Line #57 Recap/FamilyGuyS1E1DeathHasAShadow


1	[[quoteright:340:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1acx01.png]]
2	--> ''(The Griffins are sitting watching an episode of ''Series/TheBradyBunch'')''\
3	'''Jan:''' Mom, Dad, I found cigarettes in Greg's jacket.\
4	'''Mike:''' Greg, were you smoking cigarettes?\
5	'''Greg:''' No, Dad.\
6	'''Mike:''' ''(to Carol)'' Well, he's lying, there's no doubt about that. ''(to Greg)'' Greg, I'm afraid your punishment will be [[DarkerAndEdgier four hours in the snake pit]]. ''(Mike pushes a button revealing a trap door in the floor)'' Maybe that'll give you some time to think about what you've done.\
7	'''Greg:''' Aw, man. ''(dives in)''\
8	'''Jan:''' That'll teach him.\
9	'''Mike:''' And, Jan, I'm afraid you've earned a day in the chamber of fire for tattling on your brother. ''(pushes a button and unlocks a steel door with roaring flames behind it)''\
10	''(cut back to the Griffin living room)''\
11	'''Lois:''' Uch! Smoking! How does a boy like that go so wrong?\
12	'''Peter:''' Well, they live in a crummy neighborhood.\
13	'''Brian:''' The Bradys?\
14	'''Peter:''' Oh, hell, yeah, they got robbers, thugs, drug dealers, aw, you name it.\
15	''(a black woman with a plate full of pancakes appears at the window)''\
16	'''Black Woman:''' You folks want some pancakes?\
17	'''Peter:''' No, thank you. ''(to his family)'' See, the worst that we got is Jemima's Witnesses.
18	---> The first lines of the series.
19
20	'''Original air date:''' 1/31/1999\
21	'''Production code:''' 1ACX-01\
22	'''Written by:''' Creator/SethMacFarlane\
23	'''Directed by:''' Peter Shin
24
25	The series begins when Peter goes to a stag party. Lois tells Peter to make a promise not to drink, considering the effects of what happens when he drinks.
26
27	--> '''Peter:''' Not a drop of alcohol is going to touch these lips tonight.\
28	''(SmashCut to the party)''\
29	'''Quagmire:''' [[GilliganCut Hey, who wants to play "Drink the Beer"?]]\
30	'''Peter:''' Right here!
31
32	He drinks 37 cans of beer (partly so that "the Art/StatueOfLiberty would take her clothes off") and the next morning, Peter is home waking up on the kitchen table. Lois chastises him for breaking his promise, but Peter insists that it's not going to have a negative effect on him. At work, Peter falls asleep at the toy factory and lets dangerous and harmful "toys" (including drugs, axes and grenades) go past his watch, which gets him fired.
33
34	Peter tries many jobs to try and make money, yet all fail. Not wanting Lois to find out and not wanting his finances drained, Peter signs up for welfare checks of $150 a week, but a mistake causes the checks to total $150,000 a week.
35
36	Meanwhile, Stewie tries to get a mind control device from the kitchen cabinet, all while trying to kill Lois.
37
38	With his new fortune, Peter buys his family many expensive things, like the statue of David (which Peter breaks the penis off of) and Collagen injections for Meg (which she wanted through the episode), breast implants for Chris (actually just the squishy bags) and a jukebox in the bathroom for himself. When a check is delivered, Lois discovers it and scolds Peter believing that all his problems can be solved with money. Wanting to make it up to Lois, Peter and Brian head to Super Bowl XXXIII and give the taxpaying people money from a blimp. The blimp is shot down and the two are arrested for disrupting the big game.
39
40	In court, Peter is sentenced to 24 months in jail. Lois sticks up for Peter saying that he wanted to give his family money that they needed, but instead is given jail time with Peter. For pragmatic reasons, Stewie hits the judge with his mind control ray, releasing both and getting Peter his job back. The episode ends with Peter arguing with his family of other ways they can get rich quick, such as a minority scholarship, a sexual harassment dispute, and a disability claim.
41
42	This episode, the series premiere, aired immediately after Super Bowl XXXIII.
43	----
44	!!"Death Has a Shadow" contains examples of...
45	* AdolfHitlarious: In the very first cutaway of the series, a scrawny Hitler is envious of a Jewish bodybuilder's attention from women.
46	* AmbiguousSituation: When Stewie used his mind control device the first time. Did the judge decided to free Peter because of it, or did he genuinely feel bad at the idea of forcing Stewie to be apart from his dad? Not so ambiguous for the second time though.
47	* AsHimself: John Madden was voiced by Fred Tatasciore, but Pat Summerall made an uncredited appearance providing his own voice.
48	* BaitAndSwitchComment: In the pitch pilot, when Peter and his friends are watching a porno featuring a pizza man:
49	-->'''Peter:''' He is gonna get fired.
50	** After Peter's heartfelt speech in court, it briefly looks like he will be released:
51	---> '''Judge''': Mr. Griffin, I think your words have touched us all. I'm sentencing you to 24 months in prison.
52	* BaffledByOwnBiology: PlayedForLaughs; Peter mentions that he didn't have gas until he was 30, followed by a flashback of him farting and asking "What the hell was that?"
53	* BlatantLies: A laser goes off, and everyone looks at Stewie, who is holding a gun between two pieces of bread.
54	-->'''Stewie''': What the deuce are you staring at? It's tuna fish. ''(puts gun away)'' And nothing else.
55	* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Meg, a far cry from her current status as a ButtMonkey and disturbed teen who's one hair away from killing herself.
56	* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Brian says that Peter's welfare mistake is the reason why he doesn't vote. In later episodes, he would be a StrawLiberal.
57	* ChekhovsGun: Stewie's mind control ray.
58	* ComicallyMissingThePoint:
59	-->'''Mr. Weed''': Peter, you're fired.\
60	'''Peter''': Aw, geez, for how long?
61	* CutawayGag:
62	** The show's first ever cutaway gag is about Hitler being OutclassedAtTheGym by strong Jewish men, following Lois' remark that a lot of the world's problems stem from poor self-image.
63	** The times when Peter got drunk and acted like a fool:
64	*** The time he got drunk off the communion wine at church and remarked that Jesus must have been wasted 24 hours a day.
65	*** The time at the ice cream parlor when he had ''one lick'' of butter rum ice cream and passed out.
66	*** The time he had an Irish coffee when they went to see ''Philadelphia'', causing to laugh at Tom Hanks saying "I have AIDS" (to which the rest of the family give him a DeathGlare).
67	** The accountants cracking adding machines in Peter's head after he moans about his hangover. One of them wonders about the outside world, and the other tells him "That's dangerous thinking".
68	** Peter's attempts at getting another job:
69	*** His stint as a spokesperson for Cuckoo Puffs has him flub his line no less than ''25 times''.
70	*** His gig as a sneeze guard for the salad bar, during which he ''points a gun'' at the woman who was about to sneeze, telling her to "take it outside".
71	*** His attempt at a talent show has him lose to the Von Trapp Family Singers, which Peter calls bullshit on, only to be drowned out by applause.
72	** One of Peter's lies that he's afraid of Lois finding out about is that he didn't really stand up to a tank in Tiananmen Square. During the standoff with the tank, he remarked "Screw this, I just came here to buy some fireworks!" and leaves.
73	** Brian warns Peter that if he doesn't tell Lois the truth soon, she'll figure out where Peter has really been all day. Answer: standing in the living room, disguised as a lamp.
74	** At the welfare office, Peter tells the man asking about his circumstances regarding disabilities and such " I didn't have gas until I was 30", followed by 30-year-old Peter farting for the first time and asking "What the hell was that?"
75	** After getting a welfare check for 150,000 dollars, Peter comments that one of the government higher-ups must have been drinking too, followed by President Clinton responding to a reporter's question by telling him he's fat (while holding a martini).
76	** In court, Peter's excuse for not calling the welfare office and telling them they made a ''massive'' error was that he was going to, but then his favorite episode of ''Diff'rent Strokes'' came on. Said episode consists of a bike shop owner telling the boys "I want you to scream real loud at my ass".
77	* DeadpanSnarker: Brian.
78	-->"Yeah, who would've thought welfare fraud would be one of her buttons?"
79	* DisproportionateRetribution: In the ''Brady Bunch'' episode the family sees, Greg is made to spend four hours in a snake pit for smoking while Janet gets a day in a room of fire for tattling.
80	* DriveThruAntics: Peter announces that, with his new riches, he'll buy the family their most expensive meal ever.
81	-->'''Peter:''' Yeah, I'll have 6,000 chicken fa-jitas.\
82	'''Employee:''' I beg your pardon?\
83	'''Peter:''' 6,000 chicken fa-jitas.\
84	'''Brian:''' And a so-sage [=McBiscuit=], please.
85	* DudeNotFunny: The cutaway of the Griffins watching ''Film/{{Philadelphia}}'' has the rest of the moviegoers glaring at Peter when he laughs at Creator/TomHanks' character for saying he has AIDS.
86	* DynamicEntry: The Kool Aid Man bursting through the courtroom wall.
87	--> '''Kool Aid Man''': OH YEAH!!!
88	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: A lot of things from this episode will feel really odd to people who are used to seeing the post-2005 revival episodes. The jokes are not totally tasteless, but they are still better suited to Creator/AdultSwim than to Creator/{{FOX}}. Most of the cutaways are flashbacks and WhatIf spots, rather than totally "random" gags that add nothing to the plot. The characters act very differently, too:
89	** Meg is a sympathetic BrattyTeenageDaughter who just wants to be accepted and, while relatively luckless, is not the victim of constant abuse. In fact, Peter and especially Lois both try to be real parents to her. There's also the fact she's voiced by Creator/LaceyChabert [[TheOtherDarrin rather than]] Creator/MilaKunis.
90	** Chris sounds dopier and admires Peter's drunken antics.
91	** Peter is a likable BumblingDad trying to make things right, plus he works at a toy factory run by an AmbiguouslyGay man named Mr. Weed, not at the Pawtucket Brewery. He's also significantly smarter and much more well-meaning. For example, it's stated that Peter's primary motivation for not reporting the erroneous welfare checks was it would let him provide more for his family (though he does have selfish motivations as well).
92	** Lois is friendlier and more sensible. Additionally, her voice is deeper (though this is true about nearly everyone).
93	** Stewie has neither AmbiguouslyGay traits nor a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold hidden nicer side]]. Instead, he is the TokenEvilTeammate who hates everyone in the family. In fact, the family member with whom Stewie has the strongest enmity is Brian.
94	** Quagmire is just a generic party animal who happens to be promiscuous.
95	** A prototype version of Cleveland -- with a receding hairline, slightly different mustache, and voiced by Creator/PhilLaMarr rather than Mike Henry, with none of Cleveland's usual sleepy disposition -- appears early in the episode, before the actual Cleveland makes his first appearance in the courtroom scene, sitting next to Quagmire and not getting any lines.[[note]]The actual Cleveland makes an appearance in the pitch pilot in place of the prototype version.[[/note]]
96	** Brian is limited mostly to the original joke of his character, that in a family of complete dolts, the ''dog'' is the smartest one. Personality-side, he's low-key, sophisticated and is best friends with Peter rather than Stewie.
97	* EpicFail: Peter is fired from a job as the Cocoa Puffs mascot because he can't get his ''one'' line right after 25 takes.
98	* FakeOutFadeOut: Peter says he found another get-rich-quick scheme, Brian asks if it's another welfare scam, but Peter puts on an afro wig and says, "Minority scholarship", laughs, then looks at the camera, winks and does a thumbs up while the executive producer credits roll.
99	* FailedASpotCheck: Peter apparently spent his days while fired posing as a lamp. Amazingly, no one seemed to notice.
100	* FallGuy: In a sense. While Peter obviously messed up for being drunk on the job, one has to wonder why lethal items were even on a conveyor belt for a TOY FACTORY.
101	* FiringDay: Peter is fired from his toy factory job after he falls asleep due to a hangover and inadvertently allows dangerous "toys" to slip into the market. Not wanting Lois to find out and blame him, he decides to sign up for welfare and keep her in the dark about it.
102	* GilliganCut: Peter's promise not to drink at the stag party, followed by a cut to Peter and Quagmire playing "Drink the Beer" at said party.
103	* GoodAngelBadAngel: Peter frets about telling Lois how he was fired because he was hung over from drinking. A shoulder devil appears to tell him that it's okay to lie to her about it, but the shoulder angel is nowhere to be found; a cutaway shows he's stuck in traffic. Later on, this shoulder angel finally arrives and is asked by Peter for advice. The shoulder angel's even smaller shoulder devil then appears, but the tiny shoulder angel isn't there because he's also stuck in traffic.
104	* HiddenDepths: Despite his pompous attitude, Stewie is aware that he is dependent on Peter and Lois, thus saving them and giving Peter his job back.
105	* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: This and the next three episodes featured titles that were done in the style of '40s crime drama/film noir. This practice was soon abandoned when the staff couldn't keep track of the episodes because of vague titles.
106	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Peter outright ignores Lois, drinks his way out of a job, and hides it from her. However, he uses his welfare money to try and give the family a better life, then tries to give the money back during Superbowl Sunday.
107	* LampshadeWearing: Surprisingly, a non-drunk example. Peter posed as a lamp while lying to Lois that he was still working. [[FailedASpotCheck Lois apparently never noticed this]] (though Brian warned she would eventually).
108	* LethalNegligence: Peter is fired from the toy factory he works at when his sleeping on the job allows several dangerous products to make it to shipping and endanger customers.
109	* MyLittlePanzer: The defective "toys" sold by the factory include a fire-breathing doll, a case of drugs, and an axe.
110	* MythologyGag: Three of the cutaway gags in this episode were initially used in [=MacFarlane's=] thesis college project, ''Life of Larry'', including:
111	** God being embarrassed when the priest tells the story of Job.
112	** Peter watching ''Film/{{Philadelphia}}'' while drunk.
113	** Peter not being able to fart until he was 30.
114	* NeverTrustATitle: The first four episode titles in season one have titles that don't match the plot, all of them involving death or murder. According to Creator/SethMacFarlane, he did it as an homage to old-time radio.
115	* NoProductSafetyStandards: Peter falls asleep on the job at the toy factory, allowing for dangerous products to make it into shipping, such as a bottle of pills inside a [[BlandNameProduct "Pound Poochie"]] box, a "silly ball" being a throwing hatchet, and a girl's doll being built in with a flamethrower.
116	* NobodyLikesATattletale: Exaggerated. A CutawayGag parodying ''Series/TheBradyBunch'' shows Jan being punished for tattling on Greg (for ''underage smoking'') by being forced to jump into "the pit of eternal fire" by her father.
117	* OutclassedAtTheGym: The show's first CutawayGag takes place in a German gym, with a scrawny Adolf Hitler struggling to lift small barbells, and then he notices a very muscular stereotypical Jewish man with ALadyOnEachArm, resulting in Hitler growling in envy.
118	* ParallelPornTitles: At the stag party, Peter and the guys watch ''[[Film/{{Casablanca}} Assablanca]]'' (but it gets taped over with a documentary about the Statue of Liberty, causing the guys to drink so that the statue "would take her clothes off").
119	* PragmaticVillainy: The only reason Stewie doesn't allow Peter and Lois to be hauled away to prison is because he relies on them to survive. He also allows Peter to get his job back.
120	* PrisonRape: Subverted. When Peter is in prison, he tells Brian that "...those rumors about dropping the soap are true", then tells Brian that all the inmates were making fun of him for not holding on to the soap.
121	* RunningGag: Twice Lois says these instances of InsaneTrollLogic.
122	-->'''Lois:''' You see Peter, a hangover is simply nature's way of telling you I was right.\
123	''...''\
124	'''Lois:''' Well Meg, sagging lips is nature's way of telling you you shouldn't have covered for your father's lie.\
125	'''Chris''': What does it mean when your armpits cry stinky tears?\
126	'''Lois''': Oh, it means you're becoming a man. But, hopefully, ''not'' the kind of man who stays out all night and doesn't call. Like your father, who shall remain nameless.
127	* ShoutOut:
128	** The very first shot in the episode is of the Griffins watching ''Series/TheBradyBunch''.
129	** In one cutaway gag, Peter sees ''Film/{{Philadelphia}}'' drunk.
130	** This dialogue, in which we see the first of many jokes at the expense of Judaism.
131	--->'''Mr. Weed''': How're you coming along, Johnson?\
132	'''Johnson''': Well, Mr. Weed, I've got the new [[Franchise/GIJoe G.I. Jew]] line out, and as you can see, it's coming out great.\
133	'''G.I. Jew''': You call these bagels?\
134	'''Johnson''': [=WhooooOOOOOOOaaaah=]! I'm glad he's on ''our'' side.
135	** One of Peter's "jobs" was his hope to win some money in a talent show, which cuts to the contest scene from ''Film/TheSoundOfMusic''.
136	** Peter buys Lois a jester, who is Creator/JerrySeinfeld.
137	** Stewie says to his mother, "[[Film/ForrestGump Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get.]] ''Your'' life however is more like a box of ACTIVE GRENADES!!!!!"
138	** Peter claims he wanted to call but the molestation episode of ''Series/DiffrentStrokes'' was on.
139	--->'''Bike shop owner''': All right, now I want you boys to scream real loud at my ass.
140	** At the end of the episode, the Griffins watch an episode of ''Series/TVsBloopersAndPracticalJokes'' hosted by Dick Clark and Ed [=McMahon=], which shows a fake outtake from ''Series/JoanieLovesChachi''.
141	* ShotForShotRemake: This episode is basically an extended and repolished version of the pitch pilot, with jokes from Creator/SethMacFarlane's student film, ''The Life of Larry'' (though the next episode has the ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' scenes, like Captain Kirk splitting his pants, and Ensign Ricky muttering, "Aw, crap!" after Kirk picks him for the landing mission).
142	* SkewedPriorities: Lois says to her husband that lying to her and betraying her trust is worse than welfare fraud.
143	-->'''Peter''': Really? [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Let's hope the judge sees it that way.]]
144	* SoundEffectBleep:
145	** In the final product, when Peter is annoyed that he lost the talent show to [[Film/TheSoundOfMusic The Von Trapp Family Singers]], the audience applause covers up his use of "shit." Averted in the pitch pilot.
146	** Later in the final product, Lois asks "What the fuck?" when she finds one of Peter's welfare checks in the mail, but Peter's boat horn covers up the last word of her sentence.
147	* SpoofAesop: Testifying in court, Peter says he was going to return the money, but he got distracted by the infamous "The Bicycle Man" episode of ''Series/DiffrentStrokes''. After a cutaway, Peter says everyone learned an important lesson.
148	-->'''Judge:''' Mr. Griffin, have you learned a lesson?\
149	'''Peter:''' [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Oh, yeah, stay the hell away from that bike shop!]]
150	* TakeThat: Peter expresses his opinion about a certain region of America while flying a blimp over the Super Bowl.
151	-->'''Brian''': Amazing, you can barely drive a car, and yet, you're allowed to fly a blimp?\
152	'''Peter''': Yeah, America's great, isn't it? Except for the south.
153	* TapedOverTurmoil: Peter brings a porno named ''[[Film/{{Casablanca}} Assablanca]]'' to a friend's stag party only for the men to be horrified that it was partially recorded over by a documentary about The Statue of Liberty.
154	* ThermostatTamperTantrum: Meg attempts to turn up the thermostat, only for her father Peter to abruptly burst in the room and demand to know who touched it. He claims that every father has a brain implant that goes off when their kids change the temperature, leading to a gag where several other dads in the neighborhood show up at the door to check the situation.

Context Recap / FamilyGuyS1E1DeathHasAShadow