Should they just write Nibbler off?

[on:]

It seems they have no interest in using him anymore. Despite the fact that allowing a talking Nibbler to join the crew would really open new doors/avenues, they try hard to pretend like he isn't there. It got me to thinking; maybe they should just write Nibbler out of the show. If they don't want to do anything dramatic they can simply have say he needed to go back to the Nibblonians to check on some prophecies or something -- if they didn't want to go with a heroic sacrifice or anything.

I mean, at this point Scruffy* is more of a character than Nibbler.

(*The Janitor.)

[Reply #1 on:]

I'd rather they wrote Nibbler back in. Like, come up with some crazy explanation at the beginning of 7B as to why he was away for so long, and reintroduce him accordingly.

[Reply #2 on:]

I'm not gonna lie I don't like the fact that they wrote in that everyone now knows he can talk. I wish like only Fry knew.

[Reply #3 on:]

It'd be awesome if Nibbler's absence had some kind of real purpose behind it. Like, he was off gathering information or plotting the final showdown between The Mighty One and some cosmic foe. Then when he shows up again, it kicks off the final, ultimate, epic, conclusive episode to the arc that seemed to be finished in "The Why Of Fry".... and allows the writers to either stick Nibbler back in his "cute and cuddly" role, or make him a fully-fledged main character as they seemed to be on the verge of doing in S6.

It'll never happen though.

[Reply #4 on:]

I'd rather they wrote Nibbler back in. Like, come up with some crazy explanation at the beginning of 7B as to why he was away for so long, and reintroduce him accordingly.

I hope it's this as well. Perhaps he's been on a 'Nibbler on the Roof' world tour?

[Reply #5 on:]

There's no way they should write Nibbler out, he's such an important character. Without him, no Futurama. I agree with Spacedal11 that the others shouldn't know he can talk. Also, Leela needs to start treating Nibbler with respect again, she used to adore him, now she just doesn't give a fuck, the bitch! ...

[Reply #6 on:]

I was wondering about this myself. I wondered if they couldn't get Frank Welker to do the voice this season. If that's the case, I think it's kind of classy they didn't give the voice to someone else. Has anyone else heard anything about this?

[Reply #7 on:]

I was wondering about this myself. I wondered if they couldn't get Frank Welker to do the voice this season. If that's the case, I think it's kind of classy they didn't give the voice to someone else. Has anyone else heard anything about this?

Frank does a lot of alien/animal voices, plus Nibbler made a slurping sound in his cameo in Naturama, so I imagine they had him for 7A.

Gonna be honest, Nibbler does kind of seem like a waste of space now. And I agree with Spacedal, no one should know he can talk.

[Reply #8 on:]

Agreed. TDK could have happened just fine with Nibbler blanking Amy's brain afterwards.  If they wanted to make his identity not be secret anymore, fine, but absolutely nothing has been brought to the show as a result of it.  He's just become another orbiting satellite the way Labarbara, Dwight and Cubert, only he has lost much of what has made him unique, and they haven't bothered to make him bring anything to the table instead, the way Cubert and Labarbs do.

[Reply #9 on:]

I feel like the talking thing cheapened him. He brought a lot of depth and mystery to the show (mostly in eps like The Why of Fry), and while there are still a lot of unanswered questions about him and the backstory (the Other?), he's too busy now dressing like Tevye and not being seen at all for some reason for that depth to remain.

[Reply #10 on:]

I guess I'm in the minority because honestly I cannot stand Nibbler. Maybe it's the whole glutton thing.

If I closed my eyes during 31CF, I heard Nibbler's (non-speaking) voice when the fox was being hunted and etc.

[Reply #11 on:]

I am not a huge fan of the character Nibbler either, but I love the complicated, over-arching plot that he enabled. It makes Futurama far more interesting and entertaining. And it can't just end here with so much unresolved.

[Reply #12 on:]

No.  More Nibbler.  While we're at it, more Nibbler and more Globetrotters.  The plots are usually good when either of them are used for some reason.

[Reply #13 on:]

The Globetrotters could get overused fast, but they haven't been seen since Prisoner of Benda, right? So it'd probably be cool if they came back for an ep soon.

[Reply #14 on:]

I hope so.  I love plots involving Nibbler because they usually tend to be epic, in the sense that there is the feeling that the PE crew's efforts are a small part of a much larger conflict.  I love plots involving the Globetrotters because they usually end up having a technical aspect that needs to be solved, and can serve as a very effective (and funny) deus-ex machina to tie up the episode.  They need not be overused as long as they are handled carefully, and aren't flanderized to the point of not being characters anymore as has happened with some of the other secondaries.

[Reply #15 on:]

Louis, but for what point? Like spira so astutely pointed out, he played a pivotal role in unravelling the mystery of Fry going to the future. But now, he seems like any other other tertiary character.

It kind of makes me sad, to see how much thought went into that whole story arc, and now we have nothing like that. No overlying thread tying everything together.

[Reply #16 on:]

Well, I'm sure the Nibblonians haven't just been sitting idly after the Infosphere was isolated.  I also find it hard to believe that the Brainspawn were destroyed utterly.  I think they are great antagonists, and their ability to use fiction to trap minds opens up plenty of interesting possibilities.  Bring them back.

Or write something new!  I would rather take a risk with a new plot involving the Nibblonians over another "value/meaning of robot life" Bender plot any day.  Those are becoming numerous and tedious.

[Reply #17 on:]

It kind of makes me sad, to see how much thought went into that whole story arc, and now we have nothing like that. No overlying thread tying everything together.

Exactly that. But the arc isn't finished! We still don't know what "The Other" means. And I agree, the return of the brainspawn would be neat. Or having the PE crew somehow end up in the alternate universe where the brainspawn reside. Or bring back something with the large manta ray protector creature in ITWGY (I forget what he was called).

[Reply #18 on:]

Having the wisdom of the whole Universe at their disposal, the brainspawn should certainly be able to find a way back.

Yet I think they should return only for a very special occasion, fitting that epic plot.
And not becoming Futurama's Daltons, who are sent every week back to prison/the alternate dimension by Lucky Luke/Fry.

[Reply #19 on:]

Yeah, TDtESS is one of the best, and I loved the whole sequence of visiting literature classics (Mr. Brainley being so arrogant stirring the extreme dislike of all the ball attendees in Hertfordshire--awesome). Some books that might be fun: On the Road, Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, The Hitchiker's Guide. Not necessarily my favorites but could be interesting.

Though I wonder if they do bring that plot device back, if a lot of fans would complain about retreads and not coming up with new ideas.

[Reply #20 on:]

the large manta ray protector creature in ITWGY (I forget what he was called).

The Encyclopod. Which reminds me: As much as I love "Into the Wild Green Yonder"--it's my favorite of the movies, and probably one of my favorite episodes, period--I'm still kind of annoyed that the Epic, Fry-As-Savior story did not include Nibbler. Granted, I loved Hutch and the rest of the Madfellows, and admittedly the movie might have been a bit crowded if the Nibblonians had also been involved in saving the universe; it's just that, if ItWGY really had been it for the series, I would have been disappointed to have never received closure on that whole "The Other" thing.

In any event, I don't think Nibbler should be written out of the show. The writers' apparent reluctance to use him kind of perplexes me--it's like, why would you bother revealing that he can talk if you're not going to use it to progress one of the series' most interesting story arcs, and are instead only going to give us fun-but-unnecessary diversions like "That Darn Katz!"?--but I am still holding out hope that next season's finale will involve the Nibblonians, and another showdown with either the Brain Spawn or some other ancient menace.

Part of me thinks that the writers are waiting for a full-blown theatrical movie to give us closure regarding The Other, and the Nibblonians, and Fry's mightiness--but seeing as how that's not a guaranteed thing, I really hope we get an episode in 7B dealing with all that fun stuff.

[Reply #21 on:]

Yes, bring back the gentle and elegant Encyclopod, if just for the lovely animation of it! If I were an animator I would do nothing but make the Encyclopod gracefully fly and flap around space; have y'all ever seen rays up close? They are marvellous creatures.

The Other--I can't help but be reminded of Yoda's rasping remark about "there is another" on his deathbed. And what came of that? Leia was the other but I never felt like that part of her character was ever developed.

[Reply #22 on:]

Encyclopod was cool, but I feel that it's purpose (in the series) has been fulfilled. It would be awesome if it's role was incorporate and applied somehow if/when they reveal the purpose of "The Other". There was an exchange between him and Fry that could lead to one thing or another (and he is the last Waterfall to appear... yet).

Encyclopod: Well, at any rate, I shall preserve the DNA of Homo sapiens.
Fry: Huh. I thought you only saved the DNA of endangered species.
Encyclopod: Farewell. [Space swims away]

The Other--I can't help but be reminded of Yoda's rasping remark about "there is another" on his deathbed. And what came of that? Leia was the other but I never felt like that part of her character was ever developed.

Maybe it was to be explored in the seventh, eighth and ninth movies, to finish off the trilogy of trilogies. But, we still haven't got Star Wars One, Two, and Three yet!

[Reply #23 on:]

On the topic of ITWGY and Nibbler:

Bottom left-hand corner. A lot of you are probably aware of this, but perhaps not.

I would love to think that Nibbler's absence is leading up to some big epic finale with closure on "The Other" and the return of the Brainspawn, but sadly, I don't see this happening. On the other hand, I'm sure the Futurama staff are aware of his exclusion, and would probably have thought "Oh, we haven't been using Nibbler. Let's just put him on Leela's lap or something, just so he's still part of the crew". Since there hasn't been anything like that, there's got to be a reason.

Anyway, Nibbler's an established character, so I would never like to see him written off completely.

[Reply #24 on:]

I am still holding out hope that next season's finale will involve the Nibblonians, and another showdown with either the Brain Spawn or some other ancient menace.

Another ancient menace would be cool, but I think if there's a showdown, the writers are probably going to bring back the Brain Spawn if only because they seem determined to shoehorn every established character model into as many appearances in the new run as possible.