Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles
Encyclopedia
"Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles" is the ninth episode of the fourth production season of Futurama
. It first aired on March 30, 2003 as the seventh episode of the fifth broadcast season. The episode was directed by Bret Haaland
and written by Jeff Westbrook
.
is chasing his escaped gargoyle
, Pazuzu
. After a short time he forgets the search and goes to Florida to have a discounted dinner. Annoyed with the Professor's crankiness, the Planet Express employees take the 161-year-old to an age-reducing spa, where he is given a massage, then bathed in blistering hot tar
. An accident causes the entire crew to fall into the tar pit, reverting them to a younger age (53 years old for Prof. Farnsworth, and roughly 14 for the rest of the crew). Leela decides to live with her parents so that she can have a new chance at the normal teenage life she never had. A teenage Fry
and Leela begin dating while Amy
is the subject of jokes back on Mars due to her childhood obesity
. The Professor searches for a way to undo the de-aging effects. It seems that time-altering chronitons have become stuck to their DNA
and Bender's "RNA" (the R standing for robo).
Unfortunately his plan backfires, and the crew (except Leela, who wants to remain a teenager and does not participate) begin to grow progressively younger
. In order to stop this process, they search out the mythical Fountain of Aging
. When the crew get caught in the current, Leela jumps in to save them, which ends her chance at being a teenager again. The Professor remains stuck in the fountain but is saved by his lost gargoyle, Pazuzu. The Professor is delighted to find that he has become even older than he was before while Amy and Leela claim to be a little younger. In gratitude the Professor frees Pazuzu, and the episode ends revealing it has all been a story the gargoyle, now returned to France
and nested on Notre Dame
, has been telling his hatchling about how he gained his freedom.
" has been called one of the great moments of the fourth season.
Futurama
Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a late 20th-century New York City pizza delivery boy, Philip J...
. It first aired on March 30, 2003 as the seventh episode of the fifth broadcast season. The episode was directed by Bret Haaland
Bret Haaland
Bret Haaland is an American animation director. He worked on The Simpsons during the first season as a layout artist. He has directed episodes of The Critic, Futurama and Father of the Pride...
and written by Jeff Westbrook
Jeff Westbrook
Jeff Westbrook is a TV writer best known for his work on The Simpsons and Futurama, for which he is a two-time winner of the WGA Award....
.
Plot
Professor FarnsworthProfessor Hubert Farnsworth
Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, or simply The Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series Futurama. He is voiced by Billy West using a combination of impressions of Burgess Meredith and Frank Morgan. Farnsworth is the proprietor of the Planet Express delivery...
is chasing his escaped gargoyle
Gargoyle
In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque, usually made of granite, with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between...
, Pazuzu
Pazuzu
In Assyrian and Babylonian mythology, Pazuzu was the king of the demons of the wind, and son of the god Hanbi. He also represented the southwestern wind, the bearer of storms and drought.- Iconography :...
. After a short time he forgets the search and goes to Florida to have a discounted dinner. Annoyed with the Professor's crankiness, the Planet Express employees take the 161-year-old to an age-reducing spa, where he is given a massage, then bathed in blistering hot tar
Tar
Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
. An accident causes the entire crew to fall into the tar pit, reverting them to a younger age (53 years old for Prof. Farnsworth, and roughly 14 for the rest of the crew). Leela decides to live with her parents so that she can have a new chance at the normal teenage life she never had. A teenage Fry
Philip J. Fry
Philip J. Fry, known simply as Fry, is a fictional character, the main protagonist of the animated science fiction sitcom Futurama. He is voiced by Billy West using a version of his own voice as he sounded when he was 25.-Character overview:...
and Leela begin dating while Amy
Amy Wong
Amy Wong, voiced by Lauren Tom, is a fictional character, one of the main characters from the Fox and Comedy Central television animated series Futurama. She works as an intern at Planet Express...
is the subject of jokes back on Mars due to her childhood obesity
Childhood obesity
Childhood obesity is a condition where excess body fat negatively affects a child's health or wellbeing. As methods to determine body fat directly are difficult, the diagnosis of obesity is often based on BMI. Due to the rising prevalence of obesity in children and its many adverse health effects...
. The Professor searches for a way to undo the de-aging effects. It seems that time-altering chronitons have become stuck to their DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
and Bender's "RNA" (the R standing for robo).
Unfortunately his plan backfires, and the crew (except Leela, who wants to remain a teenager and does not participate) begin to grow progressively younger
Rejuvenation (aging)
Rejuvenation is the hypothetical reversal of the aging process.Rejuvenation is distinct from life extension. Life extension strategies often study the causes of aging and try to oppose those causes in order to slow aging...
. In order to stop this process, they search out the mythical Fountain of Aging
Fountain of Youth
The Fountain of Youth is a legendary spring that reputedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks of its waters. Tales of such a fountain have been recounted across the world for thousands of years, appearing in writings by Herodotus, the Alexander romance, and the stories of Prester John...
. When the crew get caught in the current, Leela jumps in to save them, which ends her chance at being a teenager again. The Professor remains stuck in the fountain but is saved by his lost gargoyle, Pazuzu. The Professor is delighted to find that he has become even older than he was before while Amy and Leela claim to be a little younger. In gratitude the Professor frees Pazuzu, and the episode ends revealing it has all been a story the gargoyle, now returned to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and nested on Notre Dame
Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris , also known as Notre Dame Cathedral, is a Gothic, Roman Catholic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris: that is, it is the church that contains the cathedra of...
, has been telling his hatchling about how he gained his freedom.
Reception
This episode, along with "Where No Fan Has Gone BeforeWhere No Fan Has Gone Before
"Where No Fan Has Gone Before" is the eleventh episode of the fourth season of the animated series Futurama. It originally aired in the United States on April 21, 2002...
" has been called one of the great moments of the fourth season.
Cultural references
- The title of this episode is a parody of Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesTeenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesThe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are a fictional team of four teenage anthropomorphic turtles, who were trained by their anthropomorphic rat sensei in the art of ninjutsu and named after four Renaissance artists...
. - The space station the Professor inadvertently destroys is a parody of Star Trek: Deep Space NineStar Trek: Deep Space NineStar Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...
s namesake station. The producers explained on the DVD commentary this did not mean they disliked Deep Space Nine; they thought it was one of the best Star TrekStar TrekStar Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
series, especially when "WorfWorfWorf, played by Michael Dorn, is a main character in Star Trek: The Next Generation and in seasons four to seven of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He also appears in the films based on The Next Generation. Worf is the first Klingon main character to appear in Star Trek, and has appeared in more Star...
got there". - The DVD commentary for the episode features voice actor Maurice LaMarcheMaurice LaMarcheMaurice LaMarche is an Emmy Award winning Canadian-American voice actor and former stand up comedian. He is best known for his voicework in Futurama as Kif Kroker, as Egon Spengler in The Real Ghostbusters, Verminous Skumm and Duke Nukem in Captain Planet and the Planeteers, Big Bob Pataki in Hey...
making a reference to "Toben's Spirit Guide" whilst reprising his portrayal of Egon SpenglerEgon SpenglerEgon Spengler is a fictional character appearing in the films Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II, and in the animated television series The Real Ghostbusters and later Extreme Ghostbusters. He is a member of the Ghostbusters, and one of the three doctors of parapsychology on the team...
from the animated series The Real GhostbustersThe Real GhostbustersThe Real Ghostbusters is an American animated television series based on the 1984 film Ghostbusters. The series ran from 1986 to 1991, and was produced by Columbia Pictures Television, DiC Enterprises, and Coca-Cola Telecommunications. "The Real" was added to the title after a dispute with...
for a joke during the closing minutes. - Professor Farnsworth mentions the tooth fairyTooth fairyThe tooth fairy is a fantasy figure of early childhood. The folklore states that when a child loses a baby tooth, if he or she places it beneath the bed pillow, the tooth fairy will visit while the child sleeps, replacing the lost tooth with a small payment....
in this episode, commenting on how he is the head of the FBI in the 30th century. The line originally referred to BigfootBigfootBigfoot, also known as sasquatch, is an ape-like cryptid that purportedly inhabits forests, mainly in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Bigfoot is usually described as a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid...
but it was changed to the tooth fairy after it was revealed in "Spanish FrySpanish Fry"Spanish Fry" is the seventeenth episode of Season four of Futurama. It originally aired in North America on July 13, 2003, with a beatbox rendition of the opening theme performed by John DiMaggio and Billy West.-Plot summary:...
" that Bigfoot was a primitive living in the woods.
External links
- Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles at The Infosphere.