My Own Personal Nerdy Disney and Animation Scrutinizing Analyses: "Family Guy" - The Popular, Snarky and Edgy Seth Macfarlane Animated Sitcom Who Became Iconic in Pop Culture

Hi folks! Welcome to my My Own Personal Nerdy Disney and Animation Scrutinizing Analysis blog. A blog where I'm analyzing several Disney films, Disney or Animation in general! These entries are just meant to be my analyses. Not reviews or
statements. Just fun analyses! Though I'll make some personal remarks now and then, the content of these entries are meant to be depicted objectively. They're made for entertainment purpose only and the pictures/clips are copyright Disney or other companies.

Make sure to leave a comment if you like this site! And if there's something you think could be improved, please let me know. But in a constructive way, please. And just a note; I'm not a Native English writer, so my incorrect grammar may be notable.

And finally; If you haven't seen the films, beware of spoilers! And the funny lines aren't meant to be nothing than funny. So I hope you won't find them offensive. If so, I apologize

Yes, since I`m the patriarch of this house, only I`m allowed to have the remote control :) Sorry, Stewie :)

We`re a blast from the
past :)

If there`s ever been a stigma and a staple to animation, it`s how animation is mostly for children. While it`s a stigma that`s always existed due to logical reasons, the honest and unbiased truth is that animation is of course an artform in itself. And doesn`t really appeal to only children. In fact, there`s been many TV series and movies that has been specifically made for an adult audience, despite how it took many decades before this became a trend in animation. The first series to truly define this genre was of course The Simpsons, who`s become iconic in animated history. Afterwards came Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-head (1993) and King of the Hill (1997). Of course another contender is none other than South Park, who`s also become iconic in animation. But at least those shows paved the way for upcoming shows who were in the same mold.

Since the show is
about me, I need to be
front and center :)

Premiering in January 1999 and officially airing in April by Seth MacFarlane, Family Guy has become one of the most popular current animated series to date. And yes, it has marked it`s way to Pop Culture. But at the end, it`s fair to say that it`s been shaped and formed by The Simpsons (which it was inspired from and even had a crossover) and therefore compared to it. Cause Family Guy is just another contender to the animated, edgy sitcoms who are mostly made for an adult audience. Feautring voiced talents by Alex Borstein (Lois), Seth Green (Chris), Mila Kunis (Meg), Mike Henry (Cleveland Brown), Patrick Warburton (Joe Swanson) and Jennifer Tilly (Bonnie Swanson). While Family Guy isn`t Seth MacFarlane's only addition to the animated world, it`s still his longest-running show and also his most popular, who`s still running to this day. Family Guy ranks as Fox’s most-streamed program on record, averaging 5.1 million P2+ viewers.

The Components of Family Guy

We`re playing peekaboo :)

In fact, Family Guy is a typical American TV-sitcom who pretty much shares many of the stock components and archetypes of such similar sitcoms: A dimwitted, overweight patriarchal figure. A practical matriarchal character. A daughter who`s an outcast and a goofy older brother who`s also dimwitted and a baby (Stewie, who`s the most popular character). What differentiates Family Guy from it`s other counterparts (at least those who were not made by MacFarlane) is how the anthropomorphic pet dog, Brian, is given some dialogue. And also how the baby is given a voice, but an adult one (and sure, in true cartoon fashion, it`s characters doesn`t mature at all). But of course Family Guy is mostly known for it`s non-PC content, but also for parodying celebrities and events (and sometimes having the actual voice actors to voice them, like Patrick Swayze, Johnny Depp, Frank Sinatra Jr., Carrie Fisher, James Woods, Jon Favreau, Kiefer Sutherland and Adam West).

Don`t get used to it. This is
only one occasion :)

Most of the humor are metafictional cutaway gags that is often in American culture. The most common jokes about the Fox network, and occasions where the characters break the fourth wall by addressing the audience. However, familiar subplots involves Stewie`s hatred for Louis and the constant picking on Meg (MacFarlane admitted that the abuse of Meg is a result of a bunch of male writers not knowing how to write for a teenage girl). Still, comparing Family Guy to The Simpsons, it went far beyond Simpsons or any other prime time cartoon of its era in the bizarre and the grotesque. And also showed more culture-shock gags, in jokes, and obscure movie and literature references than any other series.

Yes, we`ve listened to Kung
Fu Fighting too many times :)

And sure, Family Guy is known for it`s iconic moments, as when Stewie calls for his mother, Peter`s Surfin Bird and his battle with the chicken. It uses catchphrases like Quagmire's "Giggity giggity goo", Peter's "Freakin' sweet", Cleveland's "Oh, that's nasty", and Joe's "Bring it on!" And sure, since Family Guy has been around for many years, it`s of course changed and evolved (especially Stewie`s personality, so they wrote him differently).

Behind the Scenes Information

While Seth

Since I`m conceited,
I`m glad that I got my
very own painting :)

MacFarlane is a household name in animation, the truth is that his contibrution to the genre started before Family Guy. He started as an animator and writer for Hanna-Barbera, like Johnny Bravo, Cow and Chicken, Dexter's Laboratory, and the short Larry & Steve for What A Cartoon! Still he felt his true calling was for prime-time animation, for the edge. MacFarlane planned Family Guy in 1995 while studying animation at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). However, Larry was the sequel to The Life of Larry. Made in 1996, it featured a middle-aged man, Larry, and an intellectual dog, Steve. Fox saw the shorts and approached MacFarlane to make a series based on the characters, which became Family Guy. Premises were from 1980s Saturday-morning cartoons MacFarlane saw as a kid, as The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang and Rubik, the Amazing Cube.

And no, I don`t mean
just today :)

Family Guy was planned to start as short movies for Mad TV. But it changed, cause the budget wasn`t large enough to support animation. MacFarlane pitched it to Fox, as he thought it was the perfect place to it. And MacFarlane impressed executives with a 14-minute pilot. The show's first writers had never written for animation, as they came from live-action sitcoms. Many of them left the show to create other successful series, as Neil Goldman and Garrett Donovan worked for Scrubs. While Mike Barker and Matt Weitzman went on to create American Dad! Normally it takes 10 months to make an episode because of hand-drawn animation and $2 million to produce. During the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike, production of the show halted for many periods. Fox continued making episodes without MacFarlane's final approval. While MacFarlane refused to work on the show, his contract under Fox required him to contribute to it. Production resumed after the end of the strike. However, MacFarlane left writing for the show in 2010, focusing on production and voice acting.

I`m Clark Kent`s
distant relative :)

Since MacFarlane had a strong vision for the characters, he chose to voice them himself. He based the voice of Peter on a security guard he knew. Brian's voice is MacFarlane speaking normally. Many of his personal beliefs were from MacFarlane. Angela, Peter's boss, is based on Joanna, Rachel's boss on Friends. Stewie's voice is based on Sir Rex Harrison. Glenn Quagmire's facial features are modelled after Bob Hope. Lois was originally blonde, but after much debate, the creators made her hair red. Many people thought Stewie's lyrics were "Effin' cry" in the opening song when he was actually sang "laugh and cry", so it was re-recorded. Lacey Chabert left the show at the second season to focus on school. After twenty years of voicing Cleveland, Mike Henry stepped down from the part, due to racial inaccuracy (and we all know that Cleveland had his own spinoff show).

We`re trying to pose
like the Mario
Brothers :) And
nobody else ;)

Seth MacFarlane is a fan of Star Trek franchise, which is the reason for the references in the show. The episode Not All Dogs Go to Heaven guest starred the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Robert Downey Jr. asked if he could produce an episode's creation, as his son is a fan. Drew Barrymore approached MacFarlane to be on the show and he liked her work so much that he offered her the role of Jillian.

The Reception & Controversy of Family Guy

Yes, I wanted to be just like
the donut :)

Overall, Family Guy has received mostly positive reviews. It was voted No. 5 in a British TV poll of "100 Greatest Cartoons". In 2009, it was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series (the first animated show since The Flintstones). In 2013, TV Guide ranked it as the ninth-greatest TV cartoon. In 2008, it generated $1 billion in total revenue, including $400 million from TV, $400 million from DVD sales, and $200 million from merchandise. However, the reception of Family Guy is still interesting. It once had a cult-staple and it`s loyal fans. but never did well in ratings afterwards. As Fox network removed the show from many failed slots in both 2000 and 2001 (against Frasier and Friends), it was canceled in 2002. It was not until Fox canceled the show and it was picked up for rerun on Cartoon Network`s late TV channel, Adult Swim, that Family Guy truly built an audience. One so large that it out-rated late night shows like Jay Leno and David Letterman (finding networks that were interested was hard, so Network bought the rights "for free"). Even more successful was the show's DVD release in 2003. Which made Fox restore it to its prime time schedule with new episodes. Which was first time where a show made a network comeback just based of home-video popularity.

Don`t ask us who drew this
picture :) It wasn`t Picasso :)

However, Family Guy

has also been known for controversy. From storylines and character stereotypes. And for racism, homophobia and sexism. The Parents Television Council (PTC), a conservative non-profit watchdog, attacked the show and branded many episodes as "Worst TV Show of the Week". And they`ve written to Fox Network to urge them to cancel the show. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has received many requests for the same purpose. And some advertisers have canceled their contracts after reviewing the content of the episodes.

This is what happens when
you mess up your lipstick :)

In 420 (season seven, 2009), Brian tries to legalize cannabis in Quahog. The Venezuelan government banned Family Guy from their local networks. In Extra Large Medium (season eight, 2010), Sarah Palin, the mother of a child with Down syndrome, criticized the episode in an appearance on The O'Reilly Factor for mocking her daughter. Ken Tucker from Entertainment Weekly called Family Guy "The Simpsons as conceived by a singularly sophomoric mind that lacks any reference point beyond other TV shows". In 2007, Bourne Co. Music Publishers filed a lawsuit for using When You Wish Upon a Star on a parody song entitled I Need a Jew in When You Wish Upon a Weinstein-episode.

Epilogue

We`re doing the gruff and
happy guy pose :)

At the end, Family Guy remains one of the most popular and iconic animated TV Shows. And yes, it`s among the trend of animated sitcoms made for adults who continues to this day. However, since I normally conclude my entries by citing my own personal opinion about the movies, series or properties that I`m writing about, I could give my personal opinion about Family Guy. Yes, I did watch it regularly when I was in my early 20`s. And while I was never gaga for it, I still liked it and thought it was fun and entertaining. However, it`s never been flawless, as I`ve usually felt the cutaway jokes were too random and never executed in a cohesive way.

Yes, we will buy a new couch
soon :) But we couldn`t afford
it :)

The comedy was also somewhat juvenile, despite how it there were parts who were funny. Frankly, I find American Dad to be a superior show as a whole, as it`s more consistent, has better characterizations and doesn`t come across as grating. But at the end, I don`t hate Family Guy, but frankly I find it inferior to many of it`s similar counterparts. But since this entry was meant to synergize with it`s 25th Anniversary (yes, it`s hard to believe that it`s that old, already), there`s nothing left to wish Family Guy Happy 25th Anniversary and may you continue to have many more.