A question from the casual Futurama fan

[on:]

Not me of course.  But my cousin Mike who lives in Arizona.  Mike has only seen maybe 2 or 3 episodes of Futurama.  He has no internet access.  He keeps telling me that he thinks Dr. Zoidberg is always out to steal Bender's glory. 

How can I convince him that's not true?  Plus, Mike doesn't even want to watch Futurama, because he couldn't get into it.  But he's still going strong with The Simpsons.  So, I keep telling him anytime he calls me or visits me that Zoidberg is never out to steal Bender's glory.  And he still won't believe me!!!!!

For example Mike would say Bender would brag about being in The Robot Mafia, then he would say Zoidberg said he was with them instead.   Then he would ask me if the PE Crew is just going along with Zoidberg to make him feel he's part of the team.  How can I tell him it's not true?  How do I get him to believe me?  Plus, how will I get him to actually _watch_ a few episodes???

[Reply #1 on:]

Who cares what he thinks?

I bet your name isn't Kurt Pikachu 2001 at all.

[Reply #2 on:]

bet it's true. I always hated that annoying lobster!

[Reply #3 on:]

If he's not a fan does it really matter?

And tell him, even though he barely have seen any episodes at all, he's intitled to his opinion, no matter how wrong, stupid and unfounded it is. Tell him a guy on the Internet told you so.

Finallly: hit him with a tranquilizer dart, drag him into a sound-proof room, tie him to a chair, use scotch tape to keep his eyes open and show him all 72 episodes in one go. If he drifts into sleep give him a shot of concentrated caffeine.

No really, if he don't like the show, you can't force him otherwise.

[Reply #4 on:]

I can see where he might make that assumption if he only saw a select few episodes.  One incident that comes to mind is when the red & blue Zoidbergs got control of the universe box; the power immediately went to their heads, and they declared themselves all-powerful.

Like so many with esteem issues, they did try to "steal" the popularity/glory/power within their conclave when the first opportunity arose.

Another incident was when Zoidberg went to his old scuttling ground and ate "Vinnie"; plus there was the whole episode of Decapodian defiance regarding "Old Freebie".

Finally, there was the fantasy sequence where he actually did battle bender (while settling scores with the Apollo theatre and the bank).  Granted, it was not canon (what is the official ruling on the AOI stories?), but then again, maybe that is one of the few episodes your friend has seen.

I agree with Teral--sit this guy down and make him watch more episodes until he gets it.

[Reply #5 on:]

I guess I'll just let him think what he wants.  And 'KurtPikachu2001' is just my screen name on this website.

[Reply #6 on:]

Really? I never woulda guessed...  I believe that you should start out by showing him the funny episodes before getting to the emotional ones. That's how I showed it to my friends, and they love it now. (Not as much as me, however...) Oh well, what can you do? -_-'

[Reply #7 on:]

Take Alex's advice. Why does it matter what he thinks?

[Reply #8 on:]

I'm suprised you're even having an argument over such a silly thing.

But just tell him to see more episodes.  I guess he doesn't know the characters very well, as very few people would after only two or three viewings.

[Reply #9 on:]

Isn't there a thread which discusses the best episodes to show non-Futurama fans? Maybe we should check that one out. Not me, though. Too lazy.