Thursday 4 July 2013

Futurama, A Swan Song - Week 3

Previously on our Futurama, A Swan Song column: Week 2. Now, let's get mini-reviewy, mild-spoilery :

Forty Percent Leadbelly
Any Resemblance To Actual Future Is Purely Coincidental


Plot
When Bender bumps into Silicon Red, a famous folk singer, he feels a sudden urge to become a folk singer himself. So, he uses a 3-D printer to duplicate Silicon Red's guitar and takes the stage name of Ramblin' Rodriguez. But success escapes him, and he has to go live "a life worth singing about". As it happens, that life awaits him at the railroad. There, he meets Big Caboose, whose story is just perfect for Bender's new song.
Review
I'm usually not the biggest fan of Bender-centric episodes, but the recent ones have been pretty solid (Free Will Hunting and 31st Century Fox), and this week's entry is another winner. This one is all about artistic inspiration, and sincerity being a fundamental part of it. But as often with Futurama, it's also much more. It's highly entertaining, the songs are catchy, the ideas and twists come in large numbers, and it has some references for sci-fi geeks to look for. Forty Percent Leadbelly is easily my favourite episode of this (final) broadcast season so far.
Rating
8.5/10
Favourite Quote
Ben Beeler : "By laying down layer after layer of nano-plastic, it can turn your wildest dreams into ordinary reality!"

9 episodes left…

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