Are MLP and Family Guy polar opposites?

[SteveMorison 404]

Alot of bronies don't seem to like FG very much. Personally I was one of those teens who really liked FG, and still find it entertaining to watch when not much else is on, though I will admit there are alot of bad episodes coming out of FG in the last few years. What I've noticed though is that FG and it's style of humour seems to be the complete opposite of the values of MLP. The most obvious opposite is that MLP is a kids show whilst FG is aimed at people aged 14 and over. But MLP is very lighthearted and the characters are portrayed as friendly, caring and forgiving (most of the time). FG however seems to be trying to portray it's characters as harshly as possible, with Peter, Lois, Brian and Quagmire being particularly revolting characters. Not only the characters but FG's general humour seems to push the boundaries as much as it can. Another major difference is that in FG the characters traits (particularly the negative ones) are hugely over-exaggerated to the extent that it's just not relatable and ridiculous in fact, I wouldn't say that FG promotes stereotypes but it seems to enjoy parodying them heavily. Whilst MLP is often over the top (particularly many scenes with Pinkie Pie), all the characters seem to have relatable personalities and are shown to learn from their mistakes, stereotypes are usually avoided or beaten down. One similarity between FG and MLP is that they both enjoy reference humor and teasing it's audience a little. So I think it's at the point where a lot of people will like one but not the other. I wonder how the mane 6 would react to a viewing of FG.

Edited August 2, 2015 by DashBandicoot

[Alto 437]

i love both shows

 

mlp has light hearted innocent humor, stories,

 

and i like the crude humor of shows like fg and south park  espcially if they do parody episodes xD

Edited August 2, 2015 by Alto

[SteveMorison 404]

i love both shows

 

mlp has light hearted innocent humor, stories,

 

and i like the crude humor of shows like fg and south park espcially if they do parody episodes xD

I guess it's all about balance. I'm not bashing FG btw, being outrageous is it's style and often works for them, when it doesn't though it's very noticeable.

[Silver Letter 1,830]

 

 

FG however seems to be trying to portray it's characters as harshly as possible, with Peter, Lois, Brian and Quagmire being particularly revolting characters.

That whole show is revolting. It has sickening morals, outrageous plots and horrifying characters with no redeeming characteristics. MLP by comparison is good with good morals and positive characters.

[GuyNamedEarl 1,332]

I like older Family Guy, but the new ones are pretty dumb.

[Moved to Elsewhere 11,329]

Eh, Family Guy is just Family Guy.

 

There was a time when this show was so funny that it even rivaled The Simpsons at times but those days are long gone.

 

Now the show is a zombie of itself trying to hard to get attention through lazily thought out shock humor and purposly bad morals, just as an attempt to get a reaction out of people.

 

In a way, I guess they're polar opposites since MLP is lighthearted and friendly and Family Guy is... Well what I mentioned above.

[Shadow Beam 1,179]

Oh, good ol' family guy. I love that show, which isn't really a big surprise considering that dumb jokes always crack a smile in me.

[Sazama Ichida 2,352]

I would definitely say yes. MLP teaches good things. But there are times when Family Guy pretty much actually teaches you that it's ok to make fun of others for their religion or for being different etc.

[urapony 41]

That whole show is revolting. It has sickening morals, outrageous plots and horrifying characters with no redeeming characteristics. MLP by comparison is good with good morals and positive characters.

That's exactly why Family is so great! I love shows that don't force pretentious morals down people throats. Not everything has to be Politically Correct to be good. PC is for chumps anyway.

[Christmasy Britty 2,553]

i used to love Family Guy but honestly I just think it finally started getting that seasonal rot that a lot of shows get when they air for way too long 

[SteveMorison 404]

I doubt MLP will brutally kill one of the mane 6 off one episode only to bring her back 2 episodes later.

[Silver Letter 1,830]

That's exactly why Family is so great! I love shows that don't force pretentious morals down people throats. Not everything has to be Politically Correct to be good. PC is for chumps anyway.

Family Guy was funny once, a long time ago. But they do have morals and when they do, it's dangerous and offensive. Not funny or lighthearted. I don't like being politically correct but I hate bad writing even more.

[cider float 2,535]

That's exactly why Family is so great! I love shows that don't force pretentious morals down people throats. Not everything has to be Politically Correct to be good. PC is for chumps anyway.

I found Family Guy very PC sometimes.

Edited August 2, 2015 by cider float

[[NULL] 906]

I wouldn't necessarily say they have polar opposite production values.

 

My problem with Family Guy is that the plot and characters are treated as a means to an end. They might as well not be there if they're just trying to get to the next cutaway gag as fast as possible. Wouldn't want to lose the audience with the lowest attention span now, would they?

 

Still, shows like Archer and South Park put effort into their story and characters. What's Family Guy's excuse?

 

 

Oh...

Edited August 2, 2015 by SpaceOnion

[Wind Chaser 4,767]

They very much are.

 

MLP is primarily about the morals/messages over the comedy, adventure, and everything else, and manages to treat its issues, subtext, morals, and themes with a surprisingly high tact and substance than what's normally expected for a children's cartoon (most of the time). When it misses the mark, the fans will be more than willing to speak out about what went wrong and how it can be corrected. The fans are also generally more creative.

 

Family Guy is a comedy first and has been rightly accused of hypocrisy when it tries to do "issue" episodes because of its general lack of tact and understanding towards serious issues, to the point of making directly contradictory, uninformed, and/or negative statements. The show, in its context, condones negative behavior and antisocial character traits by having no sense of morals and standards. The characters themselves are hard to get behind because they do little to break their stereotypes, unless it hits a new level of stupidity and repulsiveness. It used to do satire right by exaggerating issues, conventions, and current events so as to offer a witty commentary on them, however it has instead resorted to shock and anti-humor in later seasons. Most fans who came to Family Guy to see a good show have jumped ship, most of the people who still watch Family Guy enjoy it mindlessly, and the more rabid ones hold it as perfect while defending the show from criticism by using the "it's comedy", "it's satire", or "it's parody" excuses or hiding behind the show's success.

 

MLP and FG are good examples of how cartoons these days aimed at kids and adults are, in all irony, reversed in maturity. Kids' cartoons these days are generally praised if their storylines handle literary and cinematic themes better than conventional wisdom (or low expectations) would have us reasonably expect. However, most mainstream adult cartoons seem to be a race to flaunt all notions of decency, respect, and standards, far from being culturally informed, satirical, and/or tactful. The latter traits are more expected in adult entertainment of other kinds, but ironically more likely to be in a kids' cartoon than an adult cartoon in today's mainstream.

 

In short, being mature gets you noticed as a kids' cartoon, and being shocking and immature gets you noticed as an adult cartoon.

Edited August 2, 2015 by Wind Chaser

[Screw Loose 156]

I like Family Guy too though, new ones, old ones, I watch it when it's on.

 

I don't think they try to have 'good' episodes with morals and stuff like that, they just go for the crude obnoxious humour approach, and cut-aways for quick laughs, and it works.

[Venomous 18,813]

Of course the two shows are polar opposites.

Family Guy is a sitcom with crude and violent humor while MLP is a fantasy/adventure/child-friendly show with horses as the main characters

[The Crimson Cross 7,532]

Lmao. Of course they're opposites.

They both have their charms and appeals, and different styles of presentation as many of you so kindly pointed out already.

 

I'd argue Family Guy is the better show, but it's no match for MLP's massive fanbase. Well. That's just my personal opinion.

Given that fans of both shows can watch and enjoy the other, they must be doing something right to please its viewers. After all, it gets boring watching the same thing all of the time! Having a variety in media is never a bad thing.

I'd argue it's perfectly sensible to like both!

[Hazy Skies 1,010]

You bring up a good point..

 

Though they may be opposing, they're both good and keeps me happy and entertained, and has some funny references here and there.. and in that sense they're not so different..

 

Yet only MLP has got me completely obsessed over it.. so there's 1 more difference xD