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| Futurama episode | |
| "Anthology of Interest II" | |
 Bender being turned into a human. I, Meatbag |
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|---|---|
| Episode no. | 50 |
| Prod. code | 3ACV18 |
| Airdate | January 6, 2002 |
| Writer(s) | I, Meatbag: Lewis Morton Raiders of the Lost Arcade: David X. Cohen Wizzin': Jason Gorbett Scott Kirby |
| Director | Bret Haaland |
| Opening subtitle | Hey TiVo! Suggest this! |
| Opening cartoon | Unknown |
| Season 3 January 2001 – December 2002 |
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| List of all Futurama episodes... | |
"Anthology of Interest II" is the eighteenth episode of the third season of Futurama. It originally aired in North America on January 6, 2002. This episode, as well as the earlier "Anthology of Interest I", serves to showcase three out-of-canon "imaginary" stories, in a manner similar to the "Treehouse of Horror" episodes (broadcast each Halloween) of Matt Groening's other animated series The Simpsons.
Contents |
Plot
Professor Farnsworth hauls out his What-If Machine again, claiming that he's finished "fine-tuning" it (striking it repeatedly with a hammer), and the crew takes a look at three alternate realities.
I, Meatbag
Bender asks what would happen if he were human. The simulation opens with Professor Farnsworth announcing that he has invented a process of reverse fossilization, which can turn robots into organic life-forms. He uses his reverse fossilization machine on Bender, who is transformed into a human.
After a short period of adaptation, Bender's self-control is overwhelmed by his new senses of taste, touch and emotional responses, and goes on a sensory input binge. A week later, at the Nobel Prize judging, the Professor presents Bender who has become a thousand-pound blob. The committee initially condemns Farnsworth, but Bender begs them to consider his new lifestyle. The open-minded scientists spend the night in a state of wild hedonism. Just before dawn, the committee awards Bender with the Nobel Prize in Chemistry but discover that Bender died shortly after the party started with a cholesterol level of 40 pounds.
Raiders of the Lost Arcade
Fry asks to see a world that is more like a video game. As the simulation starts, President of Earth Richard Nixon is preparing to sign a treaty with Ambassador Kong of planet Nintendu 64. Ambassador Kong attacks Nixon, and a state of war erupts.
Due to his extensive knowledge of video games, Fry is brought to the Milatari headquarters and introduced to General Colin Pac-Man. Before Fry can impart his wisdom to the military, the Nintendians launch an attack on Washington, DC, and they are forced into the escape tunnels. They emerge outside the Planet Express building, where the Nintendian invaders, led by Lrrr, are blasting New New York. Fry situates himself at the controls of a rolling Anti-aircraft artillery platform, and begins destroying the alien ships in a manner similar to Space Invaders. Fry is unable to destroy the final ship, which lands nearby and the invaders emerge. They demand "A million allowances worth of quarters" with which to do their laundry, but the Earthlings refuse. Fortunately, a compromise is reached, with the Nintendians throwing their laundry in with Earth's.
Wizzin'
The last person to ask a what if question is Leela, who wants to see her true home. When the Professor pulls the lever on the What-if Machine, he hits her on the head, and she falls to the floor unconscious.
She wakes up at the helm of the Planet Express Ship, which is caught in a tornado. Outside, Scruffy can be seen flying on a broom amidst the debris. It crash-lands in a Technicolor wonderland. Scruffy, the "Man-Witch," was crushed under the ship, and Leela steals his ruby boots. Amy, the Cute Witch of the North, tells her that she should seek out the Professor, who lives in the Emerald Laboratory down Martin Luther King Boulevard, which is constructed from yellow brick (she is then crushed to death when Leela opens the steps on the ramp after she unwittingly insults her shoe size).
While traveling, she meets Fry (the Scarecrow), Bender (the Tin Woodman) and Zoidberg (the "other guy, courage, not enough of it, need some from whatshisname"). Mom, the Wicked Witch, sends her winged monkeys, Walt, Larry, and Igner, to kidnap Leela and her friends but Zoidberg was forced to take a cab as there was only room for three. Mom explains she always wanted a daughter, and offers to take Leela in. Leela accepts, and as part of a celebration, Bender uncorks a bottle of champagne, which spills over Mom's waist, causing her to melt.
Leela and company make their way to the Emerald Laboratory and meet the Professor, who has a giant head while hiding the rest of his body behind a curtain. Zoidberg, who wants courage, is instead given a gun. Bender, who steals the gun and demands money, instead gets "professor land fun bucks." Fry asks for nothing, since everyone else assumes he wants a brain, to which he has taken offense. The Professor tells Leela that she can go home by clicking her ruby boots together and wishing to go home, but Leela wishes to be a witch at the last moment. She then dons witch clothes and turns the Professor, Fry and Bender into frogs. Her reign of terror is cut short by Zoidberg, who has encountered a problem with the Emerald Laboratory's upstairs toilet, and dumps an entire bucket of water on her.
As she melts in the dream world, she wakes up back in the Planet Express building (incidentally, Bender dumped a bucket of water over her face) just before the Professor has an opportunity to dissect her and harvest her organs.
Cultural references
I, Meatbag
The title of this segment is a reference to Isaac Asimov's book I, Robot (with the word "Meatbag", which Bender uses to insult humans, meant to be an opposite to "Robot"), although Anthology Of Interest II is the 2nd Futurama episode to parody the title of this book, with the first episode being I, Roommate. The clothing that Bender wears once human is meant to represent Homer Simpson's clothing, to give a 31st century interpretation of Simpsons character. Once Bender is found to be dead, Farnsworth says "Good Night, sweet prince," as Horatio said after the death of Hamlet in Shakespeare's Hamlet. It is also said to Bender by Fry, when he dies in the episode Anthology of Interest I after a fight with Zoidberg. The song segment that is used on numerous occasions in I, Meatbag is "Conga" by the Miami Sound Machine.
Bender's character after becoming a human nearly mimicks that of Sharik from Mikhail Bulgakov's science-fiction novel Heart of a Dog, in which a stray dog is transformed into a human-being after a series of operations.
Raiders of the Lost Arcade
The "Raiders of the Lost Arcade" segment is a "nonstop barrage of game references" with jokes and allusions referencing a wide array of classic video games.1 The title is a reference to the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark. "Ambassador Kong" is a reference to the arcade game Donkey Kong, as well as Italy's Ambassador to the U.N. being Mario. The maze which the characters run through is an homage to both Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man.1 Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man both appear in the episode (Pac-Man as General Colin Pacman, and Ms. Pac-Man as his wife/widow). Zoidberg adds to this when he coughs up certain objects which are in the Pac-Man Mazes. The Nintendians' fleet comprises Space Invaders ships, which move in the same pattern as those in the original video game.1 The planet Nintendu 64 is a reference to the game console Nintendo 64. When the Milatari HQ is first shown, the green tank from Battlezone is shown driving past.1 When inside Milatari HQ, a soldier guides Fry and his friends to the War Room with a door that flashes a message saying "YOU NEED A BLUE KEY", a reference to the mechanic used in many games.citation needed When the last Nintendian ship lands, one of the invading characters can be heard saying All your base are belong to us.
- When Fry is destroying the alien ships his walkman plays the song 'Tom Sawyer' by Rush (band).
Wizzin'
The title of the final segment is a parody of the musical The Wiz, which in turn is based on The Wizard of Oz. Also, Scarecrow Fry comments about them skipping for so long that he needs to take "the wiz". The first thing Leela sees upon exiting the ship is a peacock, whose tail feathers open to form a parody of the famous NBC peacock logo. The Lollipop Guild parody contains characters seen in previous episodes including Dwight Conrad, Cubert Farnsworth, a Neptunian from "A Tale of Two Santas", and a Grunka Lunka and Glurmo from "Fry and the Slurm Factory". The parody goes a little further, as the group parodies the song the Lollipop Guild sings in The Wizard of Oz. Scarecrow Fry tries to scare a crow away by reading an excerpt from the novel Christine by Stephen King with no success. The evil witch dies after becoming wet, just as the witch in The Wizard of Oz did. As she dies she alludes to the bizarre nature of her death and how it's a miracle either she or her Wizard of Oz counterpart managed to survive so long while suffering the aforementioned weakness.
Reception
In 2006 IGN.com ranked this episode as number 12, with "Anthology of Interest I" at number 13, in their list of the "Top 25 Futurama episodes".2 As of March 21st 2008, TV.com has given this episode a 9.1 "Superb" rating.
See also
References
External links
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