Post by Norris For Prez! on Jun 23, 2003 4:18:58 GMT -5
1999 was not a good year for THE SIMPSONS. Mike Scully was ruining the series' quality with mediocre-at-best episodes which attempted to follow the AIRPLANE! school of humor while disregarding the emotional core present in the earlier episodes. During that year, we saw Homer and Flanders get married in Vegas and Mr. Burns looking for the Loch Ness monster. On Super Bowl Sunday of that year, Homer and a wide crew of supporting characters (including Lenny and Karl) somehow sneaked into the big game. The episode was lame and forgettable, indicative of the season.
However, on that day, Fox decided to broadcast Seth McFarlane's new animated series, FAMILY GUY. The show followed the same AIRPLANE!-style humor, but did so inventively, giving its lead character Peter Griffin the same qualities which Homer once stood for. He was Stewpid, he broke promises, but he was a loving and devoted father. It also included seemingly more pop culture references than the Beastie Boys' PAUL'S BOUTIQUE.
The show was promptly forgotten for a few months, until Fox gave it its 8:30 post-SIMPSONS slot. Bringing it back for Season 2 later that year, they then began what would be the ruination the series--playing ping pong with its scheduling. The show served time on Tuesday, Wednesday and I believe Thursday nights, with the scheduling conflicts confusing viewers and, of course, hurting its ratings. Fox didn't even order Season 3 until the 11th hour, prompting McFarlane to quickly hire new writers to churn out a batch of new episodes. They put the series to death for good in early 2002, before noticing its wide Internet cult (including a huge petition dedicated to saving it). Deciding to make a few bucks off it in DVD form, they released a double-disc set earlier this year with Seasons 1 and 2. The set did quite admirably. Currently, the show is being shown in reruns on Cartoon Network (of course, the network's FUTURAMA reruns recieve far more attention and publicity).
FAMILY GUY is probably one of the most underrated TV series shown. It was a breath of fresh air from the stale SIMPSONS being shown at the time, and presented outrageous humor that pushed the boundaries of good taste. With our politically correct society going so far as to ensure EVERYTHING is safe and clean for everyone, the fact that the series has the balls to go the opposite route and make such, borderline racist jokes is funny in itself. The show also OD'd in '70s and '80s pop culture references, mostly in ridiculous flashbacks. For example, Peter once remarked his first job was at the Electric Company. We see he didn't work at a power station, but on the '70s PBS kids series of the same name. Throw in the Kool Aid Man, Bob Ross, "Magnum PI," THE BREAKFAST CLUB, and a disgruntled Big Bird, and we have ourselves a classic series.
What I also loved was the series' character development. I already mentioned Peter, but Lois herself was far cooler than Marge Simpson. While loving and stern, she also had a wild side, particularly while participating in bondage with Peter and admitting to a '70s affair with Gene Simmons from Kiss. Son Chris is a dunderhead, but an artistic one, and daughter Meg is sweet but totally shallow. The smartest characters are the baby, Stewie, with a Richard Harrison voice and violent plots for world domination (plus a questionable homosexual side), and talking dog Brian, who appreciates fine art and opera but is a bit of a louse. These are characters that, despite their imperfections, we grow to love, we care about, and we feel happy laughing at.
In addition to the writing, I must comment on the animation. Though occasionally crude and choppy (and sometimes with celebrities that look nothing like their human counterparts), the colors are bright and vibrant, making the show not just fun to watch, but fun to look at. The imperfections in the human form are also part of the show's charm. Much like the Simpsons' yellow skin have given them a quality of their own, so have Peter's testicle-shaped chin, Meg's puckery lips, Brian's slightly-overweight version of Snoopy, and, of course, Stewie's football-shaped head.
It's a shame scheduling conflicts killed FAMILY GUY, as it possessed an inventive, fun spirit that makes it breezy and addictive. I bought the recent DVD issue, and watched in a matter of weeks, forcing myself to stop at points to spread the episodes out for future nights--"Peteroia," "Da Boom" and "Let's Go To The Hop" are my favorites.
Please post your thoughts on this groundbreaking show, such as favorite episodes, quotes, and characters.
Lucky there's a man who positively can do all the things he can to make us laugh and cry, he's a family guy.
However, on that day, Fox decided to broadcast Seth McFarlane's new animated series, FAMILY GUY. The show followed the same AIRPLANE!-style humor, but did so inventively, giving its lead character Peter Griffin the same qualities which Homer once stood for. He was Stewpid, he broke promises, but he was a loving and devoted father. It also included seemingly more pop culture references than the Beastie Boys' PAUL'S BOUTIQUE.
The show was promptly forgotten for a few months, until Fox gave it its 8:30 post-SIMPSONS slot. Bringing it back for Season 2 later that year, they then began what would be the ruination the series--playing ping pong with its scheduling. The show served time on Tuesday, Wednesday and I believe Thursday nights, with the scheduling conflicts confusing viewers and, of course, hurting its ratings. Fox didn't even order Season 3 until the 11th hour, prompting McFarlane to quickly hire new writers to churn out a batch of new episodes. They put the series to death for good in early 2002, before noticing its wide Internet cult (including a huge petition dedicated to saving it). Deciding to make a few bucks off it in DVD form, they released a double-disc set earlier this year with Seasons 1 and 2. The set did quite admirably. Currently, the show is being shown in reruns on Cartoon Network (of course, the network's FUTURAMA reruns recieve far more attention and publicity).
FAMILY GUY is probably one of the most underrated TV series shown. It was a breath of fresh air from the stale SIMPSONS being shown at the time, and presented outrageous humor that pushed the boundaries of good taste. With our politically correct society going so far as to ensure EVERYTHING is safe and clean for everyone, the fact that the series has the balls to go the opposite route and make such, borderline racist jokes is funny in itself. The show also OD'd in '70s and '80s pop culture references, mostly in ridiculous flashbacks. For example, Peter once remarked his first job was at the Electric Company. We see he didn't work at a power station, but on the '70s PBS kids series of the same name. Throw in the Kool Aid Man, Bob Ross, "Magnum PI," THE BREAKFAST CLUB, and a disgruntled Big Bird, and we have ourselves a classic series.
What I also loved was the series' character development. I already mentioned Peter, but Lois herself was far cooler than Marge Simpson. While loving and stern, she also had a wild side, particularly while participating in bondage with Peter and admitting to a '70s affair with Gene Simmons from Kiss. Son Chris is a dunderhead, but an artistic one, and daughter Meg is sweet but totally shallow. The smartest characters are the baby, Stewie, with a Richard Harrison voice and violent plots for world domination (plus a questionable homosexual side), and talking dog Brian, who appreciates fine art and opera but is a bit of a louse. These are characters that, despite their imperfections, we grow to love, we care about, and we feel happy laughing at.
In addition to the writing, I must comment on the animation. Though occasionally crude and choppy (and sometimes with celebrities that look nothing like their human counterparts), the colors are bright and vibrant, making the show not just fun to watch, but fun to look at. The imperfections in the human form are also part of the show's charm. Much like the Simpsons' yellow skin have given them a quality of their own, so have Peter's testicle-shaped chin, Meg's puckery lips, Brian's slightly-overweight version of Snoopy, and, of course, Stewie's football-shaped head.
It's a shame scheduling conflicts killed FAMILY GUY, as it possessed an inventive, fun spirit that makes it breezy and addictive. I bought the recent DVD issue, and watched in a matter of weeks, forcing myself to stop at points to spread the episodes out for future nights--"Peteroia," "Da Boom" and "Let's Go To The Hop" are my favorites.
Please post your thoughts on this groundbreaking show, such as favorite episodes, quotes, and characters.
Lucky there's a man who positively can do all the things he can to make us laugh and cry, he's a family guy.
