Futurama: "Obsoletely Fabulous"

"Obsoletely Fabulous," Futurama. Fox-TV, 27 July 2003. #70 by one through-numbering system, #68 by another, or 4.14 by season.episode system (or "Futurama Production Code: 4ACV14"). Dwayne Carey-Hill, dir. Dan Vebber, script.

Roboticon 3003: World's Largest Robot Trade Show has "Soul Detectors" at the entrance—so Fry must pay admission (robots get in free)—and features: Nannybot 1.0, a scary replacement for a mother; a fight between Professor Farnsworth and the developer of another Killbot (which looks very much like ED 209 in ROBOCOP (1987)), while the robots reject violence and go off for a paddle-boat ride; and Mom's Friendly Robot's introduction of "the future of robotics." This year it's Robot 1-X, a very elegant, levitating robot that renders obsolete formerly top of the line (he claims) Bender. The Professor buys a 1-X, and Bender will need an upgrade, which involves robots on an assembly-line, leading to a process that Bender claims takes away "robo-humanity," making old robots like the 1-X. The image of upgrade includes the superimposition of the mechanical and cybernetic on the mechanical and cybernetic (but talkative).

Bender runs away, eventually landing on an island of outdated robots — including a cymbal-playing monkey toy — who have refused upgrade and have themselves escaped to "a simpler existence, free of technology." Bender goes native and renounces his own technological nature as "a hideous triumph of form and function" and downgrades himself into the "hand-crafted purity" of "a steam-powered, wooden robot, just as nature intended," except for the eyes (quotes from various parts of the episode). Bender leads the other outdated robots back to civilization "to wage war on technology." After some malicious mischief, Bender gets to his real motive: destroying the Professor's 1-X. After nearly killing his friends — and setting himself on fire — Bender uses 1-X as a tool, commanding the rescue and coming to love 1-X.

We then see Bender on the original upgrade assembly line, and learn that what he/we saw was an upgrade vision, leading to Bender's wondering if it might not be possible that his life is a product of his. . . or someone else's. . . imagination. The upgrade technician tells him "No. Get Out.  Next!" Bender exits to a dystopian world and the line "I guess reality is what you make of it" — followed by a quick cut to Bender in a happy Benderian fantasy world, where a humming bird will light your smoke and a unicorn carries a small keg. In addition to Chuang Tzu, who dreamt he was a butterfuly and awoke to wonder if he might be a butterfly dreaming it's Chuang Tzu, cf. and contrast reality bending of THE MATRIX and many of the works of P. K. Dick; note also the variation on the theme of robot or more generally machine take-over (e.g., the Cameron and Hurd Terminator films). For episode titles and numbers and further information: and

(RDE, 29/07/03, 20AUG19)