Top 20 Amazing Small Details in Family Guy

“Family Guy” always pokes fun at the similarities and differences between them and the OG adult animated family sitcom, “The Simpsons.” So, when the two shows got together for a crossover episode, fans were excited to see what kind of trouble these two TV families could stir up. Peter starts a fight by saying he’s over “The Simpsons,” hinting that the show is past its prime, with the bout mirroring those Peter has with the Giant Chicken. We see Homer chuck Emmys at Peter who is unable to retaliate because he has none, and Roger from “American Dad!” appears and swiftly leaves, referencing the fact that his show is no longer on Fox.

Peter and Chris are the victims of many weight-related jokes throughout the show, so it isn’t exactly surprising that they end up at a weight loss camp. Creators of the show took this opportunity to feature other characters that are perceived to be overweight, including Barry Robinson from “American Dad!” They’re brief moments in the episode, but it’s a great nod to fans of both shows. Both Chris and Barry have a lot of similarities, as they’re both often forgotten about by their parents and neither of them are the sharpest knives in the drawer, but we sure hope Barry had a better experience at Camp Fresh Start than Chris does.

This episode makes it clear that the “Family Guy” crew thinks about even the most miniscule of details. Peter tells the story of Helen of Troy, who was the most beautiful woman in the world according to Greek mythology. When we see the scenes from ancient Greece, eagle-eyed fans can notice that the Greek statues are not faded in the way they are today, but instead they’re freshly painted. The story of Helen of Troy takes place during the Trojan War, which if factual took place around the 12th century BC, so it only makes sense that the statues wouldn’t be faded like they are today. We have no choice but to tip our hats to the detail-oriented minds behind this episode.

Brian considers Jillian the one who got away, and even though it may seem like they have nothing in common, a small detail that they share proves otherwise. Brian wears a red collar with a gold tag throughout the entirety of the show, and it’s very recognizable since it’s literally the only thing he wears. But, what viewers might not notice, is that Jillian also wears a red necklace with a gold tag, just like Brian. We know they don’t end up together, or at least they haven’t so far, but this little detail may be the creators’ way of showing that they are meant for one another after all.

Moms are usually the ones adding their daughters on Facebook, and the daughters are the ones who usually don’t respond to the friend request. But, when it comes to Lois and Meg, the opposite is true. When Lois is trying to get some traction on her Facebook posts, we can see in the corner of the page that she has an unaccepted friend request from her eldest child. Meg is undoubtedly the punching bag of the family. When they aren’t ripping on everything she says and does, they pretty much ignore her. But, it’s literally the least they could do to be her friend on Facebook, and it looks as though they aren’t even doing that.

If there’s one thing Seth MacFarlane can undoubtedly do well, it’s laugh at himself. This season 2 episode is centered around Peter’s favorite show, “Gumbel 2 Gumbel Beach Justice,” getting canceled. Throughout the episode, Peter goes to great lengths to try and revive the show, and it turns out this may have been a personal mission for Peter’s voice actor, MacFarlane himself. “Gumbel 2 Gumbel” was the name of the first rejected TV show MacFarlane pitched to Fox. The series’ creator decided to show off his failed premise on his successful one, and it’s a great hidden detail that doubles as a jab at the home network for passing on him the first time.

In this cutaway, Peter shows us the one time that he was defeated, and it turns out that it’s during a “Tron”-like race. With Peter’s affinity for ‘80s flicks, it’s no surprise that he would reference this iconic sci-fi flick, although it’s a bit of a surprise that he ran into his high school friend during the race. When he takes off, there’s an easy-to-miss message written on the wall behind him that reads “If you can read this, your TV is upside down.” The message is, obviously, written upside down, and we have no idea why it was thrown into this particular scene, but we’re always here for fun easter eggs, so we’ll go with it.

“Family Guy” likes to make fun of its lack of awards as compared to their counterparts like “The Simpsons” or “Bob’s Burgers.” But, at least it’s on a major network, and it’s undoubtedly one of the most well-known adult animation shows on TV. So, whenever there’s a reference to the show “Robot Chicken,” the characters are quick to lampoon it. Everyone except Chris, since he is, in fact, voiced by Seth Green, the co-creator and star of “Robot Chicken.” These jokes are not unlike the references made to “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” which features Lois’s voice actor Alex Borstein, or “Bad Moms” starring Mila Kunis aka Meg. All of these inside jokes are for the superfans, and we are here for it.

This one is for the music fans out there. Stewie runs into many mishaps with his time machine, but one of the most disastrous is when Mort accidentally ends up in Nazi Germany. Brian and Stewie go to rescue him, and they go the extra mile to ensure his safety. Stewie even transforms himself into a certain dictator, and meets up with the German scientists who are working on the atomic bomb, and a collection of inflated luftballons. They are at 100 when Stewie, Brian, and Mort arrive, but one pops, leaving them with only ninety-nine luftballons, which is also the name of a song by Nena. “Family Guy” writers – we see you, and we’re impressed.

Adam West played a hilarious version of himself on the show, as the town of Quahog’s simple mayor with a heart of gold. In our world, he’s known as the beloved actor who played Batman in the 1960’s. In this Halloween episode, the team at “Family Guy” paid homage to him with not one, but two costumes of his former characters trick-or-treating at his door. Obviously, Batman. But, the second costume is from West’s role in “The Fairly OddParents,” where he supplied the voice talent for another fictionalized version of his real self, Catman. This subtle tribute to him is particularly moving in retrospect since the actor passed in 2017, and his absence on the show is definitely felt.

To get revenge on Chris, Meg embarrasses him in front of the school by showing a video of him parodying Buffalo Bill’s “Goodbye Horses” dance from “The Silence of the Lambs.” While the scene is definitely humiliating, it has a deeper connection to Chris than anyone realizes. When auditioning for Chris, his voice actor, Seth Green, was dared by a friend to try out his best Buffalo Bill impression for the character. He could’ve gone with a stereotypical surfer dude voice for Chris, but Green was bold enough to try a hilarious impression of a serial killer… and it worked; so this parody doubles as a testament to the character’s vocal inspiration.

“Family Guy” has paid multiple tributes to TV producer Norman Lear’s sitcoms, and the most enduring one is the very first thing you see when a “Family Guy” episode begins. The opening theme song with Peter and Lois playing the piano, recalling the good old days, is actually a homage to the opening for “All in the Family” where we see Archie and Edith Bunker doing the same. “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane admits to being an admirer of Lear’s comedies, right down to how they handle controversial topics, so it’s flattering to see him pay tribute to his inspiration before almost every show.

At the start of the episode, Stewie is “innocently” playing with blocks –but if you look closely, the blocks spell out a not-so-innocent message – “REDRUM.” This is an obvious reference to Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining,” where the son, the young psychic character, Danny, would mutter the phrase “redrum,” which is actually “murder” spelled backwards. What makes this sight gag so perfect is that it’s Stewie – a sociopathic, conniving infant out for blood - who sets up the joke, and it’s too fitting for his character. It doesn’t help that Stewie starts plotting someone’s murder during the scene, making the gag even more hysterical.

The Griffins are having a family yard sale, hoping to get rid of the excess junk they’ve collected over the years. If you look closely at Brian’s table, you’ll see a familiar-looking DVD cover, the cover for “Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story.” At first it seems like subtle product placement, but the extended DVD version of this scene says otherwise. Lois berates the “film” for trying to pass itself off as a movie when it’s really a trio of episodes edited together. Is this a shameless plug, or a hilarious jab at themselves for their “middle finger” to the fans? If the latter, we’re not sure if Fox would approve.

Peter is looking for a story to give to Meg for the school newspaper, when inspiration comes in the form of a TV guide – Luke Perry. If you’re quick enough to catch it – or at least have a pause button - you might be able to catch the little message under Perry’s picture that says, “If you can read this, ‘Family Guy’ is on the air.” When it comes to self-aware humor, it can either be more upfront, or in this case, it can be so subtle that you almost miss it, and it’s not wrong considering how often “Family Guy” can be found on TV.

While in Mel Gibson’s personal suite, Peter stumbles upon the trailer for a planned sequel for “The Passion of the Christ.” The trailer itself is a pretty goofy parody of high-energy action films featuring Jesus teaming up with Chris Tucker, but it goes by so fast that viewers might miss one hidden visual gag. When we see Jesus driving his car, if you look closely at the license plate, it reads “W.W.I.D.” which translates to “What would I do?” While it’s an obvious spin on the morality phrase “What would Jesus do,” it’s still worth a giggle considering whose car it’s on, and with how immoral the whole situation is.

The Griffins are excited to see their picture in the newspaper, but if you don’t look fast enough, you might miss the gag UNDER the photo. Near the bottom of the page, there’s a headline that reads “DVDs Paused For Headline Joke – Millions Disappointed.” On the one hand, it COULD be a cheeky jab at those who pause their DVDs to catch any blink-and-you’ll-miss-it visual gags. On the other hand, it could also be a little nod to sister series “American Dad,” who thrived on newspaper headline jokes for the first few seasons. Either way, fans may not ACTUALLY be disappointed by this clever little Easter egg.

Peter is just goofing around, pretending to play the keyboard, when a random man berates him and pesters him for being a “big fat phony” throughout the rest of the episode. While the character doesn’t have an official name, fans and some staff behind the show have dubbed him “Holden Caulfield,” named after the famous protagonist of the J. D. Salinger novel, “The Catcher in the Rye.” In the book, Holden is a misguided, cynical teenager who usually called everyone he hates a “phony.” With how often in the show “Holden” keeps calling Peter out for being one, it’d be hard not to make the connection for an inside joke.

In the original “Star Wars” film, the Mos Eisley Cantina was a shady drinking spot for creatures of all sorts, not all of them friendly. In the “Blue Harvest” parody, the tavern is STILL packed with miscellaneous creatures… plus a few surprise customers. Among the patrons is the formerly Evil Monkey from Chris’s closet, Roger from “American Dad,” Bender from “Futurama,” and Coach John McGuirk from “Home Movies.” We all know “Family Guy” loves to toy around with references, but what really sells these cameos is how they seem to blend in perfectly – none of them have the best reputation, and they’re bizarre-looking enough to call this bar a second home.

Taking the number one spot is the show’s most versatile and commonplace catchphrase. Believe it or not, in almost every episode, there is at least one instance of a character saying “What the hell?” It could be to express frustration, fear, rage, confusion, to make light of something, or even as a setup for another running gag; no matter the context or the character, it is bound to show up in some form. If it’s not DIRECTLY mentioned in an episode, it could still appear in an alternate rendition. It’s amazing what you can hide in plain sight through repetition.