"Mother Tucker" | |
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Family Guy episode | |
Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 2 |
Directed by | James Purdum |
Written by | Tom Devanney |
Production code | 4ACX31 [1] |
Original air date | September 17, 2006 |
Guest appearances | |
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"Mother Tucker" is the second episode of the fifth season of the animated comedy series Family Guy . It originally aired on Fox on September 17, 2006. The episode follows Peter's mother, Thelma, divorcing Peter's father, Francis, and dating news anchorman Tom Tucker. Peter becomes closely attached to Tucker, only for his mother to end the relationship suddenly, leaving Peter feeling abandoned. Meanwhile, Stewie and Brian are employed as DJs on a local radio station, but have creative differences over the tone of the show, which eventually forces Brian to quit. [2]
The episode was written by Tom Devanney and directed by James Purdum. It received mixed reviews for its storyline, and many cultural references. According to Nielsen ratings, it was viewed in 9.23 million homes in its original airing. The episode featured guest performances by Jon Benjamin, Max Burkholder, Phyllis Diller, Phil LaMarr, Joe Lomonaco, Tamera Mowry, Anne-Michelle Seiler, Tara Strong, Nicole Sullivan, Gore Vidal, Gedde Watanabe, and Wally Wingert along with several recurring guest voice actors for the series. "Mother Tucker" was released on DVD along with twelve other episodes from the season on September 18, 2007.
Peter's mother, Thelma, visits the Griffin family home, and alerts her son, Peter that she has finally left his father, Francis. In an attempt to find her a new husband, Peter's wife, Lois, takes her to a meeting for "single people," where she meets local news anchor Tom Tucker. Thelma and Tom begin dating, which upsets Peter, causing him to attempt to sabotage the new relationship. He is eventually persuaded by Tom that he should let his mother be happy, and the two begin bonding. Eventually, his mother suddenly ends the relationship, however, causing Peter to believe it is his fault. The next day, Peter learns that it is important for fathers and sons to spend time together, and tells Tom that he should spend more time with his own son, Jake, instead.
Meanwhile, after interrupting a broadcast of local radio station WQHG's program "Weenie and the Butt", Brian gets his own radio talk show, when one of the station's producers compliments his speaking voice. Attempting to have an intelligent dialogue with his listeners, and distancing himself from the constant overuse of sound effects by "Weenie and the Butt", Brian is immediately heckled by Stewie's prank phone calls in an attempt to get him into trouble or fired. After first planning to cancel Brian's show following the incident with the comments made from the prank calls, the station's producer later announces that he actually loved the prank calls and decides to let Brian keep his show but he has to hire Stewie as co-host. Brian insists that Stewie keeps his mouth shut when he is broadcasting but unfortunately for him Stewie then steals Brian's show and turns his sophisticated talk show into a lewd, raucous, shock jock-style comedy show called "Dingo and the Baby", much to Brian's chagrin, who is reluctant to accept the new format. Upon discovering that people love the new show, however, Brian decides to play along with Stewie's idea. However, when author Gore Vidal, whom Brian had contacted for an interview on his original show, walks into one of his "Dingo and the Baby" broadcasts and leaves in disgust, Brian quits his job in shame. The show is soon replaced by one featuring Cleveland and Quagmire, entitled "Dark Chocolate and the Rod". [2]
The episode was written by series regular Tom Devanney, and directed by James Purdum. During the "Weenie and the Butt" scene, several sound effects can be heard. Each of these were recorded individually by people who have sung at such venues as the Academy Awards, and other high publicity events. Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane has commented that these sound effect recordings took much longer than expected, as they did not sound professional enough. [3] The episode featured guest performances by actress Phyllis Diller, who has portrayed Peter's mother Thelma in various episodes, and Tamera Mowry in her third appearance. Author Gore Vidal appeared as himself in the episode. In the scene involving Thelma trying to convince Peter to accept that she is dating Tucker, she comments, "Tom here has won a local Emmy for his work with the retardeds". The Fox Broadcasting Company has a specific rule stating that the word "retard" or "retarded" cannot be said on their network, but this scene was nevertheless permitted. MacFarlane has commented that he cannot understand why the word is not permitted on Fox, given that it is allowed on other networks. According to MacFarlane and other episode commentators, the scene provoked an angry reaction among the mental health community. [3]
There were several scenes throughout this episode that were removed from the script, and not broadcast. One of these comes just after Tom Tucker apologizes to Peter about losing his temper; it was intended that Jake Tucker would appear, and the origin of his upside-down face would be revealed. [3] [4] The scene with "The Peanuts Reunion" was originally meant for the season four episode "Patriot Games", but was moved to this episode to ease time constraints in "Patriot Games". The scene was described by 20th Century Fox worker Leann Siegel as being depressing. [5]
"Mother Tucker", along with the twelve other episodes from Family Guy's fifth season, were released on a three-disc DVD set in the United States on September 18, 2007. The sets included brief audio commentaries by MacFarlane and various crew and cast members for several episodes, [6] a collection of deleted scenes and animatics, a special mini-feature which discusses the process behind drawing Peter Griffin, and mini-feature entitled "Toys, Toys Galore". [6]
In addition to the regular cast, voice actor Jon Benjamin, child actor Max Burkholder, actress Phyllis Diller, voice actor Phil LaMarr, actor Joe Lomonaco, voice actress Tamera Mowry, actress Anne-Michelle Seiler, voice actress Tara Strong, voice actress Nicole Sullivan, author Gore Vidal, actor Gedde Watanabe, and voice actor Wally Wingert guest starred in the episode. Recurring guest voice actors Chris Cox, Ralph Garman, writer David A. Goodman, writer Mike Henry, writer Danny Smith, writer Alec Sulkin, and writer John Viener made minor appearances in the episode.
The episode opens with the Griffin family attending the local Airshow in Quahog, and are shown to be anxiously awaiting one of the pilots to crash. [7] After a pilot successfully lands, Peter expresses his boredom, and states that he would rather be home watching "the tape from The Ring ". [7] In a flashback, Peter begins playing the film, after first being warned, with the 1987 film Mannequin appearing instead and having the same effect as the cursed tape. [8] Deciding to stay at the airshow to watch their neighbor, Glenn Quagmire perform, he flies his plane through several billboards (specifically through the crotch of the women's images on the boards), including those for Veronica Mars , The Simple Life and On the Record w/ Greta Van Susteren (which he can only do after "getting some help" from a Jack Daniel's Tennessee whiskey billboard. [7]
Returning home, the Griffin family decide to watch a television show entitled Roundtable, featuring guests Al Michaels, Harold Ramis, Ray Romano and Kermit the Frog. [7] [8] Once Thelma appears, and alerts Peter of her split-up with his father, Peter is shocked, stating that the same happened at the Peanuts reunion, with Charlie Brown then appearing as a punk rock drug dealer. [7]
When Peter finds Thelma and Tom in bed, a cutaway shows Stewie reading a quotation from the movie Harold and Maude.
After Thelma leaves Tom, he begins showing Peter more affection, causing Lois to believe it to be strange. Peter then states that it is no stranger than when Darth Vader from the film franchise Star Wars was a parking attendant. Vader is then shown in the contemporary world as a failure, and making minimum wage. [3] This scene, as with all scenes that contain references to Star Wars or its characters, was sent to Lucasfilm for approval, in order to protect copyright. [3] After Stewie takes over Brian's radio show, the two begin playing random sound clips from various films and television shows, including dialogue from the 1993 drama film Philadelphia , which was acknowledged as a mistake by Stewie. [7] Other movie clips used by Brian and Stewie are “Oh sexy girlfriend!” from Sixteen Candles (1984) and “Don’t you do it!” from An Officer and a Gentleman (1982).
In an attempt to rebel against Tom Tucker, Peter decides to reach for the freezer to take out some ice cream during dinner, much to the chagrin of Tucker, who attempts to stop him. As Peter lifts a spoon of ice cream to his mouth, he is warned by Tucker several times not to eat it. When he does, however, Tucker repeatedly spanks him, in reference to the 1979 drama feature Kramer vs. Kramer (even though the spanking does not occur in the movie, but it does occur in the 1995 Indian remake, Akele Hum Akele Tum ). [8] After author Gore Vidal appears at the radio station Brian had invited him to speak at, Vidal quickly leaves after he finds the show to be low-brow. [7] This causes Brian to quit the show, noting that he has become "worse of a sell-out" than when Stewie appeared in a Butterfinger commercial. Stewie is then shown eating a Butterfinger, and says "Nobody better lay a finger on my Butterfinger", which is a parody of the many Butterfinger commercials featuring Bart Simpson, and utters the annoyed grunt, D'oh!, a phrase used regularly by The Simpsons character Homer Simpson. The bit is also a reference to the negative criticism and similarities between Family Guy and The Simpsons. [3]
In a slight decrease from the previous week, the episode was viewed in 9.23 million homes in its original airing, according to Nielsen ratings. The episode also acquired a 3.3 in the 18–49 demographic, slightly edging out The Simpsons , in addition to series creator Seth MacFarlane's second show American Dad! , in both rating and total viewership. [9]
Reviews of the episode were mixed, calling it a "slow start to the season." [7] Dan Iverson of IGN reviewed the episode positively, noting that the episode "would make even the most anti-Family Guy television viewers out there laugh pretty hard." [8] Iverson went on to comment, however, that "it probably won't be remembered as fondly as some of the episodes from the first few seasons." [8] For him, the "funniest aspect of the episode" was the radio scene, in which "we get the impression that [radio jockeys] are immature, simple-minded idiots." [8] Brett Love of TV Squad reviewed the episode slightly more negatively, stating that "the whole Peter story just didn't do much for me." Love did find that the "Stewie and Brian stuff was the best part of the episode," but went on to proclaim that "there are 20 more episodes to get it right." [7] In his review of the Family Guy Volume 5 box set, Francis Rizzo of DVD Talk wrote that the radio subplot is "a perfect parody of everything that's wrong in radio." [10]
Peter Löwenbräu Griffin Sr. is a fictional character and the protagonist of the American animated sitcom Family Guy. He is voiced by the series' creator, Seth MacFarlane, and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the Griffin family, in the episode "Death Has a Shadow" on January 31, 1999. Peter was created and designed by MacFarlane himself. MacFarlane was asked to pitch a pilot to the Fox Broadcasting Company based on Larry & Steve, a short made by MacFarlane which featured a middle-aged character named Larry and an intellectual dog, Steve. For the series, Larry was renamed Peter.
"Petarded" is the sixth episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series Family Guy. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on June 19, 2005. It was written by Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild and directed by Seth Kearsley. In the episode, Peter takes the MacArthur Fellows Program test to see if he is a genius. However, he performs so poorly that he is declared technically intellectually disabled. Attempting to take advantage of the situation, he accidentally hospitalizes Lois while attempting to steal from a restaurant and loses custody of Meg, Chris, and Stewie.
"Death Has a Shadow" is the series premiere and the first episode of the first season of the American animated television series Family Guy. Written by series creator Seth MacFarlane and directed by Peter Shin, the episode aired as a sneak peek on the Fox network in the United States on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII. In this episode, Peter loses his job after drinking too much at a stag party, causing him to fall asleep at work. He signs up for welfare to keep his wife Lois from finding out but gets much more money than he expected. After spending his money foolishly, Lois finds out and Peter decides to dump it from a blimp at the Super Bowl. He is arrested for welfare fraud and must await his family's rescue, as well as various performers who would later serve as frequent recurring and guest voices on the series.
"The Father, the Son, and the Holy Fonz" is the 18th episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series Family Guy. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 18, 2005. The episode follows Peter's decision to find a new religion for himself. After several failed attempts, he chooses the one man who has always been there for him, Fonzie, and starts the First United Church of the Fonz.
"Brian Sings and Swings" is the 19th episode of the fourth season and the 69th episode of Family Guy. The episode was first broadcast on Fox on January 8, 2006. Brian meets Frank Sinatra Jr. and begins to perform on stage with him, and they are shortly joined by Stewie. Meanwhile, Meg pretends to be a lesbian after being offered a chance to join the Lesbian Alliance Club at her school.
Patriot Games is the 20th episode of the 4th season of the animated television series Family Guy. It originally aired on Fox on January 29, 2006, a week before Super Bowl XL, fitting the theme of the episode. In it, Peter goes to his high school reunion and meets Tom Brady. After Peter runs to the bathroom and tackles most of the people in his way, Brady hires him for the New England Patriots. Peter wins many games for the Patriots but is fired for showboating and is traded to a team in London called the Sillinannies. Peter plays versus the Patriots and loses, but still receives Brady's respect before he and the Griffin family return home. Meanwhile, Stewie becomes a bookie who violently attacks Brian until he pays off his debt.
"Deep Throats" is the 23rd episode of season four of the television series Family Guy. The episode aired on Fox on April 9, 2006. It was written by Alex Borstein and directed by Greg Colton. Appalled at parking charges introduced by Mayor West, Brian decides to expose the corruption of the Mayor, despite the prospect of potentially destroying Meg's new career as the Mayor's intern. Meanwhile, Peter and Lois decide to participate in the Quahog community talent show with a folk singing act, as they did in the 1980s, but the couple becomes largely reliant on marijuana for inspiration and eventually fail the competition for their poor performance, despite their belief that they were singing well when under the influence of the drugs.
"I Take Thee Quagmire" is the 21st episode of season four of Family Guy, originally broadcast March 12, 2006 on Fox. In this episode, Peter wins free maid service for a week; he intentionally creates extra work for the maid, Joan. Quagmire meets her and instantly falls in love with her, leading him to propose to her after the second date. After the marriage, Quagmire comes to regret his new relationship, but learns that Joan will kill him and herself if he leaves her, so he fakes his own death.
"Hell Comes to Quahog" is the third episode of the fifth season of the animated comedy series Family Guy, an episode produced for Season 4. It originally aired on Fox on September 24, 2006. The episode follows Meg after she requests her parents to buy her a car. At the showroom, however, her father, Peter, decides to buy a tank, instead of the car Meg was interested in. Deciding to pay for a new car herself, Meg is able to get a job at Superstore USA, which eventually destroys the local economy of Quahog, and upsets the local community, leading Brian Griffin and Stewie to save the day.
"Saving Private Brian" is the fourth episode of season five of Family Guy, an episode produced for Season 5. The episode originally broadcast on Fox on November 5, 2006. The episode follows Stewie and Brian after they unintentionally join the United States Army, and end up leaving to serve in Iraq, only to return home when the war ends. Meanwhile, Chris joins a heavy metal band, and develops an anti-social attitude, which requires Marilyn Manson to intervene.
"Chick Cancer" is the seventh episode of season five of Family Guy. The episode originally broadcast on Fox on November 26, 2006. In the episode, Stewie's old friend and child actress, Olivia Fuller returns to Quahog. Stewie intends to sabotage what little is left of her career, but ends up falling in love with her, only for the relationship to end in ruins due to his personality. Meanwhile, Peter decides to make a chick flick after enjoying one he saw in the cinema with Lois.
"Road to Rupert" is the ninth episode of the fifth season of Family Guy. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on January 28, 2007. It is the third episode in the Road to... series of episodes in Family Guy. The episode follows Stewie after Brian accidentally sells Stewie's beloved teddy bear, Rupert, during a yard sale. In an attempt to retrieve him, Stewie and Brian discover that the family Rupert was sold to are former neighbours who had since moved to Aspen, Colorado. As a result, Stewie and Brian travel across the United States to get Rupert back. Meanwhile, Peter has his driving license revoked for careless driving and is forced to be driven around by Meg, which annoys him.
"The Tan Aquatic with Steve Zissou" is the eleventh episode of the fifth season of Family Guy, which originally aired on Fox on February 18, 2007. The episode follows Stewie, who develops a tan, but becomes obsessed with his new look and attempts to keep it, eventually stopping after being told by a doctor that he may now have cancer. Meanwhile, Peter discovers Chris being tormented by a bully, and after a series of events, becomes a bully himself.
"Meet the Quagmires" is the 18th and final episode of the fifth season of the animated comedy series Family Guy. It originally aired on Fox on May 20, 2007. The episode features Peter after he goes back in time to live the single life a little longer, before he meets future wife Lois. This causes Quagmire to make his own move on Lois, and they ultimately end up marrying and having children; Peter is horrified by this "alternate timeline" and resolves to go back in time again and set things right.
"Peter's Two Dads" is the tenth episode in the fifth season of the American animated television series Family Guy. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 11, 2007. The episode was written by Danny Smith and directed by Cyndi Tang, with Greg Lovell as co-director. The plot follows Peter travelling to Ireland, along with Brian, to find his biological father, after he accidentally kills his stepfather at Meg's birthday party. Meanwhile, after Lois hits Stewie, he becomes fascinated with it and goes to great lengths to have her hit him again.
The Griffin family is a fictional family and main characters in the animated television series Family Guy, and who also appear in The Cleveland Show. The Griffins are a dysfunctional family consisting of the married couple Peter and Lois, their three children Meg, Chris, and Stewie, and their anthropomorphic dog Brian. They live at 31 Spooner Street in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island. Their family car resembles a red seventh-generation Ford Country Sedan. They were created by Seth MacFarlane, in model of his two animated films, The Life of Larry and Larry & Steve. The family and the show itself debuted on January 31, 1999, after Super Bowl XXXIII, in the episode "Death Has a Shadow".
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