14 DAY TRIAL // In a move that's probably meant to quell the passions of die-hard “Family Guy” fans, the beloved Brian Griffin returns for the holiday special. Brian, the family talking dog who seemed to be, for the better part of the show, the most sensible and smart family member, was “removed” from the animated series in November.
In the episode that aired on November 25, Brian was killed when he was hit by a car. The producers had already announced that they were going to kill one of the main characters, but didn't mention which one.
Brian was immediately replaced the following episode with Vinny, a dog voiced by Tony Sirico from “The Sopranos” series.
After fans took to social media to express their frustration and disappointment at the swift removal of Brian the Dog from the show, in the Christmas special which aired over the weekend, he is making a return, via a time-traveling Stewie that comes back to the past to push his friend out of the way of the incoming car.
Creator of the series Seth MacFarlane finally tweeted “”And thus endeth our warm, fuzzy holiday lesson: Never take those you love for granted, for they can be gone in a flash,” suggesting that all of this might have been a clever ruse to teach fans a valuable lesson and not a stunt for higher ratings as everyone suspected.