Review: Family Guy “Roasted Guy”

Comedy roasts have a long history. Everybody from Donald Trump to Justin Bieber has been roasted. It’s a special occasion where a bunch of people, most likely including Jeff Ross, will tear apart the person of the hour. The person usually would have rubbed people in the wrong way in the media spot light, that’s what usually makes them so much fun to watch! What makes comedy roasts unique is the expectation of the comedians to go over the top with their bit. Be as nasty as possible, and don’t pull any punches. So, why am I mentioning comedy roasts in this Family Guy review? Well, Peter Griffin is the latest man of the hour!

In “Roasted Guy” Peter puts together a comedy roast for himself, but when his feelings get hurt by the material of his peers, he decides it’s best for him to find a new group of friends.

Roasted Guy was a good episode. For starters it had a focused story. It didn’t feel like it wasted much time going where it needed to go. We didn’t get to certain plot points too quickly, and nothing seemed dragged out. The best part of this episode though it’s cut-away gags. They haven’t stood out much this season, but the iconic comedy tool that put Family Guy on the map was utilized very well last night. These were probably the best cut away gags of the season. From a wolf that has his life destroyed to a lunch mix up at the office, the gags were unique, well thought out and written. Another strong point of the episode was Peter himself. He isn’t a character from the mind of Shakespeare, but he is a versatile one nonetheless. We saw a good range of the character this episode, from his childish demeanor to his undeserving self-confidence. He also takes control of the ultimate conflict in this episode, and devices his own plans for revenge.

Where this episode fell a little flat was the roast itself. This seemed like an excellent opportunity for the show to really poke fun at it’s main character. The show is known for making fun of itself, so it was disappointing that the roast scene was filled with jokes that just seemed generic. There were a couple that made me laugh, but I wish more time was dedicated to really pulling apart Peter Griffin. Seems like a missed opportunity. Another aspect of the episode that didn’t work well was Peter’s interactions with his new female friends. They didn’t work well for me. While Peter himself was great this episode, nothing about his character has ever screamed gossipy woman. This scenario would have been better suited for Stewie. He already acts that way, so giving him at that group would have made sense to me.

Overall, it was a solid episode. Not the best or worst of the season, but it was an entertaining half hour. The cut away gags were great, the story moved along at a good pace and I think this is the best Peter we’ve seen all season. The roast and female group of friends were a little underdone. I think they could have easily been done in a different way that would have made them stronger for the episode as a whole.