POP CULTURE FACEOFF

Family Guy vs. Futurama

Two prime-time animated series axed by FOX and brought back from the dead thanks to impressive DVD sales, Adult Swim and its loyal army of doped-out dorm dwellers. Both have left a definitive mark on pop-culture but only one can be the best.

ROUND 1: WRITING

Developed by David X. Cohen and Matt Groening, the guy who created The Simpsons, Futurama couples Looney Tunes style slapstick with clever satire and academic references.

Created by Seth McFarlane, former animator for Hannah-Barbera, Family Guy is a celebration of pop culture littered with absurd critiques on specific aspects of American culture.

WINNER: FUTURAMA

The show is just written better. Where Family Guy can be witty and smart (between the long /over exaggerated puke, fart or fight scenes), Futurama is funny and speaks to our humanity. There are episodes that put aside the humor, exploring issues like abandonment, loneliness and love. Futurama was bold, never claiming to owe fans anything, especially a laugh. The criticisms presented in South Park's Cartoon Wars episode are founded, a Family Guy episode doesn’t seem to take much thought or planning, relying on a series of interchangeable jokes and stolen premises instead of character arcs, plot points and storytelling.

ROUND 2: ANIMATION

Preliminary story-boarding, scripting and pencil drawn animatics done in the U.S. and then shipped off to South Korea to be finished and add CGI. One episode of Futurama can take up to 9 months to make.

Preliminary story-boarding, scripting and pencil drawn animatics done in the U.S. and then shipped off to South Korea to be finished and add CGI. One episode of Family Guy can take up to 9 months to make.

WINNER: DRAW

Both are manufactured by little Asian children. Annyong!

ROUND 3: LEADING MEN

Phillip J. Fry - comic every man stuck in the future. Due to the fact that he was an outcast in his own time, Fry manages to fit well in a land filled with aliens, mutants and cigar smoking robots.

Peter Griffin - comic every man stuck in the present and due to his total disregard for his own personal safety, and that of his family, he is often ostracized.

WINNER: Peter Griffin

Overweight, mentally challenged Rhode Islander with a smoking-hot wife and a dog that clearly has a drinking problem, that is way funny.

ROUND 4: SUCCESS

…..

WINNER: FAMILY GUY

No contest, Family Guy has received more critical acclaim and endorsement deals. Seth McFarlane has capitalized on everything from Family Guy pencils to clocks to blankets to toilet paper. Yes, Futurama has won some Emmy's, but so has Family Guy and for a brief period Peter Griffin was the spokesperson for SUBWAY... An animated fat guy replaced Jarred Fogle.

Results

WINNER: FUTURAMA

How many times can you repackage the same series with the same disjointed jokes? With The Cleveland Show set to air this fall and American Dad! renewed for a fifth season, Seth McFarlane maybe wearing himself thin. Along with all of the merch, this overexposure is sure to kill Family Guy the way time kills boy-bands. Years from now when Futurama cements its position as a cult classic, Family Guy may serve only as an example of how corporate greed can spoil even the most revolutionary of animated series.