Happy Birthday, Fry

[on:]

Howdy...
according the the infosphere, Fry's date of bírth is the 14.8.1974.
So I decided to open a "Happy Birthday" thread for a fictional character..

[Reply #1 on:]

Fry should be glad... apparently . Congrats, Fry !

[Reply #2 on:]

Oh, I forgot.

Nevermind. We can celebrate his birthday some other year.

Show spoiler

And just to clarify, I never knew in the first place. Shame on me.

[Reply #3 on:]

[Reply #4 on:]

And you smell like one too. Heheh.

[Reply #5 on:]

When was his actual birthday established? On the original pilot storyboard (on the Volume 1 DVD) his birthday was listed as July 13th.



....I wouldn't normally just know that, it's just that July 13th is my birthday and I thought that was amazing/awesome. It turned out to be David Cohen's birthday as well.

[Reply #6 on:]

What day is today? It's Philip's birthday. What a day for a birthday, let's all have some cake.

(can't get Elzar' voice out of my head as I type that.)

I am around his age, though I know there's a debate in another thread about how old he actually is.

[Reply #7 on:]

I think it is perfectly acceptable to assume that Fry has aged and is what, 38 now?  They keep track of the Professor's age after all.  Why should it be different for the others?

_{Nobody mention Cubert or I'll command-shift-kill you.}

[Reply #8 on:]

What day is today? It's Philip's birthday. What a day for a birthday, let's all have some cake.

Or, to quote TLF:

Here, have some Leela

Okay:



(Was just a 45 min scribbling by me...but wanted to have that thing up while Fry's birthday was still valid )

[Reply #9 on:]

Oh, Lord, Inquisitor! Look at those bazooms. And she's all trussed up BDSM-like. Only a guy, I guess.

I like Fry's huge and panting tongue, but I request you add a big boner. Puh-leaze.

[Reply #10 on:]

When was his actual birthday established? On the original pilot storyboard (on the Volume 1 DVD) his birthday was listed as July 13th.

True, but at that point, wasn't his name originally Curtis? So things could be subject to change.

[Reply #11 on:]

I don't really remember (I haven't looked at it in close to a decade...), but I do remember the birthdate was just shown on a computer or something. So a perfectly normal thing to just have change later, but it was at least at the point where the characters were fairly established and the storyboard was mostly what ended up airing. This was just a deleted scene I think.

I just don't remember his birthday otherwise ever being mentioned in an actual episode is all. Where did we get this from?



....also wow that cartoon is disturbing. I know it's just fanart but I don't know if I can laugh at the implications of that.

[Reply #12 on:]

....also wow that cartoon is disturbing. I know it's just fanart but I don't know if I can laugh at the implications of that.

That's actually pretty tame compared to some of his other ones.

[Reply #13 on:]

....also wow that cartoon is disturbing. I know it's just fanart but I don't know if I can laugh at the implications of that.

Hm...you had no problem laughing at similar and basically much more distubring stuff, when I look at your favorite episode list :

3ACV:
Parasites Lost, A Tale of Two Santas, Luck of the Fryrish, Godfellas, Roswell That Ends Well, The Day The Earth Stood Stupid, Time Keeps on Slippin'

HMs: Amazon Women in the Mood , Insane in the Mainframe

[Reply #14 on:]

Ahem. Yoohoo? Fry chubby, please.

[Reply #15 on:]

Sorry, I do not do R-rated art....
(Besides, that thing would get me banned from Peel rather quickly. But just compare it to FoaB: Fry's face FIRST lightened up. and THEN the blood "rushed somewhere else". So, the pic is still in the "lightening up" phase )

[Reply #16 on:]

Uh...so Leela's oversized pillows are PG-rated? Okay...

And I just had in mind a suggestive bulge in his pants--not the actual and naked member. But hey, who am I to commision artwork? I ain't no de Medici.

[Reply #17 on:]

Hein doesn't consider huge boobs r-rated. He does consider huge dongs r-rated. Not sure what that says about him..

[Reply #18 on:]

Just to be a clear, it's not a prudish thing that makes me take issue with that cartoon. It's a rape thing.

I get the Amazon Women comparison, but:

1. The rapey actions in that episode are not perpetuated by characters I love.

2. The horribleness actually IS played up to an extent rather than treated as just a minor annoyance (haha, Leela is annoyed that she's about to be forcefully sexually assaulted, isn't that hilarious?!).

3. The tone here is much more concerning. It seems we're supposed to be cheering on Fry and Bender, not merely laughing at the circumstance.

4. Unfortunately, and while I hate to pull this card, the simple fact is that we still live in a world full of misogyny, casual and otherwise (and as seen in, uh, this cartoon) and in which a huge proportion of even Western women can expected to be raped or assaulted within their lifetimes. A simple gender reversal in the Amazon episode would, in fact, make it quite horrifying and not funny at all.

I'm not against all jokes like this, but understand that there are tonal distinctions that have to be made.

[Reply #19 on:]

I get the Amazon Women comparison, but:

1. The rapey actions in that episode are not perpetuated by characters I love.

"Rapey actions"? Is that rape, but not "rape rape"?

2. The horribleness actually IS played up to an extent rather than treated as just a minor annoyance (haha, Leela is annoyed that she's about to be forcefully sexually assaulted, isn't that hilarious?!).

3. The tone here is much more concerning. It seems we're supposed to be cheering on Fry and Bender, not merely laughing at the circumstance.

For all we know, Leela agreed to this as a birthday surprise, and is just annoyed that Bender forgot to include a bow, and additionally frustrated because due to being gagged, she is unable to remind him of this. Also, if I were her, I'd take issue with the fact that my legs are tied improperly. There are proper bondage knots, you know.

4. Unfortunately, and while I hate to pull this card, the simple fact is that we still live in a world full of misogyny, casual and otherwise (and as seen in, uh, this cartoon) and in which a huge proportion of even Western women can expected to be raped or assaulted within their lifetimes.

As can men. In fact, I'd say it could be argued that men are worse off, since for the most part, a sexually assaulted male is less likely to garner any sympathy whatsoever, particularly if his assaulter is attractive.

Anyway, this whole discussion is moot, because Fry would never take advantage of Leela like that, and the possibility would never cross the mind of anyone who understood that about his character.

[Reply #20 on:]

I wouldn't take it too seriously.   Leela's always pretty horny for Fry, so this is probably a kinky surprise she cooked up for him.  She's probably wearing her skimpiest negligee underneath.

But yeah, I was a bit "this could be taken the wrong way" when I saw this picture.

[Reply #21 on:]

Just to be a clear, it's not a prudish thing that makes me take issue with that cartoon. It's a rape thing.

I think the most likely "next panel" is an embarrased Fry untying Leela, apologising for Bender, and trying to tell her that perhaps Bender is unaware of the nuances of human sexual behaviour so as to avoid both of them being flattened by her. Nowhere is it implied that Fry will rape Leela.

Besides him knowing that she could easily kick his arse (to death), he's also not that kind of guy. The rape here is firmly in the eye of the beholder. The fact that you see rape as the next logical step says more about you than it does about the artist.

I wouldn't take it too seriously.   Leela's always pretty horny for Fry, so this is probably a kinky surprise she cooked up for him.  She's probably wearing her skimpiest negligee underneath.

The fact that she's glaring thunderbolts at Bender would suggest otherwise. She's the victim of Bender's usual ham-fisted attempts to do something nice for his beloved meatbag.

[Reply #22 on:]

Besides, Leela has been getting cockblocked so much recently.  Someone really needs to satisfy her womanly needs.

[Reply #23 on:]

Not now, Leela, I'm trying to listen to a physics lecture!

[Reply #24 on:]

The artist in question is not one of the show's writers or animators; he doesn't exercise (or have to) the same judgment about what's in character.

I would give it more benefit of the doubt, but I do recall a bunch of at least casually misogynist posts from Hein before, so in this case it's harder to.

[Reply #25 on:]

I can't quite recall said posts, DtB, but I guess I'll take your word for it. Are you referring to the fact that he doesn't tend to like Leela in many of the 'battle of the sexes' episodes? Because let's remember, 'I don't like the behaviour of this individual woman at this particular time' doesn't equal 'All women are evil and deserve to be raped'.

[Reply #26 on:]

I would give it more benefit of the doubt, but I do recall a bunch of at least casually misogynist posts from Hein before, so in this case it's harder to.

The ones that were made in response to a general culture of misandry becoming steadily more and more acceptable in society and Futurama providing examples of this?

Context is everything.

[Reply #27 on:]

Funny, Hein and I discussed the same issue in the AWitM review thread, almost a year ago.

Sorry for the long post to follow, but I thought it would be worth referencing some points here, in case anyone wants to add anything:

I also would like to add a rather provoking question:

Would the writers have dared to write a plot regarding a ruled-by-the-males-with-the-females-enslaved society, in which Amy and Leela are constantly raped until they were freed by the others? (A rather rethorical question, and the show most certainly will not need that plot..)

(And Inquisitor Hein, I note your point about the double standard between the two sexes: yes, when I think about it, the men were raped, and yup, you're right, a story with Amy and Leela being continuously raped would be icky and disturbing. I really can't begin to discuss something like that on this thread--it would just get too out of hand and wouldn't really be relevant to this thread--but it is unfortunate that we have double standards. There's no denying, though, that men and women are different in some fundamental ways, and that creates a discrepancy in our notions of acceptable behaviors. Anyways, I'm not going to blather on about this anymore.)

I also do not wish to push the subject any further, but -as probably my last comment in this thread- I want to make that plot just a little more precise :

Not only a story about Leela and Amy being raped...
A story with Amy and Leela trying to rescue the others. And as a "reward" being beaten, enslaved, questioned wether women are allowed to life in chains or wether they should be allowed to life at all (with that society cheered at by Fry and co, who finally show the grace to thank for their tried rescue with the phrase "Sure, women are completely worthless and good for nothing, but we got used to ours and would like to keep them"), and then Amy and Leela -for the grave injustice of making negative remarks about men- being sentenced to death by rape. (And enjoying the rape).

Thinking of that..that plot suddenly does no longer sound funny at all...

Well...as I do not mind a rough humor, I do not have too many problems with the AWITM plot (though I do not consider that a very brillant one).
But I also do not wish to hear an outcry of rage, when a joke is based on someone saying "Women belong in the kitchen", and the punchline turns out it was really the best for the female character to land there. When these jokes create a louder outcry than the AWITM plot, I sincerely do question those folks moral guidelines...

Inquisitor, I assure you I am no fan of male-bashing humor. Or <insert_group>-bashing humor. The Amazons' rough manners and thoughtless violence really didn't do anything for me at all (though I am wondering if that bit is on par with Three Stooges-type of humor--all the punching, jabbing, hitting, poking, etc, that I am absolutely confused by).

This is an interesting topic to explore, or at least think about, but I absolutely do not want to get sucked into it on PEEL, or any Internet forum, for that matter ...

And please don't think I am bashing you, Mr. Hein. I thought our discussion was quite interesting.

Oh, and happy birthday again, Fry!

[Reply #28 on:]

Interesting that this should come up, as Hein and I got into a lengthy argument over PM's on this very topic over a bet we made on what would happen in TBE.  Ah, the plight of being a poor emasculated male in the 21st century.

[Reply #29 on:]

Happy belated Fryday Fry! (^c ^ )