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(Examiner) Interesting Is it possible to hate a television show for years, only to change your mind about it after you've given it 14 last chances? Okay, well what if the show was "Family Guy"?   (examiner.com) divider line 117
More: Interesting, Seth McFarlane, The 700 Club, The Simpsons, television shows  
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10017 clicks; posted to Entertainment » on 04 Sep 2010 at 12:05 AM   |  Favorite    |   share:  Share on Twitter share via Email Share on Facebook   more»   |    Get this fabulous T-Shirt and impress the methane out of your friends! shirt it!



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2010-09-03 05:53:43 PM
FTA For the record, I've found that the early episodes of the series are far less funny than the newer ones.

...

I've always thought the opposite, and I've never heard anyone say otherwise. Oh well.
 
2010-09-03 05:55:30 PM
Today, you've been gathered here to watch a man eat crow

Eat crow for what? You're allowed to dislike something. Just because I like Family Guy doesn't mean I care that someone else doesn't.
 
2010-09-03 05:57:22 PM
This guy also had Battlestar Galactica "win him over" in the last few seasons. He has no idea what he's talking about.

/love Family Guy and American Dad
 
2010-09-03 05:59:22 PM
bberg: This guy also had Battlestar Galactica "win him over" in the last few seasons. He has no idea what he's talking about.

I think the point wasn't that "BG" sucked, but that starting to watch the show while it was in its last few seasons inspired the idea to go back and start from the beginning. Because it was so good.

Why am I trying to reason with a fan of "American Dad"? Nevermind, sir, carry on.
 
2010-09-03 05:59:49 PM
(though I can say with some certainty that I will never find The Cleveland Show funny, ever, even if all other comedies ceased to exist

Racist.
 
2010-09-03 06:03:22 PM
They express shock at this confession, sometimes outrage, sometimes something that borders on anger. It's strange: the people that really like Family Guy are very outspoken about it, and they don't like it when someone else tells them that it's "not (their) thing" (which is how I'd started referring to the show after years of arguments following the phrase "I don't think it's very funny"). Weird.

As a Family Guy fan from that first episode after the Super Bowl...you get that way when you try to tell everyone a show is funny and no one listens until the show is already canceled and suddenly they love it in reruns.

I imagine all those Arrested Development fans I told that I didn't like the style of humor back when it was airing would want to strangle me after I caught up on Netflix and realized it was awesome.
 
2010-09-03 06:10:28 PM
Oh, and the author of that article is retarded. The throwaway gags are what pissed him off but he likes the newer episodes more than the older, more plot heavy episodes?

Kind of idiotic.
 
2010-09-03 06:12:35 PM
Same here. I've actually watched up to 3 minutes of Two and a Half Men and found myself mildly amused. Not amused enough to warrant watching the whole thing, but still.

Damn you Tivo for recording the first several minutes of the next show AFTER the Simpsons has already ended!

/hangs head in shame
 
2010-09-03 06:20:15 PM
furiousxgeorge: As a Family Guy fan from that first episode after the Super Bowl...you get that way when you try to tell everyone a show is funny and no one listens until the show is already canceled and suddenly they love it in reruns.

I assume TFA is referring to the kind of Family Guy fan that always flips out whenever someone says that they don't like and have never liked Family Guy. You know, the kind that fill every Fark thread about Family Guy, claiming that people who don't like it are just posers and hipsters pretending not to like it so they can look smart. Not that they don't like it because it's shiat.

Which it is.
 
2010-09-03 06:23:30 PM
Another Family Guy thread, another opportunity for me to tell everyone I stopped watching Family Guy after that horrible Brain eating Stewies poop episode.

I can't even enjoy reruns of Family Guy after that. It was just a horrible horrible episode with zero redeeming qualities that has completely spoiled the show for me.

Just thinking about Family Guy flashes me back to that episode.

The thing is, it's not like I found it that disgusting. I've worked as a CNA before in both a Nursing Home and Hospital. I'm use to poop and poop related products. It was just that unfunny.
 
2010-09-03 06:25:06 PM
Bunnyhat: It was just that unfunny.

That was the point.
 
2010-09-03 06:32:41 PM
Screw family guy, bring back better off ted.

Family guy, at this point, is just a rambling collection of random jokes the writers came up with in their everyday lives, put together haphazardly, without any of the decent plot attempts like the first 2-3 seasons.
 
2010-09-03 07:23:51 PM
bberg: Bunnyhat: It was just that unfunny.

That was the point.


I thought the point was just a big fark you to everyone that biatches about the cut away jokes. They made an episode that didn't have a single "joke" that wasn't relevant to the story.
 
2010-09-03 08:25:54 PM
I really, really liked Family Guy when it came out. It felt fresh even though it really wasn't original. It pushed the envelope.

I hate it now, with a passion. I think the formula just got real stale, and the jokes aren't even close to good enough to make up for it.
 
2010-09-03 08:57:32 PM
Family Guy brings out the laughing out loud the first time, a chuckle the second time, a grin the third time, and after that it gets old.
 
2010-09-03 09:37:23 PM
Family Guy is two different shows.

The original three seasons were great... a select few people loved the show, we all got it, and Fox canceled it.

Then, people paid attention to the show on DVD, and Family Guy came back.

However, it isn't the same show.

The original Family Guy had a lot of cutaway gags, but there was a plot, a story, and the characters had a bit of depth to them.

The new Family Guy is a lot of cutaway gags tied together with the thinnest thread of a plot, and the characters are vaguely drawn caricatures.

New FG is still funny, IMO. But, if you expect it to be like those first three seasons you watched over and over on DVD, and can recite every line of, you're going to be disappointed.

I know I was. I quit watching the show within 6 months of the return in '05. But, I caught up on it on DVD, and I saw that the first six months of the new FG were kind of crappy, and that the show started to get better over time in its new format.

Also, I like Conway Twitty.

Oh, and Futurama? It hasn't changed, and fark you if you think so. That is all.
 
2010-09-03 09:45:37 PM
Family Guy? What is that? A show on television? I wouldn't know. I don't even own one.
 
2010-09-03 10:05:17 PM
remember when they cut away to a full conway twitty song for almost 5 minutes? or when the first 12 minutes of an episode revolved completely around peter singing surfing bird?

f*cking awful. macfarlane is laughing at you knowing that he can get away with that.
 
2010-09-03 10:20:16 PM
That article was drivel. He NEVER TELLS YOU WHAT CHANGED HIS MIND.

The whole article was about how he used to not like it, and how he liked another show and now he likes that other show less and this show more.

Put some f*cking thought into the article.

In other words...cool story, bro.
 
2010-09-03 10:33:20 PM
jaylectricity: That article was drivel. He NEVER TELLS YOU WHAT CHANGED HIS MIND.

In his defense, he doesn't actually know himself:

FTA . . . most Family Guy fans would tell me that these throwaway moments were there favorite parts of the show, but for me they always fell flat . . . . If you've ever seen an episode of Family Guy, you know exactly what I'm talking about. The writing just seemed lazy.

But for whatever reason, I've stopped being so annoyed by these moments.
In fact, I've discovered that I've been entertained while watching Family Guy lately, something I never thought possible. Eventually, "giving it one more chance" paid off. I'm completely mystified as to what brought about this sea change . . .


I enjoyed the "writing just seemed lazy" part -- terribly ironic ;-P
 
2010-09-03 10:36:36 PM
FirstNationalBastard: The original three seasons were great... a select few people loved the show, we all got it, and Fox canceled it.

I got it. I just thought it was a poor man's The Simpson's at a time when The Simpson's was a poor man's The Simpson's. Of course, I remember when The Simpson's went head to head with The Cosby Show and Bill Cosby went on a public rant about what a bad influence Bart Simpson was.
 
2010-09-03 11:22:10 PM
ignite ice: I enjoyed the "writing just seemed lazy" part -- terribly ironic ;-P

;-P indeed.
 
2010-09-03 11:49:53 PM
Mentat: FirstNationalBastard: The original three seasons were great... a select few people loved the show, we all got it, and Fox canceled it.

I got it. I just thought it was a poor man's The Simpson's at a time when The Simpson's was a poor man's The Simpson's. Of course, I remember when The Simpson's went head to head with The Cosby Show and Bill Cosby went on a public rant about what a bad influence Bart Simpson was.



The saddest thing is that there is a generation of ADULTS out there now, that always believed that The Simpsons has ALWAYS been on Sunday at 8.
 
2010-09-03 11:55:32 PM
sleeping martyr: Mentat: FirstNationalBastard: The original three seasons were great... a select few people loved the show, we all got it, and Fox canceled it.

I got it. I just thought it was a poor man's The Simpson's at a time when The Simpson's was a poor man's The Simpson's. Of course, I remember when The Simpson's went head to head with The Cosby Show and Bill Cosby went on a public rant about what a bad influence Bart Simpson was.


The saddest thing is that there is a generation of ADULTS out there now, that always believed that The Simpsons has ALWAYS been on Sunday at 8.


I'm 27, and I barely remember the Thusrdays at 8 era. However, I remember watching the "Maggie Speaks" episode on Thursday at 8, so I guess I'm old now.

What's scarier is that soon, there are people who will be old enough to drink who have never lived in a world without The Simpsons.
 
2010-09-04 12:16:19 AM
WaltzingMathilda: remember when they cut away to a full conway twitty song for almost 5 minutes? or when the first 12 minutes of an episode revolved completely around peter singing surfing bird?

f*cking awful. macfarlane is laughing at you knowing that he can get away with that.


I'll give you the Conway Twitty, but that Surfin' Bird bit was hilarious because it was so obnoxious.
 
2010-09-04 12:19:22 AM
Mr. Cat Poop: WaltzingMathilda: remember when they cut away to a full conway twitty song for almost 5 minutes? or when the first 12 minutes of an episode revolved completely around peter singing surfing bird?

f*cking awful. macfarlane is laughing at you knowing that he can get away with that.

I'll give you the Conway Twitty, but that Surfin' Bird bit was hilarious because it was so obnoxious.


the Conway Twitty song wasn't more than three, three and a half minutes. It was 1970s country... their songs didn't get much over three minutes because radio didn't like long songs!
 
2010-09-04 12:25:51 AM
Hi, I'm the author of this article, and I'm amazingly self-absorbed.
 
2010-09-04 12:27:34 AM
I've never managed to sit through an episode, just not my brand of humour. I'm a tough crowd: I also hate "Everybody Loves Raymond," but love "Everybody Hates Chris," hate "Frasier" but love "Seinfeld," love "Boston Legal."

Humour is like music: room for many tastes.
 
2010-09-04 12:28:37 AM
What a strange article. He talked about his years of not watching Family Guy and enjoying telling everyone how he didn't like it.

Then he mentions that though he now likes Family Guy after watching it, he still doesn't like The Cleveland Show or American Dad after not watching them.

I'm gonna go cry into my pillow.
 
2010-09-04 12:28:39 AM
gayb: Hi, I'm the author of this article, and I'm amazingly self-absorbed.

Surprise, surprise.

/and I don't even have you in a pretty color
 
2010-09-04 12:29:39 AM
FirstNationalBastard: sleeping martyr: Mentat: FirstNationalBastard: The original three seasons were great... a select few people loved the show, we all got it, and Fox canceled it.

I got it. I just thought it was a poor man's The Simpson's at a time when The Simpson's was a poor man's The Simpson's. Of course, I remember when The Simpson's went head to head with The Cosby Show and Bill Cosby went on a public rant about what a bad influence Bart Simpson was.


The saddest thing is that there is a generation of ADULTS out there now, that always believed that The Simpsons has ALWAYS been on Sunday at 8.

I'm 27, and I barely remember the Thusrdays at 8 era. However, I remember watching the "Maggie Speaks" episode on Thursday at 8, so I guess I'm old now.

What's scarier is that soon, there are people who will be old enough to drink who have never lived in a world without The Simpsons.


It is weird to watch an old episode with a "Next Thursday" gag in it. Also, watch the commentary on the Angry Dad episode, pretty fun times.
 
2010-09-04 12:32:12 AM
Bunnyhat: Another Family Guy thread, another opportunity for me to tell everyone I stopped watching Family Guy after that horrible Brain eating Stewies poop episode.

I can't even enjoy reruns of Family Guy after that. It was just a horrible horrible episode with zero redeeming qualities that has completely spoiled the show for me.

Just thinking about Family Guy flashes me back to that episode.

The thing is, it's not like I found it that disgusting. I've worked as a CNA before in both a Nursing Home and Hospital. I'm use to poop and poop related products. It was just that unfunny.


you just don't get it, you got to have a "meh" approach to Family Guy, and then its all good
 
2010-09-04 12:35:07 AM
jaylectricity: /and I don't even have you in a pretty color

You're light green. Is it easy being so colored?
 
2010-09-04 12:37:26 AM
gayb: jaylectricity: /and I don't even have you in a pretty color

You're light green. Is it easy being so colored?


Well what with my martian abilities and all...
 
2010-09-04 12:39:42 AM
I tried to hate it too.
Loves the Twitty cutaways
 
2010-09-04 12:40:53 AM
Cymbal: Bunnyhat: Another Family Guy thread, another opportunity for me to tell everyone I stopped watching Family Guy after that horrible Brain eating Stewies poop episode.

That was a horrible episode. I don't know what they were thinking.
 
2010-09-04 12:44:22 AM
I stopped watching when I saw that one episode would have those morons from "The Hills" on.
 
2010-09-04 12:45:08 AM
FirstNationalBastard: he original Family Guy had a lot of cutaway gags, but there was a plot, a story, and the characters had a bit of depth to them.

this thread blows my mind. To me, you could always sum up an episode of Family Guy with "hey, remember [pop culture reference]? That's the joke." There was never any depth to the show; though to the show's credit, I think that was the point.
 
2010-09-04 12:48:15 AM
therecksays: Cymbal: Bunnyhat: Another Family Guy thread, another opportunity for me to tell everyone I stopped watching Family Guy after that horrible Brain eating Stewies poop episode.

That was a horrible episode. I don't know what they were thinking.


you just don't get it either, they were farking with you, and that is the brilliance of it
 
2010-09-04 12:48:26 AM
People who don't find Cleveland and American Dad funny are clearly wrong about what is and is not funny.
 
2010-09-04 12:55:23 AM
i loved the brian/stewie bank vault episode. i thought it was the funniest episode in a long time, next to something something something dark side.
 
2010-09-04 12:55:44 AM
$howbiz is Waaaamplers soapbox.
 
2010-09-04 12:56:50 AM
No one has posted this?
loyalkng.com

This pretty much sums it up.

Also the cutaways and pop references used to be a little esoteric (and there were smart jokes about using words like esoteric).
Now the pop references are about things anyone with a tv in the 80's could recognize.
Translation: Dumbed down show wins Emmy because 'the audience caught up to it.'

1999 References

Surfside Six
Benjamin Disraeli

2009 References

Back to the Future (whole show)
Ripped off Star Wars gags from Robot Chicken
 
2010-09-04 12:57:51 AM
Larger Original Pic (new window)
 
2010-09-04 12:59:42 AM
bionicjoe: No one has posted this?




Is there one of those for The Simpsons?

You could make the same case for them.

Lisa became the Liberal Douche, Homer went full retard...

Although, I picked up season 13, which is the first full season between the "classic era" and season 20 that I had never seen a single episode from, and I have to admit... S13 of the Simpsons was pretty good.

Maybe it's because I went into it with low expectations.
 
2010-09-04 01:02:10 AM
bberg: /love Family Guy and American Dad

How could anyone not love american dad? That cleveland show, much like anything associated with the city, is just farking turrrible.....

furiousxgeorge: As a Family Guy fan from that first episode after the Super Bowl...you get that way when you try to tell everyone a show is funny and no one listens until the show is already canceled and suddenly they love it in reruns.

Loved since the first time too, had the old episodes on video cassette to show everyone while we were all high, it made people laugh more then, weird. And the newer episodes were funnier, with more obscure references so you had to have a little bit of a brain to catch the jokes.

Most people that missed those jokes are pretty low on the intelligence scale and you can write off common sense for them.

/missed the disraeli one
//had to look it up
///whut?
 
2010-09-04 01:03:07 AM
steamingpile:
/missed the disraeli one


"You don't even know who I am."
 
2010-09-04 01:05:38 AM
bionicjoe: No one has posted this?


This pretty much sums it up.

Also the cutaways and pop references used to be a little esoteric (and there were smart jokes about using words like esoteric).
Now the pop references are about things anyone with a tv in the 80's could recognize.
Translation: Dumbed down show wins Emmy because 'the audience caught up to it.'

1999 References
Surfside Six
Benjamin Disraeli

2009 References
Back to the Future (whole show)
Ripped off Star Wars gags from Robot Chicken


They were also good because a lot were jokes/sketches that didn't quite work or were too long so the writers trimmed them down into a quick gag. Now it's just keep hammering away at the joke until the audience convinces themselves it's actually brilliant and funny. Just read some of the responses in this thread for proof.
 
2010-09-04 01:08:30 AM
Icey_M: I tried to hate it too.
Loves the Twitty cutaways


Ladies and gentlemen, heres conway twitty..........


I have downloaded his songs just to say those words to the GF and watch her laugh, shes good people
 
2010-09-04 01:10:55 AM
Roook: Family Guy? What is that? A show on television? I wouldn't know. I don't even own one.

I heard that in Peters voice.......

I never really have gotten why people get so pissed off at the cutaway gags in FG. If Im watching TV it's to be entertained, I don't care if you do it with a tight intricate plot or not as long as it keeps me occupied. Now I know any time they trot out the chicken to fight Peter it means they needed a huge time filler but as long as the fight sequence is good who cares? As long as the "this reminds me of the time..." gag is cute I don't care if it was necessary.

I did prefer evil mastermind Stewie to gay Stewie though.

in any case the 2 Star Wars parodies were awesome. Looking forward to the Jedi one.
 
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