November 21, 2008 4:08:52 AM CST
(Newser) – Family Guy is back and bigger than ever, and creator Seth Macfarlane is rolling in money, influence, and spinoffs. Sounds like just the right time for a major backlash, Natasha Vargas-Cooper writes for Radar. “Just a few years after thousands of American tastemakers demanded Family Guy be resuscitated from cancellation,” Vargas-Cooper writes, “many of those same arbiters of culture have deemed MacFarlane's humor puerile and brainless.”
And for good reason. The trademark cutaway gags have grown "forced and tired," she says, while the subtle satire and harmless potty humor have turned into liberal preachiness and unimaginative gags. Vargas-Cooper sees the cause as “lethargy,” and draws a stark connection between Macfarlane’s success and his funnybone. “There is a staggering inversion between the quality of MacFarlane's work and his cash bonanza.”
Source Radar
Aug 17, 08 4:59 PM CDT What if the family dog ate alphabet soup by mistake? Susan Meddaugh answered her 7-year-old son’s question by writing a book, Martha Speaks, which has now become a PBS show about the talking dog. PBS hopes it will teach challenging vocab—"diminish," "concoct," and "courageous" are on the list—by integrating them seamlessly into stories. More »
Jun 30, 08 3:43 AM CDT In a unique advertising move, Google and Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane are creating an ad-driven internet cartoon series, the New York Times reports. Using its AdSense service, Google will place two-minute animated "webisodes" of McFarlane’s Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy on websites likely to draw the animator's target audience. Blended into the clips will be various ads. More »
Jun 18, 08 10:10 AM CDT Advertising execs usually like spokesmen to be safe, wholesome, family-friendly figures. So why the heck are the Griffins their new darlings? From Coca-Cola to Subway, everyone seems to be tapping the "Family Guy" clan, despite the show’s tendency to joke about sex, religion, AIDS, and other wholesome, family-friendly topics. It seems crude is “in,” the New York Times reports. More »
May 28, 08 1:58 PM CDT Fox's hit cartoon Family Guy is spinning off a new show centered around Cleveland Brown—the soft-spoken neighbor to Peter Griffin. The Cleveland Show will debut in 2009, and follow a recently divorced Brown on a quest to his Virginia hometown, where he falls in love with an old flame. More »
May 5, 08 1:51 PM CDT Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane has inked a deal with Fox which could be worth more than $100 million, making him the highest-paid writer-producer in television. MacFarlane will stay with the network until 2012, working on his three animated shows and developing new series, the Hollywood Reporter says. More »
Family Guy's incessant cut-away gags have grown increasingly forced and tired. In short, the show sucks. And, while it has been long foretold, the Seth MacFarlane backlash is now fully underway. - Natasha Vargas-Cooper
television • cartoon • Family Guy • Seth MacFarlane
