Thoughts on 6ACV24 - Cold Warriors - SPOILERS!

[Reply #280 on:]

Welcome to the boooard of tomorrrow, Sandbox! I have enjoyed your posts already

Also I actually thought the Verizon coverage map joke worked; I wasn't expecting it and it wasn't forced at all. I still abhor the Facebook line though because it is overdone I would have much rather enjoyed a generalized social network joke like someone suggested earlier, like, "I already knew that, I'm just updating my status" or "liking this photo of *insert futurama character themed joke* <--I think they missed some creative comedy gold with that last suggestion.

[Reply #281 on:]

or "liking this photo of *insert futurama character themed joke* <--I think they missed some creative comedy gold with that last suggestion.

You know...that would actually be pretty funny. There would be so much potential in that and it would only imply that she is on Facebook (or the future equivalent, if not that). It wouldn't have been as blatent of a pop culture reference and it would add some funny trivia about a character.

[Reply #282 on:]

Or how about...

"I'm just accepting Scruffy's friend request" 

[Reply #283 on:]

"I'm just accepting Scruffy's friend request" 

Yes! Then Fry could've said something like 'You accepted Scruffy's but not mine?!'.

[Reply #284 on:]

Oh man, you guys should be writers! I'm imagining that scene playing out like that right now...yup, pure gold.

Smarty's right, it's the implication that makes it funny. It's much subtler than coming out and using the name as a verb.

[Reply #285 on:]

or "liking this photo of *insert futurama character themed joke* <--I think they missed some creative comedy gold with that last suggestion.

You know...that would actually be pretty funny. There would be so much potential in that and it would only imply that she is on Facebook (or the future equivalent, if not that). It wouldn't have been as blatent of a pop culture reference and it would add some funny trivia about a character.

You know, I think that's what bugs me about it.  Referencing something modern is common in Futurama but it's usually given some futuristic or scifi twist. I didn't mind the "Wikipedia Page" reference in Ghosts in the Machines too bad but when it was every episode it became tedious, and the way it was just thrown in there just got under my skin and took away from the fantasy.

[Reply #286 on:]

Yes...it's when the references lack creativity and seem just to be thrown in there that it becomes frustrating to watch.

[Reply #287 on:]

Re: Spanish Flu... Somewhat misleading. The flu killed more of the young, healthy segment of the population that would have been expected, rather than targeting them.

You should also remember what young healthy males were busy doing in 1918. Many of them were living in squalid trenches and camps, moving around and crossing borders in large crowds. The Great War provided optimal conditions to spread viruses.  They say the Spanish Flu killed more people that World War I, but maybe it wasn't a coincidence they happened at the same time.

Anyway, the professor DID answer how deadly he thought the virus was (which I quoted a couple of pages back).

Leela: How deadly is it?
Professor: It could kill millions, or nobody. I suppose it might even bring a few people back to life! Anything is possible in science!

It's almost the same answer we get every time there's a flu scare, but funnier.

[Reply #288 on:]

Re: Spanish Flu... Somewhat misleading. The flu killed more of the young, healthy segment of the population that would have been expected, rather than targeting them.

You should also remember what young healthy males were busy doing in 1918. Many of them were living in squalid trenches and camps,

Sounds like how I spend most of my weekends.

[Reply #289 on:]

8/10

OVerall really good episode, i really liked this one , felt like the original Futurama episodes of series 1/2 run.. it adresses more Fry's old life in the past and the main series thing that its a 20th century guy living all the sudden in the Future (in this case disseases from our time that might be letal much in the future)  , Fry doesnt look dumb and genuily saves the day , Zap Branigan being Zap Braningan.. and a nice surprising turn in Fry's dad background.. (a bit stereotypical but after so much bashing about communist and warfare conduict.. and a so much disfunctional family as a whole it was nice see someone treating a child Fry like a beloved son for once)

[Reply #290 on:]

I re-watched this episode again this morning. I found myself fast-forwarding through all the flashbacks, which I know that a lot of PEELers on this thread enjoyed. Really, I just cannot stand Fry's dad. It occurred to me during this viewing how much of an abusive jerk he is, and I simply found the ending 1) unbelievable and 2) pretty off-putting because of cruelly he treats Fry.

Yeah yeah, it's a cartoon, and I understand that we're not meant to certain things literally or too seriously. But, the relationship didn't play out as comedy, so I couldn't help but be intensely averse to Fry's dad. That sort of dampened the whole episode for me.

[Reply #291 on:]

I have said this before concerning TV characters: disliking a character as a "real person" is not the same as disliking the character. I hate Sauron's guts to what he did against the people of Middle-earth, but I still find him to be a cool character. Same goes with Fry's dad - he's an obnoxious jerk of a father, but he's still a good character. The ending of Cold Warriors made us see a little bit of heart that explained away his behaviour to a certain degree - maybe not enough to start liking him (I still hate him for what he did against Fry) - but enough to make us understand where he's coming from. Much like, say, Darth Vader at the end of The Return of the Jedi - we may not respect the billions of lives he has slaughtered, but we understand where he's coming from and - to a certain degree - we can understand why he did what he did.

[Reply #292 on:]

I have said this before concerning TV characters: disliking a character as a "real person" is not the same as disliking the character. I

Aki, I appreciate what you're saying about how fictional characters should be differentiated from "real people" when we evaluate them. But, that line of thinking just doesn't do it for me. The character of Fry's dad was fleshed out and well-developed in this ep, but emotionally, I really, really dislike him. Therefore, while he doesn't completely ruin the ep for me, he is like a rainy cloud above it all.

On this subject, I like the article "What Makes Characters Sympathetic and Unsympathetic," which mentions this:

"Why do we like some characters who do horrible things and dislike the heck out of some goody two shoes?

In this agent's opinion, it all comes down to the concept of redeemability."

(http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2011/07/what-makes-characters-sympathetic-and.html)

Me personally, I would have happily accepted Fry's dad if he had somehow redeemed himself; I think that is what the writers intended with the ending, when he admits to Fry why he treats him the way he does, but that felt forced, and it seemed too little too late. I would have liked it a lot better if his dad actually apologized to Fry for being such an a-hole to him, and did so with genuine remorse.

Edit: also, if Fry's dad was on the periphery of the plot, like he has been in past eps like "Jurassic Bark," I would scarcely care how jerky he is. But in CW, he plays a major part, and so his harshness just chews up the scenery. For me, it's just too much.

Oh and second edit: I think Anakin totally redeemed himself at the end of Jedi. Excellent example. I mean, as much as he could for murdering countless people using that Dark Side of the Force pinching maneuver.

[Reply #293 on:]

I have troubles seeing how you think Vader redeemed his billions (with a freaking Carl Sagan B) of murders by the ending of Jedi. The ending pulled it off rather excellently - he realized his wrong-doings, but he didn't ever think he redeemed himself, nor did anyone else. There is a difference between realizing a mistake and redeeming it.

Fry's dad did not redeem himself either. Nor did he realize what he did wrong. We were allowed to see behind the curtain the reason of it all, but he himself did not realize it was wrong. He didn't stop treating Fry badly after this.

[Reply #294 on:]

I have troubles seeing how you think Vader redeemed his billions (with a freaking Carl Sagan B) of murders by the ending of Jedi.

So...maybe at the end, he didn't really pay for his sins. I guess nothing he could have done would have paid back that debt to society...er, the galaxy. But in my eyes, be became a lot more sympathetic, when he threw the Emperor down the chute or whatever that cavernous space was, and reached out to Luke and chose to act like a sorrowful and regretful father, instead of a murderous villain. And he did save Luke's life.

I think Vader is a really cool character. He's evil (up to the very end), but he doesn't bother me like Fry's dad does. Maybe because I am much more emotionally invested in Futurama than I am in the Star Wars movies.

[Reply #295 on:]

I agree with Aki. Fry's dad is an excellently written character. That doesn't make him a likable person. But I think it would be totally out of his character for him to give fry an all-out apology. He's a cold warrior Red-hatin' type of guy and Fry's lucky to get that much emotion out of him. I think Yancy was particularly well-written here and though initially I thought even that ending was hard to believe, I am more supportive of it now.

[Reply #296 on:]

I'm with sparkybarky, at least to some extent, on this one.

A) All the insults and put-downs seem out of character with what I remember of Fry's father, but more importantly…

B) The admission at the end, which wasn't actually at the end, seems really at odds with all the insults and put-downs because it completely undoes any beneficial effect they might have had. They won't have any toughening/character building power once you know they're not genuine. Its like prescribing a patient a placebo then telling them.

[Reply #297 on:]

I have to agree with Sparky.  While it was nice that he got redeemed at the end of the episode, most of the things he did to Fry that episode were just cruel for the sake of being cruel. "Give up Fry, you're a failure, dont even bother trying" ect.    

However my hatred in that episode was reserved for that Josh Gedgee character.  That guy was probably the biggest asshole in the show. Ever.  He knows he's going to win, and Fry doesn't have a chance, but he still steals Fry's idea out of nothing more then spite.  I really hope something HORRIBLE happened to him, and he died miserable and alone.  

I would say he's one of the series greatest Karma Houndinis, along with:
Fishy Joe = Continued to sell Popplers even when he knew they were sentient, asking: "I'm rich, whose gonna stop me?"  I was so disappointed when Ndnd didn't get snackish and eat him, after her husband ate the other douchebag in that episode.

And Michelle.  That cow can go shove a cactus up her c**t.

[Reply #298 on:]

Her coat?

[Reply #299 on:]

Why does it say I already voted for this O.o
Anywho, this wasn't an overly funny episode or anything, but I definitely liked it. Young Fry reminded me a lot of young Homer..
I will give it 8.5/10

[Reply #300 on:]

i hated it.....at 1st, but i didn't get the jokes, im always open 2 second opinions, so then i watched it agen piked up 60% of the jokes i didn't get and loved it 9/10 classic

[Reply #301 on:]

I'm glad you gave it a second viewing before voting in the poll then. Truly one of the highlights of 6B, in fact not just of 6B, but of the entire Season 6 production run!...

[Reply #302 on:]

The ending gets me the more I think about it, and I've only seen it once.

[Reply #303 on:]

I'm glad you gave it a second viewing before voting in the poll then. Truly one of the highlights of 6B, in fact not just of 6B, but of the entire Season 6 production run!...

There was a lot of hidden humor in it. I'm surprised that I didn't get it, because I usually get every joke. The Obama joke was pretty funny, but I didn't get it at first.

[Reply #304 on:]

The Facebook reference would have been fine is they changed it to the future variant... I mean Twitcher didn't bother me at all, but Facebook? Coudln't it be something like Mombook? I dunno, ANYTHING but Facebook...

[Reply #305 on:]

I wouldn't be surprised if Facebook still exists in 1,000 years.

Except, by then, it'll be a means of plugging everyone's brain directly into the internet, creating a new form of the human race with a hive-mind. Like the Borg from Star Trek.

[Reply #306 on:]

I don't care really. Like most pop culture references on the show, it was just a throwaway gag. It's only really stuff the like the Susan Boyle thing that annoys me. 

[Reply #307 on:]

I wouldn't be surprised if Facebook still exists in 1,000 years.

Except, by then, it'll be a means of plugging everyone's brain directly into the internet, creating a new form of the human race with a hive-mind. Like the Borg from Star Trek.

Uh, that sounds exactly like the internet in the year 300!

[Reply #308 on:]

I think you're missing a 0 there.

But yeah, they're half-way there in Futurama although I suppose Attack of the Killer App took them to those sorts of places.

[Reply #309 on:]

The Facebook joke was actually funny, so I can let it slide.

I gave this a 9/10. I should rewatch it. I feel like it's not really that great.

[Reply #310 on:]

The Facebook joke was pretty funny. In fact, since it was a one-liner, it would have been hard to understand if they made up a new site name without previously establishing it. I'm sure they would have created a new name for it if it was involved in any plot points.

[Reply #311 on:]

The Facebook reference would have been fine is they changed it to the future variant... I mean Twitcher didn't bother me at all, but Facebook? Coudln't it be something like Mombook? I dunno, ANYTHING but Facebook...

Totally agree, that would have given the already familiar to our present a futuristic spin, thus not grounding it in our era, yet still making it relatable to us. It would have been more creative to make a variant name, and more in keeping with the shows merits...

Of course, I'd have probably been happier without the Facebook reference at all, instead having something else completely different there, but your suggestion would have at least been much better and more acceptable...

[Reply #312 on:]

 I can let facebook slide.   For one off references like that, it works.   Besides we all know that two faced money grubber manboy is probably alive and well in a cyborg body.  He's probably just sold Leela's finger print, iris scan and colonic map to an insurance company on Venus.

[Reply #313 on:]

When the comics can do better than the show, something is wrong.

(Bender goes into the Internet and then onto "Momtunes" in "Do You Want Fry with That?"....)

[Reply #314 on:]

But that isn't funny whereas the Facebook joke was.

[Reply #315 on:]

The Facebook reference would have been fine is they changed it to the future variant... I mean Twitcher didn't bother me at all, but Facebook? Coudln't it be something like Mombook? I dunno, ANYTHING but Facebook...

Or Spacebook. After all, they have space pirates and space cows.

[Reply #316 on:]

Spacebook would actually be a really good substitute. Wow.

[Reply #317 on:]

Bump.

I watched this again the other night and was reminded of something:


Professor Farnsworth: Eh, now, now. Let's not all panic at once. We'll have to take shifts. Hermes, you'll take the first six hours. *points to Hermes*

Hermes: Very well. *clears throat and screams*

Professor Farnsworth: Louder! LOUDER! Crybaby.


This actually kind of makes me grimace. Farnsworth seems so sadistic here: pushing another person to experience more and more pain, then ridiculing him for that. I know it's meant to be innocuous and humorous, but it really stands out to me.

[Reply #318 on:]

It makes me grimace because it's such a forced joke that's been done before.

[Reply #319 on:]

So, I just saw this and I think its the best episode post cancellation. It had a better vibe than the other episodes, things flowed better, and it had a good story. It loses points for mentioning facebook though, ugh.

9/10