And Then There's Fraud (Family Guy)

And Then There's Fraud (Family Guy)
There's bad episodes, and then there's modern Family Guy's vision of how fan memorabilia and plastic surgery could be treated. To put it simply, it fails hard.
Series: Family Guy Part of Season: 19 Episode Number: 12 Air Date: February 28, 2021 Writer: Kevin Biggins Director: Brian Iles Previous episode: Boy's Best Friend Next episode: PeTerminator

And Then There's Fraud is the 12th episode of the 19th season of Family Guy.

Plot

Peter and Chris decide to start a business selling bootleg fan memorabilia after they go to a baseball game. At the same time, Stewie gets plastic surgery in order to fight getting older, leading to him going overboard with it.

Why It's Fraud

1. Peter and Chris are unlikable in this episode for scamming people with sports equipment with the forged signatures of famous people.
2. Filler: Much like "The Juice Is Loose!" and "Foreign Affairs", the biggest criticism of the episode is using live-action footage just to pad out time. In this case, the entire intro to the 1974 television series The Hudson Brothers Razzle Dazzle Show, which goes on for 2 minutes straight. If you also count when it reappears toward the end of the episode, it means that it takes up an entire 3 minutes of the episode.
3. The running gag where Meg is constantly told that she needs an escort to go anywhere is another example of modern Family Guy with its daily dosage of Meg-bashing.
4. The "late Kenny Rogers" part showing solely a still image is very hypocritical since it's supposed to be an animated show.
   • In fact, this part is very disrespectful to his legacy.
5. Stewie is also unlikable in this episode, as he gets plastic surgery to fight the aging of him, even when Brian tells him not to do it. He's usually a likable character most of the time, but this episode is one of those rare times where he's unlikable.
   • There are disturbing scenes of Stewie with plastic surgery, especially at the end where there's a horrifying image of his face almost falling off. It doesn't help that it the scene comes right out of nowhere, making it seem like a cheap attempt at a jumpscare.
   • Stewie getting plastic surgery to "look young" is pointless since he's a baby.
6. There is a cutaway with an older Stewie in bed with Tyler, which is yet another joke about him being gay.
7. Quagmire doing "the longest uh" is annoying and goes on for 11 seconds, way longer than it has to. It doesn't help that the joke was explained before it happens.
8. Bad ending: Peter and Chris get off scot-free after scamming Quagmire.
   • The episode ends with Meg fleeing with one of her feet severed.

Redeeming Qualities

1. Brian is the only likable character in this episode, who isn’t flanderized like he usually is, and actually acts more like a voice of reason in this episode, much like how he was in the older ones.
2. Quagmire acting like a kid with his hat is kind of funny.

Gallery

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  WIS #5 — Jeez.. Really, animators?

Reception

The episode has a rating of 6/10 on IMDb. HenryBean2019 rated it a 1/10 on his Family Guy scorecard, although it used to be rated his lowest rating, alongside being his least favorite episode.

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