Come out of the closet, Comedy Central

The cricket tends to agree with atl malcontent about South Park being the only anti-establishment voice in the cartoon realm these days, filling a void created when The Simpsons decomposed after a slew of stale seasons.

However, I do not share his sentiments about Family Guy relying solely on slapstick humor, although the format is sometimes tiresome.

Remember the episode lampooning "the freakin' FCC?"

In the wake of Comedy Central's sudden yank of the now-infamous scientology show, the boys have blasted back.

Wednesday's episode focused on the hysteria created when Family Guy was censored for trying to show the prophet Muhammad drinking iced tea. When the writers demand the character be aired without the black box in a subsequent episode, Fox caves since Family Guy is its biggest and most successful series.

Hmm ... sounds familiar. Come to think of it -- without South Park -- CC really doesn't have that deep of a lineup.

Mass Muslim riots ensue, terrorism is threatened and Cartman vows to prevent the episode from airing and get the series cancelled.

Kyle, a fan of the show, tries to stop him.

The episode ends with a "to be continued" and asks whether Comedy Central will "puss out" and pull next week's show, implying that the embattled network might fear reaction to putting a caricature of his holiness on the boob tube.

Or maybe it's a bluff and they have no intention of crossing that line.

Well played, South Park. Well played ...

In related news, the show won the illustrious 2005 Peabody Award.

South Park: 2. Mind of Mencia: 0.