Today seems to be the 15th anniversary of the premiere episode of Family Guy , which means we've been witnessing 15 years of Seth MacFarlane's most successful cartoon sitcom, and we're probably a lot worse for it. The show is known for its racist and rampant pedophilia jokes — and rightfully so — but overall, one of the longest-running jokes on the stalwart Fox comedy is The Meg's.
The daughter of the Griffin family is neither smart nor popular. She's about average as the character voiced by Mila Kunis, but she gets jokes about how ugly, fat, or unattractive she is to the point that men constantly mistake her for a boy. How funny . While it seems like all the funny stuff on Family Guy , the take on Meg started out as a parody of ridiculous standard cultural requirements for young girls (I watched enough of this with my family to get tired of it sitcom to know), 15 seasons in, it's clear that Family Guy, in its older incarnations, enjoyed punching the punching bags it created a little too much.
So, as a sign of its age, let's see how "funny" it is when we stack 15 Meg jokes back to back. Happy birthday, Family Guy.
1. Lois Fatt shames Meg after lap belt surgery
When Louise began overeating, she gained weight, suffered a heart attack, and then underwent liposuction to make her look "normal" again. Her reaction? "Eating is not the answer, you hear me, Meg?" Meg responded that she wouldn't suppress her feelings, she would cut herself.
look? It's funny because it's so bad it opens up a black whole in your little heart and all feelings are crushed into oblivion.
2. That time Meg was hilariously friendless
So she wandered the mall, looking for food like an animal, until a Taco Bell employee banged the taco tray on the table, scaring her away like a raccoon.
get it? Because crushing loneliness is a joke!
3. Meg hoped the thieves would "take advantage" of her
You know, when the whole family is hanging out in a panic room because there's a burglar in their house and Peter and Louise send Meg out on an errand because what's the worst that can happen? Well, she's kidnapped and she's desperate for love and wants them to sexually assault her but they won't because she's too "ugly" and they tell Peter and Louis "we have your son."
Oh no problem. Let's all laugh at this person who is driven crazy by her "looks" and she's so fucked up that she's begging to be attacked. What a common knee slap.
4. That time Meg wore jeans and caused a girl to commit suicide
To poke fun at the idea that teenage girls need makeovers, Family Guy sends Meg and Louise to the mall to give Meg a makeover. But when she tried on the jeans, the young saleswoman was so frightened that she eventually burned herself alive. Later, a news photographer did the same thing.
But it's making fun of people who judge others based on their appearance, so it can't be too outrageous or completely boring. This is science.
5. Meg is too fat to compete in the family boat race
During a yacht race, the Griffins are almost at the finish line, but they need to lose weight, so they throw Meg into the ocean, where she is picked up by a fishing net. "What's that?" asked a sailor. "That's what we call a manatee, kids. A manatee," the captain said.
I understand. You should laugh because she is too heavy for the ship and now she is humiliated and treated like a dead fish and the sailors think she cries like a manatee. Yes. I'm definitely laughing now.
6. Stewie tells Meg that gay marriage ruined her
"Did you hear that Meg? Men can marry other men now. So, um. It's awkward, but... I mean, if they can do that... .That’s pretty much it for you, isn’t it? I mean you better put it away, game over.”
Yeah, because it's so hilarious and so considerate of everyone involved.
7. That time Meg got fired for trying to use a sex tape
She could also get away with it if she wasn't so completely unattractive that no disgusting person would watch her video.
What a crazy idea that Meg is unattractive, pathetic, and super fucked up about it all. Let's just rejoice in the fact that Family Guy has taken away our ability to be bored by such things. Who needs to feel things anyway?
8. When Meg’s crush thought she was a man
Meg asks her crush Craig Hoffman out, and his only response is "I don't go out with men."
Wow, this is only the 800th time we've seen this show compare Meg's unattractiveness to a little boy, but I'm already strapped to this chair and forced to watch every episode of Family Guy on a loop , so I'm going to keep laughing.
9. Back then, everyone was a cute Disney character except Meg
The Griffins are all adorable, even Chris is adorable, and Meg is basically Ursula. (Related: Family Guy was the salad pit in Return of the Jedi back then when Meg was the meteor monster in The Empire Strikes Back . Clearly, this was an original idea.)
Well .
10. That time Peter couldn’t tell Meg she was “beautiful”
Meg came in with her look: blond hair, heavy makeup, midriff exposed. Peter came to the rescue and said, "Meg, I've always thought you were beautiful, like you--" and he started laughing. "You can't do this with a straight face."
Yes, we know Peter is a terrible man, but seriously?
11. That time Meg got targeted by a million dodgeballs because no one liked her
That's literally what it means.
Why don't you laugh? Oh, you feel sad because so much hatred turned into physical pain? Who are you?
12. That time Meg ruined her room with a pimple
Isn't she disgusting? Uh, lice.
Now laugh, monkey, laugh.
13. That time (and all the other times) Peter farted in Meg’s face
That's it. Peter, the father for this damn year, keeps farting in Meg's face. That's the whole recurring joke.
This is smart because it happens all the time.
14. That’s when doctors had to verify that Meg’s boyfriend was human
It was so incredible that Meg found a boyfriend, Peter invited the whole town to come see his daughter hang out with her boyfriend, and even brought in a doctor to verify that "yes, he's totally normal."
You should laugh because when you get a boyfriend no one cares and deep down it really hurts. Laugh through the pain, O vain man.
15. That time Jimmy would rather kill his brother than be Meg’s date
Meg asks Jimmy out. Jimmy killed his brother. Jimmy has a legitimate reason to go out to the dance with Meg.
It's hilarious when murder is done to drive home the point that someone is ugly, isn't it?
So, yeah, congratulations to Family Guy on 15 years of Meg. You could stop and try something more ambitious, but something tells us you'll probably stick to beating this dead horse. While you're probably already thinking about some insulting clip about Meg being a dead horse, we're going to go ahead and change the channel for you. happy Anniversary.
Image: Fox; Fox (screenshot); Reblog (4); IGN; Tumblr/ Family-Guy-GiF
