Just because it was cancelled doesn't mean it's not great! Hundreds of hilarious moments! I was reading some FG quotes at work the other day and I had to stop because I was laughing too much in the office!
I understand it's because the writers took on a lot more than they should have once the "comeback" was agreed upon - ie, they agreed to come up with a season and a half of shows, plus the "Stewie Movie", in the period that one season usually gets written. This resulted in both rehases, lame jokes, and lots and lots of cutaways and gags that went on waaaaaaay too long. Dosen't seem to have hurt them much, though. Myself, I watch it occasionally now, but wish they'd do more episodes focused on Brian and Stewie. Those two make for a good pairing. Peter, I find him irritating more often than not.
How can you LIKE this? I find these bits kill the momentum of the show dead. Sure, this can be funny in small doses (see the Simpsons episode where Sideshow Bob hits himself in the face with about 12 rakes), but Family Guy indulges in them all the time, and I just find myself saying "OK, we GET it! GERRONWITIT!!"
*shrugs* Just a taste thing I guess. I don't expect comedy to be linear, or even coherent. As I said, I rediscovered the show when it started running on [adult swim] -- compared to the usual [as] fare, Family Guy at its most disjointed and random flows as smoothly as a Bob Newhart routine.
My 9 and 12 year old boys are allowed to watch this in my house. The choice was not hard for me, they get it...., now the evening news, that to me is hard to expose them to.
Gotta put myself in the anti-"Family Guy" camp. I think the episode of "South Park" that mocked the series had it right - the show's little more than a conglomeration of random pop culture references. They throw out these references with no rhyme or reason - that's funny? And I'm not easily offended, but I still can't believe the insanely tasteless George Harrison gag they ran...
I agree with this opinion. The show has been wildly inconsistant and I stopped watching for a while because of that.
Kind of ironic too, as I recall that Family Guy once mocked shows like, I think it was Murphy Brown, that find making political references in a sitcom to be inherently funny - "blah blahblahblah Clinton! blahblahblahblahblah Justice Scalia!" or suchlike.
THIS is the real issue of 'Family Guy'! Do y'all feel exposing you youngin's to this is the same as when I was a Kid? My parents let me enjoy "Blazin' Saddles", "Love & Death", "SNL", & "Monty Python", when I was between 8 to 10 years old............. I must say, I'm definately not part of the 'in' crowd, but I fell early exposure to the issues these pieces convay in their own harlarious way has made my the 'kooky' guy that i am today. Any thoughts on this?
That was the 1st FG I had ever seen, and I about pee'd myself watching it. Never thought I would hear the "douche" in a context other than a feminine hygiene commercial. As soon as that one is available on iTunes, I am downloading it. Brian
You guys piqued my curiosity about this Star Wars episode, so I searched for video clips. (Oh yes, big Star Wars fan here.) Here's one that really made me laugh: Family Guy "The Star Wars Couch" I'm going to have to keep my eyes out for a rebroadcast of this episode so I can watch the whole thing.
Actually the whole episode is on Google Videos (for now). http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4080217493757613841
It'll be on [adult swim] this coming Sunday night/Monday morning. Their rebroadcasts sometimes include extra material.
"Shoot a little Fabreze on it, it'll be as good as new." Is it absurd? Absolutely, but isn't that the point? Take this clip as an example. If a viewer hasn't seen Star Wars 40 times like me, it probably wouldn't be that funny. But everyone has helped someone move a couch and can relate to the entire "couch tango" that inevitable happens. To even think of combining those two elements, and then keeping the characters behavior consistent with the situation takes a certain level of genius that I think many people overlook.
Thanks man.....I have been wanting to get it on m Tivo. The link that was posted previously was just too fuzzy to watch. Brian
I dunno.I like bothbut prefer Family Guy.MUCH funnier.And I get the references,some of which are pretty obscure. One thing against South Park is their ongoing fascination with,er,fecal matter.There was yet another episode last night.... By the way,I don't think I caught the George gag.What happened?
In one of their random flashbacks, we saw Peter was supposed to be the guard at George Harrison's house. He slacked off on the job so the guy who got into George's place and attacked him with a knife made it past him. NOT funny - VERY tasteless and uncool... :thumbsdn: Probably doesn't help the episode aired just four months before George died. No, I don't think the folks at the series knew George was so bad off when they did their tasteless gag, but still...
Random and/or offensive is a rather popular trend in comedy. also: Iknowthatdoesn'tmakeitrightorwrong I'mjustsaying.
Gotcha.Yeah,that one bugged me too.In a earlier one,Chris & Meg were fighting & Stewie says 'stop that or I'll do to you what I did to John Lennon!',and I'm thinking--watch it,don't go there....BUT it ended up being Stewie at a party,and saying 'hey John,c'mere,you've gotta meet my friend Yoko!!!'-which I thought was pretty amusing.....
I find it beyond hilarious that folks here make it a point to say they're deeply offended by 'jokes' about their musical heroes like George Harrison & John Lennon, but are either okay with or don't bother mentioning the several Hitler vs. Jews jokes. Or the totally racist jokes about blacks. Hey, I started the thread and think it's all side-splitting, but I love how rock musicians are held in god-like esteem by Hoffmanites.
I didn't mention any of that because I haven't watched that much "FG". I've seen enough to know I don't like the show, but I've not watched a ton. I guess I just got "lucky" that the Harrison "gag" was on one of the shows I saw. How someone could find a "comedic bit" that crass and cruel to be funny is a mystery to me...
It's a funny show. Since getting a bunch of Simpsons seasons on DVD and therefore being able to watch whichever Simpsons episode I choose at any time, though, I've been much less interested in Family Guy. Some people I know are constantly singing its praises -- still -- but I'm a little sick of it at this point. What's wild is a lot of teenagers seem to love it and think the Simpsons is a "boring" show compared to Family Guy. When a 15 year old who works where I do said this to me, I was shocked. I'm only 20, but I suddenly felt like a geezer, babbling on about the brilliance of the Simpsons' social satire in seasons 4-8. When Family Guy doesn't resort to cheap gags, it's a great show. When it's funny, it's extremely funny.
Last night I saw the one where Peter becomes a woman. When Lois goes to Quagmire's and he turns down the lights and that jazz comes on and he's shaking his head to the beat! Oh man I was rolling! Anyone know if that is a real jazz song? If not, what type of music is that cus I have been looking for that for a while!! Yes...to put the moves on!
HOWEVER, there is one joke they DO NOT show on the re-runs! It was even cut from the DVD version of the episode. The part in "Road To Rhode Island" when Stewie starts singing to get on an airplane, then turns to the audience and says, "I hope Ohsama Bin Landen doesn't know show tunes.", and then, in typical FG fashion, they cut to Ohsama at the airport, singing, "God, I Hope I Get It", from "A Chorus Line"! At WAS funny, at the time.......
