Thoughts on 7ACV15 - 2-D Blacktop - SPOILERS

[on:]

Original Airdate: June 19th, 2013. After being trapped in an alternate two-dimensional universe, the Planet Express crew must face unexpected challenges to daily life. Will post my review later. Rate and Review.

[Reply #1 on:]

The last bit felt a bit rushed but... I'll be damned if I didn't like this one.

[Reply #2 on:]

There was new aspects in this episode and I liked those dimensional references. Seemed very funny first time, but also fast progressing.

[Reply #3 on:]

Mike Rowe, I am very pleased with your work. You have proved me wrong!

[Reply #4 on:]

Wow......I enjoyed this! I'll make a full review tomorrow!

[Reply #5 on:]

It was okay, I give it a 7.4/10.

My proper mini review will come later.

[Reply #6 on:]

Well, they certainly got gutsy and chose a daring path for the opener. The animation is getting even more crisp, and I loved seeing the Professor take a very new, uncharacteristic role in this episode. The humor was on par, with the exception of the "non-vocal verbal abuse" thing, which I think was fairly dumb. The new characters were good and so were the references, and I applaud the writers, as they seemed to break their mold a bit with the 2-D world. There were plot devices that definitely could have been flushed out more but there's only so much you can do in less than 30 minutes. I laughed way too much at Scruffy's falling into the ship while staring at Leela. 

Giving this one a 8.5/10. Welcome back Futurama. 

[Reply #7 on:]

I am back once more to speak wonderful nothings into your ears, people <3

On that note, this was a solid opener. I agree with MYK in saying this was a pretty gutsy episode to be chosen to open the "season" with. Lots of nice jokes, good story, and I didn't feel like the end was as rushed as some of the other episodes post-revival. 8.25/10.

[Reply #8 on:]

The humor was on par, with the exception of the "non-vocal verbal abuse" thing, which I think was fairly dumb.

That was a terrible joke that wasn't funny in the first place, wasn't funny after five seconds, and bit us back in the butt several more times. At least the personal problem of "my Aunt's neighbor is a hoarder and a pile of magazines fell onto her cat" was bizarre enough to be funny.

I got to give it like a 6.5/10. The Mobius Strip was great, and I LOVED the rainbow star that nobody got to see. And I'm pretty sure a huge chunk of the budget went towards animating the sequence between dimensions. Reminds me of proteins in the human body.

[Reply #9 on:]

I didn't like the gang of new characters. Hopefully we've seen the last of them?

Also, when the Professor, Leela, Fry, and Bender were in 2-dimensional space, they flipped their heads from left to right; this is impossible. A better treatment of 2-dimensional creatures, with technological development, is A K Dewdney's Planiverse; the ships reminded me of pictures from that book.

I liked the crash test dummy creatures.

I suspect that the dimensions of those fractals were what the Professor claimed they were.

And one more thing off the top of my head:

Morbo: MÖBIUS BANDS DO NOT WORK THAT WAY!

[Reply #10 on:]

Really enjoyed this episode, the dimensional drift is cool as hell, and I laughed out loud quite a few times.

The whole 2-D dimension part did feel a little rushed, but overall I loved it.

8/10

[Reply #11 on:]

Hurrah for the return of episodes with deliveries in them!

I fell apart went scruffy broke his neck and then complimented Leelas rack.
Also when Leela went totally mom. 

And Zoidbergs quips "Don't do this, its too exciting!" followed by "Hurray a tie!"

[Reply #12 on:]

Ok,that was more than I expected, and I didn't expect anything in first place but wow I'm impressed with this one.I guess Mike Rowe,can writte good stuff after all.

I personally liked the new characters (d'aw they were like a family),the animation was really good! (the rainbow star,the races and the 2-D dimension) also I like the way that the plots were combined.

I'm giving it an 8.5/10, also I loved the Meteoro/Speed Racer's cameo (it looked so anime,yay! the animators are learning after the awful anime designs in Reincarnation)

[Reply #13 on:]

Was okay to good.

- The street racing Professor was great.
- Loved the new pimped PE ship design.
- Being chased by cops could have been more like a running gag, instead of just one scene during the episode. Those did not have to be lengthy scenes, a montage would have worked. That way, the ending (being chased by that huge police car horde) would have worked rather better. (I was thinking of Blues Brothers somehow )
- The interdimensional scene was beautifully animated.
- Leela going soccer mom: Don't fell either way about that joke. Served it's purpose, but nothing too memorable.
- The "safety" ship seemed a pretty lame joke upon first viewing. Yet, after it settled in a bit- it had a certain something. Yet, that thing suddenly being en par with the PE ship...unno.  Had that thing been able to go fast, Leela would have pressed the pedal to the floor much, much sooner (e.g. at the stop sign).
- Street Racing Gang: The characters were all right personality wise. Yet -for a sci fi show- I would have liked to see an alien and/or robot among them. They looked like 20/21th century persons. Also: Girl: We understood you got into racing due to emotional problems the first three dozen times you mentioned it. (The saved time by letting her tell her story a few times less could have been used for 1-2 cop chase scenes )
- The short stay in the 2D world was okay for me. The main character go somewhere, and the locals want to kill them just a few minutes later. Yet...just sounds like them
- The resolution felt a bit rushed.

Yet, all in all, a rather solid and entertaining episode.
Though I did not watch the Fast and Furious Movies, so probably some references just passed me by.

But I cannot resist one final question:
So, a show in which a guy breaks his neck by looking at a woman's upgraded bazooms and complementing her on them has a much more sophisticated humor than other certain series? Really?

[Reply #14 on:]

Meh. That was pretty funny, but failed to significantly impress. Wasn't a fan of the street racer gang, and I thought that the whole episode (not just the conclusion) felt rushed. It all happened very fast. I'm not sure if that was intentional.

5/10. I know that they can do better.

[Reply #15 on:]

First of all, I have to say kudos to Mike Rowe. Like Fry am the Eggman, he actually managed to make an episode that’s actually pretty enjoyable to watch. There were actually some really cool and funny scenes in this episode and was fun to sit through, parts of it that were really fun. However, like Rowe’s other episodes, it also has a good amount of bad jokes with the good jokes that are kind of hard to watch and a 3rd act that is really out of place from the rest of the episode.

 Alright, what’s the premise? Farnsworth, with a hunkering for making his ship really fast, turns his ship into a badass racing ship and joins a gang of street punks who also like to race. Seeing Farnsworth as a crazy street racer is actually pretty fun. It’s pretty funny to see how much Farnsworth loves his ship, calling it Bessie and how crazy he can get to make it as fast as possible and beat people at races (that race scene with the street punks while ‘’Highway Star’’ was playing was fucking awesome). As for the street gang he joins, they’re pretty much just the generic gang of punks. There’s one girl racer who has a troubled past with her father or something as a joke (which really gets annoying by the 3rd time she does it…well her encounter with Zoidberg is pretty funny, but still a really long and pointless joke), but their mostly just there as a gang.

 Meanwhile while this is happening, we have a minor Leela plot about her getting a safe, minivan/ship to replace the dangerous PE ship they already had. At first I thought I would really hate this plot, with Leela just being a bitch trying to push safety on the PE crew, but it actually turned out to be pretty damn funny. I loved a lot of the jokes done with the miniship (yes, I’m calling it that) and how it effects delivery’s (the safety cuffs, Bender being bored and cemented, the rubber screen), leading up to Leela hating it and acting like a Mom to Bender and Fry which is pretty damn funny as well.

 This all leads up to Leela seeing Farnsworths racing gang and deciding to race them to prove she can still win even in her boxship. After a pretty cool looking Mobius strip race, they crash into each other and we spend the 3rd act randomly in a 2 dimensional plane. While I like the idea of them going into the 2nd dimension, I really wish they stuck with the racing story instead. This entire 3rd act just feels off and completely different from the rest of the episode, with Farnsworth studying the 2nd dimension a bit, finding a 2 dimensional kingdom of..germ people?, and they just leave and go back home safely. Maybe if we had Farnsworth studying the 2 dimensional universe beforehand in the episode or have the crew go into it sooner than it’d work, but it just didn’t really sit right with the other 2 acts, not to mention how rushed it felt.

 But I guess, seeing how low my expectations were for this episode was, this was at least enjoyable to watch. Leela’s plot was pretty damn funny to watch. The animation was pretty great to watch (the racing scenes were awesome to look at and the rainbow galaxy the miniship passes through during its delivery was gorgeous). Even the 3rd act, while a bit random, was still pretty fun to watch on its own, if just to see the 2D universe. It could’ve done a lot better and could’ve had a lot of jokes replaced or omitted completely (Leela’s implied boob job, all 5 scenes of that Asian punk girls abusive father), but for what it did; it was at least an enjoyable watch and a decent opening to this final half-Season.

 Overall: 7.5/10, or 7/10 for the poll.

[Reply #16 on:]

Really enjoyed this. Everything about the episode was total eye candy. Pretty rainbows, intense 3D street racing, and endless ramblings from Hubert.

"I'm cool now. I stay up late racing while I should be sleeping."

The 2D dimension seemed to come and go really quickly though, and it didn't feel like a real problem at all. The aliens there were amusing though. "He's opening our minds to new ideas... GET HIM!"  

I couldn't help but not care about that woman who kept bringing up her Dad's "verbal abuse" though. I can't tell if that was intentional or not, but it became ittitating pretty quickly.

First impression says 8.5/10. I don't think it felt rushed either; just very fast. And hey, it is an episode about street racing after all.

[Reply #17 on:]

8/10

I enjoyed this episode a lot, the jokes were good and the whole idea was really fun to watch! It did feel a bit rushed tough...

[Reply #18 on:]

Not finished watching the episode but I just want to express my love of the line, "Guess it's your lucky day Pimparoo".

[Reply #19 on:]

The jokes make a lot more sense when you see the whole thing rather than the partial jokes that Comedy Central shows in its commercials. Well, that's kinda obvious, but...


The pacing for this episode actually exceeded my expectations. Most of the newer episodes (the Comedy Central run) seemed way too rushed, so this actually felt like an improvement to me.

The 2D segment, objectively, was a bit random and rushed to limit to the third act. Regardless, it worked for me (it "felt right," or right enough anyways). The only thing that I didn't like was how the Professor thought up the solution so easily, without having to really contemplate it and without receiving any hints. I enjoyed the rest of the segment, though.

I think the street racer gang was supposed to be generic and the girl with daddy issues was supposed to be annoying. Still, they should have use them only when necessary for plot development (e.g., introducing them) or for laughs (e.g., her interactions with Zoidberg at the end).

Overall, I quite enjoyed this episode. A couple minor issues aside, it felt pretty "classic Futurama" to me. 8.5/10.

[Reply #20 on:]

I enjoyed this one quite a lot. I think a great deal of this may come from it being the first new Futurama in over a year and the huge amount of excitement I felt.

That being said, while I enjoyed it, I didn't really laugh much at all during it. I thought parts were funny, but nothing seemed particularly hilarious. I'm okay with this, though, since it was such a unique idea and a big risk to take for the season opener.

Zoidberg's very brief lines made me smile, and the animation for the Rainbow Star was beautiful. I also enjoyed Bender and Fry acting like Leela's "children."
I also agree with Spacedal and loved the Pimparoo line.

I did get tired of the Minx's verbally abusive father joke, though.

Overall, I would give this a 6.5, so I rounded up and gave it a 7/10.

[Reply #21 on:]

I didn't finish watching it online because it stopped with like two minutes left for some reason, and I couldn't get it to keep playing. But I could guess what happens at the end so I'll give it a 8.5/10. It gave me a few laughs. I enjoyed the fact that it featured a song from GTA 4 (I always love little factors like that, songs being played in movies/shows that are in games). But yeah, it was pretty funny and a good premiere for the new series. Can't wait to see how the rest will turn out!

[Reply #22 on:]

I also enjoyed Bender and Fry acting like Leela's "children."

For some raisin', "Soccer Mom Leela"'s scene with all the kids in the safety ship reminded me of this:

Show spoiler

[Reply #23 on:]

It was good enough. Wasn't blown away by the episode but there were a few laughs.

7 / 10

[Reply #24 on:]

Wasn't a fan of it. I liked the Professor being a streetracer and all, but I found Leela's  subplot to be a tad funnier. 5/10. A lot of the jokes completely missed the mark, like that chick constantly rehashing a lame joke Family Guy-style. Ugh.

[Reply #25 on:]

I enjoyed the fact that it featured a song from GTA 4

Which song?

[Reply #26 on:]

It could have partly been because I watched this with friends, but I thought this episode was actually hilarious. I think I preferred the subplot with safety Leela to the street racing Professor plot (mostly because I just always enjoy general Planet Express office shenanigans or something), but I really enjoyed the 2D part (I can't picture that! You're dumb!)

I liked the running gag of the street racer suffering verbal abuse from her father, but maybe I just have terrible taste in running gags.

Also, I just remembered the scene where Bender's graffiti from Proposition Infinity was in the background! That made me happy.

Anyway, it's late and I don't know how much sense this post makes but I guess I'd give this one a 7/10.

[Reply #27 on:]

I enjoyed the fact that it featured a song from GTA 4

Which song?

At a guess: the one over the end credits.

Some things I liked on re-watching: the density of detail and background jokes, continuity nods to previous episodes, and of course, the animation. All of these were really good, which is probably why the plot didn't impress me as much as it might've. It just wasn't up to the same standards as the production values of the episode.

I liked the running gag of the street racer suffering verbal abuse from her father, but maybe I just have terrible taste in running gags.

Yeah, you do. That was just irritating, rather than funny. I can see what they were going for, but it fell flat for me. One of the lowlights. I'm honestly surprised that not everybody was rolling their eyes hard at it.

Not finished watching the episode but I just want to express my love of the line, "Guess it's your lucky day Pimparoo".

On rewatching, this was a highlight for me also. Pimparoo was perhaps the best joke of the episode.

[Reply #28 on:]

Pimparoo is my new favourite character.

[Reply #29 on:]

Well overall I thought it was a great episode. Lots of fun, and Professor-Heavy.

However, what was even funny about this 'verbal abuse' gag even in the first place? Let alone the many other times she said it. That's a contender for the crappest joke in Futurama ever.

Was she voiced by Lauren Tom btw?

Overall though, a fun episode. Despite it's flaws, I gave it a 9.

[Reply #30 on:]

Really though, as much as I liked the episode, can somebody tell me what's so funny about the verbal abuse 'gag'? I'm struggling to see why that is even comedy?

[Reply #31 on:]

I think the general consensus was that it wasn't funny.

[Reply #32 on:]

I think the general consensus was that it wasn't funny.

True. Was just wondering what the writers were thinking with that line, and what they were trying to do/aim for...

[Reply #33 on:]

Can I get a Song ID please (Artist - Song Name) on the song that plays out at the end. Not sure if this is the GTA IV one referenced earlier , but no-one ID'd that anyway.

[Reply #34 on:]

I would need to watch a second time to fully review...the jokes were sparse, but the visuals compensated for it. I always like when the show steps out of its safe boundaries to experiment with scientific notions and different animation appearances. The verbal abuse gag...well, it wasn't funny, but I thought that the writers were poking fun at the tropes of movies like Fast and the Furious or whatever (I've never seen any)...like, the verbal abuse backstory was a cheap and stupid way to give the character depth.

I'm surprised no one mentioned the Speed Racer cameo! Weeeee! That was a treat.

Edit: oopsie, no, I was wrong--Sof did!

[Reply #35 on:]

I like Farnsworth episodes, so I think I'm slightly biased towards this one, but I liked it. It took a long time to get to the point, maybe even longer than Naturama, and after it did, I didn't find it particularly funny. The first two acts were really good. The Speed Racer reference, the safe ship, soccer mom Leela and, for the most part, the gang, were all funny. I agree the verbal abusive father joke was awful by the end, but the first couple of times I found it funny.

Would get a high 8/10 if it wasn't for the last act. 7/10

[Reply #36 on:]

I agree the verbal abusive father joke was awful by the end, but the first couple of times I found it funny.
7/10

This is what's confusing me though - why did you (or anyone) find it funny even the first time? I'm not knocking yours or anyone elses opinion, I'm just genuinely confused as to why it's funny, did I miss something? Sorry if this sounds harsh, I don't mean to pick on you or anyone else, just wondering if I've missed something about that joke that's all...

[Reply #37 on:]

I agree the verbal abusive father joke was awful by the end, but the first couple of times I found it funny.
7/10

This is what's confusing me though - why did you (or anyone) find it funny even the first time? I'm not knocking yours or anyone elses opinion, I'm just genuinely confused as to why it's funny, did I miss something? Sorry if this sounds harsh, I don't mean to pick on you or anyone else, just wondering if I've missed something about that joke that's all...

I agree, that wasn't really funny at all. It seemed like Seth McFartlane humor. After rewatching it, I pretended that it wasn't there.

[Reply #38 on:]

I agree the verbal abusive father joke was awful by the end, but the first couple of times I found it funny.
7/10

This is what's confusing me though - why did you (or anyone) find it funny even the first time?

It was allright upon first mentioning.
Main characters usually get a depper background. "Girl was not told by Daddy he loves her and ended for that reason as tomboy-ish streetracer" is by far not the worst of them.
Those backstories often have a forced feeling on them, as if they are rubbed under the viewers nose. Minx poked fun at that kind of storytelling, by presenting that backstory as directly as ever possible.

It was just overdone during the episode.

[Reply #39 on:]

This is what's confusing me though - why did you (or anyone) find it funny even the first time? I'm not knocking yours or anyone elses opinion, I'm just genuinely confused as to why it's funny, did I miss something? Sorry if this sounds harsh, I don't mean to pick on you or anyone else, just wondering if I've missed something about that joke that's all...

I find it funny when ridiculous cartoon circumstance is mixed with real world tragedy to create a dark humour, at least to an extent. The space pirate in Godfellas who, just before he dies, said "too late do I realise that me children are me only real treasures" is hilarious to me. This was the same, her comparing the cops on Farnsworth's tail to her dads abuse on her psyche. It really did get old, though.