Why is Family Guy selling so well?

[on:]

Perhaps it's easier to relate (to yet another) suburban family than a 1000 year hence delivery service?

I am shocked and (a little saddened) to see Family Guy 1/2+3 around 20-30  while Futurama has drifted to the hundreds in sales ranks. More stores are stocking FG and recommendation at amazon point to it all the time -- I would've thought the two shows who shared similar lives and deaths would be analogous in popularity, so why is there such a mania on FG?

[Reply #1 on:]

Easy, because it's comedy appeals the highest common denominator of people, and that is "in your face" low brow, unintelligent humor.

[Reply #2 on:]

While what you say, Coop is true that's not the only people it appeals to. I enjoy Family Guy just as much as I enjoy Futurama and FG never made sit there and say "Wow that was a really smart joke" it did often do much more edgier humor. 

[Reply #3 on:]

I just don't think that any of the characters had debth. They were all so obvious, A talking baby who wants to rule the world, an alchoholic dog and man who makes insanely obscure referances to classic sitcoms. While some of the jokes yes, are very funny and some would take an educated person to understand. But I think the obvious reason that it's more popular than Futurama is because of its obvious humor. Much like Friends in comparrison so Seinfeld. (jeez, how many seinfeld related things have I said during my time here at PEEL? I sure do mention it a lot.)

[Reply #4 on:]

I used to really like Family Guy, but then after I got the boxed set I realized that it's actually quite gay.

[Reply #5 on:]

obvious? maybe you meant one dimensional but I don't think that's true they were at least two.(pun intended)While I agree that FG wasn't as deep as futurama it didn't need to be. Everything can't be as varied and subtle as fine wine every once in a while you need some hard lemonade as well. 

[Reply #6 on:]

Yeah, but as I have said in other threads, it was too pointless to make sense like Futurama. And it made too much sense to be funny like Aquateen Hunger Force(those two only being examples of course). Family Guy was just lost somewhere in between the two different kinds of humor, it's like it was trying to make sense but didn't want to take itself seriously.

[Reply #7 on:]

They had too many scenes that had nothing to do with the plot or the episode in general. The kind of stuff that you think is hilarious when you're younger but now you kind of wonder "God, I'm sick of seeing some stupid joke go on for three minutes".

[Reply #8 on:]

Exactly. That was the shows main flaw.

[Reply #9 on:]

Lowest Common Denominator. Same reason you still have those awful gameshows and reality TV shows being aired, series after series.

[Reply #10 on:]

 

Originally posted by Bushmeister:
Lowest Common Denominator. Same reason you still have those awful gameshows and reality TV shows being aired, series after series.

Agreed, there's your answer.

[Reply #11 on:]

no its not really lowest common denominator
there are dumb and clever jokes.
and futurama had dumb Lowest common denominator jokes as well.
but basically the gag rate is just so fast. which is good because sometimes you dont care about the story and what happens to the characters.
but I found rewatching them that it really loses it as a lot of the humour is brilliantly crazy and random and unexpected stuff but obviously rewatching it, it kind of loses the humour there are occasional things you dont pick up on though.

[Reply #12 on:]

family guy is funny but all the episodes are too simalar in my opinion and the stories arnt really anywhere near good. I still like the show and have all the box sets but when i sit down to watch on i never think of one particular episode like one big blur whereas Futurama has definate episodes each very different, Futurama's characters are lovable and the stories are excellent sometimes although i dont always laugh at the jokes that ive seen over and over again they fill me with a warm glow. Family Guy never did that i like family guy but if my box sets melted for some reason i wouldnt really care.

[Reply #13 on:]

Futurama Season 4 is still in the UK charts drifting in the top 50 last time i looked. When i went to HMV at Christmas they had a stack of Futurama Season 1 DVDs up to your waist several layers thick by the entrance to the DVD section.

[Reply #14 on:]

Along with things that others said, remember also that Family Guy was off the air when the first dvd set came out.  People are more tempted to buy something they can't get on tv anyway, and FG was absolutely nowhere on tv at the time (although the Adult Swim run started a few days after Volume One came out, but still some people could conceivably not have none it was coming to reruns yet).  Futurama, when Volume One came out in the US, had already been running on Adult Swim for a few months and was even still running on Fox, albeit with Fox's horrible scheduling.

[Reply #15 on:]

Family Guys jokes are all to similar in my opinion. They always say something like remember the time when? and go back to the past. I can't stand to watch an episode of family guy more than twice because the poor story really shows when the jokes aren't funny anymore. Futurama, on the other hand, can be watched as many times as you want and the story will make the episode good long after the jokes get dull from hearing them too many times.

[Reply #16 on:]

I think a good series like Futurama should only be cancelled after it starts getting dull and the writers can't come up with any original stories.  I fear for The Simpsons because of this.. 

[Reply #17 on:]

Family Guy is selling good because everyone has the Futurama DVDs

[Reply #18 on:]

 

Originally posted by Jordan K:
I think a good series like Futurama should only be cancelled after it starts getting dull and the writers can't come up with any original stories.  I fear for The Simpsons because of this..   

Unfortunately, TV doesn't work like that today.  If a show is not an instant hit it gets yanked.  This is especially true on a station like fox that has so much other drivel to put on.  I wonder if the Simpsons was entering the market today (imagine some other non-Groening show had started the prime time animation craze) if it would be treated similar to Futurama.  The Simpsons had an arc sort of like Futurama where it really started to get good in the third season.  I don't think classic Simpsons would have fared much better in todays climate of reality shows, etc.