What we know:

First movie: Bender's Big Score

 

http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=24076

Show spoiler

Basically, "Planet Express" undergoes a hostile takeover and its new new owners make use of Bender for some criminal schenanigans. What follows is... a very big plot. Which I don't want to ruin. Because it's a lot of fun, very surprising, and something fans should wait for. Making return visits are: the Nibblonians, Seymour, Barbados Slim, Morbo, Santa Bot, the "God" space entity (probably not for the last time), Al Gore, and yes, sexlexia sufferer Zapp Brannigan (although all too briefly). Not to mention space battles, songs, and even a little time travel.

Second movie: ?
Third movie: ?
Fourth movie: Into the Wild Green Yonder

What does "Into the Wild Green Yonder" indicate, judging from the title, which is all we know about it?  My early guess is that Morbo's race finally invades.

The only thing I ask for this thread is use of spoilers when necessary/we have any.

I second Otis' confusion in the news half of the split: I don't really understand why the original thread had to be cut into two separate "sub-threads."  I guess it does make reading the news easier, but I suspect people will be quoting the news in this thread anyway so others know what quote they're referring to, and that just seems a bit... redundant. 

What's done is done, though, so, this is my last speculative post from that thread:

 

"Into the Wild Green Yonder" sounds like it's a play off of "Into the Wild Blue Yonder," which is the official song for the US Air Force. So, when I think of that, (Earth's) domestic defense first springs to mind (Zapp Brannigan, perhaps? A war?). I have no idea why the "yonder" would be green, though.

In response to SpaceCase's last post in the old thread (their list about what "green" in the 4th movie title could mean), I wanted to add that Alternate Universe Fry's jacket was green, and I think the sky in that universe may have been green (or at least included green) as well.  I thought Futz raised a good point about the potential for another Al Gore cameo, too.

Didn't someone with reliable information said that into The Wild Green Yonder was an episode focused on the Fry/Leela relationship? If so I guess we're going to have to wait until the actual movie because none of those suggestions are really shippy material.

The list was really just a way to brainstorm, I think (I don't know for certain; SpaceCase will have to confirm or deny that).  Most of the items there seem irrelevant, but I don't think it hurts to list them anyway.  If nothing else, it distracts from The Waiting Game for a few minutes....

I don't want to post this in the "news" thread since it's not really relevant to the plot of the movies, but I just read this on Billy West's site:

 

Source
Turns out that I will be at the San Diego Comicon just to be on a Futurama
panel..........talking about the new movies to DVD.Pretty much everyone else
is going so I'm going too.

Yay! 

I’m so happy that Billy West will be attending the Comic Con. It sounds like the new Futurama movie panel discussion will be a big event. There should be animatics shown as well if Matt Groening keeps his word, which I’m sure he will…

 

Originally posted by JustNibblin':
 If one assumes "The Wild Green Yonder" has been written and recorded before any contact of episodes beyond the current 16 batch, then the powers that be are facing another "Devil's hands" scenario, where they have to address the Fry/Leela relationship.  Ergo, WGY must address the relationship.

But I haven't seen a statement on this directly.

That’s a very good point, once again they are in that same is it/isn’t it the end of Futurama scenario. I hope the final movie doesn’t address Fry and Leela’s relationship too much. I bit is fine, but I’d rather it wasn’t the main plot. If we all make sure we buy enough DVD’s then it won’t be the end anyway, so let’s do that…

This has made me think of a new question. Obviously the Futurama team is back together at the moment, but they can’t just wait around after they’ve finished making the fourth movie wondering if they can carry on making new Futurama or not. They will have to know if they still have work or disband again which would make it a lot harder to make Futurama happen again. So at what point do you think they will know? And in turn when will we know if Futurama shall continue? Will it be based on the first movies DVD sales while they’re still working on the later movies, or will it be after they are all released, but assumabley soon after?...

Yeah, If the Fry and Leela relationship centralised a whole movie, I think people could lose interest.

Wait One question and its kinda stupid. Is the futurama movie ever getting a theature release or is it a straight to video kinda deal?

If it was done as it was in The Why of Fry, where their relationship was an intregal part of a larger story, I think they could get an entire movie out of that.

 

Originally posted by Otis P Jivefunk:

This has made me think of a new question. Obviously the Futurama team is back together at the moment, but they can’t just wait around after they’ve finished making the fourth movie wondering if they can carry on making new Futurama or not. They will have to know if they still have work or disband again which would make it a lot harder to make Futurama happen again. So at what point do you think they will know?

I anticipate they'll know well before the last movie. That leaves three entire movies (12 episodes) for someone to stand up and demand the rights for a new series.

 

Originally posted by coldangel_1:
... I'll finally get my old quantum supercomputer up and running and we can download seasons 4,5 - 20 from the Internet in an alternate universe where the show was never cancelled.

I take it, that would be the alternate universe with smart F*x exeutives? 

I'm in.
Need any DVD's? 

 

Originally posted by PazuzuJr:
I thought there would be a Fry/Leela shippi plot throughout all the movies/episodes?

I meant it would be bad if they were the main plot.

 

Originally posted by coldangel_1:

Failing that, I'll finally get my old quantum supercomputer up and running and we can download seasons 4,5 - 20 from the Internet in an alternate universe where the show was never cancelled.

Ahh, a little behind the times, are we?

 

Originally posted by i_c_weiner:
SpaceCase, have you ever heard of something called "sarcasm?"

Yes; I use it every chance I get.    

Originally posted by i_c_weiner:
It's one of the greatest tools of the English language.

I couldn't agree more - althought the concept isn't limited by language.
Might I suggest you have a look at this?
The last paragraph of the article in particular...   

 

Originally posted by i_c_weiner:
I'm banging my head against the wall.

 

My work is done here...   

We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread...

 

Originally posted:
2 = The Beast With A Billion Backs

All four movie titles are out now (News thread).  I have a hunch about which one will have the infamous tentacle creature that mates with  everything   

 

Originally posted by JustNibblin':
I have a hunch about which one will have the infamous tentacle creature that mates with  everything   

Hmm.  I think my brain just imploded from the mental image.

Too bad no one has any information about release dates for the latter three movies.  I'm interested in seeing how far apart they're going to be spaced and how that'll affect when they air on Comedy Central.

This article was just released today.

 

Found on ]http://tv.ign.com/articles/801/801261p1.html[/url]

July 3, 2007 - Recently IGN attended a King of the Hill recording session, where I was able to speak to several cast members, including Lauren Tom, who voices Minh and her daughter Connie. Tom is a very busy voiceover actress, who has worked on everything from Teen Titans to Kim Possible. Among her most notable roles is that of Amy on Futurama, a role she will be reprising soon, as Futurama returns with four DVD movies, which will also be reformatted as 16 new episodes, to air on Comedy Central next year.

I asked Tom about her return to Futurama, and she told me "We just did sixteen episodes and we just recorded the last four, and that was a big tear-fest." Noting that they'd just finished up a couple of days before, Tom then showed me a picture of the Futurama characters she had with her done by Matt Groening that Groening had signed and added additional drawings to for her. I definitely agreed with her declaration that it was "awesome."

As for the show continuing past these additional 16 episodes, Tom remarked, "We're keeping our fingers crossed that it will go on and have more of a life, because when we did the last table read, [Executive Producer] David X. Cohen said 'Welcome to the very last, last, last episode of Futurama …until the next last one!' So hopefully the fans will rally together again. Hey, it worked for Jericho!"

When I told her that we certainly have a lot of Futurama fans at IGN, both on our staff and among our readers, Tom replied, "Really? Oh, that's good! David told us that our ratings have been better [on cable] than they were when we were on the air before! So I think it's taking sort of a slow roll or something, that people are starting to get into it more now. So hopefully we'll be back!"

As for whether she was surprised to hear they would be returning to do more Futurama at all, Tom replied, "Completely! I think we were down for what, two, three years, so it was really just a blast from the past. But I'm so happy, because it's an incredible group of people. We have so much fun!

Perhaps both. If I remember right, there's supposed to be a more shippy movie. And, after thinking of what Lauren said, "Into the Wild, Green Yonder" sounds more and more like a Kif thing, meaning shippiness could work well in it.

The other part with possibly being the last time they work together (again) is sort of covered later in the article with the DXC thing. They once again aren't sure if this will be it, though I think it likely won't be, considering that it won't get pre-emptied by football.

there waS, juSt not huge

I agree with Ralph.  Comedy Central spent way too much money on the series to just let it die out again.  My guess is that they'll wait for the new movies and the reruns that will be airing on their network to ignite some more interest in the show, and then announce that they're ordering new episodes.

One other thing:  Has anyone heard whether or not scenes from the animatic for Bender's Big Score are going to be shown at comic con this month?  I thought I heard somewhere that that was the case, but I dont remember where or from whom...