The following contains spoilers for Futurama season 12 episode 2, “Quids Game,” now streaming on Hulu
Summary
Futurama’sparody ofSquid Gamereinforces the saddest aspect of the twenty-five-year-old show.Futurama’s incredible adaptability is one of its many strengths. Existing in a goofy sci-fi universe full of dark comedy and wacky turns, the show can take things as serious or farcically as it wants to. However, a common source of the show’s most tragic beats has been a factor since the early days of the series. As a 20th-century man living a thousand years in the future, Fry’s perspective is mined for exposition and comedy, to the point where it’s a part ofevery episode ofFuturama.
However, some of the most emotionally resonant episodes ofFuturamahave explored this aspect of the character from a more tragic perspective. While most ofFuturama’s extended casthas been given surprisingly bittersweet backstories, some of the most effective tragic episodes of the show have focused on Fry’s early years. This carries over intoFuturamaseason 12, which uses the set up of three deadly alien overlords forcing the cast through a series of deadly gamesto reveal more about Fry’s historyin a way that also builds off past episodes and underscores the series' long relationships in compelling ways.
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“Quid Games” Highlights That Fry’s Backstory Is Still Futurama’s Most Tragic Element
Fry’s Life In The 20th Century Was All Kinds Of Bittersweet
Futuramaseason 12’s “Quids Game” follows a trend set by many of the show’s most tragic episodes,delving into Fry’s somber early years and highlighting what makes that aspect of the show so effective. Amidst the (also really effective)Squid Gameparody at play in “Quids Game” is another exploration of Fry’s early years back in the 20th century. Running concurrent with the central storyline is an extended flashback to Fry’s childhood birthday party. Despite genuinely throwing himself into the challenges and trying to impress his friends, his continued victories just lead them all to believe Fry is a cheater.
As a result, Fry loses all his friends through no fault of his own — as was his mother who was cheating. Unbeknownst to Fry, his mother had rigged each game to make him a winner. The somber final moments, highlighting her joy at a job well done while Fry cries about his broken friendships,is highly reflective of the skewed perspectives of other past episodes. Season 2’s “The Cryonic Woman” and season 4’s “Jurassic Bark” highlighted how nostalgia and memories of the past have only become clouded with time, hiding heartbreaking tragedies like the infamous death of Seymour the dog.
“Quid Games” Could Help Explain Fry’s Feud With His Brother
Yancy Might Have Taken Cues From Gedgie
“Quid Games” takes aSquid Gameparody and fuses them well with elements of flashback episodes to Fry’s early days. Throughout the episode, Fry’s apparent impossible luck turns his friends against him and causing tension between them all. It’s similar to the testy relationshipFry had with his (long-missing) brother Yancyin season 3’s “The Luck of the Fryish.” After finding a seven-leaf clover and using it on occasion for seemingly unlikely strokes of good luck, Fry is accused by his older brother of “cheating” in their competitions. This plays a part in the harsher aspects of their relationship.
Although some flashbacks have implied they made peace at times, Fry was frozen believing Yancy hated him. By contrast, “The Luck of the Fryish” revealed that a heartbroken Yancy, who never learned what happened to his brother, named his son after him. The fact that Yancy was seemingly repeating the same accusations and anger that the other kids in “Quid Games” felt at Fry’s success onlyreinforces the somber edge at the core of Fry’s childhood. His few genuine successes were met with resentment, reinforcing the view that the Fry of that era was useless in a very somber way.
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Fry’s Original Best Friend Becomes His Rival In Futurama Season 12, Episode 2
Gedgie’s Story Makes Fry’s Friendship With Bender More Meaningful
One of the biggest surprises of “Quids Game” is the revelation thatJosh Gedgie was best friends with Fry. Introduced in season 7’s “Cold Warriors,” Gedgie was portrayed as a stuck-up student whose intellect gave him superiority over Fry. By contrast, Gedgie in “Quids Games” starts as a friend, but Fry’s unprecedented winning streak during his birthday party ends up infuriating Gedgie and convinces him Fry betrayed his trust. This anger festered into resentment, setting up their rivalry during the flashbacks in “Cold Warriors.” It’s a childish but nevertheless heartwrenching beat, leaving a young Fry crying over his friend’s anger.
This also adds layers to Fry’s relationship with Bender. Fry has always ignored the awful things Bender has done to him because of their deep bond. The revelation that Fry is still traumatized by the loss of an important friendship offers a fresh explanation why he’d take his connection with Bender so seriously. It also gives their troubled relationship in “Quids Game” a harsher edge. As the game goes on, Bender openly resents that Fry is “cheating,” further crushing Fry’s spirits until the pair try to make up before the final game. It all cleverly plays into their overarching relationship.
Fry’s Separation From His Parents Is One Of Sci-Fi’s Great Tragedies
Fry’s Relationship With His Mother Is The Show’s Ultimate Way Of Pulling On The Heartstrings
As the core of the Fry flashbacks in “Quids Game” is the doubtful but loving expectations of his parents. In other flashback episodes, it was established that Fry’s mother and father didn’t think much of their son’s potential. It was usually played for laughs, but came up as a tragic aspect of episodes like “Cold Warriors” while Fry’s relationship with his mother is at the heart of season 10’s most emotional episode, “Game of Tones.“This bittersweet connection is front and center in “Quids Game,“but with the extra heartbreak caused by his mother accidentally isolating Fry from his friends.
Fry’s disconnect from his parents being the source of drama for the young boy gives “Quid Games” a distinction that even the other flashback episodes can’t match. Most returns to Fry’s early life are somber reflections that Fry makes of a life he’s long since lost.However, “Quids Game” doesn’t reveal the truth or let him move past it. The episode ends with Fry unaware why his friends turned on him, making it a somber reflection of a mundane but painful trauma. Fry’s relationship with his parents is the saddest aspect ofFuturama, and “Quids Game” makes it more effective.
Futurama
Cast
Futurama is an animated science fiction series that follows Philip J. Fry, a pizza delivery boy from late-20th-century New York City. He is accidentally cryogenically frozen for a thousand years and becomes an employee at Planet Express, a delivery service in the retro-futuristic 31st century.
