With the Futurama premiere only 9 hours away, I’m literally happy with joy that my favorite cartoon is back on the air. Futurama, the show that watches back, is returning to television with brand-spanking new episodes for Comedy Central. And actual episodes, not made-for-DVD movies split up into pieces.
Much like Fry’s dog Seymour, Futurama is getting another shot at life. Matt Groening’s Simpson’s follow-up originally aired on Fox, but was canceled in 2003 after 4 seasons. After cancellation, the show went on to become a cult hit, due to frequent late-night airings on Adult Swim. Comedy Central obtained the rights to the show in 2008, and commissioned 4 new made-for-DVD films. The success of these films led Comedy Central to commission a full season’s worth of episodes for the series, bringing back many of the original writers, and after some deliberation, the entire original cast.
While I don’t think the DVD films lived up to the heights of the original TV show (except for maybe Bender’s Big Score, and parts of The Beast With A Billion Backs) I’m excited to see what the crew can do when they’re back with the classic half-hour format. Futurama, when it’s at its best, has some of the funniest, smartest, and even most touching writing on television, with jokes about the Observer effect and BASIC and episodes like ‘Jurassic Bark’ (if anyone tells you they didn’t cry while watching that, they’re lying.)
Odds are, if this isn’t your first time on the internet, you know about Futurama. And if this is your first time on the internet, howdy! Keep your head down and watch out for porn. If you’re new to the show for whatever reason, this is the perfect time to jump in and figure out why people are always saying WINDMILLS DO NOT WORK THAT WAY and what the hell the Hypnotoad is.
If you can’t wait any longer to get a glimpse at Fry, Leela, and Bender (and Zoidberg!), here’s the first 90 seconds of the Futurama premiere. Catch the whole episode tonight at 10 EST on Comedy Central
