A show like Family Guy, with its parade of cutaway gags and bizarre ’80s references, wasn’t supposed to last. And at first, it didn’t; it debuted in 1999 to modest ratings, and Fox cancelled it after the third season. But the subsequent DVD sales did so well that Fox brought the show back from the dead. Now, Family Guy is in its 17th season, and the rapid-fire jokes work perfectly in the YouTube era of self-referential, bite-sized entertainment.
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