TVSquad

When The Simpsons and Family Guy become repetitive, it's ok, because, well, they've earned it. They make continuity flubs, and that's ok too. American Dad hasn't earned that yet, so when they've got an episode devoted to Stan and his son Steve finding common ground a week after they had one, it doesn't sit well. When Stan references the pleasures of porn twice in one episode a week after they spent an episode singing the evils of it, that feels a little off too. American Dad has a lot of potential, but it is certainly not living up to much of it. On with the show.
The episode starts off with a hilarious Family Guy reference when Stan is chosen to debrief the deputy director about a new cyberterrorist's activites over all the other agents and yells "Face!" at all of them. Ha, that made me laugh out loud. The cyberterrorist has been hacking into prominent computer systems and leaving messages in an undecipherable language, but before any more can be said on it, the meeting is called short for the father-son softball game practice. Stan, worried that Steve will embarass him at the game tries to "man him up" a little at a batting cage, but Steve is the only one that gets batted around. Steve and his friends however do have hobbies, the typical nerdish variety, and are looking forward to that weekend's SciFiCon.

Stan in another attempt to rescue Steve from himself takes Steve and all of his friends to the Yankees Orioles baseball game. Stan even pulled some strings and got the boys in the locker room to meet Derek Jeter, but to Stan's horror the gaggle of geeks strip down and reveal their hidden Star Trek uniforms. When Derek Jeter points out that Steve is a geek, Stan has a meltdown and runs through the streets to his home while a collage of Steve memories haunt him. By the way, I've got a shiny Marvel No-Prize® for the first person that can name the song that was playing when he was running.

Stan tricks Steve out of going to the Father-Son game but is caught and confronted by Steve and Francine that night when he comes home. Stress induced zits and braces for his grinding teeth start to give Stan a taste of what it's like to be a geek at work as all the other agents treat him like an outcast. Stan goes to confide in Steve who wants nothing to do with him, instead Steve curses Stan with a card from the role playing game that him and his friends are playing. Stan notices that the writing on the card is the same as that from the cyberterrorist's messages and quickly puts the boys to work on deciphering the messages. They learn that they're all coming from one of the main speakers down at the SciFiCon. Everyone heads down and they confront the terrorist and Steve's quick thinking saves the day.

I know there's funny to be had here, and I'm just not sure if I'm not getting it, but I can only take the same crap week after week. I can only take Roger trying to fit in so many times before I have to change the channel. This show is only really about halfway through it's first season and i'm already tired. Again, this show could be good, and has some funny funny moments, but it better discover some new plotlines quick, because these won't be funny 5 more times around the block.

Newspaper headline of the Week:
"Gas prices higher than that dude at Weezer concert"