I Dream of Jesus

Infobox Television episode
Title = I Dream of Jesus
Series = Family Guy


Caption = Peter meets Jesus in a record store.
Season = 7
Episode = 2
Airdate = October 5, 2008
Production = 6ACX05
Writer = Brian Scully
Director = Mike Kim
Guests =
Episode list = List of Family Guy episodes
Season list = Infobox_Family_Guy_Season_7
Prev = Love Blactually
Next = Road to Germany

"I Dream of Jesus" is the second episode of the seventh season of "Family Guy". It originally aired on October 5, 2008.cite news | title = Primetime Listings for "I Dream of Jesus" | publisher = FoxFlash | date = 2008-09-12 | url = http://www.foxflash.com/div.php/main/page?aID=1z4&mo=10&d=1 | accessdate=2008-09-12]

The title is a parody of the TV series "I Dream of Jeannie".Fact|date=October 2008 This episode concerns Jesus Christ deciding to make his second coming after being spotted while incognito. On its original airdate, the episode was the most-watched program of the evening on Fox. [http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6602326.html?rssid=193] It was written by Brian Scully, who is the first writer to have written episodes of both "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy".

Plot

While attending a 1950s-themed restaurant, Peter hears his favorite song, "Surfin' Bird", on the jukebox. One of the employees removes the record because it's a 1960s song and thus wouldn't exist in the '50s, so Peter offers to trade Meg (directing him to an attractive, unrelated woman) for sex in exchange for it. He begins driving everyone crazy by endlessly playing and singing to it, and even squanders the family's savings to make a public service announcement where he can do so on TV. Before they completely lose their minds, Stewie and Brian steal the record in Peter's sleep. The next morning, Peter blames the family for the record's disappearance — Stewie and Brian had smashed it "à la" "Office Space" — before going out in an attempt to buy another copy. The clerk at the record store tells Peter they have sold all 63 copies at once (to "a dog and a baby"; the past three stores said the same thing) before Peter notices that the clerk looks familiar, ultimately realizing he is Jesus Christ.

Jesus explains that he comes to Earth every century or so to unwind, but that he must also try to keep a low profile. Peter encourages Jesus to socialize and invites him over for dinner with his family, who also recognize him as the messiah (Brian only seems convinced when Jesus turns their dinner into sundaes and engorges Lois' breasts to triple their normal size, the latter at Peter's insistence). Jesus has such a great time with the Griffins that he decides to make his second coming. At first no one seems to notice him, but when Peter loses a dollar in the wind and it lands in a public fountain, Jesus retrieves it by walking on the surface of the water in front of everyone, amazing them.

The word that Jesus has returned begins spreading when he starts appearing on "The Tonight Show" and the "MTV Music Video Awards", and he becomes a celebrity. He is caught up in his newfound popularity that he begins to neglect his friendship with Peter, sending all his cell phone calls to voice mail, prompting Peter to use Lois' cellphone (whom Jesus has no problem answering) to complain. Soon Jesus gets arrested after a drinking binge and ending up unconscious at Mary-Kate Olsen's house before making anti-Semitic comments. Jesus asks Peter for bail; Peter only heads over to the police station when Jesus makes a lamp in Peter's living room smash into Peter's head. With Jesus in disrepute, he decides that maybe he wasn't mature enough to return to the world, but Peter remarks that the maturity of his statement might mean the day he'll be ready may not be too far off. Before he leaves this world, Jesus gives Peter a present: another record of "Surfin' Bird" to annoy his family with. Appropriately, the end credits roll with "Surfin' Bird" playing in the background.

Cultural references

The song "Surfin' Bird", by the band The Trashmen, plays a prominent role in the episode.cite news | title = Family Guy - "I Dream of Jesus" (Episode 702)| publisher = The Recapist|url = http://www.recapist.com/2008/10/07/family-guy-i-dream-of-jesus-episode-702 | accessdate=2008-10-07] In the 1950s-style diner, all of the wait staff are dressed as celebrities of that era, including Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, and James Dean (after the car crash that killed him). The scene in which Brian is carefully lowered from the ceiling to steal the record without waking Peter is a reference to the movie "". When Brian and Stewie smash the "Surfin' Bird" record, it is a parody of a scene in "Office Space" in which three office workers destroy a printer. The scene in which Jesus criticizes George Bush is a reference to the Woody Allen film "Annie Hall", in which Alvy Singer confronts a pretentious filmgoer while in line at the theatre. Jesus makes an appearance on the MTV Movie Awards with Dane Cook. The scene where Marlee Matlin calls Moviefone does not actually make sense because she is deaf and would not use a standard telephone.

Ratings

The episode was watched by 8.4 million viewers and In the 18-49 demographic, "I Dream of Jesus" earned a 4.3/10 ratings share.cite news | author = Bill Gorman | title = Sunday Ratings: Desperate Housewives, 60 Minutes Win, CW Crashes | publisher = TV by the Numbers | date = 2008-10-06 | url = http://tvbythenumbers.com/2008/10/06/sunday-ratings-desperate-housewives-nfl-steelers-win-cw-crashes/5720 | accessdate=2008-10-06]

References

External links

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