Extra Large Medium

During a family walk, Chris and Stewie get lost and disappear for a few days. Lois is very concerned about what happened, but suddenly she meets a medium who assures her that everything is normal with the children. Lois and Peter begin to get involved in mediums, even after the boys return home, despite the fact that Brian is trying to reason with them, not believing in extrasensory perception .

Finally, Peter decides that he is a psychic, after which he begins to take money from his neighbors for his abilities. Soon his help is also required by the police: Joe asks for help in finding a man with a bomb. Peter is trying to help, but the man with the bomb explodes, which forces Peter to admit: he does not have any extra abilities.

At this time, Chris has to go on a date with classmate Ellen, a patient with Down syndrome - he made this promise from hopelessness when he wandered through the forest. However, nothing good comes of this.

References to cultural phenomena ^[2]

• Peter claims to have played a major role in the rock musical Star Express .
• Stewie mentions the newspaper headline Stewie Defeats Truman (Stewie defeats Truman ) - a parody of the famous typo in the giant headline “ ” on the front page of the Chicago Tribune on November 3, 1948.
• Peter as a psychic is a parody of medium and television presenter and his show Crossing Over .
• In a scene in which the police show their dependence on Peter’s “superpowers” ​​in finding the missing person, he “establishes a channel of communication” with the spirit of comedian Lou Costello . A little later in the scene with Joe there is a parody of the sketch show Duo Abbott and Costello .

Script writer:

Director:

Composer:

Guest celebrities: Jennifer Birmingham, Jackson Douglas, (as Ellen; sick with the Down Synodrome in real life ^[4] ), Phil Lamarr (as the black man ), Michelle Lee (as Estelle), Nana Visitor ( in the role of the voice of computer ) and (in the role of Spock ).

In the episode, Ellen states that her mother is the former Governor of Alaska . This means that her mother is Sarah Palin , as she is the only woman who has been in this state. To this, her daughter two days after the premiere of the episode via Facebook, stated that she was offended by the creators of the series, because there is a mockery of her brother Trig, a patient with Down syndrome: “If the writers of this pathetic cartoon show thought smart, making fun of my brother and my family, then they did not succeed. All that they have proved is that they are heartless bastards ” ^[5] . Sarah Palin herself criticized the episode in the talk show " ", calling the creators of the show "cruel heartless people" ^[6] . In response, Seth MacFarlane gave an interview to the Los Angeles Times , in which he stated that his animated series is always satire ( the series always uses satire as the basis of it humor; the show is an equal-opportunity offender ) ^[7] . McFarlane was supported by Andrea Fay Friedman, who voiced the episode in Ellen, saying that their joke was addressed to Sarah herself and not her son, and that “former governor Palin lacked a sense of humor” ( the joke was aimed at Sarah Palin and not her son ; the former Governor Palin does not have a sense of humor ) ^[8] . Later, in an interview with another publication, Friedman accused Palin that she used her sick son only as her political support ( using her son, Trig, as a political prop to pander for votes. I have a normal life and Palin's son should be treated as normal, rather than like a loaf of French bread ) ^[9] . To this Seth MacFarlane in the talk show said that with such loud statements Sarah Palin is simply trying to protect people with Down syndrome, and Fay Friedman wants to emphasize: she does not need pity from Palin's outrage a presumptuous attempt to defend people with Down syndrome; and Friedman's statement is her way of saying that she does not need feigned pity from Palin ) ^[10] . Patrick Warburton (voice of policeman Joe Swanson) supported Palin, saying that he personally objected to this joke: “I know that everyone has equal opportunities, but there are some things that do not seem funny to me” ^[11] .

• The premiere of the episode was watched by 6,420,000 viewers, despite the fact that at the same time, the Olympic Games were broadcast live on other channels. The episode in terms of the number of viewers overtook the premieres of The Simpsons ( Boy Meets Curl - 5,870,000 viewers ), American Dad ( May the Best Stan Win - 5,230,000 viewers ), and the Cleveland Show ( Buried Pleasure - 4,850,000 viewers) ^[12] walking on the same channel that evening.
• Reviews of regular critics about the episode were average, without much enthusiasm ^{[13] [14] [15]} . once again awarded the episode the title of “Worst Show of the Week” for “performing a-la Broadway song containing all the stereotypes of mental retardation; harsh speech and sexual hints ”( the Broadway-style song, which contained all the stereotypes of mental retardation; mean-spirited pot-shots, explicit language, and strong sexual content ) ^[16] .
• In July 2010, the episode was nominated for the Prime Time Emmy Award in the Outstanding Original Music and Poems category for the song Girl with Down Syndrome, but received no award ^[17] . A couple of weeks later, Seth MacFarlane performed the song live at the San Diego Comic-Con International festival in front of an audience of approximately 4,200 spectators.

• Extra-Large Medium on TV.com
• Extra Large Medium on the Internet Movie Database
• Lyrics for Girl with Down Syndrome on lyricsreg.com