Thoughts on 6ACV14 - The Silence of the Clamps - SPOILERS

[Reply #120 on:]

....I'm 29 and I ask my friends to come over "to play" all the time.

[Reply #121 on:]

....I'm 29 and I ask my friends to come over "to play" all the time.

As long as you say it in the tone of an adult and not the tone of a PBS cartoon turtle, I think you'll be fine. Otherwise, you may have been subtly creeping your friends for years.

[Reply #122 on:]

If that's not the point, I don't know what tricking people into looking at Goatse in restaurants on their phones is.

[Reply #123 on:]

on my rewatch, i've grown to like the episode more. the pacing is perfect, and it truly does have that quality that only futurama has. on first viewing, i rated it a 3. now, i'd like to raise it to a 4.

like original futurama, the episodes get better the more you let them seep in.

[Reply #124 on:]

Oh, and about Eric Rogers making Fry childish, he said:

let the fans know that the show is a team effort; I don't decide that stuff, the whole writing staff does.

You probably shouldn't be telling Eric Rogers that fans are bitching about Fry's characterization. I'm sure he's familiar with PEEL, and he's probably read some fan reactions, and I wouldn't want the guy to think we're all dumping on his first-ever full-length episode. It just wasn't the strongest one of the season, but it can't be entirely his fault. And, like I said, if he was given a better premise, he would probably be capable of writing a better episode.

[Reply #125 on:]

You probably shouldn't be telling Eric Rogers that fans are bitching about Fry's characterization. I'm sure he's familiar with PEEL, and he's probably read some fan reactions, and I wouldn't want the guy to think we're all dumping on his first-ever full-length episode. It just wasn't the strongest one of the season, but it can't be entirely his fault. And, like I said, if he was given a better premise, he would probably be capable of writing a better episode.

I don't want to dump on Eric Rogers (though I doubt I could hurt the feelings of an adult man by internet comment), but this episode was his premise (2nd question). Though I guess that supports what you said (if Cohen gave him say A Clockwork Origin and someone else TSOFC, then yeah, Rogers'd have written something better).

[Reply #126 on:]

You probably shouldn't be telling Eric Rogers that fans are bitching about Fry's characterization. I'm sure he's familiar with PEEL, and he's probably read some fan reactions, and I wouldn't want the guy to think we're all dumping on his first-ever full-length episode. It just wasn't the strongest one of the season, but it can't be entirely his fault. And, like I said, if he was given a better premise, he would probably be capable of writing a better episode.

He enjoyed reading this thread.

[Reply #127 on:]

Really didn't like this episode.   I was excited to see the return of the Crushinator, but she only got one speaking line, and now she's a widow.  

Her baby daughter was so cute though.  =)  Baby Bender cute.

For the person who mentioned Bella's singing career being tacked on, I thought it was funny, since it fits in with the wave of spoiled rich girls having their daddies buy them a singing career.  Though nowadays they seem to purposely releasing sex tapes and then using the publicity to start a reality tv show, which I could totally see her doing with Bender. 

[Reply #128 on:]

Baby Bender cute.

You mean Baby Billy.

[Reply #129 on:]

Baby Bender cute.

Billy?  Is that the name of his first born son?   Nah I was thinking about Bender as a baby in Lethal Inspection.  XD  Little bird, little bird...
You mean Baby Billy.

[Reply #130 on:]

i will say this. rogers impressed me in this episode, but i'm not really surprised. one thing which keeps me going back to the comics is that the character's are real, if you catch my meaning. rogers gets the characters.

good job, mr. rogers. i look forward to your next episode.

[Reply #131 on:]

Oooh, but the little baby in TSOTC is the Crushinator and Billy's.

[Reply #132 on:]

Oooh, but the little baby in TSOTC is the Crushinator and Billy's.

Nooo, I'm saying she's cute like Baby Bender is (who is mindmeltingly cute, for a baby chain smoking, whore mongering, smut producing, baby killing, maternity ward polluting, blood stealing, best friend backstabbing, money laundering, celebrity kidnapping... what was my point again?)

[Reply #133 on:]

You probably shouldn't be telling Eric Rogers that fans are bitching about Fry's characterization. I'm sure he's familiar with PEEL, and he's probably read some fan reactions, and I wouldn't want the guy to think we're all dumping on his first-ever full-length episode. It just wasn't the strongest one of the season, but it can't be entirely his fault. And, like I said, if he was given a better premise, he would probably be capable of writing a better episode.

He enjoyed reading the reviews in the Silence of the Clamps thread.

Fair enough. I guess I just detected a hint of defensiveness in his reply to you (and it would be warranted; I wouldn't feel too swell about myself if my first real writing credit was met with such a lukewarm response), but looks like I was wrong.

[Reply #134 on:]

Fair enough. I guess I just detected a hint of defensiveness in his reply to you

Yeah I felt it to, but meh, he seems cool.

[Reply #135 on:]

let the fans know that the show is a team effort; I don't decide that stuff, the whole writing staff does.

I guess I just detected a hint of defensiveness in his reply to you (and it would be warranted; I wouldn't feel too swell about myself if my first real writing credit was met with such a lukewarm response)

Absolutely.  I read it as "Hey, don't blame just me, it's the fault of the entire writing staff".

[Reply #136 on:]

I don't see why he got so annoyed, it wasn't hurtful or anything, and I didn't say we were complaining, I said we were speculating... Hm...

Maybe he was just in a bad mood?

[Reply #137 on:]

You probably shouldn't be telling Eric Rogers that fans are bitching about Fry's characterization. I'm sure he's familiar with PEEL, and he's probably read some fan reactions, and I wouldn't want the guy to think we're all dumping on his first-ever full-length episode. It just wasn't the strongest one of the season, but it can't be entirely his fault. And, like I said, if he was given a better premise, he would probably be capable of writing a better episode.

He enjoyed reading the reviews in the Silence of the Clamps thread.

You mean this thread?  I hope he read my suggestion to the writing staff about making a double double twist in an episode.  I'm tired of fans saying, "I saw that down a 5 mile road!"  But of course they did.... until the twist that's so foreshadowed... turns out not to be a twist at all!!!!!!!

[Reply #138 on:]

To this episode's credit, it has my favorite Clamps line until now, which is "Ohh, I hope those new clamps get here soon. These are all rusted from snitch juice". Best "Joe Pesci" line in the episode.

[Reply #139 on:]

Oh my, the writers read this site?   Well... I'll try and be less blunt, and more constructive in my criticisms.   As a writer myself, I don't really want to hurt anyone's feelings, especially when it's someone's first episode.  Though creatives don't evolve and get better if everyone tries to sugarcoat their criticisms.  Dilemma.

[Reply #140 on:]

I don't see why he got so annoyed, it wasn't hurtful or anything, and I didn't say we were complaining, I said we were speculating... Hm...

Maybe he was just in a bad mood?

Sheesh...don't be so weird, man! He didn't sound "annoyed" (unless there is more to what he said than what you posted here) or too defensive. You're asking for some insight as to why he decided to make Fry act childish and he responds by saying it's something the whole writing staff decided. I think that's a perfectly fair response. Just be happy that you got an answer. That is pretty cool.

Also, nobody needs to act differently for fear of hurting the writers' feelings. They are professional writers and we are internet nerds that complain about everything. I'm sure they can handle it...just stay cool! Everybody be cool!

[Reply #141 on:]

I think as someone who is now Fry's age (25)....his childishness plays even more hilariously than it did back when the old seasons were airing (and let's make no mistake, he was always like that to some extent or another).

You know, the other day, I was visiting a friend for their 26th birthday, and all my other friends that were there were around ages 24-26. At one point, our frisbee (yes, our frisbee) went over the fence and myself and one of my friends were too chicken to knock on the door...so we all constructed a long pole with a hook on it and retrieved it, like in "The Sandlot" or something. Then, we hopped over a fence into a small nearby college's soccer field to play frisbee, like we were ten year old kids. (In my own defense, I was somewhat reluctant in all these escapades.) Granted, my own mileage differs depending on my own group of friends....this wasn't with one of my more mature friend groups, for sure...but I think as you get to be this age (for those here who are even younger, teenagers and such) you realize just what a weird age it is and just how much people progress at different levels, even though when you're younger you think that 25 automatically means fully functioning, mature adult. For some that's true and for others it isn't.

Of course, there's also the fact that Fry is really, really stupid, but there's an added dimension to it. I don't know to what extent the writers intended it, but I've found they've actually created a pretty hilarious and quite accurate portrait of someone around his age, based on a LOT of people I know.

And by the way, I don't really see a significant difference between his maturity in this episode and in a lot of others.

[Reply #142 on:]

Although your statement is true DotheBartman, you also have to consider the fact that just as you have not always been 25, Fry is also not 25.  Unlike most shows, to some degree Futurama ages in real time as it airs.

Oh, and I love all your posts, and you seem so cool.  Wanna come play with me?

[Reply #143 on:]

Oh my, the writers read this site?   Well... I'll try and be less blunt, and more constructive in my criticisms.   As a writer myself, I don't really want to hurt anyone's feelings, especially when it's someone's first episode.  Though creatives don't evolve and get better if everyone tries to sugarcoat their criticisms.  Dilemma.

So you are a writer, are you? What are some of your credits?

[Reply #144 on:]

Although your statement is true DotheBartman, you also have to consider the fact that just as you have not always been 25, Fry is also not 25.  Unlike most shows, to some degree Futurama ages in real time as it airs.

No they don't...not really. I think this is an assumption people have been making that isn't really true. I think they aged up the Professor a little bit at one point (in one of the older episodes....not just the one with his birthday), but Cubert and Dwight are still 12-year-old kids, for instance. They should be in their 20s now! (Oh, and also, David Cohen said that they've decided to just completely ignore the issue as best as possible, which basically means, not aging them or at least not acknowledging any change in age anymore). Fry and Leela should be pushing 40 and Amy should be in her 30s now, and clearly none of them have reached that point yet. Either Futurama characters just don't really age (like most cartoon characters), or aging has really slooooowwwed down in the 3000s somehow. Maybe a bit of both?

I dunno. I know that kind of upsets some continuity wonks, but it's something I've just kind of accepted as a part of the show's own (warped) reality. As I would with most TV shows and especially animated ones.

Oh, and I love all your posts, and you seem so cool.  Wanna come play with me?

Yay! Let's play Power Rangers!

[Reply #145 on:]

This has been bugging me, when Amy says, "Well I am supposed to go have sex with my boyfriend on a burning flag", I just don't get it. I like non-sequiturs but the ones in this episode seriously were so out of left field and they weren't funny -like the umbilical cord joke-.

[Reply #146 on:]

Oh my, the writers read this site?   Well... I'll try and be less blunt, and more constructive in my criticisms.   As a writer myself, I don't really want to hurt anyone's feelings, especially when it's someone's first episode.  Though creatives don't evolve and get better if everyone tries to sugarcoat their criticisms.  Dilemma.

So you are a writer, are you? What are some of your credits?

I'm more of an aspiring writer.  I've had pieces published for a local magazine, and one of my plays was shortlisted for an international playwriting award a few years ago.  Thats my Big Thing.  Now I'm working on writing and illustrating picture books, and a collection of short stories/plays.   So not a professional writer, more "up and coming" as I have been called when my play got put on.

As for Fry being childish, that is nothing new.  Remember that stick figure of a man on a rocket... pans out and he drew it aged 22.  Fry's idea of a date with Liubot?  Letting her watch him play with his action figures.  (Luckily Liubot found that as adorable as I did.)  In fact, Leela says the thing she likes about Fry is his "boyish charm", but she also hates how childish he is as well.  Which pretty much sums it up. 

I would say Fry is more childlike then childish.   Childishness implies immaturity, brattyness and selfishness, while his childlike personality shows in his enthusiasim and wonder for the future.  It explains why he has adapted so well to the future, while someone like Michelle didn't (though she seems to have a bit of a geeky personality if her appearance in the Comic Con is anything to show, I guess they have at least that in common)

[Reply #147 on:]

This has been bugging me, when Amy says, "Well I am supposed to go have sex with my boyfriend on a burning flag", I just don't get it. I like non-sequiturs but the ones in this episode seriously were so out of left field and they weren't funny -like the umbilical cord joke-.

i found them to be fine. i reckon that most folks that complain after every episode will grow to like these episodes as much as the original run episodes. in fact, i already look back on season 6A with nostalgia goggles, and i love them.

[Reply #148 on:]

Although your statement is true DotheBartman, you also have to consider the fact that just as you have not always been 25, Fry is also not 25.  Unlike most shows, to some degree Futurama ages in real time as it airs.

No they don't...not really. I think this is an assumption people have been making that isn't really true. I think they aged up the Professor a little bit at one point (in one of the older episodes....not just the one with his birthday), but Cubert and Dwight are still 12-year-old kids, for instance. They should be in their 20s now! (Oh, and also, David Cohen said that they've decided to just completely ignore the issue as best as possible, which basically means, not aging them or at least not acknowledging any change in age anymore). Fry and Leela should be pushing 40 and Amy should be in her 30s now, and clearly none of them have reached that point yet. Either Futurama characters just don't really age (like most cartoon characters), or aging has really slooooowwwed down in the 3000s somehow. Maybe a bit of both?

I dunno. I know that kind of upsets some continuity wonks, but it's something I've just kind of accepted as a part of the show's own (warped) reality. As I would with most TV shows and especially animated ones.

Oh, and I love all your posts, and you seem so cool.  Wanna come play with me?

Yay! Let's play Power Rangers!

I suppose the characters don't seem to age in the future, but there is a progression of time that is acknowledged within the series.  The characters have been known to age though, as Lars is portrayed as a 30+ punching 40s sort of guy.  But he went back in time.... so perhaps they don't age as much in the year 3000; at least not physically.  You'd assume that perhaps there might be mental maturity going on though.  All that said, I'll probably imagine Fry, Leela, Bender, and Amy in their mid 20s, Hermes in his 30s, Scruffy in his 50s, and the Professor in his 160s.

Sorry about the playdate though, I'm not that much into pokemon.  Perhaps we could try playing with hot wheels or my new erector set instead?

[Reply #149 on:]

This has been bugging me, when Amy says, "Well I am supposed to go have sex with my boyfriend on a burning flag", I just don't get it. I like non-sequiturs but the ones in this episode seriously were so out of left field and they weren't funny -like the umbilical cord joke-.

i found them to be fine. i reckon that most folks that complain after every episode will grow to like these episodes as much as the original run episodes. in fact, i already look back on season 6A with nostalgia goggles, and i love them.

I also hated that joke. HATED it.

Remember Fry's joke about Leno in Law and Order? Well that's how I felt about that joke... laboured set up and I could see the punchline coming as soon as it was said -except I didn't think that they'd go for such a terrible, terrible gag.

But yeah, that flag burning joke was one of the low points of the episode for me... but it did have some great gags mixed in there, too.

[Reply #150 on:]

This has been bugging me, when Amy says, "Well I am supposed to go have sex with my boyfriend on a burning flag", I just don't get it. I like non-sequiturs but the ones in this episode seriously were so out of left field and they weren't funny -like the umbilical cord joke-.

i found them to be fine. i reckon that most folks that complain after every episode will grow to like these episodes as much as the original run episodes. in fact, i already look back on season 6A with nostalgia goggles, and i love them.

The burning flag sounds like something I would say if I was getting harassed by bible bashers.  Only I'd probably throw in a joke about interracial marriage and abortions as well. 

Personally I imagine Amy being 19- 21, Fry being 24, Leela being 28, Hermes being his late thirties, early forties. 

[Reply #151 on:]

i just noticed the 'colonel mustard gas' joke. heh.

[Reply #152 on:]

Although your statement is true DotheBartman, you also have to consider the fact that just as you have not always been 25, Fry is also not 25.  Unlike most shows, to some degree Futurama ages in real time as it airs.

No they don't...not really. I think this is an assumption people have been making that isn't really true. I think they aged up the Professor a little bit at one point (in one of the older episodes....not just the one with his birthday), but Cubert and Dwight are still 12-year-old kids, for instance. They should be in their 20s now! (Oh, and also, David Cohen said that they've decided to just completely ignore the issue as best as possible, which basically means, not aging them or at least not acknowledging any change in age anymore). Fry and Leela should be pushing 40 and Amy should be in her 30s now, and clearly none of them have reached that point yet. Either Futurama characters just don't really age (like most cartoon characters), or aging has really slooooowwwed down in the 3000s somehow. Maybe a bit of both?

I dunno. I know that kind of upsets some continuity wonks, but it's something I've just kind of accepted as a part of the show's own (warped) reality. As I would with most TV shows and especially animated ones.

Oh, and I love all your posts, and you seem so cool.  Wanna come play with me?

Yay! Let's play Power Rangers!

I suppose the characters don't seem to age in the future, but there is a progression of time that is acknowledged within the series.  The characters have been known to age though, as Lars is portrayed as a 30+ punching 40s sort of guy.  But he went back in time.... so perhaps they don't age as much in the year 3000; at least not physically.  You'd assume that perhaps there might be mental maturity going on though.  All that said, I'll probably imagine Fry, Leela, Bender, and Amy in their mid 20s, Hermes in his 30s, Scruffy in his 50s, and the Professor in his 160s.

Oh yeah, no I realize that the years progress and somethings do change, but I think the characters themselves just don't ever actually age. Similarly, other shows like The Simpsons and South Park occasionally show their characters at later stages of life (showing the kids as adults, etc) but they never actually seem to progress toward that point at all during normal episodes. It seems to be the same here; Lars ages because he does so in the "past" (in the same way Simpsons and South Park and for that matter Futurama characters are implied/assumed to have basically aged normally up to the point they're at now), but if he was still alive in the show's "present," he wouldn't age. Because, well....I dunno. I guess because it's a cartoon and they tend to work that way. Or something. It seems to be the way Futurama operates, certainly.

Sorry about the playdate though, I'm not that much into pokemon.  Perhaps we could try playing with hot wheels or my new erector set instead?

Sure, I'll bring over my Transformers too!

[Reply #153 on:]

I don't see why he got so annoyed, it wasn't hurtful or anything, and I didn't say we were complaining, I said we were speculating... Hm...

Maybe he was just in a bad mood?

Sheesh...don't be so weird, man! He didn't sound "annoyed" (unless there is more to what he said than what you posted here) or too defensive. You're asking for some insight as to why he decided to make Fry act childish and he responds by saying it's something the whole writing staff decided. I think that's a perfectly fair response. Just be happy that you got an answer. That is pretty cool.

Also, nobody needs to act differently for fear of hurting the writers' feelings. They are professional writers and we are internet nerds that complain about everything. I'm sure they can handle it...just stay cool! Everybody be cool!

In fairness to Danny, I'm the one who pointed out that Rogers seemed defensive. And I don't think that we should be expected to tone down our responses to these episodes because the writer might see our comments and get offended. I just wonder if maybe Danny crossed a bit of a line by actually tweeting this guy a question that is directly related to a complaint the fans have been having, specifically one that pertains to Rogers's particular episode. But yeah, if Rogers himself doesn't have a problem with being asked such questions, then who am I to judge? I just know that if someone was criticizing my writing, and I was aware of it, I'd feel a little down about it. But most people are not as thin-skinned as I am.

And this is related to what SpaceGoldfish said about the characters' ages: Is Leela older than Fry? I've always thought they were both 25 at the start of the series (based on, I think, comments made in "My Three Suns" and "Brannigan, Begin Again"), but I could be wrong. Also, Amy can't be more than a few years younger than them, considering she's been a grad student for eight years, and most grad students would be in their twenties to start with.

[Reply #154 on:]

Did anyone notice that two of Calculon's All My Circuits co-stars (Monique and Boxy Robot) are members of the jury AND, at the same time, Monique is also in the trial's audience*. Later on she is also in the bar on the moon when Clamps accosts Billy.

* Or gallery or whatever it is called in an open trial.

[Reply #155 on:]

Those are all her identical half-sisters.

[Reply #156 on:]

Did anyone notice that two of Calculon's All My Circuits co-stars (Monique and Boxy Robot) are members of the jury AND, at the same time, Monique is also in the trial's audience*. Later on she is also in the bar on the moon when Clamps accosts Billy.

* Or gallery or whatever it is called in an open trial.

Yeah, I noticed Monique and thought it was interesting she would be on a Jury for a trial about her co-star and on screen fiance. Futurama is suppose to think about these things!

[Reply #157 on:]

No, they're more concerned with making the space scenes accurate with known star charts.

[Reply #158 on:]

that wasn't monique, it was acting bot# 371.

[Reply #159 on:]

Back to the word "bromance" ... I don't believe in a homosexual agenda, but that word makes me wonder.

"Bromance" isn't supposed to mean anything homosexual.

To me, it sounds like something the gay community would use. Or maybe the gay incest community.