South Park: An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig

"An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig" is the fifth episode in the first season of the American animated television series South Park. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on September 10, 1997. In the episode, the boys of South Park try to force Kyle's pet elephant to crossbreed with Cartman's pet pig for a class project on genetic engineering. Meanwhile, Stan tries to deal with his sister Shelley, who keeps beating him up. The episode was written by series co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone along with Dan Sterling. The episode served as both a parody of genetic engineering and a statement against its potential evils. The scenes of Stan getting beat up by his sister were inspired by Parker's real-life childhood experiences with his own sister, who is also named Shelley. "An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig" was met with generally positive reviews, and has been described as one of the most popular early South Park episodes. Several commentators praised its satirical elements with regard to genetic engineering. The episode marked the first appearance of Shelley Marsh, Stan's mother Sharon Marsh, and the mad scientist Dr. Mephesto, who was inspired by the title character of the 1996 film, The Island of Dr. Moreau.