How to Find Pop-Culture References in Family Guy

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By Amanda Morin
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Find Pop-Culture References in Family Guy

If you're a devoted Family Guy fan, then you've probably already got a good sense of the characters and what makes them funny. But it's not only the quirks of the Griffin family and their friends that make this show so funny--it's the way the show pokes fun at modern society. Some of the pop-culture references are blatantly obvious, while others are a little harder to spot. There are some clues to look for if you want to find the references you missed.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Pay attention to musical numbers. While some of them are completely original (think "Prom Night Dumpster Baby"), many of the musical numbers are spoofs of real musicals. In some cases, like the Sound of Music scene in the episode "The Dark Knight," the musical numbers are recreated word for word and with the same staging.
Step 2

The Griffins as the Brady Bunch

Look for scenes in which the Family Guy characters are wearing clothing different than their normal outfits. Though sometimes they'll be dressed differently for special affairs, most of the time when the characters are clothed in an unusual manner, it's in reference to some movie, viral Internet video, commercial or old TV show.
Step 3

Stewie Cruise

Listen for the words "This is worse than the time..." When you hear these words it's a clue that one of the characters--usually Peter--is going to have a flashback about something stupid he's done. More likely than not, the stupid thing involves a spoof on some pop-culture event. For instance, in the episode "Deep Throats" Stewie reminiscences about his when his cousin Stewie Cruise was on Oprah, which is a takeoff on Tom Cruise's famous "I love Katie" couch jump.
Step 4

Brian sings

Find scenes which don't make any sense in the context of the show, but seem as though they're based on something. Your gut instinct is usually right--if it doesn't fit and is completely weird, it's probably a pop-culture reference that you don't understand. Note the episode name, if you can, and then check it out on a website like TV.com (see Resources below). The site breaks down the episodes and notes any references of which you should be aware.
Step 5

Animated James Woods

Read the credits for guest voices. A lot of times well-known stars will play themselves on Family Guy, either as a recurring role or on a one-time basis. Adam West plays himself on the show as does James Woods. Both characters are drawn to look like themselves and both poke fun at their careers in some of the scripts.
Step 6

Keep up on what's happening on the Internet. Many times the Family Guy writers will make reference to some viral video. Take, for example, Peter's summer job in "Deep Throats." The scene is a frame-for-frame recreation of the "Ding Fries are Done" video that swept the Internet (see Resources below).

Comments

indyman1976 said

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on 10/7/2008 I've seen every episode from the beginning through season five on DVD. My theory is that you had to have been born by the mid to late 70s to get most, if not all of the references. Some of them are older (like musicals), some of them are ripped from current events, but most of the references are to 70s and 80s pop culture for which the writers seem to have a special fondness. That would be the case for most of us, though; we like what we grew up with.