I Dream Of Jesus
It originally aired on October 5, 2008. It guest starred Niecy Nash as Star Jones.
The title is a parody of the TV series I Dream of Jeannie. The episode concerns Jesus Christ deciding to make His second coming after being spotted while incognito.
Plot
While attending a 1950s-themed restaurant, Peter hears his favorite song, "Surfin' Bird", on the jukebox.
He begins driving everyone crazy by endlessly singing to it, and even squanders the family's savings to make a commercial where he can sing it. Before they completely lose their minds, Stewie and Brian steal the record in Peter's sleep.
The next morning, Peter blames the family for the record's disappearance—Stewie and Brian smashed it à la Office Space—before going out in an attempt to buy another copy. The clerk at the record store tells Peter they have sold all 63 copies at once (to "a dog and a baby") before Peter notices that the clerk looks familiar, ultimately realizing he is Jesus Christ.
Jesus explains that he comes to Earth every century or so to unwind, but that he must also try to keep a low profile.
Peter encourages Jesus to socialize and invites him over for dinner with his family, who also recognize him as the messiah (Brian only seems to be convinced when Jesus turns their dinner into ice cream sundaes and engorges Lois' breasts to triple their normal size, the latter at Peter's insistence). Jesus has such a great time with the Griffins that he decides to reveal himself to the world.
Jesus asks Peter for a bail; Peter only heads over to the police station when Jesus smashes his head with a lamp in the living room from his cell. With Jesus' reputation in the gutter, he and Peter both agree that maybe he wasn't ready to return to the world, and that the world wasn't ready for him.
Jesus leaves this world, but not before giving Peter a going-away present: another record of "Surfin' Bird" to annoy his family with. Appropriately, the end credits roll with "Surfin' Bird" playing in the background.
Cultural references
The scene where Brian and Stewie smash the "Surfin' Bird" record is a shot-for-shot remake of a scene in Office Space in which three office workers destroy a printer. The background music playing in that scene is the censored version of "Still" by the Geto Boys from the album The Resurrection.
Lois references the song "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah" by Allan Sherman.
The scene where Peter takes Jesus to meet George W.
Dark Side of The Moon by Pink Floyd, In Utero by Nirvana and Automatic for the People by R.E.M. On the counter, there is also a poster of Eddie Van Halen's guitar, the Frankenstrat.
The scene in which Peter brings Jesus onstage to refute George W.
Bush's statements is a parody of a scene in Annie Hall in which Woody Allen brings Marshall MacLuhan from behind a pillar to put down a pompous movie critic. "You know nothing of my work!"
When Jesus ends up unconsious at Mary-Kate Olsen's house, this is possibly a reference to the death of Heath Ledger.
Early in the episode, the Griffins go to the "Nifty Fifties" diner, where all employees stay in character and true to the 50's era.
When Cleveland arrives to join them for lunch, he is blown out of the entrance doors with a fire hose by armed policeman accompanied by growling guard dogs. This makes reference to the Civil Rights Movement and the Jim Crow laws (Cleveland remarks "Oh, that takes me back.").
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