I've always been partial to the Seth MacFarlane universe over the Matt Groening universe. I realize that just saying this will cause people to make all kinds of assumptions about me. So be it. It's something I don't readily admit in public, but I will admit it. The reason I bring this up is because I've run into a bit of a problem - "Family Guy" isn't even a shadow of what it once was. I opened this post with my personal preferences to preempt the obvious retort from non-fans - "It always sucked, moron." This isn't helpful. Right now, I want to talk about a familiar dilemma to TV fans. What do you do when a show you've loved isn't great anymore? It could've succumbed to a steady decline in quality over the years, as many shows organically do, or it could've suddenly and drastically become awful. I could write this post about many different shows I've fallen out of love with. "Brothers and Sisters" or "House" definitely qualified. But the "Family Guy" dilemma bothers me the most and has been on my mind recently, so I'm going to focus primarily on it here."Family Guy," for all its criticisms and accusations of plagiarism ("The Simpsons" does not own the nuclear family mold. That's like saying JRR Tolkien owns the wise old man archetype), was a clever show. It could be toilet-bowl crude and hilariously poignant. The "PTV" episode is a classic that comments on modern censorship. The "Road to..." episodes were a pleasant change-up from their formula. The cutaway gags were random, but in all the right ways. The musical numbers set it apart and showed that no matter what character he's playing, Seth MacFarlane can sing. But, like many shows, it declined in quality. I hung on for a long time because, while newer episodes were nothing special, they normally contained at least one joke that made me laugh my head off. The "London Gentlemen's Club" and "Distracting Trumpet" gags were in later episodes and I'm thankful I stuck around for them. And there was, of course, the comfort food quality of spending time with characters I'd enjoyed for so many years.
But these days, I can't even bring myself to tune in for old time's sake. I don't know what went wrong, but the writing is sloppy and the humor is nonexistent. The cutaway gags are now entirely a lazy crutch, the characters are all exaggerated manifestations of their worst qualities, and the 'messages' are self-indulgently preachy. Compare the early episodes with Peter's ultra-religious father with the later episodes about alcoholism or politics. The show relied too heavily on guest voices in later seasons, but stunt casting is nothing new and one of my lesser complaints.One of my bigger complaints it that "Family Guy" blew a huge opportunity when it parodied "Star Wars." Parody isn't even the right word because it was more like a shot-for-shot remake with "Family Guy" characters with an occasional quip here and there.
So why am I complaining so much about a show whose decline has been obvious and a long time coming? Because it brings me to the larger issue at hand - what does a loyal viewer do when a show isn't the same one you loved in previous seasons?
You could...
- Keep on watching and hang on until the bitter end.
If you can still stand it, maybe the comfort food quality is enough to overlook bad writing or acting. However, returning to a show after you drop it and realizing that it's still terrible can cause you to go through the mourning process all over again.
- Watch a show that's by the same people.
This is the solution I went with in this case. This way, you have a better chance of ensuring
you'll get the same kind of humor or writing. I started watching "American Dad" this summer and have now seen every episode at least twice. Without the cutaway gags, it's forced to have a plot every week. Also, Roger is my favorite character in the entire MacFarlane universe. He's flexible and layered enough that I don't think he'll fall victim to the same kind of character change that happened to Stewie on "Family Guy." Stewie was rather one-note in the beginning of the series and kept developing to the point where he's actually been several different Stewies throughout the series. Luckily, we still get some musical numbers on "American Dad" to ease the transition. I don't care what anyone else says, Cee-Lo Green as a homicidal, singing hot tub is entertaining.- Find a show similar to it.
If you can't find a show by the same people and just want a show similar in structure or genre, do that. Watch "The Simpsons," "The Cleveland Show," "South Park," or old "King of the Hills" if you want to stay in the realm of adult animation. If you're abandoning a sci-fi show, find another sci-fi show to fill the void, and so on. Not rocket science.
- Re-watch the show's old episodes.
...until you can't take it any more, that is. The reason I didn't jump ship to "American Dad" sooner is because I kept watching reruns of "Family Guy." Well, after you practically memorize each episode, it's time to move on. But until you get sick of it, re-watching the show from the beginning is as good an option as any. And some shows might never get old. I've been watching the same episodes of "Seinfeld" pretty much my entire life and I still enjoy them. "Will & Grace" has similarly never lost its charm with me.
- Bombard the Internet with your pent-up bitterness.
Like I'm doing now! Honestly, I get really annoyed by people who can't admit that shows they loved are not good anymore. You can admit that it sucks now and it won't diminish the affection you have for the show's earlier seasons. You don't have to swear off the entire show. Beyond just ranting to fellow viewers, commenting about the show's decline on the Internet at least helps raise awareness to the people in charge that the show is suffering and the fans know it and will not stand for it. Unwavering loyalty to a show is pretty crazy when the writers/producers/actors aren't putting in the same commitment and care that the viewer is.
I'll admit, I'm not a big fan of "Buffy." I find it to be one of the most overrated shows out there. One of the reasons I have a hard time watching it is because of the fact that I don't like any of the characters. Any except Giles, that is (and Spike). I've only gotten four seasons into the show so my love of Giles is based solely on them, but from what I've seen he's the only person on that show who can get anything done. Buffy can kick ass but she's not very bright, Xander's a useless dork, Willow's smart but weak, Anya is a bitchy third wheel, and Angel was a moody miserable stalker who didn't become interesting until he got his own show. Giles, on the other hand, is brilliant and can kick ass if he needs to. The introduction of Wesley improved his image, but I liked him from the beginning. If the world was in jeopardy from supernatural forces, Giles would figure out what was behind it and how to stop it.
This spot would go to River Tam, but she got to be awesome in basically only one episode in "Firefly." "Serenity" is where she shined and if this was a movie heroes list she'd definitely place. But Mal is the hero of "Firefly" that I would want around when the shit hits the fan or any scary monsters are around going "grrr, argh." Okay, he wasn't exactly a hero in the strictest sense of the word, but he was a damn good leader of his little outfit and he did the right thing when making tough decisions.
Some of my heroes aren't action stars, but they still fit my definition of hero. Anytime someone has screwed you over, Veronica is able to get to the bottom of it - and look great doing it. But more than just super sexy eye candy, she's clever and she knows how to work her appearance to her advantage. While someone like Giles could solve problems with his book smarts, Veronica would fill out the team with her street smarts. She's the kind of girl who could get a criminal to confess without him even realizing it. She's kind of ninja-like in that way.
He's sort of the male version of Veronica, but with much more experience in the professional world of espionage. He's also got that whole MacGyver thing going on which would totally help in my hypothetical doomsday scenario. He also has an ability unlike anyone else on this list to assume false identities for his jobs and that earns him a spot on this list.
He's a human lie detector. What more is there to say? Lightman keeps a strong commitment to finding the truth and looking at a situation rationally. Sure, Dr. House can declare that "everybody lies," but Lightman can tell you who specifically is doing the lying and what about. He backs up his natural skill with years of scientific experience and study, so you can trust him to save the day when your ass is on the line. His expertise with interrogation would stop us from needing a Jack Bauer character to come along and torture an answer out of someone.
I've raved about Olivia for some time now, so of course she earns a top spot on this list. She's another take-charge lady with nerves of steel who can travel through universes just to help someone she cares about. She can face the strangest of the strange with a level head and still serve justice. I absolutely love her and would have to enlist her in my team of fictional superheroes. (Super referring to their awesomeness, not their comic book based powers.)
This might seem strange to put her so high on the list, as she wasn't my personal female hero like Olivia, but she had a lot more to deal with than Olivia did. In a world full of deadly machines, she was truly the unstoppable force to be reckoned with. She combined top-notch combat skills with fierce maternal instincts and I'm sure even the FOX execs who cancelled her show would agree that she would be ideal to have by your side when the world is in peril.
This is the start of "my list, my rules" because I am counting the next two as package deals. Sam and Dean Winchester with the help of Castiel are quite the team. Sure, they started the apocalypse, but they also managed to stop it, sort of. The self-sacrificing goes beyond what they do for each other and extends to what they sacrifice to help other people. When Dean lives a Twilight Zone version of his life if he wasn't a hunter, he cannot accept a life where others died because he wasn't around to rescue them. Sam agrees that their lifestyle "is unfair, and it hurts like hell, but it's worth it." Castiel rebels against the corrupt establishment in Heaven to try and save the Earth and gives up everything he had to do it. It's a shame the Heaven in the "Supernatural" universe is in such disarray because if anyone deserves it, it's these three heroes.
Talk about more self-sacrifice in the line of duty. Three out of the original five team members died and Captain Jack Harkness had to sacrifice his grandson to stop a horrifying alien threat. Jack is a dashing hero who can't even die which makes him an incomparable hero. He's smarter and much more responsible than he seems and he picks loyal team members. An immortal ex-Time Agent, a cop, a doctor, a computer genius, and the tea boy who was so much more made one powerful group of heroes. Which is why it's that much more painful that the show insists on killing them off! (Oh, and you're pretty much ensured crisis sex with this horny bunch).
This is no shocker. The Doctor saves the universe every season and does it without firing a gun or throwing a punch. He'll take care of those damn Daleks every time they come back, he'll stop the Cybermen whenever they reappear, and he'll even burn his own planet out of existence to stop a threatening race bent on genocide. River Song put it best, when she commented that "now and then, every once in a very long while, every day in a million days when the wind stands fair and the Doctor comes to call, everybody lives." 
