Futurama brings back Bender’s most tragic foe after 23 years to finally solve his oldest mystery

The following contains spoilers for Futurama season 12 episode 10, “Different,” now streaming on Hulu

Futurama Season 12 brought back Bender’s goofiest nemesis, and it could set up an investigation into a tragic mystery the show has never fully delved into. Futurama has steadily explored more and more about the history of its main character, especially in season 12. The last season of the animated sci-fi / comedy expanded the origins of Bender and Hermes, while also highlighting the young struggles faced by Frey , Lila, and Amy. One way this was done was by bringing back older characters like the Wong family or Fry’s parents, highlighting the scope of the show’s universe.

One return in the Futurama Season 12 ending “Different” highlights the way the deep cuts can set up a new potential story. A gag character from the show’s early seasons returns in full force in “Otherwise” and their rivalry with Bender is taken to a ridiculous extreme. It’s a solid joke in the episode, but also a reminder of the potential storylines set up by the character. One of Bender’s earliest enemies in Futurama gets a surprising return in season 12, and it might quietly be the perfect way to introduce a lingering tragic mystery about Bender’s backstory.

The return of the con opener in Futurama’s Season 12 finale explained

Bender’s feud with the Can Opener, explained

The can opener returns Futurama In season 12’s “Different,” Reinvigorating Bender’s longest-running bitter feud. A running already in Futurama has always been Bender’s habit of developing unexpected enemies and foes, and causing a lot of conflict throughout the show. One of the most absurd was established in Season 2’s “I Second That Emotion,” which revealed Bender despises the magnetic can opener at Planet Express. Bender narrowly escapes it in this episode, causing the storm that fuels him for much of the episode. The seemingly useless tool briefly paralyzed him in season 3’s “Bendin’ in the Wind,” but has been gone since.

This changes to “different,” making the can opener much more prominent for the episode. The rest of the crew celebrate the can opener as if it were a genuine member of the crew, despite coming close to killing Bender again. Once the timeline of the episode diverges further FuturamaS multiverse three, one version of Bender finally confronts the can opener into the new planet express ship and killing it – losing one of his hands in the process. It’s a terrific turn of events, but one that potentially sets up a storyline that Futurama Has actually never explored with Bender’s backstory.

The return of the Cannes opener could finally lead to Futurama introducing Bender’s father

Bender’s father died off-screen at a Cannes opener

Bender’s father was never featured in FuturamaOut of a reference in “I second that emotion.” That episode revealed that Bender’s father was killed by a can opener, giving him a reasonable fear of such devices. Futurama has never delved further into this aspect of his backstory. By contrast, Bender’s mother (a robotic arm used in Mom’s Friendly Robot Factory) is seen in pictures, played a major role before her death in the podcast-only special “Radiorama,” and has her (and by extension Bender’s ) extended family formally introduced in season 12’s “The One Amigo.”

Bender’s father is a great direction to explore, especially in light of how Futurama Delved into the families of other characters and also established how robots reproduce. Even if he isn’t formally brought back, an episode that highlights who he was and if he had anything to do with Bender before his death could be a compelling way to expand Bender’s backstory beyond the revelations seen in “The One Amigo.” Or season 7. “Deadly Inspection.” The return of the cancer and Bender’s hatred for him may warrant this sort of explorationFinally escaping in the story of Bender’s father.

Futurama Season 12 brought back some classic characters

Futurama Season 12 brought back a lot of minor characters for creative new stories

The can opener may not be as important to the actual show as “different” implies, which makes the jokes about it funny and reinforces the multiversal qualities of the episode.yet, Futuramas The decision to bring back the con opener’s feud with Bender is a clever and comedic touch that adds some goofy turns to the otherwise bittersweet romanticism of Fry and Leela’s story in the episode. The return also goes A trend that Futurama Embraced in season 12. While the season has introduced new wrinkles and letters to Futuramas universe, it also brought some classic characters from the previous seasons.

much of Futurama‘s supporting cast were present for “Quids Game,” taking part in a lethal version of Frey’s childhood birthday party. The episode also returned to Fry’s childhood, Mining his tragic backstory for more pathos. Zapp Brannigan made some silly appearances. Characters like Violet the Mutant and Lauren Cahill were given more personality than ever in “One Is Silicon and the Other Gold,” while the orphan Sally was important for the first time in seasons. The can opener may not really be a character, but his return highlights how season 12 brought back the past for new gags and stories.

How Futurama Season 13 Can Improve on Season 12’s Strengths

Bring back Futurama Supporting characters benefited the show

Season 13 of Futurama has already been confirmed (as well as season 14), meaning fans will get a lot more adventures with the Planet Express crew. Whether the adventures are back in the show’s standard setting or set in the multiverse remains to be seen, season 13 needs to continue to Build on the strongest elements of season 12. This includes the road Futurama Handles support and minor characters. This season took many minor players and brought them back in fresh ways that benefited episodes. Characters like Sally and Violet illustrate how Futurama Building off previous gags for new stories.

The can opener is a great proof of conceptA silly gag from the early seasons that set up solid character-based comedy. Bender’s hatred of the box opener is a good gag, and could be the doorway to explore other storylines like the fate of Bender’s father. It is one of the best qualities Futuramas deep bank of gag characters, allowing silly concepts to set surprising pathos. Futurama Season 13 needs to continue that streak of smart decisions, and the return of the Cannes opener could point to an ideal unexplored aspect of the show’s lore that’s wide open for expansion.