Rating: 
Summary: Great Show, So-So DVD Quality & Features
Review: I got to watch Family Guy Volume 1 through the courtesy of my son's girlfriend, who is possibly the only person who loves this show more than I do. If you already know what Family Guy is about I won't elaborate except to say I think it's the funniest animated series I have ever seen. I do take issue, however, with the smug, uninformed comments of those few morons who referred to the show as a "cheap Simpsons ripoff". In its never ending quest for laughs Family Guy has in several episodes boldly rushed in where The Simpsons feared to tread. Cartoons, much like sitcoms, have borrowed comedic premises quite liberally over the years. The Simpsons, in fact, borrowed a few things from The Flintstones. So as far as I'm concerned calling any program a cheap ripoff of some other show shows shallowness and lack of intelligence. That said, I have two major problems with the Volume 1 DVD collection of Family Guy. First, the picture quality is downright awful on some episodes. In certain scenes some of the characters are completely devoid of fleshtones and the outline definitions are fuzzy. At least one other reviewer commented on this being the result of some sort of encoding issue. While not enough to keep me from purchasing the collection this oversight is unforgiveable given the technology. The other problem I have is the audio commentary by creator Seth McFarlane and certain members of the cast and production staff, which is only featured on selected episodes. I would like to have had more commentary regarding the development of certain characters, particularly Brian and Stewie. I can live with what's there, but in terms of giving the viewer a glimpse into the creative process this DVD set unfortunately didn't live up to its potential. Despite its obvious flaws this collection is still worth having...just don't pay full price.
Rating: 
Summary: WTF is wrong with fox?!?!?!?!
Review: Every time FOX has it's hands on an actually good (make that GREAT) show they decide to cancel it... Family Guy? Gone Futurama? Gone! COPS??? STILL SHOWING!!! I don't mean to offend any Simpsons fans, but we all know that the show has run its course, so it is time for a new show to fill its niche and I think that there is no show funnier or better written than FG. Good thing there is Adult Swim that still shows it 4 times a week. And the rumor is that FOX is bringing FG back, well, let's hope... As for FOX, I just have two wordsfor the people who make decisions over there.... C'MON!!! COME ON!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Basically a Bad Show
Review: Seth MacFarlane was a writer for Hanna-Barbera when he sold Fox on his "Family Guy" pilot (I think his rough pilot is on the second DVD set), with most of the characters voiced by himself. Though Fox assigned KING OF THE HILL writer-producer David Zuckerman (who wrote some of the best episodes of that show) to help give the show some structure, the finished product obbviously reflects MacFarlane's sensibility: Lots of references to the shows and commercials he grew up watching, plenty of sex jokes, and an attempt to create a more "cartoony" animated sitcom than the relatively conventional family sitcoms THE SIMPSONS and KING OF THE HILL. While FAMILY GUY bombed on Fox (and don't let anyone tell you that Fox tried to kill it; Fox renewed the show twice even though the ratings stunk almost everywhere and the reviews were scathing), it's become a huge success on DVD and cable, leading to the production of new episodes of the show. So what's my problem with it? Well, first of all, almost everything is derivative of other, better shows. And not just THE SIMPSONS, but PINKY AND THE BRAIN (Stewie, the little big-headed megalomaniac, is a direct ripoff of the Brain). Second, the show uses references as a substitute for humor -- which is to say that they'll often refer to some '80s TV show or commercial and expect us to laugh just because we get the reference; there's rarely any satirical point being made about the shows it's supposedly "parodying." Third, the voice acting is often quite poor -- MacFarlane improved as the series went on, but his acting is often stiff and one-note, with none of the interesting vocal inflections that, say, Dan Castellanetta brings to Homer Simpson. (To be fair, MacFarlane is better as Brian the Dog than as Peter.) Fourth, the show doesn't have much variety in its gags; the basic tropes -- sexual innuendoes, parodies, famous historical figures acting inappropriately -- are repeated from show to show. But the biggest overall problem is that the characters are just not worth following. The characters are so clearly sitcom stereotypes, and the stories are so minimal (just a clothesline on which to hang the gags) that the greatest joy of a good sitcom -- following interesting characters like a Homer Simpson or a Hank Hill or even an Eric Cartman -- is not there. All that's there is the gags, and eventually they all come to seem the same because they are based on nothing; the characters are too shallow to be humorous. (Stewie was such a one-note character that by the final season, almost every joke involves him acting *out* of character in some way -- a sure sign that a character was ill-conceived in the first place, and a sad contrast with the far superior Brain from PINKY AND THE BRAIN.) Brian is the only character with some depth to him, and the episodes focusing on him tend to be the best. I will say that by the last season, the writers seemed to be trying to tell more coherent stories and give the characters a bit more life. This bodes well for the new episodes. But the 50 or so episodes that already exist add up to a show with poor writing, poor story structure, poor voice acting, poor animation (Peter's face is so inexpressive that his "happy" face looks about the same as his "sad" expression), and above all weak characters. In other words, a poor show. Its cult success is impressive, but then, we can all name shows that are successful without being any good.
Rating:
Summary: Milk-shooting-out-of-your-nose hilarious...
Review: Once the Simpsons started to, well... sort of slack off, Family Guy came in, took the reins and saved the day. This was a HYSTERICAL show. Unfortunately, it was cancelled due to it's volatile time slots. So, until Fox, Comedy Central, Cartoon Network or whoever decide to pick it back up, we'll have these DVD's to remind us that there's still some hope out there in TV land. While I'll always favor the Simpsons over basically any television show you can think of (with the possible exception of Seinfeld), I honestly never laughed as many times with a Simpsons episode as I have these Family Guy episodes. The plots to each show only seem to exist so the creators can find some way to put in as many possible jokes they could think of, regardless of how random it would appear. They fly fast and furiously and, if this is your kind of humor, you better have that pause button handy so you won't miss the next joke. You'll be laughing way too hard to hear the next set-up and punchline. I think my favorite joke was the man/woman/horse/broom skit on the talk show. Hilarious. I think my only gripe with this particular DVD set is the same I have with the Simpsons sets; some episodes freeze up and it kind of breaks the streak of the jokes constantly hitting you. Is it just my bad luck, or does Fox need to invest in some new equipment? Great show. Can't wait to get Season three.
Rating:
Summary: not for snobs
Review: Many may think that this is a cheap Simpsons rip off. They could never be so wrong. The humor in these DVD's is for the everyday person. Cheap shots are taken at celebrities, food companies, movies, etc. If you want to watch a show for the shear enjoyment of laughter then this is for you. If you rather analize a show for it's educational value and artistic nature, try PBS kids.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible
Review: I mean how can you beat a show, that has a segment about a TV show called Sherry and the Anus.
Rating: 
Summary: Sucks, basically
Review: You can try all you want to pretend the Family Guy is'nt a sad, low-brow ripoff of the Simpson's but you'd be living in denial. It speaks volumes about a show when, by far, the most interesting character is the familiy dog. You might laugh here and there in between the celebrity cheap-shots and painfully typical movie parodies but I would'nt hold my breath. Bottom line: the Family Guy is to the Simpson's, as Go-Bots were to Transformers.
Rating:
Summary: Funny as heck
Review: A couple of reviewers have complained that these are censored. They do appear to be, slightly. But one of the things I noticed watching them in their original form was that the more the show needed to be censored, the less funny it became. Like most shows, excessive sexual innuendo leads not to laughs but to snickers about them doing something naughty. SOUTH PARK is much more suggestive than FAMILY GUY (well, most of the time), but I never laugh at SOUTH PARK because it doesn't offer much in the way of genuine humor. So, somewhat censored, but who cares. The humor was left intact.
Rating:
Summary: Strikingly original and hysterically funny animation
Review: Above all else, FAMILY GUY is a funny, funny show. I almost always watch TV, DVDs, or video when I eat my meals, but I have discovered that it isn't entirely safe to do so while watching this show. It is funny to a degree that simply isn't compatible with eating food. What is amazing about the show is that while on one level it will strike just about any viewer as a semi-ripoff of THE SIMPSONS (just check all the SIMPSONS references in other reviews--it is almost impossible not to compare the two), it nonetheless manages to come across as remarkably fresh and--paradoxically--underivative. Although the show uses a number of voiceover artists, the majority of the voices are supplied by only two actors: Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein (who will be familiar to fans of MADTV). It isn't fair to say that MacFarlane is the Matt Groening of FAMILY GUY, since Groening does so much less in the SIMPSONS. MacFarlane is the creator of the show, voices most of the male characters, and is one of the main writers. Alex Borstein voices most of the female characters and is also a writer. FAMILY GUY is THE SIMPSONS on speed and with a bawdy streak. Like the Simpsons, the show recreates a small town and introduces a host of characters. Like most people, my two favorites are Stewie, the one-year old evil super genius who also doubles as the youngest Griffin, and Brian, the talking family dog, who is also exceptionally literate and an alcoholic. Unlike THE SIMPSONS, where Lisa and (usually) Marge are voices of reason, absolutely no one on FAMILY GUY really has their stuff together. Brian, Meg, and Lois are relatively sane, but all can exhibit bizarre behavior at key times. Brian can serve as the voice of reason, but his drinking problem can get out of control at inopportune times. This show is absolutely NOT for the children. There is a huge amount of sexual humor, frequent references to genitalia, and the next-door neighbor is a sexual predator. The show was designed with a late nighttime slot in mind, and it shows. Much of the humor is scatological, and there really are no sacred subjects. To be honest, when the show goes off color, I generally find it to be less funny than in the more primetime moments. Much of the humor becomes ritualistic (a detractor might say formulaic). For instance, whenever any character uses the phrase "like the time" you know you about about to get a flashback. Transitions can be rapid, unexpected, and exceedingly weird. And unlike THE SIMPSONS, when they introduce a song, it is almost always exceedingly funny. Just don't try to eat and watch FAMILY GUY at the same time.
Rating:
Summary: Bad
Review: These CD's are censored. We can't enjoy this show to it's fullness because of that. The characters stutter. These manic characters really get old after a couple of views.
|
