Episode Family Guy Season 9, Episode 19/20 - 'Episode VI: It's a Trap!' Recap

"We're about to do Jedi, aren't we?" asks Stewie as the episode opens. The tone in his (Seth MacFarlane's) voice is trepidatious, as though this really wasn't the plan.

Sure enough, the scroll at the beginning tells us to lower our expectations: the writers were exhausted, and they didn't really want to do more than just "Blue Harvest" in the first place. And sure enough, the episode isn't nearly as funny as "Blue Harvest" was. You get the feeling throughout this "Return of the Jedi" spoof that the writers just weren't having much fun.

But that's not to say there weren't some really funny moments. The extended nodding sequence was classic "Family Guy," as was the snapping twig bit in the forest of Endor. The best moments, though, were the ones that clearly came from these writers having watched the "Star Wars" movies a million times before. "Permission to land like a dainty butterfly" elicited a loud "Ha!" from me as I watched, and I particularly enjoyed how they handled "Oh, I'm afraid the Death Star will be quite operational when your friends arrive," a line that clearly sticks with everyone after watching "Return of the Jedi."

Apparently, Family Guy ran out of characters for this installment: Roger from "American Dad" shows up, the bear from "The Cleveland Show" shows up, and Klaus from "American Dad" steps in as Ackbar. The maid as the eyeball guard is a nice touch, though, as is Rush Limbaugh as the Rancor.

Sadly, the humor coming out of "Star Wars" fandom doesn't last too long. As much as I enjoyed the banter between Seth Green and Seth MacFarlane at the end of "Blue Harvest," using the gag again to incite Luke (voiced by Seth Green) at the end just didn't work as well. It was a little better at the very end, though, when all of the MacFarlane characters sided against the rest of the cast...a cute in-joke for those who are up on who voices whom.

Ultimately, "It's a Trap!" stands about the same way in this trilogy as "Return of the Jedi" stood in the "Star Wars" trilogy: a third installment that seems a bit rushed and, while entertaining, can't compare to the other two.