Free Essay on the Blue Harvest Episode of the Family Guy Comedy

The "Blue Harvest" is the first episode of the sixth season of the animated comedy "Family Guy" that depicts the dysfunctional Griffin family. The family goes through many problems as a result of Peter's alcoholic problem and laziness. In the episode, a blackout scene is depicted where every member of the family is present and a scene from the fourth episode of the sci-fi series "Star Wars" is retold. Characters in the "Blue Harvest" are assigned roles of characters in the "Star Wars. However, in this case, there is much parody and other post-modern styles as will be described below:

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Post-Modernism Styles

Institutional Critique: In arts, institutional critique refers to the systematic inquiry into the works of arts such as galleries, music and pictures. The definition extends to any commentary on institutions and assumed normalities of art. The episode "Blue Harvest" begins by pointing at how the Griffin's family are socially connected to television and other technologies such that when power goes off, the disconnect is felt until Griffin decides to tell them the "Star Wars" story. In another instance, the film critiques other works such as the movie "Dirty dancing" and "Airplane".

The Copy: The idea of "The Copy" refers to the use of ideas that the artist or scriptwriter has created themselves out of their realities and experiences. In the 'Black Harvest" Griffin's idea of coming up with a story that will help break boredom is out of his own experiences. And, this is evident when the power comes and he has to wrap up his story so that everyone could get back to the television. This is an example of how societies live within a stimulated hyper-reality.

Pastiche: This refers to the imitation of another's style. For instance, the title of the episode, is a direct reference of the "Return of the Jedi" hence an imitation of the style used in the film "Star Wars". Another instance where pastiche is used in the episode is the manner in which different characters are assigned roles that mimic those of the film "Star Wars". For instance, Peter plays Hans Solo, Lois plays the role of Princess Leia, Stewie plays Darth while Chris stars as Luke Skywalker.

Parody: It refers to any work created to spoof, mock or make fun of the original work of an artist, author or musician. In the "Blue Harvest", parody plays a key role. A good example is the case of J.M Flagg's poster produced in 1917 which is later reproduced in the episode to create a comical effect. Additionally, instead of using Uncle Sam, Stewie stares directly at viewers and points directly at them stating "I want YOU" for the Empire." The statement by Stewie mocks the original caption that reads 'I want You for the U.S Army." It is also evident that the jokes used in the episode steer the audience from the main plot of the original series "Star Wars".