Road to the Multiverse (Family Guy)

"Road to the Multiverse" is the first episode of the eighth season of the animated comedy series Family Guy. Directed by Greg Colton and written by Wellesley Wild, the episode originally aired on Fox in the United States on September 27, 2009, along with the series premiere of The Cleveland Show as well as the season premieres of The Simpsons and American Dadǃ. In "Road to the Multiverse", two of the show's main characters, baby genius Stewie and anthropomorphic dog Brian, both voiced by series creator Seth MacFarlane, use an "out-of-this-world" remote control to travel through a series of various parallel universes. They eventually end up in a world where dogs rule and humans obey. Brian becomes reluctant to return to his own universe, and he ultimately ends up breaking the remote, much to the dismay of Stewie, who soon seeks a replacement. The "Road to" episodes which have aired throughout various seasons of Family Guy were inspired by the Road to ... comedy films starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour, though this episode was not originally conceived as a "Road to" show.

During Season 6, episodes of Family Guy were delayed from regular broadcast due to the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. MacFarlane, the series creator and executive producer, sided with the Writers Guild and participated in the strike until its conclusion. As a result, the seventh season consisted entirely of hold-overs. "Road to the Multiverse" was the first episode to be produced and aired after the strike ended. It was first announced at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con International.

According to Nielsen ratings, it was watched by 10.17 million people during its original airing in the United States. The episode featured guest performances by Kei Ogawa, Kotaro Watanabe and Jamison Yang, along with several recurring guest voice actors for the series. Greg Colton won a Primetime Emmy Award for Individual Achievement in Animation, for storyboarding the episode, at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards. "Road to the Multiverse" was released on DVD along with seven other episodes from the season on June 15, 2010.

Plot
As the Griffin family attend the county fair, Stewie announces that he has bred a winning pedigree pig for the local Quahog Clam Day. Revealing to Brian that he got the pig from a farm in a parallel universe, he shows him a remote control that allows access to the various parallel universes. Each universe depicts Quahog in the same time and place but under different conditions. Deciding to test the device, they both visit a universe where Christianity never existed, so the Dark Ages never occurred and thus humanity is 1000 years more technologically advanced (despite the existence of the Sistine Chapel in that universe, albeit done by John Hinckley Jr. instead of Michelangelo). This leads a fascinated Brian to ask whether the remote can take them to other alternative realities. Stewie guides them both through several more parallel universes, about half of which have their own portrayals of the Griffin family. As time passes, Brian loses interest in the adventure and eventually comes to realize that Stewie has no idea how to return home.

Continuing their efforts, they reach a universe where humans are subservient to dogs. Stewie finally figures out how to modify the remote device so that they can return home; but Brian, overwhelmed by the thought of a world run by dogs like himself, is reluctant to leave and takes the remote. Stewie and Brian fight over the device, ultimately breaking it, which traps them in the alternative universe. In desperation, the two go to the universe's version of the Griffin family – who are all dogs except for their pet Brian, who is human – hoping to find a way home. The dog version of Stewie quickly confronts the two, revealing that he has also developed a universe-traveling device that would allow them to return to their own universe. Before Dog Stewie can fetch them his remote control, Human Stewie bites the dog version of his father, Peter, out of anger for being treated like an animal and is sent to the pound where he is to be euthanized later that day. The two Brians and Dog Stewie go to the human pound to free him, and both Stewie and Brian are sent back to their original universe. As they are being transported, human Brian, dreaming of a better life in a world of intelligent humans, leaps into the inter-universe portal at the last moment and successfully makes it to the original universe with the other two. Excited about his new prospects in life, human Brian begins his travels in a brand new universe but is abruptly struck by a car.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) Alongside "Road to Rhode Island" this episode is often considered to be the best episodes of Family Guy's Road to... Series, as well as one of (if not) the series best episodes to come out as this episode, is a major fan-favorite for reasons below.
 * 2) There are tons of memorable moments in the episode with different universes such as The Flintstones, Japanese Universe Without the Bombing, Happy and Sad Heads and so much other universes.
 * 3) The animation is at one of it's best with several of the universes feature some truly unique visual styling.
 * 4) The song, "It's A Wonderful Day For Pie" is a fantastic take on a Disney Song and is one of the series best song numbers.
 * 5) The well-known Robot Chicken scene.
 * 6) *Stewie: "How does it feel to be on a major network for 30 seconds?" Chris: "FUCK YOU!" Stewie: "Bye!" (teleports)
 * 7) Half-Good Endingː Stewie is rescued from being at the pound and nearly being killed thanks to Brian, Dog Stewie and Human Brian.
 * 8) The characters are still likable and enjoyable in this episode, unlike what most of them would become later this season.
 * 9) The episode started Season 8 on a HIGH note and it could've been a great season if it wasn't for all the flanderization and other negativities that happened during the season.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) Half-Bad Ending: While human Brian begins his travels in a brand new universe, he abruptly struck and killed by a car, which feels like a cop-out way to end it.
 * 2) Some scenes and parts can be offensive, such as the distasteful joke about Disney hating Jews.

Reception
Responses to "Road to the Multiverse" were met with universal acclaim; critics praised its storyline, numerous cultural references, and use of various animation styles. Ahsan Haque of IGN gave the episode a 9.6 out of 10, saying that the episode featured "plenty of memorable lines, some truly stunning animation … and a relentless non-stop barrage of witty jokes." In a subsequent review in January 2010 of "Stewie and Brian's Greatest Adventures", Haque called the episode "creative, visually impressive, and features some of the best random gags we've seen on the show in a long time." In 2019, to celebrate the show's 20th anniversary, IGN published a list of the 20 best Family Guy episodes, with "Road to the Multiverse" ranked the fourth best. Television critic Alex Rocha of TV Guide also found the episode to have "great laughs," saying that the show is "definitely off to a great start" to a new season. Tom Eames of entertainment website Digital Spy placed the episode at number one on his listing of the best Family Guy episodes in order of "yukyukyuks" and described the episode as "another crazy Brian and Stewie adventure". He noted that the story did not have "the most interesting plot", but got "more and more entertaining and so much fun" with every new world they featured in. He concluded that "coupled with Brian and Stewie front and centre, it made for the best Family Guy episode ever." The director of "Road to the Multiverse", Greg Colton, was awarded the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation, for storyboarding the episode, on August 21, 2010, at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards Creative Arts Awards. IMDb currently rates this episode a 9.1/10, making it the highest rated Family Guy episode of all time.

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