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Family Guy: Blue Harvest DVD Review
Family Guy: Blue Harvest DVD Credits:
Family Guy: Blue Harvest Directed by:
Dominic Polcino
Family Guy: Blue Harvest Written by:
Alec Sulkin
Family Guy: Blue Harvest Cast:
Seth McFarlane, Seth Green, Alex Borstein, Mila Kunis, Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo
Family Guy: Blue Harvest Released by:
Not available at this time
Region:
1
Family Guy: Blue Harvest DVD Release Date:
15th January 2008
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Family Guy: Blue Harvest Synopsis:

Family Guy: Blue Harvest DVD Review:

Family Guy: Blue Harvest is the DVD release of the season premiere episode from the series’ sixth season. In this episode, the Griffins are watching golf legend Phil Mickelson playing on television when the power goes out. Desperate for entertainment Peter decides to indulge the family in the retelling of the story of Star Wars, beginning with Part IV. Of course, Peter, television’s ultimate dunderhead, tells it not like the film played out, but as he remembers it. The retelling starts with “A long time ago, but somehow in the future…” and quickly moves to the Star Wars style intro paragraph that begins summing up the Star Wars plot. Peter takes care to point out that Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia are brother and sister, but they kiss in the film. This sends Peter on a new tangent about Angelina Jolie kissing women and strongly recommending renting Gia to see Angelina kissing another woman, before the episode even begins.

The retelling of Star Wars incorporates the Family Guy characters into the story. Just like the original film, the episode begins with Princess Leia’s ship being attacked. In a desperate moment, Leia (portrayed by Lois) records a help message on R2-D2, voiced by Cleveland, which is given a more urban edge. The Family Guy spin becomes apparent as Leia struggles to end the recorded message, unable to figure out which buttons to press. Chris, as Luke Skywalker, stumbles upon this message, sending him onto a quest to enlist the help of Obi Wan Kenobi, played by the pedophiliac old man, Herbert, who whistles while he talks, a recurring character on the show.

Meanwhile, Darth Vader, played by Stewie, the family’s evil baby, discovers that the Death Star has one minor point of vulnerability, an exhaust port added to the plans by the architect for aesthetic purposes. Stewie, however is reassured that the only way this weakness could be exploited would be through a harrowing attack in a narrow canyon on the Death Star. Even then the attacker would have to hit a target the size of a “womp rat.” As fans of Stars Wars will recall, a “womp rat” was the target that Luke Skywalker used for target practice as a child. This weak point, of course, is what leads to the Death Star’s demise in Star Wars, and true to the story, it is also the source of its destruction in this retelling.

Seth McFarlane’s outlandish and irreverent retelling of one of the most successful films of all times is hilarious. Even those viewers who are not fans of the film will find the Star Wars retelling humorous, as it is riddled with Family Guy styled interpretations, tangents, and interjections. For example, despite their near death experience in the trash chamber, Han Solo (Peter Griffin) and Chewbacca (Brian the family dog) decide that a discarded couch is salvageable, which results in their attempting to take it with them on the Millennium Falcon during a fire fight.

Perhaps one of the most notable aspects of this Family Guy retelling is the use of the original John Williams score from the film, as well as the likenesses of characters created by George Lucas, apparently with his full authorization.

The DVD release of Family Guy: Blue Harvest is presented in 5.1 surround sound and in Full Frame. It includes scenes cut from the original airing of the episode, including a bit where Stewie, as Vader, announces that he has “Sithed” in his diaper. The episode’s total run time is 47 minutes. The special features include a commentary with show creator Seth McFarlane, as well as other guests from the episode. There is also a featurette titled “A Conversation with George” in which Seth McFarlane interviews George Lucas. There is a Family Guy animatic of the episode, which is the episode in basic action sketches. Also included is a Family Guy Star Wars Clip Show that puts together all of the Star Wars references made on the show into one series. There is also a Family Guy promo that promotes the show on Fox on Sunday.

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Family Guy: Blue Harvest DVD review written by: Andrew Mattson

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