Review: Family Guy “Scent of a Woman”

Overview:

Fox has recently dropped the latest episode of Family Guy, “Scent of a Woman.” Things take a dark turn as Meg’s friends and family come together to celebrate her birthday.

Our Take:

Meg’s birthday has come once again, and while she doesn’t seem to have actually gotten any older, a sleepover party ends up setting up the episode’s two plots. When he can’t join the party games, Lois decides to play “Truth or Dare” with him. Of course, they learn that you should really stick with dares when Peter asks Lois for her body count during her first turn.

Meanwhile, Brian “borrows” one of the girls’ bras. With his heightened canine senses, Brian thinks he smells that the wearer could have breast cancer. Initially thought to be Patty’s, it turns out to be Meg’s.

With Meg worried that she’s only got a little time left, Brian takes her down South to have a fun time. Dr. Hartman calls to tell her that she’s cancer-free, but decides to keep quiet when Brian reveals he’s got a big moment planned for her with a Guy Fieri parody.

It’s easy to guess that Meg would turn out to be cancer-free in a story like this. Of course, even if the show did subvert expectations, she’d likely turn out to be fine by the next episode. It all kind of feels like “LASIK Instinct” with Meg as the lead instead of Lois. The stakes aren’t so high, however, and it does lead to an emotional moment when Meg admits that she wanted to keep her trip with Brian to go on a little longer.

Meanwhile, the Lois and Peter subplot takes a dark turn when an incensed Peter dares Lois to roller-skate off the roof of Joe’s house, which causes her to break her leg. This finally causes Lois to admit her count to Peter, which drives him to head down to Florida to have ice cream-related fun at Dairy Queen. The story has a simple resolution: Lois assures Peter that quality is better than quantity. In other words, fans learn another reason why Lois stays with Peter.

Overall, it’s a simple episode whose stories could probably have made up an entire episode each. Fans of Meg will especially enjoy it, especially as it allowed Meg and Brian’s relationship to be a little more explored. If all else, Meg is probably happy that she gets to have a birthday party where no one dies.