TVSquad

I've been catching up on episodes of The Sopranos in preparation for the new season, and I just got done with the second season. I also received a great Rat Pack CD set for Christmas, which has been getting heavy play here at Casa De Budke. So, between those two things and last night's episode of Family Guy, I've gotten an unexpectedly large dose of Frank Sinatra Jr. over the past couple of weeks. Not a bad thing per se, just an odd thing. If I were to create a "New Rat Pack" from animated characters on TV now, I'm almost certain that Brian and Stewie would be on it as well, (and probably Timmy from South Park, and Bender from Futurama just for good measure). On with the show!

After Peter almost killed Brian with the car, Brian became very depressed and down-trodden. He started asking himself the same questions that we all do right after we were almost killed (you mean, that hasn't happened to you guys too?): what's this life for? Why am I here? What am I doing with myself? He'd just about hit rock-bottom, when a mysterious man came up to him at a bar, and told him that you only get one go round, so you might as well live it up. The man then went on to the stage and performed. It was Frank Sinatra Jr.. Brian joined in the act and the two became quite a hit. After the addition of Stewie to the group, the "New Rat Pack" was the talk of the town and quickly became the show to see. Brian's hard partying ways quickly became too much for him to handle though, as he turned on Peter in a drunken rage and bit him.

Meanwhile, Meg had finally been accepted by a group of kids at school, and she was so excited. After she learned that it was the lesbian group, she was initially put off, but she decided to play for the other team just to fit in. Lois figured out what Meg was doing and repeatedly tried to convince her daughter that she wasn't really gay, but she was just pretending to be to fit in, and that was wrong. Meg finally came around and broke the news to her "girlfriend" who was a little heartbroken. Brian had run away from home and Stewie went out to look for him, where he actually found him in the gutter ("what a cliche" as Stewie put it). He tried to convince Brian to turn his life around, but Brian was having nothing of it. Finally, Stewie admitted that he loved Brian and went to perform with Frank. Halfway into their act, a recovered Brian came sliding onto stage.

This wasn't it's greatest episode this year, but it was still funny. The part where Meg's stuffed bear threw itself in front of the truck had me laughing so hard I had to pause the TV. The opening had two totally unrelated, yet absolutely hilarious bits in it. The first was a play on the old joke, "I was dreaming I was eating a sheep, but when I woke up my pillow was gone" which had Peter actually eating a sheep (or part of one) in his sleep. The other bit was Meg walking in on Chris while he was in the bathroom. You see just the back of Chris' veiny mechanical head, as his hair and cap are lowered down to cover his skull while the Star Wars Imperial March plays slowly in the background. Freakin classic! Let me know what you think.

Pop Culture References of the Week:
The Rock's race
The infomercial guy talking about an upper decker
How hilariously funny Hope and Faith is
The member of the board