EDIT

Episode Summary

The citizens of South Park find themselves in a bad spot when people from the future start traveling back in time to find work. The future is such an overcrowded, desolate place that the only work to be found, lies in the past. How will the townsfolk react when they lose their job to a Gooback?moreless
9.0
out of 10
EPISODE RATING: Superb
371 votes
  • Your Rating: 10
    "Perfect"
  • Your Rating: 9.5
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 9
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 8.5
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 8
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 7.5
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 7
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 6.5
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 6
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 5.5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 4.5
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 4
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 3.5
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 3
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 2.5
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 2
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 1.5
    "Abysmal"
  • Your Rating: 1
    "Abysmal"
Rate It
  • Trey Parker

    Voice of Stan Marsh; Eric Theodore Cartman; Herbert Garrison; Officer Barbrady; Terrance; Timmy; Ned Gerblanski; Satan; Randy Ma

  • Matt Stone

    Voice of Kyle Broflovski; Kenny McKormick; Gerald Broflovski; Pip Pirrup; Jesus; Jimbo Kearn; Phillip; Saddam; Various Others

  • Isaac Hayes

    Voice of Jerome "Chef" McElroy

  • great

    8.5
    "Great"
    Mysterious beings from the future come to South Park, because they need jobs. At first, nobody cares, but when South Park is being over run by these people, known as Goobacks, the citizens try to fight back and get their jobs back. Will they win?

    It was alright. Not my favorite storyline. It had some good jokes, and the ending was funny, but the plot just did not interest me a lot for some reason, so because of all of this I think it fair my final grade for this episode is in the "B" range. Not a perfect episode but it is watchablemoreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0
  • "Dhey took er jobs!"

    8.5
    "Great"
    A commentary on the immigration issue of late in the US - and a well written one at that. People from the future come back to the past in droves because there are no more jobs in the future for them. They plan to get jobs in the past and let the money they make mature so that they have money for their future families. You can probably see the parallel already... the future people start taking everyone's jobs because they're willing to work for cheaper than the present day people. This episode covers (almost) every aspect of the immigration issue, including the way the the future people speak (which is a mix of all nations languages). I love that while making a point, the writers manage to throw in laughs around every corner including the great redneck line, "Dhey took er jobs!" (or, "They took our jobs!") Very funny episode that may make you look at the issue a little differently.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0
  • If any people come to live in your city, you should learn their language so they will understand you.

    9.7
    "Superb"
    The future people come to live in South Park and they have taken people's jobs. Stan tries to order a double cheeseburger and fries at a fast food restarant, but the goobacks that work that don't understand what he was trying to say. Stan freaks and he curses them. His parents come in and they are mad at him. As a result, Stan has to sit with Randy at his work place. Randy found that a Gooback is taking his job. He gets mad like everybody else in South Park. I don't blame Stan for being mad at the Goobacks that were were working in the fast food restaurant.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0
  • Best Episode

    10
    "Perfect"
    "Goobacks" is a perfect edition to season 8 which is the best season of south park. Also in my opinion this the best episode from this season and may be the best of the series. It has all of the classic aspects of a good episode. The part with the chicken sandwich is classic. The montage at the end just caps off a great episode. This episode is quoted daily be my friends and I; "They took our jobs", "Chicken Sandwich", "Did you say get gay This is just extremely funny stuff. The script writing in south is just genius.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0
  • Dey ook ur jerubs!

    9.9
    "Superb"
    In this hillarious parody of the Illegal Immigration problem in America ["Goobacks" tee hee hee]. "South Park" has future people "Terminator Philosohopy" into present day Earth and take the present peoples jobs for working to get IMENSELY low wages. Even the parody's of School and McDonalds with the un american little portal hoppers cracked me up. I loved Stan cursing at them for not getting his order right. They also parodyed the 2 sides ["pissed-off Conservative Redneck" and "aging Liberal douche"] very well on a "no spin zone". And the stupidity of the people [wanting to have people with guns kill the future people at the portal] and the gay orgie [Stan's expression was priceless as Randy was naked being interviewed on tv]. I loved this episode.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

See All
  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • Interstate 285 which is featured on the sign on the highway is actually the circular interstate in Atlanta. It is not in Colorado. Edit
    • One of the scientists spraying one of the time immigrants after he has stepped out of the portal can be seen holding a biohazard marked box, the same kind of box that the fetuses were in during the episode Kenny Dies. Edit
    • In this episode, for the first time, Kyle does not put up with Cartman's crap. Although we do not see it happen, Kyle gave Cartman a bloody nose. Edit
  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • This episode was originally listed on southparkstudios.com as "Wetbacks from the Future." It was then changed to "Goobacks from the Future." Finally, the day of the premiere, the episode was changed yet again to "Goobacks." Most likely the "from the Future" part was removed because it was a play on the movie title, "Back to the Future," and it didn't work very well. Edit
    • The "Work for a Better Future" montage at the end features many cameos of South Park characters, some of which are rarely seen anymore. Some of the characters include: Officer Barbrady, Principal Victoria, the Mayor, the McCormick family, Ike, Chef, Butters, Mr. Garrison, Mr. Slave, the Raisins girls, and the goth kids. Also, the bum from "Bigger, Longer, and Uncut" makes his first appearance since the movie. Edit
  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Man 1: All right, folks, my name is Darryl Weathers and I'm with the Construction Workers' Union. I work with a lot of fine men who have families to feed. Now I don't know about you all, but we worked long and hard to get our pay up to a level where we could make a decent living. And now these people from the future are showin' up and offerin' to do the same work for next to nothing'! They took our jobs! Other Men: (amongst general grumbling) Yeah! That's right! Man 2: We're in the moving business! Fourteen years we've been workin' our butts off! Now these future folk come in and we can't get work nowhere! (In a heavy hick accent) Dey took er jobs! Man 3: Dey took yer jobs! Man 4: Well what about us in the fast-food business? The restaurants are firing us 'cause the future people work for a lot less! (In a heavy hick accent) Dey took er jobs! Other Men: Dey took yer jobs! Stan: It's affecting kids, too! Me and my friends started our own snow-shoveling business. We were trying to be responsible and make money, you know? But then the people came along and, and now we're out of work, too! ... (After getting no response from the crowd, in a heavy hick accent) Oh, dey took er jobs! Other men: Dey took yer jobs! Edit
    • Darryl Weathers: So, any ideas how we can stop the future from happening? Chet: How about we cause more global warming, so that in the future, the polar ice caps melt, and, and it ushers in a new Ice Age? Darryl Weathers: How the hell is global warming gonna cause an Ice Age? Chet: Well, you know, the... global warming could bring on like a climate shift or somethin'. Darryl Weathers: Chet, you are a f***ing retard, you know that? Even if global warming were real, which all proven scientific data shows it isn't, it would take millions of years for a climate shift to happen! You think an ice age can just happen all of a sudden-like? Chet: Well, I was just tryin' to be helpful. Darryl Weathers: Well help yourself to a f***in' science book, 'cause you're talking' like a f***in' retard! Now, come on people, we've got to think! Damnit, they took our jobs! Edit
    • Stan: I think it's wrong to call them goobacks because they're no different from us. They're just humans trying to make their lives better. Look, it sucks that the immigrants' time is so crappy, but the cold hard truth is that if we let them all come back to our time, then it's just gonna make our time crappy too. Maybe the answer isn't trying to stop the future from happening, but making the future better. [...] I mean, maybe if we all commit right now to working toward a better future, then... then the future won't be so bad, and these immigrants won't need to come back here looking for work. Edit
  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Mixing Pot, Melting Pot, Salad Bowl, etc.: The people from the future are said to be a mix of all races and cultures from around the world and is the only one left at that point. This is a reference to the fear that the idea of going overboard with mixing as tolerance and political correctness has allowed and encouraged would eventually lead to the loss of all diversity. It is feared that one day, all current cultures and races will blend into a homogeneous soup with bits and pieces of various constituent parts, as well as the complete disappearance of others. This would be bad because not only would so much of humanity be lost, but so would genetic diversity which is crucial to survival and evolution. Edit
    • Wetbacks/Job Stealing: The people from the future are referred to by the derogatory term "gooback" which refers to the goo that they are covered with as a result from their method—time portal—of arriving in the present where they "steal jobs" from the indigenous people—present day people—by offering to work for (much) less. This is a reference to the Mexican people who are called by the equally derogatory term "wetback" which derives from the fact that many of them are wet after crossing a river in order to arrive in the United States of America where they "steal jobs" from the natives—Americans—by also offering to work for much less. Edit
    • The Day After Tomorrow: When Chet suggests destroying the future by encouraging global warming which would cause a climate shift, Darryl Weathers complains that they only have 1,000 years and that even if global warming were real, it would not cause a climate for millions of years; that and ice age doesn't just happen overnight. This is a jab at the movie The Day After Tomorrow in which global warming has caused the weather to spiral out of control, resulting in a sudden ice age that develops over a very short period of time. South Park will take another jab at the movie and global warming next season in "Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow". Edit
More
Less