Bully for Steve

Plot

Stan notices that his son Steve is too passive and decides to bully him to teach him a lesson. Steve quickly realizes the bully is his own father. After a physical fight, Steve returns home injured. Stan asks what happened, and Steve recounts the events Stan himself caused. Stan changes the subject to his own high school days, when a student named Stelio Kontos bullied him. He tells Steve that bullies don't just disappear and must be dealt with, but when Steve asks how Stan handled Stelio, Stan admits Stelio moved away. Francine disagrees with this approach, saying violence is never the answer, so Stan threatens to beat Steve up again if he tells her about the bullying. Francine grows concerned and notifies Principal Lewis, who reviews security footage despite Stan's threats. Francine discovers Stan is the bully and becomes furious. Stan panics and flees the school, with Francine chasing him and crashing her car into his SUV as he tries to escape.

Enraged, Francine tries to train Steve to fight back, but fails. Steve cannot even dodge Stan while wearing an old lady disguise. Accepting he cannot avoid the bullying, Steve decides to settle things at the school playground the next day at 3:00. Instead of fighting himself, he hires Stelio Kontos to beat up Stan and give him a taste of his own medicine. Stan hypocritically complains that Steve didn't do it himself, even though Stan never stood up to Stelio and still avoids fighting him. Steve says it counts and waits for Stan to admit defeat. Stelio brutally beats Stan, leaving him bloodied and bruised until Stan finally admits defeat. After the fight, Stan is injured and humiliated but respectfully acknowledges Steve for overcoming his bully in his own way.

Meanwhile, Reginald asks Hayley out on a date, and she agrees. They go to a carnival and run into Jeff Fischer, who works there. After a brief conversation, Hayley and Jeff reconnect, and Reginald understands. In another subplot, Roger tries to become a crime scene photographer and finally succeeds by taking a picture of Stan's injuries from the fight. He is then assigned to a brutal triple rape right off the freeway by Captain Crunch.

Production

The episode was penned by regular writers Matt Fusfeld and Alex Cuthbertson, with direction from Rodney Clouden. It marked their second season 6 collaboration after "Don't Look a Smith Horse in the Mouth." Ron Hughart and Brent Woods oversaw as supervising directors, while Erik Sommers handled main producing duties. Co-producers included Laura McCreary and Erik Durbin, with Chris McKenna and Matt McKenna as supervising producers. Walter Murphy, known for composing music for MacFarlane shows like the American Dad! and The Cleveland Show themes, provided the score. Guest stars featured Cleo King, Jeff Fischer, Kevin Michael Richardson, and co-producer Erik Durbin.

Cultural references

A recurring gag involves Stan insulting Steve with a sexual joke using the phrase "That's what your mom said last night," a variation of "That's what she said." While fleeing in his SUV, Stan sings "Drops of Jupiter" by Train. Francine mentions SeaWorld when she says she needs to "punch a dolphin." Steve references Facebook as the site where he found Stelio Kontos. Cap'n Crunch appears at the police station, giving Roger a job after seeing his photograph of Stan's injuries.

Reception

The episode aired on April 25, 2010, as part of Fox's animated television night, following The Simpsons, The Cleveland Show, and Family Guy. It drew 5.31 million viewers and a 2.7/7 rating in the 18–49 demographic, beating The Cleveland Show but scoring below The Simpsons and Family Guy. Ratings increased slightly from the previous episode, "Merlot Down Dirty Shame," with total viewership up 2.65%. The main plot received positive reviews from critics and fans, while the subplot received mixed reception. The Los Angeles Times Show Tracker blog gave a positive review, calling the main plot "the next best thing to Roger’s insanity." Jason Hughes of TV Squad praised the main plot as "a stroke of genius" that "fits in perfectly with [Steve's] character" and led to many funny moments, but gave a mixed review to the Hayley-Reginald subplot, stating he could not "bring [him]self to really care about this relationship, or even Reginald at all."