I, Roommate

Infobox Futurama episode
episode_name = I, Roommate


caption = Bender about to chop off his antenna
episode_no = 3
prod_code = 1ACV03
airdate = April 6, 1999
country = USA
writer = Eric Horsted
director = Bret Haaland
opening_subtitle = As Seen On TV
opening_cartoon = Baby Bottleneck
season = one"I, Roommate" is the third episode of season one of "Futurama". It originally aired in North America on April 6, 1999. The episode was written by Eric Horsted and directed by Bret Haaland. The plot focuses on Fry and Bender's search for an apartment after deciding to become roommates and the various difficulties they have in finding a place that is acceptable to both of them.

Plot

Fry has been living in the Planet Express offices; however, this is disrupting business; and when Fry eats the Professor's alien mummy and is frequently using the building's burn shower to get clean, it is decided that Fry has to go. Fry moves in with Bender in his robot apartment, a two cubic meter stall. His apartment number (and all the others in his building) are binary numbers from the ASCII code. There in his tiny stall, the differences in personal hygiene needs between humans and robots are underscored in the dialogue following Fry asking Bender where his bathroom is — Bender: Bath "what"? - (Fry: "Bathroom.") Bender: "What" room? - ("Bathroom!") Bender: "What what"? (Fry: "Ah, never mind.").

Several days later, Fry decides they need to move; and the two begin a search for living space that will satisfy them both; including the painting "Relativity", where Fry says, "I don't know, I'm not very willing to pay for an extra dimension we're not going to use," and also a building that is technically in New Jersey. After searching for apartments with no good luck, one of Professor Farnsworth's colleagues dies violently; and Fry and Bender are able to lease his full furnished enormous apartment. Bender plans to live in the apartment's tiny closet. To the theme of "The Odd Couple", Fry and Bender make themselves at home. During the housewarming party, where they intend to watch the wedding in robot soap opera "All My Circuits" on the apartment's gigantic television, they discover that Bender's antenna interferes with the building's televisions (he transmits on the same frequency as the TVs' satellite signal); and the landlady (Hattie McDoogal) insists that Bender leave. Fry wishes to stay, so Bender returns to his old apartment, but becomes upset by Fry's abandonment of him and embarks on a self-destructive sobriety binge, eventually cutting off his own antenna so that he can move back in with Fry.

When Fry realizes that a robot's antenna is an extremely important part of his self-esteem, he helps Bender locate and reattach it, then moves back into Bender's old apartment with him. Fry is concerned that the miniature fruit salad tree which Leela bought them as a housewarming present won't get enough light in Bender's windowless apartment, but Bender tells him that there is a window in the closet, and opens a hidden door which reveals a complete living suite more than large enough for Fry to live comfortably. Bender is confused that Fry would want to live in his closet, and remarks that humans are eccentric.

Production

According to "Futurama" executive producer David X. Cohen, Farnsworth's mention of the mummified remains of "Zevulon the Great," is a reference to his college roommate, Zev (according to the audio commentary).Fact|date=June 2008

Broadcast and reception

After two weeks airing in the prime Sunday night time slot between "The Simpsons" and "The X-Files" this episode was the first to be shown in "Futurama"'s regular slot on Tuesdays as part of a block consisting of four cartoon sitcoms. As expected this move resulted in a drop in the ratings for the show. The initial airing was fourth place in households with a share of 5.7/10 and third among adults 18-49 with a share of 4.0/12, a build of 18% off its lead-in "King of the Hill".cite web| url=http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117493047.html?categoryid=14&cs=1| title=Fox's four-toon Tue. stumbles in first try| author=Tom Bierbaum| date=1999-04-08| access date=2007-07-01] In the DVD commentary for this episode, it is revealed that FOX rated this the worst episode of "Futurama" ever.Fact|date=January 2008

Cultural references

One of the apartments Fry and Bender look at is a parody of an M. C. Escher design.cite web| url=http://www.locusmag.com/2004/Reviews/04Cook_Futurama.html| title= "Hey Sexy Mama, Wanna Kill All Humans?": Looking Backwards at Futurama, The Greatest SF Show You've Never Seen| author=Lucius Cook| date=2004-04-26| access date=2007-07-02]

The picture Fry and Bender remove from their house parodies Andy Warhol.

Another picture of their home show a BASIC version of Home, Sweet Home.

The episode title is a spoof on the short story collection "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov, although the plot of the episode has little to do with the original stories.cite book|title=Drawn to Television: Prime-Time Animation from the Flintstones to Family Guy| author=M. Keith Booker| pages=122| ISBN=0275990192]

References

External links

* [http://www.tv.com/futurama/i-roommate/episode/1536/summary.html I, Roommate] at TV.com
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0756882/ I, Roommate] at the Internet Movie Database
* [http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/06/18/futurama-i-roommate/ I, Roommate] at TVSquad.com