Cologne, Germany - The Catholic Church has failed to block MTV Germany from airing the controversial BBC cartoon series "Popetown," which features a squat, obnoxious, gun-toting pontiff.
In an 11th-hour move Wednesday, the bishops from
Pope Benedict XVI's home state of Bavaria filed an injunction to prevent the channel from broadcasting a single episode of the animated show, which features the good-hearted Father Nicholas and his trials with his papal boss.
In its motion, the archdiocese of Munich and Freising also called on German authorities to force MTV to pull print ads for the series, which featuring an empty cross and a laughing Jesus sitting in front of a TV with the slogan: "Instead of just hanging around, have a laugh."
"In this way the Catholic faith and the Catholic church are exposed to ridicule, which is justified neither by the freedom of opinion, of art, of the press nor of broadcasting," the archdiocese said in a statement.
But, just hours before the episode was scheduled to air, a court rejected the injunction, allowing MTV to go forward as planned.
"Popetown" has drawn attacks from the Catholic church wherever it has aired, from Canada to New Zealand. In the U.K., BBC 3 pulled the series after receiving more than 6,000 viewer complaints.
MTV Germany stoked the fire by starting its provocative Jesus print campaign just before the Easter holiday. The result was a storm of protest from the local Catholic Church as well as some Catholic grassroots organizations.
MTV plans to show a single episode of "Popetown" and gauge viewers' reactions. The airing will be followed by a live discussion which will include members of Germany's Catholic Youth Assn., media analysts, politicians, German pop stars and MTV viewers.