Thoughts on [4ACV06] - Bender Should not be Allowed on TV

[Reply #80 on:]

well i will just download it

TOTPD

[Reply #81 on:]

did it have the new starting lkike in "spanish fry"?

[Reply #82 on:]

Nice episode, however, it was somehow weird, because it didn't have almost no Fry & Leela at all.
(At least they didn't have anything to do in this one...)

[Reply #83 on:]

I thought this whole episode reminded me of a Simpsons ep. The plot really took a backseat to the zaniness of the characters, and the whole ep was kind of making fun of itself. Even the line "Bender should not be allowed on TV" seemed like they said, "Hmm, how can we get this guy off of "All My Circuts"? I know, he'll suggest it! Hilarity ensues!"

There were some really good one-liners, like "So bad it gave me cancer" or "This show's been going downhill since season 3." Overall, this ep had the kinda zany, madcap humor that's just not right for Futurama.

Grade: C

[Reply #84 on:]

Hehe, I enjoyed it, a nice light hearted ep, nothing wrong with that. I quite liked the use of Cubert and Dwight in this ep, but Calculon wasnt very good, his jokes were predictable, and he seemed a little more self centered than normal. Bender leading a cause against himself just seemed a little too odd.
I did like fry's run of "Hey Bender" s

I think the airing order has effected how the show has finished off in that light hearted eps have clumped together, I am sure if they were played in order there would have been better balance in the type of episode.

[Reply #85 on:]

Man, I'm still not getting the blah response to this episode.  I mean, of course the episode was zany..."Space Pilot 3000" had SUICIDE BOOTHS.

One thing I particularly liked about this episode actually, was the aknowledgement of the initial reasoning behind Bender's creation, which (sorry) WAS largely commercial.  The first thing he ever said, in "Pilot" was "Bite my shiny metal ass" after all.  This episode did a great job of spoofing the writing of the earliest episodes where Bender, as amusing as he was, was clearly being manufactured with the hope of gaining mainstream appeal, to attract an audience that would love him for being able to do things characters on other shows never could (and after all, he was the breakout character in seasons one and two).  Even Billy West said in a commentary, "he's the greatest character on tv because he can do things other characters never could because he's a robot".  Even the "execu-bots" and producers initially were angry at this "filthy" display but used him as a promotional tool once they realized his popularity.

Yep, this sure did remind me of a Simpsons episode (Treehouse of Horror II, where they aknowledged the ridiculous merchandise and "Bartmania", comes to mind).  But in the best, most classic, way possible.

[Reply #86 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
Man, I'm still not getting the blah response to this episode.  I mean, of course the episode was zany..."Space Pilot 3000" had SUICIDE BOOTHS.

I meant zany like "Actions have no consequence" zany, not "Look! it's the future!" zany. Example: Calculon wouldn't have hired Bender because a non-existant audience liked him. That part seemed too ridiculous for me. Another example: Bender turning on himself and leading a mob against Bender on TV, when he probably (in any other ep) would've just called up and quit.

[Reply #87 on:]

My reactions to those:

For Calculon: He's a robot.  Ultimately, he's not as smart in some ways as a human, and might not be able to distinguish that the "audience" was just Bender or even that it probably wouldn't exsist.  In a sense, he's probably programmed to react to any "audience" and hence was thinking in those terms.  And anyway, its not like we've ever known much about him, so him being a little out of character would be fairly neglible (that is, its more innexcusable if a MAIN character, who's been in more then ten or so episodes, did something out of character).

Bender: I was thinking about this earlier, and its kinda the same thing.  Bender, like a computer, can only "focus" so on so many things at one time with his "computer mind".  Of course, in the year 3000 robots seem to behave very strangely in some ways, but that aside.  He's a character who's always very self-absorbed, if only because he was probably programmed that way.  So, when someone steals from him, he goes bonkers and tries to get himself off the air in outrage (which in a way was a satirical allusion to a lot of parents who don't get angry til something happens to THEM, like THEIR kid getting hurt or a "influenced" kid hurting either their kid or the parent in some way).  Again, he can only focus on one thing (in "Tale of Two Santas" we even learn that robots can be destroyed by logical paradoxes), so he doesn't realize how much of a hypocrite he's being (which again is perhaps a satirical allusion, made more "believable" by the fact that this is a cartoon robot).  Only later, when he's holding the two guns, does he even come close to realizing, and he seems to "bounce" between each reasoning because he isn't able to comprehend both at once, or either merging (and hey, most proponents of either side of the argument in real life can't comprehend compromise either; its always either "the parents fault" or "tv's fault", never both at once).

And failing all that, I thought the scenes were well executed anyway, and absolutely hilarious.  So mission accomplished with me.

Edit: I think I'm going to have to upgrade my rating to an A.  I myself didn't really realize some of this episode's better aspects until I was writing this post, but there it is.  I really think this could be one of the smartest, and maybe even best, episodes of the series.

[Reply #88 on:]

Here's a .ogg (like an .mp3, but better) I recorded of the beatboxing at the beginning of the ep.  Good quality if you want to keep it and listen to it later.

Futurama - Beatboxing Intro.ogg

[Reply #89 on:]

I've been busy, so here's my opinion. I was surprised how good this episode was. It had some inspired moments, but Cubert and Dwight, as always, got tedious after a while. Solid B episode. Also, I didn't like this opening as much as "Spanish Fry"'s, but it's still pretty cool.

[Reply #90 on:]

Weird omission: Was Amy in ONE frame of this episode?

Just watched it for a second time. Great episode overall, but Ms. Wong's total absence left me a bit confused.

[Reply #91 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
Man, I'm still not getting the blah response to this episode.  I mean, of course the episode was zany..."Space Pilot 3000" had SUICIDE BOOTHS.

If you ask me, it has nothing to do with the episode being overly zany.  The flaw with this episode, and a number of other 4acv episodes, is weak writing.  These non-shippy, "just for laughs" episodes are somehow missing the special punch that made episodes like Insane in the Mainframe or Birdbot of Ice-Catraz really good.  I dunno what happened.  Maybe it is writer's block, as somebody previously mentioned.

[Reply #92 on:]

 

Originally posted by Moron!:
Weird omission: Was Amy in ONE frame of this episode?

You can see her putting up decorations at the party, and later talking with Fry and Leela.  She doesn't actually speak, though.

[Reply #93 on:]

Did anyone catch this in the beginning; a scene from "All My Circuits" where there is a birthday party for Calculon...

Calculon: "Welcome, swingers...pull up a groove and get fabulous."
Monique: "Nude rock bands...big piles of what I assume is talcom powder...It's quite a birthday party, Calculon."

(And that music in the background!)
LMAO!!
 http://www.gotfuturama.com/cgi-bin/imageview.cgi?/Multimedia/FrameGrabs/4ACV06/Grabs/pic00014.jpg

[Reply #94 on:]

Could someone explain the "hanging wires" reference? Thanks

Hey, I watch Futurama for laughs, and this one delivered. I want about every 4th episode to be important, and the other three can be simple comedy. It's not supposed to be a soap opera...perhaps in making fun of soap operas in this ep, they were making fun of shippers?

After all...if something important happens in every episode, then everything is no longer important.   

[Reply #95 on:]

 

Originally posted by Fing-longer:
Could someone explain the "hanging wires" reference? Thanks

It's a joke referencing the movie/book Mommie Dearest, which is about Joan Crawford.  She yells at her daughter for using wire hangers for her clothes.  (I asked in another thread if the "7.0" on the mother robot meant anything.  Does anyone know, or was it just decoration?)

 

It's not supposed to be a soap opera...perhaps in making fun of soap operas in this ep, they were making fun of shippers?

No.

[Reply #96 on:]

 
overall..good ep...looking forward to massive series reruns...

[Reply #97 on:]

I'm still staggered, not least that anyone had any serious gripe about this episode at all, but at the sheer scale of the negative response among people who didn't like it.  You people must be cold and dead inside. 

Has any other episode ever led to such extreme polarization of opinion?  Read, for instance, my first post, then Drippy's.

[Reply #98 on:]

People just have different opinions, it's not the end of the world. I have the same feelings about "A Leela Of her Own". I can't see how it's possbile not to love that episode, but there it is. Sitting dead last in CGEF's review section, with a mindboggling lousy rating of 54%.

[Reply #99 on:]

I liked the episode, good. Didn't have the spark to make it great (very few episodes do) was entertaining and I laughed. Got to see characters that didn't get too much screen time and more of the world.

Canned eggs, I think the fact the series is ending and when people have to leave something that they love they try to make the experiance as bad as possible so it is easier to say goodbye.

Either that or they love Leela or Amy and want to see more of them.

[Reply #100 on:]

I also really liked a Leela of Her Own, but I can see how people who don't have anything at stake in the Mets might miss the whole point.  It's sort of a baseball fanboy episode. 

Which doesn't explain why a Danish dude would like it, but anyway, I didn't see anything that obviously divided "Bender Should Not Be Allowed on TV" into "us" and "them."  It was about topics that ought to be painfully familiar to everyone on this board, had representation by almost all the characters in it, and so on. 

It seemed to come down to either thinking the jokes were funny or not funny, and when I counted earlier, the positive and negative reviews on this thread were about even in numbers, so it's not like just a few nuts disagreed with the general opinion.  But the positive reviews get really worshipful, and the negative reviews get really acidic.  I just think it's an unusual distribution.

[Reply #101 on:]

 

Originally posted by canned eggs:
Which doesn't explain why a Danish dude would like it, but anyway,

I have a guilty pleasure, I like slapstick.  I know I shouldn't laugh of something as crude as hitting people on the nose with a beanball, but damnit it was hillarious. Plus some good jokes and references.

But, yeah, back to BSNBAOT. I guess people just got fueled by the reactions of "the other side".

[Reply #102 on:]

Hey, I liked "Leela all her Own", and I think it was actually a lot more then mere slapstick.  At the risk of sounding rude to anyone who gave it a negative review, they probably just didn't understand the satirical aspects of it very well.  That said I didn't think it was a "stronger" episode neccasarily, but there's nothing wrong with it. 

Same goes perhaps with BSNBAOTV, except in this case I really thought it was one of the funnier and smarter episodes in the whole series.  I can agree that 4ACV has been a little more haphazard then the previous three (and I don't think its just "non-shipper" ones either.  "Why of Fry" was saved slightly by a good story, and "Farnsworth Parabox" actually would've been a lot better without the tacked on Fry and Leela tangent).  But this was one of those episodes, IMO, that proved the show was still strong when they were making these.

[Reply #103 on:]

Whoever brought up the whole "soap opera making fun of shippers" actually is on to something, as far as I can tell.  I'm surprised that no one has brought up the parts of the episode that make fun of the fans.  For instance, "Eh, this show's been going downhill since season 3," and "Antonio in a coma?  That is so out of character."

[Reply #104 on:]

maybe they were making fun of themselves? the show has been going downhill since season 3.

[Reply #105 on:]

 

Originally posted by Nixorbo:
Whoever brought up the whole "soap opera making fun of shippers" actually is on to something, as far as I can tell.  I'm surprised that no one has brought up the parts of the episode that make fun of the fans.  For instance, "Eh, this show's been going downhill since season 3," and "Antonio in a coma?  That is so out of character."

Plus Farnsies line: "We should all take tv a little less seriously."

[Reply #106 on:]

This was a pretty funny episode with an awkward turn at the end that knocked my grade down to a 3.5/5. It's probably not as good in my eyes because FOX has aired three Bender episodes in a row, but it was still fine. Of course, if it had aired as the series finale as FOX originally wanted, I would have hated it (I don't want my last memory of "Futurama" to be the HypnoToad staring at me).

[Reply #107 on:]

 

Originally posted by VelourFog:
maybe they were making fun of themselves? the show has been going downhill since season 3.

<1-X upgrade guy> No. Get out. Next! <1-X upgrade guy>

As intimated, it is not the show that has been going downhill since season 3, only some of the fans.

But if that is your view, that's fine.  It happens.  Sometimes good people drift apart for no apparent reason. 

For my part, I feel that the Fry/Leela relationship tension has been stretched beyond all believability.  It should have ended no later than season 2. 

Let them get together and move on.  *cough*kif-and-amy*cough*

Or not get together and move on. *cough*fry-and-amy*cough*

Either way, move on.

You have one mere week to suffer the drivel.

[Reply #108 on:]

the more recent episodes (season "4") are not as good as season 3. that's all I'm sayin'

and amy and kif suck, but fry and leela are still ok in my book

[Reply #109 on:]

I worked it out, and I think that overall, season 4 was of higher quality than season 3 (that's not including the final episode), though not by much.  But maybe you're thinking of which season has a higher number of really good episodes or really bad episodes, and not the average.

I personally don't think that the jokes in this episode were wholly directed at Fox or at the fans of Futurama.  After all, other networks also go overboard with reality shows and have unfunny sitcoms.  I think that like "When Aliens Attack," it was mainly making fun of TV in general (though "Aliens" did a much better job).  Since the jokes were directed at TV in general, they could be applied to Futurama, but I don't think it was deliberate.  Cthulhu help us if Futurama starts making fun of itself as much as The Simpsons.

The idea that the episode was making fun of "shippers" stemmed from the suggestion that they didn't like it just because there was no romance element.  But come on, if someone didn't like what you liked, it doesn't necessarily mean there's some silly reason behind it.  They aren't refusing to accept the episode's quality, they just have a difference of opinion.  I like the romance subplot, but some of my favorite episodes have nothing to do with it.

[Reply #110 on:]

ALL MY CIRCUITS: Does anyone want to take a guess at what "the shocking secret Mother's kept from you for 200 years" that was about to be stated by Antonio Calculon Jr. before his breakdown on the set?

...You think she's a lezboT?

[Reply #111 on:]

Show spoiler

She runs on a Microsoft OS.

   

[Reply #112 on:]

"Big piles of what i assume is talkum powder"

I didn't get that line first time around!

[Reply #113 on:]

Did you get it the second time?

Spoiler for aslate only:

Show spoiler

Cocaine.

[Reply #114 on:]

 

Originally posted by Timo:
As intimated, it is not the show that has been going downhill since season 3, only some of the fans.

Actually, I think it was a reference to fans of all shows, but primarily the Simpsons, more than Futurama. Many people claim that seasons 2-3 of the Simpsons were far and away the best ever; in fact, it's such a frequently-made claim that it's almost "common knowledge."

Also, keep in mind that 4acv06 was early enough in the 4th run that it was probably expected to run during the 4th season, which makes the joke not work too well about Futurama.

[Reply #115 on:]

 

Originally posted by Vintage Dave:
Did you get it the second time?

Spoiler for aslate only:

Show spoiler

Cocaine.

Yes i did get it, just not the first time.

[Reply #116 on:]

 

Originally posted by canned eggs:
 
Never, ever ask.

damn....that just makes me even more curious...

could i have at least a hint~

[Reply #117 on:]

loved the intro song and end credits song as well. much funnier than recent weeks. cant wait til sunday!

[Reply #118 on:]

 

Yes i did get it, just not the first time.

Sorry aslate, that really fell flat.  I spent most of my drive home wishing I hadn't posted.

ObBSNBAOTV: I find myself singing "TV Party" several times a day.

[Reply #119 on:]

 

Originally posted by Vintage Dave:
ObBSNBAOTV: I find myself singing "TV Party" several times a day.

I do the same thing. 
 That is a surprisingly catchy tune!