Swanson family

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The Swansons are a fictional family in the animated television series Family Guy. They consist of Joe, his wife Bonnie, and their son Kevin.

The Swansons made their first appearances in the episode "A Hero Sits Next Door", when they moved next door to the Griffins' from Providence.

[edit] Joe Swanson

Main article: Joe Swanson

Joe Swanson's enthusiastic voice is supplied by actor Patrick Warburton, who has starred in many other shows such as Seinfeld, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, and House. Joe is a paraplegic police officer who relies on a wheelchair for mobility. Due to his disability, Joe has developed massive upper-body strength. Swanson is very enthusiastic and doesn't let his disabilty stop him from performing physical tasks, such as water skiing, sledding, and in one instance, climbing a streetlamp (albeit while drunk; he then fell from the top and joked that he broke his legs). One of his favorite actors is Steven Seagal.

[edit] Bonnie Swanson

Bonnie Swanson is Joe's devoted wife and mother of Kevin. She is voiced by actress Jennifer Tilly. Bonnie is rather timid and always does as Joe says (she once said "I can't say no to Joe... ever"). She gets aroused when Joe lies and likes a man who puts himself in danger. Peter claims that Joe hasn't touched Bonnie in a long while, however.

She has been pregnant since her debut on the show in season 1 with no signs of progress. Peter has even commented on this fact in the season 4 episode "Blind Ambition", stating that she has "been pregnant for six years" (which isn't surprising, as none of the other characters have shown any physical signs of aging). It is likely due to this fact that Bonnie dies before Joe in Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story. While being eternally with-child, she still took Tae Jitsu lessons, which inspired Lois to join the class. In the movie Rolling Courage: The Joe Swanson Story, Valerie Bertinelli played Bonnie. In the film Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, 30 years in the future, she will have her legs given to Joe after she dies.

[edit] Kevin Swanson

Kevin Swanson is the only (born) child of Joe and Bonnie, voiced by Jon Cryer in the first episode he appeared in ("A Hero Sits Next Door") and Seth MacFarlane in other episodes. He takes after his father, in that he is a strong, handsome, enthusiastic 17-year-old (his age is never said, but he is assumed to be around the same age as Meg Griffin). In the episode "Fifteen Minutes of Shame", he was seen working at a gas station. Kevin likes listening to Garbage, Radiohead, Blur and Phish, though his parents disapprove of it. He usually quietly endures his father's drill sergeant-like attitude, but has occasional angry outbursts. His father constantly pushes him to be like him and to not be a slacker. It was said by Joe in "And the Wiener Is..." that the first time Kevin beat him at a competition he gave him a "small congratulatory punch" followed by more; then everything got a little hazy and Kevin had to go and live with a foster family for a while.

Despite the fact almost everyone on the show thinks she is either ugly or plain, he seems to like Meg, and has previously dated her. Throughout all the seasons, there are numerous hints and references to her liking Kevin, indicating that he is probably the main ongoing object of her affection. Unfortunately, every time they get time together, something usually happens to interrupt them (Meg gets a date with him, but he gets vaporized in "Da Boom", an episode which was revealed to be a dream of Victoria Principal's, à la Dallas, Francis Griffin telling Meg she is a harlot, etc).