Partial Terms of Endearment

"Partial Terms of Endearment" is the 21st and final episode of the eighth season of the animated sitcom Family Guy. Directed by Joseph Lee and written by Danny Smith, the episode originally aired on BBC Three in the United Kingdom on June 20, 2010, and has not been allowed to air in the United States on Fox, the original television network of the series, due to its controversial nature. This is also the last episode to be presented in full screen, before the series switched to widescreen, and it is the final episode to feature the opening sequence that was updated during the second season.

In the episode, Lois is approached by an old friend from college who asks her to become a surrogate mother. After arguing with her husband Peter who is against the idea, Lois agrees and undergoes in vitro fertilization. However, while Lois is pregnant, the biological parents are killed in an automobile accident. Lois and Peter have to decide whether to abort the fetus, or carry it to term and give the baby up for adoption. Peter attempts to persuade his wife to get an abortion but changes his mind after anti-abortion activists convince him that abortion is murder. After deliberating with Peter at home, Lois has the abortion.

The episode was banned from airing on the Fox network due to concerns over its portrayal of the controversial subject of abortion. This is the second episode of Family Guy to be prevented from airing during the episode's respective regular season run; the first episode was the third season's "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein". Unlike that episode, Cartoon Network's adult-oriented block Adult Swim refused to air "Partial Terms of Endearment" upon Fox's request. It was first announced at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con.

Critical responses to the episode were mostly positive; critics praised the storyline, cultural references and its assessment of the subject of abortion. The episode was watched in just under a million homes in its original airing in the United Kingdom. Guest performances included Gary Beach, Jackson Douglas, Phil LaMarr, Will Sasso, Julia Sweeney, Wil Wheaton and Michael York, along with several recurring guest voice actors for the series. "Partial Terms of Endearment" was released on DVD in the United States, along with Seth and Alex Almost-Live Comedy Show, on September 28, 2010. Even though this episode was placed at the end of season 8, the episode was placed between "Go Stewie Go" and "Peter-assment" in the UK.

While attending her college reunion at Salve Regina University with Peter, Lois spots her old roommate, Naomi Robinson, with whom she had a brief lesbian relationship in college, about which Peter is shocked but excited to discover. Naomi indicates that she would like to discuss an important matter with them at their home. Assuming that he will participate in a threesome with Lois and Naomi, Peter sends Chris, Meg, Stewie, and Brian out of the house. After Naomi arrives, she introduces her husband Dale. Peter expects that they will now be participating in an orgy, and tries to seduce the three of them while dressed in various costumes. When they clear the air to a dismayed Peter that they're not there for sex, Naomi and Dale tell Lois and Peter they've had trouble conceiving and ask Lois to be a surrogate mother for them, and Lois considers the matter.

As the family eats breakfast the next morning, Lois reveals her intention to become a surrogate mother for Naomi and Dale, causing Peter to become upset at the thought of her being pregnant for nine months. Despite this, Lois decides to go to Dr. Hartman to have the in vitro fertilization performed, enduring more of Dr. Hartman's shtick involving celebrity crossbreeds and having a tribe of bush men implant the egg with blowguns. A pregnancy test comes back positive the next day, and a furious Peter attempts to cause Lois to have a miscarriage before ultimately confronting her about the pregnancy. While she continues asserting her intention to provide a child to Naomi and Dale, Quahog 5 News suddenly reveals that Naomi and Dale died in a car crash on Interstate 95, ironically after Dale won the lottery. Devastated by the announcement, Lois questions whether she should have an abortion or continue with the pregnancy and put the baby up for adoption.

In an attempt to come to a decision, Lois and Peter decide to visit the local family-planning center, and ultimately decide to abort the embryo. However, as Peter exits the center he encounters an anti-abortion rally, where he is shown an anti-abortion video by one of the protesters. The video causes him to reconsider about aborting the unborn baby. Returning home, Lois continues to advocate her right to choose, while Peter now attempts to argue the unborn child's right to life and whether Lois has the responsibility of carrying it to term. At their wits' end, the two decide to discuss the matter on civil terms. At dinner, Lois talks with the family about "the wonderful new member of the Griffin family", but then, after a few seconds of silence, Peter turns to the camera and says to the audience "We had the abortion", promptly ending the episode.

The episode was first announced at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con on July 25, 2009, by series creator and executive producer Seth MacFarlane. It was written by fellow executive producer and series regular Danny Smith and directed by Joseph Lee, during the show's eighth production season. The storyline was pitched by series regular Tom Devanney, and periodically references Billions and Billions (1997), a book of essays by Carl Sagan. Seth MacFarlane asked Danny Smith to read Sagan's essay, "Abortion: Is It Possible to Be Both 'Pro-Life' and 'Pro-Choice'", before beginning to write the script. The episode was originally intended to air along with the rest of the eighth season schedule, and was approved for production by 20th Century Fox. However, the Fox Broadcasting Company asserted their right not to air the episode due to the subject matter. This was the second time that MacFarlane had been warned by Fox about the sensitive nature of an episode's subject. Previously, Fox had also disapproved of the season 3 episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein", which was originally prevented from airing on Fox due to concerns that the episode's content could be interpreted as antisemitic. The episode later aired on Adult Swim in 2003 and Fox in 2004. Thinking the same would happen with "Partial Terms of Endearment", MacFarlane believed that Fox would eventually run the episode on their network, stating, "Most of the time these things turn out to be nothing." In a statement released by Fox, they noted their full support of "the producers' right to make the episode and distribute it in whatever way they want."