Futurama premiered in 1999, when the world was obsessed with Y2K. But the series was able to move beyond that one-joke premise and explore a multitude of human situations, scientific issues and plain old silliness. I present you with the top 10 Futurama episodes that stood out for me. These episodes were picked because of their heartfelt depth or outstanding comedy.
1. "Crimes of the Hot"
Twentieth Century Fox
Airdate: November 10, 2002 As Earth is unable to counter its rising temperature through the usual method (dropping a giant ice cube into the ocean), Al Gore leads an emergency conference in Kyoto, Japan, where Professor Farnsworth claims responsibility for the crisis. Seems he made a mistake when he made his robot prototype and the only solution is to destroy all robots, including Bender. But the beauty of the episode is trifold: 1) Praised Al Gore for his attention to Global Warming way before Nobel; 2) Parodied huge gatherings like Woodstock or Lollapalooza, and 3) Aired lots of robot flatulence.
2. "Fry & the Slurm Factory"
Twentieth Century Fox
Airdate: November 14, 1999. This episode parodies the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, but ratchets up the ick factor. Fry wins a trip to visit the Slurm factory, where the highly-addictive canned drink is made. He inadvertently discovers the source for Slurm is not a vat of juice and sugar, but the tail end of a giant slug-like creature. Even as he is gagging and disgusted by the sight, he still can't stop drinking Slurm! (I, myself, was totally grossed out by this episode, until my husband pointed out where milk comes from. Touché.)
3. "Xmas Story"
Twentieth Century Fox
Airdate: December 19, 1999. Fry learns just how much Christmas has changed in the year 3000 when he discovers Santa Claus is now an eight-foot robot who terrorizes people instead of distributing gifts. Futurama is adept at turning almost anything on its head, and in this episode, that includes Christmas. How funny is it to watch folks huddling in the dark behind locked doors, afraid of Santa?
4. "Love's Labour's Lost In Space"
Twentieth Century Fox
Airdate: April 13, 1999. In this episode, we first meet Capt. Zapp Brannigan, self-proclaimed ladies' man. He helps our Planet Express crew rescue a globeful of animals before the planet's collapses. Meanwhile, Leela becomes his object of affection. The joys of this episode include being introduced to Zapp's arrogance, his short skirt and his long-suffering assistant Kif.
5. "I, Roommate"
Airdate: April 6, 1999. Professor Farnsworth kicks out Fry when his messy habits are too much for the Planet Express office. But Fry learns living with a robot isn't comfortable until he finds Bender's "closet." Though this episode is an animated story about a robot and a time-traveling kid, who can't relate to the roomie issues that arise? Plus, the reveal of the closet that was there all along is priceless.
6. "Jurassic Bark"
November 17, 2002. Fry and Bender come upon the pizzeria Fry worked for in the 20th Century where they find Fry's dog, Seymour, petrified for all time. When Fry tries to clone Seymour, Bender gets jealous. Here, again, is an episode that explores the ups and downs of friendship. "Jurassic Bark" also becomes a touching tribute to growing up and growing apart, when we learn the full story behind Seymour's petrification.
7. "Kif Gets Knocked Up A Notch"
Airdate: January 12, 2003. Amy's romance with Kif Kroker takes a twist when Kif gets pregnant. This episode is not only funny, but poignant and sweet. Amy questions her commitment. Her parents disparage Kif. Kif returns to his home planet to birth their love child. "Notch" not only mixes humor and heartfelt emotion, but also moves the continuity of the series forward.
8. "Leela's Homeworld"
Airdate: February 7, 2002. After Leela visits the orphaniarium where she grew up, Fry and the gang discover Leela does not have the origin she thought. Turns out she's a mutant, not an alien. Despite the sewage, the varying number of eyes and weird creatures underground, most of us can relate to the loss or recovery of family. We can also relate to Leela's crisis of identity and her return to being sure of herself.
9. "The Luck of the Fryrish"
Airdate: March 2, 2003. This episode is clever, funny and ultimately touching. Fry suffers a string of bad luck and decides to find his lucky 7-leaf clover by digging through his former home in Old New York. His journey takes him back to memories of his older brother, Yancy, and new discoveries of his brother, including finding out that Yancy didn't take everything from Fry, but lovingly dedicated it all to him.
10. "Where No Fan Has Gone Before"
Airdate: April 21, 2002. My list would not be complete without this parody of Star Trek. After Fry discovers that Star Trek was banned, he takes the team to Omega 3 where he challenges the ultimate Trekkie to a trivia duel in order to retrieve the banished videos. The beauty of this episode is that the original Star Trek cast members lend their voices to their characters (except for DeForest Kelley, who had died, and James Doohan, who refused). Every typical Trek scene is lampooned, including Capt. Kirk finding a reason to take off his shirt.
