American Dad!, Vol. 4 - Region 1 DVD

There are a couple of milestones among these 14 episodes from seasons 3 and 4. "1600 Candles" marks Roger's 1,600th birthday, while "Oedipal Panties" is interrupted to celebrate the series' 1,000th vagina joke. By this point, we should be past Family Guy comparisons. Both series are a riot of obscure pop-culture references, gratuitous celebrity potshots, and meta asides (in "Widowmaker," Francine ponders making a "gag me with a spoon" joke, "but then I thought, 'Who's that for?'"). But at least when Stan goes to absurd extremes, it is more in keeping with his overzealous, xenophobic character. The writing takes some rewarding chances as it careens wildly from the smart to the sophomoric. The holiday episode, "The Most Adequate Christmas Ever," contains an Auschwitz joke that is actually kinda funny, even as one cringes at the "oh, no they didn't"-ness of it. As with previous volumes, this set contains bountiful extras, including deleted scenes, audio commentaries for every episode, a featurette on the making of "Tearjerker," and, best of all, a live ComiCon table read of the first act of "Pulling Double Booty." American Dad, we salute you. --Donald Liebenson

Stills from American Dad!, Vol. 4 (Click for larger image)