Review: American Dad “Turkey Bacon”

Spoilers Below

How’s it hanging, gang? Another new American Dad has come and gone and I can say with confidence that I was impressed yet again. Can’t say it was my favorite episode this season thus far, but it’s certainly a strong addition. It seems like since they moved to TBS, it’s been rejuvenated. Sort of like catching your second wind during a jog (literally the best comparison I could think of). Anyways, let’s just hop into this review!

In “Turkey Bacon” the CIA’s budget is tight, and unfortunately Stan is cut from the team. He is forced to take a campus security job at a local campus. Things get weird when he tries to be buddies with the students. Meanwhile, Roger decides to make use of his inn idea and have a guest over for the night. Things get tough when Roger’s perfect inn rating is threatened by a guest who demands perfection.

“Turkey Bacon” is another fine addition to this fresh start on TBS. Stan’s subplot feels recycled a little. It reminds me of the Spring Break episode where he was trying to recapture his youth. This wasn’t a cut and paste of that story, which I like, and it also gave us the same story morals. You can’t stay young forever, everybody needs to face the responsibilities of adulthood. This episode also tries to tell us why authority is needed. Not everybody can be the cool guy. We were introduced to some interesting characters including Josh, a student with a broken leg who abuses Stan’s kindness. He contributes to a lot of funny moments in this episode, I enjoyed his interactions with Stan.

In Roger’s subplot, we got to see more of the family. Everybody had a role to play in the success of Roger’s inn. Ultimately this subplot just felt like it was there to eat up time, but as far as a filler story goes, I found this one very funny. Some of the requests Roger’s guest have are funny, and it makes for a lot of funny moments. The ending of this story is also hands down the funniest part of the entire episode. It was so out of left field, I loved it!

The episode wasn’t perfect though. I found the conclusion of Stan’s story to be a little flat. To be fair, it’s what makes the most sense. They concluded Roger’s story just prior to this though, and I loved it so much that maybe my expectations came up a bit for Stan’s conclusion and they simply weren’t met.

Overall, I had a lot of fun with this episode. Really my only complaint is the ending of Stan’s story. I had plenty of laughs, I was kept wondering what would happen next with each story and I found the characters were used to their full potential. They all have their own personalities, so I was always laughing at something different. I still find myself amazed at how this season has turned my opinion of the show around. I’ve always loved the show, but if you’ve been reading my reviews for awhile, you’ll know that I thought American Dad was being sent to TBS to die. I felt the show was getting a little stale towards the end of last season, but now I’m wondering if the best episodes of American Dad could still be in front of us. We can only hope, right? All I can say for now is that I’m super enthused about this season. Keep this up, American Dad and I’ll be a happy viewer.

How did you guys like “Turkey Bacon”? Let us know, and I’ll catch you all next week!