New Year's Rockin' Evil

Act I
Everyone is gathered at Planet Express to celebrate the new year (3001). The Professor created the ball that will be dropping, but it causes a blackout. Instead they get out the What-If Machine and Bender asks "What would happen if I travelled back to 1999?" Fry is writing a story for a class at Coney Island Community College, Michelle complains then leaves to meet a "friend". Mr. Panucci calls Fry into work. Bender arrives in 1999. Leela arrives in 1999 (nude) and looks for Fry at Coney Island Community College, in Lap Dancing 101 she learns he left the course, and gets some clothing. Fry finishes the story and Leela tries to get it, but he has to make a delivery.

Act II
Leela and Bender interrupt at Applied Cryogenics, they inform him that his story helps save the future (as well as him becoming president) Bender proves himself as the good one and Leela transforms into a Bendernator, she continues to attempt to get the story. Fry and Bender try to reach a time portal above Times Square. The Bendernator alerts the authorities to Fry's "kidnapping". Fry and Bender are on "the ball" but can't reach the portal, Fry goes to the authorities and Bender self destructs. The story makes it through the portal, where Zoidberg finds it and becomes president. Everyone complains about the story (except Zoidberg) and they watch "the ball" drop late.

Trivia

 * First sighting of the What-If Machine in a comic.
 * It can run on batteries.
 * The cover of this comic is largely reused (with added text) as a poster in the center of the 2008 calendar.

Quotes

 * Professor: The ball I invented used too much energy, resulting in a citywide blackout! Fry: We need to counter it with white out! Quick, to Hermes' supply closet!
 * Fry: (reading an excerpt from Futurino) ...the handsome man with the orange hair appeared from out of nowhere and stood before the survivors of the apocalypse, greeting them with an ominous 'what up'...
 * Leela: Shut up fry.

Inside References

 * Another revisit of the time Fry got frozen, this time it has no relevance to continuity.

Outside References

 * Parody of Terminator.
 * This comic was released earlier in the line up in the UK to coincide with the release of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines in cinemas.
 * It is an American tradition to drop a large ball in Times Square on midnight of New Year's Eve

Goofs

 * If this is new year 3000-3001 then Xmas Story is pushed to Xmas 3001 because Xmas Time Is Fear takes place on the Xmas Eve before this comic. This doesn't make much sense because Fry knew Santa in Xmas Time Is Fear. Obviously this puts the comics in a different continuity or the comic's writers used the wrong year.
 * Michelle refers to her new boyfriend, and future ex-husband, as Jean-Claude, but in The Cryonic Woman his name is Charles.

Special Features

 * Comic - The Continuum Less Travelled The Professor thinks he's created a time machine. He attempts to travel ten minutes forward in time. After the alarm sounds Farnsworth learns from his staff that he'd just been asleep for ten minutes. He celebrates his creation of the world's most expensive alarm clock.

Characters
(In alphabetical order)


 * 20th Century kid
 * Amy
 * Bender
 * Debut: Bounceby
 * Fry
 * Hermes
 * Jean-Claude
 * LaBarbara Conrad
 * Leela
 * Leo and Inez Wong
 * Linda
 * Morbo
 * Michelle
 * Mr. Panucci
 * Nibbler
 * Debut: Nick Clark
 * Prof. Farnsworth
 * Scruffy
 * Zoidberg

Comic Credits

 * Story
 * Eric Rogers
 * Pencils
 * John Delaney
 * Inks
 * Phyllis Novin
 * Colors
 * Art Villanueva
 * Rick Reese
 * Letters
 * Karen Bates
 * Editor
 * Bill Morrison
 * Father Time
 * Matt Groening