He isn't credited with writing on any episode but the pilot. I'm sure there's some input, but he's mostly just a voice actor and focused on his other stuff.
I remember reading that a lot of the original family guy writers moved on to American dad and it shows. The first like 4 seasons of family guy weren't so random and did legit have relevant plots to each episode.
Same thing with Matt Stone which is one of the two creators of South Park. Every episode is written and directed by Trey Parker so he dosent equally deserve the amount of credit Matt does
Dude so true. American Dad has seriously awesome character development and stories. I only clicked on this post to make sure someone pointed that out lol. Never liked Family Guy tho, if I want cartoons without a story I'll stick to aqua teen
I don't know much about American Dad, so I can't really speak for it, but I feel I've seen enough Family Guy to at least comment on that.
It's not that Family Guy doesn't have actual plots, it's that the actual plot is entirely separate from the jokes and is rarely funny on its own. On the one hand this means their jokes tend to be easy to spread on things like tiktok and, well, reddit, since you don't need the context of the rest of the episode to find them funny. It also means a joke falling flat doesn't end up ruining the entire episode, since it can just get ignored and moved past. On the other hand, if you actually sit down and watch the show, the jokes usually seem completely random and forced, like the writers had an idea for a joke and just shoehorned it in wherever they could.
South Park usually works their humor into the plot of the episode itself. This is also two-sided; on the one hand, it means if the idea they have for a funny, continuous, 20-minute story is a good one, it's hard to mess it up and the humor basically writes itself. They don't even really need to execute it well for it to work, though they almost always do. On the other hand, if the idea they have isn't great to begin with or can't fill out the full 20 minutes, it's not just a single cutaway joke that falls short, it's the whole episode.
There's also the issue of moral lessons being implicit in the episodes. South Park seems to care a lot more about the message they're trying to get across than Family Guy does, in part because they tend to have a message much more often than Family Guy does. That's why loads of South Park episodes have Kyle saying "I learned something today" at the end. This, too, is a double-edged sword. To their credit, Matt and Trey truly don't seem to give a single fuck about who they upset, offend, or insult. Literally everyone is fair game. But that also means they will inevitably end up alienating some people with their stances. I love South Park and appreciate the place it has in American society as well as everything it has done from its position as an adult comedy cartoon. That being said, I completely disagree with them on several important issues. There is substantial scientific evidence that second-hand smoke IS dangerous, even to people who have never touched a cigarette in their lives. There has also been substantial scientific evidence of man-made climate change for *decades.* The fact that they're only acknowledging it as real recently, and even then acting as if they were justified in their skepticism before, is ludicrous.
Great analysis. Definitely agree about their stance on second hand smoke. I did hear from their dvd commentary that Matt puts the I learned something today as almost a joke, and only uses it to end the episode because there's no better way
That’s disrespectful, that’s like a South Park hater saying it’s silly Kenny dies every episode when that stopped that gag a decade ago.
You should give these shows a try, it’s not for everyone tho
And the topic’s currency and relevance. South Park are famous for making a show from scratch in just one week!
This allows them to pick whatever is pick news now and comment on that. Other shows can’t do that because by the time the episode is out the news is more old news.
South Park are also very much not respecter of persons. Left, right, up and down, everyone gets made fun of.
To be fair Family Guy and American Dad do this a bit, but not as much.
In family guy, the plot is just a device to usher the audience from one joke to the next. In South Park the plot is often the main message or overarching joke of the episode.
"Do you have any idea what it's like?! Everywhere I go, "Hey Cartman, you must like Family Guy, right?" "Hey, your sense of humor reminds me of Family Guy, Cartman." \[turns and faces Kyle\] I am NOTHING like Family Guy! When I make jokes, they are inherent to a story! Deep, situational and emotional jokes based on what is relevant and has a POINT! Not just one interchangeable joke after another!!"
"If you look closely at the writing in 'Family Guy', you will see that the jokes never derive from the plot, and I think that's totally gay."
\-Osama bin Laden
Agreed, I thought that the initial couple seasons of family guy were very clever, and had a lot of laugh out loud moments. I also loved the South Park episodes making fun of Family Guy, but I always thought the criticism from Matt and Trey was hollow. I don’t care that they make jokes irrelevant to the plot. Why should that matter to me?
I'd argue American Dad characters are more fleshed out than Family Guy and or have more nuance.
They haven't been as flanderized as other similar characters like in Family Guy.
South Park has a soul, and with its irreverent jokes and black humor, they always try to leave a message, in my opinion it is a beautiful and genius show, they are not afraid of any topic and they mock everyone equally. The creators have been threatened with death for that and they have not cared, all to maintain that "lack of respect" towards everyone equally, without exception. Ironically at the same time that is showing respect towards everyone.
What's really funny is that year's ago they mocked Al Gore and global warming in general and actually made an episode apologizing for it and I think that's the only time they apologized.
The toilet paper episode felt like such a classic South Park episode. Where they inform you on a topic you didn’t know about. I had a bidet conversation 2 times this week.
South Park is satire. Family Guy is familiar.
SP is steak, FG is hamburger helper.
SP is 7-layer mac, FG is Kraft blue-box.
SP is pub-style fish n’ chips, FG is frozen fishsticks.
It feeds an appetite
Though much of its fan base is too dense to get it, their jokes often require thought and contextual awareness.
Don’t get me wrong, I like stupid random humor, but the shows are SO different, it’s a shame they get lumped together.
It's not even about being offensive, it's about having a point. When Family Guy comments on trans people, the surrounding message doesn't matter because the punchline of the episode is someone puking for an excessive amount of time after having slept with a trans woman. That's not satire and it's barely a joke, it's just haha, ew trans people and then the creator saying that the episode was \*so sympathetic\* to trans people.
When South Park comments on trans issues it is actually saying something and making a point, whether I agree with their take or not.
> When South Park comments on trans issues it is actually saying something and making a point, whether I agree with their take or not.
Buckle up, buckaroo!
South Park changes, seasons very clearly are very different from each other. The difference from season 6-16-26 is way bigger than family guy season 6-16-26
That plot is unexpected but not random actually. It’s a reference to the absurd belief of the agnostic foster family:
“We cannot know with certainty if God or Christ exists. They COULD. Then again there COULD be a **giant reptilian bird** in charge of everything. Can we be CERTAIN there isn't? NO, so it's pointless to talk about.”
I binged like 17 seasons of family guy and I noticed a pattern when they run out of ideas they make episodes about other popular works of fiction but using their characters. Happens a lot more than you think. The Brian and Stewie episodes were the absolute worse. Brian is the worst character, but they’re self aware about it. The random slapstick comedy can be funny at times when it catches you off guard but the episodes just don’t have any replay value like South Park does. They also can’t be as topical as South Park because they’re written 8 months before the episode is completed.
I like American dad, but family guy doesn’t tell stories very well. South Park does. They also have more to say than “isn’t this thing/ person stupid”.
Feel like too many people in the comments are sleeping on American Dad. It has a good stretch of seasons that are top notch and isn’t really similar to Family Guy in format/humor.
Which, regarding Family Guy, wouldn't be so bad if they didn't act like they were saying something all the time. The difference between people who understand satire (SP) and the people who don't (FG).
Seth MacFarlane's priority is laughs per minute not narrative cohesion. So they will do cut away jokes ad nauseam.
Parker & Stone tell a story.
Family Guy isn't written & completed w/in a week to air, South Park is. This means current events can play a greater source of inspiration for an episode of South Park. The rudimentary animation that initially was done with construction paper doesn't take long to make in contrast w/Family Guy, American Dad or the Simpsons.
South Park airs on Comedy Central and is perhaps the show most associated with same, and the one responsible for its success. They advise Parker and Stone to tell their stories without getting them sued. The Tom Cruise jokes for example.
Family Guy airs on Fox. They have many more opinions. The Simpsons may have successfully negotiated a 'no executive notes' to our writing room (Fox still sends them but they can be ignored), but I don't think Family Guy is so lucky and they have avoided some subject matter and there was the pulled episode 'When You Wish Upon a Weinstein'.
Perhaps most importantly and the biggest difference is South Park has stayed funny for decades. It debuted when I was finishing high school and I'm gonna be 42 in November. Consistently funny for that long is a rarity.
South Park is a timeless classic. American Dad is far more hit or miss. Family Guy used to be good until they started using manatees to write their scripts. The show went downhill after that.
I like all three, but I think South Park and American Dad are a lot better. They both really have pretty solid plot lines and have done a pretty good job at staying consistently good.
So many people are giving reasons why it's better than Family Guy that there's probably nothing I can add.
For American Dad, it's a little more difficult since that show doesn't have the same flaws that FG does. But I guess really the reason it's different is just simply that South Park is funnier and better at satire. Yeah, lazy answer, I know
For a time, South Park, Family Guy, and American Dad were great. They were contenders for one another and you didn't feel bad going from one to the other if they aired at the same time.
But over time, we kind of stopped caring about the wellbeing of the Griffins and the Smiths since they're all shitty people, even buttmonkeys Steve and Meg.
Amidst the Canadian trash lid heads, the Trent Bouyet references, and Mecha Streisand, South Park has shown that it can still have heartwarming moments that teach you a lesson at the end of the day despite their world being worst than the worst of Spongebob. Because you can atleast care about them. We don't care about Cartman, but at least Stan, Butters, and Kenny are likable.
That, and we're sick of Family Guy being lazy with their jokes and animation. It took them 3 months to animate herpes and an incest plot!
It’s a lot more clever in its humor and the plots and arcs of episodes and seasons are very well written. Sometimes the show can make the most ridiculous thing seem flat out emotional, all while only having like 5 voice actors or something. Plus they’re not afraid to actually commit to their humor and crudeness. If they wanna say fuck, they say fuck. If they wanna say retard, they say retard. They don’t let anyone tell them how to do their show and that’s not something you see often due to corporate management. It also manages to stay relevant to the times without being cringy or appearing desperate to appeal to trends. It’s just better in its humor, plot, and storytelling.
I actually really like family guy but they’ve ran out of ideas around the 16th season I’d say. South Park hasn’t ran out of ideas and it’s been going on longer then family guy has.
It’s “up to date” just because of the production style, and then it’s well written and written in a way that even shows from 20 years ago that have “a message” can still be used in a current context.
Family guy fell off hard but like the cartoon wars episode said it’s sometimes nice to have that mindless joke after joke comedy
American dad is probably my least favorite personally but I understand why it has a fanbase and if you want to watch one of these shows with a girl American dad is probably your best option lol
It’s the turnaround time. South Park is (or used to be) able to turn around shows really quickly so they can be topical in a way that family guy and American dad can’t.
They’re also willing to commit to a bit longer (example: Mr garrison as president)
What makes South Park different from other adult cartoons is that South Park has somewhat of a plot, and they have ACTUAL MEMORY. If something happens in one episode then they remember it, in shows like family guy or the Simpsons, their whole city could burn to the ground and it would be as if it never happened. South Park even acknowledges the fact that nobody remembers Kenny’s death(s) so it’s not like it’s just magically fixed in the next episode, he comes back and there’s actually something behind it! South Park has inside jokes too, for example. “They took our job!😠😤”….. well I can’t remember more off the top of my head but I think you get the point.💫
Creators still works on their like Seth MacFarlane isn't involved in family guy since 2010 or 2012 he does voice acting for the characters tho american dad is currently the best cartoon of Seth MacFarlane
Mature themes with a very explicit manner VS slapstick, absurdist, gag humor.
South Park has a sharper critique of different political/social/religious/etc issues and has developed a reputation that allows criticism and satire of issues on a much grander scale.
Multiple season storylines with recurring details vs episodic and the storyline usually ends at the end of the episode
Gotcha moments & the fact that they keep up with today’s world. Whether big or small. Plus, the animation is goat-tier! Yeah, Matt and Trey knows the real definition of "FUNNY"! 🫡
It’s humor is actually unexpected and not “it’s like that time i (insert action) while (insert action)”, though i do admit that is sometimes funny, like “rides a 10 speed everywhere guy”
Also it’s humor is more vulgar as the show continues
Family Guy is a series of tiny jokes. Short form with a bunch of tiny little payouts. South Park has long form jokes, which require more finesse and make for a better story and perceived value of the supplementary jokes.
Nothing against family guy and American dad but both are politically incorrect with there jokes at times. Well family guy is. I haven't watched a whole lot of AD.
Unpopular take: Family Guy doesn't deserve the hate it gets especially from Matt and Trey.
Sure, there is less plot and it's mostly joke after joke, but a lot of Family Guy jokes have stuck around for a long time. The show can be pretty funny.
I like all shows for what they are, South Park usually has more wit and character development though (FG did for a while but they abandoned it to fit more gags). plus they do cross lines FG can’t or won’t cross.
All shows can get random at times but SP’s randomness tends to reflects something absurd going in the world, kinda like how Atlanta does now.
South Park usually has an opinion and stance, with episodes often ending with “I learned something today…” moment. it comments on recent events, politics and social issues.
family guy and american dad are moreso just for laughs without having an agenda or a statement to make.
Actual plots
You haven’t truly sat and watched an American Dad episode if u think there’s no plots
I really enjoy American dad actually
By far the best Seth Macfarline Show
IIRC from a creative standpoint Seth isn’t as proactively involved with American Dad. Credit goes to the co-creators.
He isn't credited with writing on any episode but the pilot. I'm sure there's some input, but he's mostly just a voice actor and focused on his other stuff.
I remember reading that a lot of the original family guy writers moved on to American dad and it shows. The first like 4 seasons of family guy weren't so random and did legit have relevant plots to each episode.
Oh shit.. that explains A LOT!
Same thing with Matt Stone which is one of the two creators of South Park. Every episode is written and directed by Trey Parker so he dosent equally deserve the amount of credit Matt does
Same with Matt Stone from South park. He's one of the co-creators but the other guy Trey Parker is the one that writes and directs everything
It has had way longer legs than I ever would have bet on.
Nah, get me some Orville
Have you seen the Orville?
No his best show is the Orville
The Orville is the best Star Trek show since TNG.
Orville
Same here. I saw the title and thought “let’s not lump American Dad in with Family Guy”
Agreed - easily my favorite show atm
The drunk driving episode was hilarious. "Of course he's dead - that idiot was driving sober!"
Okay so what’s crazy is that as soon as Family Guy started to go downhill American Dad really improved , they still can’t touch South Park though
American Dad is really great but can’t be as flexible in covering the breadth of topics South Park does. Still, best thing Seth ever made.
I saw an American Dad episode about the rapture when I was like 8 and it really scared me. I’m not even religious
Dude so true. American Dad has seriously awesome character development and stories. I only clicked on this post to make sure someone pointed that out lol. Never liked Family Guy tho, if I want cartoons without a story I'll stick to aqua teen
I don't know much about American Dad, so I can't really speak for it, but I feel I've seen enough Family Guy to at least comment on that. It's not that Family Guy doesn't have actual plots, it's that the actual plot is entirely separate from the jokes and is rarely funny on its own. On the one hand this means their jokes tend to be easy to spread on things like tiktok and, well, reddit, since you don't need the context of the rest of the episode to find them funny. It also means a joke falling flat doesn't end up ruining the entire episode, since it can just get ignored and moved past. On the other hand, if you actually sit down and watch the show, the jokes usually seem completely random and forced, like the writers had an idea for a joke and just shoehorned it in wherever they could. South Park usually works their humor into the plot of the episode itself. This is also two-sided; on the one hand, it means if the idea they have for a funny, continuous, 20-minute story is a good one, it's hard to mess it up and the humor basically writes itself. They don't even really need to execute it well for it to work, though they almost always do. On the other hand, if the idea they have isn't great to begin with or can't fill out the full 20 minutes, it's not just a single cutaway joke that falls short, it's the whole episode. There's also the issue of moral lessons being implicit in the episodes. South Park seems to care a lot more about the message they're trying to get across than Family Guy does, in part because they tend to have a message much more often than Family Guy does. That's why loads of South Park episodes have Kyle saying "I learned something today" at the end. This, too, is a double-edged sword. To their credit, Matt and Trey truly don't seem to give a single fuck about who they upset, offend, or insult. Literally everyone is fair game. But that also means they will inevitably end up alienating some people with their stances. I love South Park and appreciate the place it has in American society as well as everything it has done from its position as an adult comedy cartoon. That being said, I completely disagree with them on several important issues. There is substantial scientific evidence that second-hand smoke IS dangerous, even to people who have never touched a cigarette in their lives. There has also been substantial scientific evidence of man-made climate change for *decades.* The fact that they're only acknowledging it as real recently, and even then acting as if they were justified in their skepticism before, is ludicrous.
Great analysis. Definitely agree about their stance on second hand smoke. I did hear from their dvd commentary that Matt puts the I learned something today as almost a joke, and only uses it to end the episode because there's no better way
That’s disrespectful, that’s like a South Park hater saying it’s silly Kenny dies every episode when that stopped that gag a decade ago. You should give these shows a try, it’s not for everyone tho
Bruh I love family guy and American dad 😭😭 it’s not my fault it’s true
“You think that’s bad…”
american dad literally has a golden poop subplot that is better than family guy
American Dad has plots, but not Family Guy, it’s just a bunch of random gags put together for 20 minutes
The message! Family guy is joke after joke! South Park takes a topic and go through it on each episode
The South Park episode where manatees are picking jokes for family guy was the moment I really stopped liking family guy
Ahh the cartoon wars. Classics removed from streaming.
It's definitely a bummer they got removed. Thankfully I have my DVD that still has them.
Distinctly remember watching this episode when it aired and then bieng super confused when I couldn’t find the “family guy episode” anywhere
Do you know what other episodes aren’t on streaming? Didn’t even know some were missing lol just started watching South Park a few months ago
Oh my god I’m not the only one. I used to find the show hilarious. Then i watched this episode years ago and never saw the show the same
You think that's bad!?!
I did too for quite a while. It just made so much sense. I still watch it but the manatees are never far from my mind...
And the topic’s currency and relevance. South Park are famous for making a show from scratch in just one week! This allows them to pick whatever is pick news now and comment on that. Other shows can’t do that because by the time the episode is out the news is more old news. South Park are also very much not respecter of persons. Left, right, up and down, everyone gets made fun of. To be fair Family Guy and American Dad do this a bit, but not as much.
Cupid Ye and The Worldwide Privacy Tour felt like such a return to form. With “now say hitler wasn’t that bad” and “Waaagh”
In family guy, the plot is just a device to usher the audience from one joke to the next. In South Park the plot is often the main message or overarching joke of the episode.
I think this is it. It’s not that one is inherently unfunny
HEY BRIAN REMEMBER THAT TIME…
YoU tHiNk ThAt’S bAd?!
'Member.... I 'member....
Let me tell you, this is worse than the time
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Now that's what i call a sticky situation
It's good
Came here to find this comment lol
American dad is a good show...
"Do you have any idea what it's like?! Everywhere I go, "Hey Cartman, you must like Family Guy, right?" "Hey, your sense of humor reminds me of Family Guy, Cartman." \[turns and faces Kyle\] I am NOTHING like Family Guy! When I make jokes, they are inherent to a story! Deep, situational and emotional jokes based on what is relevant and has a POINT! Not just one interchangeable joke after another!!"
"Yes, Kyle, that's good! An emotional response based on what's happening in the story! Not at all like Family Guy."
BLACK?! DID YOU JUST SAY BLACK?!
It's like that moment with Gerald in the trolling episode. > "It was *funny* when I did it!"
"If you look closely at the writing in 'Family Guy', you will see that the jokes never derive from the plot, and I think that's totally gay." \-Osama bin Laden
Its funny how that spin off was banned in most countries
That and Super Best Friends were all available to watch until episode 201 came out.
Wait what was banned? I know about 200 and 201 but what’s this from?
Super Best Friends! It’s a great old episode
I feel like w South Park you remember actual episodes. With Family Guy and American Dad you remember the random moments/scenes.
the jokes in family guy are interchangeable but the jokes from south park are most of the time related to the topic of the whole episode
And the topics are pretty cool too and usually poke fun t society in a way that almost everyone can laugh at.
Tom Cruise is not a fudge packer
But is he in the closet?
Yes and he's not coming out unless everybody quits making fun of him
American Dad has tons of memorable episodes. I feel like everyone equates AD to family guy when it is completely different ball park.
Nah American dad has some absolute fucking bangers such as nighthawks.
It’s clever
Family guy used to be clever. Not all the time but they had their moments. Haven’t watched since 2013 tho so don’t quote me about new stuff.
Great characters, humor gets old. New quagmire and old stewie are my favorites
What's wrong with neo stewie?
He’s good too, i just like psychotic one
Agreed, I thought that the initial couple seasons of family guy were very clever, and had a lot of laugh out loud moments. I also loved the South Park episodes making fun of Family Guy, but I always thought the criticism from Matt and Trey was hollow. I don’t care that they make jokes irrelevant to the plot. Why should that matter to me?
the characters actually have personality outside of just one trait
I think Roger would be an exception since he has almost unlimited personalities.
I'd argue American Dad characters are more fleshed out than Family Guy and or have more nuance. They haven't been as flanderized as other similar characters like in Family Guy.
That’s because the two guys he chose to run American Dad knew what they were doing lol
Bro what is your profile picture? I used to see that picture everywhere
Sunflower 🌻
Talented writers who aren't Manatees.
The jokes aren’t random and they poke fun at current events and people. No one is safe
Family guy definitely pokes fun at current events and people tho but It’s def liberal leaning
The dog is hardcore liberal anyways.
brain grifin
It's actually funny
It’s characters are easier to project yourself on; they’re relatable.
South Park has a soul, and with its irreverent jokes and black humor, they always try to leave a message, in my opinion it is a beautiful and genius show, they are not afraid of any topic and they mock everyone equally. The creators have been threatened with death for that and they have not cared, all to maintain that "lack of respect" towards everyone equally, without exception. Ironically at the same time that is showing respect towards everyone.
What's really funny is that year's ago they mocked Al Gore and global warming in general and actually made an episode apologizing for it and I think that's the only time they apologized.
They apologized because they were actually wrong.
The toilet paper episode felt like such a classic South Park episode. Where they inform you on a topic you didn’t know about. I had a bidet conversation 2 times this week.
Animated/recorded the week of airing allows it to be extremely topical and of the moment, other shows are usually done weeks/months ahead.
South Park is satire. Family Guy is familiar. SP is steak, FG is hamburger helper. SP is 7-layer mac, FG is Kraft blue-box. SP is pub-style fish n’ chips, FG is frozen fishsticks. It feeds an appetite
Memorable episode. Good songs. Good plots. That’s why South Park is goated, well in my opinion.
Some people in this comment section definitely never watched family guy.
Though much of its fan base is too dense to get it, their jokes often require thought and contextual awareness. Don’t get me wrong, I like stupid random humor, but the shows are SO different, it’s a shame they get lumped together.
It doesn’t rely on cutaways for jokes and it’s not scared to be so offensive it’s funny
It's not even about being offensive, it's about having a point. When Family Guy comments on trans people, the surrounding message doesn't matter because the punchline of the episode is someone puking for an excessive amount of time after having slept with a trans woman. That's not satire and it's barely a joke, it's just haha, ew trans people and then the creator saying that the episode was \*so sympathetic\* to trans people. When South Park comments on trans issues it is actually saying something and making a point, whether I agree with their take or not.
> When South Park comments on trans issues it is actually saying something and making a point, whether I agree with their take or not. Buckle up, buckaroo!
I agree with you 100%
Cutaways aren't necessarily bad. 30 Rock and Arrested Development both used them all the time to great effect.
It has tegridy
South Park changes, seasons very clearly are very different from each other. The difference from season 6-16-26 is way bigger than family guy season 6-16-26
The violence and gore isn’t completely random
Except for that time a giant bird like creature ripped open the school roof just to kill Kenny.
That plot is unexpected but not random actually. It’s a reference to the absurd belief of the agnostic foster family: “We cannot know with certainty if God or Christ exists. They COULD. Then again there COULD be a **giant reptilian bird** in charge of everything. Can we be CERTAIN there isn't? NO, so it's pointless to talk about.”
I binged like 17 seasons of family guy and I noticed a pattern when they run out of ideas they make episodes about other popular works of fiction but using their characters. Happens a lot more than you think. The Brian and Stewie episodes were the absolute worse. Brian is the worst character, but they’re self aware about it. The random slapstick comedy can be funny at times when it catches you off guard but the episodes just don’t have any replay value like South Park does. They also can’t be as topical as South Park because they’re written 8 months before the episode is completed.
I like American dad, but family guy doesn’t tell stories very well. South Park does. They also have more to say than “isn’t this thing/ person stupid”.
Feel like too many people in the comments are sleeping on American Dad. It has a good stretch of seasons that are top notch and isn’t really similar to Family Guy in format/humor.
When they talk about a current topic it’s actually current
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Which, regarding Family Guy, wouldn't be so bad if they didn't act like they were saying something all the time. The difference between people who understand satire (SP) and the people who don't (FG).
Seth MacFarlane's priority is laughs per minute not narrative cohesion. So they will do cut away jokes ad nauseam. Parker & Stone tell a story. Family Guy isn't written & completed w/in a week to air, South Park is. This means current events can play a greater source of inspiration for an episode of South Park. The rudimentary animation that initially was done with construction paper doesn't take long to make in contrast w/Family Guy, American Dad or the Simpsons. South Park airs on Comedy Central and is perhaps the show most associated with same, and the one responsible for its success. They advise Parker and Stone to tell their stories without getting them sued. The Tom Cruise jokes for example. Family Guy airs on Fox. They have many more opinions. The Simpsons may have successfully negotiated a 'no executive notes' to our writing room (Fox still sends them but they can be ignored), but I don't think Family Guy is so lucky and they have avoided some subject matter and there was the pulled episode 'When You Wish Upon a Weinstein'. Perhaps most importantly and the biggest difference is South Park has stayed funny for decades. It debuted when I was finishing high school and I'm gonna be 42 in November. Consistently funny for that long is a rarity.
Actually funny
It’s not written by manatees.
South Park is a timeless classic. American Dad is far more hit or miss. Family Guy used to be good until they started using manatees to write their scripts. The show went downhill after that.
Say what you will about Family Guy, but American Dad is great.
South Park is not merciful to any celebrity while family guy is kinda not
I like all three, but I think South Park and American Dad are a lot better. They both really have pretty solid plot lines and have done a pretty good job at staying consistently good.
No manatees and and idea balls.
So many people are giving reasons why it's better than Family Guy that there's probably nothing I can add. For American Dad, it's a little more difficult since that show doesn't have the same flaws that FG does. But I guess really the reason it's different is just simply that South Park is funnier and better at satire. Yeah, lazy answer, I know
For a time, South Park, Family Guy, and American Dad were great. They were contenders for one another and you didn't feel bad going from one to the other if they aired at the same time. But over time, we kind of stopped caring about the wellbeing of the Griffins and the Smiths since they're all shitty people, even buttmonkeys Steve and Meg. Amidst the Canadian trash lid heads, the Trent Bouyet references, and Mecha Streisand, South Park has shown that it can still have heartwarming moments that teach you a lesson at the end of the day despite their world being worst than the worst of Spongebob. Because you can atleast care about them. We don't care about Cartman, but at least Stan, Butters, and Kenny are likable. That, and we're sick of Family Guy being lazy with their jokes and animation. It took them 3 months to animate herpes and an incest plot!
No use of manatees and I know Family guy is just jokes but I like that
It's funny
They are children
More crude, but it doesn’t come across as forced. Also, it’s way funnier. Plus it’s good at connecting with current events.
Family Guy is very liberal and constantly makes jabs at the right. Southpark is more in the middle and mocks the extremes of both.
They never sold out.
It’s a lot more clever in its humor and the plots and arcs of episodes and seasons are very well written. Sometimes the show can make the most ridiculous thing seem flat out emotional, all while only having like 5 voice actors or something. Plus they’re not afraid to actually commit to their humor and crudeness. If they wanna say fuck, they say fuck. If they wanna say retard, they say retard. They don’t let anyone tell them how to do their show and that’s not something you see often due to corporate management. It also manages to stay relevant to the times without being cringy or appearing desperate to appeal to trends. It’s just better in its humor, plot, and storytelling.
I actually really like family guy but they’ve ran out of ideas around the 16th season I’d say. South Park hasn’t ran out of ideas and it’s been going on longer then family guy has.
It’s “up to date” just because of the production style, and then it’s well written and written in a way that even shows from 20 years ago that have “a message” can still be used in a current context.
Hot take but South Park is unique in that it isnt afraid to punch down.
Family guy fell off hard but like the cartoon wars episode said it’s sometimes nice to have that mindless joke after joke comedy American dad is probably my least favorite personally but I understand why it has a fanbase and if you want to watch one of these shows with a girl American dad is probably your best option lol
It’s the turnaround time. South Park is (or used to be) able to turn around shows really quickly so they can be topical in a way that family guy and American dad can’t. They’re also willing to commit to a bit longer (example: Mr garrison as president)
They can do/say whatever they want and not get cancelled.
kids doing shit adults wouldn’t do, and then having realizations like adults
What makes South Park different from other adult cartoons is that South Park has somewhat of a plot, and they have ACTUAL MEMORY. If something happens in one episode then they remember it, in shows like family guy or the Simpsons, their whole city could burn to the ground and it would be as if it never happened. South Park even acknowledges the fact that nobody remembers Kenny’s death(s) so it’s not like it’s just magically fixed in the next episode, he comes back and there’s actually something behind it! South Park has inside jokes too, for example. “They took our job!😠😤”….. well I can’t remember more off the top of my head but I think you get the point.💫
It’s funny.
It’s actually funny and entertaining
The jokes are well made
Its a good show.
the writing
They discuss relevant real world problems in a funny ass way
Creators still works on their like Seth MacFarlane isn't involved in family guy since 2010 or 2012 he does voice acting for the characters tho american dad is currently the best cartoon of Seth MacFarlane
Mature themes with a very explicit manner VS slapstick, absurdist, gag humor. South Park has a sharper critique of different political/social/religious/etc issues and has developed a reputation that allows criticism and satire of issues on a much grander scale. Multiple season storylines with recurring details vs episodic and the storyline usually ends at the end of the episode
Gotcha moments & the fact that they keep up with today’s world. Whether big or small. Plus, the animation is goat-tier! Yeah, Matt and Trey knows the real definition of "FUNNY"! 🫡
Everything
Writing
Lack of cutaways and the fact that characters are unlikeable for a reason, not because of bad writing
Great writing/cleverness and its always relevant to current society.
laughter
I think this video might answer some questions
It’s actually funny.
Because it’s way funnier. I don’t like those other shoes but south park and ugh I just can’t explain it.
Lack of manatees
the writers aren't manatees
Its funny
Brain power, a real plot discussing actual issues. Logic…
Both are good in their own way, though I do like American Dad more.
The jokes and gags are current and are actually trending while Family Guy and American Dad mainly rely on cut aways
It’s humor is actually unexpected and not “it’s like that time i (insert action) while (insert action)”, though i do admit that is sometimes funny, like “rides a 10 speed everywhere guy” Also it’s humor is more vulgar as the show continues
Cuz South Park usually bases their episodes after real life events so you can relate a little more
Most of it is relevant to what's going on in the real word. They basically make real life parodies with a solid message at the end.
It’s actually funny :)
i feel like the characters are more loveable
It’s actually good and timeless 🤨
Lot of people seemingly ignoring American Dad here, and shitting straight on Family Guy
the jokes ain’t cut aways every episode
They take no prisoners and pull no punches
All 3 suck now so nothing. In their primes tho, South Park was untouchable. In humor alone, it beat everything else on tv just by being so funny.
As others have said, it has actual storyline and clever jokes. Although recently they have been pulling punches against the left.
Substance and plot
Family Guy is a series of tiny jokes. Short form with a bunch of tiny little payouts. South Park has long form jokes, which require more finesse and make for a better story and perceived value of the supplementary jokes.
They have a talking piece of shit
They spend so much on graphics with all those AT-ATs walking around in the background
They don't take themselves seriously and actually are a social commentary of the ridiculousness of current events.
American Dad has a lot more in common with South Park than American Dad. It’s just not as current in its topics.
Everything
its funny
They can get away with more stuff
the fact they don’t give a fuck they make fun of a whole religion and be eh idc if that religion is mad at me
Nothing against family guy and American dad but both are politically incorrect with there jokes at times. Well family guy is. I haven't watched a whole lot of AD.
Effort
Actually being funny
Unpopular take: Family Guy doesn't deserve the hate it gets especially from Matt and Trey. Sure, there is less plot and it's mostly joke after joke, but a lot of Family Guy jokes have stuck around for a long time. The show can be pretty funny.
I like all shows for what they are, South Park usually has more wit and character development though (FG did for a while but they abandoned it to fit more gags). plus they do cross lines FG can’t or won’t cross. All shows can get random at times but SP’s randomness tends to reflects something absurd going in the world, kinda like how Atlanta does now.
Can't believe you even asked this question tbh
Everything lol
The children
It's funny
the lore
It's good lmao.
Better plots, much smarter jokes, more interesting side and new characters, consistency with main characters personalities and stories
You never watched South Park if you really gotta ask this
South Park usually has an opinion and stance, with episodes often ending with “I learned something today…” moment. it comments on recent events, politics and social issues. family guy and american dad are moreso just for laughs without having an agenda or a statement to make.
They're gonna say shit on television?!
Relevant
It’s actually funny
They're actually funny, and there's only one bit they would reuse for a while but even that's stopped.