- Network: HULU
- Series Premiere Date: Mar 28, 1999
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Critic Reviews
- Critic score
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- By date
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"Futurama," like "The Simpsons," is a multi-layered, full-family treat: silly and goofy-looking enough to hook the kids, and subtle and sarcastic enough to charm their parents. [26 Mar 1999]
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A terrific blastoff. ... Groening, deeply influenced by the paranoid fantasies of writer Philip K. Dick, the dystopian surrealism of the Firesign Theatre, and every cornball sci-fi movie, creates an airy atmosphere ripe for satirizing our love of computer technology.
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"Futurama" is smart but not pointy-headed, satirical but not annoying. It's the hallmark of Groening and his people: sly, subversive humor delivered with such who-me? guiltlessness that it's hard not to like. [26 Mar 1999]
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Another satiric triumph from Matt Groening. [27 Mar 1999]
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This looks like another clever, irreverent, cutting-edge animated comedy from creator Matt Groening.
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If the quality holds through subsequent episodes, Futurama has a shot to be the best new TV comedy since King of the Hill. [28 Mar 1999]
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As on "The Simpsons," there is never the feeling of a joke being settled on, but rather it is worked over (and over and over) until just right. And there is the sense of a masterful hand guiding things, making creative choices that are both surprising and right. [28 Mar 1999]
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The best animated series to hit prime-time television since "The Simpsons". [26 Mar 1999]
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Gorgeous to look at. [25 Mar 1999]
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Very promising. [29 Mar 1999]
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On first encounter, "Futurama" isn't as instantly memorable as "The Simpsons." ... Don't sell "Futurama" short, though. It has all the sly Groening hallmarks for subversively amusing, sharply written pop culture fun. [26 Mar 1999]
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Fast and funny. [25 Mar 1999]
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It is not the greatest half-hour pilot I've ever seen, but it is mighty impressive in how much storytelling it compresses and how many cultural buttons it manages to push in 22 minutes. [26 Mar 1999]
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It's not quite the revelation that "The Simpsons" was, but "Futurama" contains enough inventiveness and heart to make it a worthy follow-up. [26 Mar 1999]
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The premiere has the wonderfully distinctive geekiness but not the toothy bite of "The Simpsons," which was something spectacular to behold from the moment Homer uttered his first "Dohhhhhh!" There are some nice bits of amusement here, however, and surely the potential for growth.
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There's loads of potential here; like "The Simpsons," Groening's new effort manages to be edgy and reassuring at the same time, which means it can lead us anyplace and be confident we'll follow with a big grin. [26 Mar 1999]
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The pilot has all the markings of a winner. [26 Mar 1999]
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Compared with the Simpson family, the characters on Futurama still seem a bit thin. ... But boy, is their environment fun to look at!
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As funny as it ought to be. [28 Mar 1999]
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Visually, the world of "Futurama" is much richer than that of the Simpsons. ... But the writing, from the conception of the characters forward, lacks the bite of its predecessor. [26 Mar 1999]
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"Futurama"... dissolves into so many random clever-to-cute jokes, visual puns and other shtick. It just doesn't hold together. [25 Mar 1999]
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Oddly disappointing. ... Too much of "Futurama" seems soft, flat, somehow less than expected. [26 Mar 1999]
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The comedy simply doesn't come as fast, as funny or as fresh. [28 Mar 1999]
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Amusing in spots. ... Future episodes will have to pick up speed if the series expects to really take off. [28 Mar 1999]
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Fans will enjoy picking out the many sight gags and puns in the dense, multilayered animation. But, on first viewing, and unlike "The Simpsons," the "Futurama" pilot isn't fall-off-the-couch funny. [25 Mar 1999]
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Falls short of The Simpsons in two respects: It isn't especially funny. And the characters aren't that appealing. [28 Mar 1999]
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While this sci-fi spoof saunters onto the Fox midseason sked feeling a tad uninspired at first blush, the promise is clearly there. [29 Mar 1999]
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The show lacks the vision of The Simpsons, the snappy rhythm and the kind of far-reaching humor that keep it dizzyingly smart even after a decade on the air.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 243 out of 258
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Mixed: 9 out of 258
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Negative: 6 out of 258
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Jul 4, 2011
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Jan 16, 2011
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Jul 5, 2011