When the Fox network in America dropped Family Guy from their schedule after three seasons, there was a outcry...why on earth drop such a successful series?? All there was left was DVD's...DVD's that sold so well, Fox had no option other than to bring it back, and in 2005 back it came with aplomb. But could it possibly match the brillance of before??
The return hailed thirteen new episodes, which on the boxset, released in April over here in the UK, come on three seperate discs.
Just for the record, all the regular characters are still there - all the Griffins - Peter, Lois, Chris, Meg, Stewie and Brian. Neighbours such like Quagmire, Cleveland and Joe are still there, and focus somewhat more in episodes...and there are more fleeting appearances from novelty characters such as the Greased-up Deaf Guy and the Evil Monkey.
Opening episode "North by North Quahog", as the title suggests is very much a parody on Alfred Hitchcock's thriller "North by Northwest", as shown when it culminates at Mount Rushmore just like in Hitchcock's film. The episode itself focuses on Peter Griffin stealing a new film by Mel
Gibson, which the chase leads to Mount Rushmore. Interestingly enough, the very first punchline of the programme regards Peter talking to the rest of the family about the show being dropped, then listing an extremely long line of programmes it may have bene replaced by...definitely a slight stab in the ribs at Fox and their programme organisers.
Other episodes on this disc include "Fast Times At Buddy Cianci Jr. High" - where Chris has a crush on his new teacher, who then asks him to kill her husband! "Blind Ambition" - after Quagmire somewhat inadvertently saves the life of a young woman, Peter feels he has nothing to be proud of, until he finds a talent for eating nickels...but then wakes up one morning, blind from nickel poisoning! And finally "Don't Make Me Over" - Meg gets a makeover, and the Griffins turn into a family band, appearing on the famous US show Saturday Night Live.
Disc Two begins with "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire" - Peter and Brian discover that Quagmire and Loretta, Cleveland's wife, are having an affair. "Petarded" is the next episode and is a definite favourite of mine - Peter is diagnosed as being 'mentally-retarded'...which leads to a series of interesting and somewhat intriguing capers.
The other two episodes on the second disc are "Brian the Bachelor" - where Brian appears on the US show 'The Bachelorette', and Chris has an obscure relationship with a zit. And "8 Simple Rules For Buying My Teenage Daughter" - with Brian in severe debt at Mort Goldman's pharmacy, he offers Meg to Mort's son as a way of payment.
The final disc contains five episodes; "Breaking Out Is Hard To Do" - Lois becomes a kleptomaniac and ends up in prison. "Model Behaviour" - Lois becomes a far-too-revealing model. "Peter's Got Woods" - When Brian attempts to change the name of the local school from James Wood's High to Martin Luther King Jr. High, Peter becomes outraged and acts...by getting James Woods involved. "The Perfect Castaway" - Peter, Cleveland, Quagmire and Joe and deserted on an island in the middle of nowhere, however when Peter returns, he discovers that Lois has remarried...to Brian! And finally, "Jungle Love" - Chris joins the Peace Corps. and when the family attempt to bring him back, Peter becomes King of the tribe.
The standard regime to produce comedy is there...usual references such as "oh this is worse than the time..." and "oh at least it's better than that time..." followed by some obscure reference. However, with that in mind, one criticism must be that the writers use this style far too often......
Special features, which were severly lacking on the other three seasons, include:
- Commentaries on selected episodes - "World domination: the Family Guy phenomenon" - Deleted scene animatics - "Score!" - music of Family Guy featurette - Multi-angle table reads - Storyboard/Animatic comparisons
And you can pick it up off Amazon at the moment for £19.99 - not bad for a new release like this.
Despite it lacking some of the unique genius of previous series - maybe the novelty has worn off??!? it's still a must have for any possible Family Guy fan out there as it's still a unique piece of comedy......and no, it's nothing like The Simpsons.
Season Five I believe is on it's way.......I await it with excited, and baited breath.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2004 - Comedy - Director: John Hay - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jimi Mistry, Kate Miles, Dougray Scott
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Comedy - Director: Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Carol Cleveland, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Jones
Love it - had to get it the day it was released. x
thebluehippo 12.07.2006 20:14
Great review, I'm still not sure whether I like Family Guy though, some of them episodes sounded quite bad.
Soho_Black 10.07.2006 11:38
Sorry for the H, but you've posted this as a DVD review but not said much about the DVD extras. I'm just in the process of finishing watching this series. Just the last disc to go.
Its criminal, really, given the sheer outright quality ofFamily Guythat more people arent ... more
willing to give it a try. For while it tends to draw comparisons toThe Simpsons--after all, it is a family-based animated comedy show--Family Guyvery much has a v...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Its criminal, really, given the sheer outright quality ofFamily Guythat more people arent ... more
willing to give it a try. For while it tends to draw comparisons toThe Simpsons--after all, it is a family-based animated comedy show--Family Guyvery much has a v...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Cancelled? Who said anything about cancelled? Back due to overwhelming popular demand ... more
it's the complete fourth series of freakin' sweet adventures with the Griffin family! Featuring 13 animated episodes of pure unadulterated comedy! Manly Meg bum...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
The wildly irreverent, shrewdly crude animated sensation that has been confounding the PC ... more
police since the last millennium is back! So raise your martini glasses in unison as Family Guy returns with a vengeance for 13 more hilarious episodes that find ...
![Family Guy - Season 4 - Complete [DVD]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78483385.jpg "Family Guy - Season 4 - Complete [DVD]")
Jul 4th, 2006
very helpful by (96%):
helpful by (4%):
