Thoughts on 7ACV22 - Leela and the Genestalk - SPOILERS

[Reply #80 on:]

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela" is also pretty unanimously considered to be terrible.

By who? Most places I've seen gave it good reviews.

[Reply #81 on:]

You can check out PEEL's review thread for the episode, if it interests you. Looking at the poll results alone, it's true that the episode was fairly well-received when it first aired; however, I think cyber_turnip is right that popular opinion has since shifted to be a bit more negative.

For my own part, I really enjoy IAGDL. I think it's one of the more consistently funny episodes of the sometimes less-than-uproarious season 6A (in particular, I find Leela's delirious lamentation of not having a water fountain fall on her and her inexplicable disdain for the tuba quite hilarious), and though the B-story with the crew is kind of hit-or-miss (the public/pubic library joke is just...ugh) and DXC was probably right when he recently said that Zapp's intentions towards Leela are a bit rape-y, overall I'd say it's one of my favorites of that season. I mean, I think I gave it a middle-of-the-road 7/10--which, to me, is an average-for-Futurama's-standards episode--so that means I didn't prefer it to "Leela and the Genestalk"; but, still, I'm a far bigger fan of it than most other PEELers.

[Reply #82 on:]

Bessie, the PE ship is sold for 2 "magic" beans. Will it back in the next episode? I miss him (or her?).....

[Reply #83 on:]

Bessie, the PE ship is sold for 2 "magic" beans. Will it back in the next episode? I miss him (or her?).....

More than likely it will be back in future eps. An upcoming episode takes place inside of it.

[Reply #84 on:]

Bessie, the PE ship is sold for 2 "magic" beans. Will it back in the next episode? I miss him (or her?).....

More than likely it will be back in future eps. An upcoming episode takes place inside of it.

Cant wait for the next episode! I hope there's an explanation or a scene about how they get bessie back! Maybe from the credits that mom gave to leela for the perfect bean?

[Reply #85 on:]

Bessie, the PE ship is sold for 2 "magic" beans. Will it back in the next episode? I miss him (or her?).....

More than likely it will be back in future eps. An upcoming episode takes place inside of it.

Cant wait for the next episode! I hope there's an explanation or a scene about how they get bessie back! Maybe from the credits that mom gave to leela for the perfect bean?

It's not coming back this upcoming one, but the one after.

Still can be considered an upcoming ep though.

[Reply #86 on:]

What time is it?

[Reply #87 on:]

What time is it?

TIME FOR YOU TO SHUT UP!
I gave it a 9/10, probably my favorite of this season. At first, the Beanstalk parody didn't seem like it would work, but as it went on, it really did. I liked how Mom acted in this episode, showing that she's not all bad (although more slapping of Walt, Igner and Larry and much more swearing was needed). The jokes were alright in this one, but no laugh-out-loud ones. However, I did like the callback to Calculon 2.0 when Bender said that he knows what Fry was doing in the Bathtub, because he was there. As for the story, I like how it sort of explained how Leela's mom originally had no tentacles in season 2, then in season 4 she did. I also liked how the ending was pretty fast, but didn't seem to rush it.   
Also, am I the only one who thinks that a figure of Tentacle Leela would be awesome?

[Reply #88 on:]

I think some of the complaints in this episode have been seen through out the series.  From the zaniness of the characters, to the off beat (humorous) dialogue, to Leela being an unreasonable candidate for nature.

I thought of an excellent example: The Birdbot of Icecatraz, which contains just about all of those elements.  That's a season 3 episode and has a reasonable plot for the things that occur, even if Fry drives the PE ship into a space giant squid at some point for <insert random reason>. 

I also really enjoy parody/cameo/fifthwall type stuff... in low doses... so the Batman/Time references were decent to me.  I prefer when they're a bit subtle and neither necessarily explained or ran into the ground.... unlike when we meet a character named BILLY WEST...  His name is BILLY WEST, you say?  Oh, that's definitely Bender because BILLY WEST is definitely a made up name.  Who would ever be called BILLY WEST?  No offense to Mr. West, but I'd prefer if that hadn't occurred.

Anyways, I don't have any major problems with this episode.  It was fun to watch, and really that's the important aspect.  Also, Leela looked hot as squid... not so much when she was squidifying and had tentacles coming out of her neck.

[Reply #89 on:]

The Billy West joke made me laugh, so I didn't mind it too much. But yeah, such "winks to the audience" are best kept short and sweet. The Adventure Time/Batman stuff in this episode was fine, because even if you don't get it, it's only taking up a few brief seconds.

I guess my main problem with the new run of episodes is, the writers used to put a lot more explanation into their outlandish situations. In Bird-bot, we're at least given reasons for what's happening. "Magic beanstalk" is already stretching it without adding "disease that inexplicably turns you into a squid with no further exposition for the audience, because fuck you, this is what's happening." And it could've all easily been convered in one or two lines.

I understand Futurama is a comedy first and foremost, and the jokes take priority here, but too much stuff now is being rooted in cartoon logic as opposed to the sci-fi approach the writers once had with justifying the weirder aspects of the show. That's really my only big complaint about the new run of episodes (though, yeah, this episode wasn't as bad in this area as some of the other offenders - ie. The Tip of the Zoidberg).

[Reply #90 on:]

Am I the only one who thinks this episode is pretty overrated? I mean it was good, but nothing amazing. Felt really off. Like. Really off.

Why was Mom being nice? Very out-of-character. And the fairy tale stuff still felt off despite having a scientific explanation.

I'm in Ireland at the moment so I wasn't entirely focused when watching this for the first time, I definitely need to watch it again. For now I give it 6/10.

[Reply #91 on:]

Danny, that reminds me...

Dunno about the scene with the salesman and the magic beans though, something felt kind of off...

That scene didn't really feel off to me personally, but I don't get why the last part of the salesman's spiel about the beans--the part when he mentions that they fell from the sky--was delivered in a way that made it sound like he was lying. He was just making up the beans' supposed curative properties in order to trick Fry, yes, but why did he say mention their aerial origin as if it were a last and desperate attempt to convince the gullible Fry to make the trade, when in fact the salesman would have known that that was the part that was actually true (even if Fry didn't)?

I suppose he might have thought that the truth was stranger than his own fiction about the beans and so he saved that part until the end, but then again he was the one calling them "magic." It just seems weird to me.

[Reply #92 on:]

After rewatching this episode, I'm surprised there were no Yivo references at all. Actually, I'm even more surprised no other PEELers thought of shklim!

[Reply #93 on:]

Am I the only one who thinks this episode is pretty overrated? I mean it was good, but nothing amazing. Felt really off. Like. Really off.

Why was Mom being nice? Very out-of-character. And the fairy tale stuff still felt off despite having a scientific explanation.

I'm in Ireland at the moment so I wasn't entirely focused when watching this for the first time, I definitely need to watch it again. For now I give it 6/10.

I never like new episodes while on vacation, it's hard to give them a fair shot.
I bet you'll like this episode more when you see it at home.

[Reply #94 on:]

Am I the only one who thinks this episode is pretty overrated? I mean it was good, but nothing amazing. Felt really off. Like. Really off.

Why was Mom being nice? Very out-of-character. And the fairy tale stuff still felt off despite having a scientific explanation.

I'm in Ireland at the moment so I wasn't entirely focused when watching this for the first time, I definitely need to watch it again. For now I give it 6/10.

I never like new episodes while on vacation, it's hard to give them a fair shot.
I bet you'll like this episode more when you see it at home.

Funny, I saw 'Assie Come Home' while on vacation and thought it wasn't that great (although I ended up liking it more as time went on)......

[Reply #95 on:]

I saw it on vacation and tought it was great, it still was quite annoying to watch it with people around and buffering 3:

[Reply #96 on:]

Why was Mom being nice? Very out-of-character. And the fairy tale stuff still felt off despite having a scientific explanation.

Well, as stated before:
The production of cheap food had a credible motive: Profit.
Leela's cure lacked that motive. A short explanation why this action was beneficary for Mom would have been needed.

[Reply #97 on:]

Why was Mom being nice? Very out-of-character. And the fairy tale stuff still felt off despite having a scientific explanation.

Well, as stated before:
The production of cheap food had a credible motive: Profit.
Leela's cure lacked that motive. A short explanation why this action was beneficary for Mom would have been needed.

I'm hoping the commentaries will explain. And if they don't, I say we all assume she just got back from the Dentist and had some Laughing Gas in her head.

[Reply #98 on:]

I thought the motive to cure Leela was good press.

[Reply #99 on:]

The motive to cure Leela was for rights over her genetic material and the whole her being kidnapped and tested on stuff.

It's not terribly explicit about that, but I think implicitly it was solidly stated at the end, hence why mom grins at changing Leela's mind and Leela's response being, "I'm in."

Leela is shallow and naively cares about ALL living things and Nature and shit.

I also disagree that the squidization thing wasn't adequately explained.  It's a rare disease mutants get that squidifies them.... using it to explain Munda isn't helpful because of the inconsistencies already stated in this thread, but using it as a purpose for the events that occurred within the episode are both reasonable, logical, and sufficient.

[Reply #100 on:]

I also disagree that the squidization thing wasn't adequately explained.  It's a rare disease mutants get that squidifies them....

I agree. I don't really understand what more explanation it really needs. It's just a disease. Furthermore, I can think of lots of examples from this show where things happen with little to even no explanation at all that people didn't complain about.

First and foremost, this show is a cartoon. Sure, it's definitely one of the most well-thought-out cartoons around, but sometimes they just need to get to the story without too much fuss. The idea of the disease may not make perfect sense, but neither does anything else in most cartoons. They can take alot of liberties with the medium they make the show with, and sometimes this sort of thing is one of them. I, too, like things to make sense in epsidoes of my favorite TV shows, but sometimes they just won't, and that doesn't make them bad episodes.

I liked this episode because of it's out of the ordinary story. It's the same reason I like 'The Sting' alot. Sure, 'Sting' got more explanation, but it definitely wasn't enough to explain it all. It's easy to ignore the unexplained parts of a story, and see that the basic plot is pretty darn good.

100th post!

[Reply #101 on:]

No, I get that. It was really just due to the incorrect pre-broadcast episode details that leaked for this; I was expecting a more in-depth explanation with deeper ties to Futurama's mythology than what we were given.

[Reply #102 on:]

I liked this episode because of it's out of the ordinary story. It's the same reason I like 'The Sting' alot. Sure, 'Sting' got more explanation, but it definitely wasn't enough to explain it all. It's easy to ignore the unexplained parts of a story, and see that the basic plot is pretty darn good.

I agreed to this. You dont need to explain all the parts of the movie, its just a sitcom and this is cartoon, don't make a little things more complicated. But if the unexplained parts are too excessive maybe you can discuss it further.

No, I get that. It was really just due to the incorrect pre-broadcast episode details that leaked for this; I was expecting a more in-depth explanation with deeper ties to Futurama's mythology than what we were given.

Maybe some of the facts in the pre-broadcast is only for advertising purposes only.

EDIT:Wrong explanation. I thought cartoon is similar to animated series

[Reply #103 on:]

Yes, there was nothing wrong with the squidification, except it didn't cover Munda-aspect.

However, Futurama is not a cartoon, it's animated series. Part of the Futurama is continuity and (scientifically) well-explained phenomena. I think these things should be considered, when thinking the quality of an episode. Of course not nearly everything can make sense, but they should in some level.

[Reply #104 on:]

I've gotten say, I was incredibly relieved when "Stan" showed up in a normal human-sized form, because his big self would've been an absolute bitch to fit in my cast picture. 

[Reply #105 on:]

I've gotten say, I was incredibly relieved when "Stan" showed up in a normal human-sized form, because his big self would've been an absolute bitch to fit in my cast picture. 

His outfit is getting smaller too, i think this is one of the goofs in this episode

[Reply #106 on:]

Yes, apparently any mutant can get squidifictaion at any time.
And Mom obviously wanted to stop Leela from trying to kill her again and stopping her by making her an offer she couldn't refuse.
She wasn't out of character... perhaps she was just simply in the wrong outfit.
She should have had her 'fake caring outfit' on so it would convey her hidden agenda, that she was getting something more out of curing Leela.

I thought she was out of character too... until I analyzed it.

[Reply #107 on:]

I never like new episodes while on vacation, it's hard to give them a fair shot.
I bet you'll like this episode more when you see it at home.

It's weird, last year I was in Yorkshire when I watched "Free Will Hunting" and I absolutely loved it (and I still do), but I couldn't get into this episode when I was in Ireland. Going to give it another shot now, anyway.

[Reply #108 on:]

However, Futurama is not a cartoon, it's animated series. Part of the Futurama is continuity and (scientifically) well-explained phenomena. I think these things should be considered, when thinking the quality of an episode. Of course not nearly everything can make sense, but they should in some level.

I liked this episode because of it's out of the ordinary story. It's the same reason I like 'The Sting' alot. Sure, 'Sting' got more explanation, but it definitely wasn't enough to explain it all. It's easy to ignore the unexplained parts of a story, and see that the basic plot is pretty darn good.

I agreed to this. You dont need to explain all the parts of the movie, its just a sitcom and this is cartoon, don't make a little things more complicated. But if the unexplained parts are too excessive maybe you can discuss it further.
EDIT:Wrong explanation. I thought cartoon is similar to animated series

I do agree that Futurama is an animated series, but I was just referring to it in the most literal sense. However, I don't think lack of explanation can ruin an entire episode. I'd get your point if Leela was the only one in the entire world who all of a sudden has this disease,  or if Fry just all of a sudden came to the PE Building with magic beans for no reason at all. I just think what was explained was pretty much all we needed to know. Sure, more information wouldn't have hurt the episode, but I don't think it was needed.

Although, there is one thing I do think needed to be explained; Why is it that Leela's entire body was Squidified, but Munda only had squidified arms?

[Reply #109 on:]

Yes, I agree this episode didn't generally need more explaining.

EDIT:Wrong explanation. I thought cartoon is similar to animated series

Well, it should be like sitcom in cartoon outfit or something. And they are similiar, more or less, but I think Futurama is less similiar to cartoon with most aspects.

[Reply #110 on:]

Although, there is one thing I do think needed to be explained; Why is it that Leela's entire body was Squidified, but Munda only had squidified arms?

Maybe Munda's squidification is a hereditary disease, I think because Leela is Munda's daughter ussualy gives Leela bigger disease impact than her mother, and maybe his father also has squidification dna..

[Reply #111 on:]

I just caught the repeat after this week's episode. I liked it. It had Fry/Leela shippiness that made me feel better after the previous episode. Bender was also just fantastic throughout the whole thing.

"Yes. I was there".

[Reply #112 on:]

No one seems to have caught the THX-1138 reference ...

[Reply #113 on:]

Great episode. One of the best of 7B for sure.

Best episode with 'Leela' in it's title? I can't think of any better...

Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles.

Sorry, but I just love that one.

[Reply #114 on:]

Leela's Homeworld is also pretty great.

[Reply #115 on:]

Yeah, it was good. Loved the beginning, and the nice reveal at the end. Couldn't have been done any better in my opinion.

But Leela's Hurdles tops the cake as best episode with "Leela" in it.

[Reply #116 on:]

I remember when Leela's Homeworld was generally considered to be a sub-par episode here. Oh, nostalgia, you silly man, you!

Personally I've always enjoyed it, though yes, Leela's Hurdles is the definitely at the top of this list.

NOW! Favourite episode with the word "and" in the title. Followed by "the." Go!

[Reply #117 on:]

Fry and the Slurm Factory comes to mind!

Maybe you should make a thread about this! It'd be a heck of a good thread!

[Reply #118 on:]

The only choices are "Fry and the Slurm Factory", "The Bots and the Bees" and "Leela and the Genestalk".

Personally, I'm torn between FATSF and LATGS.

[Reply #119 on:]

Fry and The Slurm Factory for me, because I'm more of a Fry-lover (not in that way. Oh No, no, no). And I was never really a fan for Leela's eps. This was probably the first one about Leela that I liked since "The Sting". Although it doesn't even compare with The Sting, I tell you that for sure! But it was very enjoyable.

*Edit* 700th Post!! Wooo!!!

Also, thinking about the words "Fry-Lover' brings that fry-lover burger from checkers in mind! *Starts Drooling*