The Film
"I watch TV. It's the next best thing to being alive."
Futurama never really achieved Simpsons-type status. Still with six seasons under its belt, Matt Groening's look into the future isn't exactly a failure, either. Season six is the point where Futurama got a little new life -- or at least a new network.
After being jerked around by Fox, the animated comedy was cancelled by the network. The show remained in limbo for about two years before being picked up by Comedy Central. So far, getting Fox's sloppy seconds have been a pretty good score for the cable network.
In fact, Comedy Central had so much faith in Matt Groening's futuristic comedy, they kicked off the sixth season with an order for a whopping 26 episodes. Just to make sure everyone recoups some of that cash, the sixth season is divided into two separate Blu-ray releases. Futurama: Volume 6 isn't the best that the show has seen over the years, but that doesn't mean it isn't funny.
In these 13 episodes, Bender is placed in witness protection and duplicates himself (a lot), Fry gets a job as a cop, Leela hunts a whale, and the gang swaps genders. There's a lot going on, with a lot of Bender in particular. The highlight is certainly "Reincarnation," the season finale, which delivers three different styles of animation. In under 22 minutes, they squeeze in a "Fleischer and Walter Lantz style" with black-and-white olde tyme animation, 8-bit video gaming graphics, and anime. It's a real triumph, and pretty funny to boot.
The collection here is presented in production order, which isn't the same as how it aired on TV. That shouldn't change any of the laughs, of which there are plenty. It's not the funniest season of Futurama, but Volume 6 should have you hoping that Comedy Central has the cash to crank out at least a few more seasons of this underrated comedy.
The Picture
Fans of the series shouldn't be surprised at this 1.78:1 transfer. It's gorgeous from beginning to end. Of course, the animation style isn't exactly Pixar, but it's not supposed to be. What you see is the same style we've seen from the beginning -- and it looks great here. There's some sharp detail on the animation and every episode is completely busting with bright colors, which is the set's strongest suit.
The Sound
This set's DTS-HD Master Audio track is a nice complement to the video. The show's opening theme packs the most surround punch, although there is a decent amount of sound effects sprinkled throughout. For the most part, however, the focus here is on the dialogue, which is bold and clear. Fans and casual viewers should be more than pleased.
The Extras
All 13 episodes in this 2-disc set have commentary featuring Matt Groening and David X. Cohen, and various of cast and crew. As you can imagine from viewing the show, each one is a raucous affair. The participants joke around a lot and manage to squeeze in a few tidbits about the show and each episode. Each one is worth a listen.
Disc One has about 6.5 minutes of deleted scenes, with disc two adding in another 8.5 minutes. Some are complete, some are storyboards, and some are a mix of the two. Each one is prefaced by a quick screenshot of info about the scene. All are funny, but my one complaint is that the crop is one giant reel. It would have been nice to have the option to pick and choose selections or even have each scene paired with its respective episode.
Disc Two has a few additional features. Professor Farnsworth's "Science of a Scene" is a pretty entertaining 17 minutes that starts to dissect a scene from the episode "Overclockwise." Apparently, the episode was designed as the season finale, even though there was one more after that in season 6. That said, it turns into a peek into the show's production process -- which takes one year per episode.
"Reincarnation Explained!" actually covers the season finale, with director Peter Avanzino explaining the thought process behind the episode's key moments. There's also about 11.5 minutes of FAQs (Frequently "Axed" Questions). Matt Groening introduces the short segment, which has the character of Bender (voiced by John DiMaggio) asking viewer questions. Then, various producers and writers provide smart and sometimes snarky answers.
There's also some extra BD-Live content, including another deleted storyboard titled "The Bots and the Bees," as well as a few repeated FAQ (Frequently "Axed" Questions) highlights.
Final Thoughts
Fans of the show, the movies, and the merchandising will be frothing for Futurama: Volume 6. It's certainly not the best we've seen from the series, but it's not so bad, either. Those that don't find more than a few laughs and eye-popping images from this 2-disc set can kiss my shiny metal ass.
Product Details
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