Oftentimes, subtle truths are best portrayed by parody.
And if you haven’t seen such a thing done by the hit Fox show Family Guy, you’re missing out.
One of the best things I can say for the program is that it’s an equal-opportunity offender.
And recently, it good-naturedly turned its sights on millennials.
The result was a hilarious take on America’s perhaps-misunderstood generation comprised of those ages 18-36.
I could describe the award-winning satirical show’s May 6th characterization of the Safe Space generation, but viewing it for yourself is far more gratifying.
In the episode, main character Peter’s employer realizes the company must reach out to the triggered demographic. Therefore, he shows his staff an educational film. Enjoy:
A few more plot points:
- Peter’s boss hires a Millennial named Hammer as social media director. Hammer introduces himself and explains that he expects “good things to happen to [him] without working for them.”
- Hammer says he would like to list his trigger warnings. A coworker asks what a trigger warning is, which in turn triggers Hammer. He tweets about the offense, which goes viral. The employee is subsequently fired.
- Hammer teaches Peter — who is now sporting a man bun — how to vape.
- Peter becomes addicted to his cell phone, much like Hammer, who is hit by a bus and killed because of the distraction of his phone.
- Peter becomes the new social media director, and he starts a 6-second talk show to cater to Millennials’ attention span.
- Peter is invited to tour a Silicon Valley tech group’s operation, where he accidentally shuts down the entire internet by peeing on the mainframe computer while in search of the gender-fluid bathroom.
To many, that surely seems about harshly and hilariously right.
Of course, what generation can’t be poked and prodded to comedic effect?
Every age group has its quirks, and the latest ones are no exception.
They’re the latest to challenge our old ways, and also our understanding.
As for myself, I have optimism for tomorrow; and as such, I have hope for those in whose hands lies our country’s future. I’m particularly buoyed by the notion that, if we as a nation can laugh at ourselves, perhaps we can look inward to the betterment of all.
But if not, thanks to Family Guy, we can all at least laugh.