Futurama is one of the best animated series of all time.
And you know what?
No matter how terrible this season or future seasons may be, nothing changes that.
(Hulu Trailer/Screenshot)
When the show debuted in 1999, its lobster claw was on the pulse of wisecracking liberal escapism. The natural evolution of The Simpsons, Futurama represented the best of Gen X and millennial humor.
It surpassed The Simpsons in many ways because it could delve deeper into surrealism and even apocalyptic (but funny) scenarios. There was no “net” of a nuclear family to fall back on.
This was the world, the unbridled imagination of Matt Groening and David X. Cohen, and the possibilities were endless.
(Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
Nowadays, 25 years later, most of the cast is still alive, the show has a new deal on Hulu, and since reboots and returns are chic, the show has new momentum going into Seasons 13 and 14.
Why, then, do Futurama’s newest plotlines feel exhausted?
Futurama Season 12, Stuck In Standby Mode
They’ve resorted to using retcon episodes (“Attack of the Clothes,” “The One Amigo”), in which they reimagine character origins or provide weird side flashbacks that don’t fit in with the rest of the show.
It’s a Simpsons cliche, sadly. When you run out of new plotlines, just start exploring alternative realities of the characters you thought you knew.
The Simpsons children grew up in the 2000s, don’t you know? The man we thought was Seymour Skinner is not Agnes’ real son but is just Armin Tamsarian impersonating the real Skinner.
Okay. Sure. Whatever you say, boss.
Futurama’s later seasons have been going this route, whether it’s taking Bender back to “Mexxxico” to meet his distinctly Mexican family or revisiting Fry’s 8th birthday party — recreated by aliens in a squid game of death. (Of course)
The head and voice of George Takei returned to Futurama. This time the actor served as a mediator during a “Proposition Infinity” debate. (Futurama TM and (c) 2010 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation)
While these episodes haven’t “tanked” the show and ruined the series altogether, they are far from some of the peak seasons of the 2000 era, not to mention feature movies like Bender’s Big Score and The Beast With A Billion Backs.
Futurama Is Oblivious About the Future
The most brilliant episodes of Futurama were the ones that delved deeper into science fiction concepts and imagined our distant future. These were futuristic scenarios based on our own current-day obsessions.
Newer episodes have tried to do this with standout moments like in One Is Silicone and the Other Gold.
However, even this episode falls short of any revelation, considering that multiple characters in Futurama are presumably already A.I.
Why exactly are robotic lifeforms reacting to AI like it’s still a new thing? For that matter, in The One Amigo, why are humans still obsessed with NFTs? Haven’t we started to think bigger in 975 years?
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I can’t criticize Futurama for relying on one-liners and slapstick gags. I’m suggesting that the show’s writers might spend a little more time analyzing our current world beyond *Breaking News* mentality.
What is the human race right now if you got rid of all gratuitous conversations about dictators, pronouns, and copyrighted music?
What other deep conversations could we have, and why isn’t Futurama writing about some of that?
They’re going shallow, while we, the viewers (the younger generation), are going deeper.
Anyway, if that’s too deep of a construct, let’s break it down into four simple requests, shall we?
#1: We Need Fewer Origin Stories, More Stories About Future Technology
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This is something that Star Trek — and even Star Trek parodies like The Orville — get right.
What better way to tell a future story, even a comedy, than by jumping thousands of years into the future to explore the technology we can only dream of today?
Yes, I recall that Star Trek was banned in the Futurama universe, as detailed in the episode “Where No Fan Has Gone Before.”
But why is a show set in the 3000s so behind the times? Shouldn’t they be living at the turn of the century?
For that matter…
#2: Ease off on Bender Episodes – Explore More “New New York” Characters
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Living in a vastly different sociopolitical world, what has become of the Earth, the geography, and the culture we once held dear?
I remember Richard Nixon’s Head running for president and “Mom” Carol Miller taking over the corporate world. But is there anything else happening?
Am I the only one who thinks the broader Futurama world is so much more interesting than just the Planet Express staff?
Imagine if they gave the go-ahead to writers to thoroughly explore the world of Futurama with the same zest as Groening and Josh Weinstein had visited all the different lands of Disenchantment.
Surely, there will be another jar-head ready to run for office by now.
#3: Write More Mind-Warping Episodes Like The Temp
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I wouldn’t say The Temp was a classic Futurama episode, but the introduction did give me a few goosebumps. I loved the mix of slapstick meets Hitchcockian suspense.
The less you explain, the better, at least in the beginning. The more the story progresses, the more details you learn, but only as needed.
While the conclusion didn’t quite live up to the premise’s potential, it did remind me of how Futurama can mix suspense and comedy in organic ways that The Simpsons and even Rick and Morty cannot do.
Those shows are too enmeshed in parody and politics. Futurama is apolitical and free to explore more cinematic concepts.
Maybe in Seasons 13 and 14, they will find more suspenseful or emotive story arcs that warp our minds in wonderful ways.
#4: Don’t Mess Up Fry and Leela’s Relationship – Just Refine It
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When comedy shows run out of ideas, they always seem to hit the same Go-Tos.
The couple breaks up. Eventually, they get back together again, or they stay broken up as a reminder of how toxic the relationship was.
Or they have children, as Futurama has already explored with Amy and Kif.
I can’t speak for all the fandom, but I don’t think anyone particularly wants to see Fry and Leela’s relationship change.
With the “Meanwhile” story, we essentially saw the end of the series, at least as far as Fry and Leela go. This was their essence as characters and the conclusion to their unique and “timeless” love story.
Instead of trying to retcon or devolve the relationship, focus on refining details about their family ancestry, their motivations, and how they influence others in the small but significant community of intergalactic friends.
(Hulu Trailer/Screenshot)
Reboots are tricky because we don’t actually want change. We don’t want to lose elements of the show that won us over in the first place.
Classic TV shows — even if they’re ongoing for decades and have already peaked — have ingratiated themselves into our lives as virtual friends. They’re not just stories to be told. They’re not just experiences.
They’re friends you want to invite over, talk to, and talk with about the zeitgeist of the day.
Futurama won’t last forever. But as long as it’s here, at least for two more seasons, let’s hope the creative team can return to its roots and pick up on some of that rebellious 1999 ambition that fueled its success.
It has more stories to tell. It just needs to take a few more creative risks.
What do you all think? Are you enjoying Futurama so far? How can Futurama’s future seasons reboot to greatness, or are its best days behind us?
Hit the comments section below to share your thoughts!
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