Top 5 worst episodes

[on:]

Here are mine (1 being the worst). I even changed the titles to tell you what the problem was with the episode!

[edit]or not  [/edit]

5. The Cyronic Woman
4. Less than Hero
3. 300 Big Boys
2. Obsoletely Fabulous
1. Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings

[Reply #1 on:]

1) Renaming the episodes like that is just lame
2) Devil's hands does not deserve the bottom slot.
3) Most of your other options i agree with being rubbish, i don't know about them being bottom 5

[Reply #2 on:]

Well! Someone's having a bad day! 

 Oh wait, it's me. Gah. 

[Reply #3 on:]

1) It's easier than giving it a full review
2) Yes, it does IMO, but that's just me.
3) I couldn't think of any others I really hated

[Reply #4 on:]

300 big boys is so damn good. And didn't we already decide the world rankings  .

I would say 'Cryonic Woman', er... er.... maybe 'obseletly fabulous'. other than that it's hard to say really.

[Reply #5 on:]

There's a few that I'm indifferent to, but "The Cryonic Woman" is the only one that I truly dislike.

[Reply #6 on:]

Here's my bottom five:

5) The Cryonic Woman - I have to admit that my attitude to this episode has mellowed a bit since Fall Madness, but still to me it seems like an episode that a group of tired writers struggled to fill a 21 minute slot with. Michelle also being frozen was a coincidence that didn't fly with me and the filler in this episode is all over the place, the biggest example being Pauly Shore, buuuuuuuuddy.

4) Kif Gets Knocked Up A Notch - Bill Odenkirk seemed to want it all with this episode: an emotional plot and good comedy. Unfortunately, with only 21 minutes at his disposal for his epic idea, it wasn't gonna happen without being a total mess. Oh well.

3) Spanish Fry - This episode annoyed me. Having failed to write a musical episode about Barbados Slim for 4ACV17 (see the commentaries), the Futurama staff decided to make an episode that would use up all the ideas they never got round to doing (both good and bad) and an episode so dirty Fox wouldn't possibly dare air it at 7.   
There's no doubt there was some good material in there (the windows screensaver joke, The Scary Door) but it was completely out of context in amongst the lower horn jokes, Lrrr and Ndnd's unconvincing marital dilemmas and...Bigfoot?! For god's sake, write a plot!

2) A Leela Of Her Own - Which mainly annoyed me because of how they watered down Blernsball from it's glorious FOABP incarnation to simply baseball with a rubber string. Add to it some lazy representations of racism (you can't fool us David, cygnoids are Italians) and sexism (women still can't play sports in the year 3002?) and the repetetive nature of the smack in the face joke and you have a real squeeeker. And that's with three 'E's.

1) Bend Her - The only episode that I felt had no redeeming qualities about whatsoever. Bender's sexchange wasn't so much freaky as it was heavy-handed and annoying, and Leela and Amy's blatant reactions to it made this an awful satire on sexism. And Bender's last line was the weakest in the entire series. Burrrn!

[Reply #7 on:]

4)Bendin' In The Wind
3)30% Iron Chef
2)The Cryonic Woman
1)Where The Buggalo Roam

These are the ones I don't like thaaat much, but they still have their great moments.

[Reply #8 on:]

I hear a lot of people slagging off Where The Buggalo Roam and I'll agree it wasn't the best, but I have to say the concept of Native Martians throat-singing to command a dust tornado was really cool.

 Is that an original idea, btw? There's nothing in the capsules to suggest otherwise but at the same time nothing on Futurama ever seems to be totally original. 

[Reply #9 on:]

I think there are quite some original things.

-the heads in jars
-that tube transportation system
-refossilisation (sp?)
-ads in dreams
-talking banknotes
-Dr. Zoidberg   

I don't know if these are based on some other stuff, but IMHO they're very if not totally original. And there are probably some more which I can't think of right now.
Some things however are not that original. The Planet Express ship's drive for instance seems to be based somewhat on the infinite improbability drive from the Heart Of Gold (Hitchhiker's Guide...).

[Reply #10 on:]

5)Obsoletely Fabulous
4)A Taste of Freedom
3)A Head in the Polls(Except for Nixon's line about breaking into people's houses and wreaking up the place)
2)300 Big Boys
1)That's Lobstertainment!

[Reply #11 on:]

I haven't seen much of the 4th season so I can't base it on that but here are mine...
5)A Flight To Remember
4)Futurestock
3)Lesser of Two Evils
2)A Leela Of Her Own
1)Bendin' In The Wind

It's weird how what some hate others like, I really enjoyed Cryonic Woman...

[Reply #12 on:]

Ya me too!

But eh!Whatcha gonna do?

[Reply #13 on:]

5. LESSER OF TWO EVILS
Pastorama was stupid, the whole concept of Flexo was stupid, and the entire third act was stupid. The only reason this episode is at #5 is because the bathtub scene was as funny as hell.

4. BEND HER
Bender was just plain annoying here. I mean, really - was this episode necessary at all? Think of all the great things they could've made in this episode's place... a Bender sex-change episode is just a plain terrible idea to begin with. Errm, with that all said - I just want to mention that Zoidberg had some pretty funny moments (I'm a doctor, he's dead!) and that's why this isn't further down my list.

3. 300 BIG BOYS
Aside from Fry's plot, this episode was just plain crap and unfunny.

2. THE CRYONIC WOMAN
Other than from Bender's antics, this episode really did suck. I mean, they could've taken it in such a good direction, but instead - they had to go with that shitty Year 4000 plot! Ugh!

1. A LEELA OF HER OWN
Blernsball was nowhere near as weird as before, the whole plot was just plain stupid in a non-funny way, and I didn't laugh ONCE when I saw it. NOT ONCE!!! Fuck baseball!

Also, I just want to add in that Bendless Love narrowly escaped my list because the Professor sub-plot was so funny.

[Reply #14 on:]

I agree with people on quite a few of the episodes mentioned, but some people's least favourites are some of my favourites. For example:

 

Originally posted by KnockItUpANotch:
5)A Flight To Remember
4)Futurestock
3)Lesser of Two Evils
2)A Leela Of Her Own
1)Bendin' In The Wind

I really like all of those episodes except for A Leela of Her Own, and even that I don't mind. Bendin' in the Wind and Future Stock are two of my favourite episodes, and The Lesser of Two Evils and A Flight to Remember are right up there.

 

Originally posted by 1 of the gang:
5)Obsoletely Fabulous
4)A Taste of Freedom
3)A Head in the Polls(Except for Nixon's line about breaking into people's houses and wreaking up the place)
2)300 Big Boys
1)That's Lobstertainment!

A Head in the Polls is one of my favourites (definitely top ten), and being a bit of a Zoidberg nut I enjoyed A Taste of Freedom and That's Lobstertainment.

 

Originally posted by MrBurns:
4)Bendin' In The Wind
3)30% Iron Chef
2)The Cryonic Woman
1)Where The Buggalo Roam

Again, two of the episodes you placed in your bottom four (Bendin' In The Wind & 30% Iron Chef) are amony my favourites. It just goes to show that opinions vary greatly, even among fans of the one show.


My bottom 3 (fairly predictable):

3. The Cryonic Woman
2. 300 Big Boys
1. Bender Should Not Be Allowed On TV

[Reply #15 on:]

the one with zapp branigan and leela in season two where he loses his admiral rank is pretty dumb. although i did like the part about him being a male whore.

[Reply #16 on:]

That's the same episode.
It's name is Brannigan Began Again.

Welcome to PEEL, I.C Wiener.
(Just to tell you in advance...don't be stupid...they're funny but not always liked.)

[Reply #17 on:]

5.  Mars University

Unlike the others on this list I don't find this episode to be dull really, but it is pretty middling.  The story just doesn't have too much charisma or sci-fi flavor, and Gunther is a generally uninteresting character.  But there's enough humor for it to be passable, anyway.

4.  The Deep South

ANOTHER season two episodes where Fry dates an underdeveloped chick but dumps them/gets dumped by the end.  Yawn.  Not much of note about this episode really.  It has its moments but overall the story is pretty bland (even for seasons one and two standards) and the really great gags too few and far between.

3.  Obsolutely Fabulous

Similar to number two the main problem is that its a "jerkass Bender" episode in the vein of Homer episodes of the Scully era of the Simpsons.  Jerkass Bender does wacky things and hurts those around him, and we're just supposed to take it.  There are enough chuckles for this episode to be passable, but most don't come from the supposed protaganist.

2.  A Pharoh to Remember
I don't hate it but this episode does at least verge on bad.  Bender has always been something of a jerk but here its just too overwhelming and without any charm.  The story is also pretty uninteresting, and the humor sparse.

1. Three Hundred Big Boys
The one episode I have not watched more then once, and may never bother to watch again (barring watching with the commentary of course).  Its just so horrifically bad and without any redeeming value at all.  I can appreciate trying to go the "22 Short Films About Springfield" and just having a bunch of short stories about the characters, but not only are the stories here much less interesting, but they all are missing a key ingredient: humor.

Edit: edited my numbers.  Thanks El Zilcho.

[Reply #18 on:]

Well that's an... interesting numbering scheme.

[Reply #19 on:]

5:The Deep South
4:That's Lobstertainment!
3:Kif gets knocked up a notch
2:A Leela of her Own
1:Less than Zero
"Nine, Ten, a big fat hen.The name's Bender."
What the hell is even slightly funny about that?   

[Reply #20 on:]

 

Originally posted by M0le:
5:The Deep South
4:That's Lobstertainment!
3:Kif gets knocked up a notch
2:A Leela of her Own
1:Less than Zero

Less Than Zero?

[Reply #21 on:]

 

Originally posted by M0le:
1:Less than Zero
"Nine, Ten, a big fat hen.The name's Bender."
What the hell is even slightly funny about that?     

The whole joke here is that the line itself is an old rhyme that children used to say, and this episode itself parodies old shows that children used to watch - hence the connection. What makes it funny is the fact that it's just so random. The line's so unexpected, especially coming from Bender.

[Reply #22 on:]

Well I haven't seen 300 big boys but the episode I dislike the most is Jurassic Bark. Just because of the ending. Didn't care for Hell is Other RObots but thats just cause it wasn't that funny.

[Reply #23 on:]

The only episode I've actually found boring was that one about blurnsball. When it originally aired I got a bit sleepy (sports puts me to sleep for some mysterious reason).

I rather enjoyed most of leelaholics 'bottom 5' episodes.

[Reply #24 on:]

IMHO the worst ep was "The Cryonic Woman", because the plot wasn't that funny, Fry acted way too stupid and Pauly Shore was the guest star... 

One bad episode out of 72 is still a very good score.

[Reply #25 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
3.  Obsolutely Fabulous

Similar to number two the main problem is that its a "jerkass Bender" episode in the vein of Homer episodes of the Scully era of the Simpsons.  Jerkass Bender does wacky things and hurts those around him, and we're just supposed to take it.  There are enough chuckles for this episode to be passable, but most don't come from the supposed protaganist.

A Pharoah To Remember I agree with but Obsoletely Fabulous a "jerkass Bender" episode? To my knowledge Bender's hatred (and also fear) in this episode was focussed entirely on Robot 1-X and the moment the lives of the PE crew were at stake, didn't he actually try to save them?
 
 With APOR, I understand the "jerkass" problem because Bender had absolutely no compassion for the people around him, even his best friends (which we know for a fact that he did in Fear Of A Bot Planet), but in the context of Obsoletely Fabulous it seems like a comparatively weak reason for disliking it.

 

Originally posted by shizumadrive
Well I haven't seen 300 big boys but the episode I dislike the most is Jurassic Bark. Just because of the ending.

 Well that's just shallow! 

[Reply #26 on:]

Less than hero is great!

Bender: Superking has no need for loved ones!

[Reply #27 on:]

It's not bad, but the best part of it is definitely the 4 or 5 Pi-kea jokes at the beginning.

 "Enjoy your affordable Swedish crap!" 

[Reply #28 on:]

How can anyone hate 300 Big Boys?  I found that episode to be hilarious as heck!  The best parts were Hermes on the stilts, Bender's attemped heist, and Fry's coffee binge!  Anyway, here's my top 5 worst:

5. Cryogenic Woman
4. A Leela of her Own (I can't picture Leela being a buffoon)
3. The Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings
2. My Three Suns
1. Branigan Begin Again

[Reply #29 on:]

I guess everybody has their own taste, because i thought Brannigan Begin Again was one of the best episodes of season 2.

My worst list (or less perfect) episodes:

5.Bend Her
4.Bendin' In The Wind
3.A Pharaoh To Remember
2.Kif gets knocked up a notch
1.Godfellas

[Reply #30 on:]

What on Earth was wrong with Godfellas?! 

[Reply #31 on:]

 

Originally posted by Zaer:
I guess everybody has their own taste, because i thought Brannigan Begin Again was one of the best episodes of season 2.

Indeed, "Godfellas" is probably one of my favorite episodes, Definetely a top-10 episode, maybe even higher.

A list will magically appear later.

[Reply #32 on:]

i just found it weird, and i am not really a Bender fan...IMO ofcourse

[Reply #33 on:]

 

Originally posted by Mouse On Venus:
A Pharoah To Remember I agree with but Obsoletely Fabulous a "jerkass Bender" episode? To my knowledge Bender's hatred (and also fear) in this episode was focussed entirely on Robot 1-X and the moment the lives of the PE crew were at stake, didn't he actually try to save them?

With APOR, I understand the "jerkass" problem because Bender had absolutely no compassion for the people around him, even his best friends (which we know for a fact that he did in Fear Of A Bot Planet), but in the context of Obsoletely Fabulous it seems like a comparatively weak reason for disliking it.

I guess maybe its not a "jerkass" problem per se (although the ending where he saves them did seem a bit contrived, as if to "excuse" his behavior in the rest of the episode), but he was definetely very mood-swingy and there didn't seem to be much logic behind any of his actions through most of the episode (and yes I realize it was all a dream, but still). I guess he wasn't really a jerkass but it still felt similar to Scully-era Homer in that they seemed to overexxagerate his mood swings and also took away some of the logic behind those mood swings.

But, its not a bad episode either, I still enjoyed it to some degree.  A Pharaoh To Remember is definetely more problematic in any case.

[Reply #34 on:]

The first half of Cryonic was fantastic, with Bender and Fry stealing the ship and their antics at the freezing place. Sadly, the episode went completely sour afterwards, with the onl funny bits being Leela and Bender asking for their jobs back and Zoidberg being a grandmother. Basically, take away Michelle and the episode was actually pretty good.

[Reply #35 on:]

Take away Pauly Shore and the show just gets even better. 

[Reply #36 on:]

My least favorite episode is "A Leela of Her Own".  This episode is dry and sparse, not much in the way of memorable jokes or story.  The real stinker is the opening act.  The crappy Cygnoids as some sort of year 3000 immigrant stereotype turned me off from the beginning (Gee, I wonder if they were Italian?).  I think they could have come up with a more original way to lead into Leela playing ball.  The future gives the writers so many possibilites of doing this, but they came up with something uninspired in my opinion.

[Reply #37 on:]

I'm very surprised to see some of my favourite episodes on people's lists. Godfellas, The Deep South, A Flight to Remember. I think people will see a theme in my choices:

5. Futurestock - Definately the best episode on this list (thus putting it as fifth), but it still lacked direction and most of the jokes weren't that great or were totaly predictable. However it did spawn Sammy's "Ambitious and Misunderstood" T-shirt, so we'll be kind 
4. Mars University - Just kill that goddamn monkey!!!
3. Bend-Her - Bender acts as a jackass as seen in APTR, boring.
2. A Leela of her Own - Only marginally better than APTR, again just lacking in funny jokes, or any kind of direction to the episode. Here in Season 3 I really wondered if Futurama was finished.
1. A Pharoah to Remember - Bender is just plain annoying in this episode. It's gag packed, but I just didn't find it funny in the lisghtest.

Honorable mention - Cryonic Woman. Michelle is irritating, and the end of the episode is pretty stupid, but as Guy said the first half was hilarious and as such that keeps it off this list.

[Reply #38 on:]

I'm quite surprised too about how varied the outcome of this thread has been thus far. I would've thought that given the CGEF reviews section and Fall Madness that That's Lobstertainment would've owned this thread, and yet it's only been one person's worst.

[Reply #39 on:]

I find Lobstertainment to be severly underrated, normally. It isn't very good, but it isn't horrible.  Solid middle lower-bottom. Anyways, about my five (worst to 'best'):

1 - Cryonic Woman (as others have said, great first half, but after Shore and Michelle, it all falls apart, taking it below the rest on my list overall)
2 - Bend Her (Uninspired story and creepy Bender/Coilette)
3 - A Pharaoh To Remember (mostly what others have said, although I still find the episode quite watchable)
4 - Kif Gets Knocked Up A Notch (a "meh" episode, it had real potential, but by the end, everything was back the way it was... what a waste.)
5 - Spanish Fry (Juvenile humour?  Oh, boy!)

An Honorable mention goes to:
The Deep South (apart from Zoidberg, fairly boring and unfunny)

And that... is that.