(S06E04) During last Festivus I mentioned the secret constitution that the networks have to regulate their industry. This is the document that says the Regis Philbin robot must have a full check-out every six months and that one network or another must produce a musical-based drama every twenty years or so that will fail right off the bat. I'm hoping that, after watching this week's 100th episode of Family Guy, the networks add a new amendment to their constitution: clip shows will no longer air before special episodes or series finales.
Call it the Seinfeld Amendment for simplification. Before the series finale of Seinfeld NBC aired a one-hour retrospective featuring classic scenes from previous seasons. This got the viewing audience all hyped up to see an exciting and entertaining finale. Then, as we all know, that last episode was a huge suckfest that disappointed millions. If they had not aired the retrospective before the last show perhaps the anger surrounding the episode may have been lessened.
I wasted two paragraphs on this because, apparently, producers and creators still haven't learned their lessons from Seinfeld. Take Seth MacFarlane, creator of Family Guy. Before the 100th episode aired, a fairly entertaining retrospective premiered featuring clips from the last 99 episodes. Of course, fans got all hyped up to see an exciting and entertaining show. I mean, Stewie finally killing Lois is pretty momentous. Then, the show aired, and...
Well, "suckfest" is too strong of a description to describe the episode. Hugely disappointing would probably be a better way to describe what went on.
Perhaps it was the time change, but I just didn't find this episode to be very funny at all. I actually found it to be very disjointed with too many switches to fantasy scenes and flashbacks and very little story. The whole plot with Stewie killing Lois (which must be some type of dream Stewie is having) just did absolutely nothing for me.
Two reasons for that. One, Stewie killing Lois is like Wile E. Coyote capturing the Road Runner and finally devouring him. Once it happens it is very anticlimactic. The entertainment is in the hunt, not the capture. By finally killing Lois (in a pretty graphic scene that was one of the better this episode) there's not much more for Stewie to do but sing 'Road' songs with Brian. Yes, Lois comes back alive at the end of the episode, but you get my point.
Second, for me, Evil Stewie has run his course. It was funny in the first few seasons, but eventually got tiresome. I actually like how the character grew over the seasons and gained a love-hate relationship with Brian instead of Lois. Sure, he has had his moments since the show returned to FOX, but the more entertaining and sophisticated aspects of Stewie is the one that people find interesting, in my opinion.
If the episode as a whole was better, maybe the whole 'Stewie kills Lois' thing would have panned out. But, since the plot was pretty flimsy to start out with, nothing happened. Really, it seemed like every line was proceeded by an interruption of a flashback or fantasy sequence and were only mildly amusing. Geez, even Scrubs, which certainly has its share of fantasy and flashback sequences, tries to keep those to a minimum. They just made the episode feel off-kilter until the very end.
Hopefully, the second half of this episode ('Lois Kills Stewie') will show a bit more of what Family Guy does right. And Seth, if you're reading this...NO MORE CLIP SHOWS!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-05-2007 @ 11:31AM
Jim said...
THIS IS THE BEST KNEWS I HAVE HAD FROM HOLLYWOOD IN YEARS. CONTINUE THE STRIKE AS LONG AS POSSIBLE..........
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11-05-2007 @ 11:32AM
Hollywood Ron said...
Lousy episode.
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11-05-2007 @ 11:35AM
Alicia said...
Normally, Family Guy and American Dad are on my DVR and I watch them at some point durring the week. All I kept thinking about while this was on was, "I wonder if the baby has been born yet?" (On D.H.)
This was just pathetic.
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11-05-2007 @ 11:36AM
KMF said...
I actually couldn't sit through the clip show to even watch 'Stewie kills Lois Pt 1'. Though the clips were funny and all, I felt the clip show starting it all off was a let down, and killed off my enthusiasm and I went to bed. :P
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11-05-2007 @ 12:04PM
Zach said...
I feel like they spent the whole writing season working on the Star Wars episode (which was excellent). Overall this season has been pretty disappointing.
It was funny hearing how much the test audience hated the show. I bet they didn't even have to ask too many people to get enough bad opinions for the clip show.
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11-05-2007 @ 12:02PM
Will said...
Did anyone notice the ending with the To Be Continued, the music playing while the credits rolled, and the font/color they used in the credits? It reminded me of the end of an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation episode called "The Best of Both Worlds, Part I". It was a season-ending cliffhanger. I may be way off.
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11-05-2007 @ 12:03PM
fred said...
- The slip show : I agree they're useless a boring, but I actually thought it wasn't too bad here, because we had a highly pretentious MacFarlane facing people declaring their huge dislike of the show... and some were funny at times.
I'll admit, though, I fast-forwarded during all the clips, so maybe that helped...
- The epsiode : I kinda agree & disagree. I agree, as a "special" episode it was disapointing, there was nothing (special) here. And yes, Stewie killing Lois was pretty lame.
Though I actually wished this special would have a Stewie back in his first season mode, creating some evil plan to kill his creator, only to fail over & over again...
Anyways. I actually liked the episode myself. Yes, I did. Not as any kind of "special" one, but as a regular episode of Family Guy I thought it was pretty fun, had many jokes that worked, and I was happy with it.
(Granted, after the huge disappointement from The Simpsons I may have been too easy here, but I don't think so...)
http://88.191.26.34/i_watch_tv/2007/11/05/family-guy-stewie-kills-lois-part-1/
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11-05-2007 @ 6:43PM
MosquitoControl said...
This show hasn't been funny for me in a while. Unlike The Simpsons, which seemed to forget what it was, Family Guy stuck very strongly with what it was and just wore out its welcome with me. The gimmick got old.
Actually, it happened shortly before South Park mocked it. And, while it wasn't because of the South Park episode, that hasn't helped it. I grew tired for the same reasons Tre and Matt lampooned it, and I can't watch an episode without thinking about manatees.
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11-05-2007 @ 12:10PM
Happy Steve said...
I think Tivo really saved me on this one, because I saw the 'Stewie Kills Lois' episode FIRST and I liked it. I fast-forwarded through most of the clip show. The only thing it was good for was the song and dance bits, and reassuring me that the Kool-Aid guy did make a similar appearance before.
"I'm going to pretend you're the New York Knicks!"
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11-05-2007 @ 12:20PM
beanspants said...
The end of Seinfeld was brilliant. They spent 2 episodes to cycle the series back to the 1st conversation at the beginning of the series = about shirt buttons. the meaning could be construed as a "circle of hell" and a glowing confirmation of the devil-may-care shallowness the characters revelled in, and were ultimately imprisioned for.
The clip show was also great - only Family Guy would bring in a bunch of people who hate the show to comment on it.
The Stewie kills Lois episode was not that good. Though I thought the could have made the stump-armed abortion doctor joke much dirtier than it turned out to be.
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11-05-2007 @ 12:28PM
Drex said...
For me the clip show was the better of the two.. I loved all the idiots Seth was talking to, Mr. Blinky eyes was LOL funny..
"So you don't like Family Guy, what are some shows you do like?"
"I love soaps and The Bachelor..."
LMAO, I thought it was much better than the actual 100th episode..
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11-05-2007 @ 12:40PM
ZEK said...
You're absolutely right Will...that was the "to be continued" from "The Best of Both Worlds Part I"...I caught it too!
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11-05-2007 @ 1:10PM
Jason said...
I believe Ron Jones did the music for this ep. He was the composer back on "Best of Both Worlds" as well, so the joke actually works on a couple levels. Brilliant!!
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11-05-2007 @ 1:16PM
Mike McNamara said...
I thought the clip show was actually hilarious. The morons talking about their hatred for the Family Guy was one of the most scathing indictments of the American viewing public that I've ever seen on TV -- and it was done subtlety just by giving the idiots enough rope to hang themselves. ("Subtlety" and Family Guy are words I never thought I'd use together.) And Seth McFarland's wish for another 100 episodes -- and paraphrasing here "hopefully we won't get f@#$ing cancelled for 2.5 years in the middle this time" was awesome.
The episode itself wasn't great, but at least it felt like an "event" -- since one of the major plot points since the beginning of the show has been "homicidal baby", it's great to see it mocked by Brian and then actually happen and seem to have major consequences this week and next. The cliffhanger riffing on The Next Generation's "Best of Both Worlds" Borg showdown made me laugh more than nearly all of the Star Wars episode
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11-05-2007 @ 1:25PM
Scott K said...
I liked the 100th episode just fine. Family Guy has always been about the individual jokes for me. The specific observations that I always happen to agree completely with, such as the douchebag with a guitar.
I really enjoyed the viewer interviews during the clip show. The girl who identified with Meg the most was classic.
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11-05-2007 @ 1:43PM
AngryBob said...
Still one of the best things on TV; although, I realize that's not saying much. 30 Rock and Family Guy seem to me the only reasons I have my TV - well, that and the pictures of the Pakistani police beating lawyers today.
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11-15-2007 @ 2:33PM
viewdrix said...
There were only, like, 3 flashbacks/cutaways at all.
Maybe you're confusing an almost entirely plot-based episode with the clip show you loved.
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11-05-2007 @ 2:04PM
MJG said...
My feelings on Stewie are just the opposite: the drastic changes he has gone through from the start of the show through today - from a budding evil genius targeting Lois to a close homosexual targeting Brian - is probably the biggest reason why I don't like Family Guy nearly as much as I used to. Different people like different things, I suppose.
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11-05-2007 @ 2:08PM
sarah said...
the clip show ruined the 100th episode :(
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11-05-2007 @ 2:08PM
Rob said...
All I gotta say is,
Meg with the pack of hotdogs,..
That's an image that just wont go away.
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