The tenth season of Family Guy premiered on the Fox network from September 25, 2011, to May 20, 2012 with a one-hour broadcast of two episodes.[1] The series follows the Griffin family, a dysfunctional family consisting of father Peter, mother Lois, daughter Meg, son Chris, baby Stewie and the family dog Brian, who reside in their hometown of Quahog, a fictional city in Rhode Island.
During this season, Peter becomes friends with Ryan Reynolds (guest-voicing as himself), the Griffins win the lottery, Meg falls in love with an Amish boy as Peter goes to war with his family, Stewie starts driving Brian's car and accidentally crashes it, Meg dates Quagmire on her 18th birthday, Chris dates a girl who looks like Lois (voiced by Elliot Page), Quagmire asks Peter and Joe to help him kill his sister's (voiced by Kaitlin Olson) violently abusive boyfriend (voiced by Ralph Garman), Peter befriends a dolphin (voiced by Ricky Gervais[2]), Kevin Swanson (voiced by Scott Grimes) surprisingly returns to Quahog on Thanksgiving, Lois kidnaps Stewie's sick friend, Brian gets a blind girlfriend who hates dogs, James Woods makes a shocking return after being killed last season when Peter becomes an agent to Tom Tucker, Meg delivers a few home truths while scolding her family for all the abuse she personally suffered, Peter has another showdown with his mortal enemy, and Brian and Stewie travel back in time to the premiere Family Guy episode.[3]
Also, the hurricane-themed episode, "Seahorse Seashell Party", that was scheduled to air on May 1, 2011 as part of the ninth season, ended up being aired on October 2, 2011 as the second episode of this season and during a crossover called Night of the Hurricane with The Cleveland Show and American Dad!. It was put on hold because of the 2011 Super Outbreak, which killed an estimated 346 people in the Southern United States around the time of the planned original release date.[4]
Marketing
To promote the show's tenth season, 20th Century Fox announced a sweepstakes. The sweepstakes reportedly would provide the winner with $3,000, as well as the announcement of the winner's name during the season 10 premiere.[5] Fox celebrated the show's 10th anniversary with an event called the "Something Something Something Anniversary" in which Fox hosted theatrical screenings of 3 episodes each, across 10 cities in the United States.[6]
Lois announces to the family that they should start sticking with a budget — just as Peter comes in with 200,000 lottery tickets, one of which turns the lower-middle-class Griffins into multi-millionaires.
When a hurricane hits Quahog, Brian braves through the storm by taking magic mushrooms and has a nightmare, while Meg becomes fed up with the abuse from her family, stands up to them, only for the family to fall apart without a scapegoat.
After Quagmire gets sent to the hospital after a near death of autoerotic asphyxiation, he soon discovers that the real threat is that his younger sister, Brenda, is still with her abusive boyfriend Jeffery, and persuades Peter and Joe to help him stop the situation once and for all.
Actor Ryan Reynolds visits Quahog and befriends Peter, who is wary that Reynolds may like him as more than just a friend. Meanwhile, Stewie gets into trouble when he steals Brian's car for a drive and ends up crashing it onto a streetlight in the process, afraid of facing punishments, he decides to run away to Consuela's home.
Brian and Stewie go back in time to January 31, 1999, the day the very first episode of the show aired, so the two could change history, but would have to go back again to change history a second time. While doing so, Present Brian tells himself (Past Brian) about the 9/11 attacks, which causes trouble in the present.
Lois prepares a big Thanksgiving dinner, and Kevin Swanson, originally presumed to be dead in Iraq, suddenly returns to his family and friends, much to their confusion.
While returning from a visit at an amusement park, the Griffin’s car breaks down in an Amish county and they are stranded with no way out. When Meg falls for a local Amish boy named Eli, the Griffins soon find themselves in a crusade led by Peter against the conservative locals.
Peter and his friends take a stand against their wives and flee to New Orleans on a road trip. On the way there, the group earn a one-way ticket to jail. But when they decide to make a run for it where both Joe's quick planning and Peter's seductive ways help them escape. Meanwhile, Lois spends some quality time with Donna and Bonnie as they engage in childish and foolish antics.
After Lois's father, Carter, falls asleep while driving in a snowstorm, the family soon realize he is on the verge of retirement, concerned for his safety, Lois decides to admit him to a nursing home in Florida, in an attempt to help him adjust to life as an older man. Carter is reluctant to live in the retirement community, however, but eventually comes to enjoy the various activities. A few months later, he suddenly becomes grumpy and even more elderly, causing Peter to take him back to his old business and reverting him back to normal.
When Meg finally turns 18 years old on her birthday, Quagmire seizes the opportunity to pursue his next romantic conquest. As the new relationship starts to kick in, Peter stops at nothing to come in between his daughter and his odd relationship, but Lois urges him to back off because she does not believe anything will happen.
Brian gets a blind girlfriend who dislikes dogs. Despite this, they build up a healthy relationship without her aware of his species and breed, but he still wants to meet her parents; Peter is introduced to a new co-worker at the brewery named Stella, whom Quagmire has his eyes on, Meanwhile, Peter deals with the new stairs after Stewie gets a splinter.
When Stewie's new best friend, Scotty, falls ill, both Lois takes him to the hospital where Dr. Hartman finds out that he has a case of Hodgkin's disease. However, Scotty’s parents refuse treatment due to their religious beliefs, leaving Lois no choice but to take drastic measures to seek treatment for Scotty herself. Meanwhile, Peter has a religious experience of his own.
When Peter decides to help Tom Tucker realize his dream to become a famous actor, he becomes his agent as they go to Hollywood. When they arrive to Hollywood, they come face to face with James Woods who is revealed to have been revived from his passing in the previous season’s premiere. Meanwhile, Chris dates a girl named Lindsey who looks completely identical to Lois.
Note: This episode was dedicated to Ricky Garduno, one of the storyboard artist of the show.
When Peter and the guys try to salvage a sunken Mercedes-Benz, Peter half-heartedly promises a favor to a benign dolphin named Billy. Soon afterwards, the dolphin moves to Quahog but outstays his welcome at Peter's, after he realizes that Billy has become a nuisance in the house, he tries to reunite with him with his ex-wife in hopes that he will return to the ocean. Meanwhile, Stewie attends a pre-school with an incompetent but pretty teacher who Brian falls for.
Overwhelmed with financial troubles and the absence of Muriel, Mort asks Peter and Quagmire to help him save his pharmacy. However, things go south when the trio decides to burn it down to collect insurance money.
After Chris wins a hot dog eating contest, Lois becomes worried about his health and sends him and Peter to fat camp to become healthy. At the camp however, the duo come face to face with a serial killer who seems to victimize obese people, which coincides with Lois’s brother Patrick, who has been released from a mental institution. Meanwhile, Stewie becomes frightened of the front cover of the Queen album “News of the World” that Brian showed him in the attic, which later leads to Brian telling Stewie that the robot isn’t real and thus apologizing for scaring him, which coincidentally leads to Stewie making peace with the robot and becomes no longer scared of the album cover.
After an innocent night out, things go south when Peter, Joe, Brian, and Quagmire all wake up in a hospital and discover that their memories have been erased and Quahog has been deserted, making the four being the only ones remaining.
Peter develops and stars in a children's TV show after his favorite show has been cancelled. Meanwhile, Meg begins an internship with Dr. Hartman at the local hospital.
Stewie befriends a girl on the playground named Penelope and is surprised to hear that they both have a lot in common, that saying that they both have plans for world domination. Meanwhile, Lois gets squashed in her sleep by Peter and suggests that they sleep in separate beds. Peter doesn't like the idea due to snuggling issues and decides to sleep with Quagmire.
In a parody of Taken, Meg travels abroad to Europe, her adventure comes to a halt when she gets kidnapped, both Brian and Stewie embark on an mission to find her before it’s too late.
After Quahog City Hall threatens to shut down Peter’s illegally run business, Peter joins the Tea Party and, with the help of Carter, who reaps the benefit of all the chaos in the town, successfully campaigns to shut down the government. However, this ordeal causes the city to break down without government.
Brian and Stewie respond to viewer mail. Chap of the Manor - We are introduced to a UK version of the Griffins. Fatman and Robin - Peter discovers that everything he touches turns into his favorite comedian, Robin Williams. Point of Stew - A first-person perspective with Stewie.
Peter and Quagmire encourage Joe to have a one-night stand with his attractive new partner named Nora, in order to even the score with Bonnie for her own indiscretions. But when Bonnie finds out and threatens to start a divorce, Lois insists that Peter get them back together. Meanwhile, Peter has a run-in with his rival which makes for another fight.
Reception
The season received mixed to negative reviews. Kevin McFarland of The A.V. Club gave a C rating for the season.[29] Tucker Cummings of Yahoo! TV said "Despite a one-hour finale event that delivered a few laughs, 'Viewer Mail #2 / Internal Affairs' tread far too much familiar ground, a problem that's been plaguing the series for some time now."[30] He continued, "There's a tipping point in TV sitcoms where the repeated use of a running joke stops being funny, and just seems lazy and uninspired. If the Viewer Mail concept had been done regularly, it might have seemed more like a tradition (like the Treehouse of Horror on "The Simpsons"). However, by re-using an episode idea from 2002, it seemed to viewers like the creative minds behind the show were lacking creativity. While some of the concepts were funny (the Griffins as British, life from Stewie's perspective), many jokes fell flat."[30]
↑ McFarland, Kevin (November 6, 2011). "Stewie Goes For A Drive". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on November 8, 2011. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
↑ Moon, Kate (November 7, 2011). "Family Guy Review: Hotler". TV Fanatic. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
↑ McFarland, Kevin (November 14, 2011). "Back To The Pilot". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
↑ McFarland, Kevin (January 30, 2012). "Livin' On A Prayer". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on February 1, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
↑ Moon, Kate (January 30, 2012). "Family Guy Review: Blashphemy! Heresy! Sodomy!". TV Fanatic.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
↑ McFarland, Kevin (February 20, 2012). "Be Careful What You Fish For". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on April 19, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
↑ McFarland, Kevin (March 5, 2012). "Burning Down The Bayit". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on July 1, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
↑ McFarland, Kevin (March 11, 2012). "Killer Queen". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on November 16, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
↑ McFarland, Kevin (March 19, 2012). "Forget-Me-Not". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on March 21, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
↑ McFarland, Kevin (April 30, 2012). "Mr. and Mrs. Stewie". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
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