Review: Family Guy “Island Adventure”

An island made of garbage has never looked so good.

 

Overview:

Lois is forcing the family to clean up the garage, of course, Peter takes the easy way out by throwing out everything.  Unfortunately, Stewie’s prized possession is also tossed away, his big wheel tricycle.  Brian decides to help Stewie, and they head to the city dump, only to discover that the tricycle has floated off into the sea.  They follow the trash to ‘garbage island’ where hedonists have been using as a party island.  Stewie finds a way to fix his big wheel up to get them home, but when Brian says that he wants to stay, Stewie pushes the entire island back to Quahog.

 

Meanwhile, Quagmire strikes out when he hits on an older woman.  After failing too many times, Lois offers her help.  She begins texting him lines, which Quagmire uses to his advantage.  Even after Lois discovers the truth and becomes furious, Quagmire smooths things out but continues to benefit from her advice.

 

Our Take:

There is always something nice and refreshing about a Brian and Stewie adventure.  After a clump of episodes with a myriad of plots featuring many characters, there is a safety coming back to these two.  Brian and Stewie have that solid rapport that we have all come to love.  But, more than that, it feels like a reset when we get a quieter episode where we spend our time with these two.  Like, it is almost the status quo for the entire series.  And, we go on adventures with these other players, but when we are back with Stewie and Brian, things are where they should be.  One day, when this series ends, we are going to pull out to a shot that shows that Stewie dreamed the entire thing.  I can almost guarantee it because that is what Family Guy would do – and then they would make fun of the cliché.

 

I am not going to lie, Garbage Island sounds like a paradise.  First of all, you can literally find anything at a dump.  Like, you could have everything that you ever needed.  Plus, this island is a non-stop party, I don’t blame Brian for not wanting to leave.  Plus, this island was massive.  There wasn’t nearly enough time for our heroes to investigate the whole area.  There is still so very much to discover here.  Don’t get me wrong, I am glad that we didn’t get slapped with another ‘to be continued’ here, but there is a lot more to play with when it comes to the idea of a sustainable land of garbage.  How does this ecosystem work?  I have so many questions.

 

The Quagmire story was on point with the characters involved.  You have to love Quagmire, despite the fact that he is almost the opposite of everything that the equal rights movement has been pushing against.  Somehow, they have managed to not only keep Quagmire alive through some significant social changes but have even kept him entertaining still.  He is what he is, and he is a great representation.  He is perfect for playing all the cards he does during this episode, especially when he doesn’t learn his lesson at all.  As for Lois, dang, she has some game.  She would be an excellent dating mentor for nearly anybody except for Quagmire.

 

I can’t help but love this episode.  At first, I thought it was that safety net of Brian and Stewie that I mentioned before.  But, thinking about Quagmire and Lois’s plot, it was an excellent addition.  So many times I have felt that the secondary plot has acted as a filler and feels like an afterthought.  This episode offers us two solid storylines that could hold their own.  That is a rarity and should be celebrated because as fans, we should expect nothing less.  There was also enough humour to carry us through the whole episode that moves at a solid pace.