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May 29, 2009

Seth MacFarlane Determined To Prove The Emmys Are Worthless

thumbnail icon: Seth MacFarlane Determined To Prove The Emmys Are Worthless

Seth MacFarlane wants an award. From Variety:

"Family Guy" exec producer Seth MacFarlane is taking on the live-action Emmy establishment.

Believing that this may be the year an animated series finally breaks through the Emmy glass ceiling, MacFarlane plans to submit "Family Guy" in the comedy category.

"We don't produce our show the that way 'SpongeBob' does," MacFarlane said. "We're much more analogous to traditional sitcoms. Our writers don't come from animation; they come from comedies. I hear people all the time tell me that they love 'The Office,' '30 Rock' and our show. Then why are we not all competing in the same world?"

Other animated series, including "The Simpsons," have attempted to break the live-action dominated comedy category in the past to no avail.

Nice try, Seth MacFarlane. I'm not saying that you can't like 30 Rock and The Office and Family Guy. Of course you can. It's like T.I. said, "you can do whatever you want." Besides, we all mistakes. It's very similar to how I like candy and ice cream and smelly rotten garbage. But I don't think that anyone is putting those three shows on the same level. I'm sure it's like "What shows do I like? I really love The Office, coughFamily Guycough, and I'm a huge 30 Rock fan."

You know what? Family Guy should win the Emmy for Best Comedy. It's what America wants. We should grant some kind of historic recognition of this show's achievement so that our children, and our children's children will be able to put down the Brawndo and say, "Hey, you guys were also stupid!"

But for the record, Seth MacFarlane is the absolute worst. More proof after the jump:

To promote MacFarlane's attempts at breaking down the barriers, 20th is taking a page from Barack Obama's history-making presidential run. The studio's "Family Guy" Emmy campaign centers on homicidal toddler Stewie, who shows up in a poster similar to the famous one created by Shepard Fairey for Obama. The tagline? "Vote for Change."

"The thinking behind it was somewhat allegorical to Obama," MacFarlane said. "Let's break some new ground here. The goal here is to generate an understanding in the TV Academy on this."

THE THINKING BEHIND IT* WAS SOMEWHAT ALLEGORICAL TO OBAMA.

*It = a miserable cartoon's attempt to win a meaningless award. Basically the same as the first black president.

Posted by Gabe at 10:30 AM in
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47 Comments

Josh is like Germany Ambitious and Misunderstood

Hahahahaha, this guy IS SO THE WORST EVER!

Posted by: Josh is like Germany Ambitious and Misunderstood profile link at 05/29/09 10:41 AM | Reply
Score = 15 Vote up Vote down

----"We should grant some kind of historic recognition of this show's achievement so that our children, and our children's children will be able to put down the Brawndo and say, "Hey, you guys were also stupid!""

doesn't this apply to this same behavior?

Posted by: eledi at 05/29/09 10:41 AM | Reply
Score = -12 Vote up Vote down
RobinRubbermaid

Hey stupid cartoon maker trying to sound smart: try "analogous."

Posted by: RobinRubbermaid profile link at 05/29/09 10:44 AM | Reply
Score = 26 Vote up Vote down
just_the_tip

Seth McFarlane is Peter Brady if he went full douche

Posted by: just_the_tip profile link at 05/29/09 10:44 AM | Reply
Score = 11 Vote up Vote down

I'm surprised this didn't warrant the "Assholes" tag. I'm surprised every post about Seth McFarlane doesn't warrant the "Assholes" tag.

Posted by: Erin at 05/29/09 10:45 AM | Reply
Score = 18 Vote up Vote down
DrinkPlanner

Tagging it both "Seth MacFarlane" and "Assholes" would be a little redundant, don't you think?

Posted by: DrinkPlanner profile link in reply to Erin's comment at 05/29/09 4:45 PM | Reply
Score = 19 Vote up Vote down

There is an award for Best Animated, Seth McFarlane. That is why you do not need to submit it in Comedy.

A better reason not to submit it in Comedy is because I haven't laughed at Family Guy since 2004.

Posted by: TalbainJ at 05/29/09 10:47 AM | Reply
Score = 21 Vote up Vote down

Seth Macfarlane is the worst but his point is that Best Animated program often also has stuff like SpongeBob in the running which aren't really analogous with shows like Futurama or SouthPark. Maybe if they had a category of Best Animated program for adults and for kids it might make sense.

That said, the only Best award Seth Macfarlane should receive is from the Razzies. They have a TV Category, right? If they don't it's only because Seth would have won most of the awards.

Posted by: FistfulOAwesome profile link in reply to TalbainJ's comment at 05/29/09 11:06 AM | Reply
Score = 6 Vote up Vote down

a quote with a forced use of the word "analogous" warrants a comment with the same, how strange.

Posted by: ill use your tongue to paint my boat in reply to FistfulOAwesome's comment at 05/29/09 11:25 AM | Reply
Score = -8 Vote up Vote down
practicallyinformation

MacFarlane has a point. Regardless of what you think of his shows, the Comedy Category is SUPPOSED to be awarded for the writing on the show. In the Simpson's heyday it was the best written show on TV, hands down. 1993-1998 (the Simpson's best work) the Emmy for Best Comedy went to Fraiser every year. That is simply WRONG. The academy needs to fucking recognize!

Posted by: practicallyinformation profile link at 05/29/09 11:00 AM | Reply
Score = 32 Vote up Vote down
practicallyinformation

yes...i'm still pissed about this.

Posted by: practicallyinformation profile link in reply to practicallyinformation's comment at 05/29/09 11:06 AM | Reply
Score = 20 Vote up Vote down
Leonard

Your ideas intrigue me, and I'd like to subscribe to your newsletter

Posted by: Leonard profile link in reply to practicallyinformation's comment at 05/29/09 12:32 PM | Reply
Score = 31 Vote up Vote down
practicallyinformation

this guy gets it. no one is quoting Frasier 10 years later...

Posted by: practicallyinformation profile link in reply to Leonard's comment at 05/29/09 7:03 PM | Reply
Score = 17 Vote up Vote down
Mcluskyist

It's probably not "PC" to say this, but I really hope this guy gets dick cancer and dies. There, I said it.

Posted by: Mcluskyist profile link at 05/29/09 11:03 AM | Reply
Score = -6 Vote up Vote down
booferama

I'll take you one step further: I hope he gets uteran cancer, because that would be much harder for him to understand and cope with. You know, in an allegorical sense.

Posted by: booferama profile link in reply to Mcluskyist's comment at 05/29/09 11:20 AM | Reply
Score = 15 Vote up Vote down
Gabe

Cut it out, monsters.

Posted by: Gabe profile link in reply to booferama's comment at 05/29/09 11:39 AM | Reply
Score = 25 Vote up Vote down

Funny because I only hear those first two comedies ever mentioned in the same breath and 100% assuredly not the latter.

Though whenever 30 Rock does cutaways, I think of how badly Family Guy has tainted and destroyed that ONE comedic device. And then I proceed to get sad. R.I.P. cutaways - the beginning of sitcoms - mid-2000s.

Posted by: Chadams at 05/29/09 11:20 AM | Reply
Score = 6 Vote up Vote down

The force runs very strong in both Tina and Seth...it's important that the right side wins...what I'm saying is I'd laugh if one of them fell down a flight of stairs and seriously hurt themselves but not the other...

Posted by: Senior Service at 05/29/09 11:47 AM | Reply
Score = 2 Vote up Vote down

Don't be mean to Tina. All she has are her looks. Without them she might have to consider being funny. (Flame Shield On)

Posted by: FistfulOAwesome profile link in reply to Senior Service's comment at 05/29/09 12:10 PM | Reply
Score = -26 Vote up Vote down
Carrie

Whattttttttt

Posted by: Carrie profile link in reply to FistfulOAwesome's comment at 05/29/09 12:17 PM | Reply
Score = 4 Vote up Vote down
Carrie

Yes this is almost exactly like the Obama campaign, with the one difference being that the Obama campaign was RELEVANT. Seth Macfarlane calling the animated-show Emmy "bias" a "glass ceiling" is an insult to glass ceilings everywhere. Because in the history of oppressed groups, it goes like this: Native Americans, slaves, Jews, racial minorities, women, immigrants, homosexuals, animated prime-time television shows. PRETTY MUCH.

Posted by: Carrie profile link at 05/29/09 12:12 PM | Reply
Score = 21 Vote up Vote down

Family Guy's got electrolytes!

Posted by: Trevor at 05/29/09 12:59 PM | Reply
Score = 7 Vote up Vote down
incandenza

I would have put the asterisk after "thinking", myself.

Posted by: incandenza profile link at 05/29/09 1:16 PM | Reply
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I want them to give him the emmy and then play a clip of The Cleveland Show and immediately take it away. Award shows in my world > real Emmy's.

Posted by: Ben (waiting for the perfect GIF) at 05/29/09 1:43 PM | Reply
Score = 10 Vote up Vote down
Lou Reed

Family Guy isn't that bad. I mean it's not good, certainly not 30 Rock good, but it's on a lot and its not painful to watch. It occasionally has a really funny joke.. Now vote me down.

Posted by: Lou Reed profile link at 05/29/09 3:09 PM | Reply
Score = 9 Vote up Vote down

R.C., the worst thing about the show (among quite a few Teh Worsts) is how so many tools claim it to be high-minded and hilarious, when it's mostly Perez-Hilton pokes at celebrities, one-note character jokes (the dad's fat! the baby's evil! the brother is... fat!)* and slapstick or gross-out humor that animation doesn't really surprise anyone with. And from what I've seen, the comic timing is... drawn out... (DNP, do not pun-uscitate)

*I may be wrong; maybe there's some interesting char. dev., but I'm not going to hang around to wait for it.

Posted by: turingcub profile link in reply to Lou Reed's comment at 05/29/09 4:29 PM | Reply
Score = 14 Vote up Vote down
Carrie

There's not. There's no real plot progression. This is emphasized by how Peter has like dozens of ridiculous professions. I think Seth Macfarlane is fighting the bad fight because while what he really wants is for an animated show (read: HIS animated show) to get an Emmy, but the Emmy he's trying to get is for basically for best writing, and no matter what, what his show palpably lacks is creative writing. Best voice over, okay, objectively they probably do a good job in that category. But his show has meaningless 4-minute long musical sequences and exaggerated extensions of otherwise unfunny jokes just to fill time in between loosely strung together plot points. So there's nothing salient or particularly engaging in the long term about the story or characters, and that's why I think it's lazy writing.

(Sorry, this turned into just a general comment rather than a response to you.)

Posted by: Carrie profile link in reply to turingcub's comment at 05/29/09 9:40 PM | Reply
Score = 14 Vote up Vote down
Carrie

Aaaaaand I just found like 40 grammatical errors in that paragraph, OOPS.

Posted by: Carrie profile link in reply to Carrie's comment at 05/29/09 9:43 PM | Reply
Score = 3 Vote up Vote down

Seriously, Spongebob deserves a Best Comedy Emmy well before anything this man produces.

That show is still hilarious.

Posted by: Zachra at 05/29/09 4:40 PM | Reply
Score = 17 Vote up Vote down

Well, Spongebob is generally about a million times more clever then Family Guy anyway, so if we're going by that logic you might as well put Spongebob in the comedy section too. Why not.

Posted by: Christopher profile link at 05/29/09 7:23 PM | Reply
Score = 18 Vote up Vote down
langford

That was my thought too. Spongebob actually tries a lot of different styles/jokes and doesn't play it safe like FG, so more power to it.

Posted by: langford profile link in reply to Christopher's comment at 05/30/09 5:37 AM | Reply
Score = 11 Vote up Vote down
Bad tings ah gwan

Spongebob also doesn't have to use gross out humor,shock jock style jokes and the meanness of celebrity skewering to try and be funny the way that Family Guy does.

Posted by: Bad tings ah gwan profile link in reply to langford's comment at 06/01/09 12:17 AM | Reply
Score = 3 Vote up Vote down

OK, quit hating on Seth MacFarlane for a second. Family guy obviously isnt as funny as the Office and there are a lot of shows on TV much funnier than family guy, but come on - its a funny show regardless of whether or not south park approves of its comedy style. Hipsters love to hate on the show because its popular, but the only reason it exists is because it developed such a cult following that they got FOX to un-cancel it (which doesn't happen). I fail to see what makes Seth MacFarlane an asshole, other than that smug grin of his that anyone who created something from scratch and made 100 mil from would have. And the stewie/obama thing is clearly a joke - do you really think he considers his show as big of deal as obama's presidency? Come on guys, there are better people to hate on.

Posted by: Gabe profile link at 05/30/09 3:58 AM | Reply
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langford

Sorry, Seth's MOM!

lolololololololololol see what I did there? It's okay, you'll find that funny. You like Family Guy. (Gabe?)

Posted by: langford profile link in reply to Gabe's comment at 05/30/09 5:36 AM | Reply
Score = 6 Vote up Vote down
Krys

Bizarro Gabe needs to give up the Seth MacFarlane defenses or suffer the bizarro consequences.

Posted by: Krys profile link in reply to Gabe's comment at 05/31/09 1:36 AM | Reply
Score = 7 Vote up Vote down
josephscott

What film/TV show is that suicide gif from?

Posted by: josephscott profile link at 05/30/09 6:33 AM | Reply
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suicidalsioux

You people are OUTRAGEOUS!!! Have any of you been over to YouTube recently? Seth McFarlane has his own site there that is constantly updated with NEW & BRILLIANT, not to mention, HYSTERICALLY funny, ANIMATED clips!!! Where do YOU get such SUPERIOR attitudes??? I see. You're ALL GIFTED Television Writers in your on rights! RIGHT??? YOU actually HATE McFarlane because "Family Guy" hasn't been up to snuff lately? I LIKE "South Park" mysef, but show the man some RESPECT!!! YOU OBVIOUSLY cannot DO what he CAN!!! I worked in Television a LONG time & I know what it takes to CRANK-OUT a show every WEEK---and that was with LIVE actors! ANIMATION is a WHOLE different ANIMAL & alot MORE WORK!!! Gabe is RIGHT! Save your HATE for something WORTHWHILE!!!

Posted by: suicidalsioux profile link at 05/30/09 8:25 PM | Reply
Score = -21 Vote up Vote down
stacey

God damn it. It's becoming more and more difficult to be a Family Guy apologist, thanks in part to shit like this.

Posted by: stacey profile link in reply to suicidalsioux's comment at 06/01/09 12:32 AM | Reply
Score = 9 Vote up Vote down

Spongebob once included a Velvet Underground/Warhol reference and a Picasso block period reference in the same sequence, in a TV show targeted toward children under 10.

Posted by: Evan at 05/31/09 4:07 AM | Reply
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Carrie

Also: "Too wet. Too hot. Too Louse-Lautrec."
Also: "Patrick, have you completely forgotten what we're looking for knee-deep in yesterday's top 40 songs?"
Love it.

Posted by: Carrie profile link in reply to Evan's comment at 05/31/09 11:11 PM | Reply
Score = 7 Vote up Vote down

Reminds me of Monty Python, who maybe got there way ahead of Spongebob and on whose shoulders Seth is spastically trying to stand:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Es0t50H44IE

Posted by: hotspur profile link in reply to Carrie's comment at 06/01/09 6:21 PM | Reply
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Panda Snare

the only good thing family guy ever did was the Fighting Chicken sequences....those were gold.

Posted by: Panda Snare profile link at 05/31/09 2:10 PM | Reply
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MarkyBob

"Family Guy" is the crowning achievement of western civilization. Also, "The Real Housewives of Atlanta."

Posted by: MarkyBob profile link at 05/31/09 7:23 PM | Reply
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Greatt!!!
Family guy deserves an emmy :D

Posted by: Rodrigoyiyo profile link at 06/02/09 2:40 PM | Reply
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Lou Reed

I really wanna see the Spongebob scene that refrences the velvet underground now..

Posted by: Lou Reed profile link at 06/03/09 11:03 PM | Reply
Score = 2 Vote up Vote down
quartertonality

It's bad enough that he is trying to flood the airwaves with the SAME EXACT IDEA over and over and over again (Family Guy = American Dad and they are both going to be the exact same as "The Cleveland Show". He shouldn't be proud of the fact that he can keep drunken fratboys with an IQ of 12 entertained with the same jokes week after week after week.

He needs to give it a rest and be happy with what he has.

Posted by: quartertonality profile link at 06/04/09 12:01 PM | Reply
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Posted by: idearfcaf at 06/11/09 7:14 PM | Reply
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