What does it say about "South Park's" Trey Parker and Matt Stone that they presided over Comedy ... are these guys snickering..

What does it say about "South Park's" Trey Parker and Matt Stone that they presided over Comedy Central's most thoughtful and reflective session last Thursday morning at the Television Critics Association press tour in Pasadena?

"We don't want to lose our edge, but we also want to grow old gracefully," said Parker. "We're still doing some really (expletive)-up (yet another expletive). We're losing our edge, but hopefully we're gaining something else."

Parker and Stone discussed, among other things, their controversial Scientology and "Cartoon Wars" episodes with TV reporters on the occasion of the 10th season of "South Park," coming in October. After winning an Emmy and a Peabody Award, one of TV's most anarchic programs has become - shudder - respectable.

"South Park's" Scientology episode, which mocked the religion as well as offered a withering opinion about Tom Cruise's sexuality, was yanked from the network after one airing - until it received an Emmy nomination for its script (it returns next week).

Initially, the two shied away from the subject out of fear of the religion's reputation for litigiousness but proceeded after getting an OK from network attorneys.

"Their reputation is for intimidating people," Stone said, "but it's all b.s. The press has made them into these monsters, and they enjoy that reputation because people won't mess with them."

They've won the war against Scientologists but have yet to triumph over fundamentalist Islam - or the timidity of Comedy Central executives, who refused to allow the duo to present an image of Mohammed after deadly riots followed the publication of Danish cartoons mocking Islam's prophet.

Parker said that when he initially saw TV reports about riots under the headline "Cartoon Wars," he thought they were in response to an earlier "South Park" episode that depicted Mohammed as a super hero whose power is the ability to turn into a beaver.

At the end of the two-part episode in which all of America, fearful of terrorist reprisals, buries its heads in the sand to avoid seeing an episode of "Family Guy" that includes the controversial image, the image itself was censored by the network.

Doug Herzog, president of Comedy Central, said, "It was a judgment call. You feel bad, because (Parker and Stone are angry) at you and calling you a coward in Variety. Did we overreact? Sure. History will probably show that."

Parker said, had the image aired as intended and riots had in fact broken out, "We would've felt super-(expletive), but you can't back down. We rip on everyone. If they threaten violence and get away with it, then why can't Catholics or Christians or anyone threaten violence?"

On the other hand, the two were lauded by other animators who also enjoyed the poke at "Family Guy," whose writers were depicted as manatees in a tank.

"The day after that episode aired, we received flowers from 'The Simpsons,"' Parker said. "We heard from some people over at 'King of the Hill' that we were doing God's work. It's not just our opinion."

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