Obsoletely Fabulous

"Obsoletely Fabulous" is the sixty-eighth episode of Futurama, the fourteenth of the fourth production season and of the fifth broadcast season. It aired 27 July, 2003 on FOX. Bender finds himself feeling obsolete compared to the new Robot 1-X, but he cannot get himself to get the upgrade, so he flees to a distant island.

Act I: I'm your top-of-the-line, Mom!
The "Roboticon 3003", the worlds largest robot trade show, takes place in Madison Cube Garden, and the crew goes to have a look. Professor Farnsworth and Dr. Wernstrom use this opportunity to present their latest Killbots - unfortunately their stalls are side by side, so they end up in a fist fight, while their killbots go share a drink in the face of the senseless violence from their creators. Mom's Friendly Robot Company presents it's latest model: Robot 1-X, a servant robot with countless uses around the house. The Professor is so impressed that he buys one of them, which makes Bender unhappy who feels threatened by this superior piece of technology. To take care of that, he decides to get an upgrade to become compatible with the new technology. Seeing how the other robot's getting the upgrade are changed by it, Bender changes his mind and flees from the factory, but is afraid to face his co-workers in his current obsolete state. He constructs a makeshift boat and heads out to sea.

Act II: I am a hideous triumph of form and function
Bender strands on a lonely island and soon runs out of power. He is rescued by a group of obsolete robots who refused to get upgrades and defy modern technology, instead they embrace nature. Bender soon adopts their ways and goes even further - he decides to get a downgrade. He emerges from it as a steam-powered unit with a wooden body. He decides it is time to declare war on technology.

Act III: The 1-X robots are my friends!
Bender and his fellow robots travel in a wooden rowing sumbarine to New New York, performing acts of anti-technological terrorism. Their last target is the Planet Express building where Bender has a score to settle with Robot 1-X. They shoot the building with a catapult but miss, trapping the crew under the damaged Planet Express Ship where they are threatened by burning fuel. Bender rushes to save his friends, but is let down by his wooden body that disintegrates from termites. The only way to save the crew is to ask Robot 1-X for help, which Bender does, and it saves the crew. Bender realizes that he loves Robot 1-X - and finds that he never left the factory in the first place, and his experience on the island was an illusion triggered by the upgrade process. He is somewhat unnerved as he feels he can't really trust his senses, but also content that all is back to normal - after all, reality is what you make it.

Trivia

 * The Killbot from the deleted scene in Love's Labours Lost in Space can be seen on the "Roboticon 3003", it is standing in front of Wernstrom's stall.
 * The Masked Unit from Raging Bender can be seen walking in front of the Robot Toys stall in the beginning.
 * This is the second episode of the series to involve long fantasies, the first being The Sting; it was also the second episode in the series (and in a row) to revolve around Bender either getting an upgrade or being changed (Bend Her).
 * This was also the second and last episode to have an entire act with only one major character (Bender Act 2)
 * Also, one of the robots at Roboticon 3003, and at the robot upgrading place became an enemy in the video game.
 * Fatbot, one of the Fratbots from Epsilon Rho Rho, is the robot in line behind Bender waiting to get the upgrade.

Allusions

 * The mill-wheel-powered robot's name is Lisa, the name of the Apple Macintosh's predecessor.
 * Sinclair 2K probably refers to the Sinclair home computer series of the 80s.
 * The wooden submarine has its origin in the series' creators obsession for a similar device, possibly C.S.S. Hunley or the Turtle.
 * Wernstrom impresses the audience with that his killbot has on it.

Goofs

 * Bender is shown getting up off his back even though he has been shown previously to be unable to do this. Then again, perhaps he was slightly on his side. (But, in fact, at the end of Crimes of the Hot, he managed to get up without help)
 * More than once throughout the episode, Cartridge Unit is seen talking without the use of a cartridge. Although this can be said to be the result of Bender's imagination not filling out the details, it was not intended by the writers.

Characters

 * Amy
 * Bender
 * Debut: Cartridge Unit
 * Debut: Cymbal-Banging Monkey
 * Professor Farnsworth
 * Fatbot
 * Fry
 * Hermes
 * Leela
 * Debut: Lisa
 * Debut: Nannybot 1.0
 * Roberto
 * Debut: Robot 1-X (at least two 1-X units)
 * Debut: Sinclair 2K
 * Wernstrom
 * Zoidberg

Episode Credits

 * Writer
 * Dan Vebber
 * Director
 * Dwayne Carey-Hill
 * Voice Actors
 * Billy West
 * Katey Sagal
 * John DiMaggio
 * Maurice LaMarche
 * Lauren Tom
 * Tress MacNeille
 * Dave Herman
 * DVD Commentary
 * Matt Groening
 * David X. Cohen
 * Rich Moore
 * Dan Vebber
 * Dwayne Carey-Hill
 * Billy West
 * Maurice LaMarche