30 Days of Television - Day 24
Jun. 5th, 2010 08:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
annissamazingDay 24 - Best quote
Bender talks to God, "Godfellas," Futurama
I love a clever line and there is no episode of any show that I quote more than "Godfellas." The whole episode is so quotable that it pains me to choose just one.
I probably quote this more than any other television line: "Ah the pity. Fated to drift forever through the void as gravity's plaything. Oh cruel fate, to be thusly boned. Ask not for whom the bone bones. It bones for thee." Even though I find this quote very useful, it's not my favorite.
Bender drifts through space and picks up a small civilization who land on him as he passes through an asteroid field. They worship him as God and it ends disastrously. Eventually, Bender passes by a galaxy that signals to him in binary. He yells back and the Galaxy pulls him in.
It's hard to depict God in movies or television without being blasphemous. Futurama toes that line without ever crossing it. It's funny, but it's also respectful and reverent. In fact, they never come out and say that Bender is talking to God. The Galaxy just says that it has "always been" and tells Bender his theories of the Galaxy's origin "seem probable."
Bender: You know, I was God once.
God: Yes, I saw. You were doing well, until everyone died.
...
God: Bender, being God isn't easy. If you do too much, people get dependent on you, and if you do nothing, they lose hope. You have to use a light touch. Like a safecracker, or a pickpocket.
Bender: Or a guy who burns down a bar for the insurance money!
God: Yes, if you make it look like an electrical fire. When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all.
It's that last sentence that I like so much. It's far more profound than you would expect from a silly prime-time animated tv show. I especially like how it is repeated after Bender is compelled to help some monks after Fry suggests that "their God" will help them instead. Bender misses the point, but the audience doesn't, and really... that is the point.
Poor quality video (it looks like some guy just pointed a video camera at his tv), but it's got the quote.
Past
Day 01 - A show that should never have been canceled: Futurama
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching: Doctor Who
Day 03 - Your favorite new show (aired this TV season): Community
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever: Doctor Who
Day 05 - A show you hate: Charmed
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Blink"
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Planet of the Dead"
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch: The Prisoner
Day 09 - Best scene ever: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "You're beneath me."
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn't like but ended up loving: The Mighty Boosh
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you: Heroes
Day 12 - An episode you've watched more than 5 times: "Midnight"
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show: Thundercats
Day 14 - Favorite male character: Dan Conner
Day 15 - Favorite female character: Buffy Summers
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show: Special Unit 2
Day 17 - Favorite mini series: The Stand
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence: Gunslinger Girl
Day 19 - Best TV show cast: Arrested Development
Day 20 - Favorite kiss: The Doctor and Rose Tyler
Day 21 - Favorite ship: The Doctor and Rose Tyler
Day 22 - Favorite series finale: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: "Chosen"
Day 23 - Most annoying character: Hyacinth Bucket
Day 24 - Best quote: Bender talks to God
Future:
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching (old or new)
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale
Day 27 - Best pilot episode
Day 28 - First TV show obsession
Day 29 - Current TV show obsession
Day 30 - Saddest character death
Bender talks to God, "Godfellas," Futurama
I love a clever line and there is no episode of any show that I quote more than "Godfellas." The whole episode is so quotable that it pains me to choose just one.
I probably quote this more than any other television line: "Ah the pity. Fated to drift forever through the void as gravity's plaything. Oh cruel fate, to be thusly boned. Ask not for whom the bone bones. It bones for thee." Even though I find this quote very useful, it's not my favorite.
Bender drifts through space and picks up a small civilization who land on him as he passes through an asteroid field. They worship him as God and it ends disastrously. Eventually, Bender passes by a galaxy that signals to him in binary. He yells back and the Galaxy pulls him in.
It's hard to depict God in movies or television without being blasphemous. Futurama toes that line without ever crossing it. It's funny, but it's also respectful and reverent. In fact, they never come out and say that Bender is talking to God. The Galaxy just says that it has "always been" and tells Bender his theories of the Galaxy's origin "seem probable."
Bender: You know, I was God once.
God: Yes, I saw. You were doing well, until everyone died.
...
God: Bender, being God isn't easy. If you do too much, people get dependent on you, and if you do nothing, they lose hope. You have to use a light touch. Like a safecracker, or a pickpocket.
Bender: Or a guy who burns down a bar for the insurance money!
God: Yes, if you make it look like an electrical fire. When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all.
It's that last sentence that I like so much. It's far more profound than you would expect from a silly prime-time animated tv show. I especially like how it is repeated after Bender is compelled to help some monks after Fry suggests that "their God" will help them instead. Bender misses the point, but the audience doesn't, and really... that is the point.
Poor quality video (it looks like some guy just pointed a video camera at his tv), but it's got the quote.
Past
Day 01 - A show that should never have been canceled: Futurama
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching: Doctor Who
Day 03 - Your favorite new show (aired this TV season): Community
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever: Doctor Who
Day 05 - A show you hate: Charmed
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Blink"
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Planet of the Dead"
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch: The Prisoner
Day 09 - Best scene ever: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "You're beneath me."
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn't like but ended up loving: The Mighty Boosh
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you: Heroes
Day 12 - An episode you've watched more than 5 times: "Midnight"
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show: Thundercats
Day 14 - Favorite male character: Dan Conner
Day 15 - Favorite female character: Buffy Summers
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show: Special Unit 2
Day 17 - Favorite mini series: The Stand
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence: Gunslinger Girl
Day 19 - Best TV show cast: Arrested Development
Day 20 - Favorite kiss: The Doctor and Rose Tyler
Day 21 - Favorite ship: The Doctor and Rose Tyler
Day 22 - Favorite series finale: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: "Chosen"
Day 23 - Most annoying character: Hyacinth Bucket
Day 24 - Best quote: Bender talks to God
Future:
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching (old or new)
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale
Day 27 - Best pilot episode
Day 28 - First TV show obsession
Day 29 - Current TV show obsession
Day 30 - Saddest character death