ANIMATED SHORTS: DAVID X. COHEN ON FUTURAMA, 2

[MattBrady]

BACK TO THE FUTU(RAMA) PT. 2
THE FUTURE OF FUTURAMA AND IS AL GORE REALLY IS A FUNNY GUY?

by Steve Fritz

Last column Futurama co-creator David X. Cohen gave credit to all you fans (and Adult Swim) for making it possible to bring the series back, at least as a Direct-to-DVD series. He also talked about what went into reassembling the cast, crew and production folks as well as a little inside information about the writer’s strike. Also, let’s not forget his insider’s view of fellow co-creator Matt Groening.

This now leads to the next series of questions. Just what is the future of Futurama? Will Leela ever realize that she’s doomed to be with Fry for the rest of her life? What is the deal with the show going to Comedy Central starting next year? We asked that, and more.

But first, the real burning question was…

Newsarama: So, is Al Gore a real funny guy? If so, how?

David X Cohen: He definitely seems to be... check out the video commentary on the DVD extra, "A Terrifying Message from Al Gore." It's an animated Youtube trailer we made for "An Inconvenient Truth," featuring Bender and Al Gore. In the commentary, I screw up several times at the start, introducing the promo, at one point, as "A Internet promo," instead of AN Internet promo. Gore immediately gets in an off-the-cuff remark; "We almost Called it A Inconvenient Truth." So I left in my screw-ups so his joke could stay in.

NRAMA: Did his daughter Kristin work on this project?

DXC: On the original series, yes. On these DVD movies, no... she was busy working on feature adaptation of her first novel, Sammy's Hill.

NRAMA: Now a really geeky question, if you don’t mind. Will Leela ever get her head straight about Fry?

DXC: (Laughs) The only way I can answer that question is watch movie #4. That’s all I can say without going too far.

NRAMA: But you ended the series with it seeming like Leela finally getting the message Fry loved her. The DVD starts like it’s all back to ground zero again.

DXC: Well, a few years have passed inbetween. Part of the fun is to keep it as an off and on thing. If they are permanently together, there’s less tension to work with. We do address this question in movie #4. So stay tuned.

NRAMA: Now Comedy Central is soon going to be airing Futurama instead of Cartoon Network. Was this strictly business?

DXC: We writers, animators and such are not involved in those decisions. So we found out with a phone call. However, I do think it’s very good for the show. It’s a sign of how great we are that when the rights expired, other networks were now interested in airing us and there was a fight for us. I mean Cartoon Network wanted to keep us as well, but Comedy Central won that battle. Their plan, as far as I know, is to also air us in prime time. So that’s a real show of support for us from Comedy Central.

I mean I think Mike Lazzo (co-founder of Adult Swim—ED) is just a crazy genius. I can’t say I know him well. I only met him a few times for a meal. He just struck me as a fascinating guy. We all owe him a big debt to him. They were the reason why Comedy Central was so interested in us.

NRAMA: So which DVD is the next one coming?

DXC: All the titles are tentative by the way. We are still waiting for them to be legally approved. The second one is tentatively called The Beast With a Billion Backs. It actually does pick up right after the first movie, technically a month later. So, for anyone who thinks there might be some questions left unanswered in the first movie, without giving anything away, yes we will give up some answers in the second movie.

NRAMA: Sounds like you’re dealing with Universe A and Universe 1. Are you?

DXC: Well, it’s not the same universe that’s getting ripped up, but we are going to deal with a universal rip the crew did create. What I can tell you is it does star David Cross as planet-sized monster from another universe that has a ‘love affair,’ as I would call it, with all other living beings. It’s a very sci-fi love story, to put it politely. So David Cross is guest starring. So is Britney Murphy and Stephen Hawking, which I might add is his second appearance on Futurama.

The third one, if you want me to keep going…

NRAMA: Of course…

DXC: Is tentatively titled Bender’s Game. It is our first real foray into fantasy; as in a Lord of the Rings-styled fantasy.

NRAMA: That’s interesting. When you said the title I immediately thought of Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game.

DXC: One of the great sci-fi books of all time. I would recommend it to any of your readers who have never read it.

Now we ripped off elements of Ender’s Game in the past. After the title, the movie has nothing to do with the book. It’s just we always meant to use that title and in this case it just worked out so nicely as it had to do with a game and it had to do with Bender. Thus Bender’s Game. Aside from that, I can’t really claim any real connection to Orson Scott Card in this case.

This film I think is also going to be the most visually stunning. I really can’t wait to see it when it comes back from Korea. I really can’t wait to see the fantasy versions of our characters.

Finally, the last film is going to be called Into the Wild Green Yonder, and we’re going out with a sci-fi bang. This one will be a real epic sci-fi. It will feature Penn Jillette; Phil Hendrie, who will again play the entire Waterfall Family who we killed off every time they appeared; and Snoop Dogg, as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

NRAMA: Would you say the release schedule is every six months or so?

DXC: That would be a reasonable guess, but I would have to use the word ‘guess.’ I don’t know enough to announce the date of the second one yet. I do feel confident enough to say that the fourth one will not be out until 2009. I think.

NRAMA: Do you hope there will eventually be more Futurama after these four DVDs?

DXC: I’m keeping my fingers crossed. That’s all it is right now. The game plan now is to cross our fingers really hard…right up to the bones start cracking.

NRAMA: Then again, whoda thunk in 1989, I interviewed a relatively unknown guy named Matt Groening… and look at him now.

DXC: Yes. But we don’t look at The Simpsons as our game plan. We look at the original Star Trek as the outline for our success. If we could have a one wish, it would be to have fans who will support us to that degree. I think we got them, so far. It’s really amazing and gratifying.

Actually, my ultimate wish is if the DVDs do phenomenally well, the next step would be a feature film. I hope that eventually Fox has all the evidence they need to see there are enough Futurama fans for that. Then I hope to relaunch the TV show. Still, a feature film for me would be fabulous. That would be my secret hope.

NRAMA: Now if the strike wasn’t in effect, would you be working on something?

DXC: Well, I have a one year-old daughter, so I’m just enjoying being a father at the moment and spending a little more time with her, when I’m not picketing, of course. Otherwise I’m not in a big rush. I mean we just finished working on these four scripts. If there is no more Futurama I will move on and try to sell another pilot or screen play. I’m taking a kind of wait-and-see attitude on how this one does myself.

NRAMA: So I’m just about out of questions. I just want to say that I really appreciate the time you spent with us at Newsarama.

DXC: Well, make sure to tell the fans we really appreciate the people who appreciated us throughout the years. We really do.

VH1 MOBILE LAUNCHING ANIMATED SERIES

VH1 Mobile announces the launch of a new original series, The Misadventures of Bob Paparazzo with two new episodes "Kim Kardashian at the Playboy Mansion" and "Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron in St. Barts."

VH1 Mobile's new animated series follows Bob Paparazzo, a celebrity photographer that flubs each assignment. The made-for -mobile series is available on handsets across all carriers and on www.VH1.com. New episodes launch each Monday. For more information on the series visit http://bob.vh1.com.

The Misadventures of Bob Paparazzo joins VH1 Mobile’s recently launched series Pop Up Mobile To Go and new mobile games, Know It All. We’re not saying it’s the next Lil’ Bush, but you never know.

CN RELEASES HOLIDAY SCHED

The holiday trimmings are going up, which means the nets have their Christmas and related programming going full bore. Here’s what Cartoon Network has to offer (just be prepared if there are any sudden programming changes, OK?):

Monday, December 3:

- 8:00 p.m. Ed, Edd n Eddy: “Jingle, Jingle, Jangle” – Eddy’s Christmas falls to pieces after he discovers that all his gifts are socks, underwear and other clunkers. So he takes Santa’s job into his own.

- 8:30 p.m. Codename Kids Next Door: “Operation Naughty” – When the North Pole is attacked and Santa’s gift-giving device is stolen, all clues point to the Kids Next Door.

Tuesday, December 4:

- 8:00 p.m. The Legend of Frosty the Snowman – When Frosty blows into chilly Evergreen, he’s shocked to learn that the kids don’t know how to ice skate, pack a snowball or even use a sled. Then the evil, ambitious Principal Pankley dethrones good-natured Mayor Tinkerton.

Wednesday, December 5:

- 8:00 p.m. Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends: “A Lost Claus” – Mac and Bloo start to question the reality of Santa Claus and set out to prove his existence scientifically. Then their experiments backfire.

- 8:30 p.m. Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas: Yep, it wouldn’t be the holidays without this Chuck Jones classic.

Thursday, December 6:

- 8:00 p.m. Olive the Other Reindeer – When one of Santa’s reindeers breaks a leg, Olive the dog travels to the North Pole to help Santa Claus. Created by Matt Groening.

Friday, December 7:

- 6:00 p.m. The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy: “Billy & Mandy Save Christmas” – To prove to Billy and Mandy that Santa Claus is real, Grim takes them to the North Pole where they find Santa Claus has been turned into a vampire.

- 8:00 p.m. Camp Lazlo: “Kamp Kringle”– After a meteorite falls on Santa’s workshop, the jellies try to bring the ho ho ho back to the round man by bringing him to Camp Kidney Can Lazlo, Raj and Clam save Christmas?

- 8:30 p.m. Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer - Grandma and her little general store are in danger of being bought out by developers in the town of Cityville.

Monday, Dec. 10

- 8:00 p.m. The Powerpuff Girls: “‘Twas the Fight Before Christmas” – The Powerpuff Girls are busy saving Christmas everywhere when Princess tricks Santa into turning her into the fourth Powerpuff Girl.

Tuesday, Dec. 13

- 8:30 p.m.: A Johnny Bravo Christmas – Johnny Bravo goes on an insane sleigh ride to deliver his Christmas wish list directly to Santa. On the way, he teams up with Donny Osmond.

Friday, Dec. 14

- 9:00 p.m.: Class of 3000: “Class of 3000 Christmas Special” – All Li’l D wants for Christmas is the world’s most sought after video game console. Unfortunately, a year of bad behavior has put him on Santa’s Naughty List.

Sunday, Dec. 16

- 1 p.m.: Tom & Jerry: A Nutcracker Tale – On a cold Christmas Eve, the Mouse Family is bulldozed from their underground home. Cold and homeless, the family sets off to find new lodgings, and when all else fails, reluctantly seeks shelter in the home of the Atwell family to discover the real meaning of Christmas.

Friday, Dec. 21

- 11 a.m.: Casper’s Haunted Christmas – Casper’s in high spirits until Kibosh, supreme ruler of all ghosts, decrees he must scare at least one person before Christmas Day or be exiled into eternal darkness

- 3:30 p.m.: Ben 10 “Merry Christmas” – When the Rustbucket’s a/c goes on the fritz in the middle of the desert, Ben, Max and Gwen take refuge at Holiday Village, where an evil entity known as Mr. Jingles takes Max prisoner!

- 8 p.m.: George of the Jungle: “Jungle Bells/The Goat of Christmas Presents” George, Ape and Magnolia attempt to deliver season’s greetings after Ursula fails to bring holiday cheer to the jungle. Later, three time-traveling goats attempt to teach George the true meaning of Christmas after he decides to celebrate every day of the year.

NEXT COLUMN: Nickelodeon has published an incredible book covering its 15 years in animation. We give it a gander next Tuesday..

[Jeffbot]

Al Gore did a great job in this movie. And David Cohen looked nervous as all hell standing next to the man in the Inconvenient Truth promo commentary.

Bender's Big Score is a great movie! Here's to more Futurama! A feature film! A new television season! A theme park on the moon!!

[sfritz]

Originally Posted by Jeffbot

Al Gore did a great job in this movie. And David Cohen looked nervous as all hell standing next to the man in the Inconvenient Truth promo commentary.

Bender's Big Score is a great movie! Here's to more Futurama! A feature film! A new television season! A theme park on the moon!!

I love the theme park. Make it a chain, one for each planet. -s

[0bsessions]

Originally Posted by sfritz

I love the theme park. Make it a chain, one for each planet. -s

Forget you guys AND your theme park. Sign me up for the blackjack and hookers.

[POWRSURG]

Originally Posted by 0bsessions

Forget you guys AND your theme park. Sign me up for the blackjack and hookers.

In fact, forget the blackjack!

[pop monkey]

I'm gonna have to wait until Christmas to get the Futurama DVD, and I absolutely cannot wait! I'm so glad Futurama is returning in some form -- hopefully the rest of the DVDs will follow on-schedule, but I'd rather they not rush them.

[Dr13Bone]

Futurama's demise was caused not by any lack of quality but by the fact that people tuned in wanting the Simpsons in Space and got something so totally different.

I am glad it is finding its own audience now.

[fanboy d]

can't wait to see this movie, you can't stop the signal!

wait, wrong cancelled sci-fi gem....

[pop monkey]

Originally Posted by Dr13Bone

Futurama's demise was caused not by any lack of quality but by the fact that people tuned in wanting the Simpsons in Space and got something so totally different.

I am glad it is finding its own audience now.

I don't think anyone is claiming that there was a lack of quality (quite the opposite, in fact). And I think you're entirely wrong about the reason for it's perceived failure. I don't think anyone was really looking for "Simpsons in Space", but it was rather due to the fact that people COULDN'T tune in. The continual pre-empting and schedule shuffling by FOX made it nearly impossible to make any sort of appointment viewing habits (TiVo and DVRs weren't as widespread back then), and the show became too difficult to find and enjoy.

[jmyoung]

Originally Posted by pop monkey

I don't think anyone is claiming that there was a lack of quality (quite the opposite, in fact). And I think you're entirely wrong about the reason for it's perceived failure. I don't think anyone was really looking for "Simpsons in Space", but it was rather due to the fact that people COULDN'T tune in. The continual pre-empting and schedule shuffling by FOX made it nearly impossible to make any sort of appointment viewing habits (TiVo and DVRs weren't as widespread back then), and the show became too difficult to find and enjoy.

Absolutely. If it had been given the 8:30, 9, or 9:30 slots I believe it would have developed more of an audience. 7pm on Sundays EST was a terrible slot.