Roswell That Ends Well

]

Broadcast and reception

The episode won an Emmy Award in the Outstanding Animated Program (Programming Less Than One Hour) category in 2002.cite web|title=Farewell to the funny future|url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-14221036_ITM|author=Azrai, Ahmad|date=2004-10-31|accessdate=2008-01-10] Rich Moore also won an Annie Award for "Directing in an Animated Television Production" in 2002cite web |url=http://www.annieawards.com/30thannieawardwinners.htm |title= 30th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners |publisher=International Animated Film Society |date=2002 |accessdate=2007-06-28 ] and in 2006 IGN ranked the episode as the sixth best Futurama episode. [cite web |url=http://tv.ign.com/articles/716/716663p2.html |title="Top 25 Futurama Episodes" |accessdate=2006-11-04 |format= |work= ] In 2001 executive producer David X. Cohen noted that this was one of his favorite episodes of the series thus far.cite web |url=http://www.scifi.com/sfw/interviews/sfw7897.html |title="David X. Cohen boards the Planet Express to find meaning in Futurama" |publisher=Sci Fi Weekly|date=December 17, 2001|accessdate=2007-06-18 |format= |work= ] "Sci Fi Weekly" gave the episode an "A" grade and noted that it was "a half hour of pure entertainment".cite web |url=http://www.scifi.com/sfw/screen/sfw7864.html |title= Futurama Premiere |publisher=Sci Fi Weekly|date=December 3, 2001|accessdate=2007-06-26 |format= |work= ] This episode is one of four featured in the "Monster Robot Maniac Fun Collection", marking it as one of Matt Groening's favorite episodes from the series.cite web |url=http://www.tv.com/tracking/viewer.html?tid=5078&ref_id=249&ref_type=101&tag=story_list;title;8 |title=Futurama — Do the Robot Dance! |accessdate=2007-06-26 |author=Gord Lacey |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2005-05-11] Claudia Katz, producer of "Futurama", has also stated that this is one of her three favorite episodes of the series.cite web|url=http://www.cinematical.com/2007/11/14/interview-futurama-movie-s-producer-s-and-director-s/| title=Interview: 'Futurama' Movie(s) Producer(s) & Director(s)!| author=Scott Weinberg| date= 2007-11-14| accessdate= 2008-01-21] Although the episode was well received by critics, it continued to do poorly in its time slot. The original airing was in 83rd place for the week with a 3.1 rating/5 share.cite web| url=http://news.awn.com/index.php?ltype=top&newsitem_no=6154| title=Futurama, Family Guy Not Fairing Well| date=2001-12-12 |access date=2007-07-04]

Cultural references

TV critic Rob Owen perceived the episode to have touched upon many of the plot devices and themes commonly seen in time travel stories, most notably the "Back to the Future" movies.cite web|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/tv/20011209owen.asp |title=Fox's 'Futurama' funny, freaky, fetching |author=Rob Owen |date=2001-12-09 |access date=2007-06-30] The episode also shares much in common with the episode "" of "".cite book|last=Booker| first=M. Keith|title=Drawn to Television: Prime-Time Animation from The Flintstones to Family Guy|pages=115-124] Much of Enos' character is taken from "The Andy Griffith Show’s" Gomer Pyle, such as his accent and use of Pyle’s trademark “Gol-ly!”.

Much of the plot of this episode references the Roswell UFO Incident with the Planet Express crew as the alien invaders, particularly Dr. Zoidberg, and Bender being mistaken for the alien spacecraft.

When at the cafe, Professor Farnsworth orders "A Soylent Green, with the slice of Soylent Orange and some Soylent Coleslaw". This is a reference to the 1973 Science Fiction movie Soylent Green.

In the final scene, Bender, having been left behind in the Roswell desert, is recovered by the crew over a thousand years later, unchanged and in the same place. When Fry and Leela appear, he tells them "I was enjoying it until you guys showed up". This might be inspired by a similar scene in Douglas Adams' "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe", in which Marvin the robot is stranded in the restaurant's parking lot for millions of years. Like Bender, he shows neither surprise nor enthusiasm at finally being rescused by his former crew-mates. Bender's stranded head also evokes the "" episode "", in which Data's head is left in a San Francisco cave for hundreds of years. Bender's line "And "you" are "outta" here!" after Fry watches Enos get killed by the nuclear explosion is a reference to Dennis Miller's line, "That's the news and I am out of here!" from his tenure as Weekend Update anchor on "Saturday Night Live".

ee also

* Predestination paradox
* Grandfather paradox
* Ontological paradox

References

External links

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*
* [http://www.gotfuturama.com/Information/Capsules/3ACV19.txt Episode capsule at GotFuturama.com]