Does Family Guy steal from the Simpsons?
It’s an interesting theory, but I think all of comedy tends to cannibalize just a tad. Here’s a video of twelve back to back Simpsons and Family Guy scenes; the similarities are pretty striking.
Tags: simpsons, family guy
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POSTED IN: Family Guy Episodes
12 opinions for Does Family Guy steal from the Simpsons?
Ryan Pratt
May 11, 2007 at 1:49 pm
This is the comedic debate of the 21st century. Which animated series is better? “Family Guy” or “The Simpsons”? Here are some comparisons broken down by characters:
First - Stewie vs Maggie
http://www.listafterlist.com/tabid/57/listid/7043//The+Two+Youngest+Maggie+Simpson+vs+Stewie+Griffin.aspx
Marge vs Lois
http://www.listafterlist.com/tabid/57/listid/7054/TV/The+Wives+Marge+Simpson+vs+Lois+Griffin.aspx
Meg vs Lisa
http://www.listafterlist.com/tabid/57/listid/7044/TV/The+Daughters+Meg+Griffin+vs+Lisa+Simpson.aspx
Brian vs Santa’s Little Helper (etc.)
http://www.listafterlist.com/tabid/57/listid/7049/TV/Family+Guy+vs+The+Simpsons++The+Pets.aspx
Bart vs Chris
http://www.listafterlist.com/tabid/57/listid/7060//The+Sons+Bart+Simpson+vs+Chris+Griffin.aspx
and finally…
Peter vs Homer
http://www.listafterlist.com/tabid/57/listid/7070//Peter+Griffin+versus+Homer+Simpson.aspx
davi
May 14, 2007 at 4:43 am
Funny thing is I just watched this clip on youtube today. It kind of made me mad just because I don’t think any show blatently steals from one another. The Simpson’s have been on for nearly 20 years they’ve done tons of original stuff and ripped off other stuff. And Family Guy tends to rip off of pop culture in general.
I think what made me the most mad at that was the Marge and Lois casino clips. The Family Guy one was a take on the Albert Brooks movie Lost in America where his wife lost all their money and he tries to convince them to give it back.
iamboredsodontbotherme
May 22, 2007 at 9:15 pm
wat kind of sad person woud waste so much time doing this…its pointless….also famiy guy is kewl…they can never plagerize them its just a coincidence, but the only plagerism is american dad…it just show same imitation of old family guy episodes, but they are sti the same writers…seth mecfarlene or something like tat…FAMILY GUY RULES
familyguyrulz
May 29, 2007 at 3:23 pm
Sheesh, grow up, shows borrow ideas from each other all the time. It’s just fans like you that over-exaggerate everything.
So what that tells me is that your pre-existing blind hatred of the show made you “overlook it”, and jump right to a conclusion that they “stole” ideas.
Hyungsup Kim
May 30, 2007 at 2:36 am
If you’ve seen the southpark episode of “Simpsons Already Did It” you would understand that nothing is original. Most new ideas are based from another idea.
Anita
Jun 5, 2007 at 4:50 am
I guess we have all come to the conclusion that the simpsons and family guy have the same style of humour… even though the simpsons did all the parodies way before. Hence, I still stand by the simpsons, and i refuse to think that a show with such blatant similarities in humour plot and characterisation will EVER be as good as the simpsons. I guess not all of us can enjoy the simplicity of one-dimensional characters (with terrible voice acting) and vulgarity for the sake of vulgarity. I’m sorry, was there plot as well? for 10 minutes of my life was wasted watching Peter Griffin fighting a chicken.
Hyungsup Kim
Jun 6, 2007 at 12:57 am
Well I thought that was funny…. fighting the chicken for no reason. I do find family guy boring after watching the episode once while simpsons can be watched maybe 2~ 4 times per episode…
Also people like the same stuff all over again. As you may know this is according to simpsons. Family guy are using the simpson family element into their own colour. Although family guy don’t have a plot the “remember the time when you XXXX” jokes are still funny.
darwin6
Jul 20, 2007 at 5:01 pm
I saw the “Simpsons Already Did It” episode, and they were wrong. They can’t see (or don’t want to see) the difference between “taking an indea from a medium and exporting it to an other” and “taking an idea from a medium, and exporting it to a similar one”.
You see, no one argues, when you take a book, and make a film of it. But surely would, if you’d took a book, and make an other book of it.
And don’t forget, that noone would blame Family Guy for stealing, if the basic situtation wouldn’t be a steal itself.
These similarities are schoking… the only difference is that all were funnier when the Simpsons did them :D
Hyungsup Kim
Jul 20, 2007 at 5:42 pm
got nothing to do so I’ll reply…
There are a lot of similarity because family guy used the Family formula.
If you watch one of the simpsons episode I think homer or maybe the guy who owns the cartoon factory say that people like to see same thing over and over again. The creators just use some current issues and makes some funny jokes about it…
Also I do not understand why you have brought up the movie and books….
It’s not a good way to explain this situation because simpsons and family guy are written by different people. I believe that the harry potter movies are written by Mrs Rolling…. and produced by the director…
That’s why people dont care.
If I made a movie extremly similar to harry potter before the movie came out, people make some similarities in my movie and quoting some lines from the book.
Family Guy and Simpsons are extremly similar but Family guy has a little bit different kind of joke which is kinda funny.
Anyway I like South Park the most..
It’s hella funny!
Simpsons is getting old now…
darwin6
Jul 20, 2007 at 7:22 pm
I brought up the book-movie thing to illustrate what happens, when you take an idea from a media and export it to a different one (which isn’t the case here, because both is a drawn tv comedy series, partly built on gags)
In the case of Harry Potter for example no one bothers, because they got permission, and they declare, the origin of their work (which isn’t the case here eighter).
But actually I was talking about different kind of adaptation… like Stalker for example. Tarkovsky takes the idea from a book, twisting the story a bit (actually he kept only the basics), and he’s not writing a different book of it… instead he makes a film… see, a different medium. (But imagine what would’ve happened if he had wrote a book instead)
And now think, what would happen if you’d write a book about a child magician, who’s learning in a castle, has two friends (a girl and a boy), abusive step-parents, a stupid step (well let’s make it a bit different) daughter, and his parents were killed by an evil magician. They’d say you’re a copier… and surely they’d be right (even if you use different magic tricks, different enemies, and maybe push things a bit further).
Yes I saw that episode (The day violence died), and again they moved charecters from a media to an other there. And this whole speech was said in a trial, and who said it lost the case :D
Using the “Family formula” could’ve lead something more different. See MWC… they got 2 kids, the wife is so not like Marge, nor the neighbours are like Flanders, the only similarities might be that Al sucks in his job (and life), and they have problems. But that’s all. Though both is using that special family formula. Or back to animations: look at the Oblongs. Family formula again, but still very different.
Me
Jan 7, 2008 at 9:40 am
Alright, first off, the simpsons is in absolutely no way getting old!!They’ve had a million episodes and it’s still as fresh as it’s ever been! and family guy, well, i agree with south park fully, the plot is scarce, and the jokes are too irrevelent. i can accually think of nothing good the say about it. And, back the the topic, i think it’s possible family guy might accually be stealing. i saw a different youtube film about this, and i almost screamed “HOW CAN MC @&%$ING FARLENE GET AWAY WITH THIS!!”
unsecured personal
Sep 2, 2008 at 2:19 pm
hey !!
its very unconventional point of view.
Good post.
realy gj
thank you ;)
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