Family Guy: Five Unanswered Questions About Brian’s Return

Last Sunday night, Brian Griffin returned from the dead on Family Guy, and the world rejoiced. Now, having some time to reflect on Brian’s return, we realize that the “Christmas Guy” episode left us with some unanswered questions.Is Vinny the Dog gone for good? – According to initial reports, Tony Sirico signed a six episode deal to voice Vinny the Dog. Family Guy isn’t like The Walking Dead, where script changes might result in a character being killed off early. Vinny’s entire plot line is something that would have been planned out from the beginning, so if the six episode deal reports were accurate, he will likely be back for three more episodes at some point.Why didn’t past Stewie turn and warn Brian? – In the original “Life of Brian” episode, Stewie turned at the door to the house and saw the car heading toward Brian. He tried to yell out a warning to Brian, but it was too late. In the “Christmas Guy” episode, Stewie doesn’t stop and turn, but he runs straight into the house. If he had stopped and turned like in the original episode, then he would have seen his future self. Check out the two videos below to see exactly what we’re talking about. Why the change in past Stewie’s behavior? Did Stewie travel back to an alternate timeline?Who was driving the car that [nearly] killed Brian? – During the weeks when the world believed that Brian was dead, there was lots of speculation about who was driving the car that killed Brian. Some theories suggested that whoever the driver was would play a role in Brian’s return. However, it was never revealed in the “Christmas Guy” episode who the driver was. Is that a mystery that will haunt the world for all eternity?Does Brian’s return alter the future? – We know that Brian’s return alters the future to some extent, as there will be no funeral for Brian and no need for the Griffin family to get a new dog. However, what about the “Into Harmony’s Way” episode? Does that episode still happen just with Brian inserted into Vinny’s place? Or is that episode completely written out of Family Guy continuity?Will Seth MacFarlane kill Brian again? – When Seth MacFarlane killed Brian, Family Guy saw its ratings rise. If you take into account that Tony Sirico was reportedly signed for six episodes, it raises that possibility that Brian could die again. What if Family Guy is like the movie series Final Destination? Maybe Stewie saved Brian from the car, but death will eventually catch up with him again. If killing Brian once gave Family Guy a ratings boost, why wouldn’t MacFarlane try to replicate it?