Family Guy: North by North Quahog

"North by North Quahog" is the first episode of the fourth season of Family Guy, following the revival of the series three years after its cancellation in 2002. Written by series creator Seth MacFarlane and directed by Peter Shin, "North by North Quahog" originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 1, 2005, though it had premiered three days earlier at a special screening at the University of Vermont, Burlington. In the episode, Peter and Lois go on a second honeymoon to spice up their marriage, but are chased by Mel Gibson after Peter steals the sequel to The Passion of the Christ from Gibson's private hotel room. Meanwhile, Brian and Stewie take care of Chris and Meg at home. Family Guy had been canceled in 2002 due to low ratings, but was revived by Fox after reruns on Adult Swim became the cable network's most watched program, and more than three million DVDs of the show were sold. Much of the plot and many of the technical aspects of the episode, as well as the title, are direct parodies of the 1959 Alfred Hitchcock movie North by Northwest; in addition, the episode makes use of Bernard Herrmann's theme music from that film. The episode contains many cultural references; in the opening sequence Peter lists 29 shows that were canceled by Fox after Family Guy was canceled and says that if all of those shows were to be canceled, they might have a chance at returning. Critical responses to "North by North Quahog" were mostly positive, with the opening sequence being praised in particular. The episode was watched by nearly 12 million viewers and received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour). Shin won an Annie Award for Directing in an Animated Television Production for this episode.