Family Guy Vs American Dad

Which dysfunctional TV family does it better?

To the people living under rocks that have never seen either show, these are adult cartoons that should probably come with higher PG ratings. They brilliantly capture traditional American values with their dark and explicit humor, and are arguably the best Fox productions in the past decade. To be fair, you can’t go wrong with a cross-dressing alien or a talking dog that can drive.

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Which show has a better leading man?

Let’s start with Peter Griffin of Family Guy. This man has to be the most irresponsible father alive; he talks like a loser and thinks everyone in his family is one too, except for the talking dog, Brian, on a few occasions. Seriously, who names their boat “S.S. More Powerful than Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, and The Incredible Hulk Put Together”??? He usually gets drunk with the same group of friends named Cleveland, Joe and Quagmire (fun fact: A “quagmire” is an awkward, complex or hazardous situation, which is an understatement for the perverted character that attempted to sleep with Peter’s daughter, Meg).

He has the reasoning of a child and is easily influenced by anyone or anything he comes across. He constantly bullies Meg, and has repeatedly advised his son, Chris, to treat women the same way. I’m sure we all wonder how he provides for his family as he’s hardly ever at work and is known to take advice from a dog.

Stan Smith of American Dad epitomizes the stereotypical middle class middle-aged American; he’s a Republican and would not hesitate to use his gun at the slightest opportunity. He works as a weapons expert for the CIA and often makes the mistake of applying the same extreme measures used on the job to his personal life. Compared to Peter Griffin, Stan is more of a “family guy” and puts more effort in developing his relationships with each family member.

Besides his immediate family, he’s opened his home to a couple “tenants”: Roger, a pan-sexual alien; Klaus, the family pet man-turned-fish; and Jeff Fischer, who is his daughter’s irresponsible boyfriend-turned-husband. At his worst, Stan proves to be insensitive and unfazed despite being fully conscious of the distress and displeasure brought upon his friends and family.

Verdict: American Dad wins this round. Stan Smith is the better leading man with a more dynamic and relatable character.

Which show has better female characters?  

The ladies in both shows are in some way sidelined but these are hardly the shows you look to for progressive female representation. Lois, the mother in Family Guy, has her fair share of screen time but is typically used as a prop while her daughter Meg is treated even worse with fewer scenes. Episodes focused on Meg highlight her treatment as a second-class family member and unfortunately, there isn’t much appeal to her character for us to care.

On the other hand, Hayley, the daughter in American Dad, is more of no-nonsense feminist whose presence is felt in each scene. Sadly, she doesn’t have enough episodes centered around her to show more of her personality. Her mother Francine is a bit of an airhead blonde who is always looking for activities to fill the downtime that comes with being a house-wife. She’s attempted multiple careers that always seem to end up with her back at square one.

Verdict: American Dad wins again. Francine and Hayley are a more interesting duo to watch than Lois and Meg.

Which show has a more dysfunctional family? 

The Griffins are a more disjointed family than the Smiths. It may not appear so at first, but on closer examination the Smiths are more united, majorly in pairs. In Family Guy the only two people who team up and do things together are the two weirdest characters: The mischievous baby, Stewie, and the talking dog, Brian.

The Griffins don’t exactly play off each other well or pair off well together. They usually make us laugh at the expense of one another. The Smiths are more of a unit especially in pairs and this can be seen in episodes about Stan and his son, Steve, or Roger and Klaus. Stan and Jeff even managed to successfully bond eventually.

Verdict: This round goes to Family Guy. They’re the more toxic family and honestly this could be considered both a good and bad thing.

Moral lessons from each show?

Family Guy season 10’s “Screams of Silence: The Story of Brenda Q” depicts a grim situation of spousal abuse but it simply ends with Quagmire killing his sister’s boyfriend without consequences. Instead of some kind of social commentary on spousal abuse, the episode ends with a joke about how she’s alone now and then “Roll credits!”.

Family Guy writers don’t go much further than poking fun at sensitive topics unlike American Dad, which also ends abruptly sometimes but more often than not, teaches the viewer a lesson, or at least gives them something to think about.

Verdict: Nobody wins.

Final verdict!

Both shows are hilarious and iconic, but American Dad is a more complete show than Family Guy. They have more interesting characters and better story-telling devices.

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#Unsolicited is a segment for reviews, opinion pieces and industry perspectives that we know you’ll love. This edition is a Family Guy vs American Dad review to decide which dysfunctional American family takes the apple pie.