Futurama is back Baby!
The eleventh season of futurama is coming to Hulu later this month. We got the chance to review it early, and we’re happy to talk about the first six episodes of the show.
As always, our reviews break down the series by story, acting, and overall. So without further ado bite my shiny metal ass… I mean, let’s jump into it.
Story 8.5/10
Of the six episodes, there isn’t an overall story arc for the show, it is an episode by episode based experience. There are always long-term effects that can be brought back and talked about episodes. For the most part, though, it’s not a continual story. That being said of the six episodes we were given to review, three of them feature heavy easter eggs and references to prior seasons, episodes, and storylines.
There are deep cuts into the topics of AI writing, parodies of Dune, and playing with the dynamics of time travel, which has always been a fun venue for the series.
At the end of the day, the stories feel very much like Futurama, with a little twinge that something is off. Which might be based on the fact that every episode is basically a love story to a prior episode.
At the end of the day I think the world is still a better place with more Futurama and i’m glad that Hulu brought the show back.
Acting 10/10
With shows like this, they lean more on the skill of voice actors to capture the 2D characters and turn them into the core of their stories.
The entire cast is back reprising their rolls and characters throughout the new season, but I have to talk about the issue of Bender. Initially in the very beginning Bender’s voice actor, John DiMaggio, was not going to be coming back, as the actor wanted to be paid a specific scale, and Hulu was not willing to pay it.
This resulted in a uproar on the internet. Stating that they can’t recast Bender. It gained such a following that eventually it forced Hulu to roll back their position.
I am glad that John DiMaggio’s contract dispute resolved, as I couldn’t imagine this show, having seen the first six episodes, with a different voice portraying Bender. There’s something specific about the level of snark and attitude of John DiMaggio and his performance, that would force us to have to spend at least the first few episodes getting used to the concept of a new voice actor. This would hurt the revival of the series since it’s been so long since we’ve engaged with them.
While shows like Solar Opposites are more recent in Hulu’s catalog, the idea of Korvo’s voice changing from Justin Roiland to _ isn’t as monumental because we have been actively engaging with the characters in their backstories for the last three years. You are not being forced to remember the style and reunite with these characters after a large absence.
As for the rest of the characters, Billy West (Fry), Katey Sagal (Leela), Phil LaMarr (Hermes), and Lauren Tom (Amy) do a very great job getting right back into the swinging of things. Their characters are exactly the way they were before and mannerisms, style, and the quality have not declined. You also have to give it up to Billy West for his performance of Fry and many more.
Overall 9/10
The series feels a little bit like a mixture between fan service and fan fiction, but the bones, energy, and voices of the original series are all there to back it up. If you are a fan of Futurama, then you will love this new season. So get yourself some Bachelor Chow brand Bachelor Paste, pull up your Binge-o-Lounger recliner and binge all ten episodes.
Conner’s Final Thoughts
The season does a really good job, bot only poking fun and harassing their new overlords of Hulu, as Matt Groening love to do to Fox back in the day, but also to poke fun at their situation. Specifically with regard to having been canceled so many times. The first episode was dedicated to Calculatron’s All My Circuits, which stands in for the shows own struggles and frustration for having been cancelled. Its clever and very funny.
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