5 Running Gags On Family Guy That Wore Out Their Welcome (& 5 We Miss)

5 Running Gags On Family Guy That Wore Out Their Welcome (& 5 We Miss)

Family Guy has featured a multitude of running gags over the years. Some of them have worn out their welcome (& some we really miss).

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The zany animated sitcom known as Family Guy is largely renowned for its series of rapid-fire and often random gags. These sometimes take the form of cutaway bits, spoofs, and one-liners that blindside viewers with chuckle-worthy jokes often not even related to the story at large.

With a show as seasoned and rife with funny moments as Family Guy, the frequent use of running gags and “callbacks” over the years shouldn’t be surprising. These often make for fun little self-referencing nods that produce a sort of comedic throughline.

They can be a mixed bag, however. These running gags are susceptible to being overused and annoying just as they can add comedic “oomph.” Some have arguably been ditched too soon, while others may have worn out their welcome.

With this list, we’ll examine the whopping 2 decades of Family Guy episodes and highlight 5 of the classic running gags we miss, along with 5 that can probably be tossed.

10 We Miss: Buzz Killington

One can’t help but think that this stuffy British embodiment of the term “buzz-kill” has been underused, being featured in just a trio of Family Guy episodes. The gag may feel a bit “on the nose” and certainly has the potential to be overused, as there’s only so much you can do with him.

Still, this was a simultaneously clever and silly gag, and one which its brief screentime didn’t quite do justice. There’s much potential for more of his ramblings and discussions which could be considered buzz-killingly bland.

9 Worn Out It’s Welcome: Meg As The Show’s “Punching Bag”

Seth MacFarlane has explained that after the return of Family Guy from its hiatus in mid-2005, a goal was to explore and embrace the established roles of each character. Apparently, for Peter’s daughter, Meg, this meant being the human punching bag and the brunt of many jokes.

These Meg-related gags have proven a mixed bag for fans. Peter’s blunt, random “shut up Meg” remarks can provide some yuks, and the brutality of some of these bits are such that one can’t help but laugh. Still, at this point, it’s begun to feel excessive, repetitive, and even predictable.

8 We Miss: Evil Monkey

It might be tough to bring back this odd, threatening ape that resided in Chris’s closet for the show’s early seasons. This is because much of his charm lied in his ambiguous, unknown nature – which has since been stripped away with an episode outlining his history and motives.

Still, this monkey tormenter has established himself as an iconic character and symbol of the show at large. Without him, something just feels missing.

Perhaps the Evil Monkey can make a return to the Griffin household, if only for a visit and to catch up on old times. Surely viewers can at least be treated to a brief callback or two, maybe showing this character terrorizing some other child from their closet.

7 Worn Out It’s Welcome: Kool-Aid Man

Many viewers, even those who hadn’t grown up in the 70s and 80s, are likely to know about this anthropomorphic Kool-Aid man, who had a habit of busting through brick walls and shouting “oh yeah!” This seemed like a concept rife with spoof potential, and Family Guy delivered right from the outset in its pilot episode.

The spontaneity, surprise, and inappropriate timing of Kool-Aid man plowing through a court-room wall is largely what made the gag so funny. Yet, after bringing this guy back almost a dozen times since, it tended to lose its “impact,” so to speak…

6 We Miss: The Vaudeville Men

One might argue there’s limited potential in a gag featuring 2 silent, wacky vaudeville men dancing and playing the piano as they try to entertain a theoretical audience. Unfortunately, the showrunners and writers have seen to it that these guys wouldn’t likely make a comeback after literally killing them off just 5 seasons into the show.

They’ve since made brief returns as ghosts, and as part of a special opening in the season 14 episode, “A Lot Going On Upstairs.” Still, these charming entertainers deserved more airtime on the talking pictures.

5 Worn Out It’s Welcome: Conway Twitty Cutaway

The unanticipated cutaway to footage of an old country star may have been amusing after the first few times. Yet, given the dull, dry nature of some of Twitty’s performances, it’s quite easy to overuse this one. In fairness, the gag partly thrives on being tongue-in-cheek and almost trolling its audience with how bland and lengthy it is. Basically, being boring is “the point.”

In the eyes of many, though, this started to feel like an overused and lazy gag, especially after being featured several times.

4 We Miss: Peter’s Hurt Knee

Family Guy often thrives in its bouts of realism amongst a sea of cartoony, implausible happenings.

Whether this comes from the convincing physics of Peter trying to grab a slippery frog with a shoebox, or realistic dialects and conversations, there’s something amusing about situations that viewers can relate to.

One fan-favorite gag that exemplifies this is Peter’s lengthy wincing as he spontaneously bangs his knee. It’s a subtle, but effective bit. Yet, it’s been several seasons since it cropped up.

3 Worn Out It’s Welcome: Cleveland’s Broken House And Falling Tub

As fans know, Peter has a tendency to partake in crazy and absurd shenanigans. This can occasionally lead to all-out carnage, often leading to his friend Cleveland bearing the after-effects. Season 5 saw a few moments in which these antics brought the destruction of the front of his house. This would lead to him tumbling downward while in his bathtub and frantically repeating “No!”

Many found the randomness of this bit amusing at first. Yet, there’s only so much you can do with such simple and brief slapstick, which became apparent after being used roughly 10 times in total.

2 We Miss: Viewer Mail/Anthologies

The bite-sized, situational episode seems to fit Family Guy like a glove, given its tendency to fire-off so many random gags. This notion is reinforced with the trio of “Viewer Mail” episodes, each of which have a few shorts that show the Griffins in drastically different settings and scenarios.

But while the anthology concept has been done in some form via parody episodes, the anthology trio hasn’t been tried in quite some time. It’d be fun to see just what sort of wacky concepts the Family Guy fanbase could dredge up these days.

1 Worn Out It’s Welcome: Peter Versus The Chicken

There might have been a place for this wacky gag in the show’s early seasons. It was amusing to break up the static scenes with an action-packed brawl, made funny from the nonsensical, chaotic happenings surrounding it.

But the showrunners seem to strive for “stepping it up” each time in terms of theatrics and scope. In this sense, they may have somewhat written themselves into a corner, as there’s always a ceiling when amping up the bombast. This is made pretty clear in a more recent Peter-versus-chicken squabble, where we see them fighting in space.

And all of this over an expired coupon…

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/family-guy-running-gags-wore-out-welcome-miss/

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