LeBron James to Visit Cleveland

LeBron James is apparently going to visit Cleveland.

Not the city of Cleveland in Ohio, but the fictional character from The Cleveland Show on Fox.

According to reports, he, along with Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Garnett, Steve Nash, and possibly other NBA players, are scheduled to begin shooting an episode of the popular animated show in the near future.

Nothing is being released about the actual air date, but the plot of the episode is supposedly going to revolve around Cleveland and his wife, Donna, winning courtside tickets to an NBA All-Star game in Los Angeles.

According to those same reports, apparently Cleveland and Donna heckle the players, and in retaliation, many of them seek revenge on the two. Knowing the show as I do, I can only say we’re in for an absolutely hilarious episode, and I can’t wait to see how big a part LeBron has in it.

Considering he’ll have to be in a Miami Heat uniform, it’ll definitely give more press to the South Beach franchise.

Five years ago you couldn’t get me to watch an animated series like Family Guy, or its spinoff, The Cleveland Show. Such shows simply didn’t appeal to me in any way.

I’d dabbled for a minute with The Simpsons when it first came out, more out of curiosity than any real interest, and learned the characters well because at that time, as an artist, I tended to use the characters on painted T-Shirts I’d make for friends and their kids.

It was nearly two years ago that I began watching Family Guy seriously, being out of a job and having more time on my hands than I would like, I needed some sort of diversion, and the show provided that in spades.

As with Two and a Half Men, another show I began watching more often around the same time, I found Family Guy to be absolutely hilarious. Sure, I cringed a bit at the shock value antics of the show at first, as that was what had initially prevented me from becoming a fan of the show. However, after I’d gotten over that, I found the humor to be incredibly good.

The writers of these shows created by Seth MacFarlane are in my view some of the best around. Sure, they go for the shock value, as mentioned above. In fact, they go for it so much that the Parents Television Council regularly condemns the show for its indecency. I say to those cretins, “Hey, the show is on late. If your kids are watching it, that’s your damn problem, not everyone else’s.”

Another reason I began liking the show is I actually went and read up on Seth MacFarland, and found I liked him as well. He’s an avid and outspoken supporter of gay rights, as well as the legalization of marijuana; both of which I support as well.

Now, before you go getting your panties in a bunch thinking I’m a dope-smoking homosexual, let me be very clear about this. I don’t use marijuana, and I’m heterosexual. However, I’m also, like Seth MacFarland, someone who employs logical thought in my daily life.

There just simply isn’t any reason a logical, just American wouldn’t come to the conclusion that gays deserve every single right every heterosexual American enjoys under our constitution. There also just simply isn’t any reason a logical, just American wouldn’t come to the conclusion that the laws banning the personal use of marijuana (when alcohol is legal) are as ridiculous as some of the characters on Seth MacFarland’s shows.

The Cleveland Show (which, as mentioned above, is a spinoff of Family Guy) is a show following the life of one of the original characters from the parent show, Cleveland Brown. In the original show, he was one of the friends and neighbors in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island, of Family Guy’s main character, Peter Griffin.

In The Cleveland Show he’s moved to the fictional town of Stoolbend, Virginia.

While the episode in question isn’t taking place in that fictional town (at least not to my knowledge, but hey, perhaps they return there after the game and the players all come to Stoolbend—that’ll make for some comedy), it will be showcasing some of the best talent in the NBA and bringing lots of the limelight to my beloved city of Miami.

Regardless of your politics, though, the show is an absolutely funny program for adults, and the fact LeBron James is going to be a part of it brings together two of my favorite things, sports and The Cleveland Show.

For that one night, I’ll be having a good time, but my only question of LeBron would be, “Hey, bro, you gonna advocate for a spot on the show for your new boys, D-Wade and Bosh?”