American Dad!, Holy S***, Jeff's Back!

'''"Holy S***, Jeff's Back!". American Dad!.''' Fan Wiki: season 10, episode 16, running count 188 (18 May 2015).. Wikipedia: season 12, episode 13, running count 188 (18 May 2015).. IMDb: season 10, episode 13 (18 May 2015).

See for alien device that acts as a matter transporter that humans would have developed had we stuck with Fax technology. The device floats, and the matter to be transported — most notably including a hamster, Hayley, and Roger — is/are bloodily and painfully shredded as in a paper shredder, but delivered whole and unharmed to the alien vessel. Cf. and strongly contrast the time-machine device in Michael Crichton's Timeline and the transporters in Star Trek. The alien device in American Dad! is a satiric reduction to the grotesque of Crichton's elegant time-travel apparatus and Star Trek's aseptic reduction of bodies to their information (or whatever) and reconstitution at a distance.

RDE, Initial Compiler, 15Aug18