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Even Quahog's citizens would cringe at these moments... Join us as we count down the most controversial Family Guy scenes that had viewers up in arms! Our countdown includes Peter trying to marry his son, Stewie's pregnancy, Brian's shocking death, and more! Which Family Guy controversy crossed the line for you?
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00:03Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're revisiting the controversial Quahog scenes that enraged
00:10viewers and even other networks.
00:13If you've never raged at these scenes before, expect major spoilers ahead.
00:2910.
00:30Peter bonding with Chris Family Guy never shied away from crass humor before,
00:36but there might be a limit.
00:38After Chris bonds with his grandpa, Carter decides to make him the sole heir of his family
00:43fortune.
00:44Naturally, Peter wants in on the money, so he does the only thing he can think of.
00:49He tries to marry his own son.
00:51Why do you even want to marry me?
00:53It's time to settle down and simplify things, like maybe having one ATM card and one bank
00:58account.
00:59Say yours.
01:00What follows is a string of uncomfortable, incestuous jokes as we're forced to watch how this will
01:05play out.
01:07No, Dad.
01:08I don't know what normal is anymore.
01:10The saddest part is that Chris goes along with it, so that he can finally spend time with
01:15his father, since Peter can't be bothered to bond with his kids without benefiting himself.
01:21Who was this episode for, in all honesty?
01:24Dad and I spent more time together planning this wedding than we ever had before.
01:28And if being married means I get to spend even more time with my dad, then it's worth it.
01:339.
01:35Peter's Boston Marathon Victory
01:37In one infamous cutaway gag, Peter recalls the time he won the Boston Marathon.
01:42Holy crap, this is awesome!
01:44I haven't felt a rush like this since I won that marathon!
01:47His winning technique?
01:48Run everyone down in his car and drive to the finish line.
01:53Unfortunately, what was originally an entertaining cutaway about Peter cheating his way to victory
01:57and causing mayhem ultimately aged poorly.
02:01The episode aired one month before the 2013 Boston Marathon tragedy.
02:06The parallels between the incident and the episode were too unsettling.
02:10Today, this city and the entire nation will pause to remember the victims, their families,
02:16and the incredible acts of courage that the world witnessed that day.
02:20In light of said tragedy, Fox had the episode banned from the airwaves and streaming services
02:25until 2022.
02:27We joke about how Seth MacFarlane can predict things just as well as The Simpsons, but we
02:32doubt he wanted this prediction to pass.
02:35I'm Bob Costas, here with Boston Marathon winner Peter Griffin.
02:39Peter, how did you do it?
02:408.
02:41Chris's New Girlfriend
02:44After surviving a night in the woods, Chris finally musters up the courage to ask out his
02:49newest crush, Ellen.
02:50Both Stewie and the audience are surprised to learn that Ellen has Down Syndrome.
02:55The episode was positively received by fans, but not everyone was happy with the show.
03:01Um, listen, there's something I've wanted to tell you for a really long time.
03:06Oh yeah?
03:06What?
03:07Well, um, I really like you.
03:10Former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin took great offense at a passing mention of her and
03:15felt that the episode was making fun of her son, who has Down Syndrome.
03:20So what do your parents do?
03:21That's better.
03:22My dad's an accountant and my mom is the former Governor of Alaska.
03:26Ellen's actress, who also has Down Syndrome, actively defended the episode and accused Palin
03:32of using her to garner sympathy votes.
03:35No matter which side of the argument, it only proves that you need to be cautious with whom
03:40you reference.
03:41Now get up, come over here and give me a shoulder massage.
03:45Okay.
03:47Boy, you're tougher than a doggy dominatrix.
03:50Number 7.
03:51Ida Quagmire In the episode Quagmire's Dad, Glenn is caught
03:55off guard when Dan announces plans to undergo gender-affirming surgery.
03:59Thus, the world is introduced to Ida Quagmire, and reactions to her are split at best.
04:17Quagmire's trying to cope with a loved one making such a major change which is understandable.
04:21However, everyone else's reactions are disgusting.
04:25Peter and Lois needlessly dehumanize Ida, and Brian, arguably, has the worst reaction
04:31of all.
04:33How does this happen?
04:34When they move to a new place, they're supposed to notify the neighborhood, that's
04:37how it works!
04:38He didn't actually move, he's just visiting!
04:40Suffice it to say that this did not sit right with the LGBTQIA plus community, but it does
04:47lead to one of the most satisfying beatdowns in the show as Quagmire wails into Brian mercilessly.
04:54If I ever see you anywhere near my house, I'll blow your head off!
05:01Now lay there and die!
05:02Number 6.
05:04Meg's Sacrifice With the Griffins trapped inside during a hurricane,
05:09tensions rise between the family as Peter, Lois, and Chris start ganging up on Meg.
05:14Finally, having had enough of the mistreatment she faces every day, Meg tears into all three
05:20of them.
05:20My point is that with all the irresponsible, reckless, idiotic behavior in your past, that
05:26somehow, somehow you have the nerve, the arrogance to consistently and ruthlessly point
05:32out my shortcomings.
05:33It is extremely satisfying to see her finally standing up for herself.
05:37However, after the three start turning on each other, Meg decides that her being the scapegoat
05:42is the only way to keep the family stable.
05:45Fans are appalled by this.
05:47It's just my lot in life to provide.
05:49Maybe if I feel bad, they don't have to.
05:53Meg, being the show's punching bag, was already getting old fast and seeing her accept it instead
05:58of just leaving this toxic home undermines her heroic sacrifice.
06:03Oh, so this was all about you, it wasn't about us.
06:07Yeah.
06:08Alright, that makes sense.
06:09You see, I thought it was weird that I was a bad dad.
06:11Meg, how could you put us all through that?
06:13Number 5.
06:14Peter's Tasteless Barbershop Quartet
06:17Peter claims to be amazing at giving bad news, demonstrating this with a cutaway.
06:34The flashback features him and a barbershop quartet singing an upbeat tune while they
06:38tell a sickly patient, he has AIDS.
06:41While audiences laughed at the absurdity of the song, it wasn't a laughing matter for
06:46several AIDS service organizations.
06:58They felt the song was tasteless and made light of a serious illness.
07:02Others defended the song, not only because it was so catchy, but also because it was intentionally
07:08vulgar and that made the joke even better.
07:10Whichever side of the argument you stand on, you can't deny that the show had a happy talent
07:16for tasteless humor.
07:17You've got the AIDS.
07:25Number 4.
07:26Stewie Gives Birth
07:27Did reading the title alone make you squeamish?
07:31Just wait, it gets better.
07:33Stewie is worried that he and Brian are becoming distant.
07:36Luckily, he has the perfect solution.
07:38Use Brian's DNA to impregnate himself.
07:49For the rest of the episode, we're forced to watch uncomfortably as Stewie, a one-year-old
07:55infant, experiences the joys of expecting motherhood.
07:58Brian, I'm going to need you to deliver the baby.
08:01While the actual birth is heavily censored, it's still enough to make our skin crawl.
08:06Worst of all, the children all have birth defects, so Stewie and Brian swiftly give up parenthood,
08:11pretending that none of this ever happened.
08:14Glad they're able to.
08:16We didn't have to do any of this.
08:17I guess not.
08:20How attached to them are you?
08:21Not at all.
08:22Yeah, me either.
08:23Meanwhile, we'll be haunted by the memories of this whole ordeal for years to come.
08:29Number 3.
08:30Jeff and Brenda
08:31Domestic violence is a heavy, complicated subject for any TV show to try to cover.
08:37Think Family Guy could handle it gracefully?
08:39Think again with this one.
08:42Quagmire struggles with watching his sister Brenda deal with her abusive boyfriend, Jeff.
08:47And Jeff and I are happy to stay here with you for as long as you need.
08:50Fine!
08:50Then you call my cousin Terry and tell him we're not going to be at his karate recital.
08:54Well, Jeff, he is my brother.
08:56Why do you always gotta remind me I didn't finish high school?
08:59The entire episode is painfully uncomfortable.
09:02More so for those who dealt with domestic violence.
09:05And it fails to capture the seriousness of the subject matter.
09:09Hey, what's going on dudes?
09:10Brenda just fell.
09:12Get your lazy ass up and get my neighbors some beers.
09:15They dumb it down to the most basic level and blame Brenda for choosing to stay with Jeff.
09:20When domestic violence is way more complicated than that.
09:24The only thing this episode succeeded at was filling us with dread for its failure to portray
09:30an ongoing issue respectfully.
09:32Everyone, I have wonderful news.
09:35Jeff and I are getting married.
09:38I'd show you the ring, but it's under the splint.
09:41Number two.
09:42Brian's murder.
09:44One peaceful afternoon, Brian is suddenly run down by a car and dies from his injuries after the commercial break.
09:57A heart-wrenching funeral is hell.
09:59Only for Peter and Lois to start looking for another dog immediately after.
10:03Stewie is unable to move on and neither is the audience.
10:06The show killed off characters before, but the idea that they'd kill off a main character was unheard of.
10:12I want my friend back.
10:14Your friend?
10:15Yes, my best friend.
10:17My dog, Brian.
10:18He's dead.
10:20It's our first Christmas without him and no one's even mentioned his name.
10:24We're left speechless.
10:26Until two episodes later, when they undid everything and brought Brian back to life.
10:31It was meant to be a lesson about appreciating your loved ones,
10:34but it felt like a lesson on how to emotionally trap your audience.
10:39Brian, look out!
10:42What the hell?
10:44You're alive, my friend!
10:46What? Of course I'm alive.
10:47What the hell is going on here?
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11:04Number one.
11:05The first banned episode.
11:08When You Wish Upon a Weinstein was produced before the show was cancelled for two years,
11:13and it was banned from airing on Fox until 2004.
11:16The issue stems from the episode's musical number, a spoof of When You Wish Upon a Star,
11:22where Peter sings about wanting a Jewish accountant to help him with his finances.
11:25Lois makes me take the rap, cause our checkbook looks like crap, since I can't give her a slap,
11:39I need a Jew.
11:44The song's humor is mostly tongue-in-cheek, but one offensive set of lyrics sealed its fate
11:50and led to a major lawsuit from the Bourne Company.
12:02They claimed that the tune devalued its source material with its anti-Semitic content.
12:08The DVD commentary claims that the two rabbis praised the episode, and the lyrics were changed
12:14for future airings just to be safe.
12:28Which Griffin family moment made your blood boil? Let us know in the comments.
12:33Let us know in the comments.
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