Top 30 Futurama Episodes

Following recent news that this show is reaching the end, I thought to do another ranking post giving you my top 30 episodes from the show. Now this will consist of episodes from all seasons, except season 5 which is just the 4 feature epics, split into 16 episodes, but don't worry, I will look at those at a later date. I've been a fan of both The Simpsons and Futurama since their beginnings and when I heard that Futurama was being cancelled for possibly the final time, I was really upset. Given that it's not the greatest show out there, it was at the time, a major leap for Matt Groening from the typical family sitcom, to a more sci-fi sitcom. So with those in mind, here's the top 30 episodes that I enjoyed the most (bear in mind that these episodes are just my personal preference, so not everybody's favourite will be on here):

30: A Big Piece of Garbage

Now I know this episode may not be the best out there, but it does give us a very important message. Be Eco friendly and don't throw your garbage everywhere. This episode shows us that, but it also shows how even the smallest amount of waste, can be very dangerous. There are a lot of jokes and humour here and I love this episode, simply because of the message it brings across.

29: The Honking

The scenario used in this episode, has been used in other shows and it's not the most original story. However, if a human transforms to a werewolf under the full moon when a werewolf bites him, do robots get something similar? Well this episode says that they do. But what do they go into? a car. Yes that's right. A car. Its a very funny episode that does well to pay tribute to all known horror films and that is great.

28: The Problem with Popplers

This one, shows how addictive fast food can be. Fry, Leela and Bender arrive on a planet and come across these chicken nugget like things that taste good. When they return to Earth, they try to sell it to the public under the name which Hermes says is the only name that they can use which isn't copyrighted, Popplers. One thing leads to another, and it isn't before war is declared. Its a great episode that just shows us, how addicting a simple and small fast food thing, can be and I love it.

27: Anthology of Interest I and II

Yeah, yeah, there are 2 episodes here and I'm cheating, but its my list, so I don't care what you say. Initially, many of us would think that these episodes would be the Treehouse of Horror in the Futurama universe, but only 2 were made. These episodes ask the question "What If This Happened?" to which Fry, Leela and Bender ask the What If machine a What if question. Bender as a human, life like a video game, Bender being gigantic, Fry never going to the year 3000, the possibilities are endless, but its a shame that only 2 of these were made, but if there were more, it would be great, but oh well. What you see is what you get, as they say.

26: Bender Gets Made/Bendfellas

This one is quite funny. It shows what would happen if Leela was blind and what a robot mafia would be like (which to be honest, kinda reminds me of Fat Tony and his gang, but not for obvious reasons). Its a pretty good episode that gives some character development for Bender who even though, enjoys stealing things, must decide between his friends or his hobby. This also serves as the debut episode for the Robot Mafia and everything about this, despite not being original, works well.

25: Rebirth

This episode was the one that made it officially clear that Futurama is back on prime time TV and while this started the show's short lived broadcast on Comedy Central, its one that everyone wanted to see. Basically, Professor Farnsworth survived a crash of the Planet Express ship and has all the crew get reborn, but has some complications with the rebirth of Fry, Bender and especially Leela. Its a great, funny and emotional episode that I'm sure any fan will love a lot.

24: The Farnsworth Parabox

Another unoriginal episode that works well. Basically, the Planet Express crew (except for Hermes) encounter parallel versions of themselves and must find a way to get back to their own universes before Hermes of the original universe, destroys the box that their universe, is in. Its a great episode that explores the opposite of the characters we know and love (as well as offering character development for all the characters). Great episode overall.

23: The Prisoner of Benda

This episode is another good one, but one that can be very complicated, especially if your not as smart as Albert Einstein. It explores the unoriginal idea of an individual switching bodies and enjoying life with the opposites body, but realising the consequences. Despite the complicated thing going on in it, I find it to be a great episode that's filled with more character development than ever before.

22: The Mutants are Revolting

For once, I think I may have found a Futurama episode that is original. As we all know, the mutants in Futurama, live in the sewers due to some law that has them not come out of the sewers, so a revolution begins. Its a great episode with some of the best writing in the show so far. Only criticism I do have, is why did the Land Titanic fall by going over a mailbox. That is just weird and unusual for a massive ship to fall, just for a little thing like a mailbox.

21: Neutopia

In this funny and a bit over the top episode, Futurama attempts to answer the question, which is the dominant one, out of the males and the females. Whatever happens here, its just funny and I'm sure everybody will love it, despite what people think of the opposite gender.

20: I Dated a Robot

So this is what a dating service would be like in the future. This episode is an odd one in that it's unlike anything you've seen before, but it's also every boy's dream of having a super hot woman in your room that you can jerk off to. If this was real, I'm defiantly in. Otherwise, its a pretty good episode, nevertheless.

19: The Day the Earth Stood Stupid

This is one where it does exactly what the title says, it shows a world where people are just too dumb to know anything. It gives us some more character development with Nibbler which explains his origins and sees what would happen if the world did indeed, look stupid. Its a great episode overall and funny too. Its also one of those must watch episodes because this will be the first time you hear Nibbler speak, ever.

18: Where No Fan Has Gone Before

Now I'm not sure on whether to call this episode a crossover or spoof with Star Trek references throughout. Basically, the Planet Express crew, venture to a forbidden planet, where the only known Star Trek life, lives and it isn't long before the Planet Express Crew and the cast of the original Star Trek series (voiced by their own actors) are forced to fight each other when a so called "fan" of theirs has them do just that. Its a great episode that pays tribute to the Star Trek show very well and I liked every second of it.

17: Love's Labours Lost In Space

This is one of the better written episodes in that it establishes what the show will be like in the future and also has a lot of character development with the current characters and new characters such as Zapp Brannigan. Its one of the best episodes out there and one that for any newcomers to the show, will need to watch in order to understand anything in this show.

16: Roswell That Ends Well

This is one episode that shows what people of the future, have to do if they time travel, and it basically is just a time travelling episode where the characters must do their best to not cause any problems that could occur in the future. Plus we also get to see who Fry's father is (and believe me, it's the most hilarious thing that you'll ever come across).

15: Space Pilot 3000

Its the pilot episode, the one which started this whole show off. Unlike most sitcoms where they don't really give you an origin story, this one did, in a way. The episode follows Fry who on New Year's Eve 1999, is reluctantly, doing a pizza delivery to... well you know how it goes, it is of course the first episode so yeah. For the most part, it serves well as the pilot episode with it doing exactly what a pilot episode should do by introducing you to the characters, the year 3000 (and I am aware that I juts referenced a Busted song) and what to expect from the show in the future. Its a great episode and possibly one of the best pilot episodes that I have seen from any show to date.

14: Naturama

Now this is a funny, if not interesting episode. Rather than sticking to the usual sitcom format, this is told as if it was a nature documentary, with the Futurama characters taking the place of the animals in the episode. Its a great if not, touching episode that explores nature in all it's glory and is even dedicated to a real life Pinta Island tortoise who was apparently the last of it's species, before it died in June last year and that just tells you that all these animals are going extinct and if we don't do anything about it, what hope do we have?

13: A Flight to Remember

There isn't really much to say about this one, other than it's a futuristic and humorous take on James Cameron's Titanic, which for the most part, they do a pretty good job of it with Bender and a Fembot taking the main roles, but its vice versa when it comes to the finale. Its a great if not, emotional episode which I'm sure a lot of us will enjoy. This could also be the best tribute to the fall of the Titanic, but we'll see.

12: A Clockwork Origin

The evolution of man, told in the form of robots. That's what this episode is. Forget the Simpsons evolution of man opening, this is pure genius. It does well to explain everything about the existence of robots and I loved every minute of it. Just wish there was more, but oh well.

11: Hell Is Other Robots

This episode gives us possibly the best character development for Bender so far. It uses the heaven and hell scenario, by telling the difference between the 2 and what Bender should choose to do as a result. Its a great, but can be a bit of a controversial episode, but remember, it's not to be taken seriously  because that's how adult humour works.

10: Attack of the Killer App

Just a word of warning, don't attempt to try this at home. It will damage your eyes and I wouldn't think it would be pleasant. Anyway, this is basically a spoof of Apple's iPhone and the social network Twitter (known in Futurama as the eyePhone and Twitcher respectively). Its very funny, over the top and I loved it. Can't say any more than that.

9: Xmas Story

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Xmas. It's like Christmas and even has the same stuff going on with it, but unlike the Santa in Christmas, the Santa here is a robotic and murderous psychopath who kills all the naughty people. Its a great episode which does have potential of acting out a true event that may happen in the future, but let's not jump to conclusions just yet.

8: Reincarnation

This was one that I enjoyed a lot. It basically has 3 stories in the episode, each having a different animation style to it. There's one with animation similar to the old Disney cartoons, one with 8-bit gaming graphics and one with adult looking anime (above). They are all great and funny as well and it just goes to show that Mr Groening can do more than his traditional animation style.

7: Godfellas

So, Bender playing God. A scary thought if I ever could think of one. But is he any good at it? Well this episode says otherwise. It offers a lot of character development for Bender and is one of the best written episodes in the series. It may have an unoriginal idea in it, but its one that works extremely well, for the most part. Plus it also shows us what God could look like to us, which is a very big ambition if you think about it.

6: The Late Philip J Fry

Time travel may have been used already in Futurama earlier on, but when it comes to good writing with a mix of comedy, emotions and other stuff, this makes this episode a very strong and epic episode that delivers on all levels. I like this episode because of those things, and it just goes to show that if you put your mind to it, you can make something great and powerful like this one.

5: The Luck of the Fryish

I'm not sure if this is the first time we see Fry's family, but it does give us more of a back story for Fry, in addition to what was said before. It show's how his brother, fulfilled the legacy that Fry left behind, before entering the year 3000 and its a very emotional and touching episode which is what makes it a strong one. writers of shows, should take note of these kinds of things.

4: Time Keeps on Slippin'

In one of the funniest and emotional episodes, this shows us how time could slip so easily. It gives us hope that Fry and Leela's relationship could continue in the future (which it does) and the message the Fry leaves at the end, is very heart warming. A great episode throughout.

3: Jurassic Bark

Yeah, I know this episode is number 1 on everybody's list, but not for me. This is another episode where we see more of the things that happened with Fry, prior to his arrival in the year 3000. In particular, this takes a look at Fry's dog named Seymour who was fossilised and arrived in a museum in the future (the part about the dog becoming a fossil, gets explained in Bender's Big Score, which is basically a very bad look at the typical delivery boy of the 20th Century. Its a great episode with a very emotional climax which I'm sure will have you shed a tear.

2: A Farewell to Arms

Now before you start making any criticism towards this episode, allow me to explain why it's at 2. Excluding the feature length epics, this is a visually good looking episode with the best 2D and 3D animation that I've ever seen so far. It tells us how people in the future, avoid the end of the world in a similar manner to the 2012 phenomenon. Its a great, funny, emotional and epic episode that is considered the best in regards to special effects.

1: The Why of Fry

Now again, before we jump to any conclusions and you give me any criticism, hear me out first. Its not the greatest episode, it may not be the best written episode, but it's the one that answers the biggest question of them all. Why was Fry sent to the future? Its been a question that all fans have been wanting to know, but not only that, it also covers the events of previous episodes to the best of it's ability. The question is answered really well and with all the other stuff in this episode, this is why it's my number 1. Say what you will, but remember that no other episode in this show, answers a question as big as this one.

Now that, that's been done, how do I feel about the show as a whole? Its no where near perfect by any means, but it is very funny, has some great and memorable characters and its like The Simpsons, only bigger, better, out of this world and most importantly, funnier. TV shows don't get any better than this. I hope that whatever happens with the show, it gets the closure that it mostly deserves and that fans appreciate the amount of work that was put into making this great show, because animation can't get any better than what you see here. Regardless of what happens, it's been one hell of a ride, and one that will be remembered for many years to come, I hope anyway.