A Flight to Remember

"A Flight to Remember" is the tenth episode of Futurama and of the first production season, and the first of the second broadcast season. It is the first episode to air in a different season than it was produced for. It aired 26 September, 1999 on FOX. This episode tells several tales on board the cruise liner, Titanic piloted by Zapp Brannigan. It also introduces the relationship between Kif Kroker and Amy Wong.

Act I: "Shove it! We quit!"
The crew arrives back from a particurlarly rough mission to the planet Cannibalon, looking like they've been through hell. They abruptly tell the Professor they're quitting, but they quickly reconsider after he tells them they are all taking a company vacation - on the maiden voyage of the largest space cruise ship ever built, the Titanic.

Act II: "I christen this ship Titanic!"
At the ship's christening and launch ceremony, they present Zapp Brannigan, who is honorary captain for the Titanic's maiden voyage. Hoping to avoid Zapp's advances, Leela pretends to be engaged to Fry. Bender, in the casino, meets a rich fembot, the Countess de la Roca. Zapp Brannigan takes the ship off course in seek of adventure. Amy runs into her parents, who immediately begin trying to hook her up with unplesant men. To put them off, she also claims to be dating Fry.

Act III: "I'm a poor, lazy, sexy fraud."
Leela gets jealous of Fry's pretend relationship with Amy after seeing them kiss. Bender, pretending to be a rich aristocrat to impress the Countess, steals some drinks and gets beat up by guards. The Countess saves him and accepts Bender anyway; romance ensues. Meanwhile, Zapp has invited Fry, Leela, and the Wongs to dinner. When Zapp is called away after his course corrections lead the ship into disaster, Amy kisses Fry. Again, this makes Leela jealous and insecure. When she confronts Fry, he actually says the right thing for once, but their moment is ruined when Zapp's course corrections make matters worse.

Act IV: "Tell 'em I died robbing some old man."
As the ship falls into a black hole (thanks to Zapp), everyone heads for the life boats. Bender goes to find the Countess, who is trapped in a burning room deep in the ship. When the room floods, Bender rides the Countess, who is a Class 3 Yacht, to safety. Meanwhile, the planet express crew is caught behind an emergency bulkhead, and it's up to Hermes to save the day by limboing under the door while Zoidberg holds it open with his claw. They wait as long as they can for Bender before boarding the last life raft and escaping, but Bender and the Countess arrive just in time and grab the raft's door before it launches. The pod is too heavy, and they are saved when the Countess falls into the black hole.

Trivia

 * Kif and Amy meet for the first time in this episode, beginning the romance between them.
 * This is the first time we learn of Hermes' history as a professional Limbo champion.
 * It is also the first time that Leela and Fry are seen in a romantic situation.
 * The way that Bender is holding up Countess de la Roca is identical to the scene in "Titanic".

Allusions

 * This episode's main plot is a spoof of the James Cameron movie Titanic.
 * iZac is a robotic parody of Isaac, the bartender from "The Love Boat", and his name references the iMac.
 * When the crew rush to an escape pod, the Professor is seen on the back of Fry, a reference to Yoda on Luke's back during his training in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.

Goofs

 * The Countess de la Roca's pupils are round, whereas other robots' pupils are square.
 * Bender wears a magnetic bow-tie without any negative side-effects; this contradicts other instances of magnetism affecting Bender's inhibition unit (causing him to sing folk songs).

Characters

 * Amy
 * Bender
 * Debut: Countess de la Roca
 * Fry
 * Hermes
 * Debut: iZac
 * Debut: Jellyfish Nurse
 * Kif
 * Debut: LaBarbara
 * Debut: Leo and Inez Wong
 * Mayor Poopenmeyer
 * Number 9 Man
 * Prof. Farnsworth
 * Debut: Unnamed Fat Guy
 * Zapp Brannigan
 * Zoidberg

Episode Credits

 * Writer
 * Eric Horsted
 * Director
 * Peter Avanzino
 * Voice Actors
 * Billy West
 * Katey Sagal
 * John DiMaggio
 * Tress MacNeille
 * Phil LaMarr
 * Maurice LaMarche
 * Lauren Tom
 * Dawnn Lewis