Thoughts on 7ACV04 - Thief of Baghead - SPOILERS!

[on:]

I think it was an acceptable episode. I gave it an 8/10 , because I think that the first act was a little bit rushed. But I also liked how we had a good Farnsworth explanation and pretty much the whole Act 2. I'm not liking the third act though. Although I do like the ending bit with the picture of Bender. I would have to rewatch the episode, because something seems repetitive since the last 3 episodes. The endings....? It seems like the third acts for the past 3 episodes all had some kind of twisted plot to it. I hope they don't do the same thing next week.

But overall, I was close to giving it a 7/10, but I was generous enough to give it a 8/10 because of the paparazzo Bender. Which was hilarious!

[Reply #1 on:]

Had a pretty strong first and second act. I actually felt like this one was paced a bit slow. I almost thought it was the third act shortly before the second commercial. Final act was too fast and the ending felt like one of the rushed ones from last year.

7.5/10

[Reply #2 on:]

I found it to be unbearably bad. It had a shitload of modern pop culture references(harvey levin, Selena gomez, kanye, Paris hilton), a lame plot, and I didn't laugh once.

I enjoyed the other 3, but this was as bad as PI. Utter shit.

[Reply #3 on:]

I found it to be unbearably bad. It had a shitload of modern pop culture references(harvey levin, Selena gomez, kanye, Paris hilton)

How is that any worse than Pamela Anderson guest starring?

Decent episode 8/10 by new Futurama standards

[Reply #4 on:]

I found it to be unbearably bad. It had a shitload of modern pop culture references(harvey levin, Selena gomez, kanye, Paris hilton), a lame plot, and I didn't laugh once.

I enjoyed the other 3, but this was as bad as PI. Utter shit.

I actually enjoyed PI after several viewings. Maybe the same concept will apply with this episode for some too......?

I don't think it was terrible, but they should have handled the third act better.

[Reply #5 on:]

Meh. Started out great but it had a crappy ending. Didn't like it as will as the last ones I saw this season.

[Reply #6 on:]

I thought it was okay. Not particularly amazing, but not really awful either.

The montage of Bender taking the photos was entertaining, and I'm glad to see the return of Fry's catchphrase. All in all, this episode didn't really have anything wrong with it, but not really anything great with it either other than a bunch of small gags.

I didn't find any of the pop culture references to be too jarring thankfully. They weren't really very subtle, but they were small and didn't drag down the entire episode AOTKA style.

Also, I wonder if Calculon will stay dead?

For now this is about a 6/10.

[Reply #7 on:]

I've only watched this episode once, and will get to it a second time when possible.

This one was on par with the last three; I'd give it an 7.5 to 8/10 for now. Yes, there were some mildly annoying modern pop culture references, and a few bumps in the plot, but I think the former is ultimately forgivable because of the episode's premise. And even then, the episode had many other interesting subtle references. (I thought the Sigmund Freud "Id/Ego" idea was brilliant.)

If we're going to compare this to Proposition Infinity, I'll give several reasons why I believe that this episode was of much better quality. For the record, I wasn't a huge fan on Prop Infinity. It wasn't an absolute flop, but certainly not Futurama's best. (Between a 4/10 and 5/10 for me.)

1. The satire in this episode was on a fairly general subject: actors, celebrities and fame. Prop Infinity was based on something very specific (Marriage Equality in the United States/Proposition 8 in California). Futurama has been using general satire since it began, usually with a good amount of success. Using a specific event/political debate made this episode come across as too similar to Family Guy or South Park.
2. Proposition Infinity abruptly ended (and just as abruptly restored) one of Futurama's main romantic couples (Amy and Kif), to a fair amount of criticism. It felt much too sudden and arbitrary. This episode did not.
3. Proposition Infinity revolved completely around Amy and Bender's relationship. This episode had an interesting B-plot and a sci-fi plot device that helped the episode stand on its own.

The one part of this episode that stood out as a glaring negative was the lack of resolution to Calculon's death. I hope they resolve that. Also, it seemed like another "Leela and Bender" episode, but I think (hope) by the end of the season it will even out and Fry will get his due.

In the meantime I am VERY curious for Zapp Dingbat.

Also, Happy Independence Day, fellow Americans!

[Reply #8 on:]

Well now, it's about time we got a nice sci-fi story!  Why did we have to wait until the fourth aired episode to do it though?

I rate this a 7/10 but accidentally hit the 8 and there is no option to change a vote so please deduct one from the total near the number 8 and add one to the 7.

[Reply #9 on:]

I think this episode was okay. The beginning was nice, especially the part in the aquarium, but the plot was lame. 7/10 for me.

[Reply #10 on:]

I am getting really frustrated by this season. Another great episode, with the exception of the unrealistic mutiliation of the main characters. Whatever writer is responsible for screwing up these episodes at the last minute needs to be fired out of a cannon into the sun.

The first act - and all its jokes - were brilliant. A+++. 10/10. The second act was going good too, interesting new character, plot was decent. Then you had to go an effing mutilate 3 of the main characters like that wtf STOP TURNING THIS INTO THE SIMPSONS!!!!!!!!!!! There are so many possibilities that could be done with regards to the plot. For instance, they could have been just blank eyed and zombie like like Spock in Spock's Brain of Star Trek. The characters still get sent to the background of the plot without it seeming like they're being killed/mutilated/some other unrealistic kill-off-the-characters kind of way. This is RIDICULOUS!!!

Just like A Farewell to Arms, I would have given this a 10/10. Now...I am not sure. I have to think about it. Probably an 8 or 9. BUT SERIOUSLY CUT THIS CRAP OUT, GET BACK TO REALITY, AND BRING THIS BACK TO THE FUTURISTIC RELATEABLE SHOW IT ONCE WAS. Just because it's science fiction doesn't mean you need to show how you can totally eff up the characters but then tada, look they came back. It's the future after all!

Also, hahaha. Lol @ the Faster Professor, Kill! Kill! I remember watching that Russ Meyer film in anthropology class

[Reply #11 on:]

This episode was all over the place!  I'm gonna hold off on the review until after it plays again at midnight.  First impressions are okay though, not great.  Pop culture references don't bother me, and neither does mutilation but I'm a sucker for physical comedy.  Some lines were amazing, some fell flat.  Unanswered questions galore!  What happened to Cobb?  Is he dead?  Is Calculon really dead?  I'm sure he's not gone for good b/c they said he has an arc this season.

EDIT: Oh, and Calculon's performance at the end was actually quite moving.

[Reply #12 on:]

meh.  Not the best episode, but not the worst either.  I didn't like the whole "life force" thing.  Way too cartoony.  For some reason though, the t-rex treading water at the aquarium cracked me up.  Also, Calculon had better not really be dead.  

6/10

[Reply #13 on:]

Okay, okay, hold up. No more Calculon? That was unexpected!

Anyway, I enjoyed the jokes about the acting process - I'm serious about becoming an actress myself and that made me laugh so much! (it also helped that I watched Inside the Actor's Studio beforehand). I didn't mind any of the pop cultural references - it's completely plausible that some people from our time are still relevant because of things like head-in-a-jar technology. Neither do I mind the cartoony-ness of recent episodes - if any show can get away with it, it's Futurama.

Having said all that, the plot didn't do anything for me. It was actually quite a bore by Futurama standards, and so far the worst of this broadcast season. But as per usual, a 6/10 for Futurama is the equivalent to an 8/10 for any other show.

[Reply #14 on:]

One highlight I will say was Mo Lamarche's speech at the end was awesome. He really deserved that Emmy last year.

[Reply #15 on:]

I agree. I don't particularly like Romeo & Juliet, but I did think "oh god, how's this going to go". As it turned out, he did a great job. Not cringe-worthy at all, I was even slightly moved by it. Damn, Futurama has the best voice actors of any animated show in my opinion.

[Reply #16 on:]

I am getting really frustrated by this season. Another great episode, with the exception of the unrealistic mutiliation of the main characters. Whatever writer is responsible for screwing up these episodes at the last minute needs to be fired out of a cannon into the sun.

The first act - and all its jokes - were brilliant. A+++. 10/10. The second act was going good too, interesting new character, plot was decent. Then you had to go an effing mutilate 3 of the main characters like that wtf STOP TURNING THIS INTO THE SIMPSONS!!!!!!!!!!! There are so many possibilities that could be done with regards to the plot. For instance, they could have been just blank eyed and zombie like like Spock in Spock's Brain of Star Trek. The characters still get sent to the background of the plot without it seeming like they're being killed/mutilated/some other unrealistic kill-off-the-characters kind of way. This is RIDICULOUS!!!

Just like A Farewell to Arms, I would have given this a 10/10. Now...I am not sure. I have to think about it. Probably an 8 or 9. BUT SERIOUSLY CUT THIS CRAP OUT, GET BACK TO REALITY, AND BRING THIS BACK TO THE FUTURISTIC RELATEABLE SHOW IT ONCE WAS. Just because it's science fiction doesn't mean you need to show how you can totally eff up the characters but then tada, look they came back. It's the future after all!

Also, hahaha. Lol @ the Faster Professor, Kill! Kill! I remember watching that Russ Meyer film in anthropology class

The difference here is that the episode is dealing with alien concepts and supernatural junk. These mutilations were random, yes. But they actually had a reason. Personally I thought it was way better than what they did in AFTA because there was a reason beyond "Make their arms fall off. That would be funny".

[Reply #17 on:]

Amusing, not amazing. It gained points for the aquarium scenes and for the shots of the hovercars in front of the Acting Championship venue. It lost points, or simply failed to gain them, on almost everything else.

A poor episode, but with enough jokes to earn a decent-ish rating. Not up to the standard of the previous episode though. That had both quantity and quality, joke-wise.

This one... well, it was distinctly average in terms of joke quality, and below par in terms of overall plot. The ending was okay, the beginning sucked noodles until we got to the aqaurium, and the middle was a process of gradual mild improvement from one state to the other.

So, I feel it deserves 7/10 overall. It would have been six, if not for the Jurassic Park joke near the beginning.

[Reply #18 on:]

I really enjoyed this episode. I liked the aquarium scenes. And it was nice to see Calculon actually acting for the first time. That's a novelty.

[Reply #19 on:]

Unreal: I felt the way they handled that particular part of the plot was very poor. They could have handled it a lot better than "oh look, their bodies are deflated. But it's ok. We'll inflate them back up at the end through the magic of cartoons". I remember when a character died it actually meant something, like The Sting. Their "life force" was gone, so yes, the writers did kill three characters for the purpose of 15 minutes of the plot. And that, I find, to be incredibly shortsighted, haphazard, and just plain wrong. 

[Reply #20 on:]

I'll also say that I liked the reference to 'the deep south' with Zoidberg's line, "look, we've all been in a seamonsters stomach...".

Alien language: Earth Invasions gone wild.

[Reply #21 on:]

My impressions improved upon a second viewing of this episode.  I think this one is gonna be a grower for me; there's just so much packed in there. I'll give it a 7 for now, but I think that may change to 8 in the future.

Paying more attention this time around, Cobb is definitely not dead at the end of the episode.  Perhaps Calculon's season 7 story arc is his ongoing competition with Cobb over who is the best actor.

[Reply #22 on:]

Unreal: I felt the way they handled that particular part of the plot was very poor. They could have handled it a lot better than "oh look, their bodies are deflated. But it's ok. We'll inflate them back up at the end through the magic of cartoons". I remember when a character died it actually meant something, like The Sting. Their "life force" was gone, so yes, the writers did kill three characters for the purpose of 15 minutes of the plot. And that, I find, to be incredibly shortsighted, haphazard, and just plain wrong. 

Now that you put it that way, I sort of agree. Nobody really seemed very concerned about Fry, Amy and Hermes even though they were essentially lumps of skin.

I still don't think it compares to the ridiculous arm mutilation of AFTA though.

[Reply #23 on:]

7/10

• Did I miss something or did Calculon actually manage a creditable performance?
• Where was the super-ego?
• I was sure that Zoidberg was going to claim that the greatest actor of all was Harold Zoid.
• The whole soul life-force sucking effect and restoration thing felt like it was lifted from the movie 9.
• For a moment I was hopeful that the ego would not turn out to be the fungal dog thing because I thought to was too obvious, oh well.
• Though I did laugh when I realised that they (the writers) were just going to Calculon dead where he lay.

[Reply #24 on:]

What an odd little episode that was. Though I liked the opening at the aquarium (I particularly enjoyed the run between Fry and Leela about spreading yogurt on the glass, and Fry's favorite yogurt being strawberry, and Leela not touching the water 'cause she's smart; that sort of aimless, banter-y dialogue really amuses me in small doses), I began to lose interest when I thought the whole episode was going to become this contemporary pop culture reference-y thing about the paparazzi hassling celebrities (though I did like the title of the magazine, and its proud declaration that it's the magazine more women deny reading).

I'd definitely say that the beginning of act two was the lowest point of the episode for me, if only because I could do without references to Selena Gomez and Paris Hilton...even though GabeNewell is probably right about their cameos being no worse than Pamela Anderson's in "A Fishful of Dollars." Still, those former references irked me, whereas the latter does not (I actually love Pamela Anderson's guest appearance, and often say "Crap!" in that irritated, he-doesn't-know-I-won-the-Oscar kind of way in tribute). I think the problem is that the trashy celebrities of the 1990s have had more staying power than the teeny-bopper celebrities of the 2000s probably will, so references to Disney actresses and stupid socialites strike me as more likely to become dated than those to bouncy slow-motion lifeguards. But I digress.

After act two's sort of weak start, I was pleasantly surprised when that sci fi, life-force-stealing-alien twist came in; Langdon Cobb was an interesting character (with an awesome name), and I thought his speech at the end about how America worships celebrities was pretty good (if not a bit tired). It was also cool that we got an interesting, not-often-seen quartet of characters working together to solve the dead-coworkers problem; Bender and Leela in particular don't really get enough stories together (as evidenced by that "So...you're a robot?" stuff from "Law & Oracle" last season). I loved that little, like, hand-holding moment the two of them had when they were so moved by Calculon's performance--and their immediate self-disgust; that was the only moment during this episode where I laughed out loud (which probably says more about my tastes than it does about the quality of the jokes, but whatever).

Calculon's death was kind of glossed-over, though, and it didn't seem really prompted by anything. I get that the guy's a ham, yeah, but a ham who's willing to kill himself for his craft? I don't really buy it. Also, the lack of resolution on that plot point bothered me--even though I'm sure that Calculon's death will be explored, or at least mentioned in passing, in upcoming episodes. Like, it didn't bother me because I fear it will disrupt continuity--it bothered me because it added nothing to the episode. If Cobb was going to win the contest anyway, why did Calculon have to die? It serves no plot purpose. I have to trust that the writers did that to service the apparent Calculon arc we're getting this season--but, still, it left sort of a bad taste in my mouth (though I agree with hobbitboy that Amy's offhanded remark about Calculon's death was kind of funny).

Bender also seemed kind of...dumb in this episode. Not Homer Simpson-ish, but definitely Fry-ish. The only example I can think of at the moment is how he didn't understand that a paparazzi gets paid, but I feel like there were a number of other gags throughout the episode where I wanted to roll my eyes at Bender's sort of childish stupidity. I know Bender is often strangely naive, but here it didn't feel organic to his character, as it has in the past--it felt like something demanded by the plot, or like he got all the dumb Fry lines because Fry himself was incapacitated for two-thirds of the episode, or something like that. Anyway, I didn't like it.

All in all, though, this wasn't a bad episode. There were some decent gags (though I think the preceding three episodes were much funnier), and I liked the way the characters were utilized (this was still a Bender/Leela episode, but the parts played by the other PE crewmembers added to, and did not detract from, the story being told. This season is a definite improvement over season six in that regard). It's just that the plot was sort of all-over-the-place, and Calculon's death seemed shoehorned in. I agree with Imy that there was something almost boring about the story--though, again, I appreciated that this episode took a modern-day concept (much like, say, "Attack of the Killer App" and "Yo Leela Leela" did), but added a compelling sci fi twist to it. I'd say this is a 6/10--slightly below average by Futurama's standards, but not so horribly offensive that I never want to watch it again.

On that note:

Unreal: I felt the way they handled that particular part of the plot was very poor. They could have handled it a lot better than "oh look, their bodies are deflated. But it's ok. We'll inflate them back up at the end through the magic of cartoons". I remember when a character died it actually meant something, like The Sting. Their "life force" was gone, so yes, the writers did kill three characters for the purpose of 15 minutes of the plot. And that, I find, to be incredibly shortsighted, haphazard, and just plain wrong. 

Now that you put it that way, I sort of agree. Nobody really seemed very concerned about Fry, Amy and Hermes even though they were essentially lumps of skin.

That didn't really bug me, because clearly Farnsworth was worried. Part of the joke, to me, was that Leela and the others were sort of nonchalant about the whole thing--probably because every character has been horribly mutilated at some point throughout the series, and it's always ended okay; it makes sense for them to be somewhat unafraid of death by now--but Farnsworth appreciated how nigh-impossible it would be to save Fry, Amy, and Hermes. Hence his annoyance when Leela kept wanting to make comparisons to the buffalo, and his belief that their time would be better spent at the aquarium, since trying to save their coworkers was hopeless.

I get why it may not have worked for some people, and I agree that it's kind of annoying how these characters have escaped death so many times by now that episodes like "The Sting"--which treats the subject of mortality quite seriously--seem somehow less powerful. But, in this case, the mass character casualties worked for me; they made sense for the kind of story being told, and I didn't take issue with how everyone reacted to the situation in kind of an unconcerned way. 

Also, it looked really cool (and genuinely creepy) when everyone's life-forces were drained. Just sayin'. 

[Reply #25 on:]

Gorky wins the thread.

Agreed with everything other than Calculon's death. I found it hilarious how he essentially committed suicide for nothing. Like, I expected him to win, but he didn't, and nobody noticed or seemed to care, which added to the humour.

Of course, if they don't explain it in a future episode I'm going to be very pissed. Same with the Mars thing.

[Reply #26 on:]

Gorky is right, Bender's and Zoidberg's reaction to the co-workers being deflated made sense, based on both's inhumanity or lack of understanding of it.  At least Farnsworth was worried, and appropriately.

'Killing them off' allowed the writers to put a more unusual array of main characters together to solve the issue.  It did not bother me in the slightest.  I looked over the popular culture references, because it was a short montage and it lead us appropriately to the important aspect of the plot.  So yeah, a weak act 2, but other than that, decent episode.

And yeah, I liked the science-fiction aspect of the episode.  And above all, the plot was appropriately silly.

Also, while I agree with futurefreak's issue about 'the concept of being dead' to mean something, I do accept it for the purpose of this episode, because there was a solution to this problem.  They had not died naturally, so to speak.  And there was a way to save them.

[Reply #27 on:]

They got it wrong - the EGO is what maintains balance between the ID and the SUPEREGO. Therefore, that guard dog should have been the SUPEREGO, not EGO. (I have a degree in psychology, I know my Freud )

But other than that, this episode was ok. A bit ridiculous and over the top with the mutilations, and odd that nobody really gave a crap about fry, amy, and hermes, and also calculon's death. But still a pretty entertaining episode nonetheless. 8/10

[Reply #28 on:]

(I have a degree in psychology, I know my Freud )

Then you must also know how wrong he was.

A bit ridiculous and over the top with the mutilations, and odd that nobody really gave a crap about fry, amy, and hermes, and also calculon's death.

So Farnsworth, Bender and Leela counts as 'nobody'?

[Reply #29 on:]

(I have a degree in psychology, I know my Freud )

Then you must also know how wrong he was.

A bit ridiculous and over the top with the mutilations, and odd that nobody really gave a crap about fry, amy, and hermes, and also calculon's death.

So Farnsworth, Bender and Leela counts as 'nobody'?

I never said Freud wasn't wrong. Freud's theories are bonkers. But if somebody is going to parody freud's theories, they may aswell get it right.

I'm not convinced that farnsworth and leela cared much about the mutilations. I dunno, maybe I need to re-watch it, but they just didn't show much emotion at all. I know they set out to save them and all, but what I'm referring to is lack of emotion. And as for bender, I guess he is a robot afterall, but still, felt odd with a lack of emotion seeing as he's shown it many times in the past.

[Reply #30 on:]

That's why the robot's immune; he has no soul!

We never get to go where I want to.

This episode felt great, I enjoyed it and it made me laugh like the good old days.

[Reply #31 on:]

Weird but in an amusing way. Won't say it's a particular favourite but I likeable enough. That said, probably laughed out loud even less than I did last week - the T-Rex and the last second gag being about it. Still enjoyed the rest though.

8/10

[Reply #32 on:]

And to those bothered by the celebrity references, I think you are forgetting why you hate the popular culture references.  These references were background jokes, i.e. not the characters knowing of 20nd/21st century celebrities, but just 31st century celebrities having names similar to modern day celebrities.

That's vastly different in my book, and far more acceptable than just having the characters off-handly mention a celebrity they would have no way of knowing.

[Reply #33 on:]

It's possible that my experience was affected by my lack of sleep, but I thought this episode was really good. Lots of laugh-out-loud gags and several moments that just felt like classic Futurama. Also cool sci-fi things.

8/10

[Reply #34 on:]

The whole life forces getting sucked out thing was so clool. Good episode.

A bit ridiculous and over the top with the mutilations, and odd that nobody really gave a crap about fry, amy, and hermes, and also calculon's death.

Actually it's believable, there's so much death and whatnot in the show it must be common to them.

[Reply #35 on:]

good episode, so is Calculon really died? It sucks, since I was sort of expecting him to pop right up at the end.

[Reply #36 on:]

good episode, so is Calculon really died? It sucks, since I was sort of expecting him to pop right up at the end.

I'm almost certain it will be resolved in next season's "Calculon 2.0."

[Reply #37 on:]

Pretty good!   There were some genuinely funny moments.  I thought the whole Ego Id felt a bit abstract, but I'll give it a IT'S MAGIC brush off.

I loved the part in the aquarium, it reminded me of the fun goofy sci fi of the original run, the way the Local Group Farmer's Market did in FATEM.

So yes, I would say this season as a whole is much, much stronger then 7b.  While none of them so far are one of my favourites or in my top 20, they are very promising.  Good, solid episodes.   I hope they keep the trend up.  

It's also an example of a topical subject done well: the papparazzi culture and the nature of celebrity culture.  It's something a lot of people today can understand and relate to, but not to a ridiculously specific event.  It's something as broad as global warming, rather then something as specific as iphones and Yo Gabba Gabba.  It's also given a unique sci fi twist, the way futurama should do with its topical episodes.

The only part I disliked were how crappy a few of the sci-fi celebrity puns were.  Parts Hilton?  That's doesn't really work, neither does Selena Go-bot. 

[Reply #38 on:]

Why are people getting mad at the whole life force thing? It's not even close to limb removal. The thing that annoyed me is how their clothes somehow managed to stay on straight and act almost like part of their bodies. Other than, great sci-fi. Great animation too.

[Reply #39 on:]

I loved when the Professor was detailing the relationship between the fungus Id and Ego.  He mentions that they are paired via quantum entanglement and a bunch of question marks appear connecting the two holograms.

What bugs me about the 'life force' bit is that it seems like it was sucking everything out of their bodies, not just something immaterial.