You'd better put on a fresh diaper for these four hilarious Family Guy episodes. Attend Stewie's outrageous birthday celebration, see him mend his evil ways after his teddy bear Rupert is nearly torn to pieces, learn how he maintains his youthful tan, and watch him bond with his father by doing something they both really enjoy: tormenting Lois...

Stewie - Best Bits Exposed is a collection of four Family Guy episodes that is designed to showcase Stewie's best episodes. Sounds like a great idea for the casual fan who hasn't already been collecting the box sets, but unfortunately the episodes chosen seem an odd selection. Please note that all season references below refer to the original American season listings, not the rather confusing way that the UK DVD box sets have been grouped into seasons.

The episodes included in this collection include:

Chitty Chitty Death Bang (Season 1): Meg wants Stewie's first birthday party to be something special, but Peter manages to mess up the arrangements. Meg skips the party to hang out with her new best friend - who just happens to be a member of a religious cult.

The Tan Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Season 5): Stewie becomes obsessed with getting a tan and goes a little too far. When it looks like he might have skin cancer he makes Brian help him fulfill a list of final requests. Meanwhile Peter discovers the joy of being a bully.

Stewie Loves Lois (Season 5): After Stewie's teddy bear Rupert is torn to bits by a dog, Lois stitches it back together. Stewie is so grateful that he starts to bond with her.

The Courtship of Stewie's Father (Season 4): Stewie's recent odd behaviour is put down to the fact that he doesn't have a healthy relationship with his father, so Lois makes Peter bond with Stewie. Peter soon realises that Stewie is happiest when they play cruel practical jokes on Lois.

With a title like "Best Bits" you could be forgiven for expecting this to be a collection of clips and not episodes that have previously been released. The DVD cover and title also suggest that the DVD will feature some of the show's naughtier content... it doesn't.

There was no mention, on the press material we received, as to who picked these episodes, but I'd argue that there are much better examples in the show's history that would have worked much better - and actually feature Stewie more.

For example: Road to Rhode Island (in which Stewie and Brian have to make their way home from California on foot); Dammit Janet! (where Stewie attends a daycare centre and ends up falling in love with a girl called Janet); Emission Impossible (in which the Griffins plan to have another baby. To stop them Stewie shrinks himself and enters Peter's body to kill every sperm); From Method to Madness (where Stewie signs up for an acting class. When he's paired up with a young girl called Olivia their singing and dancing routine becomes a hit, but it's not long before the two are fighting); and Road to Europe (in which Stewie becomes obsessed with a British kids' show and runs away to in order to live in the idyllic land portrayed on TV). I could go on and list other episodes (including Sibling Rivalry; Emission Impossible; Stewie B. Goode; Bango Was His Name, Oh!; Stu and Stewie's Excellent Adventure; Chick Cancer; and Road to Rupert) but I think you get the point.

Extras include a digital download copy as well as a ring tone for your mobile phone. However, neither of these were on the review disc we received, so I can't really comment on how good/poor these are.

To be honest this is only going to appeal to the casual Family Guy fan - but as most online stores are offering entire season box sets for a little more than the RRP of this collection I've no idea who would actually buy this for themselves.

4

Darren Rea