Stanny Boy and Frantastic
Encyclopedia
"Stanny Boy and Frantastic" is the tenth episode of the sixth season of American Dad!
. It aired on Fox
in the United States on January 23, 2011. This episode centers around the couple of Stan
and Francine
, who are bored with their lives. In a desperate attempt to get out of the house, Stan and Francine take Hayley's
tickets to a circus in order to invite and bond with a couple. While at the show, they both meet Tom and Cami, a young couple. All four go out on various outings, and Stan and Francine begin to have trouble keeping up with the fast-paced lifestyle of Cami and Tom.
This episode was written by Laura McCreary, and directed by Pam Cooke and Valerie Fletcher. It received mostly positive reception upon its release, with much of the praise stemming from the main storyline. It was watched by 4.80 million homes during its original airing. It featured guest appearances from Paget Brewster
, Sarah Chalke
, Anthony Michael Hall
, Kevin Michael Richardson
, and Elmarie Wendel
.
and Francine try to spice things up by going to a circus with tickets taken from Hayley
. Unable to find anyone to go with, Stan sells the tickets to Tom and Cami, a young couple who appear to be Stan and Francine's ticket out of boredom. Invited out the next evening to a late dinner, Tom and Cami take them for a younger couple. After admitting they do not want kids to slow them down, Tom and Cami invite Stan and Francine out to an after-hours nightclub
despite Francine's reservations. Stan, however, is determined to keep up with their new friends. Returning home drunk at 3:00 in the morning, they pass out and are hungover the next morning when they are called up to go rock climbing. Despite Francine's continued reservation about keeping up with the lifestyle, Stan is determined not to lose their new friends. Worse for wear and having rejected Steve
while out with their friends, Stan and Francine hatch a plot to ruin Tom and Cami's birth control
so they will be stuck taking care of a child of their own. When Tom and Cami find out they are indeed pregnant, they break up. When Tom takes the breakup hard, Stan and Francine plot to get them back together. When Hayley conveniently gets tickets to another circus
, Stan and Francine each invite Tom and Cami to force them together. They refuse to fall for the ruse and Stan and Francine are forced to admit that they are parents and it is the greatest thing to happen to them. However, Francine absent-mindedly also admits to the sabotaging of their birth control. Tom and Cami get back together but the friendship is over to Stan and Francine's relief.
Meanwhile, Roger and Steve see an advertisement on television for a cotton-candy shooter and order one with a credit card stolen from Greg Corbin. Klaus
is excited to be in on the action but is rudely dismissed by Roger and Steve. When the shooter turns out to be a dud, Klaus convinces them to stand up to the company and demand a refund. Despite finding out the hold wait time is two weeks, Klaus pushes them into waiting it out. When they finally get through, they are directed to Beverly Billingsley instead of billing. After waiting again, they finally get a live operator who simply tells them to return the shooter for a refund. Steve and Roger are overjoyed until they realize the refund will go straight back on to Greg's credit card
and their labor gets them nothing. Klaus reveals that he egged them on as vengeance for insulting him and crawls away cackling, leaving Roger to wonder if he and Steve are stupid.
guest starred in the episode as Cami, and Anthony Michael Hall
would play the role of Tom. Paget Brewster
and Elmarie Wendel
would guest star as uncredited roles. This would be the first time Brewster would make a guest appearance on American Dad since the season 5
episode "Rapture's Delight
." Along with reprising her role as Hayley, Rachael MacFarlane
would voice various recurring characters. Recurring voice actor Kevin Michael Richardson
also made a minor appearance as well.
, Bob's Burgers
, and its sister shows Family Guy
and The Cleveland Show
. It was viewed by 4.80 million households, despite airing simultaneously with America's Funniest Home Videos
on ABC
, the AFC Championship game on CBS
, and Dateline
on NBC
. The episode acquired a 2.2/5 rating in the 18-49 demographic, a significant increase from the previous episode, as well as a 34% increase in total viewership from the previous episode "Fart-break Hotel
", which was viewed by 3.58 million households during its initial airing.
"Stanny Boy and Frantastic" was met with generally positive reviews from television critics. Rowan Kaiser of The A.V. Club
wrote, "After a somewhat dull episode last week, American Dad moved back into form with a decent episode about Stan and Francine making friends with a younger couple." However, he would criticize the subplot of the episode, saying that the rest of the episode was a "distraction". He went on the give the episode a B, the highest grade of the night tying with The Cleveland Show episode "Like a Boss", and Bob's Burgers episode "Sacred Cow", while scoring higher than The Simpsons episode "Homer the Father
". Critics of Daemon's TV reacted positively to the episode, stating the highlights being the physical gags of the episode. Jason Hughes of TV Squad wrote, "I like when a comedy speaks to me on something I can relate to. And I think American Dad was clever enough in approaching how our lives change as we get older in a way that both sides of the situation can relate to."
The Parents Television Council
, a conservative media watchdog group that is a frequent critic of American Dad!, as well as the series creator and executive producer Seth MacFarlane
, deemed "Stanny Boy and Frantastic" the "Worst TV Show of the Week" during the week of January 23–29, 2011. In an extremely negative review of the episode, the group criticized the episode for its "excessive sexual dialogue and cartoon violence", and went on to write, "Unfortunately, it does this with no regard for the Family Hour. American Dad [...] now airs at 7:30 p.m./6:30 p.m. [...], two hours earlier than usual, in order to make room for the new animated show Bob’s Burgers. Undoubtedly, Fox hopes a strong lead-in audience from the 8:00 p.m. episode of The Simpsons will help boost the numbers for Bob’s. However, if Fox really cared about what families watched, they would schedule the much tamer Bob’s Burgers in the earlier slot, and keep the vulgar American Dad for the last hour of broadcasting. That way, not as many youngsters would tune into the kind of raunchy dialogue and over-the-top violence that garnered the recent episode of American Dad the title of Worst TV Show of the Week." In conclusion of their article, the group stated, "It remains to be seen if Bob’s Burgers will find an audience. For now, it is doing better than any live-action sitcom from Fox in recent memory. Hopefully, one day it will become Fox’s new go-to utility show on Sunday night, relegating American Dad to a more appropriate spot – the DVD shelf."
American Dad!
American Dad! is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane and owned by Underdog Productions and Fuzzy Door Productions. It is produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television...
. It aired on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
in the United States on January 23, 2011. This episode centers around the couple of Stan
Stan Smith
Stanley Roger "Stan" Smith is a former American tennis player and two time Grand Slam singles champion who also, with his partner Bob Lutz, formed one of the most successful doubles teams of all time. Together, they won many major titles all over the world...
and Francine
Francine Smith
Francine Smith is a fictional character on the animated television series American Dad!. She is the wife of Stan Smith and the mother of Steve and Hayley. Francine is voiced by Wendy Schaal.-Fictional character biography:...
, who are bored with their lives. In a desperate attempt to get out of the house, Stan and Francine take Hayley's
Hayley Smith (American Dad!)
Hayley Dreamsmasher Smith Fischer is a character from the animated television series American Dad!. She is voiced by Rachael MacFarlane, the younger sister of one of the series co-creators, Seth MacFarlane....
tickets to a circus in order to invite and bond with a couple. While at the show, they both meet Tom and Cami, a young couple. All four go out on various outings, and Stan and Francine begin to have trouble keeping up with the fast-paced lifestyle of Cami and Tom.
This episode was written by Laura McCreary, and directed by Pam Cooke and Valerie Fletcher. It received mostly positive reception upon its release, with much of the praise stemming from the main storyline. It was watched by 4.80 million homes during its original airing. It featured guest appearances from Paget Brewster
Paget Brewster
Paget Valerie Brewster is an American actress. She is currently known for playing Special Agent Emily Prentiss on the CBS crime drama Criminal Minds. In June 2010, it was said that her role on Criminal Minds would be reduced in the sixth season. In March 2011, Brewster's character left the series...
, Sarah Chalke
Sarah Chalke
Sarah Chalke is a Canadian-American actress known for portraying Dr. Elliot Reid on the NBC/ABC comedy Scrubs, "Second Becky" Conner Healy on Roseanne, and Stella Zinman in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother...
, Anthony Michael Hall
Anthony Michael Hall
Michael Anthony Hall , known professionally as Anthony Michael Hall, is an American actor, film producer and director who starred in several teen-oriented films of the 1980s. Hall began his career in commercials and on stage as a child, and made his screen debut in 1980...
, Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson is an American actor and voice actor who currently stars as Cleveland Brown, Jr. in The Cleveland Show...
, and Elmarie Wendel
Elmarie Wendel
Elmarie Louise Wendel is an American actress, perhaps best known for her role as Mrs. Dubcek in the NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun....
.
Plot
Bored with their life, StanStan Smith (American Dad!)
Stan Smith is a character from the animated television series American Dad!. Stan is a Central Intelligence Agency officer. Although once a case officer, he is now a weapons expert. Stan is voiced by the series' creator and executive producer, Seth MacFarlane.-Summary:Stan Smith born 12 February,...
and Francine try to spice things up by going to a circus with tickets taken from Hayley
Hayley Smith (American Dad!)
Hayley Dreamsmasher Smith Fischer is a character from the animated television series American Dad!. She is voiced by Rachael MacFarlane, the younger sister of one of the series co-creators, Seth MacFarlane....
. Unable to find anyone to go with, Stan sells the tickets to Tom and Cami, a young couple who appear to be Stan and Francine's ticket out of boredom. Invited out the next evening to a late dinner, Tom and Cami take them for a younger couple. After admitting they do not want kids to slow them down, Tom and Cami invite Stan and Francine out to an after-hours nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
despite Francine's reservations. Stan, however, is determined to keep up with their new friends. Returning home drunk at 3:00 in the morning, they pass out and are hungover the next morning when they are called up to go rock climbing. Despite Francine's continued reservation about keeping up with the lifestyle, Stan is determined not to lose their new friends. Worse for wear and having rejected Steve
Steve Smith (American Dad!)
Steven Anita “Steve” Smith is a character from the animated television series American Dad!. He is Stan and Francine Smith's only son and Hayley's younger brother as well as the youngest of the series' 6 main characters. Steve is voiced by Scott Grimes.According to TVTDB.com, Steve's original...
while out with their friends, Stan and Francine hatch a plot to ruin Tom and Cami's birth control
Birth control
Birth control is an umbrella term for several techniques and methods used to prevent fertilization or to interrupt pregnancy at various stages. Birth control techniques and methods include contraception , contragestion and abortion...
so they will be stuck taking care of a child of their own. When Tom and Cami find out they are indeed pregnant, they break up. When Tom takes the breakup hard, Stan and Francine plot to get them back together. When Hayley conveniently gets tickets to another circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
, Stan and Francine each invite Tom and Cami to force them together. They refuse to fall for the ruse and Stan and Francine are forced to admit that they are parents and it is the greatest thing to happen to them. However, Francine absent-mindedly also admits to the sabotaging of their birth control. Tom and Cami get back together but the friendship is over to Stan and Francine's relief.
Meanwhile, Roger and Steve see an advertisement on television for a cotton-candy shooter and order one with a credit card stolen from Greg Corbin. Klaus
Klaus (American Dad!)
Klaus Heissler is a fictional character on the television series American Dad!. He is voiced by Dee Bradley Baker. Despite possessing the brain of a German man and living in the body of a goldfish, the Smith family keeps him under the guise that he is their pet goldfish.-Production history:Dee...
is excited to be in on the action but is rudely dismissed by Roger and Steve. When the shooter turns out to be a dud, Klaus convinces them to stand up to the company and demand a refund. Despite finding out the hold wait time is two weeks, Klaus pushes them into waiting it out. When they finally get through, they are directed to Beverly Billingsley instead of billing. After waiting again, they finally get a live operator who simply tells them to return the shooter for a refund. Steve and Roger are overjoyed until they realize the refund will go straight back on to Greg's credit card
Credit card
A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services...
and their labor gets them nothing. Klaus reveals that he egged them on as vengeance for insulting him and crawls away cackling, leaving Roger to wonder if he and Steve are stupid.
Production
"Stanny Boy and Frantastic" was written by Laura McCreary, and directed by Pam Cooke and Valerie Fletcher. In addition to the main cast, Sarah ChalkeSarah Chalke
Sarah Chalke is a Canadian-American actress known for portraying Dr. Elliot Reid on the NBC/ABC comedy Scrubs, "Second Becky" Conner Healy on Roseanne, and Stella Zinman in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother...
guest starred in the episode as Cami, and Anthony Michael Hall
Anthony Michael Hall
Michael Anthony Hall , known professionally as Anthony Michael Hall, is an American actor, film producer and director who starred in several teen-oriented films of the 1980s. Hall began his career in commercials and on stage as a child, and made his screen debut in 1980...
would play the role of Tom. Paget Brewster
Paget Brewster
Paget Valerie Brewster is an American actress. She is currently known for playing Special Agent Emily Prentiss on the CBS crime drama Criminal Minds. In June 2010, it was said that her role on Criminal Minds would be reduced in the sixth season. In March 2011, Brewster's character left the series...
and Elmarie Wendel
Elmarie Wendel
Elmarie Louise Wendel is an American actress, perhaps best known for her role as Mrs. Dubcek in the NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun....
would guest star as uncredited roles. This would be the first time Brewster would make a guest appearance on American Dad since the season 5
American Dad! (season 5)
American Dad!s fifth season aired starting on September 27, 2009. The season consists of episodes - nine from the 4AJNxx production line and four from 5AJNxx...
episode "Rapture's Delight
Rapture's Delight
"Rapture's Delight" is the ninth episode of the fifth season of American Dad!. It aired on December 13, 2009 on Fox. This episode centers around Stan and Francine's life after the vast majority of the church, including Hayley and Steve, are raptured...
." Along with reprising her role as Hayley, Rachael MacFarlane
Rachael MacFarlane
Rachael Ann MacFarlane is an American voice actress best known for her appearances in Codename: Kids Next Door as supreme leader Numbuh 362 and the FOX animated series Family Guy and American Dad!, both created and executive-produced by her older brother Seth MacFarlane.Aside from voice acting,...
would voice various recurring characters. Recurring voice actor Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson is an American actor and voice actor who currently stars as Cleveland Brown, Jr. in The Cleveland Show...
also made a minor appearance as well.
Reception
"Stanny Boy and Frantastic" was broadcast on January 23, 2011 as part of the animated television line-up on Fox. It was the first show on the block, the second consecutive week that it started the "Animation Domination" line-up. It was followed by The SimpsonsThe Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, Bob's Burgers
Bob's Burgers
Bob's Burgers is an American animated television sitcom, which premiered on January 9, 2011 on the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series was created by Loren Bouchard and focuses on the Belcher family, who runs a hamburger restaurant. On April 7, 2011, Bob's Burgers was renewed for a second season...
, and its sister shows Family Guy
Family Guy
Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
and The Cleveland Show
The Cleveland Show
The Cleveland Show is an American animated television series that premiered on September 27, 2009, as a part of the "Animation Domination" lineup on Fox in the United States...
. It was viewed by 4.80 million households, despite airing simultaneously with America's Funniest Home Videos
America's Funniest Home Videos
America's Funniest Home Videos is an American reality television program on ABC in which viewers are able to send in humorous homemade videotapes. The most common videos usually feature slapstick physical comedy arising from incidents, accidents and mishaps...
on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, the AFC Championship game on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, and Dateline
Dateline
A dateline is a brief piece of text included in news articles that describes where and when the story occurred, or was written or filed, though the date is often omitted. In the case of articles reprinted from wire services, the distributing organization is also included...
on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. The episode acquired a 2.2/5 rating in the 18-49 demographic, a significant increase from the previous episode, as well as a 34% increase in total viewership from the previous episode "Fart-break Hotel
Fart-Break Hotel
"Fart-Break Hotel" is the ninth episode of the sixth season of American Dad!. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on January 16, 2011. The episode follows housewife Francine as she becomes frustrated and bored with her daily routine of taking care of her family. Due to an accident at...
", which was viewed by 3.58 million households during its initial airing.
"Stanny Boy and Frantastic" was met with generally positive reviews from television critics. Rowan Kaiser of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
wrote, "After a somewhat dull episode last week, American Dad moved back into form with a decent episode about Stan and Francine making friends with a younger couple." However, he would criticize the subplot of the episode, saying that the rest of the episode was a "distraction". He went on the give the episode a B, the highest grade of the night tying with The Cleveland Show episode "Like a Boss", and Bob's Burgers episode "Sacred Cow", while scoring higher than The Simpsons episode "Homer the Father
Homer the Father
"Homer the Father" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsons twenty-second season and aired on January 23, 2011 on the Fox Network.-Plot:Homer becomes obsessed with a 1980s family sitcom and starts acting like the show's father...
". Critics of Daemon's TV reacted positively to the episode, stating the highlights being the physical gags of the episode. Jason Hughes of TV Squad wrote, "I like when a comedy speaks to me on something I can relate to. And I think American Dad was clever enough in approaching how our lives change as we get older in a way that both sides of the situation can relate to."
The Parents Television Council
Parents Television Council
The Parents Television Council is a U.S. based advocacy group founded by conservative activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995 using the National Legion of Decency as a model...
, a conservative media watchdog group that is a frequent critic of American Dad!, as well as the series creator and executive producer Seth MacFarlane
Seth MacFarlane
Seth Woodbury MacFarlane is an American animator, writer, comedian, producer, actor, singer, voice actor, and director best known for creating the animated sitcoms Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show, for which he also voices many of the shows' various characters.A native of Kent,...
, deemed "Stanny Boy and Frantastic" the "Worst TV Show of the Week" during the week of January 23–29, 2011. In an extremely negative review of the episode, the group criticized the episode for its "excessive sexual dialogue and cartoon violence", and went on to write, "Unfortunately, it does this with no regard for the Family Hour. American Dad [...] now airs at 7:30 p.m./6:30 p.m. [...], two hours earlier than usual, in order to make room for the new animated show Bob’s Burgers. Undoubtedly, Fox hopes a strong lead-in audience from the 8:00 p.m. episode of The Simpsons will help boost the numbers for Bob’s. However, if Fox really cared about what families watched, they would schedule the much tamer Bob’s Burgers in the earlier slot, and keep the vulgar American Dad for the last hour of broadcasting. That way, not as many youngsters would tune into the kind of raunchy dialogue and over-the-top violence that garnered the recent episode of American Dad the title of Worst TV Show of the Week." In conclusion of their article, the group stated, "It remains to be seen if Bob’s Burgers will find an audience. For now, it is doing better than any live-action sitcom from Fox in recent memory. Hopefully, one day it will become Fox’s new go-to utility show on Sunday night, relegating American Dad to a more appropriate spot – the DVD shelf."