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"The Long March" is a Hayley and Jeff episode, and a lot of those have flopped big time in recent seasons. But don't worry, dear reader, because I'm here today to tell you that this one was also not very good. I did enjoy the first act of the episode, as Hayley is promoted at work, which Stan is over the moon about. Stan revels in the trappings of corporate life to his daughter, and then disappears, never to be seen again. Some say they can still hear him wandering around the Amazon rainforests to this very day. In one of the best American Dad sequences ever, Hayley is driven insane by her monotonous job. The animation as Hayley slowly realizes everything she's gotten herself into is top notch, and just the kind of weird freakiness I expect out of this show. Hayley and Jeff hit the road in his van, eager to embrace a more free existence. But needing money, they turn to Roger, who turns them into Instagram influencers, constantly hawking the most baffling of products. Roger's overwhelmed agent persona in this episode was very fun, but unfortunately disappears quickly, just like Stan. Jeff objects to this new lifestyle, and the episode goes down the most predictable route, as Hayley sends him packing to be replaced by some ripped dude who is definitely not a hologram.
The third act is a rush to the finish, as Hayley herself suddenly get replaced, and then becomes a slave in a berry farm. Then she's thrown into a death trench after being bitten by a monkey. I'm not gonna lie, the episode had completely lost me by this point. Everything following Hayley quitting her job felt like just the strangest combination of ideas and characters, and nothing really worked. The commentary on the vapidness of Instagram users was fun enough, but they make a very easy target and certainly doesn't come across as fresh or cutting edge. Hayley just sort of decides that Jeff was right all along, even when he completely botches a rescue attempt. Then they get turned into mini-Hulks by drinking acai juice, which is a fun animation gag but feels very much like an deus ex machina, which is not something I've ever associated with American Dad. This whole storyline is a confusing, rushed mess, and even though I like both characters, I think I'm about done with Hayley and Jeff episodes.
Social media remains the focus of "The Long March" in the B-plot, as Steve and Francine deal with a very intimidating Uber driver. Ernie shows up everywhere, on every site, including Tinder. The writers even throw in a very meta Tuttle joke, and it's silly and random, but worked well for me. The ending where Ernie literally murders Klaus as the goldfish gives him a worse and worse review had me chuckling, the perfect fun diversion to make up for the rest of the episode's slog.
5/10
The jokes and animation gags in this episode, combined with the awesomely bizarre B-plot raise "The Long March" from being one of the worst ever to just mediocre. What sounded like an interesting concept on paper didn't work out that way in reality, largely due to the odd disappearance of characters and wonky pacing. Now if you'll excuse me, I have 15 more blog posts to write, and you will read them and you will like them, or I'm setting Ernie loose on you.
"The Long March" is a Hayley and Jeff episode, and a lot of those have flopped big time in recent seasons. But don't worry, dear reader, because I'm here today to tell you that this one was also not very good. I did enjoy the first act of the episode, as Hayley is promoted at work, which Stan is over the moon about. Stan revels in the trappings of corporate life to his daughter, and then disappears, never to be seen again. Some say they can still hear him wandering around the Amazon rainforests to this very day. In one of the best American Dad sequences ever, Hayley is driven insane by her monotonous job. The animation as Hayley slowly realizes everything she's gotten herself into is top notch, and just the kind of weird freakiness I expect out of this show. Hayley and Jeff hit the road in his van, eager to embrace a more free existence. But needing money, they turn to Roger, who turns them into Instagram influencers, constantly hawking the most baffling of products. Roger's overwhelmed agent persona in this episode was very fun, but unfortunately disappears quickly, just like Stan. Jeff objects to this new lifestyle, and the episode goes down the most predictable route, as Hayley sends him packing to be replaced by some ripped dude who is definitely not a hologram.
The third act is a rush to the finish, as Hayley herself suddenly get replaced, and then becomes a slave in a berry farm. Then she's thrown into a death trench after being bitten by a monkey. I'm not gonna lie, the episode had completely lost me by this point. Everything following Hayley quitting her job felt like just the strangest combination of ideas and characters, and nothing really worked. The commentary on the vapidness of Instagram users was fun enough, but they make a very easy target and certainly doesn't come across as fresh or cutting edge. Hayley just sort of decides that Jeff was right all along, even when he completely botches a rescue attempt. Then they get turned into mini-Hulks by drinking acai juice, which is a fun animation gag but feels very much like an deus ex machina, which is not something I've ever associated with American Dad. This whole storyline is a confusing, rushed mess, and even though I like both characters, I think I'm about done with Hayley and Jeff episodes.
Social media remains the focus of "The Long March" in the B-plot, as Steve and Francine deal with a very intimidating Uber driver. Ernie shows up everywhere, on every site, including Tinder. The writers even throw in a very meta Tuttle joke, and it's silly and random, but worked well for me. The ending where Ernie literally murders Klaus as the goldfish gives him a worse and worse review had me chuckling, the perfect fun diversion to make up for the rest of the episode's slog.
5/10
The jokes and animation gags in this episode, combined with the awesomely bizarre B-plot raise "The Long March" from being one of the worst ever to just mediocre. What sounded like an interesting concept on paper didn't work out that way in reality, largely due to the odd disappearance of characters and wonky pacing. Now if you'll excuse me, I have 15 more blog posts to write, and you will read them and you will like them, or I'm setting Ernie loose on you.
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