When Aliens Attack

"When Aliens Attack" is the twelfth episode of Futurama and of the first production season and the third of the second broadcast season. It aired 7 November, 1999 on FOX. The Omicronians invade Earth due to Fry knocking out FOX a thousand years prior.

Act I: “Like anyone on Earth cares...”
Back in the 20th Century, Fry is delivering a pizza to a Fox affiliate. He sits down to watch “Single Female Lawyer” and accidentally spills a beer, shorting out the entire broadcast tower and taking Fox off the air. A thousand years later one thousand light years away, Lrrr, Ruler of Omicron Persei 8 and his wife Ndnd are watching the show when it is cut off. Lrrr is enraged.

Act II: “Who's up for one last summer beach trip?”
The Planet Express crew heads to Monument Beach on Labor Day. Fry builds a sand castle, while Zoidberg, on a scuttle, gets caught in a lobster trap. Bender frees him. Just as Bender is about to take a picture of them all, a fleet of flying saucers arrives and begins destroying everything.

Act III: “You heard the windbag, we've been drafted.”
The Omicronians make their demand: “Give us McNeal.” They mean the character Jenny McNeal from the show “Single Female Lawyer,” but the people of Earth think he means President McNeal. Pres. McNeal addresses the people of Earth, and declares his intention to fight to the death rather than cave to alien demands, and places Zapp Brannigan in charge of the defense of Earth. The Planet Express Ship, along with all other ships on Earth, is drafted into the defense fleet. The fleet is overwhelmingly defeated by the Omicronians, and the crew flees. During Pres. McNeal's next speech, Zapp bags him and drags him away to surrender, receiving applause from congress. Lrrr tells them it is the wrong McNeal, and kills Pres. McNeal as an afterthought. Watching the broadcast, only Fry remembers the character or show.

Act IV: ”Why does she not simply tear the judge's head off?”
Under Fry's direction, the crew assemble and hastily stage an ending to the show, with Leela playing the role of McNeal. When they reach the end of Fry's script on page 2, they are forced to improvise. After a well-meaning blunder by Leela, Fry cuts to commercial. The Omicronians call and complain, but Fry manages to plan an ending that satisfies the Omicronians, saving the day.

Trivia

 * The star Omicron Persei (also called Atik) really is approximately one thousand light years away.
 * an unspiky version of the Near Death Star from 2ACV10 can be believed from fans that it appeared while the TV communicators were going through space. It can be known to be seen after the Asteroid Belt (the white ball-like figure before Jupiter).
 * The man who Farnsworth is going to make delivery boy bears a striking resemblance to parallel Fry from The Farnsworth Parabox.
 * In the final scene, the Statue of Liberty (now on fire) is seen holding her classic torch, not the Tube Transport System.

Allusions

 * Single Female Lawyer is a spoof of the show Ally McBeal
 * The sequence where the Omicronian Saucers destroy all of Earth's monuments is based on the movie .
 * Star Wars:
 * The shot of the Planet Express Ship flying by is based on an identical shot in the re-released Star Wars (time 11:47).
 * Fry wears a Rebel Alliance X-wing starfighter Pilot's helmet while flying the Planet Express Ship.
 * The battle planning session (and battle) is very reminiscent of the scene in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
 * During the attack on the mother-ship, you see a turret swiveling while trying to shoot down a fighter. This is exactly the same as a small scene in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, during the attack on the Death Star.

Quotes

 * Zapp Brannigan: Stop exploding you cowards!!
 * Zapp Brannigan: The alien mothership is in orbit here. If we can hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate.
 * Lrrr: Prepare the water cooler, that we may gather around it later and discuss things.
 * Bender: I refuse to fight, I'm a conscientious objector. Fry: A what? Bender: You know, a coward.
 * Bender: Single female lawyer, having lots of sex!
 * Fry: I prefer shows with the genre of world's blankiest blank. TV Guy: She is wearing the world's shortiest skirt. Fry: I'm in!

Characters

 * Amy
 * Bender
 * Debut: Fox Technician
 * Fry
 * Hermes
 * Debut: Professional Beach Bully
 * Prof. Farnsworth
 * Debut: Jenny McNeal
 * Kif
 * Leela
 * Linda
 * Debut: Lrrr, Ruler of Omicron Persei 8
 * Debut: Ndnd
 * Nibbler
 * Number 9 Man
 * Debut: President McNeal
 * Debut: Supervillian Governor of New York
 * Zapp Brannigan
 * Zoidberg

Episode Credits

 * Writer
 * Ken Keeler
 * Director
 * Brian Sheesley
 * Voice Actors
 * Billy West
 * Katey Sagal
 * John DiMaggio
 * Tress MacNeille
 * Maurice LaMarche
 * Phil LaMarr
 * Lauren Tom