Futurama/Characters: Difference between revisions

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A list of characters from Matt Groening's popular animated sci-fi comedy ''[[Futurama]]''.

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== Main Characters ==

 

=== Philip J. Fry ===

 

The main character. Fry is a decent, honest and fun-loving guy, but he's also immature, lazy, and not very bright. Once a pizza boy from the 20th century, he accidentally cryogenically freezes himself during a delivery run on New Years' Eve, 1999 and wakes up on New Years' Eve 2999. After some [[Hilarity Ensues|wacky hijinks]] he gets a job at Planet Express as a cargo delivery boy, working for his closest living relative, Professor Farnsworth.

 

* [[Abusive Parents]]: To a comical level. Both largely ignored him - his father by being a [[Conspiracy Theorist]], his mother by being a ''reverse'' [[Sports Widow]] - but it eventually becomes clear that they really did love him.

{{quote|'''Mr. Fry:''' So, what should we name him?

=== Turanga Leela ===

[[File:Turanga_Leela_314.png|frame|"Look, I don't know about your previous captains, but I intend to do as little dying as possible."]]

 

Leela is everything Fry isn't. Smart, strong, level-headed, {{spoiler|a mutant}}, and a woman. So it's no surprise she ends up being the girl of his dreams. Leela was abandoned as a baby and grew up in an <s>orphanage</s> orphanarium. For the longest time she believed she was an alien from an unknown planet, {{spoiler|but later found out she was a sewer mutant native to Earth.}} She is the conscience of the group, and is often prone to nagging them and expressing her outrage at their various immoral actions (though [[Rule of Funny]] dictates that she is in many way as bad as Fry and Bender).

 

* [[Action Girl]]: And how!

* [[Adam and Eve Plot]]: Leela was suckered into one by Alcazar who tricked her into believing they were the last of her supposed alien species, and again by Zapp Brannigan who managed to convince her that they were the last two humans alive, on a literal Garden of Eden like planet, {{spoiler|later discovered to be Earth}}.

* [[Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy]]: Masculine Girl to Fry's Feminine Boy.

* [[Mood Swinger]]: When she thought Fry stood her up and died in an explosion in "The Late Philip J. Fry":

'''Hermes:''' It's what he'd want.<br />

'''Leela:''' Then that's what I am! ''(angrily kicks the television and sadly cries)'' }}

=== Bender Bending Rodriguez ===

[[File:Bender_Bending_Rodriguez_5762.png|frame|"I'm Bender, baby! ''Please'' insert liquor!"]]

 

A loudmouthed, kleptomaniacal, misanthropic robot who also happens to be Fry's best friend. Despite his abrasive personality, has been known to [[Pet the Dog]] on occasion. Bender drinks constantly, because his fuel cells are powered by alcohol. He also smokes constantly because he thinks it makes him look cool.

 

* [[Anti-Hero]]: [[Sliding Scale of Anti-Heroes|Type V]]. It's either this, or...

** [[Villain Protagonist]]: According to the Robot Devil, they looked around and couldn't find a robot worse than him. And yet he's one of the Protagonists...

=== Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth ===

[[File:Professor_Farnsworth_7838.png|frame|"Why bother remembering anything? You're just going to forget it five minutes later."]]

 

Fry's great-to-the-umpteenth-power nephew. An inventor whose brilliance is hindered by his old age. Owns Planet Express, and manages to get ample screentime despite never accompanying the heroes on their missions.

 

* [[Absent-Minded Professor]]

* [[Anti-Hero]]: [[Sliding Scale of Anti-Heroes|Type IV or Type V]]. Doomsday devices anyone? Also, stem cell research.

=== Doctor John A. Zoidberg ===

[[File:Dr__Zoidberg_8742.png|frame|"You lost the woman of your dreams, but you still have Zoidberg. YOU '''ALL''' STILL HAVE ZOIDBERG!"]]

 

A lobster-like alien who serves as the doctor at Planet Express, and lives in Professor Farnsworth's walrus tank (and sometimes in a dumpster out back). He's not very good at his job, and has secret ambitions to be a comedian. Unfortunately, he's not very good at comedy either. In fact, he's not very good at ''anything'' except annoying the fellow crew members. Coasts by on freeloading off others, being pitied for his naivety and occasionally being the hero.

 

* [[Amusing Alien]]

* [[Berserk Button]]: Zoidberg does the cutting, and you better not forget it!

=== Hermes Conrad ===

[[File:Hermes_Conrad_4613.png|frame|"Sweet three-toed sloth of Ice Planet Hoth!"]]

 

A Jamaican bureaucrat who helps Farnsworth run Planet Express. Enjoys bureaucracy and unnecessary forms.

 

* [[Adult Child]]:

{{quote|'''Hermes:''' I think I'm coming down with circusitis. ''(sneezes -- he ends up looking like a clown)''

=== Dr. Amy Wong, [[PHD]]. ===

[[File:Amy_Wong_5146.png|frame|"Spleh!"]]

 

An "intern" working at Planet Express, though seemingly as permanent as everyone else there. Is extremely rich and spoiled. Her parents own half of Mars, which they use for buggalo ranching and a gambling paradise called "Mars Vegas".

 

* [[Asian Airhead]] (until {{spoiler|she gets her doctorate in applied physics}})

* [[All Girls Want Bad Boys]]: Until she hooks up with Kif.

 

== Other Characters ==

=== Twenty-Five-Star General Zapp Brannigan ===

[[File:Zapp_Brannigan_9790.png|frame|"When I'm in command, every mission is a suicide mission."]]

 

The only military leader we ever see, Brannigan has many medals and a high post despite a strange fixation on killing everybody who he sends into battle, whether helpful or not, whether needed or not. People serving under him tend to die. He's selfish, arrogant, fat, lazy, immature and an idiot. And those are his ''good'' qualities...

 

* [[Anti-Hero]]: [[Sliding Scale of Anti-Heroes|Type V]] at best, [[Villain Protagonist]] at worst.

* [[Captain Ersatz]]: His appearance, attitude, position, and mannerisms are very similar to those of [[Star Trek: The Original Series|James T. Kirk.]] In fact, he was originally pitched as "What if [[William Shatner]] was captain of the Enterprise?"

=== (Lieutenant) Kif Kroker ===

[[File:Kif_Kroker_8217.png|frame|'''Zapp:''' "Kif, round them up, and spare me the weary sigh for once."]]

 

Brannigan's long-suffering personal assistant, Kif just can't seem to get away from the guy. Eventually evolved from merely a [[Satellite Character]] for Brannigan to also having a relationship with Amy.

 

* [[Beleaguered Assistant]]: To Zapp. Might as well be the trope image, if that's not currently the case.

* [[Bizarre Alien Biology]]: His digits can stick to walls and ceilings, he has no muscles or bones (his body is supported by bags of fluid instead), and we've also seen him inflate his head (to scare off predators on his home world) - and ''only'' his head, get your mind out of the gutter. His race is otherwise amphibian.

* [[Punny Name]]: "Kroker" as in "croaker" as in "frog"

 

[[File:Mom_Futurama_5298.png|frame|"Jam a bastard in it, you crap!"]]

 

Head of Mom Co and richest woman on earth, she is the overall villain of [[Futurama]]. It was also revealed that she was in a relationship with Professor Farnsworth in the past, but he left when he found out how evil she was. This happened several times, as he kept forgetting.

 

* [[Abusive Parents]]: She doesn't have them - she IS one.

** She's pushing 150, why would she even have them?!

=== Walt, Larry, and Igner ===

[[File:s_Sons_7480.png|frame]]

 

Mom's three sycophantic sons/henchmen in order of importance. Walt is the oldest and supposedly most intelligent - but even that isn't saying much. Larry is a snivelling yes-man to everything his mother says with an inferiority complex the size of New New York. And Igner is mentally retarded.

 

* [[Characterization Marches On]]: In their debut episode, Walt was virtually the same, but Larry seemed to [[Butt Monkey|be at the bottom rung]] while Igner was silent, but normal (barring a few hints of crossdressing). Larry now seems to be the [[Only Sane Man]] while Igner is a full-on [[The Ditz]].

* [[Comic Trio]]: Walt is the schemer, Larry is powerless, and Igner is stupid.

=== Calculon ===

[[File:Calculon_7779.png|frame]]

 

Robotic star of the hit tv show ''[[Soap Within a Show|All My Circuits]]'' and Bender's hero.

 

* [[Big No]]

{{quote|'''Calculon:''' "Funny story. The script called for me to say 'Yes', [[Throw It In|but I gave it a little twist]]."}}

=== The Robot Devil ===

[[File:Robot_Devil_1393.png|frame]]

 

* [[Affably Evil]]: He might be the robot version of [[Satan]], but he's actually a rather polite guy under most circumstances.

* [[Chain of Deals]]: Actually manages to use one in "The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings" as part of a [[Batman Gambit]] to reclaim his hands from Fry...and it works!

* [[Villain Song]]

 

 

=== Scruffy "The Janitor" Scruffington ===

 

Originally a recurring background character in the series, Scruffy was randomly tossed about the series who held multiple jobs much like [[The Simpsons]] Wiseguy. However, during the episode "Anthology Of Interest," the writers ran out of characters to kill and decided to feature his character as another victim as a result. Ever since then, he became an [[Ascended Extra]] and his job was cemented into the full time janitor at Planet Express.

 

* [[Almighty Janitor]]: He does own more than four times the rest of the employee's stock in Planet Express.

{{quote|Because he believes in this company ::sniffle::}}

=== Lrrr and Ndnd (of the planet Omicron Persei 8!) ===

[[File:Lrrr_and_Ndnd_1341.png|frame|"It is true, what they say: men are from Omicron Persei 7, women are from Omicron Persei 9!"]]

 

The rulers of the planet Omicron Persei 8, Lrrr and Ndnd ([[Its Pronounced Tropay|pronounced "Lerrr" and "Nen-DEN-duh"]]) are typically presented as working towards conquering other planets to expand their empire. When not conquering other planets, they act like a remarkably stereotypical couple that have been married for years, watching television, having petty arguments and the like. Their race, the Omicronians, are capable of producing several millions of (delicious) children, an asset which allows them to conquer many planets, as mentioned above.

 

* [[Aliens Speaking English]]: They seem to have their own language (like when Ndnd was counting to the little Omicronian in "The Problem With Poplers") but for the convenience of us (and probably the writers), they always speak English.

** Could be easily justified by how much Earthican (English-language) TV they watch - especially since they first invaded Earth entirely because of one program.

=== President Nixon('s head) ===

[[File:President_Nixon_4324.png|frame|"SHUT UP, DAMN YOU!"]]

 

[[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|The head of former U.S. President]] [[Richard Nixon]]. He first appeared when he won an election (due to the large number of robot votes he got) and became president of earth. He has since become a recurring character, and most often plays the [[President Evil]] role.

 

* [[Ascended Extra]]: Once a one-time character, Nixon's head is now the recurring president of Earth.

* [[Catch Phrase]] "Aroooooo!"

=== {{spoiler|Lord}} Nibbler ===

[[File:nibbler_3319.jpg|frame]]

 

The [[Ridiculously Cute Critter]] that the Planet Express crew encountered while [[The Ark|saving two of every animal]] from a planet about to implode. He proved to have a [[Big Eater|voracious appetite]], but thankfully, he's [[Solid Gold Poop]] incarnate -- his species produces dark matter, which could be used as starship fuel.

{{spoiler|It turns out that his species are [[Obfuscating Stupidity]] in order to defend the universe from the Brain Spawn, and nobody remembers his actions due to his wiping of their minds afterwards. Until he officially assigned himself to Earth as a part of the Planet Express crew.}}

 

* [[Big Eater]]: And how!

* [[Chekhov's Gunman]]: Present since the series premiere, in fact.

* [[Translator Microbes]]: {{spoiler|Whenever he needs to communicate with someone outside his species, he affects their brain patterns to automatically translate his cute babbling into English.}}

 

[[Category:Characters (animation)]]