The Mighty Specu-les! Futurama Speculation II

[Reply #440 on:]

Well yeah, Fry's hands worked alright, Leela's ears...

[Reply #441 on:]

We don't know the details of that particular deal. There was probably some fine print Calculon didn't bother noticing.

[Reply #442 on:]

I don't like how the show is slowly starting to revolve around Fry and Leela....

[Reply #443 on:]

I'm glad to see that someone actually notice that. Futurama has always been "Hilarious Futuristic Show" and not "Romance between Fry and Leela". 

It is a shame that Overclockwise could have been the last episode. That Fry-Leela scene at the end       

[Reply #444 on:]

Yeah I'm not 100% bothered about them, I don't mind the occasional ep about it and stuff, but now it's just getting repetitive...

[Reply #445 on:]

But...their relationship was hardly mentioned at all this past season. One Fry/Leela-centric episode does not a complete retool of the series make. At least not the way I see it.

And seasons three and (especially) four had a lot of Fry/Leela-heavy episodes, so this is hardly a new phenomenon. There were just as many shippy episodes in season four, which was only eighteen episodes, as there were in this entire 26-episode production order.

In list form...

Season Four
1. Love and Rocket
2. Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles
3. The Why of Fry
4. The Sting
5. The Farnsworth Parabox
6. The Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings
* There's also "Leela's Homeworld," which has the very sweet and subtly shippy scene between Fry and Leela after her award ceremony, as well as Fry saving Leela from killing her own parents.

That translates to a third of the season, which is kind of a lot. However, I love all six of those episode so very dearly, and for reasons beyond shippiness.

Season Six
1. Rebirth
2. The Late Philip J. Fry
3. The Prisoner of Benda
4. The Mutants Are Revolting
5. Fry Am the Egg Man
6. Overclockwise
*There's also that Fry/Leela subplot in "Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences," but it's not all that obtrusive, I don't think.

Season 6A admittedly has a pretty high percentage of shippy episodes, but there is only one episode from 6B that is blatantly shippy, and a second that could go either way.

[Reply #446 on:]

It's funny, because the episodes you cited in season four are the worst episodes of the series, except The Farnsworth Parabox,  Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles and The Why of Fry who is average.

It think their relationship make episodes worse, the only exception is TLPJF which show that their relation can be used in a episode without ruining it.

[Reply #447 on:]

You don't like "The Sting" or Devil's Hands? Peculiar, but fair enough. The difference here might be that I find those episodes hilarious and seamless in how they incorporate Fry and Leela's relationship into the sci fi adventures, while you seem to find the relationship shoehorned in. It's all subjective, I suppose.

But I still don't think the show has devolved into the Fry and Leela Show or anything. Seriously, there were only two episodes in 6B that addressed their relationship at all, and only a few more that even featured them together in the most platonic sense of the word (that is, sharing scenes with one another). I wasn't bothered by the lack of play the relationship got all season, but I certainly appreciated what "Overclockwise" did in terms of settling the matter in a fairly conclusive way. And, theoretically, the writers can't move on to other stories until they deal with the Fry/Leela stuff (and maybe get the will-they/won't-they garbage out of their systems), which it would appear they have finally done.

[Reply #448 on:]

Whaa? I thought it was just Zapp losing interest in Leela that was revealed, I didn't know he was starting a romance with her mom. Either way, I'm pretty excited for that plot line!

I don't know if I'm too excited for that plot line. It just sounds a little weird to me. I don't see Munda as one to have affairs, and Zapp one to have affairs with mutants. But I'll have to see it to make my judgment.

But I wouldn't be surprised if Zapp just made it seem that he was having an affair as a way to get Leela's attention.

I agree, I don't really think Munda would have an affair, but I meant I'm just excited to see how it all plays out. And yeah, I can definitely see Zapp doing it to get Leela's attention.
 
...So far I'm really liking all the Season 7 plot-lines we've heard about! I mean, I know we don't know how well they'll be executed, but still, it's a good start.

[Reply #449 on:]

Benderloveer, that's quite contrary from the popular opinion. Which is fine, but I'd be interested to hear some of your reasoning.

Also, oh, you've listed my top six from Season Six right there, and those weren't even my top six because of the shippiness, I just thought they were all nicely done. Huh. Perhaps that is more than simply a coincidence.

[Reply #450 on:]

So I was reading up about the commentaries on Season 6 on the Infopshere, and here's something in the commentary for 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela':

Claudia Katz points out that her favourite line is when Fry says "this is a good place to take a dump".

David X. Cohen hints that the final episode of season 6, "Reincarnation", will have a callback to that line.

[Reply #451 on:]

Really?  I thought that was a pretty tacky, unfunny line but that's just me. 

[Reply #452 on:]

For some reason, I find the phrase "taking a dump" to be way cruder than the word "shit," but that's neither here nor there.

And assuming DXC wasn't just being facetious (I don't remember that particular commentary), it would be...intriguing, to say the least, if the climax of one of the segments depended on Fry emptying his bowels behind a tree.

[Reply #453 on:]

So I was reading up about the commentaries on Season 6 on the Infopshere, and here's something in the commentary for 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela':

Claudia Katz points out that her favourite line is when Fry says "this is a good place to take a dump".

David X. Cohen hints that the final episode of season 6, "Reincarnation", will have a callback to that line.

That seems pretty weird that they thought that line was funny or significant enough to have a callback to. I didn't find the line un-funny or tacky, I just don't really think much of it at all.

[Reply #454 on:]

That seems like a very forgettable line to make a callback for. I haven't heard the commentary but I feel like DXC might have been making a joke there.

Also...

It is a shame that Overclockwise could have been the last episode. That Fry-Leela scene at the end       

Um, what about the F/L scenes at the end of Devil's Hands or Wild Green Yonder? Both previous series finales ended with a Fry/Leela scene. This one, if anything, was just following tradition.

[Reply #455 on:]

That seems like a very forgettable line to make a callback for. I haven't heard the commentary but I feel like DXC might have been making a joke there.

Also...

It is a shame that Overclockwise could have been the last episode. That Fry-Leela scene at the end        

Um, what about the F/L scenes at the end of Devil's Hands or Wild Green Yonder? Both previous series finales ended with a Fry/Leela scene. This one, if anything, was just following tradition.

I agree- plus, I personally thought the ending to Overclockwise was much better than Devil's Hands or Green Yonder. Yes, it was still vague, but it provided a better confirmation of Fry and Leela's future together in a touching and creative way, (unlike Devil's Hands) and wasn't a typical romantic ending (like Green Yonder).

[Reply #456 on:]

I heavily enjoyed that line.

[Reply #457 on:]

For some reason, I find the phrase "taking a dump" to be way cruder than the word "shit," but that's neither here nor there.

And assuming DXC wasn't just being facetious (I don't remember that particular commentary), it would be...intriguing, to say the least, if the climax of one of the segments depended on Fry emptying his bowels behind a tree.

Weird isn't it?  I know the c word is probably one of the few taboo words we have left, but I actually think its a lot less unpleasant way to describe the female genitalia then say... "pussy", or "minge" or "snizz" or "clunge" (awful invention of a very unfunny British show)   I think it's a great tragedy to human civilization that we still haven't thought of a non clinical, non offensive, non repulsive term for female genitalia.   Weird, huh?

Also I can't say the word "moist" without feeling grossed out now.  The word has been ruined forever for me.

[Reply #458 on:]

Weird isn't it?  I know the c word is probably one of the few taboo words we have left, but I actually think its a lot less unpleasant way to describe the female genitalia then say... "pussy"

I'm in total agreement with you there. I think we're in the minority, though, as most ladies I know despise the dreaded c-word. (Also, for some reason I wouldn't mind being called a cunt, but I would hate being called a bitch. I'm just weird, I guess. It probably doesn't help that the former word is tossed around a bunch amongst me and my friends, and it has lost all potency as an insult.)

[Reply #459 on:]

There exist taboos?  That word is unknown to me!

[Reply #460 on:]

Weird isn't it?  I know the c word is probably one of the few taboo words we have left, but I actually think its a lot less unpleasant way to describe the female genitalia then say... "pussy"

I'm in total agreement with you there. I think we're in the minority, though, as most ladies I know despise the dreaded c-word. (Also, for some reason I wouldn't mind being called a cunt, but I would hate being called a bitch. I'm just weird, I guess. It probably doesn't help that the former word is tossed around a bunch amongst me and my friends, and it has lost all potency as an insult.)

I agree with the Gork. My sister and I constantly call each other cunt and twat. We love each other lots, honest.  We just think it's hilarious.

I'm sort of ashamed to admit that I snickered at Fry's shitting-behind-trees line. I know I should be above such humor, and I generally am, but...
Ehehe, poop, ehehe.

[Reply #461 on:]

True hate and insult is not found in curse words, but in sentences.  I am excellent at writing truly hateful entries without using a single curse word.  Not that I truly hate.

[Reply #462 on:]

Weird isn't it?  I know the c word is probably one of the few taboo words we have left, but I actually think its a lot less unpleasant way to describe the female genitalia then say... "pussy", or "minge" or "snizz" or "clunge" (awful invention of a very unfunny British show) 

I also agree. The word itself doesn't sound particularly offensive, it's just the association.

I think it's a great tragedy to human civilization that we still haven't thought of a non clinical, non offensive, non repulsive term for female genitalia.   Weird, huh?

Vag?

Also, second on the "moist" thing. That is one word that is really, really excellent at sounding like exactly what it means, and it is quite unpleasant.

The dump line isn't bad. It's just not super fantastically excellent and I feel like if it is called back, 90% of viewers won't even remember it.

[Reply #463 on:]

My brother calls it a bajingo, thanks to Scrubs. That is perfectly unoffensive, and perfectly un-sexy.

And as far as the "take a dump" line goes: I thought it was kind of coarse, but I didn't mind it. I liked that Fry intended to desecrate what we had thought of up to that point as an idyllic, Eden-like paradise--'twas funny.

[Reply #464 on:]

I'm really hoping each segment of 'Reincarnation' has the Futurama intro re-made in that animation style, or I'll be upset.

Atleast the God Entity is back.

[Reply #465 on:]

My brother calls it a bajingo, thanks to Scrubs. That is perfectly unoffensive, and perfectly un-sexy.

Weighing in on the vagina discussion, what's wrong with the word "vagina" ? I don't think that's considered particularly offensive. Unless you're using it in an offensive or inappropriate manner. Like calling your great aunt a vaginaface or something.

[Reply #466 on:]

Weird isn't it?  I know the c word is probably one of the few taboo words we have left, but I actually think its a lot less unpleasant way to describe the female genitalia then say... "pussy", or "minge" or "snizz" or "clunge" (awful invention of a very unfunny British show)   I think it's a great tragedy to human civilization that we still haven't thought of a non clinical, non offensive, non repulsive term for female genitalia.   Weird, huh?

Also I can't say the word "moist" without feeling grossed out now.  The word has been ruined forever for me.

Why do your posts often elicit sexual thoughts in my head? I need to try and think about something else now; do you know how hard that is for a man to do once those sexual thoughts have been planted in their head through no fault of their own? You're dangerous, and I like that...

[Reply #467 on:]

Weighing in on the vagina discussion, what's wrong with the word "vagina" ? I don't think that's considered particularly offensive. Unless you're using it in an offensive or inappropriate manner. Like calling your great aunt a vaginaface or something.

I don't think it's offensive, I just don't think the clinical terms for our down-there parts are particularly fun. Calling it a bajingo is childish, yes, but it's funny as hell. You know, much like the human body.

And I noticed the taking a dump callback in the Fleischer segment of "Reincarnation." I enjoyed it immensely, especially Leela's matter-of-factness and Fry's defensiveness.

[Reply #468 on:]

Weird isn't it?  I know the c word is probably one of the few taboo words we have left, but I actually think its a lot less unpleasant way to describe the female genitalia then say... "pussy", or "minge" or "snizz" or "clunge" (awful invention of a very unfunny British show)

I completely agree. And I think "cunt" actually has a nice sound to it, unlike the other words there. It also has links to the word "quaint", which makes it even interestinger. Maybe the similarity is the reason why it personally seems much tamer to me.

As for the dump line, I thought of IAGDL immediately upon hearing Leela's line. How very bizzare that DXC mentioned it.

[Reply #469 on:]

I completely agree. And I think "cunt" actually has a nice sound to it, unlike the other words there. It also has links to the word "quaint", which makes it even interestinger. Maybe the similarity is the reason why it personally seems much tamer to me.

I read somewhere that "Queen" is also a related word.

Back on topic.  What I would really like to see is the "season" finale of 7A being a third Anthology of Interest collection, and the finale of 7B being Reincarnation II.  Some possibilities for animation styles:

A story in the style of "South Park" -- Oh my God! You killed Scruffy!

A CGI-heavy story like "Shrek" or "Monsters Inc."

A Disney animation style story -- Leela and Amy as Disney princesses?

[Reply #470 on:]

And then there's cut, which is from "Twelth Night".  

I like the idea of the last one, especially if the characters have no visible outlines.    I am still pitching the Edward Gorey one.  Especially if there's a Futurama parody of the Gashleycrumb Tinies with all the characters as cutsey but gloomy children.

"A is for Amy, ground into human rinds
B is for Bender, who insulted alien behinds  (cue alien overlords brandishing a raygun on him)

F is for Fry, who drowned in slurm
G is for Gunter, eaten by a giant worm

[Reply #471 on:]

Ooh, I really like the Disney style idea.

All the other major possibilities I can think of:

Rotoscoping

Stop-start animation (claymation) - this contains a lot of substyles of its own such as Aardman or Tim Burton/Henry Selick.

Puppets - either hand-puppets like the Muppets or stringed puppets (not animation, but it'd fit in)

The style of cartoons seen in most of Nickelodeon's shows, I'm not sure if it has a name or not, but the most iconic show to use it was Ren & Stimpy.

Live-action

Looney Tunes and other classic, 'whacky' cartoons of that nature

Hannah-Barbera

Flash animation - could be another great opportunity for the show to make fun of the internet.

As already mentioned, cutout animation like South Park -but it's worth mentioning that this is also the style Monty Python used, so it has more potential than just being a South Park homage.


Everything I can think of beyond this goes into the realm of parodying a specific show, movie or music video and that's not what Reincarnation was about.

[Reply #472 on:]

So we did get a callback to that dump line.

[Reply #473 on:]

I really hope they don't do another Reincarnation, because that would cheapen it.

[Reply #474 on:]

I don't think it would. Certainly no more than 'Anthology of Interest II' cheapened 'Anthology of Interest I' and in my opinion, 'Anthology of Interest II' is better than the first.

[Reply #475 on:]

Yeah, I preferred the first AOI to the second. That said, I think "Reincarnation" had such a specific premise, and chose three really great animation styles that were very Futurama-compatible (if that makes sense). Making another one of similar quality to the first would be pretty difficult, and it would probably seem a bit derivative. That's like trying to make another Holiday Spectacular...except, in that case, the only way to go quality-wise is up.

[Reply #476 on:]

A Disney animation style story -- Leela and Amy as Disney princesses?

"Leela, you'll never get a prince to marry you if you don't stop with this kung-fu nonsense!"

[Reply #477 on:]

So we did get a callback to that dump line.

Truth. And it was well-done, because I didn't have to know the first dump line to find this reference amusing (which I did).

I dunno... a second Reincarnation might be really cool or it might devalue the first. It depends what they do with it. This one was such a great success, I kind of don't want them to mess with a sequel... but I liked AOI2 better than AOI1 so there are possibilities there.

[Reply #478 on:]

Totally unrelated to the topic, but wanted to get this in a thread many in on-topic frequent:

Fall Madness 2011 is now in full swing. Come down to the Vault to vote on your favorite Futurama characters!

[Reply #479 on:]

I don't think it would. Certainly no more than 'Anthology of Interest II' cheapened 'Anthology of Interest I' and in my opinion, 'Anthology of Interest II' is better than the first.

That's a totally different thing.  I'd love another Anthology of Interest.