Nerd Mentality

Saying Goodbye to a Good Friend

Posted March 2nd 2009 by Matt Coy.

After five seasons, a heartbreaking cancellation, a needed rebirth, and four movies, Futurama is finally over. From what the fans can tell and what the creators have said, the series is officially done. So there's nothing left. No more fan speculation (this didn't stop Harry Potter fans!), no more waiting with bated breath for the next movie, nothing. So where does this leave us? Well, of course; it's time for fan ranting/raving!

I consider myself to be a fan of the series, plain and simple. Maybe I'm not as rabid as other fans, but as a follower of the series since that first episode on March 28, 1999, I've been enjoying pretty much everything the series encompasses, though I definitely divulge in the series' nerd jokes. From Professor Farnsworth's about the quantum finish of the horse race ("Those measurements are useless. You observed them!") to the more not-so-subtle science fiction jokes (remember the "Out of Order" monolith orbiting Jupiter?), I really thought the series had fantastic writing.

As a man for character development and interaction, Futurama was a gold mine for me. Though the cast was smaller than The Simpsons, I felt the main cast had much more depth, which created some actually intriguing and real drama. The episode where Fry gets worms had me teary-eyed by the end when he still tries to play the homophonor. The same thing happened at the last episode of season 5 when Leela wants to see how Fry's story ends.

Better than The Simpsons? It's definitely debatable, but I actually enjoy it more than Groening's earlier work. The Simpsons is definitely better for more recent social satire and commentary, at least when it was in its Golden Age. However, as many fans of the show can attest to, it definitely hasn't been up to par, so in terms of quality "density", so to speak, Futurama is better. It ended when it needed to. Furthermore, as mentioned in the previous paragraph, the characters are deeper. Most of the episodes can be taken by themselves since they had a self-sustaining plot that didn't rely on outside jokes or references to keep the momentum. Knowledge of the nerd world DEFINITELY helped the jokes and enhanced your enjoyment overall, but Futurama just had better plot flow than the Simpsons.

The main thing that stood out for me about Futurama was the intimacy you feel with the cast. They're not much of a family, so they don't have the obvious connection. They're just co-workers. But as the series goes on, you feel the connections and the chemistry between everyone. Plus, it's not forced; the smart writing and good character development keep things real despite one character being a mutant, another an alien crustacean, and another being a crass robot. It just works.

Now, don't get me wrong. The Simpsons is absolutely amazing in its own right. It's smart, funny, and was definitely innovative for its time. It's simply that I enjoyed Futurama a whole lot more. Possibly because of the extreme nerd humor; possibly because of the romantic chemistry between Leela and Fry; possibly because of its social commentary about today's society by looking at it through a 1000 year old lens. I still don't know. It was just extremely enjoyable through and through.

I hate to see it go. I really do. I think that Mr. Groening could do more with the series, even though Bender's Game was pretty crappy. But the time is right. It's better to end in a huge explosion than a faint whimper.

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