"Send in Stewie, Please" is the twelfth episode of the
sixteenth season of the animated sitcom ''
Family Guy
''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...
'' and the 301st episode overall. It aired on
Fox
Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush").
Twelve species ...
in the United States on March 18, 2018 with limited commercial interruption due to its runtime of 25 minutes, and is written by
Gary Janetti
Gary Vincent Janetti (born March 22, 1966) is an American television writer, producer, and actor. He is best known for his work on ''Will & Grace'', ''Family Guy'', and '' Vicious''.
Career
Janetti has written for ''Family Guy'', and was an exe ...
and directed by
Joe Vaux.
The episode largely focuses on
Stewie Griffin
Stewart Gilligan "Stewie" Griffin is a fictional character from the animated television series ''Family Guy''. He is voiced by series creator Seth MacFarlane and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the Griffin family, in the ...
(voiced by creator
Seth MacFarlane
Seth Woodbury MacFarlane (; born October 26, 1973) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, comedian, and singer. He is best known as the creator and star of the television series ''Family Guy'' (since 1999) and ''The Orvill ...
) and his major secrets, accompanied by a
child psychologist
Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why humans grow, change, and adapt across the course of their lives. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult development, ...
(voiced by guest star
Ian McKellen
Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. He has played roles on the screen and stage in genres ranging from Shakespearean dramas and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. He is regarded as a British cu ...
). None of the
Griffin family
The Griffin family is a fictional family and main characters in the animated television series ''Family Guy'', and who also appear in ''The Cleveland Show''. The Griffins are a dysfunctional family consisting of the married couple Peter and Loi ...
appear except
Brian
Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan (given name), Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish language, Irish and Breton language, Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan language, Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. ...
at the end, and no
cutaway gags accompany the extended runtime. In addition, this episode was commercial-free so that Fox could promote the 2018 ''
God of War
A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in polytheism, polytheistic religions.
Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been portrayed in their ...
''
video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
.
Plot
At Quahog Preschool, Stewie is sent to the office of Dr. Cecil Pritchfield, a child psychologist. Stewie begins the therapy session by making observational
small talk
Small talk is an informal type of discourse that does not cover any functional topics of conversation or any transactions that need to be addressed. In essence, it is polite and standard conversation about unimportant things.
The phenomenon ...
. He then starts to talk proudly about his British accent, but the psychologist says that he cannot hear it, much to Stewie's annoyance.
When the doctor tells him he feels he knows him a bit after only a few minutes in his company, Stewie picks up a photograph of him on vacation with his husband Michael. Stewie begins to analyze their relationship in remarkable detail, revealing Pritchfield's embarrassment and insecurity about being much older than his husband. The psychologist then observes that Stewie is very lonely, at which Stewie suddenly bursts into tears, as Pritchfield's aide Barbara hands him some tissues.
After Stewie regains composure, Pritchfield mentions the incident that brought Stewie to his office, in which he pushed a classmate, Tyler, down the stairs. Stewie protests that he only did it because he liked Tyler and was afraid he would not like him back. Stewie denies being gay and declares that he is "confident" in his heterosexuality. He also expresses his difficulty fitting in when none of the other boys share his interests in musicals and world domination. He admits to pulling out his own hair because of anxiety, and expresses frustration at not being able to be on Broadway. He then performs to Pritchfield part of a
number
A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The most basic examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers can ...
from the musical ''
Hamilton
Hamilton may refer to:
* Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States
* ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda
** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
'', while fighting hiccups and a runny nose.
Stewie takes up an offer of tea and Pritchfield begins to tell him of his own youth as an orphan in Britain during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Stewie interrupts his long story and they return to discussing Stewie's differences and difficulty fitting in. Stewie admits that he has constructed a persona in order to hide his true self, and drops his British accent, revealing his true accent to have been American all along. He makes plans to reveal his true self to others as well, but reconsiders and reverts to his British accent when he faces being just like everyone else.
Suddenly, Pritchfield starts to have a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
. He asks Stewie to hand him his heart medication, but Stewie, aware that Pritchfield is the only one who has seen through his façade, lets him die, even as the doctor warns that if he does so, it will stay with him. Pritchfield calls out to Barbara, but Stewie points out that she has already gone to lunch. As he dies, the doctor picks up the photo of himself with his husband and recites lines from ''
Romeo and Juliet
''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...
''. Immediately after his death with Stewie still present, Pritchfield's office receives a
voicemail
A voicemail system (also known as voice message or voice bank) is a computer-based system that allows callers to leave a recorded message when the recipient has been unable (or unwilling) to answer the phone. Calls may be directed to voicemail m ...
from Michael demanding a divorce where Michael is unaware that Pritchfield is dead.
Later that night, Stewie wakes up screaming, plagued by guilt over his actions as Pritchfield had warned, and asks Brian to sleep in his bed with him. He mentions that he has done something awful, though he does not explain it further. As Brian falls asleep, Stewie lies awake, disturbed and unsure whether his experience with Pritchfield was real or just a dream.
Reception
The episode was watched by 2.24 million viewers, making it the least viewed show in its timeslot, but the most watched show on Fox that night.
Gary Janetti
Gary Vincent Janetti (born March 22, 1966) is an American television writer, producer, and actor. He is best known for his work on ''Will & Grace'', ''Family Guy'', and '' Vicious''.
Career
Janetti has written for ''Family Guy'', and was an exe ...
was nominated for a
Writers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Writing in Animation at the
71st Writers Guild of America Awards for his script to this episode.
References
External links
*
{{Family Guy episodes, 16
2018 American television episodes
Family Guy season 16 episodes
American LGBTQ-related television episodes
LGBTQ-related animated television episodes
Two-handers
2018 LGBTQ-related television episodes