Kyle Broflovski - Role in South Park

Role in South Park

Kyle attends South Park Elementary as part of Mr. Garrison's class. During the show's first 58 episodes, Kyle and the other main child characters were in the third grade following which they have been in the fourth grade. He lives in South Park with his father Gerald, a lawyer, and his overprotective mother Sheila, a housewife who fits the mold of a Jewish mother stereotype. Gerald and Sheila have been referred to as Polish Jews, and they mutually share a strong devotion to their Jewish religion, while expressing deep concern during the multiple times Kyle's faith in Judaism becomes enervated. Kyle has a younger brother named Ike, who Kyle learns was adopted and originally from Canada in the episode Ike's Wee Wee.

Gerald often attempts to teach Kyle important morals. Although his mother's outspoken, manipulative nature usually overwhelms Kyle, he tends to show that he truly loves her, and takes offense to any insult Cartman may offer about her. Although he engages in the reckless act of playfully kicking him like a football, Kyle shows concern for his brother's well-being. He was initially reluctant to embrace Ike as his brother upon learning that Ike was adopted, but Ike's genuine affection for his older brother persuaded Kyle to love him in return, and regard him as "true family".

Kyle is modeled after Stone, while Stan is modeled after Parker. Kyle and Stan are best friends, and their relationship, which is intended to reflect the real-life friendship between Parker and Stone, is a common topic throughout the series. The two do have their disagreements, but always reconcile without any long-term damage to their friendship. The show's official website defines Kyle's role amongst his friends as "the smart one". He often provides a sober thought to plans or ideas made by the other boys, and explains a moral outlook while drawing upon his vast knowledge and intelligence. He tends to offer reasonable or scientific explanations both to situations most others view as supernatural in nature, and in opposition of propaganda dispensed by Cartman.

Several episodes focus on Kyle and his religion, and being the lone Jew has resulted in an enmity with the Antisemitic Cartman that has become significantly more pronounced as the series progresses. Parker and Stone have compared the relationship to the one shared by Archie Bunker and Michael Stivic on the 1970s sitcom All in the Family. Kyle makes cracks at Cartman's weight and is horrified and disgusted with Cartman's immorality, cruelty, bigotry, and greed. Their rivalry often elevates to the point where Kyle becomes so obsessed with beating Cartman at whatever he does, he sometimes neglects Stan and Kenny in the process. He has a tendency to make what he thinks are safe bets with Cartman, often losing these bets when the improbable actions promised by Cartman are accomplished. Though he has claimed Kenny was not his friend, in order to avoid having to spend the night at his poverty-stricken household, Kyle has professed a friendship with Kenny and shown genuine concern for Kenny's health and safety. Kyle normally has the angrier reaction of yelling, "You bastards!" following Stan's exclamation of the popular catchphrase, "Oh my God, they killed Kenny" after one of Kenny's trademark deaths.

Near the end of the production run of the show's fifth season (2001), Parker and Stone contemplated having an episode in which Kyle was killed off. The reasoning behind the idea was to genuinely surprise fans, and to allow an opportunity to provide a major role for Butters Stotch, a breakout character whose popularity was growing with the viewers and creators of the show. Parker and Stone initially chose Kyle because they deemed him as being too similar to Stan, in terms of personality. Instead, the character of Kenny was chosen, and he was seemingly killed off for good in the episode "Kenny Dies". The duo claimed they grew tired of upholding the tradition of having Kenny die in each episode, and regarded the character as a "prop". Nevertheless, Kenny returned from a year-long absence in the season six (2002) finale "Red Sleigh Down", and has remained a recurring character ever since.

In many episodes, Kyle draws upon his sense of social purpose and moral outrage, and reflects on the lessons he has learned during the course of an episode, with a speech that often begins "You know, I learned something today...". Kyle acknowledged this trend in the season five (2001) episode "Cartmanland" when he states that he often gives the speech each week in an attempt to "try and better myself", and again in the season seven (2003) episode "Butt Out" where he repeatedly reminds his friends that they continuously allow potentially riotous events to occur, and are only able to defuse the situation by giving such a speech to the gathered townsfolk.

Kyle's mother reveals in the episode Cherokee Hair Tampons that Kyle is diabetic- although whether this 'goes away' once Kyle gets a kidney transplant is unexplained and has seemingly not been brought up since. There have been numerous occasions when Kyle has been ill or sick more often than his classmates, and there has been speculation that he may have a poor immune system.