The Marsh family is spending Stan's ninth birthday at a public aquarium in Denver. The episode was nominated for a Genesis Award, but lost to the Family Guy episode ' Dog Gone'. 'Whale Whores' was released on DVD and Blu-ray along with the rest of the thirteenth season on March 16, 2010. A downloadable version of the song was released for the game in March.
The episode also featured references to the show Deadliest Catch and a rendition of the Lady Gaga song ' Poker Face' sung by Eric Cartman on the game Rock Band. In a response to the episode, Paul Watson said he was not offended by the portrayal, and was glad the show brought the issue of illegal whaling to a large audience. The episode is particularly critical of the reality television series Whale Wars and its star Paul Watson, an environmental activist who is prominently featured in 'Whale Whores'. 'Whale Whores' addressed the topic of Japanese whaling, condemning both the whalers themselves and the activists who fight against them. The episode was written and directed by series co-creator Trey Parker, and was rated TV-MA LV in the United States. In the episode, Stan joins an anti-whaling crew in order to save dolphins and whales from Japanese whalers. The 192nd overall episode of the series, it aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 28, 2009. ' Whale Whores' is the eleventh episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park.
