Death Is a Bitch

"Death Is a Bitch"

“Death Is a Bitch” is an episode from the FOX animated television series Family Guy. It was produced for season one but aired in season two. It guest-stars Norm Macdonald as Death. The title is a play on the saying "life's a bitch."

Plot summary

Lois finds a lump on Peter’s chest and worries that the lump could mean cancer, prompting Peter to see a doctor. Before his medical test results come in, Peter treats the time he has as if he were dying, setting up a yard sale for life insurance and even trying to buy himself a casket. When the results do come, the lump is revealed to be a benign fatty corpuscle. Peter decides to take a new outlook on life, but does not want to pay the hospital bill, so he declares himself deceased on the insurance form. While the family celebrates in hopes of their own longevity, Death shows up at his house to collect Peter. Despite Lois' protests, Death manages to get Peter to come with him. After a tearful farewell (with the exception of Stewie), Peter leaves with Death, but not before trying to make one last getaway. Death makes pursuit, but badly sprains his ankle chasing him. Lois suggests that Death should stay at their house while his ankle heals so that she can persuade him to spare Peter. Death demands that Peter say nothing about Death’s injury and the fact that no one can die whithout Death on the job, but Peter instead blabs about it to his friends at the Drunken Clam, and inevitably proves it several times by getting shot. He also bets his friends that he can jump from One Financial Plaza building, and live (Peter made $2,000), bets that he can drink over 300 beers without dying, then bets that he can make fun of the toughest people at the bar without dying. The men get annoyed by Peter and shoot him several times, but Peter dosn't die. Soon, one of their bullets hit Cleveland and one of them shoot themselves. They then get into a gun-fight. Lois tries to get Death to reconsider, but he insults her taste in entertainment, hot cocoa and the Griffins' television. Soon Stewie tries to kill Lois again, and this time he almost succeeds, but the only problem is that he forgot that the rules of Death no longer exist if Death is not reaping immortal souls, so he tries to get Death healthy. As soon as Lois manages to convince Death to keep Peter alive, the fact that no one can die becomes top news. Death is outraged but, instead of punishing Peter by killing him (having decided to make good on his promise to Lois), allows Peter to redeem himself by having him take over his job in order to prove to people they can still die. Peter is charged with killing the kids from Dawson’s Creek who are on a crowded passenger plane. He fails to do so because he says, "If I do, then I have nothing to watch on Wednesdays." Instead, Peter unwittingly kills two airplane pilots, proving people are not immortal, and forcing actress Karen Black to land the plane. The Griffins and Death part on good terms, though the family is greatly troubled after Death, joking around with them, says "I'll be back. Really, really soon."

Censorship

• Edits made in syndication:

• Death's flashback of his days as a teenager, where he is having sex with a girl in a car and accidentally kills her and says, "I'm gonna be a virgin forever..." is cut short to remove his line, "...or am I?" followed by his continuing to have sex with her dead body.
• The entire scene of Death playing Life, and his complaints of the TV being old enough to get the DuMont Network, the hot cocoa tasting like crap, and asking Meg for Entertainment Weekly is cut, instead going straight to the scene where Stewie tries to kill Lois, but fails when he realizes that with the Grim Reaper injured, death no longer exists.
• When Death tells Lois that she owes him for letting Peter live, she unbuttons her shirt slowly, thinking he wants sex, to her belly before he stops her. In syndication, Death stops her before her belly can be seen.
• The news report about people hurting themselves and not dying now that Death's ankle is twisted is edited to remove Diane and Tom violently demonstrating how they can hurt themselves without dying (Tom slamming Diane's head on the desk, Diane swinging a sledgehammer at Tom's head, and Tom revving up a chainsaw to use on Diane).
• The Dawson's Creek cutaway ends after Ms. Jacobs says to Pacey, "You mean to say, 'I make love well'", removing her line, "You're good to go again, right?"
• When Peter tells Death that if the kids from Dawson's Creek die, he'll have nothing to watch on Wednesdays, his following line, "...other than the fine programs on FOX," is cut.

• One FOX reairing of this episode edits the 60 Minutes After Dark cutaway to remove Lesley Stahl's line, "One of you is hung like an elf."

Cultural references

• The title of this episode refers to the saying “Life is a bitch.”
• 60 Minutes After Dark, a show Peter and Lois watch, is a combination of the news show 60 Minutes and the raunchy variety show Playboy After Dark [1]. It shows 60 Minutes anchors Morley Safer, Mike Wallace, Ed Bradley, and Lesley Stahl in bed together, with Stahl commenting on how “one of [you] is hung like an elf.” FOX cut this line. Versions of this episode shown on Adult Swim, TBS, and on the volume 1 DVD don't have the line edited.
• Peter passes a black cat, a raven (referred to in the subtitles as a vulture), and a black man, the former two of which are traditionally seen as harbingers of bad luck, and the third a play on the word “black.”
• Peter mistakes the lump in his breast (a fatty corpuscle) for silent film comedian Fatty Arbuckle.
• When Peter asks Death “Who are you?” he answers “I’m Calista Flockhart,” referring to the actress’ thin and bony frame.
• Stewie says that his last helping of white meat was “dryer than Oscar Wilde,” referring to the Irish writer’s sense of humor.
• When Death eats an entire turkey leg in one bite, he attributes the ability to “some films I'm not particularly proud of” he appeared in. This is a reference to the act of deep throating in pornographic films.
• Death’s remark to Peter, “Hey, I caught Flo-Jo, you dont think I can catch you?” is a reference to the untimely death of runner Florence Griffith Joyner.
• When Death decides to stay with the Griffins, Peter objects saying, “How are we supposed to explain you to Mr. Roper?” referencing the original landlord, played by Norman Fell, from the sitcom Three’s Company.
• After his injury, Death is clearly wearing a Providence College hooded sweatshirt. This is also a reference to the Providence College Friars logo.
• The Asian man dual-wielding pistols in the bar shoot out is a reference to John Woo's crime films
• Death exclaims that the Griffins’ TV is so old that they could get the DuMont network on it. Ironically, FOX grew out of the Metromedia TV stations, which in turn were a successor to DuMont. As such, Clarke Ingram, who maintains a DuMont memorial site, has suggested that Fox is a revival of DuMont. [2]
• A scene cutaway shows Jack from Titanic not being able to die.
• As Peter looks at the cast of Dawson’s Creek, the show’s theme song “I Don’t Want to Wait” by Paula Cole plays.
• A cutaway shows a scene of Dawson’s Creek, showing the character Pacey in bed with teacher Tamara Jacobs. Unlike the actual episode, Jacobs corrects Pacey’s grammar.
• Actress Karen Black successfully lands the plane, as her character did in the film Airport 1975. Newscaster Tom Tucker calls it “an obscure reference.” He also mentions her other films Five Easy Pieces and Nashville.
• Stewie uses a tricycle to push Lois down a flight of stairs, a reference to the 1976 thriller, The Omen.
• At the end of the episode, Death gives Peter the complete Boz Scaggs.
• This episode marks the first appearance of two recurring characters; Dr. Elmer Hartman, who would be the recurring doctor in the series (and was markedly more incompetent early on), and Death, who would be played in all his later appearances by Adam Carolla. Hartman is based on Seth MacFarlane's friend Butch Hartman who is also the creator of The Fairly Oddparents and Danny Phantom.
• At the end of the Hitler parody scene the number to call is “213-DU WERDEST EINE KRANKENSCHWESTER BRAUCHEN!!!” This is a threat spoken in German language translating to “You will need a nurse!” (It is spelled wrong though, it should be "213-DU WIRST EINE KRANKENSCHWESTER BRAUCHEN!!!")

References

• Callaghan, Steve. “Death Is a Bitch.” Family Guy: The Official Episode Guide Seasons 1–3. New York: HarperCollins, 2005. 60–64.
• Delarte, Alonso. “Nitpicking Family Guy: Season 2.” Bob’s Poetry Magazine May 2005: 12–13. http://bobspoetry.com/Bobs02My.pdf

External links

• Template:FGwiki
• Death Is a Bitch at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com episode