Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Review: Family Guy 7.14 - We Love You Conrad

I just finished watching Family Guy's "We Love You Conrad." And it's actually pretty good. I have to admit I'm of those die-hard Family Guy fans-turned-haters. I used to really like Family Guy, and I'm still impressed that the show managed to come back on the air after two years of cancellation. But the last couple of seasons have been pretty weak. The jokes are too obvious or too outrageous to be funny anymore. And there's too much soap-boxing; we get it, Seth, apparently conservatives are evil. But this episode is refreshingly different.

Now I can't say I'm a fan of Lauren Conrad at all, and depending on how well you know her, your enjoyment of this episode may vary. The only thing I know about Lauren Conrad is that she's a reality star on some silly saga on MTV and she's very freakishly blond. I came into it thinking, "Oh great another false idol socialite." But, it was refreshing to see her act, and against the stereotypical vapid LA girl type.

What really hooked me in to the episode is that "We Love You Conrad" actually has a salient plot and maintains it for twenty-two minutes. It's not as ADD as the other eps have been and the show greatly benefits for it. Plus it's nice to see some advancement on the Brian-Jillian break-up angle. She get's some really classic exchanges - "Oh God are my nuptials showing? It's a very thin bra" is funny as is:

Jillian: He also speaks Orange.
Derrick: Mandarin, sweetie.
Jillian: Mandolin.

The gags in the show are strong. The praying mantis joke legitimately made me laugh and the Desiree bit was enjoyable. And I can't help but like the dig at Sting. Overall, it's a step in the right direction, it's not overly spectacular, but it does capture the unique humor that made Family Guy such a hit show when it re-started its episodes on Fox. 6 Cs out of 7.