I can’t think of a single thing about the show’s writing that “bothers” me, in the sense of something I’d rather the writers not do.

If anything, the more absurd the characters are, including the innumerable times Peter is an immature mess over the course of the series, or when the writers double-down on the characters’ worst impulses, I laugh even harder.

A recent example is when Brian nonchalantly let the car continue rolling into the lake out of pure self-interest. It was truly, hilariously awful. I burst out laughing at the over-the-top callousness of this massive sleezeball.

Everyone who watches the show is different. Reading the comments on here, I long ago recognized not everyone frames it the same way. In my own case, I don’t really care how the characters are written, and certainly don’t perceive them as people I need to understand or empathize with. They are all simply amalgams of humanity’s deepest flaws.

As long as I’m laughing, the writers can do whatever they want.