Family Guy vs. The Simpsons

Yellow people, murderous babies, and alcoholic dogs are just a couple things that can only be found in cartoons. When it comes to primetime cartoons there are definitely two shows that reign supreme, The Simpsons and Family Guy. I am a big fan of both, The Simpsons and Family Guy but in my opinion The Simpsons is the better show with tons of memorable characters, plots, and moments.

The Simpsons
Fox Sunday 8:00 p.m.

The Simpsons has been on television for 18 seasons and is one of the most culturally influential shows of all time. The Simpsons is a clever satire and parody of the “Middle American” family and lifestyle. The show often pokes fun at education, religion, and politics as well as American culture. For example, In "See Homer Run", Mayor Quimby faces corruption charges and accidentally quotes the town charter, which allows for recall elections. Many of the towns people decide to run (in an obvious parody of the 2003 California Recall), including Rainer Wolfcastle (also spoofing Arnold Schwarzenegger, who won the recall election) and even Homer. Homer is initially a sure-win candidate, but at a debate, his Safety Salamander costume, which is the reason for his popularity, tears apart. In the end, no one receives the five percent needed to unseat Quimby, leaving him as mayor of Springfield. Some may say that Family Guy is the better show because the more recent seasons of The Simpsons have not been the best, but you cannot penalize this great show because after almost 400 episodes they may not always have the freshest material. However if you look back at seasons of the mid and late-90’s, you will see some of the funniest television ever made. This show has been on since I was born continues to prosper with new episodes being produced and “The Simpsons Movie” scheduled for release July 27, 2007.

Family Guy
Fox Sunday 9:00 p.m.

Now don’t get me wrong, I think Family Guy is a very funny show but the humor just isn’t the same as The Simpsons. Family Guy has the more irrelevant and random humor that takes very little thinking to be funny. For example, in “Wasted Talent” the first the half of the episode is a spoof of the film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory but instead of trying to go to a chocolate factory, it is a brewery. Upon finding/drinking the winning scroll in the beer bottle, Peter is instructed by a stranger to run home as fast as he can to his house. Pawtucket Pat and his Chumba-wumbas are a parody of Willy Wonka and his Oompa Loompas. Also, the music played when Peter finds his scroll is identical to the music played in Willy Wonka when Charlie finds his golden ticket. Family Guy takes place in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island. My biggest reason for saying The Simpsons is the better program is because Family Guy often uses humor and premises that are very similar to those featured in The Simpsons. Even the primary families for both shows are very similar: stupid/fat father, understanding house wife, one baby, and two kids. Family Guy has definitely produced some hilarious shows but when it comes down to it, without The Simpsons there would be no Family Guy.