The following contains spoilers for Futurama season 12 episode 3, "The Temp," now streaming on Hulu
Summary
- Omicronians in Futurama went from major threats to comedic ing characters, losing their original menacing edge.
- Over time, the Omicronians became more sympathetic and comical, lessening their threat level in the show.
- To reclaim their villainous glory, Futurama should make the Omicronians scary again with a blend of horror and humor.
Twelve seasons in, a confirmed season 13) of Futurama, that expanded depth has fleshed out their universe to be an ideal comedic playground that can quickly shift tonal gears.
However, part of that added character depth and growth has resulted in other more drastic changes. This includes some of Futurama's earliest antagonists, who've shifted in some pretty important ways. Although the show initially established them as some of the setting's most dangerous threats, later seasons have leaned heavily into playing them for comedy while fleshing out their personal connections. It's made them more well-rounded characters but also leaves them more or less ing gag characters by season 12. Here's how Futurama's most dangerous returning characters went from threatening to silly, and how they could strike a happy balance again.
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Futurama Season 12's Omicronians Lack Their Original Villain Threat
How Lrrr & Ndnd Went From Big Bad Material To Silly Side-Characters
The Omicronians were genuine threats when they were introduced in Futurama season 1, and have transformed into far sillier characters. Debuting in season 1's "When Aliens Attack," the Omicronians are a powerful and deadly race who casually wage war on one another and the rest of the cosmos. When they lost access to an ancient Earth show, they suddenly invaded. While their motivation was silly, the ensuing attack devastated the planet and set up their king and queen Lrrr and Ndnd to become some of Futurama's most consistent genuine threats. However, over a dozen seasons, that thread has been downplayed.
While they're still dangerous, the Omicronians are now portrayed in a far more sympathetic and silly light. The Planet Express Crew is present at their vow renewal ceremony as the catering staff, and the entire event is played for laughs. It leans heavily on the romantic relationship between Lrrr and Ndnd, which has been a frequent subject of later season episodes focusing on the pair. It fits in the show's typical approach to undercutting the majesty and scope of the universe with very realistic human touches, but it's also worth noting how it defanged one of Futurama's only real threats.
The Omicronians Spent Seasons As Futurama's Most Dangerous Force
One Of Futurama's Most Dangerous Recurring Elements
Even beyond their initial villainous role in "When Aliens Attack," the Omicronians were typically some of the more dangerous antagonists who appeared in Futurama's original run. They arrived on Earth, quickly overwhelmed the military as well as the galactic alliance known as Doop, and ultimately killed the President of Earth with no consequences. Defeating them was treated as a non-option, which gave their appearances a natural sense of stakes. This served them well as reoccurring antagonists in the early seasons of Futurama, showing up to immediately increase the danger of a storyline even if they weren't central to the plot.
The Omicronians played heavily into episodes like season 2's "The Problems With Popplers," which revealed more about how their race works and set up more of their more silly character dynamics. However, they worked just as well as a minor threat to move along the plot in episodes like season 4's "Love and Rocket," only showing up as a comically over-the-top threat for Bender to make worse by ignoring. Similar to Mom, the Omicronians were a useful element in Futurama's early seasons, serving as a clear and consistent presence in the galaxy that could utilized in extended or short bursts.
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When The Omicronians Stopped Being Dangerous & Why
Fleshing Out The Omicronians Blunted Their Original Purpose
However, as the series continued to evolve and develop into the wacky sci-fi it's become over the last dozen seasons, the Omicronians went through a fairly notable change. While Mom has gotten arcs and more depth, she remains a consistent antagonist and threat. However, the Omicronians lost a lot of their dangerous qualities as a result of getting more direct attention. Although they remain comically and bluntly dangerous, the Omicronians have a different role in modern Futurama when compared to their early episodes. The turning point for the characters came in the penultimate episode of Futurama's original run, "Spanish Fry."
Released right before the first time Futurama was canceled, the episode focused on Fry being abducted by Lrrr and having his nose stolen to serve as an aphrodisiac. While Lrrr and Ndnd's relationship had been a source of comedy previously in the series, "Spanish Fry" moved it to the front and humanized the characters more than they'd ever been previously fleshed out. This continued during the Comedy Central revival, which frequently used Lrr and Ndnd's marriage and family issues in episodes like season 6's "Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences" and season 7's "T.: The Terrestrial." They were still entertaining, but not as threatening.
How The Omicronians Can Still Reclaim Their Villain Glory In Futurama
Futurama Should Make The Omicronians Scary Again
While the Omicronians remain dangerous in Futurama, it was now typically in the service of a joke instead of any threat in the plot. By becoming more comically relatable, the Omicronians lost much of the specific dangerous spark that defined their original appearances in the show. However, they may be a way to retain the depth afforded by later seasons while rediscovering what made the Omicronians engage in the first place. Season 12 of Futurama has been leaning more heavily into horror, which has had the benefit of giving the show a renewed sense of stakes in the new episodes.
Playing them for a similar horror/humor tone could allow the Omicronians to retrain unique characteristics and family connections, but actually present themselves as a threat again. Another visit to their home world could reinforce the dangerous qualities of the setting, or see them attack Earth again. A new episode could instead focus and play the story beats for more tense story purposes. Futurama could easily have their cake and eat it to with the Omicronians, returning them to their former glory and dangerous station while keeping them in-tune with the emotionally grounded and overtly bizarre rest of the series.
Futurama
- Release Date
- March 28, 1999
- Network
- Comedy Central
- Showrunner
- Matt Groening
Cast
Katey Sagal
Billy West
WHERE TO WATCH
Futurama follows the exploits of Philip J. Fry, a pizza delivery boy from 1999 who is cryogenically frozen for 1000 years. Waking up in the year 3000, Fry befriends a cyclops named Leela and a roguish robot named Bender, and the three find employment with Planet Express, an interplanetary delivery service. Their work takes them to all corners of the universe, exploring space and the future as imagined by Matt Groening and the creators of The Simpsons.
- Directors
- Matt Groening
- Writers
- Matt Groening
- Seasons
- 9
- Streaming Service(s)
- Prime Video
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