American Dad - "I Am the Walrus" - Talkback [3/27]

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Giovanna P

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Broadcast Order: Season 6, Episode 13
Production Order: Season 5, Episode 21

Writers: Keith Heisler
Director: Tim Parsons

A new episode airs tonight in its special timeslot(really, just its old timeslot) of 9:30 PM Eastern. Here is the synopsis:
 
American Dad is really starting to suffer from Family Guy syndrome. Could Stan and Steve be any more unlikeable in this episode?
 
Aww man, I wanted to see Roger on a go-kart.

But I certainly don't want to see what he's doing with Lewis' body...

Decent ep, but the pacing seemed off and I can't help but think the 'better man of the house' plot has been done already on the show...
 
while steve being unlikable and cruel caught me off guard, stan seemed to continue a trend that was established a long time ago of being pretty unlikable anyway. that said, even if you establish that character types like stan's are sorta like daffy duck or master shake, and you're supposed to hate them and mock them, you have to stick with making them pretty unlikable. american dad's keeps trying to have it both ways, with episodes where stan learns a lesson about being less of a jerk, only to plumb new depths in the next episode. considering it wants continuity on other points, it feels awkward when you get an episode so far past previous antics like this one. you're also limited by the likability and little bit of continuity of the character as to how much pain you can dish back to him. you can't just do a shake or daffy, and end episode with them maimed or otherwise completely decimated.

tl;dr: it was an ok episode with some laughs, but also really showed how confused the direction/character-writing is sometimes.
 
That's the thing. Steve is a level-headed, mild-mannered character who has the utmost respect for his dad, regardless of how he's treated. So to see him act completely contrary to that for the sake of humor is...well, like Family Guy. Then we have Stan. The guy can be an insensitive jerk, but it's usually in a more realistic manner. I felt more like I was watching Peter Griffin than Stan Smith in tonight's episode.

I suppose it was only a matter of time.
 
I don't know, I seems to me that they were just acting crazy, this show has been known to have moments like this, did you see the principal?!:eek: Anyway, with Seth Mcfarlane it's almost a given that you're going to see unlikeable characters in one of his shows.:sad:
 
Here's why I like Stan and don't like Peter:

In tonight's episode, Stan acted like a jerk, but he came from a sympathetic place. Before he started doing jerky things, we saw how upset he was that he thought he was losing his place. Of course it's ridiculous, but that's why it's funny. For him to go so far for such absurd reasoning makes it funny and is really perfectly in character for him. The same with Steve. He's usually very subservient, which is why whenever he sees a chance to improve his position he usually jumps on it with great enthusiasm, even if, again, it's for absurd reasons. This is also very in character for him, and why he's a likable character since he usually ends up, as you would expect, getting dumped on for his overconfidence. But it's done in a sympathetic way. Also, the way Stan and Steve go back and forth, with first Stan on top, then Steve, then Stan again, then finally Stan learning an obligatory, though relevant, lesson, makes it compelling to the viewer.

This is in contrast to Peter, who usually just does mean stuff to be mean, without any sympathy or dramatic narrative factor. Like, say, farting on Meg or killing Quagmire's cat or any of the thousand of other mean things he's done just for shock value.

My biggest laugh, though, was probably Francine doing her "experiment".
 
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