Looking back, it's almost hard to remember or believe that Fox once cancelled Family Guy. Seth MacFarlane's beloved animated comedy was cancelled after its third season back in 2001, and was then uncancelled in 2004 after DVD sales and solid ratings for reruns of the series at Adult Swim showed the network the series' potential. Family Guy is in its eleventh season at Fox and next month, it will air its 200th episode.
Fox isn't letting the 200th episode go uncelebrated. The network announced today that they're set to air a "freakin' sweet one-hour event" on Sunday, November 11 (9:00 p.m. ET/PT) to honor the milestone and pay tribute to the Emmy Award-winning series. A big milestone deserves a big episode, and in the case of Family Guy's "Yug Ylimaf" it involves Brian, a time machine, and the possibility of Stewie getting unborn It seems Brian's about to learn the hard way (for Stewie anyway) what happens when you mess with time machines. The event will also include a look-back episode that celebrates the series and features interviews with MacFarlane and the voice-cast. Fans will also get to see the 200th episode party.
The one-hour momentous event kicks off with the 200th episode, “Yug Ylimaf,” in which BRIAN (Seth MacFarlane) abuses STEWIE’s (MacFarlane) time machine and causes reality to run in reverse. So the two must work together to set things right before Stewie is “unborn.” Then, in the FAMILY GUY 200th retrospective, “The End Of The World As We Know It,” fans will get a behind-the-scenes look at this irreverent comedy’s most outrageous moments, through fascinating interviews with creator Seth MacFarlane and voice actors Mila Kunis, Alex Borstein and Seth Green. Additionally, the special will give fans an exclusive glimpse into the cast and crew’s 200th episode party in Los Angeles.
"Yug Ylimaf," in case you didn't notice, is "Family Guy" backwards.
200 episodes is certainly cause to celebrate, and I'm sure fans are thrilled that the series has continued on, especially when it came so close to falling onto the cancelled-too-soon list. Eleven seasons and 200 episodes is an impressive feat for any comedy series. Of course, Family Guy still lingers in the shadow of another successful Fox animated series. And that hasn't gone unnoticed or ignored, as Fox included this remark from Stewie in their announcement about the 200th episode…
“Watch your back, Simpsons, we’re less than halfway there,” quipped Stewie Griffin.
