As the tenth Family Guy boxset hits shelves in the UK, it’s fair to say that you probably know what to expect. Pop culture riffs are the order of the day, served up with the usual dose of surreal cutaways and a cast of characters so well established that Peter’s buddy Cleveland is now two seasons into his own spin-off show. As a result, a new series of Family Guy can be expected to yield just two major questions: how funny is it and who have they p*ssed off this time?
Indeed, with Season 10 (actually Seasons 8B and 9A in the original American running orders) containing episodes that deal with divorce, sexual reassignment and Republicanism, it’s almost inevitable that what will generate belly laughs in some viewers will cause offense to others. Most likely to divide audiences, however, is “Partial Terms of Endearment”, a controversy baiting look at abortion that was deemed unsuitable for air during the series’ original American run (though it did show on BBC Three last June).
Serving as a perfect paradigm of the season – and indeed the show as a whole – the episode demonstrates that when on top form, Family Guy possesses some of the best laughs going; the kind of moments that make you grin in simultaneous states of amusement and disbelief, wondering how they got away with that one. Perhaps it’ll be the ever escalating orgy scenarios Peter presents to Lois’ college friend, which end up with him wearing a Nazi uniform. Or maybe it’ll be the ribbing of pro-life campaigners, with a video asserting that “within hours of conception a foetus has already started a college fund and made you your first mother’s day card out of macaroni and glitter”. In any case, there’ll be something that makes you giggle and others shake their heads. Or perhaps both. I mean, the idea of Peter trying to make Lois miscarry the baby she’s carrying for a friend is pretty shocking, but could you really judge somebody for laughing at his sudden wager that he can drink more bleach than her?
Where the show has waned slightly over the years, though, is in its formerly effective use of irony. Several jokes feel like they’ve made it into episodes at a template stage, lacking the balance required to make them seem passable. This is particularly relevant with regards to the topic of race, with one joke managing to imply that “black gentlemen” is synonymous with “shoplifters”, whilst another plays on a stereotype I’m not even aware of by showing a “Chinese NASCAR race” that ends in an instant pile-up and a collection of angry drivers. Similarly, the show’s staple cutaway gags are now often just an excuse to be bizarre whilst casting aside all subtext – a reference to “those cats you see in the Special Animalympics” serving as just one example. Family Guy has never been a comedy that sticks strictly to storyline, but its still better when the jokes retain at least some semblance of a point.
Though the full extras list was unavailable at time of publication, a half-hour Comic-Con panel contains a few good laughs – such as finding out that Meg’s unfortunate lot on the show spawned from the male writers’ frustration at not knowing how to script a teenage girl. And therein lies the secret; it was funny because it came naturally, not because it was forced. If the show as a whole can regain just a bit more of that organic feeling, it may return to being great instead of just being good.
[Rating:3.5/5]
