AIRPORT '07

'“Airport ’07”' is a season five episode of the FOX animated television series ''Family Guy''. The title of this episode is a parody of ''Airport ’77'' (and to a lesser extent the other ''Airport'' films).

Contents

Plot summary

Notes

Censorship

Cultural references

References

Plot summary

After seeing a redneck comedy show, Peter purchases a pickup truck and decides to become a redneck. He does such “typical” redneck things as bringing the couch out onto the lawn, propositioning Meg, and chewing tobacco. Eventually, after having to bring Quagmire to the airport (Because Peter painted over the back window and crashed into Quagmire's car), Peter steals Quagmire’s plane’s fuel (thinking it will make his truck fly), causing the plane to crash. Quagmire loses his job, and lives for three weeks with the Griffins, first in the tree-house, and then in the house. During this, he exhibits his typical sex fetishes, such as sticking his foot into Meg’s mouth while she’s sleeping. Lois is fed up and forces Peter to help him get out of the house. Peter decides to attempt a hare-brained scheme with the help of Joe and Cleveland to fix Quagmire’s problems. Quagmire would take the a 6 o'clock flight, Peter and Joe take flight attendant uniforms while Cleveland distracts the guards with music. When they are in the air, Peter will drug the pilots so Quagmire would save the day. However, Quagmire had sex with a woman, losing his flight and chance. He is then given inspirational advice from Hugh Hefner prompts Quagmire to save the day. He tells his friends on how to land the plane, similar to Airplane. Safe, the guys finish the ''Last Holiday''

Notes

The season 2 episode "Death is a Bitch" also referenced the ''Airplane!'' movies, although not as prominently as this episode. This episode marks the first time Quagmire is shown piloting a passenger plane as part of his job (though "Mother Tucker" did show him piloting an antique plane at an air show).

Censorship

★ In the news simulation of the plane crashing into the school of bunnies and the man going home to beat his wife, the wife was originally slapped eight times (which was shown on Adult Swim). The Fox version cut the slapping down to four times.

★ An entire cutaway, which shows Quagmire’s job as Joe’s nurse (where Joe asks Quagmire to help him commit suicide after putting up with Quagmire's incessant baby talk) was cut on the Fox version, but not on Adult Swim.

★ After Quagmire had sex with the airport clerk, he tells her, “Please exercise caution when standing up as the contents of your panties may have shifted during coitus.” The Adult Swim version uses the original word “vagina” instead of “panties.”

★ When Hugh Hefner quotes John Holmes, he says “You know, I’ve got a 13-inch member...” On Adult Swim, he says, “You know, I’ve got a 13-inch penis...”

★ The part near the end, Peter mentions that he was raped in a federal prison after getting arrested for hijacking the plane on the FOX version. On Adult Swim, Peter adds that Cleveland and Joe were raped along with him.

Cultural references

Starting with the title, this episode has many references to the ''Airplane!'' movies. The cameo scene of Hugh Hefner giving Quagmire a pep talk is a direct parody of Leslie Nielsen’s pep talk from ''Airplane!,'' complete with the “Notre Dame Victory March” playing in the background. This was, in turn, a reference to the famous Gipper Speech from the 1940 movie ''Knute Rockne, All American''. This scene is also a reference to the scene in '' where Lance Armstrong (appearing as himself) tells Vince Vaughn’s character not to give up while at an airport bar.
Some external shots of the airplane Peter, Joe, and Cleveland are on have the sound of propellers rather than jet engines. The movie ''Airplane!'' also does this. The manner in which the plane piloted by Peter, Joe, and Cleveland landed was very similar to that of the hijacked plane in the movie ''Executive Decision''.
The climax of the film further parodies ''Airplane!''. Various movements of the score are used, the flight number (209) is the same as the flight number in the film, the first line Quagmire radios to the cockpit is directly lifted from the film, and the crash landing of the plane is similar.

★ The four comedians at the beginning of the episode are a reference to the Blue Collar Comedy Tour.

★ The scene where Peter gets a severe ice cream headache resulting in his head exploding is an homage to the Cronenberg film ''Scanners''.

★ Peter, still in redneck costume, watches an episode of '', that has been "edited for rednecks". In it, Carl Sagan's dialogue has been partially voiced over for "redneck editing" purposes, replacing references to evolution with references to creationism.

★ Many references to 9/11 are made in this episode. While Mayor Adam West reads ''My Pet Goat'' to a group of school children, an assistant interrupts him to alert him to the plane crash. Mayor West ignores the announcement and continues reading in a reference to George Bush’s response to the news of the terrorist attacks. The classroom itself imitates footage of Bush at the time of the announcement in every detail.

★ The three little mice in the corner of the screen announcing “Three Weeks Later” is a parody of the mice from ''Babe''.

★ Stewie comments that living with Quagmire would be worse than living with Marlee Matlin. A flashback is shown of Stewie living with Matlin, who, being deaf, is unaware of her chronic flatulence.

★ When Peter has a flashback to his “other” comedy club when just him and Cleveland go, it is a reference to the Laugh Factory incident where Michael Richards verbally assaulted two black hecklers.

★ The “Prom Night Dumpster Baby” scene is a reference to the 1997 “Prom Mom” incident.

★ During Peter’s “flying truck” fantasy, the ''Top Gun'' anthem song plays in the background. Also in the sequence is a bit where Peter, flying upside-down, approaches an enemy fighter pilot and takes a picture of him as Goose did at the beginning of the film.

★ The dramatic music that plays as we see the airplane with Peter, Joe and Cleveland on board take off is a parody of the dramatic music from the movies Airport and Airport 1975.

★ When Quagmire crashes the plane that he was flying (as a result of the plane being out of gas), his copilot is revealed to be Nien Nunb from ''.

★ When Peter crashes into Quagmire’s car, thus freeing the women trapped inside it, Quagmire speaks fluent Thai to them as they flee: “Hey, where are you going? Come back here, you bitches! I already paid for you! Cheaters! I made a deal with your parents, why do you disobey me?”

★ When Peter talks about his crotch shot photo, it cuts to a parody of the infamous photo of Britney Spears getting out of Paris Hilton’s car and her crotch is uncovered.

★ During the end credits, Quagmire is running down a hill of tall grass and flowers similar to the end sequence of ''Little House on the Prairie'' where young Melissa Gilbert as Laura Ingalls, runs gleefully down the hill. The end music is from the first season of the ''Little House'' series.

★ The scene where Peter disagrees with Lois about whether Quagmire should leave their house, later changing his mind after Quagmire defaces Stewie's pacifier, is a parody of a typical joke on the American sitcom ''Will & Grace''. Straight after this, a montage of clips going past each other, the music, and the font of the words 'Family Guy' are copied off of Will & Grace.

★ The movie the guys make fun of on the plane is ''Last Holiday'' starring Queen Latifah.

References