Futurama

Now that is not to say the Simpsons is bad or anything, I really like it, but it has jumped the shark for a few years now. Futurama is everything I love an animated series to be, funny, original and witty. I seriously don't know where to begin praising the show. Well for one thing the animation is amazing. The characters are really well drawn, the backgrounds are audacious and the visual effects are eye-popping. And the music is brilliant, it is cleverly composed with some funky songs featuring such as "Conga" and "Sunshine of Your Love" and the theme tune is definitely memorable. The writing is outstanding, the comedy works brilliantly and the more touching and subtle parts work just as well. The episode ideas springing from a brilliant concept are really original and fun, and the pacing is great. And the characters with the help of a truly talented voice cast are really unique and endearing, especially Fry, Bender and Zoidberg, and Leela is a feisty and headstrong character that I related to immediately. Overall, a truly wonderful show, with all the fun and originality that are lacking in the later episodes of the Simpsons. 10/10 Bethany Cox

I loved Futurama when it was TV and I always find myself watching it on my DVD player ( I have all 4 series ). I think the thing that carries it above other cartoons ( and it's not like I don't like the Simpsons or Family Guy ) is the wonderful mix of characters. Dimwitted Phillip J. Fry, who has trouble constructing a coherent sentence and whenever he attempts to say something profound it invariably ends up flying back in his face. Turanga Leela, a outcast amongst outcasts, who when not brushing off Fry is captaining the ship between planets while wondering about her own origins. Bender, a wisecracking, gambling chain-smoking robot that is on the crew of the ship for no apparent reason apart from bumming around. Dr Zoidberg, a penniless joke of a medical practionioner that has no friends and seems to ignite hostility for just being him. Hermes Conrad, a Rastafarian bureaucrat who when not limboing for his nation is filing and shredding with an obsessive fever. Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, whose wonderous inventions are perhaps only eclipsed by his seemingly growing amorality towards almost all living things. Amy Wong, the daughter of the rich Wong family and as such finds herself slightly naive about things that are deeper than hair gel and nail polish. Add to this the military hijinks of Zapp Brannigan and his long-suffering lieutenant Kif Croker as well as thespian robot Calculon, Warlord alien Lur and President Nixon as well as others and I think you have a group of characters that all have their own quirks and flaws to add to a very funny show.

I only hope that they have enough sense to put it back on again.

It's such a shame that Futurama has been cancelled, for I feel the producers and cast had a lot more episodes planned and a lot more stories to tell.

I don't know why FOX cancelled Futurama, other than:

1) It's funny - much funnier than most other programmes on the network.

2) It's intelligent - the science fiction references for instance (some of the writers have PhDs!).

3) You care about the characters, each one is different and interesting in their own ways. Unlike many other cartoons, there has been a lot of character development.

4) There is a sense of continuity (the characters age, unusual in a cartoon, and there are various stories that spread out throughout different episodes, such as the Fry/Nibbler one).

5) The show has something for everyone - comedy, drama, romance, sci-fi, farce.

6) It is entirely original.

7) The animation is amazing.

8) IT'S FUNNY!

Yep, I can see why FOX cancelled it.

Start watching Futurama and you'll be hooked. Episodes to look out for in particual are the pilot, "Space Pilot 3000"; "Luck Of The Ftyrish", "Roswell That Ends Well" (this one won an Emmy!), "The Why Of Fry", "Anthology Of Interest I" and "Xmas Story".

I disagree with those who hate Futurama with a passion. On the contrary, I find the show so completely funny and original. Let me explain what I mean:

The plot of having a crude, broke pizza delivery-kid wander into a cryogenics lab and fall into a freezer shell for a thousand years is so creative...I'll expand further; He befriends a very well voiced "cyclops" mutant named Leela (Katey Sagal), a trash talking robot named Bender, his great, great,great (etc.) nephew Prof. Farnsworth, an alien-crab that sounds remarkably Jewish, Dr. Zoidberg, the list of imaginative characters and plot situations just doesn't stop! The humor is just awesome. I have never sat through Futurama once without laughing until I cried about something. I find it incredible that one could hold such disdain for the comedy. It really is so entertaining. But to each his own, I say.

Fry: Wait you're the only friend I have... Bender: You really want a robot for a friend? Fry: Yeah ever since I was six. Bender: Well, ok but I don't want people thinking we're robosexuals, so if anyone asks, you're my debugger.

Leela: Hey, he stole my ring! Bender: Sorry. Well, that solves the mystery of the missing ring. This calls for a drink.

Farnsworth: Let me show you around. That's my lab table and this is my work-stool. And over there is my intergalactic spaceship. And here's where I keep assorted lengths of wire. Fry: Whoa! A real live spaceship! Farnsworth: I designed it myself, let me show you some of the different lengths of wire I used.

Just a sampling of the amusing lines in the show. Thanks all!

Futurama is the whipping boy of modern prime time cartoons. Since it was made by the creator of the Simpsons it was expected to be exactly like it. Futurama had its own brand of comedic flair, which is absolutely hilarious. Bender, Fry, Leela, Hermes, Zoidberg, all of these characters are well thought out and work incredibly well together, on top of the fact that situations and anecdotes from previous episodes are brought up all the time, adding continuity to an already excellent series. I'll admit that I too was among the people crying foul when Futurama first came out, I didn't grow to truly appreciate it until it was put in syndication on adult swim, and more so later as I bought all the episodes on DVD. I don't think the world was ready for what futurama had to offer when it first came out, and everyone should give it another shot through adult swim or by DVD rental. It has solid entertainment value, and a unique comedic style.

4.5 out of 5 stars