servinsomesassin
Member
Back in the 2000s (Particularly the last couple of years of the decade), and the beginning of the 2010s Family Guy had it's finger on the pulse of pop culture. Coming off the heels off of a historic revival, it was the biggest success story in animation of the entire decade outside of SpongeBob. While it was never as big as The Simpsons were in their heyday, it dominated cable, eclipsed The Simpsons in popularity, and was pervasively praised for it's cleverly timed gags, small reference pools, self awareness, and for pushing the envelope further than it's competitiors. Some fans of the original run were disillusioned by the show's change in direction following it's uncancellation (And especially after the writer's strike of 2008, which is ironically when it became more popular), but the general public seemed to be in awe of it. In 2011, you couldn't go anywhere without hearing anyone talk about the show, or quote it ("Shut Up, Meg", and "The Bird is the Word" were commonly used favorites). It was so popular, that Seth MacFarlane's career really took off, elevating him to the highest paid writer in Hollywood, producing a financially, and critically acclaimed feature film ("Ted"), and hosting the Oscars in 2013.
But by the mid 2010s, it's momentum came crashing down. People started to grow irate towards the show after the infamous "Life of Brian", feeling insulted that their concern for Brian killing off was played for laughs. It came under fire for it's character changes, being gag driven, partaking too much in meta humor, being offensive for the sake of being offensive, and negative stereotypes. It became a favorite target of online reviewers, with many people claiming the show's humor hadn't aged well, and South Park was a better example to do an animated show, and many former fans moving onto shows like Gravity Falls, Adventure Time, Bob's Burgers and Rick and Morty. This reflected in the box office performances of A Million Ways to Die in the West, and Ted 2. By 2016, despite continuing to be on the air, it was seldom talked about in regards to pop culture, and by 2017, Rick and Morty had completely overtaken it in mainstream influence.
By 2019, the tide had seemed to turned. In addition to South Park being under scrutiny for supposedly emboldening the alt-right, and it's "both sides" social commentary not aging well in the view of the general audience, people have seemed to become more receptive towards Family Guy again, giving it critical praise, reminiscing on it's 2000s, and early 2010s era episodes, and sharing memes of it on Twitter. Compilations of gags are the most viewed videos on YouTube, and TikTok, and more apparent, and vocal love of the series has been making it's presence. The only thing that's really criticised about the show nowadays is it's art style, and the adult sitcoms that follow in it's footsteps, but nowadays, it's almost as if it never gained the backlash it did a few years ago. It's become so popular that it has climbed to the top spot of being the number 1 highest viewed show on Hulu, "A Million Ways to Die in the West" ranked at number 6 on Netflix's top 10 most watched list globally, and Peacock had greenlit a "Ted" series a few months ago. While not as popular as it was back in it's heyday, it seems to be in a more comfortable spot than it was in 2015. Which brings to mind, is Family Guy experiencing a nostalgic vindication in a way it's bretheren hasn't as of yet experienced?
But by the mid 2010s, it's momentum came crashing down. People started to grow irate towards the show after the infamous "Life of Brian", feeling insulted that their concern for Brian killing off was played for laughs. It came under fire for it's character changes, being gag driven, partaking too much in meta humor, being offensive for the sake of being offensive, and negative stereotypes. It became a favorite target of online reviewers, with many people claiming the show's humor hadn't aged well, and South Park was a better example to do an animated show, and many former fans moving onto shows like Gravity Falls, Adventure Time, Bob's Burgers and Rick and Morty. This reflected in the box office performances of A Million Ways to Die in the West, and Ted 2. By 2016, despite continuing to be on the air, it was seldom talked about in regards to pop culture, and by 2017, Rick and Morty had completely overtaken it in mainstream influence.
By 2019, the tide had seemed to turned. In addition to South Park being under scrutiny for supposedly emboldening the alt-right, and it's "both sides" social commentary not aging well in the view of the general audience, people have seemed to become more receptive towards Family Guy again, giving it critical praise, reminiscing on it's 2000s, and early 2010s era episodes, and sharing memes of it on Twitter. Compilations of gags are the most viewed videos on YouTube, and TikTok, and more apparent, and vocal love of the series has been making it's presence. The only thing that's really criticised about the show nowadays is it's art style, and the adult sitcoms that follow in it's footsteps, but nowadays, it's almost as if it never gained the backlash it did a few years ago. It's become so popular that it has climbed to the top spot of being the number 1 highest viewed show on Hulu, "A Million Ways to Die in the West" ranked at number 6 on Netflix's top 10 most watched list globally, and Peacock had greenlit a "Ted" series a few months ago. While not as popular as it was back in it's heyday, it seems to be in a more comfortable spot than it was in 2015. Which brings to mind, is Family Guy experiencing a nostalgic vindication in a way it's bretheren hasn't as of yet experienced?
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