The Former Life of Brian

Infobox Television episode
Title = The Former Life of Brian
Series = Family Guy


Caption = Tracy introduces Brian to his son, Dylan.
Season = 6
Episode = 11
Airdate = April 27, 2008
Production = 6ACX04
Writer = Steve Callaghan
Director = Pete Michels
Guests = Harvey Fierstein
Charlie Adler
Chace Crawford
Erinn Hayes
Episode list = List of Family Guy episodes
Season list = Infobox_Family_Guy_Season_6
Prev = Play it Again, Brian
Next = Long John Peter

"The Former Life of Brian" is the eleventh episode of the sixth season of "Family Guy". The episode originally broadcast on April 27, 2008. It guest stars Harvey Fierstein as the older repulsive Tracy (Brian's old girlfriend) and Chace Crawford as Paul, the ne'er-do-well boyfriend of another woman. The episode title is a reference to the "Monty Python" film "The Life of Brian" (a cutaway joke even mentions the popular series).

Plot

Brian decides to start a relationship with a nice young widowed woman he meets one day. He agrees to perform magic at her son's birthday party just to impress her, only to learn that she already has a boyfriend she never told him about. Feeling he may be losing his chances at love, Brian ultimately decides to meet up with a former flame named Tracy who, once being quite attractive, has since become fat and slovenly. Partially repulsed, Brian decides to leave, but Tracy insists he stay after revealing that she has a son named Dylan and that he is the father.

Dylan proves to be quite the unruly teenager and Brian laments to Peter and Lois about his experiences with him. Despite his objections, they attempt to convince him that he should take responsibility for his son. At this time, Dylan arrives at the Griffins' house, explaining that Tracy dropped him off for Brian to raise. There he begins tearing the house apart (even beating up the Evil Monkey, though Chris has no problem with this) and acts hostile toward everyone, especially Brian, who decides to take control and kick him out. However, after discovering a shared enjoyment of marijuana, the two smoke up and bond. They begin to connect when Brian apologizes for not being there for Dylan which causes both of them to start crying and bonding, and Brian swears to turn Dylan's life in the right direction.

Brian quickly shapes Dylan up to be a fine young man, though he himself begins to act a bit self-righteous. Peter feels very uncomfortable about this, so he decides to convince Tracy to take Dylan back to live with her in the hopes that Brian would go back to normal. Lois supports Peter's position as she, too, has been feeling disturbed that Brian has become a stereotypically overprotective parent right after taking Dylan under his wing. While Brian attempts to justify his behavior, Dylan steps up, saying it is time for him to turn his mother's life around just as Brian had done for him. Brian agrees, and the two part ways.

Notes

* In the commentary for "Brian Wallows and Peter's Swallows", Seth MacFarlane says the writers had a very long and "weird" discussion about whether the children of Brian and Pearl Burton should all be toddlers or puppies in a virtual reality simulation of their life married. That episode had a mix of both (some toddlers, some puppies). In this episode, Dylan appears entirely human.

* Dylan is the third "Family Guy" character (the other two being Chris and Peter (who thought it was Meg)) to see the Evil Monkey in The Closet. He beats the Evil Monkey apparently to death as it has not been seen since this encounter.

* This marks the second time Brian describes the plot to his still-unfinished novel. The plot sounds familiar to "". Brian described the plot to Lois in "Movin' Out (Brian's Song)", in which Lois says that the plot is like the movie "Iron Eagle" and its sequels. Unlike Lois, who teased Brian about this fact, Dylan's reaction to the novel's plot was positive, but the two were both high at the time.

* One of the posters hanging up in Tracy's home shows a cat doing a pull-up, a reference to the premiere episode of the fifth season of "Family Guy", "Stewie Loves Lois". The picture (owned by Seamus) was one of the few that accompanied that of the diseased prostate which intimidated Peter.

* This is one of the few episodes that change a fact about a protagonist (Brian has a son).

* In Road to Rhode Island, Brian mentions that he could not impregnate a woman because he is a dog. However, in this episode he had a baby with Tracy.

* When Brian and Stewie walk over to Jareds mom, Stewies face paint disappears.

* This episode showcases the most obvious notions of Stewie's possible homosexuality, as he experiences a great sexual attraction to Dylan: he sports an erection at the idea of sharing a room with him, offers for Dylan to be the "teabag" in his tea party, telling him to "take [his] fuckin' pants off!", and for him to "speak up if you see anything you like" when he walks past completely nude.

Self-censorship

* For the June 22 and July 20, 2008 rebroadcasts of the episode, FOX muted the last two words of Peter's last line, "She looks like a really hot Tim Russert", which referenced the long-time NBC News Washington bureau chief Tim Russert, who had passed away on June 13, 2008. However, Cartoon Network airings of the episode have not muted the Russert reference.

Cultural references

* When Peter tricks Tracy into coming to the Griffin's house to pick up Dylan, she says she was told they were taking a trip to The Price is Right.
* When Tracy tells Brian that there's someone she wants him to meet, Stewie says "From the look of those toenails, I bet it's that little Lamisil monster", a reference to the anti-fungal toenail medicine Lamisil and their mascot "Digger the Dermatophyte".
* At the beginning of the show, Stewie's face had been painted to look like a cat, although he wanted to look like Darth Maul.
* A cutaway scene shows a "Mexican funeral" in which over a dozen people are stuffed into one casket; this is a reference to the stereotype of large Mexican-American families living in homes that are too small for them (which was also referenced in the episode "No Meals on Wheels," with the "Mexican Superfriends" gag) and/or two Mexican-Americans packing automobiles beyond the number of passengers they're designated to hold.
* While talking to the unnamed girl, Brian does an impersonation of magician Doug Henning.
* In a cutaway, the Pink Panther passes away due to years of overexposure to Owens Corning fiberglass insulation; this is a parody of the fact that the Panther has been used in Owens Corning's commercials for years.
* When Brian discovers that he has a son, Stewie, with much anticipation, yells, "Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!" in reference to "The Jerry Springer Show".
* A cutaway parodies the farewell scene in the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz"; when Dorothy tells the Scarecrow that she'll miss him most of all, the Lion and the Tin Man take offense.
* As a form of torture, Dylan tied Meg to a chair and made her watch "the other 178 hours of "Monty Python" stuff that isn't funny or memorable"; the scene makes fun of the absurd and often silly type of comedy the show was known for. While watching, Meg replies, "I'm a girl! I don't even like the good Monty Python sketches!"
* The scene in which Peter "pushes" extra hair out of his scalp is a reference to Play-Doh and the toy extrusion devices that are made for it.
* Stewie's ongoing hatred of Matthew McConaughey is depicted in a cut-off scene. Stewie attempted to kill Matthew with a crossbow (and even disposed of the body) in "You May Now Kiss the...Uh...Guy Who Receives". But in another scene Stewie shows Rupert how to lose a guy in 10 seconds which is a reference to one of Matthew McConaughey hit movie How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days.
* Al Harrington, from an advert in "" and also "Blue Harvest" for the "Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tube Man" and "Intergalactic Proton Powered Electrical Tentacled Advertising Droids" returns with a new product. He has changed focus to advertising "Crudely Painted, Not-So-Funny, Plywood Cut-Out Folk Art". This time the reason for having such ridiculous products to try and shift is due to "an unwanted result of a recent lawsuit" and Al is particularly keen to get rid of them as they are "an enormous fire hazard." The store is called "Warehouse and Emporium" in this episode, whereas it was originally called "Emporium and Warehouse."
* A cutaway scene shows Sonny the Cuckoo Bird being trained as an astronaut; as a psychological test, Sonny is shown a bowl of Cocoa Puffs, to which he's indifferent (as opposed to his maniacal reactions in the commercials), claiming "That's not me anymore, I'm just here to fly, sir."
* A "Canadian Alcatraz" is mentioned. A prisoner asks if he can leave and the guard replies, "Just be back by bedtime." This is a reference to Clint Eastwood movie Escape From Alcatraz
* During the scene when Dylan and Brian are smoking pot, Dylan is defensive and resentful at Brian's repeated reassurances that "It's not your fault," but eventually breaks down in tearful acknowledgement, a reference to the 1997 film "Good Will Hunting". This was also referenced in the Season 5 episode "Chick Cancer", when Stewie is talking to Brian in front of the TV and Brian repeatedly says the line "It's not your fault." Stewie's reaction is also resentful, saying things such as, "Don't do this to me man, Not you!"
* After undergoing his transformation with Brian, Dylan is seen wearing a polo shirt, similar in design to those of American Eagle Outfitters, Hollister Co., Mossimo, and Ralph Lauren (solid color with an animal logo on the breast pocket).
* When Dylan gives a note to Brian, which was written by Tracey, the last line of the note reads: "P.S: Will you write me a letter of recommendation for the University of Phoenix?". This is a reference to the University of Phoenix, an on-line for-profit university which offers college degrees to returning adult college students seeking to finish their higher education schooling.

Reception

This episode was watched by 8.5 million viewers and had a 4.3/10 audience share, up 5% from the previous episode. [ [http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3if1c8eee190fd7c29e8f3ab6b25aa0e3c The Hollywood Reporter] ] This episode gained mixed reviews from IGN, saying "Not all of the manatee jokes were hits, but the storyline makes up for it". [ [http://tv.ign.com/articles/869/869855p1.html IGN review] ] Greg Rock of the Parents Television Council, an organization that has frequently criticized the series, named this episode the "Worst TV Show of the Week". [cite web|last=Rock|first=Greg|title="Family Guy" on Fox|url=http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/publications/bw/2008/0502worst.asp|work=Worst TV Show of the Week|date=2008-05-02|accessdate=2008-05-04]

References

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