The Future's News Today (Futurama News Thread)

[Reply #640 on:]

My thoughts on the cancellation:

Having gone through the cancellation motions three times now, I have to say that this time feels the most easy to deal with. Not because I've grown used to it, but because for the first time I really feel that the series has given me nearly everything I've wanted. All the big plot strands have been tied up, nearly all the revelations have been shared. All the secondary characters that I've loved have been given the spotlight.

I mean, think back to the season 4 finale. There was so much more that we wanted from the series, and it wasn't until five years later that we got the big return. The DVD movies were, for the most part, satisfying. I think Bender's Big Score gave us a well deserved epic, Nibbler revealed his true self to the crew, Farnsworth was revealed to be Igner's father and ITWGY gave us (yet again) a Futurama epic that finalyl brought Fry and Leela together.

Really, all I wanted from a return was some resolve for the ending of ITWGY, and we got just that when Comedy Central revived the series. From there, seasons six and seven have felt very much like bonus episodes, in that there wasn't much that I felt had to be wrapped up from past seasons. It was more like hanging out with old friends again. I will note, however, that we got some big things in the CC seasons.

Lethal Inspection gave Hermes and Bender an interesting, and touching, connection. The Mutants Are Revolting resolved the mutant plot, and allowed for some less restricted episodes later on. We met Farnsworth's parents, and saw the death of Calculon (who is set to return) and Roberto. The Late Philip J. Fry, Overclockwise and Fun on a Bun are modern classics.

At this point, all I'm expecting from the series is Fry and Leela to get married, and I've always seen that as the end of the series. And it looks like we might get it.

As for the future, I could totally see a DVD movie or theatrical movie happening. Or FOX may or may not revive the series for FOX Sunday or FX (which, correct me if I'm wrong, is splitting into drama and comedy networks). Heck, if Arrested Development does well on Netflix, we might see more Futurama there. Basically, I'm not counting the series out just yet. I think the property still has life in it, and there are a variety of options for the future. Personally, I want a movie. A theatrical movie!

[Reply #641 on:]

At this point, all I'm expecting from the series is Fry and Leela to get married, and I've always seen that as the end of the series. And it looks like we might get it.

That's 1 of the reasons why I want Futurama to stay cancelled

[Reply #642 on:]

I didn't sign the petition. Well not yet, anyway. The reason is that Unmentionable won't like me if 7ACV26 is truly fantastic, I'd like to see it end on a high note. That's my biggest wish for Futurama.

If it disappoints, then I probably will sign it.

[Reply #643 on:]

I didn't sign the petition. Well not yet, anyway. The reason is that Unmentionable won't like me if 7ACV26 is truly fantastic, I'd like to see it end on a high note. That's my biggest wish for Futurama.

If it disappoints, then I probably will sign it.

So, if we get more crappy episodes, you're more likely to want more Futurama? Seems legit.

[Reply #644 on:]

I don't know how to feel about this. Ask me again after the final.

[Reply #645 on:]

I didn't sign the petition. Well not yet, anyway. The reason is that Unmentionable won't like me if 7ACV26 is truly fantastic, I'd like to see it end on a high note. That's my biggest wish for Futurama.

If it disappoints, then I probably will sign it.

So, if we get more crappy episodes, you're more likely to want more Futurama? Seems legit.

Well, not exactly. If 7B was a string of awful episodes then I think I'd be glad it was ending. If it was merely good, then I'd want it to go on until it finds a worthy finale.

[Reply #646 on:]

Basically Binder summed up my feelings on the cancellation. (Great post! It saved me a lot of typing. My carpal tunnel thanks you.   )

The cancellation does feel less harsh this time around. Maybe it's a result of watching them drag out the Simpsons forever, but I really would rather see Futurama end on a high. 7b looks great (as much as you can judge from a 3min trailer, obviously) and a lot of my wish list has been covered, so I feel like I don't have much to complain about if it does go for good this time. That said, I do feel sad about it. It feels like my best friend just moved to another continent.  

I didn't sign the petition. Well not yet, anyway. The reason is that Unmentionable won't like me if 7ACV26 is truly fantastic, I'd like to see it end on a high note. That's my biggest wish for Futurama.

If it disappoints, then I probably will sign it.

Seconded. Meanwhile sounds like it's going to be fantastic, and if it is, I'll be happy to see the show go out on a high. I want a big memorable ending - the show deserves it.

Umm Unmentionable, I do not want to sound like a real arse-hole, buttt I think maybe you should really stop arguing with all of us on these forums! First of all, the admins have alot more deleting to do, thanks to you and Danny's fights. Like come on, I feel bad for the admins, having to carefully delete all of your unnecessary comments on these Forums. Just send someone a PM if you got a problem. Secondly, I really don't care about you and your issues with anybody here on PEEL. Save it for the PMs. This is a thread which is strictly supposed to be for Futurama News, not arguments. If you want an argument, that's why we have a Private Messaging System!

And just to make sure you will listen to me, I didn't sign that petition. So hopefully you will at least clean up your act, and pull yourself together. Your one comment about Futurama being cancelled was all you needed to say. Not this BS again.

I suggested this a way back, apparently it fell on deaf ears. This whole Unmentionable situation is out of control. I'm actually completely avoiding threads once he posts in them, because I know the shitstorm that will follow. He is a troll, and I don't understand why the mods won't ban him. Even if he really does believe all the stuff he comes out with, he's still a troll. He insults the show. He insults other forum members. He's been banned by Eric Rogers on Twitter because he insults the writers too, apparently. He derails every thread he enters with pointless, belligerent posts about his beliefs. Come on, guys! The point is not whether or not he believes he and Fry are in love or  that cartoons have souls, blah, blah . . . it's that he dumps these opinions into discussions that have nothing to do with it (usually in a rude one-line post) and disrupts the original discussion. Endlessly. He complains about people not respecting his opinions, but unless people are agreeing with him, he has no respect for them. Actually, he doesn't even acknowledge these are just his opinions - he presents them as solid fact and gets shitty with anyone who doesn't agree. He's looking for a fight the whole time. I can't think of one topic (even one NOT related to Fry) that he's contributed to, or done anything except derail completely. It's trolling, pure and simple, and it's ruining PEEL for me.  

[Reply #647 on:]

I agree with UL, what if the finale leaves you wanting more and ends on a pretty damn good note.. but maybe leaves things hanging like ITWGY?

[Reply #648 on:]

A little ambiguity is okay, but I think I'd go nuts if they left us hanging like ITWGY again. That'd be too cruel.

[Reply #649 on:]

Basically Binder summed up my feelings on the cancellation. (Great post! It saved me a lot of typing. My carpal tunnel thanks you.  )

The cancellation does feel less harsh this time around. Maybe it's a result of watching them drag out the Simpsons forever, but I really would rather see Futurama end on a high. 7b looks great (as much as you can judge from a 3min trailer, obviously) and a lot of my wish list has been covered, so I feel like I don't have much to complain about if it does go for good this time. That said, I do feel sad about it. It feels like my best friend just moved to another continent. 

I didn't sign the petition. Well not yet, anyway. The reason is that Unmentionable won't like me if 7ACV26 is truly fantastic, I'd like to see it end on a high note. That's my biggest wish for Futurama.

If it disappoints, then I probably will sign it.

Seconded. Meanwhile sounds like it's going to be fantastic, and if it is, I'll be happy to see the show go out on a high. I want a big memorable ending - the show deserves it.

Umm Unmentionable, I do not want to sound like a real arse-hole, buttt I think maybe you should really stop arguing with all of us on these forums! First of all, the admins have alot more deleting to do, thanks to you and Danny's fights. Like come on, I feel bad for the admins, having to carefully delete all of your unnecessary comments on these Forums. Just send someone a PM if you got a problem. Secondly, I really don't care about you and your issues with anybody here on PEEL. Save it for the PMs. This is a thread which is strictly supposed to be for Futurama News, not arguments. If you want an argument, that's why we have a Private Messaging System!

And just to make sure you will listen to me, I didn't sign that petition. So hopefully you will at least clean up your act, and pull yourself together. Your one comment about Futurama being cancelled was all you needed to say. Not this BS again.

I suggested this a way back, apparently it fell on deaf ears. This whole Unmentionable situation is out of control. I'm actually completely avoiding threads once he posts in them, because I know the shitstorm that will follow. He is a troll, and I don't understand why the mods won't ban him. Even if he really does believe all the stuff he comes out with, he's still a troll. He insults the show. He insults other forum members. He's been banned by Eric Rogers on Twitter because he insults the writers too, apparently. He derails every thread he enters with pointless, belligerent posts about his beliefs. Come on, guys! The point is not whether or not he believes he and Fry are in love or  that cartoons have souls, blah, blah . . . it's that he dumps these opinions into discussions that have nothing to do with it (usually in a rude one-line post) and disrupts the original discussion. Endlessly. He complains about people not respecting his opinions, but unless people are agreeing with him, he has no respect for them. Actually, he doesn't even acknowledge these are just his opinions - he presents them as solid fact and gets shitty with anyone who doesn't agree. He's looking for a fight the whole time. I can't think of one topic (even one NOT related to Fry) that he's contributed to, or done anything except derail completely. It's trolling, pure and simple, and it's ruining PEEL for me. 

[/b]

Agreed.

[Reply #650 on:]

All this bad news... I need to bust out the Torgo's Powder!

[Reply #651 on:]

stop thinking only about yourselves. if you truly cared about Futurama, you would let Futurama stay cancelled. the Futurama staff misinterpreted the characters. now the Futurama characters finally got freedom. don't ruin it. stop tying me down. it hurts my "wings"

Anyhow, I signed that petition.

i'm never gonna forgive you

What difference does it make to you if it stays cancelled or not? If you don't want to watch it anymore then don't. But there are people who still enjoy it and you have no right to ever try and convince them what to do.

Just leave now, troll.

[Reply #652 on:]

For the last episode: Fry's death could be good idea, as he died at the end and there would be something unclear about it. Then it would be cleared in a movie, or not. On the other hand, left without an answer could be too annoying.

I may be selfish, but I've really been into Futurama after season 6A or something and I would like to Futurama to continue with at least a season and a movie. When I'm fan of Futurama and posting in Futurama forum, I would like to enjoy that for a little longer with the hype of new episodes.
I wasn't around the first cancellation and seasons 6-7 aren't plus to me, they are the Futurama to me with classic Futurama.

I'm really hoping a movie, any movie.

Contact CC and Fox and tell them how pissed you are about Futurama:

CC contact info: http://www.comedycentral.com/help/programming-feedback

Oh, I left little feedback to CC.

[Reply #653 on:]

@Quantum, Nicely done sir.

I also just wanted to point out that Toynami officially cancelled the "Futurama" toyline on FB today as well.
They still have a little bit of crapola to release, but then it's done.

Q: No more new figures??

Toynami: Sorry, but for the time being we don't anticipate to be doing anymore Futurama figurines.

Q: Is the Talking Robot Devil dead too?

Toynami: Sorry, but yes.

Sad news indeed for us nerds.

[Reply #654 on:]

Death is such a cheap and easy way out. I think a far more exciting end to the series would be to leave the characters alive and with a fature, should the series ever continue. I think the best sort of finale would be to get a peek at the (potential) future of the characters, and end on the "present" time (3013) so that we have more potential future adventures (should the series return) but we also have an idea of where things are headed. At most, alter the status quo a little. Perhaps Fry proposes to Leela, or the two get married. I want a Devil's Hands or Overclockwise style ending, not a ITWGY ending.

The Simpsons series finale "Holidays of Future Passed" (which ended up not being the finale once the series was renewed for seasons 24 and 25) was a great potential finale in my eyes. Had it been the series finale, it would have been fantastic! I loved how it jumped ahead to Bart and Lisa as adults, and Homer and Marge as grandparents. It felt conclusive, yet they left the fictional present day untouched so that the comic books and potential future movies could still play in The Simpsons universe as we know it, without Homer being dead or anything as tragic, and conclusive, as that.

Pretty much, killing off the main character kills the future of the series, and I don't think Futurama deserves such a downer of a finale. Let us imagine what happens next and not feel like we left a funeral.

[Reply #655 on:]

Gosh, hasn't Fry died enough or at least appeared to have died? Someone with more caffeine in them than me ought to do a tally of how many times each character has croaked, or seem to. Gets to be a weak plot device, if not a downer, after a while.

[Reply #656 on:]

By this point, everybody has died. Reincarnation and The Late Phillip J. Fry especially classify as deaths in my book. Reminds of of that Star Trek DS9 episode where Miles O'Brien died and was replaced by an exact duplicate: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Visionary_(episode)

[Reply #657 on:]

It's trolling, pure and simple, and it's ruining PEEL for me.  

This. A thousand, billion, jillion times this. Anyway.

Another Fry death? Death on Futurama is barely a shock anymore. It's never a shock, because 90% of the time the character is revived, either by explanation or no explanation at all. Only death I can think of so far which may be serious is the death of Roberto, but I'm willing to bet they'll revive him alongside Calculon.

[Reply #658 on:]

Really, I think one has to look at the first episode and the basis for the series to see what a proper finale would be. The show was never about killing off Fry, it was about a 20th century idiot who felt out of place in 1999, was transported to the year 3000, and found that he was much more at home in the future. I'd think Fry finding true love and being completely at home in the 31st century would be a great finale, and would leave the series open to additional episodes. Win-win.

---

Bender's Big Score pretty much wrapped up the whole cryo tube plot, which has been revisited and layered enough now. The Why of Fry wrapped up the higher purpose Fry served. We know Leela's origins and the mutants are no longer confined to the sewers. Really, most of the mysteries have been solved, and at this point they're just creating more revelations that have never really been long standing questions. That isn't to say that these unexpected revelations aren't bad, in fact I loved "Lethal Inspection" and "Near Death Wish". But none of the recent revelations have been anywhere near as "big" as moments in the DVD movies and the 100th episode. 

[Reply #659 on:]

Fry and Leela finally getting together in the sack in "Free Will Hunting" was a pretty significant resolution of something that had dragged out the whole series. The show did seem to spend a lot of time in court in the last seasons is what comes to my mind.

[Reply #660 on:]

I'm as mad as a lobsta' in heat, I am!!!

[Reply #661 on:]

Everything has a lifecycle. Like a beautiful sunset, or a sweet high school romance, or a kid's dependence on his mom and dad--it all ends. Part of the beauty of beautiful things is their fleetingness. Futurama has reached that point. I think everything worth exploring in the Futurama universe has been explored. The characters' arcs nicely realized. I'm in a hurry and so this may sound flippant, but I'm not trying to be. I love Futurama, but it's time.

[Reply #662 on:]

Zoidberg needed to have at least 200 episodes, I say!!!

[Reply #663 on:]

I will approve of The Zoidberg Show if every episode is, at most, 14 seconds long.

[Reply #664 on:]

I really would enjoy a Zoidberg spinoff if it was done right.

[Reply #665 on:]

Groening seems pretty confident that the show will get picked up again. I like his optimism. I'm surprised that DXC is so negative about a possible fourth revival. You can tell he really, really adores what the show has become and what it means to him and the fans.

Let's say, if DXC thinks "Meanwhile" is the absolute perfect way to finally end the show, and then it gets picked up for Season 8 on a new network, would DXC come back I wonder?

[Reply #666 on:]

Groening seems pretty confident that the show will get picked up again. I like his optimism.

Looking at Futurama's track record, optimism isn't entirely out of place. I mean, this is the third time that the show has been cancelled. There was the end of the first run, the end of the movie run, and now this is the end of the CC run. Who's to say that Fox won't pick it back up, that it won't be pounced upon by Netflix, or that SyFy won't decide that they really don't have enough animation these days?

With that said, I'm not sure that he should be too optimistic about another revival, given the decline in quality that manifested in the seventh production season.

[Reply #667 on:]

Well many staff and cast members have said that they think the new episodes are just as good as the old, if not better, and Groening has said in the interview thingy yesterday that they have a lot more stories left to tell. Not to mention how much money Groening has, plus all the networks that could pick the show up (like you mentioned) and the massive fanbase behind all of this.

[Reply #668 on:]

Well many staff and cast members have said that they think the new episodes are just as good as the old, if not better.

Many five-year-olds think that their crayon copy of the Mona Lisa or Sunflowers is just as good as the original, if not better. But that doesn't make it so. Honestly, if they think that the new run was up to the standards of the original, they're in need of a reality check. There were good episodes in S6. These came up to the standards of the original run quite easily. There were also some wild misses though. There were moments within episodes in S7 that approached S6's quality. Not once did I feel that a full episode in S7 passed without some sort of glaring shortcoming that detracted (even if only slightly) from the overall quality. The show has become sloppier, with less attention to the sort of detail and polish that made it stand out.

Let all the staff members who think that they're doing a better job now than was done on the first season compare the segments that they worked on to the first season. The depth of detail, background, attention paid to ironing out nitpicks, and the sheer quantity of hidden material within the first four seasons was an order of magnitude greater than S7. S6 was only a little below the bar set by the first four and the movies, but S7 is where a clear downward trend becomes evident. I feel like I should prepare another graph.

[Reply #669 on:]

Well many staff and cast members have said that they think the new episodes are just as good as the old, if not better,

Of course they did say so.
Most of all, Futurama is their job, the product they have to advertise. So it will always be "the greatest thing we ever did", no matter what they really think about it.
Or does anyone expect e.g. an upcoming interview regarding "Avengers 2" will seriously say "To be honest...we think it's worse than the first one. But still enjoyable, so we would appreciate you to watch it at your local theater, anyway."

[Reply #670 on:]

Honestly, if they think that the new run was up to the standards of the original, they're in need of a reality check. a clear downward trend becomes evident.

Or maybe we all have different opinions?

[Reply #671 on:]

Maybe the first 13 Season 7 episodes were just okay in favor for really working hard on the last 13 episodes of Season 7? I mean I agree, the quality has decreased quite a bit since Season 6. But it was still good.

Some episodes, like TBATB, AFTA, and Fun on a Bun were good episodes, around the 8/10 area. Others however, like "Near Death Wish" are just..... I don't know, Dull? I enjoyed it on the first viewing, but after a while it is kind of boring. I did like some of the gags though, like "Don't hit me!!". Thief of Baghead is a good example of a episode that grows on you. After my first viewing of it, I didn't really care much for it. But now, I kind of enjoy it!

But the overall season, could have been a bit better. I mean, we ALL know Near Death Wish should have been a better episode than it was. It was an idea we've all been asking for. Some episodes just have boring plots, and the nonstop jokes kind of made up for that on some of the episodes, since it was more hit than miss for me.

Maybe next season will have better plots, and work on the rate of jokes being used. Also, it wouldn't hurt to see some Character Development! I mean, alot was made on Season 6, but some wouldn't really hurt...

[Reply #672 on:]

Maurice LaMarche tweeting about the petition, though he didn't include a link to it.

[Reply #673 on:]

Starting with a fan base as enthusiastic as Futurama had and getting ~35% of viewers to "tune out" where there really wasn't much competition is going to give any network long pause before picking the show up. Not sure exactly what happened but a lot of times it wasn't very amusing or we found out things we didn't care about after we found them out.

Sometimes I wonder if the show would have fared better if Leela would have actually been an alien instead of a sewer mutant. I'm not sure that always taking a turn to the dismal or gross helped things out any. Certainly they aren't automatically funny as some of the production people seem to think they are (and not just Futurama's people).

[Reply #674 on:]

What will happen to PEEL now that there's no Futurama? Will I become an peelorphan?! TELL ME WHAT WILL HAPPEN!!! D:

[Reply #675 on:]

The same thing that happened between 2004 and 2008

[Reply #676 on:]

The cartoon and the toys are canned... but so are the comics!!

As I predicted. Danny found this today:

https://twitter.com/EricRogersLA/status/326782666223538176

[Reply #677 on:]

That sucks. It's always a shame to see someone not named Mike Kazaleh lose their job.

[Reply #678 on:]

The cartoon and the toys are canned... but so are the comics!!

As I predicted. Danny found this today:

What is going on?!?

Ratings speak nothing for Futurama. Futurama has never performed spectacular with debut ratings. If we learned anything about Futurama's time on Adult Swim, it's that Futurama performs best at a consistent time slot and garners viewers more through re-runs. We were totally duped in the ratings last season, yet nobody seems to mention that.

I can't say that I didn't see this coming, though. Everybody was so optimistic and enthusiastic about a renewal, and in my personal experience with karma, that never leads to a positive outcome. I thought like I was a bit of the outcast for being more cynic, and I shouldn't have had my hopes high for renewal knowing that my feelings would likely be dashed.

That sucks. It's always a shame to see someone not named Mike Kazaleh lose their job.

He's a terrible artist, but I have to give him credit. He has improved over time. Not much, but better.

[Reply #679 on:]

The cartoon and the toys are canned... but so are the comics!!

As I predicted. Danny found this today:

https://twitter.com/EricRogersLA/status/326782666223538176

Gah! I said over at Nohomers, the comics aren't cancelled. Look at that tweet. He says they have the year planned out, and have not don't know beyond that. Think they have all the other comics planned that far out? Probably not. It all depends on the sales, and Comedy Central doesn't control what Bongo does with the franchise. This isn't Disney cleaning house with Star Wars.