Summary
- Bender's strange fear response resurfaces in Futurama season 12, referencing a gag from the show's pilot episode.
- The comedic fusion of idioms " sh*tting bricks " and " scared sh*tless " adds a unique depth to Bender's outburst.
- Bender's brick joke is revisited in "Beauty and the Bug," a rare occurrence due to the gag losing its potency with overuse.
Futurama season 12 has brought back a recurring joke that dates back to the animated sitcom's very first episode, and it does it in a very sneaky and humorous way. A member of the Futurama cast from the pilot, John DiMaggio has voiced Bender throughout the show's various runs through the years. In that time, the foul-mouthed robot has acquired many catchphrases, but the canon surrounding his design has also slowly built up. In Futurama season 12, episode 4, "Beauty and the Bug," one of those compelling pieces of Bender lore resurfaces.
Bender is easily one of the best non-human characters on Futurama. His endless wise-cracking can sometimes fall on deaf ears, but he does often come out with some of the funniest lines in an episode. One particular outburst from "Beauty and the Bug" isn't just funny on the surface, but it's also a bit of a deep cut from the show's distant past. It passes by very quickly, but it's actually a reference to the sitcom's storied archives.
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Bender once more claims to sh*t a literal brick in Futurama season 12
When he's caught off-guard by Amy Wong in "Beauty and the Bug," Bender declares, "Amy! You scared me brickless!" The outburst may seem like a confusing spin on the metaphor of being scared sh*tless, but there's a specific reason for Bender's choice of words. As far back as Futurama's 1999 pilot episode, Bender has been shown to pass literal bricks when he's afraid. It doesn't happen all too often, but the visual gag is easy to work out when it does take place.
This Futurama season 12 moment is a strangely artful coming together of the idioms, " Sh*tting brick s " and, " Being scared sh*tless ."
This Futurama season 12 moment is a strangely artful coming together of the idioms, "Sh*tting brick s" and, "Being scared sh*tless." Of course, both relate to being afraid, but to Bender, his declaration in "Beauty and the Bug" probably doesn't sound like an amalgamation at all. It's not confirmed in the episode whether Bender actually poops out a brick in this specific instance. However, no sound is heard, so it could be assumed that he's being dramatic.
Futurama Largely Forgot About Bender's "Brick" Joke After The Pilot
Bender hasn't often revisited his strange reaction to being afraid
Bender's extreme fear response only ever rears its head incredibly occasionally in Futurama. While it's an established piece of lore, and Bender has been terrified far more times than he's produced bricks from his shiny metal ass, it's perhaps a gag that would lose its potency if revisited too often. "Beauty and the Bug" is the joke's first resurgence in a while, so it may not return until long into Futurama's future on Hulu.
Futurama
4.0
Futurama follows the exploits of Philip J. Fry, a pizza delivery boy from 1999 who is cryogenically frozen for 1000 years. Waking up in the year 3000, Fry befriends a cyclops named Leela and a roguish robot named Bender, and the three find employment with Planet Express, an interplanetary delivery service. Their work takes them to all corners of the universe, exploring space and the future as imagined by Matt Groening and the creators of The Simpsons.
Release Date March 28, 1999
Seasons 12
Showrunner Matt Groening
English (US) ·