Anyone else notice how Peter and Lois freeze whenever Stewie talks around them?

[The True Detective]

I know that most characters don't understand what Stewie says and only here his speech as baby talk but has anyone else noticed this weird thing where characters who can't understand him simply freeze when he talks near them? It's like the toys in the Toy Story universe when humans are nearby.

Here Stewie loudly sings the Mr. Belvedere theme song and Peter, Lois and Chris all stop and sit/stand in silence while Stewie is screaming the lyrics: https://youtu.be/hnuHjMUANTU

Here at around 4:24 minutes in Stewie has just been born and is talking to Brian as Lois holds him and Peter's right next to the bed: https://youtu.be/SMx93KgPCZ8

Sure they can't understand what Stewie says but they do understand Brian so while he's openly conversing with a newborn baby why don't they react to it? Later as they leave Chris asks if anyone else heard the baby and Lois dismisses it as ridiculous. So who does she think Brian was talking to literal inches away from her? Did she temporarily go deaf and somehow lose the ability to hear Brian talk?

On the episode where Brian gets a brain tumor removed at the end he's talking to Stewie as Meg is holding him sarcastically thanking Stewie for unilaterally deciding him being a bitter alcoholic who can only hang out with a baby is better than him being a happy idiot getting laid all of the time. Things nobody says to an infant who as far as almost everyone else knows can't talk or understand complex speech. Meg stood motionless and silent as Brian said it to Stewie not reacting at all.

This is a little nitpick that has always bothered me and my siblings but no one else seems to notice it.

[babyblob]

I remember there was an episode Peter talks to Stewie and adds "Who I can totally understand by the way."

It is really a running joke on who can understand Stewie and who cant.

There have been lots of times he has talked to Chris and Chris not only knew what he was saying but responded to him.

THe biggest example of Stweie talking to Chris is when Chris had Stewie in his back back so that he could tell Chris what to say to bullies and Chris repeated his words line for line.

[The True Detective]

I remember there was an episode Peter talks to Stewie and adds "Who I can totally understand by the way."

It is really a running joke on who can understand Stewie and who cant.

There have been lots of times he has talked to Chris and Chris not only knew what he was saying but responded to him.

THe biggest example of Stweie talking to Chris is when Chris had Stewie in his back back so that he could tell Chris what to say to bullies and Chris repeated his words line for line.

Yes Chris has been able to understand Stewie since the late 2000s when Stewie helped him get a date with a girl he liked. It's Peter, Lois, Meg and others who freeze when he talks near them. When they're all in the living room and Brian or Chris are talking to Stewie what do the others think? It's not like they're saying generic "I got your nose" babytalk to him yet no one ever asks why they're saying such complex or adult things to an infant.

[useridgoeshere]

Family Guy is one of those shows that doesn't really maintain any internal logic or consistency. In one of my favorite scenes where Peter explains why he doesn't like The Godfather ("it insists upon itself" is a great line), Lois understands and agrees with Stewie. There are obviously a lot more examples but that one is top of mind. As they expanded Stewie from being a baby who wants to take over the world, I think it just became impossible to maintain the whole 'everyone thinks he's a baby' thing. If forced to an explanation, I'd say that Peter and Lois unconsciously choose not to understand him preferring the shared delusion that he's a normal baby.

[The True Detective]

Family Guy is one of those shows that doesn't really maintain any internal logic or consistency. In one of my favorite scenes where Peter explains why he doesn't like The Godfather ("it insists upon itself" is a great line), Lois understands and agrees with Stewie. There are obviously a lot more examples but that one is top of mind. As they expanded Stewie from being a baby who wants to take over the world, I think it just became impossible to maintain the whole 'everyone thinks he's a baby' thing. If forced to an explanation, I'd say that Peter and Lois unconsciously choose not to understand him preferring the shared delusion that he's a normal baby.

That explanation makes the most sense but it gets confusing when you see the season 19 episode "Stewie's First Word" where he curses in church and everyone reacts in shock and comments on the it being his first word. That implies Peter and Lois legitimately never heard him speak before that since they consider it the first thing he ever said. I think they should have him speak when he's alone with characters who do understand him. It's distracting when nobody says anything when Brian has long conversations with in their minds a regular non talking baby and they don't think it's strange.

[thwhtGuardian]

That explanation makes the most sense but it gets confusing when you see the season 19 episode "Stewie's First Word" where he curses in church and everyone reacts in shock and comments on the it being his first word. That implies Peter and Lois legitimately never heard him speak before that since they consider it the first thing he ever said. I think they should have him speak when he's alone with characters who do understand him. It's distracting when nobody says anything when Brian has long conversations with in their minds a regular non talking baby and they don't think it's strange.

Again, that's just another example of there being zero internal consistency. Stewie's First word works wholly because of the context provided in the episode not because of any long running plot in the show. It's an absurdist cartoon picking at the tropes of family sitcoms, not an internally consistent family sitcom itself soi there's nothing to be distracted by.

[The True Detective]

Again, that's just another example of there being zero internal consistency. Stewie's First word works wholly because of the context provided in the episode not because of any long running plot in the show. It's an absurdist cartoon picking at the tropes of family sitcoms, not an internally consistent family sitcom itself soi there's nothing to be distracted by.

Except there is some consistent logic ie Peter's always stupid, everyone hates Meg, Quagmire hates Brian, Carter is a rich asshole, most characters don't understand Stewie etc. Even ignoring them hearing Stewie as I said they consistently can understand Brian so what do they make of his conversations with Stewie? Do they suddenly not hear Brian when he's talking to Stewie? If they had an episode where Peter acted shocked at hearing Lois talk would you brush it off because it's an absurdist show? Imagine if after Brian was killed off he was just casually back the next episode with no explanation. Would that have been OK? After all it's just a silly absurd cartoon.

[ed2962]

It's been a while since I watched the show, but I wanna say they addressed once? The explanation was that the adults don't understand Stewie's speech but sorta get the general gist of his meaning...?

[babyblob]

It's been a while since I watched the show, but I wanna say they addressed once? The explanation was that the adults don't understand Stewie's speech but sorta get the general gist of his meaning...?

That was in the episode where Brian and Stewie tried to get Loretta back with Cleveland. Stewie said those close to him but not too close get the gist of what he is saying. While his family other than Brian does not.

THere was also an epsidoe where Peter admits that he hears some things.

[The True Detective]

It's been a while since I watched the show, but I wanna say they addressed once? The explanation was that the adults don't understand Stewie's speech but sorta get the general gist of his meaning...?

That was more in the earlier seasons when Peter and Lois would even occasionally respond to something he said. They haven't done that in probably 20 years at this point. The episode about his first word confirms they've pretty much retconned any previous instances of them understanding him.

[babyblob]

That was more in the earlier seasons when Peter and Lois would even occasionally respond to something he said. They haven't done that in probably 20 years at this point. The episode about his first word confirms they've pretty much retconned any previous instances of them understanding him.

It hasnt been 20 years since they responded to him or at least understood him. Peter has said on at least two sperarte times that he understands Stewie or understands parts of what Stewie says.

[The True Detective]

It hasnt been 20 years since they responded to him or at least understood him. Peter has said on at least two sperarte times that he understands Stewie or understands parts of what Stewie says.

I know but I can't think of any instances that have have happened since the show returned from cancelation in 2005. Scratch that I can't think of any specific instances where Peter has responded to him since the show came back. Of course there's the well known scene where they're arguing about the Godfather and Lois says she agreed with Stewie but other than that I can't think of any other moments of either Peter or Lois responding to Stewie post 2005.

[wleakr]

I know but I can't think of any instances that have have happened since the show returned from cancelation in 2005. Scratch that I can't think of any specific instances where Peter has responded to him since the show came back. Of course there's the well known scene where they're arguing about the Godfather and Lois says she agreed with Stewie but other than that I can't think of any other moments of either Peter or Lois responding to Stewie post 2005.

You're putting way too much serious thought into a cartoon (keyword: cartoon) that doesn't take itself seriously.

[The True Detective]

You're putting way too much serious thought into a cartoon (keyword: cartoon) that doesn't take itself seriously.

I mean this is the same show that has had episodes about abortion, a baby with cancer, domestic abuse, racism, suicide and other very serious topics. It's not like I'm nitpicking Looney Tunes.

[thwhtGuardian]

I mean this is the same show that has had episodes about abortion, a baby with cancer, domestic abuse, racism, suicide and other very serious topics. It's not like I'm nitpicking Looney Tunes.

There's a difference between an absurdist show tackling serious themes and trying to apply logic to a show that has never tried to be internally consistent. I mean, it's a kind of fun exercise if your high with your friends watching it when you were 16, but as an adult it's pretty obvious there's nothing really there to make a theory on.