Tolkien Black (originally known as Token Williams and Token Black) is a fictional character in the
adult
An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...
animated television series
An animated series is a set of Animation, animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can ...
''
South Park
''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...
''. He was originally voiced by
Trey Parker, later changed to series art director, storyboard artist and producer
Adrien Beard. The original name "Token" was a play on the politically-correct ideas of
tokenism
Tokenism is the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to be inclusive to members of minority groups, especially by recruiting people from underrepresented groups in order to give the appearance of racial or gender equality wit ...
, but in "
The Big Fix" it was
retconned that his name was "Tolkien", not "Token", despite his Facebook profile using the name "Token" in "
You Have 0 Friends" and him writing his name the same way in “
Raising the Bar
Raising the Bar may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Raising the Bar'' (2008 TV series), an American legal drama television series
* ''Raising the Bar'' (2013 TV series), an American reality web series about barmaking
* ''Raising the Bar'' (20 ...
”.
Biography
Tolkien attends South Park Elementary, who is a third-then fourth-grade student of
Mr. Garrison
Herbert Garrison, formerly known as Janet Garrison, Ethan F Garrison, and the President, is a fictional character and occasional antagonist on the American animated television series ''South Park''. The character is voiced by cocreator Trey Pa ...
's class, who was replaced by
Mrs. Nelson in season 19. He was originally the only
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
student attending the school until
Nichole Daniels was introduced in "
Cartman Finds Love
"Cartman Finds Love" is the seventh episode of the sixteenth season of the American animated sitcom ''South Park'', and the 230th episode of the series overall. It premiered on Comedy Central in the United States on April 25, 2012 and is rated TV- ...
". Residing in South Park, he is the only child of
Linda and Steve Black, who were originally the only African American family in the town until the
Daniels family first appeared. Token is a member of a 4-part group that works against the main four characters (
Stan
Stan or STAN may refer to:
People
* Stan (given name), a list of people with the given name
** Stan Laurel (1890–1965), English comic actor, part of duo Laurel and Hardy
* Stan (surname), a Romanian surname
* Stan! (born 1964), American author ...
,
Kyle
Kyle or Kyles may refer to:
Places
Canada
* Kyle, Saskatchewan, Canada
Ireland
* Kyle, County Laois
* Kyle, County Wexford
Scotland
* Kyle, Ayrshire, area of Scotland which stretched across parts of modern-day East Ayrshire and South Ayrshir ...
,
Cartman
Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to by his surname Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main charact ...
and
Kenny
Kenny is a surname, a given name, and a diminutive of several different given names.
In Ireland, the surname is an Anglicisation of the Irish language, Irish ''Ó Cionnaith'', also spelt ''Ó Cionnaoith'' and ''Ó Cionaodha'', meaning "descendant ...
) in multiple plotlines, which consists of him,
Craig Tucker
Craig Tucker is a fictional character in the adult animated television series '' South Park''. One of the main characters' fourth-grade classmates, he debuted in the season one episode " Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" singing "We Wish You a Merr ...
,
Clyde Donovan
Clyde Donovan (formerly known as Clyde Goodman and Clyde Harris) is a fictional character in the adult animated television series ''South Park''. He is voiced by series co-creator Trey Parker. Clyde is a student at South Park Elementary School, an ...
and
Jimmy Valmer
James "Jimmy" Valmer () is a fictional character from the American animated television series ''South Park''. He is voiced by Trey Parker. He is physically disabled, requiring forearm crutches in order to walk.
Character biography
In season 7 epi ...
.
From season 1 to season 25 he was originally named Token, as a play on the politically-correct idea of the "
token black guy
Tokenism is the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to be inclusive to members of minority groups, especially by recruiting people from underrepresented groups in order to give the appearance of racial or gender equality wit ...
" in TV shows; but it was
retconned in "
The Big Fix", where his name is actually "Tolkien", named after his father's favorite author,
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philology, philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was ...
.
Character
Creation and design
Tolkien debuted in the series' first episode, "
Cartman Gets an Anal Probe
"Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" is the series premiere of the American animated television series ''South Park''. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on August 13, 1997. The episode introduces child protagonists Eric Cartman, Kyle B ...
", though having no spoken line. He was composed with
construction paper and animated through
stop motion. From "
Weight Gain 4000
"Weight Gain 4000" is the third episode of the first season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on August 27, 1997. In the episode, the residents of South Park excitedl ...
" onward he is animated with computers, though is rendered to mimic that of the construction paper used in the first episode. Tolkien is not offered the same free-ranged motion as hand-drawn characters, as he is shown on one angle, and is animated with a jerky fashion.
Tolkien is African-American, with dark brown skin and short black hair, and usually wears a light purple long sleeve shirt with a yellow letter "T" on it, and dark blue jeans. Adrien Beard speaks with his normal vocal range and is edited with
Pro Tools, which alters the pitch to that of a fourth grader.
Personality and traits
Tolkien is known for being rational and intelligent. He is also known for standing up for himself and his rights, such as in "
With Apologies to Jesse Jackson", where he was upset by
Randy Marsh saying the
n-word
In the English language, the word ''nigger'' is an ethnic slur used against black people, especially African Americans. Starting in the late 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been progressively replaced by the euphemism , notably in cases ...
on ''
Wheel of Fortune The Wheel of Fortune or ''Rota Fortunae'' has been a concept and metaphor since ancient times referring to the capricious nature of Fate. Wheel of Fortune may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Art
* ''The Wheel of Fortune'' (Burne-Jo ...
'', in which he did not forgive
Stan
Stan or STAN may refer to:
People
* Stan (given name), a list of people with the given name
** Stan Laurel (1890–1965), English comic actor, part of duo Laurel and Hardy
* Stan (surname), a Romanian surname
* Stan! (born 1964), American author ...
until later in the episode, as well as in "
Christian Rock Hard
"Christian Rock Hard" is the ninth episode of the seventh season and the 105th overall episode of the American animated series ''South Park''. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 29, 2003.
In the episode, the ki ...
" where he was annoyed with
Cartman
Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to by his surname Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main charact ...
, where he was fed up with him, and physically assaulted him in front of many
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
fans.
He is also very talented, such as in "Christian Rock Hard" where he is highly skilled with the
bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
, though he gets annoyed as his talent due to Cartman's
stereotyping even though Cartman was right. He is also talented in singing in the episodes "
Wing
A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...
", as well as "
Here Comes the Neighborhood
"Here Comes the Neighborhood" is the 12th episode of the fifth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 77th episode of the series overall. "Here Comes the Neighborhood" originally aired in the United States on November 28, ...
". Tolkien is also good at fighting such as in the episodes "Christian Rock Hard" as well as "
Bebe's Boobs Destroy Society
"Bebe's Boobs Destroy Society" is the tenth episode of the sixth season of '' South Park'', originally aired on July 17, 2002. In the episode, Bebe Stevens's breasts begin to develop, and the boys are suddenly drawn to her even though they had ...
", and in "
Good Times with Weapons
"Good Times with Weapons" is episode 112 of ''South Park''. The first episode of season 8, it originally aired on March 17, 2004. In the episode, the boys are transformed into Japanese warriors after they buy martial arts weapons at a local marke ...
", where he is seen holding
nunchuks
is a traditional Okinawan martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks (traditionally made of wood), connected to each other at their ends by a short metal chain or a rope. It is approximately 30 cm (sticks) and 1 inch (rope). A person wh ...
.
Reception
''Paste'' magazine ranked him at #17 on a list entitled "The Top 20 Best ''South Park'' Characters". Token was also ranked at #19 by Looper on a list entitled "25 Popular ''South Park'' Characters Ranked Worst to Best".
References
External links
Tolkien Blackat South Park Studios
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Tolkien
South Park characters
Black characters in animation
Child characters in television
Television characters introduced in 1997
Fictional African-American people
Fictional characters from Colorado
Fictional elementary school students
Male characters in animated series
Things named after Tolkien works
Animated characters introduced in 1997