The awkward pause is a trusty tool of the comedy. If done just right, it makes the actors themselves cringe, sending viewers into hysterics. The Office is the master, but only one show has come to dominate the genre of the awkward pause, for better or worse: Family Guy.
How many times can Seth MacFarlane leave us praying for the pain to stop? I wouldn’t want to ask him myself. The man turned a gag with a guy in a chicken suit into a five-minute-long battle. On two separate episodes. In two different seasons.
MacFarlane gave us Peter Griffin, man who hurt his knee, wincing through the pain, minute after minute after minute after minute. Why? What have we done to deserve this? And why can’t we seem to look away? Not only are we trapped in this comedic torture, we even brought it back on the air!
You’ll notice that I don’t say you. I take just as much responsibility for inviting MacFarlane back as I hurl at you. Although, I really only bought the DVD’s for my wife (then my fiancée). Still, I do continue to watch the show today. But it’s for Stewie and Brian, I swear!
(Deep breath) Where was I? Right; we’ve given Seth MacFarlane the power to abuse us. If he wanted to, he could cut scene and go to an empty field, the sound of crickets our only companion. On three different shows starting in 2009. Plus an online series. My God!
I do enjoy the show for the most part. American Dad I could never get into, because to me it was MacFarlane’s drunken version of the Griffins. Very drunken. A talking goldfish? An alien? Come on! But Family Guy has a dog/baby companionship, an evil monkey and Patrick Warburton. Not too shabby. So why does MacFarlane hate us so?
I don’t have an answer for that one. But let’s be reasonable here. He has my money from those damn DVDs (I just had to see the unaired episode!) So, shouldn’t he answer to me? Don’t I pay his bills? I guess that makes about as much sense as my thinking that the money my parents shelled out for my college tuition entitled me to cut some classes without it affecting my grades …
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… Awkward enough pause for you?
Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Jan 05, 2009 @ 09:00 EST5EDT
It was a tolerable show. Then FOX came crawling back to revive it and that’s when MacFarlane and company started to get cocky and lazy. Jokes started getting recycled endlessly and stunts pulled just because they can. It’s more about what he thinks would be fun to see on screen which is usually a cheap satarization of every cliche imaginable (especially out of the ’80s).
The drawn out bits take the idea of beating a dead horse to a whole new level. It was maybe funny the first time. After that it became a crutch.
Maybe I’m just childish, but I thought I Dream of Jesus was one of the funniest episodes of Family Guy to date. Everytime Peter started up with Surfin’ Bird again I just laughed harder! Couldn’t help myself…
I’m so glad that you only used “DVD’s” once and lost the apostrophy later on. Trust me, it’s better for your karma :-)