Get Ready for Seth MacFarlane to Tackle Immigration with Cartoons
Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane plans to use his subtle cartoon stylings to take on the most divisive of our time, immigration, in a new show for Fox. This can only go terribly.
MacFarlane was able to convince Fox to give him another shot, and another 13-episode season order for his new cartoon show, Bordertown, set to debut in 2014, TV Guide reported on Friday. MacFarlane has Dads, that horrible show, but Deadline points out his animated empire is crumbling: The Cleveland Show is heading towards cancellation and American Dad is moving to TBS. MacFarlance really needed the pick-me-up from Fox executives.
The show was created and written by frequent MacFarlane collaborator Mark Hentemann, who will executive produce with MacFarlane. But the idea of a Seth MacFarlane show about immigration is ten different kinds of troubling. This is what the show is about, per Deadline:
Set in a fictitious desert town near the U.S.-Mexico border, Bordertown centers on the intertwining daily lives of neighbors Bud Buckwald and Ernesto Gonzales. Bud, a married father of three, is a Border Patrol agent who feels threatened by the cultural changes that have transformed his neighborhood. Living next door is Ernesto, an industrious Mexican immigrant and father of four, who is proud to be making it in America.
Oh no. MacFarlane's not known for his racial sensitivity. In fact, his new show, Dads, which Fox picked up for a full season, was questioned initially because some scenes were deemed "too racist." Mother Jones actually asked whether Dads is "the most racist sitcom," and it was a serious question. There's a lot of competition for that title! That a television show created in 203 could contend for that title should have been a sign: maybe Seth MacFarlane is not the best guy to talk about racial tension in America. Instead, Fox did the opposite, which maybe shouldn't be surprising considering they stood by Dads too.
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What a world. At least no one watches Dads anymore.
This article was originally published at http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2013/11/get-ready-seth-macfarlane-tackle-immigration-cartoons/71429/
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