Cool Hand Peter
Reception
Reception
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"Cool Hand Peter" was originally broadcast on [Fox](/wiki/Fox_Broadcasting_Company "Fox Broadcasting Company") in the United States on December 4, 2011\. It was watched by 7\.14 million viewers, according to [Nielsen ratings](/wiki/Nielsen_ratings "Nielsen ratings"), despite airing simultaneously with the *[Desperate Housewives](/wiki/Desperate_Housewives "Desperate Housewives")* on [ABC](/wiki/American_Broadcasting_Company "American Broadcasting Company"), *[The Good Wife](/wiki/The_Good_Wife "The Good Wife")* on [CBS](/wiki/CBS "CBS") and *[Sunday Night Football](/wiki/NBC_Sunday_Night_Football "NBC Sunday Night Football")* on [NBC](/wiki/NBC "NBC"). The episode also acquired a 3\.6/8 rating in the 18–49 demographic, beating *[Allen Gregory](/wiki/Allen_Gregory "Allen Gregory")* and *[The Cleveland Show](/wiki/The_Cleveland_Show "The Cleveland Show")*, in addition to significantly edging out both shows in total viewership. The episode's ratings increased significantly from the previous week's episode, "[Amish Guy](/wiki/Amish_Guy "Amish Guy")".

The episode received mixed reviews, with Kevin McFarland of [The A.V. Club](/wiki/The_A.V._Club "The A.V. Club") calling the storyline "disappointing." He wrote of the episode, "At this juncture, disappointment is an expectation, something I have to fight against whenever I sit down to watch the show in an attempt to give each episode a fair shake." He continued, "This week, I was at a bit of a loss, because despite a return to an older, more successful formula, with a clearly plotted path, *Family Guy* didn't muster up enough material to fill out the A\-plot of a half hour." McFarland also stated that the episode did not live up to the 1967 drama film *Cool Hand Luke*, that the title of the episode was named after. He concluded his review of the episode by giving the episode a grade of C. Terren R. Moore of Ology also found the episode to be unimpressive, noting, "It's good fun while it's on, but nothing here really sticks or adds to anything new to love about *Family Guy*." Moore also commented, "it's a pretty weak episode of *Family Guy*, where the most memorable joke of the night involves a thought bubble where Quagmire pulls a string of beads out of a woman's vagina." In the conclusion of the review, Moore gave the episode a 6/10 score.


Did the episode live up to the expectations set by the drama film?