More Details and Video Preview From Family Guy Star Trek: TNG Episode – Airing Sunday March 25, 2009
by TrekMovie.com Staff , Filed under: Humor, TNG , trackback
This Sunday FOX airs the Family Guy episode “Not All Dogs Go to Heaven" featuring all the stars of The Next Generation playing themselves. Today FOX released a preview video for the episode, including comments from show creator (and huge Trekkie) Seth MacFarlane. There are also more details on the episode from FG producer David Goodman. Check it all out below.
Preview w/ comments from Seth MacFarlane
More details on the episode
The episodes “Not All Dogs Go to Heaven” has two storylines. One story involves Meg and Brian. Meg finds God. And she finds religion and is giving Brian a hard time for his atheism. The second storyline involves Stewie and the family going to the Star Trek convention. When Stewie doesn’t get his question answered he buys plans for a transporter and beams the cast into his room.
The TNG castmembers involved are: Patrick Stewart, Brent Spiner, Denise Crosby, Gates McFadden, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, Marina Sirtis, Michael Dorn and Wil Wheaton.According to Family Guy executive producer David Goodman who tells E!:
They were all very game. We had fun playing with who they are. It’s easy to mock things that take themselves too seriously. Star Trek is both wonderful and pompous at the same time. I really am a die-hard Trekkie, but there are moments in Star Trek where it takes itself very seriously.
Goodman also details an inside Trekkie canon joke on the show:
In the episode ‘Relics’ in Star Trek: The Next Generation, the character Scotty is pulled out of suspended animation, and he says, ‘Oh, did Captain Kirk come to pick me up?’ And then we find out after The Next Generation ended that Captain Kirk died and Scotty was there. So why in that episode did he think that Captain Kirk was going to pick him up if he saw him die later? And, of course, the answer is they hadn’t made the movie yet and made that decision. But there is a possible explanation, which I offer in the guise of a cartoon character, so I was very pleased [laughs] to do that.
Goodman also explained to i09 why they would even do a big thing with TNG now
You could have asked, last week, why we did Back To The Future reference in the show. Seth and I are huge fans of Star Trek, and we realized that while there have been plenty of episodic television that brought back the cast of the original series, in fact, I wrote one of them for Futurama. Seth and I realized that nobody had really reunited The Next Generation, and many of them had appeared on our show. Next Generation was a hugely popular show. We’re not going to reference the most popular and current shows. Our stock in trade are our own memories of those shows we watched when we were younger.
More from Goodman at i09 and E!.
Family Guy’s “Not All Dogs Go to Heaven” airs Sunday March 29th at 9PM (8c) on FOX.
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Comments»
I’m so glad that Trek is becoming more mainstream. Maybe we’ll see some sort of DS9 or Voyager reunion at a point? It hasn’t been long enough, yet. Perhaps one day.
Also, I’ve been seeing the TV trailers a ton recently. Trek is running strong.
Ha CANON JOKE! See this is singlehandedly debunking Gav’s arguement about canon being sooooooooo important in Trek! HA!
Can’t wait for this episode!
I’ve never seen Family Guy before, but may have to now.
Woot! the episode looks like a lot of fun!
In response to “Star Trek is both wonderful and pompous at the same time.” …
I’ve always felt that Next Gen, in particular, was both wonderful and pompous _by turns,_ rather than at the same time. Sort of an oscillating thing. :)
Yeh this looks good,, I hope they do one for ST: TFB
:o)
Mi Gusta, the most gusta, for this episode
Be an anti-”Family Guy” snob if you must, but those clips were damn funny! I’ll definitely be catching this one.
“F*#k you Michael! 15 years later and you’ve still got that attitude!”
hahaha.
The clips, the clips. They’re so Hoover Dam funny.
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
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LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG.
I’m definitely going to watch it.
Brent: I want Chicken Nuggets.
Perfect!
Just watched the preview.
I almost shat myself during the bowling teams quip.
I dunno, I’m still kind of ticked off at Family Guy after being subjected to five straight minutes of Conway Twitty two weeks ago, but by God they can be funny when they put their minds to it!
#3 “I’ve never seen Family Guy before,,,”
What the DEUCE?!
(Sorry – you’ll understand later)
I’m not much of a family guy fan, but this does look rather funny! I think it’s cool that they got the whole cast together to be in this.
TNG is such a great series. I miss it! :(
I wrote a great parody tribute to TNG on my Star Trek Parody page, it’s to AC/DC’s TNT, I call it TNG. heeheh. My throat hurt after I recorded it. Click on my name and look for TNG you can listen to it. Pretty funny.
seth is just the best
Hahaaaaaaaaaaaa. That was EPICLY HILARIOUS. xDDD
I’m totally watching it Sunday. Whoot-whoo!
Best Family Guy-Trek reference is when Stewie is worried about doing a funeral for Rupert and they play the funeral scene from Wrath of Khan, shot by shot, in honor of Rupert. Yes, they even include Amazing Grace swelling as Rupert’s torpedo is launched from the Enterprise.
“GIRL BOOBS!’ LMAO :-)
#17 :: I remember that. I wasn’t sure whether to start cracking up laughing or start sobbing from the memories… ^__^;
This looks good! If it’s half as funny as the TOS Futurama episode was, I’m sure I’ll enjoy it!
Damn, this looks great! Just wish it was a two-parter…
#3 “I’ve never seen Family Guy before,,,”
- You’ve got to see Family Guy…it’s Frigging Sweet…heheheheheheheheh…
# 13. Captain Dunsel -
- Giggity Giggity…Allll-riigghhhttt…
I’m really looking forward to this. I grew up on TNG, and for me, it’s the quintissential Trek. And I’m a big Family Guy fan. I’ve got my calendar booked!
I wonder if they got Stewart from a studio in London… Probably. Maybe even in his own house.
By the time Scotty was pulled out of suspended animation, wouldn’t Captain Kirk be dead anyways? Lol
I wish they would stream ST:TNG on the internet.
#2 how is it debunking it?
*wack* YOU’LL GET NOTHING AND LIKE IT! lol i laughed my ass of at that. Where did Crosby come from all of the sudden? She wasnt in the first image and then she wasnt bowling either. Well what ever, she almost doesnt count.
I am so looking forward to this weekend and the TNG Family Guy spoof. I enjoy this series alot and find its various characters spot-on. I bought Blue Harvest, Family Guy’s spoof of Star Wars, and find it fun to watch. I hear they are making further movies of Star Wars…I’m looking forward to the Empire and Jedi Family Guy spoofs when they get released.
Look at me! I got girl boobs!
Whoot-whoo!
Lol I love Family Guy. I got my DVR set and ready for that one.
I wonder if anyone would know the music playing in the background of the FOX preview? They used it in some Enterprise TV spots as well. I really want to know what that music is.
I love Family Guy, even more for its Trek references, many of them hidden so only trekkies would get it. My fave was at the end of Stewie Kills Lois Part 1, the ending music is identical to the same part from Best of Both Worlds Part 1, and if youre not a Trekkie, it wouldnt be funny. And Im glad to see them doing more TNG, TOS has been used way too much in pop culture, Next Gen deserves its chance, after all it brought Star Trek back to life on TV.
“Look at me. I’ve got girl boobs!”
WHats the deal with the ST:TFB stuff????
One little comma mistake on NBC and BAMMO TFB pops up everywhere…
ugh..
I think this will end up being the only episode of Family Guy I will ever watch…. Sounds like a lot of fun. Oh my!
Hopefully Comedy Central Germany and/or Viva will show this Episode soon xD
Really looking forward to this. I love TNG and Family Guy. How can this not be awesome? :)
My girlfriend and I have already discussed how I know in advance that this will be my favorite Family Guy episode of all time and how this is going to affect our relationship. She’s prepared for viewings in the thousands.. I hope she is..
@33: Most of us are calling it TFB because we don’t like the alternatively proposed abbreviations (like ST09, I know TrekMovie likes that, but… no trekkie I know does and this isn’t exactly ST11, it’s a departure from the last 10) TFB fits perfectly the “three-letter mold” of many of Star Trek’s abbreviations (ex. TOS, TNG, DS9, VOY, ENT, TMP, WOK, SFS, TVH, TFF, TUC, GEN, INS and NEM (on and on!) It’s the way it is. Frankly if it wasn’t for having to pull in the new viewers it probably would’ve been named ST:TFB from the start. Not sure what the complaint is though.
#33: you have no idea what you are talking about. “The future begins” is the official tagline. It has nothing to do with NBC. NBC’s comma mistake suggested “The Future” subtitle, not TFB.
Please god PLEASE let this not be the last time the crew of Next Generation come together. (Crosses fingers for one more movie!!!)
the star wars ep was great, but fam guy tends to fill time by beating a dead joke… like the whole couch thing… jeez, funny for a moment, but a minutes long gag?
ah well… oh, and that loooooong conway twitty segment a week or two ago, freakin’ a!
i love a good twitty non sequitir as much as the next guy but come on, waaaayyy to loong!
its like they want to take an amusing notion and wring all the funny out of it.
then what left?
no more funny, thats what.
cant wait for this ep. love pat stewart on american dad.
Does the video not work for people outside the US???
@42- Jay El Jay
I’ve watched the episode preview…
And I’m from The Netherlands…
TNG crew goes bowling hahaha…
TNG Rulez, kickes ass, forever!!!
Very much looking forward to Sunday night! Maybe this will be the big TNG sendoff we missed in ‘02
@41 JW Wright –
I understand where you’re coming from, but the “beating a dead joke” isn’t really filling time. It’s a comedic joke, in and of itself. For example, witness the “Austin Powers peeing” scene in the first Austin Powers movie – in the commentary on the DVD, Mike Meyers (who probably hasn’t been as funny since the first Austin Powers movie, but i digress) states – the comedy of the joke comes not in the joke itself, but that the joke goes on so long. The intent is that it’s funny at first, and then it stops being funny, and then goes on so long that it starts being funny again – and we find ourselves not laughing at the original premise of the joke, but rather, as an insider laughing at the fact that they are carrying the joke on for so long.
Granted it is a delicate balance, and some times a joke on Family Guy goes on SO LONG that it’s funny, stops being funny, becomes funny again, and then stops being funny again. I would classify the whole Meg on the couch gag from the “Lois works at FOX” episode as one of the ones that went on too long.
#1- Agreed. I love Voyager, and a reunion would be welcome. Especially if it were a direct-to-dvd movie or something.
I am a HUGE fan of Family Guy and I am very much looking forward to this episode. Stewie can be so Khan-like. lol And it will be very cool to have the whole TNG cast reunited and having a little fun with their roles.
Giggety-Giggety-Goo!!!!
#2
now you leave gav alone. for all we know he had a very bad childhood. or is still having one.
i guess we can hope.
I get the feeling poor Denise Crosby is going to die an early and pointless death in this episode….
Also, I loved that Stewie held them at Klingon disruptor point.
Come on this is just stupid silly humor that is very predictable. What happened to the spin off of Star Trek ll The Wrath of Khan? It would have been casted perfectly. In the words of Khan “Don’t insult my intelligence.”
The episode looks hilarious. I might just watch this one.
God bless!
Family Guy is pretty much a one trick pony but it has it’s moments. I never liked TNG but I’ll have to catch this, looks like might be fun.
LMFAO!!!!! So happy they are all good sports and did the voices, cant wait to see it!
I’ll admit, this hasn’t been Family Guy’s finest season, but it’s still one of the funniest shows on TV and this episode should turn it around…for me, anyway. I can’t wait to have this season on DVD just for this episode. Seth is a such a Trek fan and comes up with the perfect moments to bring up at random in Family Guy. Can’t wait!
#50 – “Come on this is just stupid silly humor that is very predictable.”
Yep. And a lot of us are damned glad of it!
This show looks to be a great deal of fun. TNG has always been very popular it stayed in the top 10 syndicated programs for its entire 7 year run. I look forward to this episode of Family Guy and all the silliness it has to offer.
I don’t know about TNG being “pompous”, but for a show where the cast had such fun making it, the characters did seem pretty uptight and humourless, even when not on duty (especially in the first couple of seasons). The only recurring character with a sense of humour was Q.
This lack of humour can be summed up perfectly in Star Trek: Generations, where the crew gather in the holodeck for an informal celebration of Worf’s promotion. But when Data pushes Crusher into the hologramatic water, everyone gets all uptight and tells him “that was not funny”.
These are terrible humans to teach Data about humanity, and terrible humans to represent the human race to Q. I almost wish Picard hadn’t figured out Q’s paradox in All Good Things, destroying the human race.
I also take objection to this Trek notion that in a few centuries’ time humans will evolve into “better people”. It’s pretty naive and condescending to present day humans, in my opinion. If abolishing money made people “good”, then today the world’s poorest people would be the most evil, and the richest would be the most good. And we can see for ourselves that this is simply not the case. There has always been widespread evil throughout human history, and there always will be.
The reason Star Trek characters are so good is either because they have an incredibly strong moral code and have all been raised well by their parents, or — more likely — simply because they are fictional, and are actually quite unrealistic compared to any real human beings I have ever met (with the exception of Christians, I should say). But if the Trek characters were real, they would all be much more spiteful, irritable and bitter. And the show would be very different.
Happy Birthday Leonard!
I guess none of you saw the quick Family Guy preview this week.. in a scene wehre they’re still all on the transporter, Stewie shoots Denise with a laser and she hits the wall and dies.. I think.
Oh I also want to say that trekmovie.com is absolutely retarded for calling it ST09. Seriously that is the worst possible name you can give it. Seriously.
absolutely retarded
It’s either funny or sad that it takes Family Guy to satisfy the canonistas. I can’t wait to catch this one.
ZOMG, this is going to be hilarious!
#57
There’s a slightly out-of-place rant if I ever saw one ;)
@ 38…”A departure from the rest”
Well, I’m thinking of this as Star Trek 11 and you should be, too, if you’ve read any of the Star Trek: Countdown comic books. Everything is running right along fine with what happened in ST:TNG and Nemesis and Insurrection and (ESPECIALLY Nemesis) and of course the TNG episodes “Unification parts 1&2″
And if you AREN’T reading Countdown…I highly recommend it. Sure, you can say “It’s a comic book, it doesn’t count as canon” and that’s a valid point. But the producers/writers/etc. of ST11 have giving it their blessing. I just think that after we see the film, all this “It’s really just a reboot like nuBSG” talk will come to a screeching halt. Fer cryin’ out loud:
SPOILER SPACE
Nero’s ship the “Narada” was once a mining vessel and now it has been modified to kick major butt against enemies of the Romulan Empire. It’s main modified strength is the ship’s adaptability – and in Coundown Issue 3, they explain that it has been upgraded using BORG technology that the Romulans have been keeping and studying all these years. That’s how he’s able to do the things he can do with that ship. Now, I’m sure some will complain about “Oh no, not the Borg again!” but there’s no denying that the Borg is a part of Star Trek history – a big part. I just feel if you’re goal as producer is to chunk everything that came before in the bin and do a “reboot” you’d leave stuff like that out. But they didn’t, they not only kept it, they embraced it. And I can almost guarantee you that Trekkies like you and me will notice right away in the film that this is where the Narada gets her cool powers/abilities/tech…but if I know JJ (from being an avid LOST fan) he won’t hit us over the head with it, there will be little Borg hints – just enough for us Trekkies, but not so much that it will distract people who are coming to see the movie just because of all its positive buzz.
COOL!!!
The convention in Family Guy is at the Providence Civic Center….the same place I went to my first (and only) Star Trek convention way back in 1977!!
What the hell? Nothing even happened in the episode. They showed EVERY scene in the preview last week.
The whole episode was about Meg and her mumps.
All this build-up on Trek website about cast reuniting?
For a quick bowling scene and fast-food ordering scene?
What a f*cking rip.
what song is playing when god is flying through space on his hover scooter?..lol…please help me!!
it was the music from the old Flash Gordon
I wish I had taken Peter’s advice and used the remote he offered me when he announced it was a “Meg episode”. Wow, that was just really unfunny beyond the TNG part of the show, nearly all of which had already turned up online last week. The rest of it was just a screed, and a pretty humorless one. Family Guy used to be pretty funny but I think its gone a little too far up its own ass.
Total waste of time… This was bad even for a regular Family Guy episode. If Seth McFarlane is a Star Trek fan, then he made the “Enterprise” of his own series…
Wow just wow, that was like a waste of time for all the TNG cast… they had like 5 minutes total out of all of them put together on this episode…. I think we should all write to Seth and express our displeasure. Its a huge disappointment!
One of the worst Family Guy’s I’ve seen, and I generally like the show. I don’t think I laughed once. The funniest bit was “Whil Wheaton,” and that’s built on a running gag.
The commercial with Seth McFarlane doing the Family Guy voices was much more entertaining than the episode itself.
#69…Complete agreeance with you there.
Complete waste of talent. Should’ve followed Seth’s advice and changed the channel when the comment in the episode was made that it was a “Meg show.” They could’ve done soooo much with that episode…a 2-parter perhaps? Aside from the “what was it like…?” question Stewie asked the cast after beaming them into his room…were any of his other questions asked in the show by Stewie? I didn’t notice. Overall a horrid episode of Family Guy. Lets all start a letter writing campaign and castrate McFarlane. What’s next? Giving the other franchises of Trek 5 minutes a piece per episode? Utterly digusting. After all the Star Trek franchise has done for pop culture since 1966. I just hope J.J. shuts everyone up that thinks Star Trek has no place in society when May hits when the new Trek movie opens.
Oh…I did like Patrick Stewart’s line when he said “F*** YOU” to Michael Dorn. That…was…hilarious.
What a missed opportunity. They should’ve been the A story, not some five minute throwaway gag.
Wow, what a waste of an opportunity. The few seconds the cast were there was funny. Why didn’t they dedicate the entire episode to TNG? Why go through all the trouble to get them all if you’re not going to use them? I guess this confirms why I don’t watch the show.
Ridiculous waste of time to have the whole cast give their voice for about 3 minutes, while MEG of all people, who never gets a shot at a main story get some stupid god revelation, and that take up the whole show?
gee Seth, you screwed it up …
I missed the episode, so I purchased it on iTunes.
Worst $1.99 I ever spent.
Absolutely agreed. The TNG stuff was on-spot hilarious and I wanted more, more and got NOTHING. They could have done an entire episode with TNG and we got a lame Meg plot. And what’s with the stupid “Contact” rip off at the end — Rob Lowe and Adam West had more screen time than the entire ST:TNG cast. I loved what they did with the TNG characters (like Wil working to win the bear from the claw machine,a and the end showing he did.) Could have been sooooo much more. And what about the Scotty/Canon reference? Didn’t see that at all — did anyone else. Could have been so much more than it was. Seth, we wanted more! The entire TNG stuff was brilliant but FAR FAR too short!
what happend to the scotty canon ref???:(
At the beginning it really seemed like it was going to be a fun ep… and then…. ZZZzzzz. Could Meg not have the mumps in a DIFFERENT episode? Could she not have come down with some malady we’ve seen in TNG?
Squandered opportunity.