There are some shows that make me feel old and Futurama is one of them! I was in my first year of college when this show started and I remember it being such a huge deal! Brought to us by the creator of The Simpsons, Futurama was a show that I loved and then they took it away! But they at least brought it back, but then took it away again, however, it came back for a third time and they took it away once more, but not Hulu has resurrected it for a fourth time!
How to Download Futurama – Your Time-Hopping Guide on How to Watch It
You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
Futurama: A Comedy Journey Through Time and Streaming Services – TV Series Review
Well, I say Hulu, here in the UK, Futurama season 11 or season 8 depending on which way you look at it, is airing on Disney Plus. I have been so excited each time the series has been brought back and that rings true for this latest installment as well which is going to be airing weekly, but before we get to that, let’s take a look at the series in general.
Futurama is about a pizza delivery boy called Phillip J Fry or Fry as he is most commonly known. He is a bit of a loser, but on New Year’s Eve in 1999, Fry accidentally cryogenically freezes himself and wakes up in the year 3000. The show has a fun sci-fi twist to it all which is always something that I have gotten a kick out of.
Meet the Crew of the Good Ship Planet Express
In the future, Fry ends up working as an intergalactic delivery guy for his great nephew, Professor Farnsworth who owns the company Planet Express. Fry’s best friend is a robot called Bender and Bender is probably my favorite of any Matt Groening-created character and probably the most popular Futurama character in general.
A Universe of Characters – Where Humans and Lobsters Collide
We also have Leela who is the one-eyed captain of the Planet Express ship. Fry has the hots for Leela and him trying to have a relationship with her is a major part of the show. I love the chemistry between the two. There is also Dr. Zoidberg, a weird lobster-like guy, Amy, the intern who is from a rich Martian family, and Hermes, the accountant who does all the paperwork.
Star-Studded Jars: Celebrity Cameos in Futurama
Futurama also has a fantastic ensemble cast of side characters, very similar to The Simpsons. The world here is incredibly fleshed out with all kinds of interesting characters. There are way too many to mention, but I always get a kick out of President Nixon and vice president Agnew.
A Rollercoaster of Revivals – The Futurama Comeback Saga
Speaking of which, that brings me to something very fun about Futurama and that is the guest characters. Like The Simpsons, Futurama has many celebrity cameos, but as this is set in the future, these celebrities are heads in a jar! It is a fun way to have current celebrities appear in the show and it works.
Fry’s Streaming Odyssey – A New Beginning
The original run of Futurama ended after just four seasons! It was brought back as four straight-to-DVD movies which would then be split up to air as a new season. When these came out on DVD, I remember it being such a huge deal! I even imported Bender’s Big Score which was the first one as it came out in the USA before it did here in the UK.
A Fresh Start or a Nostalgic Remix?
It then came back again for a further 52 episodes which were split up over multiple seasons. I have to say that the “final” episode, called Meanwhile really did bring the series to a perfect and quite emotional show for a comedy. It was kind of perfect, to be honest with you and I think I was finally content with Futurama being brought to a close.
The Future of Futurama – Revived Once Again?
However, then Hulu said that they were bringing Futurama back once again! I was a little less excited this time as I thought it finally had the perfect send off and it was said that Bender’s voice actor, John DiMaggio would not be returning! Honestly, when that was announced, I was out and had no interest in this new season, but they worked out a deal and DiMaggio would return.
A New Season, A New Adventure
As I write this the latest season which some people are calling Season 8, but on Disney Plus it is referred to as Season 11 has only had a couple of episodes, but I wanted to talk about the new one. The new season of Futurama takes place right after the events of the episode Meanwhile and the timeline has been reset to give us this new season.
Fry’s Streaming Odyssey Continues
Fry is questioning his life and decides he wants to do something great and what he decides to do is stream every TV show that has ever been made. I thought it was a lot of fun how they made fun of streaming and the service Fry used was even called Fulu and it had parodies of many iconic shows that are on various streaming networks.
A Hilarious Twist and Deal with the Devil
Of course, something goes wrong and it ends up with Bender and Leela having to constantly keep making episodes of All My Circuits or Fry will end up pretty much dead! I thought it was so awesome how Calculon was in hell and they had to make a deal with the Robot Devil (one of my favorite characters) to get him out.
A Familiar Voice
The first episode was a lot of fun and had that Futurama charm to it. However, there was just something a little off about Billy West’s voice, he still sounded like Fry, but you could tell he was a bit older than the last time he did it. I am not saying it was bad or anything like that, it is still clearly Fry, but I did notice a difference.
Blast to the Past and Back to the Future – My Love for Futurama
I love Futurama, it is one of my “comfort” shows where if there is nothing to watch and I just want to fire something up to relax with, Futurama is quite often the show I will pick. I have enjoyed each of the returns of the show and it is looking like this latest return is going to fit in very well.
