From Family Guy creater Seth MacFarlane comes American Dad the
hilarious animated comedy about Stan Smith, an over zealous CIA
agent and patriarch of his all American family. American Dad
Volume 3 includes 19 episodes on 3 discs.
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"Im not beloved," CIA Agent Stan Smith is shocked to discover
after eavesdropping on his mocking neighbors in the episode, "I
Cant Stan You." With all the resolve this "pig-headed" Red State
boy and George "The Dub" Bush devotee can muster, he vows,
"I will make these people like me." For those still on the fence
about American Dad, this collection of 18 episodes spanning
seasons two and three ought to do the trick. These characters may
not be as indelible as the Family Guy clan, but these episodes
rarely . If the outrageous storylines dont grab you, the
rapid-fire random gags will. Like King of the Hills Hank Hill ,
Stan (voiced by series co-creator Seth McFarlane) is oft
confounded by a world seemingly gone mad. Unlike Hank, he is the
voice of un-reason. In "Surro-Gate," Stans dizzy wife, Francine
(Wendy Schaal) agrees to be the surrogate for the Smiths gay
neighbors, prompting the disapproving Stan to kip the infant,
as well as the brood of a lesbian couple. In "Black Mystery
Month," Stan reveals a Da Vinci Code-like conspiracy involving
George Washington Carver thats plain nuts. In another episode,
"Bush Comes to Dinner" for a night of drunken debauchery; some
easy-target Bush-bashing redeemed when the President makes peace
between Stan and his "lost cause" liberal daughter, Hayley
(Rachael MacFarlane). Some of the best episodes focus more on the
Smith family than politics. In "The Vacation Goo," Francine
demands a real family getaway after discovering that all previous
vacations were artificially created memories. In "Haylias," it is
revealed that the unwitting Hayley is a brainwashed er
agent, who is activated by Stan to stop her from moving to
France. "The 42-Year-Old Virgin" reveals another shocker:
Trigger-happy Stan has never actually killed anyone! American Dad
revels in guy humor. As Stan tells an unamused Hayley at one
point, "You dont get a willy, you dont get the silly." American
Dad brings the silly, but while the series is not above (or
beneath) moth fart jokes, it is also smart enough to reference,
say, Equus or the touching "When Somebody Loved Me" number from
Toy Story 2. Stans geeky son, Steve (Scott Grimes), bitchy alien
Roger (MacFarlane), and talking fish Klaus (Dee Bradley Baker)
are no Chris, Brian, or Stewie, but this set contains some of
their more memorable outings. In "Frannie 911," it turns out that
it actually would kill Roger to be nice. In "Surro-Gate," Klaus
vows revenge on Roger and Stan following a waterslide prank.
American Dad fans will salute this three-disc sets generous
features, including a riotous Comic-Con cast table read of the
episode, "The 42 Year-Old Virgin," nearly a half hour of deleted
scenes (deleted jokes would be more accurate), unrated versions
(with unbleeped profanities) of certain episodes, and
freewheeling audio commentaries ("Hey, arent we supposed to talk
about the episode?" one participant tries to steer one digressive
conversation). --Donald Liebenson