Wednesday, January 5, 2011

My Favourite Characters: The Mighty One

With the dress sense of James Dean, the hair of Conan O'Brien, named for Phil Hartman and a battered potato wedge, I present a favourite character from a beloved cartoon program:

Philip J. Fry, star of the decade-young animated sci-fi comedy series Futurama, is an old friend, dear to my heart. Created by Matt Groenig, David X. Cohen and company, voiced by the inestimable Billy West, Fry is a reluctant hero in a confusing time.

Frozen from 1999 to 2999 while attempting to deliver a pizza, Fry finds himself... in the Future!

The year 3000 is equal parts utopia and dystopia, with everything everyone could ever want at every moment, and a suicide booth in every food court.

Surrounded by oddball characters and faced with bizarre challenges, Fry confronts his brave new world with a minimum of brains, charm, and skill, yet armed with a maximum of incurable optimism. He's literally not clever enough to be miserable for long.

When he pays attention, he can be counted on to help his chums to the best of his admittedly meager ability.

"I had it all. A low-paying job, several friends, and a bed in a robot's closet. I envied no man!"

Clueless, hapless, but never hopeless, the good-hearted delivery boy with the cobbled-together brainwaves has made Futurama a delight to re-visit since 2000.


Not least the latest DVD package (which my dearest wife gave me this Xmas).

I love that lady like Fry loves Leela. I'm gonna get her SO MANY lizards!

Thrill again and again to the exploits of the Planet Express crew, I say!

To the FUTURE!

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