Authored by Deanna Proach in Movies and Television
Published on 08-15-2009

Let’s face it, no father is perfect. But they are not nearly as imperfect as portrayed on television sitcoms. On modern television, fathers are commonly portrayed as gutless pansies who act impulsively with out thinking first. These television fathers take no interest in their children and even act obscene without caring about how their inappropriate behavior affects those around them. While these to-imperfect fathers are hilarious and entertaining, they are terrible role models for the young men in our society.

Peter Griffin

Peter Griffin, the main character on the animated sitcom, Family Guy, is by far one of the worst father figures there is on television. He often neglects his children and severely mistreats his teenage daughter, Meg. In many episodes Peter teases Meg and makes her the butt of his crude jokes. The lowest of all television male characters, Peter treats all women like worthless objects instead of human beings. Unlike Ward Cleaver and Jim Anderson, Peter cannot hold down a decent job or any job for that matter. His utter stupidity and uncanny habit of acting before thinking constantly gets himself and his family into hot water.

Homer Simpson

Who can forget Homer Simpson? Homer may be cute and lovable at times, but he is certainly not a good father figure. When Homer is not sleeping at work or slouching on the couch before the television, he is at the bar drinking beer with his friends. Homer pays no attention to his children other than to strangle Bart whenever Bart jerks him off. When Homer does show affection to his wife, he does it in the most horrible ways. In one episode, Homer and Marge display their love for one another in public and then end up naked on a football field before thousands of cheering spectators. When looking through the local newspaper, Bart and Lisa see the photo of their parents standing naked on the football field.

Randy Mash

Randy Marsh, the most dominant father on the animated show, South Park, is probably a worse television father than Peter Griffin and Homer Simpson. To the outside world, Randy is an intelligent individual. For the first eleven series he works as a geologist. At home, he is no white collar, paternalistic father. He is a hard core alcoholic who frequently fights with his wife. Randy is also the master of lies. He habitually lies to his son, Stan, and even encourages him to lie to his teachers, classmates and other people. In a number of episodes, Randy shows up at Stan’s baseball games and willingly gets into fights with other spectators. Needless to say, he has won every fight. Randy is certainly not the father figure any of us would want to have. He is a vile and despicable cartoon character that should have never been a father.

Despite their outrageous flaws, these television fathers continue to entertain millions of viewers on a daily basis.