Draft:Faking Bad (American Dad!)

"Faking Bad"
American Dad! episode
Episode no.	Season 10 Episode 7
Directed by	Jansen Yee
Written by	John Unholz
Production code	8AJN08
Original air date	December 8, 2013 (2013-12-08)

"Faking Bad" is the seventh episode of the tenth season and the 159th overall episode of the animated comedy series American Dad!. It originally aired on the Fox Network in the United States on December 8, 2013. Written by John Unholz and directed by Jansen Yee, the episode’s plot, and title, contain many parallels to the American crime drama television series Breaking Bad.

The episode follows Steve and Hayley, as they start a business producing fradulant I.D. cards. Simultaneously, Stan attempts to track down the individual behind this fradulant I.D. card empire, unbeknownst that they are actually his own son and daughter. The episode received mixed reviews from critics and was the least watched show on Fox the night that it premiered.

Plot

The Smith family dine out at "Boobers", a restaurant parody of the Hooters establishment, much to the detest of Hayley. Hayley eventually recognizes their waitress as Zoe, one of Hayley’s previous friends in high school. Zoe invites Hayley to go clubbing with some of Hayley’s other friends from high school, which Hayley accepts. Before the waitress leaves, Steve tells Zoe he is “here on official business”, to which he hands her an "F.B.I." card reading Federal Boobie Inspector. Zoe scans Steve’s card, assuming he truly is "here on official business". Hayley reveals the card was made by Steve, much to Steve’s detest. Hayley joins Zoe and two other women to a club called "Skylark", but Hayley isn’t allowed admission without a fake I.D., leaving Hayley stuck outside the club while the other girls are allowed inside. Zoe suggests to Hayley to go to Kevin Ramage, who can produce her an I.D. for $200. Hayley, unable to pay the fee, goes to Steve, who makes her an I.D. card that works when scanned by the club’s bouncer. Hayley’s friends ask for Steve to also make them fake I.D.’s, much to the chagrin of Steve, but he reluctantly agrees and him and Hayley start a business out of producing fraudulent I.D. cards for money. Kevin Ramage, who is revealed to be one of Roger’s personas, eventually shows up to Hayley and Steve’s van, where their fake I.D. cards are produced, threatening them for stealing his profit by selling the same product as him. Steve and Hayley ignore Kevin’s threats, and before Kevin can leave, Steve announces his new pseudonym as "Guttenberg".

Mr. Bullock approaches Stan at work, telling him of how he was tricked by an underage girl with a fake I.D., informing Stan that his current priority is to track down "Guttenberg". Stan agrees to this, unknowingly agreeing to tracking down his own children. Once Steve and Hayley learn their father has become aware of the business but is unaware to who is behind it, Steve suggests that they should stop while their on top and quit the I.D. card forgery business, but they both eventually decide to continue the business. Hayley leaves Steve their night shift as she stays at home, but soon hears of Stan’s intention to bust "Guttenberg" that night, Hayley attempts to call Steve but he ignores the call and continues working. Stan bursts into their workplace, but Steve was able to answer Hayley’s second call off-screen and learn of Stan’s plan, making it seem as if he was ambushed by the "real I.D. card counterfeiters", to which Stan believes, going back to his hunt to find "Guttenberg". Kevin Ramage asks Steve and Hayley if they would be open to merging their business’ together and built an empire, but they reject his offer. Stan leaves their residence late at night dressed as a women to once again go track down "Guttenberg", but ends up being distracted by a quick fling he has with a young boy. Stan doesn’t realize he went off-track and stopped focusing on his main priority until Francine points it out to him, Stan then goes back to tracking down "Guttenberg".

While selling fake I.D. cards to kids outside of a strip club, Hayley runs into Zoe and her two friends, the girls mock Hayley for working with her "pervy little brother", but Hayley lies and says that she is the one making the cards while he only believes he is helping, Steve ends up overhearing this conversation. Hurt from Hayley’s lies, Steve goes to Kevin and accepts his previous proposal, starting an enterprise built on passport fraud (originally unbeknownst to Steve). While clubbing with her friends, Hayley ditches them to go check on Steve and Kevin’s newfound business, only to witness them be betrayed by a crime cartel, to which she calls the C.I.A. and informs them of "Guttenberg" being at her location. Stan appears on the scene, and is astonished to see Steve is behind everything, only for Hayley to lie to him and claim that she was "Guttenberg" the entire time, to which Stan has her imprisoned. Hayley is given a 10 year prison sentence leaving her in prison until she is 29, but is able to leave early once Steve gives her a fake I.D. that states she already is 29 years old.

Parallels to Breaking Bad

The episode’s plot, structure, and imagery contain many references to the AMC crime drama television series Breaking Bad. The episode’s title ("Faking Bad") is a play on words of Breaking Bad’s title. The episode’s plot structure follows the same beats as the story of Breaking Bad, as Hayley and Steve start producing fraudulent I.D.’s, an illegal product, similar to how Walter White and Jesse Pinkman (protagonists of the Breaking Bad series) sell Methamphetamine, an illegal product. While selling his fraudulent I.D. cards, Steve gives himself the pseudonym "Guttenberg", a reference to "Heisenberg", the name Walter White gives himself in Breaking Bad while selling Methamphetamine. The scene in which Steve reflects near the pool staring into the water is similar in structure to a scene from Breaking Bad’s pilot where Walter sits near his pool in a similar fashion. Near the episode’s conclusion, Steve dons a pork pie hat, an accessory often associated with Walter White’s alter ego "Heisenberg".

Reception

In its original broadcast on the Fox network, "Faking Bad" acquired a 2.1 Nielsen rating. It was viewed in approximately 4.36 million homes. The episode was the least watched program on Fox’s Animation Domination block that night, losing to The Simpsons, Bob's Burgers, and Family Guy.

Critic Kevin McFarland was mixed in his review of the episode, complimenting its "decent jokes", but saying it was “merely passable" in comparison to the season’s previous installments. He ended up giving the episode a B rating, calling it an "acceptable, middle-of-the-road, minimum-effort parody".