Family Guy's Brutal Black Widow Joke Had Marvel Fans Talking

The hit Fox animated sitcom "Family Guy" has been poking fun at American life in its own twisted manner since its debut in 1999. The show follows the lives of Peter Griffin and his zany family in the fictional Rhode Island city of Quahog as they find themselves in absurd and bizarre scenarios. Known for its raunchy humor, over-the-top violence, and controversial content, "Family Guy" has only pushed its non-family friendly sensibilities and level of shock value further with each continuing season. Despite leading to varying degrees of success, the show remains successful with nearly 400 episodes and 20 seasons so far (via IMDb). 

One of the show's comedic trademarks is its cutaway gags. As the name would imply, these jokes involve a character saying a random line, then cutting to a quick gag of some kind that relates to the line before cutting back to the main part of the episode. Usually, it'll have nothing to has do with the main story being told. "Family Guy" certainly didn't invent the cutaway gag, but it has become so imbued into the show's DNA that it has practically made it its own. And while the gags themselves can be hit or miss, there are times when they can elicit some strong reactions. One such example happened when the show decided to poke fun at one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's most beloved heroines.

In the episode "Our Idiot Brian," the show makes a jab at a key Avengers member. When Stewie compares Brian to being as useless as Black Widow, we cut to her standing before the other original six Avengers. When Thor asks what her powers are and she only says kicking, the others raise their hands after Thor mockingly asks who else can kick. Hulk tries to stay out, but when he is called out for trying to be nice, he raises his hand.

Fans had a field day with the gag. The top-rated YouTube comment by user Matteo Verdomo read, "She isn't useless. She can be sacrificed for an infinity stone," referring to her sacrifice in "Avengers: Endgame." An "Infinity War" reference also gets thrown in by SasoRi when they wrote that Thor "really went for the head with that one." Others were straightforward with their thoughts, such as user K.M.B who admitted they found the joke hilarious despite loving Black Widow.

Others noted the irony of the unpowered Hawkeye judging amongst the team. User Cryscorde Ultimasunt commented, "I like how nobody's talking about Hawkeye just sitting there silently." Similarly, A Little Bird noted that "Hawkeye is just sitting there hoping that no one notices him." Still, fans of Black Widow came to her defense. User Jeros Julian D. Infante remarked that her lack of powers and intelligence can be seen as an asset since she can still fight if others have their powers go awry. User Eduardo Gonzalez went even deeper, explaining how she has formed close bonds with every Avengers teammate. 

"Family Guy" got away with a cheeky gag, but no number of cutaways can take away from the admiration fans have for the beloved Marvel character.