens right now in just one day with Trump. No one’s going to sacrifice getting it right, even if we have to push getting it to air, and if that makes the season longer, so be it.”

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Another insider told the outlet, “We’re not going to argue with what’s working.

“The numbers are great, the show is getting a lot of attention — if they want to give us a 20-week season for 10 episodes, that’s okay.”

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The results speak for themselves: between episodes airing on Comedy Central and streaming on Paramount Plus the next day, ratings have risen consistently since the premiere, with the show’s viewership up 49% after the first episode.

Until Episode 4, read more about the banned South Park episodes, why South Park is no longer on HBO Max, and check out Season 27’s full release schedule.

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August 28, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

Spirit Halloween Has Made the Most Affordable ‘Jurassic Park’ Goggles Replica We’ve Seen

by admin August 21, 2025

The iconic T. rex escape scene is seared into the collective core memory of Jurassic Park fans. Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster franchise is full of memorable moments, from the jiggling water to the lawyer running to the bathroom. But if you, like me, had the film as one of your earliest and most life-changing cinema-going experiences, there’s not a detail forgotten—especially not the goggles. You know the ones that Tim grabs and the lawyer tells him to put back, because if they’re heavy, “they’re expensive.”

And that’s indeed been a fact of life for Jurassic fans who longed for their own pair of those iconic goggles: all available replicas have been expensive. Until now, that is.

Over 30 years later the wait is now over, as Spirit Halloween has released the highly coveted goggles of our childhood dreams, available at the seasonal spooky retailer’s pop-up near you and online. The officially licensed costume prop is $149.99; a price point that is much more reasonable than a custom prop replica or a 1:1 mantlepiece, such as the Chronicle Collectibles release from 2018. These could have saved little me a ton of sleepless nights as a kid if they would have been on hand in addition to a cup of water on my nightstand, which I’d look at to make sure it stayed still.

The only catch? They don’t detail night-vision capabilities, but hey, it’s for dress-up and not actually spotting Rexy in the distance. Take a look at the officially licensed Universal Pictures Jurassic Park goggles, which are so far the closest we’ll get to the real thing, and we’ll take it!

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August 21, 2025 0 comments