|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
Everybody Hates SethHas the Family Guy backlash begun?
THREE CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF A (FUNNY) AUTHOR Stewie, Seth MacFarlane, Brian (Photo: Getty Images) "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. Fox is not only bankrolling three of MacFarlane's shows—Family Guy, American Dad!, and Meet the Clevelands—but Google and Burger King have partnered with MacFarlane to create a money making chimera. This three-headed beast, known as "Seth's Comedy Cavalcade" consists solely of two-minute clips distributed online via Google AdSense. So instead of beer ads splashed across Maxim's masthead, an edgy and irreverent Cavalcade cartoon will roll. There's no doubt that MacFarlane's empire is growing. And yet, amid this success, there comes something new: a distinct outpouring of derision for the former darling of college bros everywhere. There's a growing rancor against MacFarlane, and Family Guy in particular. It oozes from the Olympian authorities of high brow taste at the New Yorker, and even comes from modest Hollywood rags and everywhere in between. Of course, internet commenters have proved to be particularly merciless: "If you think this is funny you are the cancer that is killing American comedy." "When you make a deal with the devil, "I have a friend who constantly drops Family Guy references into the conversation, then stares at everybody with mock horror when they don't get it. I've tried watching it, but it just seems easier to find a new friend." Just a few years after thousands of American tastemakers demanded Family Guy be resuscitated from cancellation, many of those same arbiters of culture have deemed MacFarlane's humor puerile and brainless. 
EVERYONE'S A CRITIC Trey Parker and Matt Stone (Photo: Courtesy of www.southparkstudios.com) But it wasn't ever thus. Indeed, there was a time where I, and a whole legion of zealous college students, would have found such scornful commentary about MacFarlane to be sacrilege. After all, his cheeky formula of golden-age gags, pop culture riffs and slyly subversive material was once a blast of fresh air in the putrid sitcom swamp of the late '90s. But today, things have changed. And even as a former fan of Family Guy, I must admit that there is a staggering inversion between the quality of MacFarlane's work and his cash bonanza. Family Guy's incessant cut-away gags have grown increasingly forced and tired. Bits such as Prom Night Dumpster Baby highlight MacFarlane's greatest weakness—his propensity to confuse the scandalizing with the satirical. In short, the show sucks. And, while it has been long foretold, the Seth MacFarlane backlash is now fully underway.
Bullshit. Envy is a disease!!!!! Posted by: oncedeliverance on October 13, 2008 1:07 PM I NEVER liked Family Guy. I could give a crap about the politics; the animation was always too retina-searingly ugly for me to even stick around long enough to find out which way it was leaning. Also, they were still making Clinton jokes as recently as 2005. BILL Clinton. Way to stay relevant, Seth. Posted by: louveciennes on October 13, 2008 1:27 PM "Getting too up your ass preachy"? Have Parker and Stone never watched half of their own episodes? Or their movies> Posted by: SuburbanCorrespondent on October 13, 2008 1:34 PM Pot , meet the black kettle. Those two haven't been funny since....... well actually they've never been funny. Gee , can't wait for Baseketball 2 Posted by: rflan42250 on October 13, 2008 2:55 PM Advertisement Gee, funny how a so called backlash has begun, meanwhile EVERYONE i spoke to about it thought matt and trey came off like jealous babies and its Seth whos laughing all the way to the bank, and given ANOTHER series, how"d Thats my Bush do again? SETH RULES!!!!! Posted by: thedogg1218 on October 13, 2008 3:05 PM TV's Seth McFarlane and Parker/ Stone offerings are precisely as funny now as they ever were. Posted by: Snakefinger on October 13, 2008 4:09 PM I'm 64 yrs. old and I love Family Guy. I even have Stewie pajama bottoms. I grew up watching cartoons and the Three Stooges. It's my right to watch what I want and if you don't like Family Guy then just turn the damn channel!! Posted by: jerryace on October 13, 2008 4:21 PM Family Guy is the best freaking show on TV! There is no "backlash". SETH RULES!!!!! Posted by: FamilyGuyLover on October 13, 2008 7:37 PM Family Guy rules! I like south park too, but Family Guy is the better show in my opinion. As for the backlash, I have yet to find a person in real life that dislikes the show, so i just dont see it. Posted by: fckdup01 on October 13, 2008 10:37 PM I love the comment about how "If you think this is funny you are the cancer that is killing American comedy." Pretty sure good comedy is supposed to be funny AND make you think. Before we worry about the damage Family Guy is doing you might want to get Two and a Half Idiots cancelled! For gods sake Everybody Hates Raymond was on for like 100 years! If you don't like Family Guy then don't watch. It's a pretty simple solution. But leave those of us who do like it in peace. We think it's funny and we are fully entitled to our opinion. Pretty sure they wouldn't have paid Seth 100 million if his numbers weren't killing it! Posted by: jcaplett on October 14, 2008 2:26 AM The author of this piece seems hung up on Seth's deal. She's suggesting there is a connection between that and the quality of the episodes now airing. She doesn't seem to understand animation production. It can easily take a year to get from script to screen. The episodes that are airing now have been written for a long time. Seth's deal happened only a couple months ago. Posted by: SmilinMelvin on October 14, 2008 6:46 AM I thought the preachy-up-the-ass comment on the south park episode was a joke on south park itself, not family guy. At any rate, that episode of south park was one of the best, and definitely hit the nail on the head. Family Guy was once hilarious, but the punchline of "look how hard we're not trying" just no longer strikes me as funny. Posted by: Lindiglo on October 17, 2008 10:49 PM I hate the guy because he sold out. He's nothing but a flack for the Democrat party now. Posted by: obamaisasnazi on October 19, 2008 5:38 PM "I thought the preachy-up-the-ass comment on the south park episode was a joke on south park itself, not family guy." You correctly thought that because you, you know, actually WATCH THE SHOWS as opposed to writing desperate-for-attention drivel like this column. Everyone knows the hierarchy goes like this: 1. The Simpsons But you know what? It's still freakin' funny. Stupid? Sure. Tries too hard? So what. Derivative? Absolutely. But it's FUNNY. Which is all I ask of a cartoon. Lighten up, Radar. Posted by: cazart on October 21, 2008 5:51 PM Never been a fan of Cringe-Inducing comedy. Eddie Izzard with his "Cunning Use of Flags" and the "Monkey in the Tree" bits make my sides hurt. Posted by: mickdansforth on October 24, 2008 4:59 AM < BACK TO Features |
    
 |
|
 |
|
 | ||||
Share This Article
Like this article? Click here to buzz it up on Yahoo!