The other boys simply say, “ Oh, hey, Kenny,” and mention that everything’s “ back to normal,” as if they haven’t been grieving him for a year.
But his return was casually shrugged off at the very end of the season 6 finale, “Red Sleigh Down.” After embarking on a daring adventure to bring Christmas cheer to the children of Iraq, Stan, Kyle, and Cartman come back into town in time for the lighting of the Christmas tree and they’re joined by Kenny. It seemed Kenny would never be resurrected – or, if he was, it would be a momentous occasion. All throughout season 6, South Park fully committed to Kenny’s death as the other boys mourned his loss and tried to find a new fourth friend to replace him in the group. But in South Park season 5, episode 13, “Kenny Dies,” Kenny was seemingly killed off permanently when he succumbed to an unnamed terminal illness.
In every episode, Kenny would be killed in a gruesome and horrific way, then in the next episode, he’d be alive and well again. One of the earliest running gags established on South Park was Kenny’s recurring deaths.
