Traditionally, South Park episodes end with a "reset button" where everything returns to normal. "You're Getting Old" defied this convention:
: Movies and food begin to look like piles of excrement.
: It reflected the creators' exhaustion with the "gross-out" humor they helped popularize.
: Popular music (Tween Wave) sounds like literal "sh*t" to his ears.
: It captured the universal experience of outgrowing your hobbies and the people around you.