Family Guy last night - (The Shark was not just jumped but bloody well leaped)

Cafe Society
41

Right, right. The point is, South Park was brilliant in it’s first couple of seasons and eventually devolved into utter shit. The fact that it has somehow cycled back to brilliance is going to be lost on the same people who are walking away from Family Guy right now because they won’t want to come back if it ever gets brilliant again.

Because whatever reason you come up with to justify it, this was a poor episode all around. The fact that they came right out and said “This is a Meg episode, no one would blame you [for changing the channel]” and that it was the funniest part of the whole thing was ridiculous. And also just plain sad.

42

I’m not proud of knowing that, just so you know…

43

That does make it a little better.

Oh, and put me down in the column of people who think American Dad is better than Family Guy, The Simpsons and South Park nowadays.

44

I’m a sporadic Family Guy watcher, so, don’t know the whole history enough for any shark jumps, but, I laughed at this one. Loved the juxtaposition of atheism and trekkie in an episode, playing on strident enthusiasm.

I figured that Meg would take Brian to a church service after her scoring him some alcohol, so, the book burning was funny, really, as her best example of faith. I didn’t quite follow the jump to live—didn’t know that was Adam West, saw Rob Lowe, but still don’t get the connections.

45

I think there is no real connection other than implying that West and Lowe are God.

46

Wow . . . I somewhat agreed with your OP but . . . wow . . . considering something like 5/6ths of the world isn’t even Catholic, this is just misanthropy.

Not necessarily. South Park got REALLY bad, unfunny, and preachy in one of its seasons - season 6, I think - and I thought they were done for. They snapped out of it, though, and have done most of their best stuff since then.

That’s not really fair to say if you haven’t watched South Park since the J-Lo episode, considering that episode aired like 2 years before American Dad even premiered.

47

So, forgive me and help me here as a sporadic TV watcher, what’s the funny bit here? I liked it as a segue from the cartoon, but prolly miss the gist.

48

Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Conway Twitty…

Basically, Family Guy has been doing a lot of these cuts to live action lately and none make much sense beyond “Family Guy is a cartoon! This live action stuff has blown ma mind!” It’s getting tiresome.

And Cisco, you’re right, I can’t have any opinion on South Park because I haven’t watched it in years, but that’s my point. I have no desire to go back (even though it’s supposed to be great again) because it was so terrible at one time.

For a lot of people, Family Guy has reached that point. I still find it OK, but it’s losing me and I’m amazed at how good American Dad is now.

49

One of the manatees must have picked the wrong ball.

50

There was one live action joke I liked. Somebody on the show says something bad about Alyssa Milano, and it jumps to a live action shot of her watching TV, obviously pissed off, and yelling at her agent, who’s franticly trying to get the Fox attorneys on the phone to demand an apology.

51

South Park is still the greatest show on television. The episode you are referring to is called Fat-butt and Pancake head and is freaking hilarious. The sex change episode was pretty weak, but South Park has hit far more than it has missed.

52

There’s a reason Brian speaks with MacFarlane’s “normal” voice.

Also Perry Cox (Scrubs), Fox Mulder (X-Files), Maddie Hayes (Moonlighting) and Michael Garibaldi (Babylon 5). In fact, I can’t think of a single TV show character, established as an atheist in more than one episode, who eventually found religion. Care to give any examples?

53

Another thing I liked about the episode is that he called them “Trekkies” instead of “Trekkers.”

Or did the Trekkies give up on that without my being aware? It wouldn’t be the first time. Like that time I thought Prince Andrew’s ex-wife was the singer from the Black-Eyed Peas.

Did you see what I did there? It was like one of those cutaways from Family Guy.

54

I haven’t watched most of those series, but the fact that you included Fox “I want to believe” Mulder on your list makes me question how accurate the rest of it is.

Conduit:
MULDER: She’s calling out my name, over and over again. (We see the picture is one of Mulder and his sister when they were kids. We see it is Mulder who is now holding the picture) She’s crying out for help but I can’t help her. I can’t move. (We see that Mulder is sitting inside a church)
DR. HEITZ WERBER: Are you scared?
(Mulder starts crying)
MULDER: I know I should be but I’m not.
DR. HEITZ WERBER: Do you know why?
MULDER: Because of the voice.
DR. HEITZ WERBER: The voice?
MULDER: The voice in my head.
(Mulder keeps down on his knees and begins to pray)
DR. HEITZ WERBER: What’s it telling you?
(The camera zooms away from Mulder as he prays)

55

Yeah, I dropped out of X-Files after season 5 or so. I haven’t seen the episode you quoted, but it must have happened after the series turned to crap. I don’t think that really counts - once writers run out of ideas, they’ll do anything.

Anyway, I tend to assume that all TV characters who never talk about their religious beliefs - which is most of them - are atheists or agnostics. Life isn’t the SDMB. Most atheists never talk about religion, because it doesn’t interest them.

56

Of course it counts.

And that would be a weird assumption, since the vast majority of the american population are christians.

57

And the majority of Christians talk about their religion, which is not something you can say about TV characters.

58

Not true at all. Where I grew up you kept your religion to yourself, and as a Catholic you did your one hour a week and went on with your life.

Contrast that with the Bible Belt, where they never actually shut up about it.

-Joe

59

And how did you tell those who believed from those who didn’t?

60

What nonsense. I’ve noticed that most people on TV shows don’t fart – do you assume that this is because they lack anuses?