The Thief of Baghead
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Season 7 episode Broadcast season 9 episode | |||||
The Thief of Baghead | |||||
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No. | 118 | ||||
Production number | 7ACV04 | ||||
Written by | Dan Vebber | ||||
Directed by | Edmund Fong | ||||
Title caption | N/A | ||||
First air date | 4 July 2012[2] | ||||
Broadcast number | S09E04 | ||||
Title reference | The film The Thief of Bagdad | ||||
Additional | |||||
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Season 7 | |||||
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"The Thief of Baghead" is the one hundred and eighteenth episode of Futurama, the fourth of the seventh production season and the ninth broadcast season. It aired on 4 July 2012[2] on Comedy Central. Bender wants to take a photo of an actor whose face has never been seen so he joins the paparazzi.[2]
Plot
Bender takes up photography. He is the last non-digital photographer on Earth, using film due to his preference for the look of film grain. He attempts to photograph Langdon Cobb, an actor called the greatest in the world. Cobb always wears a bag over his head due to his desire to be known for his acting and not his looks. Calculon challenges him for his title, and the two partake in the World Acting Championship, an acting contest to the death.[3]
Meanwhile, the rest of the Planet Express crew have their life forces removed.[3]
Production
In 2012, two revelations concerning the episode were made. On 29 February, CGEF revealed the episode's title, its writer to be Dan Vebber and its director to be Edmund Fong.[4][5] On 2 May, MSN TV revealed the episode's plot and air date.[2]
In May, Countdown to Futurama began releasing promotional material for the episode. It has so far released eleven items: A design of a new character, the Mushroom Ego, and part of the storyboard showing the Mushroom Ego chase Bender on 18 May,[6] a promotional picture showing Fry, Hermes and Amy husks and a character design of Fry and Amy zombies on 19 May,[7] a design of another new character, Langdon Cobb,[8] and part of the storyboard showing an excerpt of an All My Circuits episode on 21 May,[9] a video clip featuring Bender making Zoidberg, Hermes, Amy, Fry, Leela and Farnsworth angry as he attempts to take a photograph of them[1] and the third Futurama podcast[3] - which confirmed that a storyline involving Calculon competing in the World Acting Championship that was revealed at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con[10] was from the episode - on 22 May, a character design of Zoidberg and Farnsworth dressed as burglars on 23 May,[11] a promotional picture showing Bender dressed as a tourist on 24 May[12] and the fourth Futurama podcast - which revealed that the reason why Zoidberg and Farnsworth get dressed as burglars is that they break into Langdon Cobb's estate to find some dirt on him - on 29 May.[3]
Image gallery
Additional information
Allusions
- The episode's title is a reference to the film The Thief of Bagdad.
- Fry and Amy's zombie appearances are a reference to the aliens in the 1988 science fiction-horror film They Live.
- Larvae Levin is a parody of Harvey Levin, the founder of TMZ.
- Selena Go-Bot is a parody of tween celebrity Selena Gomez.
- Parts Hilton is a parody of celebutante Paris Hilton.
Continuity
- Bender's camera makes its first appearance since "The Mutants Are Revolting".[6]
- Bender's sunglasses[12] were last seen in "Decision 3012".
Quotes
Calculon: [as All My Circuits counterpart] It seems someone in this room... is a murderer! ...It's me. But the real question is, which of you is the victim? And that secret I shall take to my grave!
[He stabs himself with a sword.]
Hermes: Film? Who uses film? We've had digital cameras for a thousand years!
Bender: Digital?!? [Bender turns his head to his right, spits and turns his head back.] No digital camera can capture the warmth and grain o' good, ol' film.
Farnsworth: How can you even tell?!? Your eyes are digital cameras.
Trivia
- The topics on the blackboard of the office of Us People include:
- Hypnotoad paternity suit
- Morbo's backside blow
- Harold Zoid's shocking revelation
- H.G. Blob's botox disaster
- Langdon Cobb bags Oscar
- (In Alien Language 1) Earth invasions gone wild
Characters
- Amy
- Antonio Calculon, Jr.
- Bender
- Boxy Robot
- Zapp Brannigan
- Calculon[1]
- Scoop Chang
- Farnsworth
- Fry
- Debut: Selena Go-Bot
- Hermes
- Debut: Parts Hilton
- Debut: Langdon Cobb[8]
- Leela
- Monique
- Debut: The Mushroom Ego[6]
- Richard Nixon's head
- Debut: The Robot boy[9]
- Debut: Starlet #3's head
- Zoidberg
References
- ^ a b c Matt Tobey (22 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: Just Take the Damn Picture. (Comedy Centrl [sic].) Retrieved on 22 May 2012.
- ^ a b c d Futurama - Episode Guide. (MSN TV.) Retrieved on 02 May 2012.
- ^ a b c d Comedy Central (22 May 2012). iTunes - Podcasts - Futurama: Countdown to Futurama by Comedy Central (Week 3). (iTunes Store.) Retrieved on 23 May 2012.
- ^ Episode Guide: 7 ACV. (CGEF.) 29 February 2012. Retrieved on 29 February 2012.
- ^ "Just Fan" (29 February 2012). "Futurama: Futurama News (pre-season 7)". (PEEL.) Retrieved on 29 February 2012.
- ^ a b c Matt Tobey (18 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: Mushroom Dog. (Comedy Centrl.) Retrieved on 18 May 2012.
- ^ Matt Tobey (19 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: Husks and Zombies. (Comedy Centrl.) Retrieved on 19 May 2012.
- ^ a b Matt Tobey (21 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: Langdon Cobb. (Comedy Centrl.) Retrieved on 21 May 2012.
- ^ a b Matt Tobey (21 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: All My Circuits Storyboard. (Comedy Centrl.) Retrieved on 21 May 2012.
- ^ JavieR (27 July 2011). "San Diego Comic-Con 2011 Futurama panel sneak peeks + videos". The Futurama Point. Retrieved on 22 August 2011.
- ^ Matt Tobey (23 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: Zoidberg and Farnsworth Burglars. (Comedy Centrl.) Retrieved on 23 May 2012.
- ^ a b Matt Tobey (24 May 2012). Countdown to Futurama: Tourist Bender. (Comedy Centrl.) Retrieved on 24 May 2012.