Continuing on my revamped and retooled list of all time favorites, we come to the first animated series on my list… It’s number eight and it’s ‘Futurama’.
Sure, ‘The Simpsons’ opened the door for ‘Futurama’ but it’s a completely different series for the geek set in the world. It’s the kind of geek that appeals to the science-fiction types and those slightly-rounded with pop culture. It’s like ‘The Big Bang Theory’ but actually good and well-crafted. There are references taken from all kinds of geek culture. From sodas to soap operas, just about everything is under the comedic microscope in order to mine the comedy gold that’s gleams in every episode.
And let me be up front… I didn’t like this series from the start. It didn’t grab me right off. And I managed to get hooked during the second season and had to go back and get caught up.
I’m glad I did! Something special within the series could have been spoiled. There’s an unexpected story arc with unexpected time line possibilities throughout the series.
I can’t exactly divulge more than that because I don’t like to giveaway spoilers of any kind.
‘Futurama’ centers around Phillip J. Fry who was accidentally locked into a cryogenic chamber and was awakened in the year 3000. The world has changed, of course, but he has no real problems adapting to his new life with one of his offspring Professor Farnsworth (old as hell). There’s also Leela (cyclops), Bender (a robot that drinks copious amounts of alcohol, smokes cigars, and has a penchant for stealing and schemes), Hermes (Jamaican pencil pusher and world class limbo dancer), Amy (resident slut with little intelligence), and Dr. Zoidberg (a crustacean alien species).
‘Futurama’ manages to keep me coming back again and again. It’s available on Netflix right now and I keep it in my rotation. I save it for when Jamie goes into her nightly “regimen” of make-up removal, teeth brushing, and slathering of skin products. I’m hoping that something beautiful will catch her eyes and ears to make her a lifelong fan such as myself. Although I feel that she has an appreciation (she laughs), she cannot get past the animation part of the series. She associates the word “animated” with television for children.
After enduring two childhoods with Spongebob Squarepants, I can understand why she also associates the word “animated” with something she describes as loudly obnoxious. And Spongebob is definitely a loud show. So I can’t fault her for indifference towards the series as long as she just doesn’t start using ‘Futurama’ as a pacifier to get me out of her hair.
The bottom line with ‘Futurama’ is simply this… It’s a well-crafted series that skewers and celebrates extreme geek culture. And one episode has more genuine laughs than a full season of the tripe known as ‘The Big Bang Theory’.
Unfortunately, many of the fans of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ would be lost through most of ‘Futurama’.
Why do I say that?
The fans of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ find those characters geeky and awkward. They’re easy to make fun of and laugh at without knowing anything about geek culture. ‘Futurama’ pulls you along for the ride. Instead of presenting viewers with a steady diet of bad joke upon bad joke, ‘Futurama’ is rapid-fire comedy that requires you to bring your brain along. It’s not a passive series. ‘Futurama’ possesses all kinds of geek trivia that has accumulated over the decades. There are references from all kinds of pop culture scattered about. And it’s beautiful in often unexpected ways.
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