Joint Custody (American Dad!)

Unreferenced|date=October 2007|section called "Cultural references"Infobox American Dad! episode
Title =Joint Custody
Series =American Dad!


Caption =Jeff sharing a moment with his Dad
Season =2
Episode =19
Airdate =May 20, 2007
Production =2AJN24
Writer =Keith Heisler
Director =Joe Daniello
Guests =Clancy Brown as Mr. Fisher, Richard Gant as The Leprechaun
newspaper_headline ="Popeye insists:
"Olive Oil Aint No Virgin"
Episode list =List of American Dad! episodes
Season list = Infobox_American_Dad!_Season_2
Prev =The Magnificent Steven
Next =The Vacation Goo

__NOTOC__"Joint Custody" is a second season episode of the animated series "American Dad!".

Plot

Stan becomes annoyed with Hayley's boyfriend Jeff, a bohemian who lives in his van, which he keeps parked right in front of the Smith house. Since Stan cannot legally have the van towed, as it is not on his property, he has it destroyed with a wrecking ball; however, this leads to Jeff moving in with the Smiths, so that he begins to annoy Stan more than ever. Hayley explains that he has nowhere else to go, as he had not spoken to his father for years and "his mother ran away before he was born" (Stan asks how this is possible, and is ignored). Soon, Jeff will marry Hayley, and annoy Stan for the rest of his life. Roger does some searching on the Internet, and discovers that Jeff is wanted in Florida for possession of marijuana, but that he had skipped bail. Stan decides to turn Jeff in so he would be out of his life forever; Roger, too, wants to do so, if solely for the money, so he can buy more disguises. Stan winds up taking Jeff without Roger while he's trying on hunter disguises, incurring the alien's wrath.

Stan and Jeff travel across the country (Stan claiming he is going to take Jeff to a baseball game), and as they go Jeff talks about how he had been in some "trouble" at one point (the drug incident) but has not talked to his father since, afraid to disappoint him. Roger winds up catching up to them, and reveals to Jeff Stan's plan to turn him in; Jeff manages to escape from both of them, and Stan goes in pursuit, after disabling Roger's motorcycle.

Jeff flees to his father's farm in Raleigh, North Carolina, and calls Hayley; she and Francine decide to go and try to stop Stan. Klaus overhears, and calls both Stan and Roger to tell them where Jeff is; meanwhile, Francine cannot find the keys to her car, so Steve volunteers to hotwire it. However, he winds up electrocuting himself.

Arriving at Jeff's father's farm, but Jeff asks to spend one night with his dad before Stan takes him away. Stan meets Mr. Fischer, who goes on long rants praising Jeff, but is obviously sarcastic about the whole thing, which Stan finds rather cruel. Roger shows up again, and again reveals Stan's plan, this time to Mr. Fischer; Mr. Fischer ties both up, and declares that he intends to turn in Jeff himself for the reward money. He also reveals a startling fact---that "he" had grown the marijuana Jeff was found with on his farm and sent Jeff to bring it to Florida, though Jeff had been totally unaware of any of this. He leaves the two tied up and brings his son away to Florida, telling Jeff that he knows about the drug incident but that he intends to prove him innocent. Meanwhile, Stan and Roger manage to escape, but only after setting the barn full of cannabis on fire; as a result of smoke inhalation, the two become high and, while they go to rescue Jeff, they find themselves easily distracted.

Stan eventually realizes that the two are inebriated from the drugs, but they come to a DWI checkpoint; Stan refuses to abandon his quest to save Jeff, however, explaining that, as Stan had not known his own father growing up, he felt a connection and sympathy for Jeff. They reach the checkpoint and wind up on a high-speed chase. They end up in Florida, but Mr. Fischer has already turned Jeff in, and openly admits that he cares more about the money than his son. Stan, however, proves Mr. Fischer's guilt, because he had been wearing a wire during his confession---he always wears a wire, for his job. Mr. Fischer is taken away for the drug charge and for attempting to murder Roger and Stan. Jeff is crushed, but Stan talks to him and explains that, although nobody can pick their fathers, they can pick their own father figures (Stan admits to being his own). Jeff says that he has someone in mind to be his father figure, and Stan thinks Jeff is talking about him; however, Jeff tells him he was actually talking about an uncle, leading to an awkward moment before the two return to Virginia.

Meanwhile at home, Steve suddenly claims to have the ability to "see" where Francine's car keys are; while Francine attributes this to his delirium, one of the firemen believes he has developed psychic powers. Steve begins to say that the keys are hidden inside the walls and under the floorboards of the house, and---over the girls' objections---the fireman helps Steve to tear up the house, until he is electrocuted again and "loses his gift." He then realizes it was actually a curse anyway, and the fireman simply leaves.

Notes

Stan's CIA "How to know if you are under the influence of Illegal Substances" document lists:
* Cotton Mouth
* Life Seems Pretty Good
* You Genuinely Enjoy Night Ranger

Cultural references

*Most of this episode is a parody of the movie "Midnight Run" starring Robert DeNiro.
*Roger dresses up as 3 ficitonal bounty hunters from movies--Boba Fett, Greedo, and the Predator, before choosing an outfit resembling Dog the Bounty Hunter (with elements of Arnold Schwarzenegger's character from "Terminator 2", including a shotgun and motorcycle).
*Roger attempts to free himself and Stan by setting the barn on fire, after "seeing it in a movie". This escape is reference to "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade", when Indiana and his father are trapped by the Germans; however, Roger apparently did not realize that in the movie, the room was set on fire after they attempted to burn the ropes with a lighter.
*There is a part when Stan and Roger are in the car singing along to Night Ranger's "Sister Christian".
*Stan sings part of Salt-N-Pepa's "Shoop" while showering.
*Stan, while high, believes that he and Roger escaped from the barn by using "sweet maneuvers" from the movie "Backdraft", despite the fact neither of them saw it.
*Steve's psychic powers are a reference to the film "The Dead Zone", with his hair mimicking that of Christopher Walken's character.
*The opening scene and the music is a reference to the 1932 Disney short, "Flowers and Trees".