Pilling Them Softly

"Pilling Them Softly" is the first episode of the fourteenth season of the animated sitcom Family Guy, and the 250th episode overall. It aired on Fox in the United States on September 27, 2015, and is written by Hayes Davenport and directed by Jerry Langford.^[1] The title is a play on the Brad Pitt film Killing Them Softly.

Plot

Lois is informed by Stewie's teacher Miss Tammy that he has an attention problem. She takes him to Dr. Hartman, who promptly gives him a prescription to treat ADHD. When he takes the pills, he becomes totally placid. Brian is initially upset about this, but when Meg mentions the creative benefits of it, he decides to try it himself. They both begin to act out of the ordinary.

Meanwhile, at the Drunken Clam, Jerome shows samples of some Korean food to Peter, Quagmire, Cleveland, and Joe. Quagmire claims that he can cook better, and prepares a meal for all of his neighbors; Lois decides that he should have his own cooking show. Channel 5's producer Carson agrees to hire him, but only if Peter joins him due to his silliness; Quagmire agrees to the terms. During the production of "Quagmire's Kitchen", Peter's antics irk him until he finally fires him. Carson decides to give Peter his own show, which proves more popular due to his bizarre behavior. When Quagmire calls it an insult to cooking, Carson decides to have them compete in an Iron Chef America-style cook-off.

Brian and Stewie travel to Connecticut and see George R.R. Martin to impress him with an elaborate system Brian made for a book, but Martin declines it stating that the whole thing is cliché-ridden and likely the result of drugs. Ultimately, they both decide that they no longer need the pills and return home. When they leave, another Martin shows up on a motor scooter and claims that the other George R.R. Martin that is making out with a fan is an impostor.

On the day of the cook-off, Joe helps Quagmire with the competition as Cleveland assists Peter with it. The assigned secret ingredient for their dishes is butter. During a montage, Joe and Quagmire focus on cooking while Cleveland and Peter play around. Joe eventually destroys Quagmire's cooking supplies, sealing his defeat. Peter, seeing this, has a sudden change of heart and devours his meal for Quagmire to achieve victory. Quagmire is touched by Peter's sacrifice, but decides to forgo the show to preserve their good will to each other. Peter and Quagmire decide to end the production of their cooking shows in the same way that Food Network had ended the production of Paula Deen's cooking show. Before the word in question can be said, it cuts to the Drunken Clam as an angry Cleveland says to Peter and Quagmire "You could've just quit the show."

Reception

The episode received an audience of 2.87 million, making it the fourth most watched show on Fox that night behind Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Last Man on Earth and The Simpsons episode "Every Man's Dream".^[2] Jesse Schedeen of IGN gave the episode a 7.9 out of 10, saying "While it may not rank among the show's best, "Pilling Them Softly" wasn't a bad way to kick off Family Guy's 14th season. Both halves of the episode provided a steady (if not heavy) level of humor, with solid spoofs of George R.R Martin and Iron Chef and even offering up a little social commentary to boot. As much as this show has struggled creatively in the last couple years, this is a promising start to the new season."^[3]

Series creator Seth MacFarlane won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance for this episode.^[4][5]

References