Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Futurama season 12, episode 10!
One major multiverse fan theory has plaguedFuturamafor years now, and the show just confirmed that it is actually true in the season 12 finale. AlthoughFuturamafeatures all kinds of different settings and storylines, the series does have some common themes and ideas throughout, such as the multiverse. Many fans ofFuturamahave theorized that the show doesn’t feature one continuous timeline, with the episodes instead chronocling different versions of thePlanet Express crewfrom across the multiverse, something that season 12 has finally confirmed.
Futuramaseason 12, episode 10, “Otherwise"is the final episode of the second season of Hulu’s revival of the classic animated sitcom. In the episode, the gang accidentally destroys the Planet Express ship, meaning that they have to bury it at sea. However, the ship graveyard is actually a cosmic multiversal sea, with Fry’s interaction with the sea leading to a series of strange events occurring.Invisible ships, visions of other timelines, and more are seen throughout the episode, with the twist revealing that the Planet Express crew that we have been following throughout “Otherwise” isn’t the show’s main version.
Futurama Just Confirmed That The Entire Show Takes Place Across Different Timelines In A Shared Multiverse
The Biggest Fan Theory Was Just Confirmed
As it turns out,Futuramaseason 12’s finalehas confirmed that the entirety ofFuturamatakes place across different timelines in a shared multiverse. When plunging into the mutliversal sea, the Planet Express crew sees visions of other timelines that haven’t been seen before. However, the multiversal sea also features clips from episodes that we have seen before. Futhermore, Fry’s interactions with the multiverse have caused him to start having visions of his life with Leela from the originalFuturamafinale, “Meanwhile,” with Farnsworth having erased these memories in the season 11 premiere.
Futurama’s Season 12 Finale Debunks A Popular Fan Theory After Disenchantment’s Ending
Futurama’s season 12 finale “Otherwise” takes a big multiversal swing, and in the process debunks a theory connecting the show to Disenchantment.
So, while it seems thatnot everyFuturamaepisode takes place in the same universe, it isn’t clear which episodes take place in which universe. It could be that every singleFuturamaepisode takes place in its own universe, or it could be that some collections of connected episodes take place in the same universe, such as the variousFuturamamovies. Opening the multiverse in theFuturamauniverse is exciting, but it does complicate many aspects of the show.
Futurama’s New Multiverse Reveal Makes The Non-Canon Anthology Episodes Canon
Clips Are Shown In The Episode
Although it was previously believed that everyFuturamaepisode is canon, there has been one notable exception: the anthology episodes.Futurama’s various anthology episodesfeature the Planet Express gang in self-contained stories that often parody things like books, toys, and television shows, although they have not previously been considered canon to the mainFuturamatimeline. However, “Otherwise” sees clips of episodes like “Saturday Morning Fun Pit” get played as part of the multiversal sea, implying that they are canon to theFuturamamultiverse.
The addition of the non-canon anthology episodes makesFuturama’s multiverse even more complicated. The “Anthology of Interest” episodes presumably aren’t set in separate universes, as the framing device features Farnsworth making a machine that displays the events of hypothetical situations. Meanwhile,episodes like “Saturday Morning Fun Pit,” “Naturama,” and season 12’s “The Futurama Mystery Liberry” presumably are set in different universes, with each segment focusing on a stylizedFuturamaparody universe. Clearly there are still a lot of questions to be answered regarding theFuturamamultiverse, with it currently being impossible to sort the variousFuturamatimelines.
Futurama’s Multiverse Changes The Show Forever (Even Though It Has Been Around Since Season 3)
It Is Now A Massive Part Of The Show
The reveal thatFuturama’s episodes takes place across a multiverse has some major implications on the show, changing the series forever. Viewers can no longer take it for granted that eachFuturamaepisodes takes place after the previous one, as it could be the case that specific chunks ofFuturamatake place in specific universes. Things like character development and continuity will never be the same after “Otherwise,” and hopefullyFuturamaseason 13will clear some things up.
Casting Futurama In Live-Action: 12 Actors Who Should Play The Main Characters
Now that Futurama’s season 11 revival has proven a hit, the show is perfectly prepared for a live-action adaptation featuring an all-new cast.
However, this is not the first time thatFuturamahas featured the multiverse.Futuramaseason 3’s “I Dated a Robot” sees the Planet Express crew dicover a parallel universe where everyone is a cowboy. Meanwhile, “The Farnsworth Parabox” featured an entirely new cast ofFuturamavariants. While the series has played around with the multiverse in the past,Futuramaseason 12 is the first time that it has been confirmed that episodes have taken place in different universes.
Futurama
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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.
