The episode was written by series co-creator
Trey Parker and is rated
TV-MA in the United States. It depicts several religious figures,
including Muhammad, whose appearance at the time of the original airing caused little to no controversy. Following
Islamists' death threats regarding Muhammad's portrayal in the 2010 episode titled "
201", the South Park Studios website no longer streams "Super Best Friends", nor is it available for streaming or purchase from online stores. The episode has been replaced on the South Park Studios with a notice: "We apologize that South Park Studios cannot stream Super Best Friends."
[1] The episode was also featured in
syndication, but was permanently removed after the threats.[
citation needed] It is one of three episodes which are unavailable on
Hulu, along with season 14's "
200" and (the aforementioned) "201."
...
In 2005, cartoon depictions of
Muhammad became more controversial during the
Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. The creators of
South Park returned to this theme in later episodes, parodying censorship attempts and portraying Muhammad again in the 2006 episodes "
Cartoon Wars Part I" and "
Cartoon Wars Part II"
[5] and again in the 2010 episode "
200". Further controversy ensued, and one group, "
Revolution Muslim", warned that South Park's creators would "probably wind up like
Theo van Gogh".
[6] Around this time, the original "Super Best Friends" episode was removed from the South Park Studios website.
[5]
.....
The episode was included in the re-release of the fifth season on
Blu-ray, released on December 5, 2017.
[8] This was the first time the episode was made available in
HD, as the episode was not released alongside the rest of the season when it debuted in HD on
iTunes in 2011.
[9] The episode is shown in its original presentation, without Muhammad's image being obscured as in later episodes of the series.
[10]