Radar Slams MacFarlane And Family Guy

The show may have it's moments, but it's always been a weak rip-off:

Pity the poor executives at Fox. Imagine their unbearable dilemma when one of their highest rated cash cows—that would be Family Guy—snuffed out America's beloved Simpsons. That's what happened in a recent episode, when Quagmire, Family Guy's motormouthed sleazeball, got caught in a sexual tryst with Marge and then proceeded to shoot the whole Simpson family off camera.

"I think they pushed it too far," Simpsons creator Matt Groening said. "If our characters are going to be killed, we'll do it ourselves." Perhaps Groening spoke too soon. Even though the suits at Fox decided not to air the spiteful scene, their recent $100 million dollar deal with Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane may give Groening some indication of where future loyalties lie.

...Maybe Family Guy's erstwhile fans are just aping the sneers of other cartoon scene titans. South Park's Trey Parker and Matt Stone have been taking swings at MacFarlane's work for years. "When people say to me, 'God, you guys have one of the best shows on television. You and Family Guy.' That fucking hurts so bad," lamented Stone back in 2005. "It's such a kick in the balls" agreed co-creator Trey Parker. They would argue that Family Guy hasn't gotten any worse; it's always been dreadful.

...This sophomoric glee for saying something naughty about Republicans is, after all, the entire gimmick behind MacFarlane's American Dad! As the New Yorker put it, watching a siege on American morality just "makes us restless now; the comedy is too broad. (The exclamation point in the title virtually announces that.)" Indeed, MacFarlane's tedious, second-rate send up for American establishment values has become more stale and didactic than subversive. Brian might as well be door-knocking for Kucinich.

...If MacFarlane and his scribes had kept their trashy humor as pure as their political posturing this might all be easier to swallow. But they didn't. Both American Dad! and Family Guy try to straddle the line between outlandish farty humor and subversive social commentary. Over the years the uneasy balance has caused Team MacFarlane to wobble and flop. His raunchy prime time rivals, Matt Stone and Trey Parker of South Park, describe this flailing balancing act as just "getting too up your ass preachy."

...You used to able to flip on Family Guy and witness the worm's eye view of things; racism, raunch, and flatulence that needed to be aired out every once and again. Watching Family Guy was like witnessing a harmless rebellion against righteousness. Now it's merely a showcase for MacFarlane's cultural finger wagging and lethargy.

via Radar