Friday 7 January 2011

Laugh it Up Fuzzball: Review by Alex J. Cavanaugh



The Family Guy Trilogy boxed set

Created by Seth MacFarlane, The Family Guy TV series spoofs the Star Wars saga. Endorsed by George Lucas, this boxed set features all three short films and many extras. Both the final installment, It’s A Trap, and the boxed set were released on December 21, 2010.






Blue Harvest (Star Wars) Running time: 48 min.

The idea of a Star Wars spoof began with Robot Chicken before MacFarlane decided to let the Family Guy clan tackle the movie. Blue Harvest, the real ‘”fake” working title of Empire Strikes Back, goes after Star Wars with a vengeance. Son Chris is Skywalker, Peter plays Han Solo, Lois is Princess Leia, Brian the dog is Chewbacca, and Stewie is Lord Vader. (As a running joke, Meg has a brief, non-speaking creature role in all three films.) There’s numerous guest voices, including Leslie Nielson and a slew of Airplane jokes. MacFarlane kept a lot of the original dialog for this first installment, playing it safe. One of the best Family Guy lines comes after Leia asks Luke if he’s not a little fat for a Storm Trooper - “Stay here and rot, you stuck up ___!” Overall, Blue Harvest kicks off the series well.


Something Something Something Dark Side (The Empire Strikes Back) Running time: 54 min.

Empire is the best movie of the original trilogy, and its spoof follows suit. With the formula established, MacFarlane really lets loose the humor and more liberties are taken. There’s dozens of memorable lines and the best one comes just before Solo is frozen. (Since the trilogy is unrated, that line cannot be repeated here!) This episode features some live-action shots, including Dolph’s training scene from Rocky IV. Consuela the maid makes an appearance on the Death Star, informing Vadar he needs Windex. Yoda plays it straight while the crew of the Death Star… not so straight. And Solo requests a new call name - Carlos Spicy Weiner. (Really - I can’t make this stuff up!) The best of the three, it’s worth the price of the boxed set alone.





It’s A Trap (Return of the Jedi)
Running time: 57 min.

In the beginning scrolling text, MacFarlane admits the studio forced them to do a third movie. It shows - the engine is finally running out of steam. It’s A Trap also boasts the longest running time, which does not work well in its favor. It does contain some funny moments, though. Consuela is back, claiming Jabba the Hutt is not home. When an Ewok is killed, his friend nudges him sadly and then commencing to chewing on his arm. This installment does rely heavily on foul language and contains the fewest guest appearances. Rush Limbaugh returns for a third time and Patrick Stewart and Michael Dorn appear as their Star Trek characters. While it’s the least effective of the series, It’s A Trap does wrap up the Star Wars sage nicely.



If you’re not a fan of Family Guy, this trilogy will NOT change your mind! There’s a fine line between humorous and offensive, and Family Guy gleefully jumps over that line at every chance. (On the plus side, it’s an equal opportunity offender.)

However if you do enjoy crude humor, this boxed set will induce many laughs. If you’re a fan of the show, Laugh It Up Fuzzball is a must-own!


Own this box set? What are your thoughts? Leave your comments below!

This review was brought to you by Alex J. Cavanaugh exclusively as part of a guest writer post for TheMovie411. Alex is the author of popular novel CassaStar and winner of Best Sci-Fi blog 2010 in TheMovie411 Blog Awards- Thank you Alex for this review!

26 comments:

Dempsey Sanders said...

Thanks for an amazing review Alex, enjoyed the read. Family Guy is amazing and I loved the Star Wrs Special especially the first two

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Thanks so much and I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Kelly Polark said...

I've only watched Family Guy a few times. And it is offensively funny! I think I should get this for my husband. He'd love it (because he is offensively funny and a fan of Star Wars!)!

levian said...

i only watched family guy for a few times. but the idea of putting it together with star wars must be hilarious! do one need certain knowledge of star wars to enjoy the humor?

Unknown said...

Awesome review , Alex. I have not seen the third film and since I've enjoyed the ride thus far, I will be signing on for the final leg. You and I have the same fave lines. :)

George Beremov [Nebular] said...

Great job, Alex! I really enjoyed reading these reviews :)

You're one of the greatest bloggers ever! Seriously ;)

DEZMOND said...

I've never understood shows like FAMILY GUY but this was a nice review.

Old Kitty said...

Thanks for the review!! I did manage to see Family Guy's Blue Harvest and thought it was so funny - one of the funniest parody of Star Wars - Stewie (my fave character) is just genius and mad as Lord Vader!!!

I never knew there was a boxset so now I'll have to trawl Amazon uk to see if it's available here!! Thanks for the info and reviews Alex J Cavanaugh and thanks Movie 411 for hosting!!!

Take care
x

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Family Guy IS offenseive, but I bet this spoof is funny. Good review, Alex.

Chris Phillips said...

I'm pretty sure I invented crude humor when I was 7 but I still don't get family guy. Great review though, glad you added the line about how it won't change my mind.

Anonymous said...

Who doesn't love Family Guy? Oh yeah, my wife doesn't. But I do. Just watched the Christmas Special for for free at Hulu.com. Thanks for the review!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Kelly, he would love it!

Levian, you probably need to know the basic storylines.

Melissa, you need to watch it now!

Nebular, I wouldn't go half that far...

Dezz, it's a sense of humor you either love or hate.

Kitty, you must find it! Second one is even better.

Chris, it won't unless you REALLY dig Star Wars.

Stephen, my wife's not crazy about it either.

Thanks again, Dempsey!

Christian James said...

Love these guest posts Dempsey.

Well done Alex on such a great review, love family guy.

And to all the people that have missed me on the411 I'm back

(probably not many lol!)

DEZMOND said...

OMG Chris is back, somebody please bring me some sugar and water ... ;P

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

I enjoy the occasional Family Guy. I'm not sure I could get through a full boxed set of it though. ;)
Great review.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Thank you, Christian!

Lynda, space them out and you'll survive.

RaShelle Workman said...

Hey Alex - I'm NOT a Family Guy fan, so I won't be watching those. But, I love the Robot Chicken vidoes. Love them. My fav is when Darth is having a conversation and Luke calls him on the phone ... I'm sure you know the one I'm talking about.

Dempsey Sanders said...

Judging by the comments Alex family guy is either a love or hate thing with no middle marker.

Stewie really does have me in fits though

Dempsey Sanders said...

Oh and yes Dez, he's back and probably looking after things for a bit when I am on holiday.
Though he is under strict instructions not to post all things Zombie lol

Jamie Gibbs said...

I enjoyed Blue Harvest, and I was a little dubious about the second and third installments. This has put my doubts to rest. Now on to Amazon to order Something something something dark side :D

DEZMOND said...

ah, beside that no-zombies rule, could you order Chrissy to put a new pic of him with each new post while you're off to Hawaii? To indulge your dear Dezzy a bit :)

Helen Ginger said...

I can see how this series could be quite funny. I've not seen it, though I may look for it.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

RaShelle, I do!

Dempsey, Family Guy does create a rift and I think mor emen than women enjoy the show.

Jamie, the second one is the best! Enjoy.

Helen, you might!

Ella said...

Great job! My son is also talking about this show, I have seen a couple! It is wacked, lol~

Will have to check this out; Thanks!

The Words Crafter said...

I have to admit that I like the show, though sometimes they make me cringe. It's terribly funny!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Ella, it IS whacked, but that's what makes it fun.

Words, they make me cringe on occasion as well. But I keep coming back for more.