Review: Family Guy “Brian the Closer”

Spoilers Below

After a bit of a break, we’re back on track with another new episode of Family Guy! It was an interesting episode, I enjoyed it overall, but I think the show is still suffering from the same things I’ve mentioned in some of my previous reviews. Let’s not waste anytime and get this review started.

In “Brian the Closer” Peter becomes obsessed with obtaining a chewing rope that Brian cherishes. The battle for the rope ends in an accident that requires Brian to have dental surgury. The surgury is a success, and his handsome new smile helps him enter the world of real estate.

Now, I really liked this episode because it focused on one story. From start to finish the episode focused on Brian and I like that because it shows that there is enough story to tell that they don’t need to introduce a second story. Not that it’s a bad thing to have different stories occupying the same episode, it’s just my preference to only have one. I thought there were some clever jokes in this episode and the relationship between Brian and Quagmire is explored a little more. The relationship between Brian and Quagmire is always interesting to see because it’s unlike any other in the show. It’s so well defined at this point, and I like that can use the tension between them when they please. I do have some complaints about the episode, but compared to the rest of the season so far, I do view this as a push in the right direction.

The overall story didn’t intrigue me very much. Pretty linear, everything flowed as you would expect and there weren’t any surprises. This is something that I’m usually okay with, but I’ve noticed it so many times since I’ve started reviewing Family Guy, I have to mention it. The objective of the show is to make people laugh. Things are funnier when the audience feels involved. The best way to make the audience feel involved is to pull them in with an interesting story. I’m not saying Family Guy needs to become Breaking Bad, but it can at least be fun. Make us wonder what will happen next. Brian becoming a real estate agent is exactly as interesting as you think it may be. This episode also recycled jokes a couple of times, they acknowledged it once but the second time just makes me think “lazy writing”.

Just one more positive thought about this episode: the last interaction between Brian and Quagmire was something I really liked. While it did pull the rug out from under the audiences feet, it did surprise me a bit. It surprised me in a good way. It also showed us the kind of character that Brian is.

Overall, I’m happy with this episode. People tell me I’m a generous reviewer, and that may be true but I just like to stay optimistic about the things I watch. There was some promise in this episode. I’d like to see if they can ride this momentum, I sure hope they do.

Alright, that’s it for my review of this week’s Family Guy. How did you all feel about it? Let us know your thoughts!