Seth MacFarlane, the creator of “Family Guy,” told reporters Monday at the Television Critics Association press tour that he was “surprised” at how Brian’s death caused rage within the show’s fan base, reports EW.com’s Inside TV.

“We were all very surprised, in a good way, that people still cared enough about that character to be that angry. We thought it would create a little bit of a stir, but the rage wasn’t something we counted on,” he said.

MacFarlane added that he believes the plot twist helped ratings. “It did what it was designed to do — it reminded people this is still a show where anything can happen despite the fact it’s been on for a while,” he said.

He noted that he wouldn’t kill off Brian again. As previously reported, Brian was brought back to life when the baby genius Stewie used a time machine to push the dog out of the way of the car speeding toward him.