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Futurama
S7.E10
All episodesAll
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

The Prisoner of Benda

  • Episode aired Aug 19, 2010
  • TV-14
  • 22m
IMDb RATING
8.3/10
2.2K
YOUR RATING
Lauren Tom and Billy West in Futurama (1999)
AnimationAdventureComedy

The Professor's body swapping experiment produces a result he didn't have in mind.The Professor's body swapping experiment produces a result he didn't have in mind.The Professor's body swapping experiment produces a result he didn't have in mind.

  • Director
    • Stephen Sandoval
  • Writers
    • Matt Groening
    • David X. Cohen
    • Ken Keeler
  • Stars
    • Billy West
    • Katey Sagal
    • John DiMaggio
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    8.3/10
    2.2K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Stephen Sandoval
    • Writers
      • Matt Groening
      • David X. Cohen
      • Ken Keeler
    • Stars
      • Billy West
      • Katey Sagal
      • John DiMaggio
    • 3User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos7

    Katey Sagal, John DiMaggio, and Billy West in Futurama (1999)
    Maurice LaMarche and John DiMaggio in Futurama (1999)
    David Herman and Tress MacNeille in Futurama (1999)
    John DiMaggio in Futurama (1999)
    Billy West in Futurama (1999)
    Billy West in Futurama (1999)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Billy West
    Billy West
    • Philip J. Fry
    • (voice)
    • …
    Katey Sagal
    Katey Sagal
    • Turanga Leela
    • (voice)
    John DiMaggio
    John DiMaggio
    • Bender
    • (voice)
    Tress MacNeille
    Tress MacNeille
    • Linda
    • (voice)
    • …
    Maurice LaMarche
    Maurice LaMarche
    • Morbo
    • (voice)
    • …
    Lauren Tom
    Lauren Tom
    • Amy Wong
    • (voice)
    Phil LaMarr
    Phil LaMarr
    • Hermes Conrad
    • (voice)
    • …
    David Herman
    David Herman
    • Scruffy
    • (voice)
    • …
    • Director
      • Stephen Sandoval
    • Writers
      • Matt Groening
      • David X. Cohen
      • Ken Keeler
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The title card "What happens in Cygnus X-1, stays in Cygnus X-1" is correct. Cygnus X-1 is a black hole from which nothing escapes.
    • Goofs
      Amy, inside Leela's body, made Leela obese, but in the closing minutes of the episode, Leela's body is thin again without any explanation. The same for the professor's body, which Amy porked up.
    • Quotes

      Linda: Tonight at eleven...

      Morbo: Dooooooom!

    • Connections
      Edited into Futurama: Worlds of Tomorrow (2017)

    User reviews3

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    10/10
    A work of demented genius
    As someone who has watched all of the original "Futurama" episodes several times each, I've mostly enjoyed the new episodes while making some allowances for a creative team getting its act together. Some of the episodes were very good, some just OK, none quite up to the level of the best original Fox episodes. As it happens, "The Prisoner of Benda" was the last of the new episodes I had a chance to watch, and it knocked me for a loop!

    "Prisoner" makes use of the old science-fictional device of mind-swapping along with the associated themes of making use of the potential for freedom in being someone other than one's self, the discovery of unexpected limitations in one's "new self", and the renewed appreciation of one's previously taken-for-granted advantages. One new wrinkle is the condition that two given minds, once switched, can't be switched back (an inconvenience initially known only to the first two mind-switchers, and discovered by them the hard way). Add to this various personal hangups on the part of the Planet Express crew (does Fry only love Leela for her body? might Zoidberg be less repulsive if he was a human?) and Bender's limitless capacity for troublemaking, and things spin out of control very quickly.

    This is perhaps the least predictable "Futurama" episode ever; it keeps adding new surprises and plot twists right up to the end. Among other treats, it includes some sexy "fan-service" bits as well as one scene that can only be described as the very opposite of "fan-service", both to hilarious effect. The episode's tone can turn on a dime, though; some scenes possess unusual emotional depth, including one bizarre, funny and touching scene featuring Scruffy the janitor, usually the series' most enigmatic figure. Remarkably, "Prisoner" stays true throughout to "Futurama"'s well-established characters, maintaining their believability even while putting them through one weird change after another.

    I found "Prisoner" the most uproariously funny "Futurama" episode since "Roswell That Ends Well". Both episodes take outrageous delight in stretching the show's continuity fabric beyond previously imaginable limits, and the sustained possibility of breaking the show beyond repair powers the episodes' humor. One reason I've been on the fence with the new episodes of "Futurama" is because episodes like "Roswell" set such a high standard, but now I'm ready to stay with them until they come up with another one. (I just hope we don't have to wait another nine years for one this funny!)
    helpful•21
    1
    • RobT-2
    • Jan 6, 2011

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 19, 2010 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Hulu
      • Official Facebook
    • Language
      • English
    • Production companies
      • The Curiosity Company
      • 20th Century Fox Television
      • 20th Century Fox Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      22 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.78 : 1

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