Futurama: Bender's Big Score

It was a sad day in 2003 when I learned that Futurama had ended. I remember watching the first episode and being hooked straight away. It's not very often humour and genuine sci-fi have been balanced so expertly. But thankfully, like Family Guy before it, Futurama has now been given a new lease of life in the form of 4 direct to DVD movies (to be split into 16 episodes to make up a new season).

When something this great is brought back, there is always the lingering fear that it won't retain the "magic" of the original. But I can confidently say that the magic is back! When Family Guy released Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, I feel it suffered the problem of seeming too much like an over-long episode, a problem I think that the Simpson's movie also suffered (though both were not without their fair share of laughs). However,Benders Big Score, the first of these new Futurama features FEELS like a movie.

I feel it should appeal to old fans (who will be spoilt by many in-jokes and call backs, as subtle as they may be) and those (and shame on them) who have never encountered Futurama before. The story kicks off with a quick introduction of the characters, and within 5 minutes, old fans will be in familiar territory, and newcomers will be brought up to date. What follows is nearly an hour and a half of laughs, sci-fi action, and romance.

This is a film I would definitely have paid to see at the cinema over the Simpson's movie. I hope that the DVD sales of this and the next 3 films do well, as it was sorely missed.

Welcome back Futurama!