Season Info
Season 4 continues the animated antics of the constantly grousing Griffin family. Among the highlights: They form a rock band and land a spot on "Saturday Night Live," where Meg hooks up with Jimmy Fallon (as himself); Lois turns kleptomaniac and goes on a shoplifting spree, which lands her in prison; Freshman Chris gets hazed on his first day of high school and runs away to join the Peace Corps, only to be shipped off to South America; and NFL quarterback Tom Brady (as himself), impressed with
Network: FOX
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Episodes
North by North Quahog
Producer Seth MacFarlane wastes no time biting the hand that feeds him in this first episode Family Guy's fourth season. Mocking the fact that the series had been cancelled by Fox in 2002, only to be brought back by public demand, the season opener finds Peter Griffin casually rattling off a list of titles of unsuccessful TV series which Fox had inflicted on the public during that two-year hiatus. The episode itself was inspired by the brouhaha over Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, though in form and content it looks more like a Hitchcock thriller. While on their second honeymoon, Peter and Lois sneak a peak at the sequel to Gibson's "Jesus" film, The Passion of the Christ II: Crucify This. The couple ends up destroying the film, thus incurring the wrath of two movie-loving priests. Meanwhile back in Quahog, it is up to Brian and Stewie to dole out punishment when Chris is caught with booze at the high school dance.
Fast Times at Buddy Cianci Jr. High
Brian takes over as substitute when Chris' teacher quits after winning the lottery. Before long Brian is transferred to a special-ed class, where he is supposed to encourage his students to lower their expectations (as if they could get any lower). Meanwhile, Chris falls in love with his new teacher Lana Lockhart, voiced by Drew Barrymore. Amazingly, Lana is willing to reciprocate--but only if Chris is willing to do a "special" favor that may land him in prison for life! The pop-culture gags this week include references to Dead Poets Society and Law & Order.
Blind Ambition
Hoping to set a world's record, Peter eats several bags full of nickels--and as a consequence he loses his eyesight. In his efforts to adjust to his blindness, Peter inadvertently becomes a hero during a fire (good thing he couldn't see what was going on or he'd have run like a bunny!) Gina Gershon makes a guest voice appearance, just in case you were wondering if it was really her voice. And don't be too disturbed by that lengthy fist fight between Peter and a huge chicken; it's merely the continuation of a gag introduced two seasons earlier in the episode DaBoom.
Don't Make Me Over
Fed up with being shot down by good-looking guys again and again, Meg decided to undergo a fashion makeover. The Griffins are so impressed by the results that they instantly form themselves into a family singing group. They are booked on Saturday Night Live, where Meg makes a rather abrupt transition from girlhood to womanhood. Those keeping track of the series' cultural references should have their hands full in this episode, which includes "quotes" from Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, King of the Hill, The Wizard of Oz, The Empire Strikes Back, Coyote Ugly, MAD TV and the collected works of Garrison Keillor.
The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire
The sex-obsessed Quagmire thinks he'd died and gone to heaven when he is propositioned by Loretta, the bored wife of neighbor Cleveland. As for Loretta's husband, he has precisely no idea what's going on--no surprise, since he never has any idea of what's going on. Alerted by Peter and Brian, Cleveland finds out about his wife's indiscretion and plots a unique revenge--once the smoke stops spouting from his ears. This episode offers pop-cultural references to four of the Rocky films, as well as the extremely obscure series Kicked in the Nuts!
Petarded
Peter thinks he's suddenly become brilliant after winning a game of "Trivial Pursuit", little realizing that Lois had merely let him win. To let Peter down easy, Brian the dog arranges for his master to get an IQ test. As a result, Peter is classified as "retarded"--and he intends to take full advantage of the fact that the world gives a special pass to Special People. In the same spirit of taste and delicacy, this episode offers a musical performance by a singing tumor, and a knee-slapping reference to the bombing of Hiroshima.
Brian the Bachelor
The fact that Brian is a dog does not disqualify him from being a contestant on the TV reality series The Bachelorette. Nor does it prevent Brian from falling in love with Brooke (voiced by Jessica Biel), the ambitious starlet who much choose from several bachelors to win the Big Prize. At the same time, Chris is bedeviled by a huge and ever-growing zit, which not only talks (with the voice of Kevin Richardson) but is also clearly intent upon world domination (or at least "Chris domination"). Listen for the references to Blazing Saddles and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.
8 Simple Rules for Buying My Teenage Daughter
Peter is so desperate to pay off his $34,000 pharmacy bill that he sells his daughter Meg to the druggist Mort Goldman and his family. Meg might have been able to withstand this humiliation were it not for the fact that Mort is the father of her nerdy nemesis Neil. Meanwhile, Lois finds the "perfect" babysitter for Stewie, a knockout named Liddane. Before he succumbs to puppy love, Stewie delivers a lengthy rant dissing the "average" fan of The Simpsons--and elsewhere, we're treated to references to Pee-wee's Playhouse, Kramer vs. Kramer, Dazed and Confused and Growing Pains.
Breaking Out Is Hard to Do
Lois develops kleptomania, leading to a wild shoplifting spree. She lands in prison, only to be broken out by Peter and the kids. The Griffins then take refuge from pursuing policeman Joe Swanson by hiding in "Asiantown." Alas, Joe manages to pick up their trail (no great trick, since Peter has become a popular sumo wrestler), whereupon the family retreats to the sewers, where the plot thickens, as it were. So far as we can determine, this is the only American TV cartoon episode of recent memory to reference the names of both Karl Malden and Corey Haim (two treats in one!)
Model Misbehavior
Hoping to fulfill a dream she's had since teenhood, Lois defies her parents in embarks upon a career as a model. Not only does this make husband Peter jealous, but it also exacts a huge toll on Lois when she starts popping diet pills. As Peter cooks up a plan to win his wife back, baby Stewie concocts "CashScam", a pyramid scheme, with a reluctant Brian (who needs the money for his worm medication) as his head henchman. Among the pop-culture references in this episode are jibes at Sesame Street and Six Feet Under, and even a broadside aimed at Family Guy fans who have nothing better to do with their time than pause their DVDs to catch the jokes they'd missed first time around.
Peter's Got Woods
The title of this episode refers to actor James Woods, whom Peter Griffin befriends under unusual circumstances (what, exactly, would the USUAL circumstances be?). Before long, however, Peter regrets making the acquaintance of Woods, who refuses to leave the Griffin home despite all manner of provocation. Elsewhere, Brian the dog attends a PTA meeting, where he falls in love with a teacher named Shauna (voiced by Gabrielle Union). For reasons best known to producer Seth MacFarlane, this episode also features caricatured cameos by three actors in the Star Trek franchise: Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes and Michael Dorn. And if nothing else, "Peter's Got Woods" proves that James Woods is a sucker for Reese's Pieces.
Perfect Castaway
Swept away by a hurricane, Peter and his pals Quagmire, Joe and Cleveland manage to float to safety by using one of Quagmire's sex dolls as a raft (and don't ask what they ate during their ordeal!) Meanwhile, the town of Quahog holds a memorial for the "lost" neighbors, while Peter's wife Lois marries their family dog Brian, who is supporting the family as a used-car salesman. The fun begins when after four months, Peter returns, placing Lois in the awkward position of cheating on her husband WITH her husband! This inside-joke-studded spoof of the Tom Hanks movie Cast Away was ironically bumped from its scheduled September 11, 2005 telecast date due to ongoing news coverage of Hurricane Katrina.
Jungle Love
Peter has landed a job at a beer factory (What? No Laverne and Shirley reference?), but soon finds that the work is not to his liking. Meanwhile, son Chris nervously anticipates a traditional hazing at his school. Not wishing to suffer the ordeal, Chris runs off to the jungles of South America, where he becomes a local hero by performing songs originally popularized by George Michael--and finds himself betrothed to a tribal chieftan's daughter. Before long, Peter "goes native" as well, but he isn't so far afield of civilization that he can't make a reference to the notorious "The Contest" episode of Seinfeld.
PTV
This episode is a hilariously ham-handed slam at the FCC restrictions placed on network television after Janet Jackson's infamous Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction" (which is herein recreated--but not by Jackson!) Fed up at having his favorite TV shows censored, Peter sets up his own network, "PTV", using the Griffins' basement as his studio. Although the programs cooked up by Peter and Brian manage to escape unscatched, the family soon finds the FCC slapping regulations on their everyday activities! The opening scene of this episode might very well have set a record for the number of pop-culture references within a 60-second period.
Brian Goes Back to College
Brian the dog writes a short story which gains so much renown that he lands a job with The New Yorker. Unfortunately, no sooner is Brian hired than he is fired, all because he lacks a college education--well, actually, he did almost graduate from Brown University, but that doesn't count. Meanwhile, Peter bands together with his neighbors Cleveland, Joe and Quagmire to form a new version of "The A-Team." The Blair Witch Project, Gary Coleman, Alan Thicke and the forced-perspective paintings of M.C. Escher are among the pop-culture artifacts skewered in this episode.
The Courtship of Stewie's Father
Bet you thought that Lois has been ignoring all of her baby son Stewie's attempts to kill these past four seasons, didn't you? In truth, Lois is fully aware of Stewie's homicidal streak--and she holds her husband Peter to blame for not spending enough quality time with his infant offspring. Thus it is that Peter and Stewie make a mutually uncomfortable effort to bond. . .and it's a frightening thing to see. On the other hand, some viewers might get a case of the creeps while watching the episode's subplot, in which Stewie's slacker brother Chris becomes friends with Herbert, one of the weirdest of Family Guy's many peripheral characters. All this, plus quickie references to Michael Eisner, Penelope Cruz, Captain EO and the internet "flash cartoon" Peanut Butter Jelly Time.
The Fat Guy Strangler
Upon discovering she has a brother named Patrick (Robert Downey Jr.), Lois dutifully arranges for him to be sprung from the mental institution where he's lived all his life. At the same time, Peter organizes the Society for the Acceptance of Fat Men--only to watch his membership rapidly dwindle as the fat men of Quahog are strangled, one by one, by an unknown serial killer. Does anyone see a correlation here? And better still, is it possible to catch all the pop-culture references in this episode in one sitting? And remember: "Ball in a Cup, Ball in a Cup, It's a ball in a cup!"
The Father, the Son and the Holy Fonz
Once again, the Griffin household is invaded by Peter's crabby father Francis, an old-line Catholic who hates anyone who doesn't adhere to his own peculiar set of religious values. In his efforts to re-convert the family, Francis causes little Stewie to become a "bubble boy." As a result, rebellious Peter attempts to establish his own religion, with "The Fonz" from Happy Days as his new Deity. Without revealing any more, please note that the episode's star-studded voice cast includes Marion Ross and Tom Bosley--and before we forget, Gary Cole is back as obstreperous boss-man Bill Lumbergh, the character he'd played in the movie Office Space (Shucks! There's no space left to mention Jaws: Fire Island).
Brian Sings and Swings
After an accident lands Brian in the hospital, he has a near-death experience that leads him to take a new lease on life. He finds a passion for singing and develops a new nightly gig with Frank Sinatra Jr., but his "live in the moment" lifestyle only goes so far. Meanwhile, Meg's sexuality swings the other way.
Patriot Games
TBS Presents: "Patriot Games" At his high school reunion, Peter pretends to be a millionaire, but the truth comes out when he meets Tom Brady and loses all self-control.
I Take Thee, Quagmire
When Peter goes on a television game show and wins a maid for a week, Quagmire becomes smitten with her and ends up popping the question. But when Quagmire's bachelor tendencies resurface, he takes some serious steps to get out of the marriage. Meanwhile, Stewie fights against breast-feeding withdrawals when Lois tries to wean him.
Sibling Rivalry
After a pregnancy scare, Peter reluctantly agrees to get a vasectomy. But after the operation, Peter's sex drive becomes nonexistent. When Lois packs on some extra pounds, Peter's interest is renewed and things heat back up in the bedroom until her unhealthy eating habits get the best of her. Meanwhile, Stewie's half-brother and archrival Beltram confronts him and they declare an all-out war for control over the playground.
Deep Throats
TBS Presents: "Deep Throats" When Meg lands an internship with Mayor West, Brian argues that he is corrupt; a local talent show brings Peter and Lois back to their folk-singing days.
Peterotica
TBS Presents: "Peterotica" After reading an erotic novel, Peter decides to write one of his own and gets Carter to publish it.
You May Now Kiss the...Uh, Guy Who Receives
You May Now Kiss the...Uh...Guy Who Receives: Brian's gay cousin Jasper comes to visit, and announces he's marrying his partner at the Griffin's house; Mayor Adam West bans gay marriage, which forces Brian to take drastic action.
Petergeist
The Griffin family are visited by ghosts when Peter unearths an ancient Native American skull in their backyard. After some spooky encounters in the house, the family flees in an attempt to figure out how to return things back to normal.
Untitled Griffin Family History
Untitled Griffin Family History: When burglars break into the Griffin house, Peter takes the family into the "panic room," where they become trapped without food or water.
Stewie B. Goode
TBS Presents: "Stewie B. Goode" Stewie gets homicidal during swimming lessons; Stewie takes up drinking.
Bango Was His Name-O
California, here they come---Stewie and Brian head to San Francisco in Quagmire's van to search for the man Stewie's convinced is his real father. Meanwhile, Lois and Peter "help" Chris and Meg with their dating skills to get them out of the house. Jennie Garth, Jason Priestley and Tori Spelling have voice cameos in their "Beverly Hills, 90210" roles.
Stu & Stewie's Excellent Adventure
Stewie travels 35 years into the future and doesn't like what he finds: himself, who's known as Stu as an adult. So Stewie goes about remaking Stu's life, despite Stu's objections. Kiefer Sutherland has a cameo as himself.
Critic Reviews for Family Guy: Season 4
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