Next on this critical watching of the Fox Broadcasting Company's 25th Anniversary special was a segment dedicated to Fox's animated programming. Or, more to the point, Fox's prime time animated programming. Yes, Fox Kids was corporately separate from Fox Broadcasting. But they produced its fair share of shows, some of them very good and a few that are unparalled in quality. In fact, one of those shows had a brief run in prime time. I'll tell you which one on the other side of the cut.
Ryan Seacrest introduces us to the fact that Fox experimented with animation in primetime, being the first network to do so since the 1960s. Okay, I won't dispute that. So after being asked to "imagine Fox without 'Animation Domination'", we get clips from "American Dad!", "The Simpsons", "King of the Hill", "The Cleveland Show", and the first animated series to be nominated for a Primetime Comedy Series Emmy, "Family Guy".
Seth MacFarlane appears in an extended interview. He reveals that the characters come from the personalities of the actors voicing them. Considering that quite a few of them are voiced by himself, I wonder what kind of personality he has. Is Seth MacFarlane more Peter or Stewie or Quagmire or Brian? Seth also revealed that the FCC enjoyed their skewering of them in the episode "PTV". I'll admit, that musical number is very funny.
However, where was "Futurama"? This show won Fox an Emmy for animation in 2002. It aired for four seasons and now continues on another network. Fox saw fit to air clips from "Futurama", but not mention it during this special. I have my theories, but only two really stand out. One, it's the ownership of the show issue. Fox owns "The Simpsons", but creator Matt Groening owns "Futurama". Two, Comedy Central wouldn't give them permission. Still, no "Futurama" really rankled my nerves. Kelley was also upset.
Regarding the Fox Kids programming. Since all but one of their shows aired either on weekday afternoons or Saturday mornings, I understand why they were not included in the special. However, for about eight weeks in 1993, "Batman: The Animated Series" graced our television screens on Sunday evenings at 7 PM ET. While the show aired opposite "60 Minutes", it did air in primetime. And quite a few episodes debuted during that time slot. I remember seeing "The Laughing Fish" episode for the first time one particular Sunday evening. Apparently, because this experiment was a ratings failure, Fox left this out of its special. TV Guide, on the other hand, saw fit to include Fox's airing of "Batman: TAS" in a "Cheers and Jeers" segment during that time. For that reason alone, I thought that should have been mentioned on this anniversary special.
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After the second commercial break of the evening, the cast of "New Girl" pays tribute to some of Fox's lesser regarded shows. And the pity was definitely not spared. Most of the shows mentioned were of the "reality" genre, like "Temptation Island", "My Big Fat... [fill in the blank]", "The Littlest Groom", "When Animals Attack", and "Mr. Personality... hosted by Monica Lewinsky". Cast members also got in digs at "Models Inc." and "Party of Five". The latter was because Fox exploited the world of "sexy alcoholic orphans". Then came the moment of the segment. Zooey Deschanel called out Fox for the moment when they were "dangerously close to ending it all- 'The Chevy Chase Show'."
Thank you, cast of "New Girl", for making sure that Chevy Chase's five weeks of late night TV was not forgotten. And I'm right there with you for making Fox put "$8 million dollars in the douchebag jar for 'The Swan'."
With that, Seacrest flowed into the Reality and Dating genre shows that Fox introduced us to. And there was one genuine moment. Evan Marriott, the title "character" in "Joe Millionaire", reflected on what his life was like after the show aired. He talked about how the show changed his life and made him realize what is really important. That was good TV.
I wish I could say that no stone was left unturned in this segment. Yeah, a lot of these titles are shows we'd rather not remember. But for the ones that are worth remembering, not much was said. Sure, we've kind of taken "Cops" for granted. I'll tell you this, though: after watching a few episodes, you will develop an appreciation for what our men and women in blue do for us. (I should mention here that my uncle is a retired police officer, and my cousin is a rookie officer with the Virginia Beach Police Department.)
"America's Most Wanted", though, deserved more than the mention it got. This show is a public service, having put over 1,100 criminals behind bars since 1988. And while the show continues on Lifetime, we shouldn't forget that Fox was the first network to air a show of this kind. A little more love would have been nice.
As for the rest of the titles, well, true confession time. I did enjoy "World's Wildest Police Videos". If I catch it in reruns, I'll watch a few minutes. I also liked "Beyond Tomorrow", the first real science show on commercial TV in I really can't remember. And "Totally Hidden Video" did make me laugh. Those two latter shows, along with the Gil Gerard hosted "Code 3", were not mentioned.
Personally, I could have done without the "reality rememberance". But history shouldn't be ignored.
To be continued.
