The adult-oriented animated sitcom Family Guy has been on the air for more than two decades, and in that time, only one episode has ever been banned despite the series regularly delving into controversial territory. The series aired its pilot on January 31, 1999, and the rest of the season was released starting in April of that same year. The show was cancelled in 2002 shortly after the third season, but high ratings for reruns and strong DVD sales caused the network to renew it for a fourth season in 2004 to air in 2005, and it has been going ever since. In April of 2025, Fox renewed Family Guy for four more seasons, and the 25th season is currently airing, which began on October 5, 2026. A spin-off, Stewie, is set to debut next year, receiving a two-season order right off the bat.
Family Guy is no stranger to controversial material. The writers will make jokes about almost anything. Nothing is sacred, which has long been a catalyst for significant criticism of the series. There have been accusations of racism, homophobia, sexism, and significant stereotyping. There is merit to these claims, and there are many videos on YouTube compiling these various kinds of jokes, though it is not done with malicious intent. The writers will make jokes about everyone. The series has even made jokes involving Adolf Hitler. However, one episode did take things too far for its network, as it has been banned from airing in the United States.
The final episode shown of Family Guy season eight is not the true finale. There is an unaired 21st episode that was supposed to be the last of the season. It’s called “Partial Terms of Endearment,” a play on Terms of Endearment, a 1983 film. While the episode did air on BBC Three, it was never allowed to air in the United States. In the episode, Lois Griffin was asked by an old friend to be her surrogate. Her husband Peter didn’t want her to go through with it, but Lois agreed anyway. Upset by this, Peter attempted to cause her to lose the baby but was thankfully unsuccessful. However, while Lois was pregnant, the friend and her husband were involved in a car accident and were killed.
That is where the controversy comes in. Lois and Peter then had to decide whether she would carry the baby to term and put it up for adoption or terminate the pregnancy. Opinions were mixed, but eventually they decided to abort the pregnancy after visiting a clinic. But as they left, Peter changed his mind after encountering anti-abortion activists. This caused debate between the couple, as Lois advocated for her right to choose while Peter advocated for the fetus’ right to life. Ultimately, the decision was made offscreen to abort the pregnancy. The topic of abortion is highly controversial. While the episode was fully approved by 20th Century Fox, the main production company behind the series, the Fox Broadcasting Company ultimately exercised its right not to air the episode.
The episode was made in 2010 and remains hard to watch now, 16 years later. Not because it was a poorly made episode, though. “Partial Terms of Endearment” was actually praised for its assessment of the difficult subject matter. The concerns Fox had with the episode were financial. They were concerned that the very hot topic would cause trouble with advertisers, potentially causing them to pull their support from the series, and they didn’t want to lose out on those important funds. The company said that while advertisers knew that Family Guy did not shy away from controversial topics and jokes, they felt that abortion could be a step too far for some of them. Series creator Seth MacFarlane would describe the episode as being the closest the writers have ever come to making a modern-day episode of All in the Family, a series known for its controversial topics and main character.
The reason the episode is hard to watch is that it has still not aired in the United States. Fox has continued to ban the episode, meaning that none of the streaming platforms that Fox has their programs on (primarily Hulu and Disney+) carry the episode. This is the only episode unavailable to stream. However, while it is hard to watch, it’s not impossible. While Fox airs the episodes and controls streaming, they do not control other modes of distribution. The episode was released through other means, namely DVDs. In September of 2010, “Partial Terms of Endearment” was released on DVD alongside a number of special features. Those special features included an audio commentary with Seth MacFarlane, a live table read of the episode, and even early animatics from the episode. Fans who want to watch the controversial episode for themselves can do so if they can track down one of these DVDs.
Have you ever seen “Partial Terms of Endearment?” Share your thoughts in the comments.
