Family Guy’s 18th season has three episodes left, and thus far, there haven’t been any notable stories. When this series challenges the status quo and tinkers with its own formulas, it performs at its best. It would be good to at least have a Stewie-Brian episode to kick off a new season. What draws fans back are not these constant family dramas. Additionally, this one lacked a great deal of substance that would have kept us anticipating the rest of the season.
The continual conflict between Peter and Lois’s parents is becoming tiresome. Despite the numerous times Peter has connected with them over the years, the friendship has remained unchanged. Given how often Peter has saved Lois’s father’s life, one would think that after all this time, he would have embraced his daughter’s choice in a partner. However, we are still making fun of the fact that Peter does not fit into their way of life in this instance. In this episode, Lois’s mother is much more involved than usual due to a mix-up, but it doesn’t help and doesn’t really pay off.
They still carry the B-plot even though this wasn’t a Stewie-Brian show in its whole. In fact, they contribute to the episode’s dramatic opening when Stewie sobs upon realizing that all of his medals and trophies are participation prizes. Stewie completely burns down the house; it isn’t anything that is hinted at in another scene. The rest of their plot does nothing to advance the program beyond the noteworthy lead-up. I should point out that the scenarios did really have a resolution, despite my usual gripes about Family Guy.
We did return to some cut scenes eventually. The gags that the sitcom is known for were sorely lacking in the first couple of episodes. For this one, there was thankfully a large injection of the absurd. A German cereal that enjoys watching people poop is one of them. It may not be funny, and writing it makes no sense, but it’s good to see that the program is regaining its mojo. These gags are enough to keep viewers entertained if the episodes’ plot fails, therefore they cannot afford to lose the stupidity.
Fair enough, this wasn’t Family Guy’s worst episode. The humor was present, there were some enjoyable moments, and the plot had some logic. It simply seemed like an occurrence that would have been funnier if it had occurred in the first five years. The series ought to be faring much better by this stage and have moved past these tired stories. We can only hope that a solid episode airs as soon as possible.