Although there have been plenty of great episodes over the years, the very best Family Guy episodes are in a league of their own.
Highlights
- Family Guy has maintained a dedicated audience since its debut in 1999, delivering controversial jokes and clever storylines.
- The best Family Guy episodes push boundaries and stand out, with unique premises, great jokes, and memorable moments.
- The show’s top-rated episodes include parodies, time travel, and crossovers with The Simpsons, helping to showcase the show’s wit and creativity.
The 21st century has already seen some fantastic comedy series, but few are able to match Family Guy when it comes to either fame or longevity. The Seth MacFarlane animated sitcom has managed to maintain an audience since its debut in 1999, delivering countless controversial jokes, outrageous moments, and clever storylines throughout that time.
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That’s not to say that every episode is a winner, mind. With over 350 of them, there are bound to be some that are a little underwhelming. Yet, when the show is at its very best, few comedies can come close to matching it. The best Family Guy episodes find ways to further push the boundaries and consequently find themselves in a league of their very own.
Updated January 26, 2024, by Tom Bowen: More than two decades on from its 1999 debut, Family Guy remains one of the most popular animated shows on television. Granted, a rather sizeable portion of its viewership has dropped off in recent years, but not nearly enough to prevent the show from being renewed for yet another two seasons. The current season, which serves as the series’ 21st, brought the total number of episodes beyond the 400 mark: an impressive feat that few other animated shows have ever managed to accomplish. Of the hundreds of episodes that have aired over the years though, some stand out much more than others and are considered by many to be the best Family Guy episodes of all time.
15 Da Boom
IMDb Rating: 8.1
Post-apocalyptic narratives are often seen in video games – both good and bad ones – but it’s not a typical storyline for an animated sitcom. Yet that’s exactly the sort of tale Family Guy tells in “Da Boom.” It all begins when Y2K causes a nuclear holocaust, which destroys most of Quahog and mutates many of its residents. However, the Griffin family remains unharmed, and they have to make a new life in what’s left of the world.
Not only does the episode have a unique premise, but it also includes some great jokes. The most notable being the first-ever Chicken fight, which would become one of the show’s most popular running gags.
14 Blue Harvest
IMDb Rating: 8.2
“Blue Harvest” was the first of three Family Guy specials that paid homage to the original Star Wars trilogy. It was released in 2007 to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of A New Hope and is full of fantastic gags and references. Officially, it serves as the first episode of Season 6, though its 48-minute runtime is around double that of the other 11 episodes.
“Blue Harvest” sees Chris taking on the role of Luke and casts Lois as Princess Leia, which somehow manages to be even more problematic than in the original movie. The rest of the main cast are also given important roles in the Star Wars story, with Stewie’s performance as Darth Vader being particularly memorable. All in all, it’s a pretty funny episode, particularly for Star Wars fans.
13 Three Kings
IMDb Rating: 8.1
“Three Kings” parodies three of Author Stephen King’s most memorable novels, those being Stand by Me, Misery, and The Shawshank Redemption. All of them are pretty funny, but it will probably be the latter that lives longest in the memory of viewers thanks in large to one or two excellent jokes and references.
Whether it be Cleveland describing Peter’s Andy Dufresne character as a fat drink of water that came from the bathroom sink or Peter making a mockery of the warden’s iconic “obtuse” line, those who’ve seen the movies or read the books will likely get a real kick out of this episodes. Those who haven’t should still find plenty of cause to laugh.
12 Death is a Bitch
IMDb Rating: 8.2
In Family Guy, death is more than just a state of being (or not being, depending on how one looks at it), but rather a real character who is responsible for harvesting the souls of those who die. After Peter decides to fake his death on an insurance form in the “Death is a Bitch” episode, Death turns up to claim his bounty, but things don’t quite go to plan.
Fortunately, before Death can take Peter away from his loved ones, he slips and sprains his ankle, forcing him to take some time off while he recovers. When Peter points out to the world that it’s impossible to die while Death is out of action, people begin to take advantage of this, which leads to Peter having to fill in for death and even more hilarity.
11 Stewie Loves Lois
IMDb Rating: 8.2
There’s a lot going on in the season 5 episode, “Stewie Loves Lois,” but the main narrative thread follows Peter. After a routine prostate examination, Peter feels violated and so decides to take Dr. Hartman to court. However, he soon realizes that no doctor will treat him following the lawsuit, forcing him to return to Hartman for help.
Elsewhere, Stewie’s feelings towards Lois change after she repairs his stuffed teddy bear, Rupert, which had earlier been destroyed by a vicious dog. He ends up becoming incredibly needy as a result, which eventually leads to Lois ignoring him and Stewie falling down the stairs. Infuriated by her neglect, Stewie’s hatred for his mother soon returns.
10 Petarded
IMDb Rating: 8.2
Peter’s lack of intelligence has led to plenty of humorous moments over the years, but perhaps none more so than in the season 4 episode, “Petarded.” After taking a test to determine whether or not he is a genius, Peter is informed that he has a below-average IQ and ends up using this to his advantage.
He quickly realizes that people are willing to make certain allowances due to his “condition,” and begins to test just how far he can take things. This leads to him instigating a bible fight at church, kicking open stalls in the female bathrooms, and, eventually, drenching his wife in scalding hot oil. Thankfully, Lois is able to make a full recovery, though, much to Peter’s delight, it’s revealed that she’ll continue to smell like french fries for the next six months or so.
9 Yug Ylimaf
IMDb Rating: 8.4
Episodes that focus on Brian and Stewie tend to be good, and “Yug Ylimaf” is no exception. During it, Brian breaks Stewie’s time machine, which makes time itself move backward. It’s then up to the duo to solve the issue before Stewie is unborn.
Family Guy has always excelled at self-referential humor, and there’s plenty of it in this episode. It occurs naturally too, as some of the show’s classic scenes are revisited as the world goes back in time. Yet, the smartest joke in the episode is perhaps the title, which is Family Guy spelled backward.
8 Stewie Kills Lois
IMDb Rating: 8.3
Few episodes of Family Guy are quite as captivating as “Stewie Kills Lois.” Partway through, it subverts viewers’ expectations by (seemingly) killing off a main character. It’s such an uncharacteristic move by the animated sitcom that it makes viewers interested in what happens next. As the title suggests, Lois is the one to fall, and the rest of the episode is about the others finding out who did it.
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Despite the storyline being about a significant death, Family Guy still manages to deliver some laughs. There are numerous examples strewn throughout the episode, like when Peter claims that Philip Seymour Hoffman starred in Titanic, rather than Kate Winslet.
7 Lois Kills Stewie
IMDb Rating: 8.3
During the early seasons of the show, Stewie frequently talks about killing Lois. Well, during a two-parter in season six, he tries to do just that. Unfortunately for him, Lois survives, and in this second part, he’s on the run. However, the baby doesn’t just hide; instead, he takes over the world.
The episode works best in tandem with its predecessor, but it’s a good piece of television regardless. Some of its most memorable moments include an American Dad cameo and the brilliantly crafted fight scene at the end – which would fit into many highly-rated action movies.
6 Meet The Quagmires
IMDb Rating: 8.4
“Meet the Quagmires” is the rare time travel episode that doesn’t involve Stewie’s time machine. Alternatively, Peter gets Death to send him back to his youth for one night to enjoy being single again. As often with Peter’s ideas, it goes terribly wrong as once he gets back to the present, everything has changed. The thing that upsets him the most is that Lois is no longer his wife; she’s married to Quagmire instead.
Family Guy doesn’t tend to focus on delivering life lessons. Yet, the message this episode gives about appreciating one’s life is powerful. It’s also complemented by a flurry of eighties references and a classic cutaway featuring the Jetson family.
5 The Simpsons Guy
IMDb Rating: 8.4
Ever since Family Guy first aired, people have been comparing the series to The Simpsons. It’s understandable, really, as the two sitcoms share many similarities. For instance, they both revolve around the lives of dysfunctional American families. Two families that finally came together in “The Simpsons Guy.”
While the plotline is a little contrived, seeing the characters of both worlds interact is worth it. Combinations like Stewie and Bart, in particular, share great chemistry. Overall, it’s a solid episode that deserves to be considered among both Family Guy and The Simpsons’ best.
4 PTV
IMDb Rating: 8.5
Season four’s “PTV” is most known for its incredible musical number featuring Peter, Brian, and Stewie. Through song, the trio takes many shots at the Federal Communications Commission. Better still, the visuals of the music video are just as hilarious as the lyrics.
The entire episode is actually about Peter’s distaste for FCC’s restrictions as he creates his own television network. It’s Family Guy at its satirical best as the show exaggerates television censorship, even having the FCC try to hide nudity and foul language in real life.
3 And Then There Were Fewer
IMDb Rating: 8.6
The people of Quahog don’t rival the great detectives in history, at least not when it comes to their powers of deduction. However, in the 2010 episode “And Then There Were Fewer”, they have to figure out who’s killing everyone during James Wood’s dinner party.
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It’s a classic whodunnit storyline, and the writers execute it perfectly. There’s a flurry of clever red herrings and misdirects throughout the episode. Plus, the final reveal is very satisfying. Thankfully, it’s all done with Family Guy’s signature wit as the life-threatening situation doesn’t stop the characters from being their goofy selves.
2 Back To The Pilot
IMDb Rating: 8.8
There have been many TV shows, films, and video games that involve time travel. But few of them have included narratives like the one in “Back to the Pilot.” As the name suggests, Brian and Stewie travel back to the first episode of the series. It ends up going badly as Brian heavily alters the timeline by attempting to stop 9/11.
The episode is jam-packed with meta-humor as the show relentlessly makes fun of itself. Comments are made about graphical glitches, Meg’s change in voice actor, and the original Stewie’s drastically different personality.
1 Road to the Multiverse
IMDb Rating: 9.1
“Road to the Multiverse” is one of the most creative pieces of television ever. It sees Brian and Stewie using the latter’s tech to jump between different parallel universes. Each place they go is so unique, both in its content and sometimes art style. The various switches in animation make this a very visually impressive episode.
The humor is on point too. Brian and Stewie always share some brilliant banter back and forth, and it’s no different in this one. Plus, there are also some comical sight gags throughout. The episode is so popular that it even spawned a video game, and a genuinely funny one, at that.
Family Guy AnimationComedy
Creator Seth MacFarlane, David Zuckerman Network FOX , Adult Swim Release Date January 31, 1999
Fuente: successacademy.edu.vn
Categorías: Trend
