What would you change?-Futurama

[on:]

If you could change anything in the show what would it be?

[Reply #1 on:]

As it currently is? I'd make the episodes a couple of minutes longer. Many season 6 episodes feel as though they really could of had at least a few more minutes. (I'm looking at you, Yo Leela Leela and All the Presidents' Heads  )

[Reply #2 on:]

You actually wanted more of Yo Leela Leela? Also I didn't need to see more of the piss-poor English mockery jokes in All The Presidents Heads either ...

[Reply #3 on:]

Well, the ending in Presidents Heads was a little rushed, but I really didn't think of that as a problem. Even though I generally agree, some of the season 6 episodes seem rushed for some reason. I don't know, I never felt that way with the early seasons, so I don't think that the length itself is a problem. Most Season 1 and 2 episodes even had a B-plot, which season 6 often lacks, and yet its pacing was just fine.

And yeah, I agree with Otis. YLL was unbearable enough already. If they had wanted to expand the plot, they just should have cut the song... seriously, I like her singing, but that has got to be the worst Futurama scene ever.

Now, what would I change? I would like more everyday-like plots that focus on the characters and on exploring life in 31st century-NNY. I would also want the voices (of Bender and Fry, especially) to be more like they were in the early seasons.

[Reply #4 on:]

I definitely think adding a few minutes to the runtime would help basically all of the pacing problems we've been seeing.

I liked YLL. I thought the premise was dumb but the execution was funny. If it's alive, don't lick it.

I want more new episodes that are just about the trio. Cos those were usually really good and I miss them.

[Reply #5 on:]

I want more new episodes that are just about the trio. Cos those were usually really good and I miss them.

As much as I love the whole crew, this. We need more eps which focus on the main three. The chemistry works with just them sometimes, but when was the last time it actually happened?...

[Reply #6 on:]

but when was the last time it actually happened?...

'Fry Am the Egg Man' I believe...

[Reply #7 on:]

I would want them to take the risk of a two parter ("Overclockwise", I am looking at you).

[Reply #8 on:]

Bender's Big Score Part 4 and all of The Beast with a Billion Backs was (I think) the closest Futurama has ever come to a 2-parter.

[Reply #9 on:]

but when was the last time it actually happened?...

'Fry Am the Egg Man' I believe...

Oh yeah, yet somehow it didn't feel like it ...

[Reply #10 on:]

No wonder, it only lasted for like 15 secs, then they were at Fishy Joe's, that's it...

(I wouldn't count the very last few seconds when they are at Fishy Joe's again, that's only on for like 8 seconds...)

[Reply #11 on:]

I am pretty sure the whole crew was in Egg Man about the whole time. I'm not talking a brief scene that is just the trio, we've had a couple of those recently, I'm talking let's every once in a while have an episode like Honking or Less than Hero or Fear of a Bot Planet that is actually pretty much just the trio and various tertiary (and occasionally secondary) characters.

[Reply #12 on:]

I would like the show not to reuse characters/settings/ideas from older episodes just as a pointless callback. The best example I can think of is in the Holiday Craptacular going back to the Space Bees from 'The Sting'. That infuriated me because The Sting is my favorite episode and the callback was absolutely pointless and ruined some of the poignancy of the original episode.

[Reply #13 on:]

You actually wanted more of Yo Leela Leela? Also I didn't need to see more of the piss-poor English mockery jokes in All The Presidents Heads either ...

Not really. What I mean is, another short scene at the end would have improved the episode by a heap (in my opinion anyway.) "NNNOOOOOO!!" is not a proper ending...

And with All The President's Heads, the whole correcting-time part was way too quick. At least a short scene filling the gap would have been nice.

[Reply #14 on:]

I'd take out The Beast With A Billion Backs and Bender's Game from the Futurama timeline!

[Reply #15 on:]

I don't mind the show making callbacks as long as they don't suck. The Craptacular one sucked. But here have been some funny (but brief) callbacks in recent episodes.

[Reply #16 on:]

I don't think "All the Presidents' Heads" had pacing problems because of the time constraint; I think it had pacing problems because the writers for some reason thought we needed a first act that was reaaalllyyy long. Unlike other episodes this season, where it felt like the writers were forced to cram a lot of story into a small space ("Overclockwise" is probably the worst offender), AtPH was well-paced in act two and oddly-paced in act one (too long) and act three (too short). I think that episode's pacing issues are because the writers were being self-indulgent and dwelling too much on that, uh, hilarious party at the Head Museum.

Anyway: My biggest gripe about season six is a lack of stories about the trio, so I shall second (or third. Or fourth) that suggestion.

I also think I might have reversed the reveal of Nibbler's identity in BBS (like, had him blank out the crew's memory at some point), if only because he doesn't add so much as a character now that he's allowed to talk, and I don't think the crew's feelings about Nibbler lying about his intelligence were well-portrayed. It was all just glossed over, which was pretty disappointing considering the build-up in "The Day the Earth Stood Stupid" and "The Why of Fry," where Nibbler kept insisting that they would one day need Fry again and his remaining incognito was of the utmost importance.

I do like that the writers have explored the dynamic between Leela and Nibbler now that she knows he can talk ("That Darn Katz"), but I don't know. It's just a little weird. On one hand, it's good that the show is progressing and all these Deep Dark Secrets that were established in the original run are getting some play in the new run...but I just worry that we'll never get any resolution to all that Other/we'll-need-a-savior-again business from TWoF, now that Nibbler is a glorified member of the PE crew.

[Reply #17 on:]

Anyway: My biggest gripe about season six is a lack of stories about the trio, so I shall second (or third. Or fourth) that suggestion.

Dito. Personally, I like the brillant way they balanced the Trio out, making these characters able to carry nearly every story constellation.
(Longer explanations will follow once again..you have been warned )

Character Links:

a) Fry/Bender   Best Buddy
b) Fry/Leela    Love interest
c)Leela/Bender   Mere Coworkers or people not having much to do with each other, but  
                        having to pull together on a certain matter.

The Trio can act as

a) a group consisting of all three
b) Two Characters, with the third taking a supporting role
c) One Characters, with the other two taking a supporting role as a group.

Also, with Leela mostly going for the morally correct sulotion, and Bender going the easy/most
profitable way, the writers can use Fry to chose one side (often tricked by Bender) to give that side a 2/3 majority.
(Allowing the Trio also to go for the ethnically wrong solution).

Every character constellation, every course of action is possible with these three characters. It's just the minimum number needed for that, and it works brillantly.

AND (that's my major point): By staying with so few characters, they will not have to act like a homogenous group, but rather as individuals, still staying true to their character.

(E.g. "Möbius Dick": It was Leela, and an anonymous mob. The "We've had it with you" could have come from any character. While with the trio, it would probably have been Bender to go for a mutiny first, with Fry letting Leela get away with her actions for the friendship's sake (until it would have been enough even for him, and delivering the "Okay, Leea...that's it". With that phrase delivered by the most lenient one toward her, showing much clearer that a border has been crossed, instead of a mob repeating several times "That's enough". But with Möbius Dick my least fav episode -predestined for my negative personal examples- you might wish to think of examples from other episodes )

(Okay... I'm finished with my theory why I consider the Trio's character constellation to be genius )

[Reply #18 on:]

Well, your Mobius Dick rework sounds a lot like Brannigan, Begin Again, which is one of my favorite episodes of anything ever. So I am not so sure about that one. I actually thought that episode in particular was a good use of the whole crew. Not that it made sense for all of them to be on the mission, but for them all being there it was well done. Another example of an episode with a good use of the whole crew is Mutants are Revolting. It makes sense for everyone to be involved, seeing as all of them harbored a mutant. It also gives the ep a nice "we'rea ll in this together" feel.

As opposed to, like, Egg Man and Neutopia and Benderama and a number of others were all seven just don't need to be involved.

I feel like with any trio in any story, you've got the potential for the 2/3rds vs the 1/3rd which is always an interesting dynamic, especially when the 1/3rd is a strong stubborn character like Leela or Bender.

I love the Leela/Bender dynamic. It runs the whole gamut from the terribly awkward (3D planet) to the good friendship (Why of Fry, the various times they save each other's life) to the let's-team-up-for-Fry's-sake grudging acceptance (Fishful of Dollars, Fryrish) to friendly jabbing ("big boots"). It always seems realistic. There's been very little of it recently, except for some isolated mention, because all seven characters are hanging out everywhere so Leela and Bender blend into the crowd and their individual personalities aren't allowed space.

[Reply #19 on:]

Don't get me wrong....I wouldn't want every Episode to be trio centered.
But...well..the whole crew being used too often can imhO lead to easily to that "one anonymous member of the crowd" phenomenon...