family guy time travel 911

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Family guy: every time brian & stewie time traveled.

Family Guy often sends Brian and Stewie on time travel adventures together and they're usually when the show is at its best.

• Brian and Stewie's time travel episodes are standout adventures on Family Guy, delivering both fun and emotional moments.
• The time machine is a favorite pastime for Brian and Stewie, and they are often at the center of time-travel shenanigans.
• The clever writing and boundary-pushing humor in the time travel episodes make them among the best on Family Guy .

The Family Guy time travel episodes are always memorable adventures, with Brian and Stewie visiting all kinds of different eras in history. Brian and Stewie are often thrown together in a lot of madcap situations, from their many road trips to episodes exploring their strange relationship. These episodes are always memorable, but on special occasions, fans are treated to the Stewie and Brian time travel episodes which take their adventures on Family Guy to a whole other level.

One of Brian and Stewie's favorite pastimes is using Stewie's time machine in the Family Guy time travel episodes. Season 1 of Family Guy showed Stewie building the time machine to avoid the pain of teething. While several different Family Guy characters have used the device to travel in time , Stewie and Brian are always at the center of time-travel shenanigans. Stewie and Brian use the Family Guy time travel episodes to have plenty of fun and deliver some of the more emotional moments in the show's history.

Family Guy: Why Stewie & Brian Aren't Real Friends

"the road to germany", season 7, episode 3.

The first of the Family Guy time travel episodes on which Stewie and Brian embark came during season 7, episode 3, with "Road to Germany." The episode begins with Mort Goldman stumbling into Stewie's time machine while at the Griffins' house after mistaking it for a bathroom. Stewie and Brian decide to follow Mort to the past to bring him back. This takes them to 1939 Germany at the precipice of World War II . In "Road to Germany", they quickly find Mort but realize that the return pad is broken.

In what's gone on to be known as one of the darkest Family Guy episodes , Brian, Mort, and Stewie travel to England while being pursued by Nazis to obtain more uranium fuel, which powers this version of the return pad. They manage to get the uranium after Stewie poses as Hitler and return home safely, 30 seconds before Mort originally enters Stewie's room. To ensure these events don't repeat themselves, though, Stewie kills the version of Mort who traveled through time by putting him in the time machine and blowing it up.

"The Big Bang Theory"

Season 9, episode 6.

The next Stewie and Brian Family Guy time travel episode is season 9, episode 6, titled "The Big Bang Theory." The episode isn't a crossover with the hit sitcom of the same name, but instead is a tale about Stewie nearly being erased from the universe. It begins with Stewie using the time machine to make fun of Brian, leading to the two pals fighting over control of it. This takes them outside the space-time continuum and Stewie discovers that he created the universe with the Big Bang.

After returning to the right point in time, Stewie's half-brother Bertram decides to use the time machine to erase Stewie from existence. This forces Stewie and Brian to go back in time again to try and stop him, resulting in Stewie learning that Leonardo da Vinci is his ancestor . Through a twisted turn of events, Stewie has to kill Bertram (one of Stewie's best rivals) and become his own ancestor before returning to the present day.

Family Guy: 15 Best Stewie & Brian Episodes

"back to the pilot", season 10, episode 5.

Family Guy season 10, episode 5, "Back to the Pilot," sees Brian and Stewie take a very different trip through time. It begins with Brian wishing he could find a tennis ball he buried ten years before and Stewie offering to take his dog companion back in time to figure out where it is. This takes them back to the pilot episode of Family Guy , but Stewie and Brian mess up the timeline when Brian tells his past self about 9/11 .

The chain reaction of events from this detail brings the U.S. into a post-apocalyptic state. Brian and Stewie go back in time once more to try and fix the timeline. This didn't work at first either, as Brian's origin changes, and he is now the author of the Harry Potter books instead. The duo goes back in time again and encounters multiple versions of themselves from different futures. It only ends once the original Stewie prevents him and Brian from ever going back in time in the first place.

"Yug Ylimaf"

Season 11, episode 4.

The next Stewie and Brian time travel adventure takes place in Family Guy season 11, episode 4, "Yug Ylimaf." It begins with Brian using Stewie's time machine to pick up women and unknowingly increasing the trip counter. He tries to reduce the counter but breaks the machine in the process.

When he and Stewie try to fix it, the machine explodes and causes time around them to begin moving backward at exponential speeds . They race against a ticking clock to fix the flow of time before Stewie becomes unborn. Stewie runs out of time as his birth nears and tasks Brian with finishing the repairs. Brian manages to fix the time machine and the flow of time, and he arrives at the hospital just as Stewie is born again.

Which Family Guy Characters Can Understand Stewie

Life of brian, season 12, episode 6.

Family Guy season 12, episode 6, "Life of Brian," is one of the show's most memorable because it's the Family Guy episode where Brian is killed off . The episode begins with him and Stewie on another time-travel adventure, though. They return to Jamestown after a previous adventure saw them give Native Americans guns to protect themselves.

Once the original versions of Stewie and Brian leave, the new ones approach the Native Americans and take back the guns. They then return to the present day and destroy the time machine after having too many near-death experiences. Unfortunately, Brian is hit by a car not too long after, and Stewie cannot go back in time to prevent this from happening or rebuild the time machine.

"Christmas Guy"

Season 12, episode 8.

It makes sense that one of the Family Guy time travel episodes would help undo the controversial killing of Brian . "Christmas Guy" doesn't see Brian join Stewie on the trip to the past, but the dog is an integral part of the plot. Stewie is at the mall meeting Santa when he sees another version of himself from before Brian's death at the store.

This gives him the idea to take the alternate Stewie's return pad so that he can go back in time and save Brian. Stewie succeeds and saves Brian from being hit by the car. However, the episode ends on a bittersweet note when the current version of Stewie sends the return pad to the present and fades from existence.

Family Guy & American Dad: 10 Best Christmas Episodes, Ranked (According to IMDb)

"stewie, chris, & brian's excellent adventure", season 13, episode 7.

The most recent Stewie and Brian time travel adventure came in season 13, episode 7, titled "Stewie, Chris & Brian's Excellent Adventure." The episode revolves around Chris being on the verge of failing the 9th grade unless he can pass his upcoming history test. Stewie and Brian eventually try to help Chris study and realize that normal studying techniques will not work for him.

They later take Chris on a trip throughout history that allows him to learn about the Louisiana Purchase, meet Ernest Hemingway, and board the Titanic. While Chris doesn't retain any knowledge from this adventure, it does result in the death of an ancestor of his history teacher, giving him a new one who doesn't care as much about grades.

"Baby Stewie"

Season 18, episode 15.

While not a typical Stewie and Brian adventure, one of the Family Guy time travel episodes is technically season 18, episode 15, "Baby Stewie." The episode sees Brian pointing out to Stewie that he'll lose his intelligence during puberty. He convinces Stewie that this is true when he shows him a video of Chris Griffin being smart as an infant. In turn, Stewie decides to stop the process of aging by rearranging his DNA.

In the process, he ends up accidentally reverting himself to a normal infant. Unable to take a real baby Stewie, Brian decides to go back in time to convince Stewie that the video of Chris was a joke by playing it in reverse. Though the episode doesn't see the normal type of Stewie and Brian time travel adventure, the episode does rely heavily on the time machine itself and is worth a mention due to its abundance of laugh-out-loud Brian and Stewie moments.

Family Guy: 10 Best Stewie Griffin Quotes

The family guy 9/11 episode featuring time travel caused huge controversy, the controversy behind "back to the pilot".

Family Guy isn't a stranger to controversy and, until the adult animation boom of the late '00s onward, was rivaled only by South Park in terms of outrage-inducing moments. One moment that continues to rile audiences, however, is Brian and Stewie's 9/11-focused time-travel episode, season 10's "Back To The Pilot." The episode sparked uproar when it first aired in 2011 and would continue to make headlines for years afterward when it was rerun on live TV.

Lines like " We did it, Brian — we made 9/11 happen! High-five!," and the general premise of having to cause the September 11 attacks were deemed unpalatable by huge swathes of viewers and many more who'd never seen the show but still took to the internet to voice their concerns. Even though the Family Guy writers tried to keep the barbs self-referential, with Stewie quipping, "Wow. That probably wouldn't look good out of context!" directly after the joke, many felt this was the moment Family Guy went too far.

However, this controversy wasn't enough to stop Family Guy, and the show remains on the air well over a decade later. Family Guy was canceled for a while , but this was long before "Back To The Pilot" aired. While many found the time travel Family Guy 9/11 episode to be in poor taste, many commentators rightly pointed out that the intent was social commentary. The episode wasn't off-brand for the show, as the edgy Family Guy was already no stranger to 9/11 jokes.

Complaints of this nature have a lot more merit when viewers are tricked into ingesting difficult topics by shows that avoid such subjects. "Back To The Pilot" also made some astute observations about 9/11's impact on the United States and how the 21st century might have played out if it had been prevented – it's uncomfortable, but nothing too taboo for the inevitable post-episode discussions. Family Guy may have controversially tackled the topic, but that's expected from a show that gained its following from dark and edgy humor.

Brian & Stewie Episodes Are Often Among Family Guy's Best

What makes the family guy time-travel episodes special.

It's not a surprise that there have been so many Stewie and Brian time-travel adventures as they have often been among the best Family Guy episodes. While the show can often be criticized for relying too much on pop culture references and random cutaway gags, episodes like "Back To The Pilot" and "Yug Ylimaf" highlight the clever writing the show can achieve as they try something new with the storytelling .

These Family Guy time travel episodes allow the show to break the rules and explore unexpected things while pushing the boundaries with humor. Even unpopular decisions like killing off Brian can be somewhat redeemed with a time travel story. With Family Guy showing no signs of slowing, fans can likely look forward to plenty more time-travel episodes in the future.

Family Guy, created by Seth McFarlane and David Zuckerman, follows Peter Griffin and his family as they find themselves in bizarre situations in the fictional city of Quahog, Road Island. Between the cutaway gags and memorable characters such as Chris, Meg, Lois, Stewie, and Brian, Family Guy has become one of Fox’s most successful animations, even winning several Primetime Emmys.

Every ‘Family Guy’ Time-Travel Episode, Ranked

Some of Family Guy’s best episodes over the years involve the usage of Stewie’s time machine. The ability to move through time enables the writers to bend the rules of reality even more than usual, and often leads to some of the show’s most inspired storylines. Let’s look back at every time travel episode, and see which episode was finest of them all.

9. “Chap Stewie” – Original Air Date: May 18, 2014

There was certainly an interesting idea here, with Stewie being born into another, wealthier family. Unfortunately, the episode only spends a few minutes touching on that premise. If we had seen more of Stewie struggling to relate to his English family, the payoff would have likely been more rewarding. Instead, we just get a few brief scenes of life being miserable for Stewie, and so he moves back with the Griffins. This episode has its moments (Unga-Bunga!), but it spends too much time getting to the main storyline, and fails to properly execute an admittedly strong concept.

8.  “Stewie, Chris & Brian’s Excellent Adventure” – Original Air Date: January 4, 2015

I don’t really have any particular issues with this one, but it didn’t seem quite as memorable as the other time travel episodes. Chris’s lack of intelligence has been mentioned over and over again, and every episode has the predictable conclusion where he ends up being smarter than we thought. Still, there were some amusing bits with Stewie, Chris, and Brian traveling through various eras (particularly when Stewie mistakes Hitler for Charlie Chaplin), but even that felt like a lesser version of “Road To the Multiverse.” Not an awful episode, but nowhere near as enjoyable as many of the adventures that came before it.

7. “Yug Yilmaf” – Original Air Date: November 11, 2012

This one was remarkably similar to “Back to The Pilot,” with previous episodes being re-visited, but it was clever enough that I wasn’t bothered too much by that. Brian accidentally sets Stewie’s time machine backwards, so the world goes into reverse time. The best scene here is when Brian and Stewie revisit their experience with Ipecac bottle, except this time, they’re taking the vomit back in. Yes, it was gross, but in a rather inspired way. Naturally, Brian saves the day just in time to stop Stewie from being unborn, and as we leave the hospital, there’s a rare genuinely sweet moment when Peter asks if Stewie is smart, or if he’s “like me.” Peter tends to be a jerk in the later years, but that one got to me a little bit.

6. “Road To Germany” – Original Air Date: October 12, 2008

The first of the “Road To…” episodes to involve time travel, this episode sees Brian, Stewie, and Mort take on Nazis in World War II. Naturally, with source material like this, good taste was not a major concern, with one memorable scene showing a dead Nazi soldier come back to life just to call Mort a “filthy Jew,” while Stewie responds “you should be glad his human resources person wasn’t here to hear you say that.” Really, though, the only joke that bothered me was the McCain/Palin button appearing on a Nazi’s uniform, which felt gratuitous and tacked-on. Otherwise, this is an was hilarious episode, although it’s not for the faint of heart.

5. “Life Of Brian/Christmas Guy” – Original Air Dates: November 24, 2013 & December 15, 2013

A shocker when it happened, we briefly dealt with the possibility that Brian might be permanently dead. Of course, this wasn’t the case, as he was revived after just one episode without him. While the conclusion may have been dissatisfying to Family Guy fans who wanted to see the show do something truly daring, it’s worth noting that Brian’s death was handled quite well. The usually nihilistic show does a fine job of displaying genuine emotion from every family member, especially Stewie. Brian wasn’t gone long, but this was a fascinating way of exploring what life without him might be like.

4. “The Big Bang Theory” – Original Air Date: May 8, 2011

First of all, any episode with Bertram is amazing. Really, he might be the most underutilized character on the entire show. Also this is just an hilarious episode, with Stewie deciding to get revenge on Brian by using his time machine to embarrass him in the past (he even steals the Peanut Butter Jelly Time bit!). This is all well and good until he goes too far back, and accidentally creates the universe. Now, if Bertram kills Stewie, he’ll inadvertently destroy civilization. As this is happening, we find out that Stewie is related to Leonardo Da Vinci (which makes sense), and of course, Bertram ends up being foiled. It wasn’t hard to figure out where things were going with this one, but that didn’t make the payoff any less satisfying.

3. “Mind Over Murder” – Original Air Date: April 25, 1999

You could debate the inclusion of this episode because Stewie is using a different, more simplistic time machine than the one we would we see in later episodes, but it’s a really funny episode, and it’s worth discussing here. Stewie attempting to move past the teething process is the sub-plot, while the main storyline focuses on Peter being under house arrest after punching a woman he thought was a man. He creates a bar in the basement, and neglects Lois in the process, leading her to start singing in the bar, first to get his attention, but later to spite him. Peter is a bit of a jerk here, but it’s nice to remember when he behaved poorly by accident rather than maliciously. A fun reminder of how different the show use to be, while also a precursor of time travel episodes to come.

2. “Back To The Pilot” – Original Air Date: November 13, 2011

In which Brian and Stewie travel back to the first episode of Family Guy in order to find a bone that Brian buried in the yard. Comparing the animation styles of past and present day Family Guy is hilarious (“The TV’s not even plugged in!”), as is the interaction of past and present iterations of Brian and Stewie — present-day Stewie realizes that he’s gone a bit soft. The best joke here is probably the interaction with the Kool-Aid Man, which ends horribly. The whole thing culminates in 100 Brians and Stewies debating whether or not they should prevent 9/11 from happening, and they ultimately decide not to. Would you expect anything less from this show?

1. “Road To The Multiverse” – Original Air Date: September 27, 2009

Not just the finest time-travel episode, but quite possibly the best of the entire series, or at least since it returned to the air in 2005. Countless different animation styles are explored here, and the writers don’t waste any opportunity to experiment with the possibilities for different universe. The Disney universe (scene above) is probably the best part, if only for how dark things turn when Mort Goldman shows up, and is quickly brutalized for being Jewish (“Oh right, this is a Disney universe.”), but we also get the spot-on Flintstones parody, the guy who shouts compliments from very far away, and the Universe Where Everyone Has To Poop Right Just Now. It was clear the writers had a riot putting this together, and the result was one of the most uproarious episodes in Family Guy ‘s history.

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Family Guy Takes On 9/11

Last night’s Family Guy took the show’s enthusiasm for taboo topics to new levels, with Stewie and Brian traveling back in time and stopping 9/11 — then later traveling back to make sure they don’t stop it, owing to the horrendous butterfly-effect consequences (civil war, nuclear disaster, George W. Bush becoming president of the confederacy). It was also a strangely ambitious unraveling of the series’ (flimsy) internal mythology: The time travel had Stewie and Brian revisiting the show’s pilot episode, discussing how their characters and the series generally had changed, and giving a sort of in-show commentary to what’s not usually a particularly self-reflective series. There were a few galling moments, like the sportscaster announcing, “Pat Tillman tackled by his own team,” but that’s sort of the show’s M.O. Maybe the most surprising thing was that “Back to the Pilot” wasn’t just an all-out orgy of tastelessness but was instead an exorcism of patriotic fantasies, as told through time-travel tropes and meta-humor. Plus, hey, the Kool-Aid guy was there.

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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/FamilyGuyS10E5BackToThePilot

Recap / Family Guy S10 E5 "Back to the Pilot"

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• Invoked during Brian stopping the terrorist attacks when he says, "Mohammed 'Atta' stay at home" despite no one knowing his name and using the phrase "Seacrest out" despite American Idol not premiering until 2002.
• In one bad future, Brian becomes the writer of the Harry Potter novels, despite Sorcerer's Stone having already been released in the UK in 1997 with the first film being released in 2001.
• And I Must Scream : One Brian-Stewie pair somehow wound up trapped in barber poles, with no idea how it happened, no means of escaping, and no way to get away from the vomit that comes after constantly being spun around. Future!Stewie : Oh my god, what's that?! Barber pole!Stewie : I don't know what happened! This is life for some reason! Don't do whatever it is you're about to do! Barber pole!Brian : God help us, this is no way to live!
• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking : When Stewie finds out Brian stopped 9/11, Stewie warns him of the unforeseen consequences, such as Saddam Hussein being President, Mexico being the world's dominant super power, and Cookie Monster inventing Facebook.
• Art Shift : The future scenes are done in CGI, while Stewie and Brian remain traditionally animated.
• Aspect Ratio Switch : The ratio goes from widescreen to standard when Brian and Stewie go back to 1999.
• Back to the Early Installment : Currently the trope image. Brian and Stewie go back to the first episode and observe the Early-Installment Weirdness , while Brian uses the time to warn his past self about 9/11. Unfortunately it backfires .
• Bad Future : The prevention of 9/11 causes the Iraq War to never happen, making George W. Bush lose the 2004 election and starting a second Confederacy, leading to a nuclear Civil War with a death toll of seventeen million . It's not too bad for Joe though, as he gets to be a cyborg.
• Boring, but Practical : After the trip to WWII Germany , Stewie reconfigured the Return Pad to use D batteries instead of uranium so it can be easily refuelled.
• The Bus Came Back : In the future, Cleveland moves back to Quahog from Stoolbend due to it being in re-confederated Virginia. A couple years later, his show would be cancelled and he would return for real.
• Cluster F-Bomb : The Kool-Aid Man blames Stewie and Brian with this after he shatters: Kool-Aid Man: YOU GUYS DID THIS! YOU GUYS FUCKING DID THIS! TALKING ABOUT MY GUTS?! FUCKING ME UP?! FUCK YOU!
• Contrived Coincidence : Due to the low power of the Return Pad's D Battery supply, it instead takes Brian and Stewie to the Super Bowl XXXIII. Despite the now simpler means of power, none of them has any money to buy batteries...until Brian remembers that he and Peter were in a blimp above the stadium and dumped a huge amount of cash from the sky.
• Inner Thoughts, Outsider Puzzlement : Brian and Stewie observe what their past selves did during cutaway gags in the past, which was essentially standing around and waiting for the gag to end, much to their confusion. Afterward, Stewie reveals that nowadays, they "send text messages and screw around and whatnot." Present!Stewie : Oh, th- they're do- they're setting up fucking cutaways. Present!Brian : Oh my God, is that what we did back then? Present!Stewie : Yeah, I mean, now we just, like, return text messages and screw around and whatnot. (cutaway to present) Peter : Lois, I am not going back to work tomorrow. That new boss has it in for me! He's meaner than a shifty salesman. (After this, the family gets out their cell phones and other hobbies and Peter smokes a cigarette.) Lois : You sure you got time to smoke? Peter : Oh, yeah, it's an Al Harrington, it goes on for a while .
• Stewie also notes that it was also the time Peter's eye went over his nose ( an animation error that actually occurred in the pilot ).
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero : Brian's attempt to avert 9/11 results in the Southern states seceding from the union as Bush wasn't able to hold on to power without the terrorist attacks to exploit peoples' fears (or at least that's what Brian claims), and a few years in the future the United States are now engaged in civil war after a nuclear war.
• Noodle Incident : Quite a few seem to apply to the various 'future' Brian and Stewies that appear at the end, including two that have somehow become stuck in barber shop twirls and a Stewie with a Brian whose throat has been slit even though all the other Brians are still alive.
• The Other Darrin : In-Universe . Brian and Stewie notice that Meg's voice is different (from ever since Season 2), due to still being voiced by Lacey Chabert back then. Stewie can only say that she sounds like an actress who's "about to lose on a huge opportunity."
• Second American Civil War : Brian warns his past self about 9/11 during a time travel adventure to the first episode of the series, leading to him preventing the destruction of the World Trade Center. As a consequence , George W Bush loses his re-election campaign and instead ends up leading several southern states into forming a second Confederacy and seceding from the U.S. This spirals into a second Civil War and eventually reduces the East Coast to an irradiated wasteland.
• Status Quo Is God : In the end, Stewie and Brian's various other selves all vote not to stop 9/11.
• Stylistic Suck : In the future, the writing of episodes apparently becomes way too lazy. Future!Peter : Hey, Lois, I found some double-sided tape. I think I can do about seven minutes worth of funny stuff with it. That should get us to the Meg kissing booth story. [...] Future!Peter : Chris, I heard you got a "D" on your report card. [to the camera] Here's a cutaway. (cut to Future!Peter standing in a blank white void) Future!Peter : Matthew McConaughey is terrible.
• Take That! : To George W. Bush. Not only does the episode state that Bush only won his re-election because he exploited people's fears after 9/11, but after he lost, he, most likely out of spite over his loss, formed a second Confederacy, which leads into a second Civil War.
• Time Travel Episode : Brian and Stewie travel back to January 31st 1999, the day the pilot episode aired.

Video Example(s):

Family guy: the old cutaways.

We finally see what it was like, to be on the other end of the cutaways

Example of: Inner Thoughts, Outsider Puzzlement

• Family Guy S 10 E 4 Stewie Goes For A Drive
• Recap/Family Guy
• Family Guy S10 E6 - "Thanksgiving"

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'Family Guy' 9/11 gag: Did they finally go too far this time?

Family Guy has never been a show that's found any subject, no matter how controversial, off-limits. So it should have been of no surprise that the animated series handled the sensitive subject of 9/11 in a provocative, if questionable, way. But, now many are wondering if the show has finally gone too far with their risky brand of humor.

During last night's episode, while traveling through time, Stewie and Brian stop the events of 9/11 from occurring, only to find that by doing so they've set off a chain of events that includes a Civil War in a post-apocalyptic America. The two ultimately decide that they must go back in time once more to make sure the tragic events unfold just as they did 10 years ago. "Let it happen," they conclude, which resulted in the two high-fiving one another. Stewie then joked that, out of context, the moment didn't make them look very good. (Or in context, for that matter?) No argument there? Or, in the grand scheme of Family Guy — which has joked about everything from the Holocaust to domestic abuse — is this simply par for the course?

Do you fail to find the humor in their joke that, without 9/11, the world would have become an even worse place? Or should people not be taking something from Family Guy so seriously to begin with? Should the social satire be left in the hands of South Park , or is Family Guy your go-to show for an un-PC take on things? (How upset do you think Cartman would be right now that he was even in the same sentence as Family Guy ?) Take the poll below and share your feelings on the episode in the comments section.

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Family Guy's 9/11 parody: Did the show go too far?

Fox's long-running animated hit may have crossed a line with an episode in which two characters high-five after ensuring that the terrorist attacks happen

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Family Guy is no stranger to controversy. But after Sunday's installment of Fox's animated series, some critics are insisting that this time, the show really went too far . In the episode, Stewie the baby and Brian the dog travel back in time to prevent the terrorist attacks of 9/11 from happening. The duo succeeds — but subsequently, the country lacks the goodwill and national unity that followed the attacks. America then continues down its rancorous, bitterly-divided path until a civil war breaks out, southern states secede, and a nuclear war begins. Ruling that the world would be better off if 9/11 happened, Stewie and Brian go back again to make sure the attacks take place. "We did it Brain — we made 9/11 happen! High-five!" Stewie says, adding moments later, "Wow. That probably wouldn't look good out of context." Did Family Guy finally go too far?

The show crossed a line: It's easy to see why so many people are offended, says Kate Moon at TV Fanatic . The high-five celebration after Stewie and Brian successfully ensure that 9/11 will indeed happen was "definitely" inappropriate. Sometimes, you just shouldn't go there.

" Family Guy : Back to the Beginning"

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This is par for the course with Family Guy : This episode went so far over the line that the show "might need a pair of binoculars to see the line," says Terri Pous at TIME . But what else do you expect? The show's loyal viewers "live for 'too soon' moments, no matter how sensitive the material." What amazes me is that Fox allowed this to go on the air in the first place, after famously shooting down an earlier episode about abortion. Still, people shouldn't read a serious political agenda into this. The show's creators "probably just wanted to cause a stir — and some laughter."

"Did Family Guy 's 9/11 satire go too far a laugh?"

It was actually smart commentary: This episode was kind of brilliant, says Alyssa Rosenberg at ThinkProgress . It was "both charming and politically astute." It's true that if the events of 9/11 didn't unfold as they did, we likely "would have done some bad things to ourselves and our country." The episode smartly captured the notion that "the attacks may have been an initial victory for al Qaeda, but it's a victory we consolidated ourselves."

" Family Guy 's 9/11 counterfactual"

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And there's more to the story: Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane was closer to the 9/11 attacks "than you may realize," says M ike Ryan at Aol . That morning, MacFarlane was scheduled to fly on American Airlines Flight 11 — the flight that struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. MacFarlane missed the flight because he overslept and because his travel agent gave him the wrong time. Maybe Sunday's episode of Family Guy was his attempt to finally deal with the weight of that situation — or maybe it was "just another piece of entertainment that went too far." Either way, the controversy "is even more interesting" knowing MacFarlane's history.

"Seth MacFarlane: Was last night's Family Guy his 9/11 catharsis?"

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Time Machine

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A time machine is a device that allows the user or users to go forward or backwards through time and space.

A time machine is first used in " Mind Over Murder " when Stewie Griffin originally creates it to avoid teething but ends up going back when people copy his plans, which erases the events of the episode.

A cutaway in " If I'm Dyin', I'm Lyin' " features Peter 's cousin Rufus Griffin , who starred in the blaxploitation film Black to the Future driving the Delorean time machine from Back to the Future .

In " The Courtship of Stewie's Father ", Stewie sets up a cutaway parodying Doc Brown at the end of the first film in the flying Delorean time machine telling Marty and Jennifer that they have to come to the future to fix their kids' situation.

In " Stu & Stewie's Excellent Adventure ", the third segment of Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story , Stu Griffin, who is Stewie at 35 years old, uses a time machine in the form of a wristwatch to go on his vacations.

Peter drives the Delorean time machine in " The Perfect Castaway ".

In " Road to Germany ", Mort Goldman mistakes Stewie's new walk-in time machine for a bathroom stall. He lands in Poland on September 1, 1939, the beginning of World War II. When Stewie and Brian realize this, they go in to rescue him. This model is uranium powered.

In " The Big Bang Theory " Bertram used the time machine to try and kill Leonardo da Vinci , Stewie 's ancestor in order to remove Stewie from the universe. However this in turn would have destroyed the universe so Stewie and Brian go back to prevent him from succeeding.

The time machine reappears in " Back to the Pilot " when Brian and Stewie travel back in time to the pilot episode of Family Guy .

Chris , Meg and Peter watch "The first time-travel movie with a perfectly functioning time machine" in " The Blind Side ".

In the "Point of Stew" segment of " Family Guy Viewer Mail No. 2 ", Stewie uses the time machine to travel to April 5th, 1994 to stop Kurt Cobain from killing himself by convincing him to eat lots of Häagen-Dazs ice cream. In the present, Kurt is still alive but is morbidly obese.

In " Internal Affairs ", Peter and Ernie the Giant Chicken fight their way onto Stewie's time pad and end up colliding with Marty McFly and the Delorean time machine in 1885 in Back to the Future Part III .

In " Yug Ylimaf ", Brian uses Stewie's time machine without Stewie's permission to pick up women. To try to avoid getting caught, he attempts to reset the chronological gauge on the machine, but this ends up destroying the machine and reversing the flow of time.

Sick of close calls when they alter the past and are almost killed by Native Americans in " Life of Brian ", Stewie destroys his time machine but is unable to rebuild it when he is unable to get parts after Brian is killed by a car. Later in " Christmas Guy ", he spots himself buying a toy at the Quahog Mall and "borrows" the time machine return pad from his past self, going back in time to warn Brian and avoid his death.

Fed up with his family, Stewie builds an updated version of his time machine in " Chap Stewie " to change his conception to that of an upper-crust British family. But when he realizes he misses his old life, he sneaks into the University of Oxford and builds a rudimentary time machine that enables him to undo his original damage.

Stewie and Brian take Chris on a tour of history in the machine in " Stewie, Chris & Brian's Excellent Adventure " where Chris reveals that Brian had already told him about the machine while taking credit for it. When Chris becomes angry at being called a moron, he steals the return pad and boards the TITANIC, leaving Stewie and Brian to pursue him to recover it and get them off the ship. The pad becomes damaged, but Stewie is able to repair it once they manage to force their way onto a lifeboat.

Lois comes close to discovering Stewie's time machine in " Throw It Away ", when she finds it and drags it out of his room, to declutter but Stewie's secret is kept safe when she assumes it's Meg's science project.

In " Baby Stewie ", after failing to turn Stewie back to normal, Brian uses the time machine to go back and stop Stewie from building the machine that would alter his genes.

When Brian claims to be the smartest one in the family in " Who's Brian Now? ", Stewie reminds him that he built a time machine.

In " Family Cat ", as her room sits next to his, Meg is aware of Stewie's time machine and notes that it's very noisy.

In " Adoptation ", Brian and Stewie use the time machine return pad to go to the sinking of the Titanic to avoid listening to Lois talking about her dream.

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Time Travel Madness Overview – Questions & Answers!!!

Hey there Character Collectors!

Just thought I’d put together a little overview of Time Travel Madness to  answer the questions I’m seeing in the comments, and a few I’ve not seen yet but I know will come. So take a peek below to see if I’ve managed answer all your queries, and if there’s anything else you’re wondering just ask me about it in the comments. I’d also be grateful if any players with the beta testing share their feedback in the comments.

How will I know if I’m in the beta testing group? You’ll see the message below if you’re included in the beta testing.

But even if you’ve not got the feature, this will give you an early look at what might be, and you  can also see what other players who have played the beta testing feature think of it in the comments in this post and by clicking HERE and  HERE .

What is Time Travel Madness?

This is a new feature that contains lots and lots of things you don’t want, (game coins, XP) but a few you do, (event materials, returning characters/costumes and more importantly some new and exclusive characters such as Hedgehog Stewie, Storm Chasing Joyce Kinney).

As you can see it’s timed, usually running for 7 days alongside a Mini event.

I’m going to be honest this is probably going to be much more premium than freemium, so be prepared to use clams if you want reach the top level reward.

Basically players can earn rewards through Stewie’s Time Machine. You use Uranium to travel through time and collect rewards. The more you travel, the better the rewards will be, but you’ll need luck, clams or both not to lose them to a time paradox!

How Do I get Stewie’s Time Machine?

The Time Machine can be purchased at the store for 12000 coins! After it’s  placed it just acts like an ordinary building with rent paid every 24 hours.

Accessing the Time Machine feature will instead be via the Icon that will appear when the feature is live in your game. It looks like this.

Tap on the Icon to open the Time Machine screen.

Time Machine Screen 

Above is what you’ll see.

At the left you’ll see the rewards you’ve collected, you need to reach 50 to get the top prize, which is a new and exclusive character.

On the bottom right you’ll see how much Uranium you have.

Rewards – Tap this to see all the potential rewards.

Start A Time Jump – obviously this sends you on your time jump.

At the very top left you’ll see the new, exclusive character you can win by making 50 successful time jumps in a row.  For this beta test it is Storm Chaser Joyce Kinney.

Tapping “ i ” will bring you up the information box, you can see this below.

How do I get Uranium?

Each player will start with 5 free Uranium. You’ll then send characters on tasks to earn more or buy it for $$$.

The characters that drop it have changed with each test, but at this time it appears to be: Joe, Global Warming Ollie, Ark Builder Tom Tucker

How Do I Earn A Reward?

Basically you’ll use 1 Uranium to do a Time Jump.

Just hit “Start A Time Jump”. You’ll then see a new screen in which you choose a portal to visit.

Once you’ve chose a portal you will wait for the task to complete, at this point you’ll either get an instant complete or a 2 hour wait for the task to complete, you will also occasionally see the opportunity to skip the 2 hour wait by using clams or watching an Ad.

Your award will then be revealed.

It will be placed in the Time Machine, where it will stay until you claim all the prizes earned. You’ll see them in the middle bar, and total in the column on the left. You can take your rewards or keep time jumping.

What are the rewards for a successful Time Jump?

What you get will depend what jump level you are, but every level has a mix of rewards that can include:

Event Currency Event Materials Returning Decorations Game Coins XP Medals Clams Uranium Returning characters  (including those who were exclusives in previous TTM such as Hedgehog Stewie, or bought for $$$ such as Ape Peter) Returning costumes New Exclusive Character (Support have confirmed the beta testing exclusive characters used to date will all appear agin as potential rewards again, so all players will get a chance to get them) Time Paradox

You can see what you can win by tapping rewards then scrolling through the prize boxes. If something is greyed out, such as Ape Peter below, it means you already have it.

It’s really a lucky dip and unfortunately materials can be rewarded multiple times. It’s a bit like the mystery boxes that way I’m afraid.

Where Can I See My Reward?

You’ll get a pop up showing you’re reward, if it’s a successful jump, you’ll see this.

The prize will then be added to your Time Travel current rewards. These will keep adding until you “Take Rewards” but be mindful if you take your rewards you’ll be back to 0 of reaching the 50 you need to get the main prize.  You really want the rewards to accumulate but that comes with the risks of hitting a Time Paradox.

What Is A Time Paradox?

This is what you don’t want to see, basically when you choose your jump portal, the time paradox is the booby prize with an added sting in that it not only ends your run but will see you loose any rewards you’ve built up to that point. The only way to avoid this is to pay clams to keep those prizes and continue your run, or give your rewards up and start over.

I’ve seen costs of 25 Clams and 50 Clams to buy my way past a time paradox.

What Are Guaranteed Rewards?

These are jumps that will never contain a Time Paradox, basically the jump that will see you earn the 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th and 50th reward. But that’s all it means, if you hit a time paradox after that you’ll still lose everything, the guarantee doesn’t mean you’ve banked those rewards and can’t lose them, it also doesn’t mean you will return to your last granted reward level if you have to quit due to a time paradox.

How Do I Unlock The Top Prize Of The New And Exclusive Character?

You’ll need a lot of Uranium and of course good luck as you’ll need to make 50 successful Time Jumps without hitting a Time Paradox, or you’ll need to offset having bad luck by spending clams to bypass any Time Paradoxes you hit.

Hope this helps answer some of your questions and prepares you for the feature once it’s fully launched.

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31 responses to “ time travel madness overview – questions & answers ”.

There are too many time paradoxes to make this worthwhile. I wasn’t spending clams to get the mediocre prizes. Unless they decrease the paradoxes or up the ante on the prizes, this wouldn’t be a focus for me.

Thanks for feedback

In confused why the Clams reward at my top tier is grayed out. There is the character reward and a clam reward both in my top tier, but the clams are grayed out like I’m ineligible for them, weird. Hope you all are well!

It’s because if you get top tier you’ll get the character, the clams become available once you have the character

This is garbage and clearly just a $$ grab. Not for freemium players. I think the most I got i was 4 in a row before i got paradox. Has become pointless for me to send out for a mission as most of the time I got the paradox after 2 runs.

Yeah the no warning or confirmation when spending clams on this seems intentional. Won’t be touching that thing again.

Agree with many of the others. The rewards for the first few tries aren’t anything to write home about, and you’re almost guaranteed to get a time paradox, which will require you to spend spend clams to keep going, or start from zero. It’s going to take a lot of clams to get up the levels where you might get something useful, and it’s not worth it for me. Rather save the clams for use during events.

I’ve got to the first guarenteed prize twice, earning the Satue of Liberty deco, and Minstral Bruce. I chickened out and cashed in the winnings. Spent 25 clams once to keep playing after hitting the time paradox. I’m not going to waste clams trying to get to earn the grand prize

Garbage clam trap. I got 4 successes in a row (earning coins, xp and thermometers). Since then I have got the time paradox at least once every 4 attempts, so to get a run of 50, or even 10, would certainly require a lot of clams. Like the wheel of fortune thing, where i have the jackpot once since it launched (years ago?), and that was just a decoration.

1 jackpot? Thats more than me and i’ve played it from launch.

I’ve been a Guinea pig for this feature in two events. I played it entirely freemium with the occasional ad fast forward. I don’t know what the actual odds of a time paradox are, but it feels like a 50/50 coin flip. The most I’ve gotten is two, maybe three rewards & then *wham* paradox. Every time. So my verdict on this feature: not worth it & shouldn’t be rewarded by giving them clams or ad money.

They would have been smarter to have the paradox odds lower so users get 10-20 levels in so they are invested first, THEN feel they should pay clams. That and “save points” where you don’t lose rewards would keep people gambling.

Like Liked by 1 person

Would be more worthwhile if 1 Uranium is allowed to be used until you hit a Time Paradox, especially since the prizes aren’t worth it, mostly coins and XP. To be using 1 Uranium each try to just win coins or XP, not worth it. I agree 100% with BigDaddy, just like the Wheel of Fun.

It’s basically the new wheel of fun. Don’t expect to see a jackpot, like ever. Just like everyone else I won couple, lost it all, won some, lost it, etc. Haven’t actually got anything out of it yet and played quite a few times so far this event.

5 of the first 7 were Time Paradoxes, and the rewards I don’t really need (coins, XP, snorkels, thermometers). I eventually got four in a row and got a character, but I think that’ll do for now. As BigDaddy says it’s like the Wheel of Fun, and not worth spending clams on.

Have any of you done this yet? I really want the Sonic Stewie, but I’m wondering how many clams you had to spend to get that far. I don’t mind dropping some clams, but so far this seems pretty unreasonable. Any insights?

In testing I hit 22 Time Paradoxes, paid to bypass them with clams, that was to get to the top prize at 50 – the passes were 25 clams each so 550 clams in total just on Time Paradoxes.

Are the chances of scoring the characters pretty good? If you pass the tier they are in (for example, 30 – 39) do you miss the chance for them for the rest of that run?

Hopefully that makes sense. I guess what I’m worried about is spending the clams, getting to the tier with Sonic Stewie, and just winning a bunch of XP and coins or something like that.

Yeah, but I did get couple characters didn’t have, so they do drop

Thanks for the info. I decided to take the plunge and do it. Twice! I didn’t drop quite 500 clams between the two runs, but stopped at 40 both times. I got a couple of new (to me) characters, but of course, no Sonic Stewie. wah wah waaaah

Those sixty something thermometers and bazillion goggles sure came in handy though 🙃

550 clams!! wow 22 Time Paradoxes. Because it’s random too if you tried it again you cold get half as many or maybe up to 30. Doesn’t seem worth it.

Over the weekend I got 4 time paradoxes off 6 goes.

3 time paradoxes in 10 attempts. It’s clearly a clam trap. You will use 300 to 400 clams just to get the top prize.

I ignored the 1st paradox but then had 6 successful time jumps so I used 25 clams to carry on going….. just to have another paradox immediately.

Once they know you’ll spend clams, expect the paradoxes to happen more frequently for you. This is another thing I’ll ignore, much like the alternative worlds.

When tapping the “Keep playing” button after a paradox, it takes 25 clams instantly, it won’t ask you for confirmation. I won’t play the mini-game anymore, unless this is changed.

Oh, so that’s what the ‘Congratulations’ message said. Thank you. It popped up in my game but then immediately disappeared as the app decided to reload itself at that moment, so I didn’t get to read past the title.

So, yes, I have this in my game now. It looks like one of the most lootbox / gambling related features they have added, so might be controversial or unwelcome for some players, or some entire countries.

I spent my initial 5 uranium to learn how it works, which was basically stacking some forgettable junk, encountering the Time Paradox wipe-out on the 4th spin, then winning a snorkel with the 1 remaining uranium. No big whoop!

Good luck anyone trying to reach a level that can pay out clams, characters, or the jackpot. How many players will ever get a 50 spin winning streak… perhaps approximately zero?

I now have this in my game and I already hate everything about it. I did 4 tries – got uranium, a thermometer, XP, and then lost everything. Yeah, that’s neither fun nor interesting and I’m not going to bother with it. This is just a much worse version of the Mystery Box (which was already awful and unfair) with even more chance to get nothing/lose everything. I guess it’s nice we get some free rolls, but otherwise it sucks.

I just tried it another 3 times… TWO paradoxes in a row (2nd after a 2 hour wait), and some crappy XP that nobody needs. What a joke!

I have a few uranium’s & from the prizes I can’t see myself getting overly upset if I lost them due to a time paradox. As for winning the top prize? I have just as much of a chance as winning my states million dollar lottery. 😉 To those you also have this in your game, I wish you a Huge amount of luck.

I have 9 uraniums and from what I can from the prizes available, don’t think I’d be overly upset if I lost them due to a time paradox. As for winning the top prize? I think I’d have about the same chances as winning a million dollar lottery.😉 Wishing all, who also have this in their game, a huge amount of good luck.

Just for fun I ran the 10 uranium I currently had. Won a uranium. Time Paradox. XP, XP, Time Paradox. XP, coins, coins, Time Paradox. Thermometer, coins, XP, coins, broken down Statue of Liberty deco.

Yeah, I’m good with not paying attention to this too much. Kinda like the Wheel of Fun that hands out XP and coins and the very occasional 3 clams. I cannot recall the last 10 clam reward and it has been years since I last hit a jackpot.

I’ve got this feature in my game too and I also got very similar rewards. I did a blast of spending 9 Uranium that I had and of those I got a 2 Thermometers, 2 Time Paradoxes, and the rest was a mix of coins and XP.

It’s nice to get something new in-game, I suppose.

It appeared in my game with this mini-event. I’m not going to go wild with it as I assume the characters will later appear in QHS for thousands and thousands of medals. Seeing a “reward” of ONE Thermometer doesn’t really get my juices boiling for this.

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