TVSquad

(S01E09) In the DVD commentary for this episode, David Cohen, Matt Groening, and writer Eric Kaplan all agree that by this juncture, the writers were comfortable enough with the characters to take them in some far-out directions. What's interesting about this episode, though, is that as far out as Leela, Fry and Bender go here, they barely leave Earth (heck, they don't even leave the Northeast).

Oh, sure they go out to the mob planet Sicily 8, but we just see them go out and come back. But that scene is important, for plot forwarding purposes, and for one hell of a funny visual. More on that in a second.

I'm a big Beastie Boys fan, so it was nice to see them guest star here (two of them, that is... Adam Yauch -- MCA to Beastie fans -- didn't participate). I especially liked their a capella rendition of "Sabotage". I also like how, when Fry told them he had all five of their albums back in the 20th century, Adrock (Adam Horovitz) said, "That was a thousand years ago. Now we got seven."

But the main plot revolves around Bender's "jacking on", which is getting hits of electricity, his descent into junkiedom, and his recovery due to the "Temple of Robotology". His habit got so bad that he climbs outside the ship and steers it towards an electrified nebula just to get a massive hit. The electricity is so bad, it frizzes Fry's hair, which doesn't unfrizz even after he lands (heh... Fry with a red afro).

Now, the jokes where they wonder if Bender is "jacking on" in the bathroom are funny. But the real funny stuff comes after he is "born again" at the Temple, then goes back to the usual level of Bender debauchery and is sent to "robot hell," which, of course, happens to be in Atlantic City. Is the Temple of Robotology a poke at the Church of Scientology? When I asked Billy West about it, he sidestepped the issue... sort of, in this week's edition of:

Billy West's take:That was good and it's an obvious swipe at... whoever.
JK: Yeah, seven years before it became fashionable.
BW: It's an organization that was kinda started by a big pock-marked sweaty guy that looked like Gene Roddenberry.
JK: Right, and who's kinda nutty.
BW: Maybe, that's your words (laughs). I don't want them coming after me. "Leave me alone." "Instead of going to Rigel Seven, tell him to go to Oxy Five!"

Robot Hell contains the show's first musical number, which is probably why they recruited Dan Castellaneta to play the Robot Devil; he has a very nice singing voice. As does Katey Sagal, which makes sense, considering she used to be a backup singer for Bette Midler before she decided to start acting twenty or so years ago. My favorite part, though, is the deal Robot Devil makes with Leela and Fry:

Robot Devil: The Fairness In Hell Act of 2275 requires me to inform you that if you can best me in a fiddle contest, you win back Bender's soul. As well as a solid gold fiddle.
Fry: Wouldn't a solid gold fiddle weigh hundreds of pounds and sound crummy?
Robot Devil: Well it's mostly for show.

Gotta love the Charlie Daniels references. Anyway, here are some other notes:

• We see Nibbler in this episode, but when Leela and Fry enter Robot Hell, they accidentally leave him behind. According to the commentary, he doesn't come back for a couple of seasons (which is, of course, when we find out why Nibbler's around to begin with).
  
• Nibbler is voiced by Frank Welker, who -- I kid you not -- is the longtime voice of Freddy on Scooby-Doo.
• John DiMaggio did the sound of Bender getting "jacked on" by rubbing his finger under his adam's apple.
• The constant New Jersey jokes stem from the fact that David Cohen -- and John DiMaggio -- both grew up in the Garden State. So, hopefully, they kid out of love.
• When Bender gets his electric jolt from the nebula, it's so strong it melts his legs. But after they pry him loose, he has legs again. How'd that happen? Well, in the beginning of that scene, you see a crate with the stamp "Robot Legs and Thighs". So that's how meticulous the writers are at Futurama; they don't just leave something like that to what they teremed "cartoon logic", they actually take the time to explain things, even if it's in subtle ways.