The following contains spoilers for Futurama season 12 episode 3, “The Temp,” now streaming on Hulu
Summary
Twelve seasons in,Futuramahas transformed one of the show’s most dangerous threats into silly supporting characters. As with any long-running show, the characters and stories ofFuturamahave evolved in plenty of ways. Minor gag characters have been afforded great deals of depth, the lore has been expanded to encompass the entire universe, and the dangers faced by the Planet Express Crew have become only more and more life-threatening. Across twelve seasons (anda confirmed season 13) ofFuturama, that expanded depth has fleshed out their universe to be an ideal comedic playground that can quickly shift tonal gears.
However, part of that added character depth and growth has resulted in other more drastic changes.This includes some ofFuturama’s earliest antagonists, who’ve shifted in some pretty important ways. Although the show initially established them as some of the setting’s most dangerous threats, later seasons have leaned heavily into playing them for comedy while fleshing out their personal connections. It’s made them more well-rounded characters but also leaves them more or less supporting gag characters by season 12. Here’s howFuturama’s most dangerous returning characterswent from threatening to silly, and how they could strike a happy balance again.
Futurama Season 12 Secretly Introduces A Sequel To A Divisive 23-Year-Old Episode
Futurama season 12 quietly ties “The Temp” to the plot of an Emmy-nominated 23-year old episode that’s become more divisive in retrospect.
Futurama Season 12’s Omicronians Lack Their Original Villain Threat
The Omicronians were genuine threats when they were introduced inFuturamaseason 1, and have transformed into far sillier characters. Debuting in season 1’s “When Aliens Attack,” the Omicronians are a powerful and deadly race who casually wage war on one another and the rest of the cosmos. When they lost access to an ancient Earth show, they suddenly invaded. While their motivation was silly, the ensuing attack devastated the planet and set up their king and queen Lrrr and Ndnd to become some ofFuturama’s most consistent genuine threats. However, over a dozen seasons, that thread has been downplayed.
While they’re still dangerous,the Omicronians are now portrayed in a far more sympathetic and silly light. The Planet Express Crew is present at their vow renewal ceremony as the catering staff, and the entire event is played for laughs. It leans heavily on the romantic relationship between Lrrr and Ndnd, which has been a frequent subject of later season episodes focusing on the pair. It fits in the show’s typical approach to undercutting the majesty and scope of the universe with very realistic human touches, but it’s also worth noting how it defanged one ofFuturama’s only real threats.
The Omicronians Spent Seasons As Futurama’s Most Dangerous Force
One OfFuturama’s Most Dangerous Recurring Elements
Even beyond their initial villainous role in “When Aliens Attack,” the Omicronians were typically some of the more dangerous antagonists who appeared inFuturama’s original run. They arrived on Earth, quickly overwhelmed the military as well as the galactic alliance known as Doop, and ultimately killed the President of Earth with no consequences. Defeating them was treated as a non-option, which gave their appearances a natural sense of stakes. This served them well as reoccurring antagonists in the early seasons ofFuturama, showing up to immediately increase the danger of a storyline even if they weren’t central to the plot.
The Omicronians played heavily into episodes like season 2’s “The Problems With Popplers,” which revealed more about how their race works and set up more of their more silly character dynamics. However,they worked just as well as a minor threat to move along the plotin episodes like season 4’s “Love and Rocket,” only showing up as a comically over-the-top threat for Bender to make worse by ignoring. Similar to Mom, the Omicronians were a useful element inFuturama’s early seasons, serving as a clear and consistent presence in the galaxy that could utilized in extended or short bursts.
Futurama Season 12 Episode 2 Brilliantly Avoids A Huge Complaint About Hulu’s Revival Show
Futurama’s latest parody in season 12 highlights how strong the sci-fi comedy remains, and how it can avoid the mistakes of other Hulu episodes.
When The Omicronians Stopped Being Dangerous & Why
Fleshing Out The Omicronians Blunted Their Original Purpose
However, as the series continued to evolve and develop into the wacky sci-fi it’s become over the last dozen seasons, the Omicronians went through a fairly notable change. While Mom has gotten arcs and more depth, she remains a consistent antagonist and threat. However,the Omicronians lost a lot of their dangerous qualities as a result of getting more direct attention. Although they remain comically and bluntly dangerous, the Omicronians have a different role in modernFuturamawhen compared to their early episodes. The turning point for the characters came in the penultimate episode ofFuturama’s original run, “Spanish Fry.”
Released right beforethe first timeFuturamawas canceled, the episode focused on Fry being abducted by Lrrr and having his nose stolen to serve as an aphrodisiac. While Lrrr and Ndnd’s relationship had been a source of comedy previously in the series,“Spanish Fry” moved it to the front and humanized the characters morethan they’d ever been previously fleshed out. This continued during the Comedy Central revival, which frequently used Lrr and Ndnd’s marriage and family issues in episodes like season 6’s “Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences” and season 7’s “T.: The Terrestrial.” They were still entertaining, but not as threatening.
How The Omicronians Can Still Reclaim Their Villain Glory In Futurama
FuturamaShould Make The Omicronians Scary Again
While the Omicronians remain dangerous inFuturama, it was now typically in the service of a joke instead of any threat in the plot. By becoming more comically relatable, the Omicronians lost much of the specific dangerous spark that defined their original appearances in the show. However, they may be a way to retain the depth afforded by later seasons while rediscovering what made the Omicronians engage in the first place.Season 12 ofFuturamahas been leaning more heavily into horror, which has had the benefit of giving the show a renewed sense of stakes in the new episodes.
Playing them for a similar horror/humor tonecould allow the Omicronians to retrain unique characteristics and family connections, but actually present themselves as a threat again. Another visit to their home world could reinforce the dangerous qualities of the setting, or see them attack Earth again. A new episode could instead focus and play the story beats for more tense story purposes.Futuramacould easily have their cake and eat it to with the Omicronians, returning them to their former glory and dangerous station while keeping them in-tune with the emotionally grounded and overtly bizarre rest of the series.
Futurama
Cast
Futurama is an animated science fiction series that follows Philip J. Fry, a pizza delivery boy from late-20th-century New York City. He is accidentally cryogenically frozen for a thousand years and becomes an employee at Planet Express, a delivery service in the retro-futuristic 31st century.
