Hot Water (American Dad!)

Plot

Stan, overwhelmed by family and work stress, lets Principal Lewis take him to the Little Shop of Hot Tubs. There, a used hot tub in the back room catches his eye, and the salesman, Maguerite, warns him against buying it. Stan ignores the advice, purchases it, and brings it home. Once installed, the hot tub reveals it can talk and sing, luring Stan into using it.

This leads to Stan and Francine experiencing their most intense sexual encounter through a shared fantasy. Francine becomes concerned and tells Stan to stay away from the tub, but that night it pulls him back in. She gives him an ultimatum: choose the tub or her. Stan picks the tub, so Francine packs up the family and goes to her parents' house.

Unable to shake his suspicions, Maguerite investigates the hot tub's history. He discovers it came to life after being struck by lightning, killed its original owner, and later escaped from a mental hospital. Maguerite and Principal Lewis go to Stan's house, where the hot tub swallows Lewis and causes Maguerite to crash his car, killing him. The hot tub then imitates Stan on the phone to lure Francine back home.

Stan realizes the trick and returns just as the hot tub swallows Francine. After the tub explains its first killing spree, Stan tries to rescue her but is blasted through the roof and lands on the pavement across the street. He remembers the "Spa Down" Maguerite gave him to calm the tub, but he dies from his injuries. Cee Lo Green, who narrated the episode, announces Stan is dead and says "Good Night," ending abruptly on a cliffhanger.

Reception

Rowan Kaiser of The A.V. Club gave the episode a B+, stating that American Dad used the season premiere to establish itself as the weird middle sibling of the Fox animated shows and that it was probably also the best of them. Dyanamaria Leifsson of TV Equals gave a positive review, noting that the plot line quickly went from standard American Dad fare to just plain crazy with the discovery that the hot tub was alive and had escaped from a mental institution, and that she was not expecting everyone to die at the end. The episode was watched by 5.83 million people, making it the fourth most watched show on Animation Domination that night, behind The Cleveland Show, Family Guy, and The Simpsons with 8.08 million. It was nominated for a 2012 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program but lost to the Penguins of Madagascar episode "The Return of the Revenge of Dr. Blowhole."