Futurama Series Finale - Page 2

Imran Siddiqui · August 11, 2003, 16:11

SU: The X-Files was basically a cult show in the first years of its existance, as was Seinfeld. I fail to see how a 'cult' show would not break out of that under any circumstances, seeing how Fox torpedoed each show.

Harry Seldon · August 11, 2003, 16:49

You don't start a show from the middle, SU. If they would have done that for the X-Files then it would have never taken off at all. Start from episode one and work forward and it would have been cancelled before midseason.

Pretender was alright for an NBC show but I thought John Doe was more intense.

If I had any show to pull back it would be Millenium. That show was awe inspiring when CC took time from the X-Files to do it right. The X-File/Four Horseman bullshit was so lame it made me cry. I want a real ending, damnit!

OT: Does anyone have the intro song to Millineum? I can't find it anywhere.

St Leo · August 11, 2003, 18:43

Quote:

Originally posted by Static Universe
I hate to see Futurama go, but let's face facts here: that show was hyped to hell and back when it first came out and it still never broke out. It was never going to develop more than a cult following.

Did you miss the bit where football games prevented anyone from actually seeing it most of the time?

Anyways, the episode was a great finale. I downloaded it from IRC the day before broadcast, watched that twice, and then watched the Fox version with commercial breaks added on tv for the complete experience.

I loved the mocking of operatic conventions, the role of HedonismBot (first introduced in Crimes of the Hot?), and the Buggalo leg running gag.

MattH · August 11, 2003, 21:24

****, how could I have missed that?

Static Universe · August 12, 2003, 16:17

Quote:

Originally posted by St Leo

I loved the mocking of operatic conventions, the role of HedonismBot (first introduced in Crimes of the Hot?), and the Buggalo leg running gag.

I think this pretty much sums up why the show never broke out with general audiences.

monolith94 · August 12, 2003, 16:23

Dude, HedonismBot is a character anyone can relate to!!!

Static Universe · August 12, 2003, 16:42

Quote:

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
SU: The X-Files was basically a cult show in the first years of its existance, as was Seinfeld. I fail to see how a 'cult' show would not break out of that under any circumstances, seeing how Fox torpedoed each show.

Yes, but they weren't essentially one note shows like Futurama or the Family Guy.

Granted, these are both cartoons, but unlike the Simpsons where they left a lot of wiggle room for character development and plot, once you understood that Bender was a drunk, or the dog was a drunk or Peter was going to do something wacky or there would be a hovering head of a celebrity who would say something wacky, you've pretty much figured out every episode Futurama and Family Guy.

The problem with these shows wasn't that people didn't watch them and like them when they first came out, because they did. The problem is people tuned out of the re-runs and never came back because for general audiences it ceased to be funny after a while. And both these shows got plenty of PR up front as well.

John Doe is failing not because it isn't a decent show, but because it isn't pulling in more female viewers, which might have kept it alive long enough for it to catch on. That's the kiss of death for a Fox show on Sundays, which has always been geared equally to men and women, such as the X-Files, Simpsons, Malcolm, Married WIth Children, etc. And due to FOX's heavy commitment to crappy reality TV, there isn't anywhere else to put it.

Firefly was never going to be a success on Fox, because the show should have been put into syndication in the first place. It was a decent show, but not something that was going to pull a primetime audience in, no matter what anybody says. There hasn't been a genuine sci-fi success in prime-time for years, not even ST:TNG was prime time.

Millenium just shot itself in the foot. I think that probably could have broken out big time, but on the other hand it was a pretty dark show, so who knows.

Static Universe · August 12, 2003, 16:45

Quote:

Originally posted by monolith94
Dude, HedonismBot is a character anyone can relate to!!!

But not my Grandma, unfortunately. But she sure can dig on those wacky adventures of Bart and Lisa.

And I'm sure she has no idea who Benjamin Disreali is...

St Leo · August 12, 2003, 17:14

And I'm sure she has no idea who Benjamin Disreali is...

Weren't they classmates?:P

CyberGnu · August 12, 2003, 17:43

Not sure if this adds anything to the discussion, but I don't think Banzai is a FOX show. I saw it on swedish television like two years ago, so they must have bought it from somewhere.

And I had no idea this was the series finale... To bad, I will miss the show. Eh, I missed the last five minutes - how did it end? Did Fry get Leela? (use spoiler tags, please)

Imran Siddiqui · August 12, 2003, 17:57

Quote:

Yes, but they weren't essentially one note shows like Futurama or the Family Guy.

Many people would disagree with your entirely. On Seinfeld, I have heard many say it is simply a one note show about annoying Jewish people. On the X-Files, one note show where the characters really didn't matter too much at all (the show didn't die because Duchovney left, it died because the plots became dumber).

Hell, I've even heard plenty say the Simpsons is a one note show... Homer is the moron father, Bart the mishaving son, Lisa the overachiever, etc... and once you figure that you have everything.

You can say anything is a 'one-note' show if you really wanted to.

GePap · August 12, 2003, 18:03

Futurama was not a one note show!

Hey Imran, for a guy who loves the lost city of Atlanta, you sure love them Family Guy Yankess to much.

Imran Siddiqui · August 12, 2003, 18:07

So I see you saw the Futurama last night on Cartoon Network as well, eh?

St Leo · August 12, 2003, 18:24

And I had no idea this was the series finale... To bad, I will miss the show. Eh, I missed the last five minutes - how did it end? Did Fry get Leela? (use spoiler tags, please)

Spoiler:

CyberGnu · August 12, 2003, 21:10

thanks!

Whaleboy · August 12, 2003, 21:13

Who remembers God, the Devil and Bob?

St Leo · August 13, 2003, 01:49

I remember the Mr. Hell Show. Is that good enough?

Harry Seldon · August 13, 2003, 08:32

I try to forget bad shows.

laurentius · August 13, 2003, 08:55

What network cancelled Babylon5?

Starchild · August 13, 2003, 09:08

Bring back Brimestone dammit! I want to see him kill the other 100 demons!

Harry Seldon · August 13, 2003, 09:14

I thought Babylon5 was a syndicated show. It came on an independant station here in Birmingham.

DinoDoc · August 13, 2003, 09:32

Quote:

Originally posted by Starchild
Bring back Brimestone dammit! I want to see him kill the other 100 demons!

Harry Seldon · August 13, 2003, 11:12

I remember Brimstone coming out but it didn't look very good. Some of my friends really liked it. Anyone ever watch Nowhere Man?

Static Universe · August 13, 2003, 16:46

Quote:

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Quote:

Yes, but they weren't essentially one note shows like Futurama or the Family Guy.

Many people would disagree with your entirely. On Seinfeld, I have heard many say it is simply a one note show about annoying Jewish people. On the X-Files, one note show where the characters really didn't matter too much at all (the show didn't die because Duchovney left, it died because the plots became dumber).

Hell, I've even heard plenty say the Simpsons is a one note show... Homer is the moron father, Bart the mishaving son, Lisa the overachiever, etc... and once you figure that you have everything.

You can say anything is a 'one-note' show if you really wanted to.

True, but I think the difference between a show that breaks out and one that dies out is in how it deals with the extended cast.

For example, on the Simpsons there were highly developed running characters besides the main family from the very begining, who were as interesting in their own way as the main "stars". They could do stories with Moe babysitting Maggie, Maggie shooting Mr. Burns, etc, etc.

On the Family Guy, every episode involved Stewie building a weapon, trying to kill the mom, and carrying out his "master plan". Sure it was funny, but it gets old after a while. And eventually you've done all you can do with the Stewie character.

Futurama had the same problem. The characters were funny but all the shows seemed to be variations on the same theme. I mean how many shows involved Bender leaving in a huff, getting lost, getting drunk then lost, etc. All the secondary characters were just disposable foils for the main players.

On FG, Peter's funny gay boss never became more than Peter's funny gay boss, while the Simpsons' Smithers became a very complex character in his own right.

The Simpsons was able to maintain an illusion of change by effectively managing the secondary characters. Maude Flanders can get killed, Apu can get married and have children, the Millhouse family can go through a divorce, etc.

Even though Bart never gets out of the 4th grade, the environment does go through change around him. On the Family Guy and Futurama, they never effectively built extended families and the shows never broke despite good word of mouth and PR.

There was nothing beyond the fact that they were both funny to keep people coming back, but the problem was they were always funny in exactly the same way.

X-Files and Sienfeld also had well developed secondary casts, and the more they played into that strength the more people tuned into the shows.

John Doe is another show that I think is good, but lacks the character interaction that The Pretender had. Both are about equal in terms of plot and acting, but John Doe lacks that something extra that kept the Pretender on for 4-5 seasons.

monolith94 · August 13, 2003, 17:22

Futurama had some good secondary characters, devil bot, kif, and that commander guy, but not enough that repeated, I'll give you that.

Imran Siddiqui · August 13, 2003, 17:42

Quote:

On the Family Guy and Futurama, they never effectively built extended families and the shows never broke despite good word of mouth and PR.

The problem with this analysis is that the Simpsons had FOURTEEN Seasons to develop these secondary characters. I think after Season 3 you don't have any secondary 'character development'. That is exactly when Futurama and Family Guy got canned.

They were jerked around the schedule and pre-empted often leading to their cancelation. I'm sure that if they got the same chance as the Simpsons did, you'd see this rich backstory. One can easily see their popularity by the amount of ratings that Cartoon Network is getting (more people from 18-32 key demographic watch Futurama and Family Guy, which are finally on a consistant night, than they do Leno OR Letterman!!).