Review: "Parasites Lost" (Season 3, Episode 2)

Airdate: January 21st, 2001

Synopsis: Fry grabs an old sandwich at a truck stop. After an unrelated work-related accident, Fry's body repairs itself. A colonoscopy reveals that Fry has worms lodged in his intestines. The crew shrink down to miniature size to try and remove the worms from power. Since the worms are linked to Fry's mind, however, they would defend themselves if Fry knew what was happening. Therefore, Leela must "distract" Fry from the mission.

While out on the town, Fry proves himself to be more articulate and verbose than ever before. A newly enamored Leela halts the mission, in order to continue living this fantastic experience with Fry. The experience reaches it's peak when Fry manages to play the Holophonor - an instrument infamous for it's challenge. Yet, who's actually performing these actions - Fry, or the Worms?

Review: While Futurama is plenty well known as a sci-fi parody, what really seems to sell fans on the show is that underneath the sitcom-esque clothes lies one of the best episodic sci-fi shows out there, full with drama and character development. We didn't see too much of that drama in Season 2, however. Therefore, one must present the question - at what point did Futurama go from "sci-fi comedy" to "complex dramedy"?

For most people, the line is crossed in "Parasites Lost".

And in the eyes of some people, it is Futurama's zenith.

Does the same hold true in my eyes?

(Warning: some Star Trek spoilers later in the review.)

Bizarrely enough, this episode continues to showcase the influence that Star Trek held on this show. In this case, this episode takes elements from "Doctor Bashir, I Presume", from the fifth season of Deep Space Nine. The two plots in that episode - somebody dealing with artificially increased mental capabilities, and an idiot falling head over heels - are fused together. Arguably, this episode does a better job than Deep Space Nine did with those plots.

The reasoning for that lies in the episode's end. However, we'll get to that in a minute.

"Parasites Lost" is an episode centered around Phillip J. Fry. Fry is, of course, the show's everyman. In spite of the idea of the traditional sci-fi hero (read, Captain Picard), Fry is, in many regards, just an idiot who happens to get into situations, barely escaping because of a) luck or 2) Captain Turanga Leela. It's his own impulsive nature and his inability to say the right thing at the right time that often create screw ups.

If this episode is any indication, wrapped within the idiot lies someone with sparks of brilliance, a rather romantic and articulate man who has talents untapped. Why can't he access this elequence under normal conditions? The answer lies in a later episode, but this episode does show that he very well possesses this idea of being the best man possible. In fact, had he kept the worms, he very well could have everything he wanted - his best friend would've loved him, his health would've been better, and he might very well have become a renowned virtuoso with the impossibly hard Holophonor, performing stories that go far beyond what anybody else could generate. Fry could've very well become the ideal person.

So, why would Fry chuck them?

If anything, his decision to get rid of them showcases a sense of honor. He feels like he's cheating his way to happiness and prosperity by keeping the worms, and that he might not be appreciated for what he has achieved, but for what he has become, if that makes sense. In a show that often skewers and parodies morals found on Star Trek, it probably handled it more realistically than "Doctor Bashir, I Presume", which wrapped things up rather neatly (Bashir keeps his appointment, and his father pleas himself to two years in a minimum security prison. Granted, the genetic improvements weren't Bashir's fault, but it is still a rather neat ending.)

Granted, he does maintain his more impulsive side during the ordeal - threatening to kill himself in order to drive the worms out. Arguably, this could also be a manifestation of Yvonne Elliman's lyrics - "If I can't have you, I don't want nobody, baby", taken to the most literal level.

Leela's reaction to the worm-infested Fry is nothing short, though, of twisting around the ideals we so often see in Trek. The mantra of The Wrath of Khan, my all time favorite movie, is that "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few". Even when it was inverted, in The Search of Spock, it still felt valid, and was filled with genuine selflessness (Kirk laying his ship on the line, damn it!) Here, Leela is all but willing to let Fry remain infested with worms because he is so enamored with this new version of Fry, arguing that they benefit him. Damn the consequences, and damn the lack of reality.

Never in a million years would Picard do something like this. If the crew in Starfleet are motivated by honor and the advancement of life itself, the Planet Express crew are motivated by their own selfish desires. Leela might be the relative superego of the group, but even here, we see that she's not merely "the" superego - she has her moments powered by emotion. While non-infested Fry is far from perfect, infested Fry feels like he has cheated at life.

This behavior on her part, however, is probably influenced (at least a little bit) by her history. She says that her date with Fry rivals that of "Double Soup Tuesday at the Orphanarium". This is a pretty depressing line, showing just how her life was up to that point. Maybe she yearns for something beyond what she experienced.

Yet, probably the most important moment involving the duo has to be the end. Fry evicts the worms, screws up on the Holophonor in front of Leela, and mentions his ill-fated relationship with Amy to her, causing her to chuck him out. On one hand, this all but confirms that Leela was attracted to the worm-altered Fry - regular everyday Fry is just too much of an idiot. And that's fine - she had every right to do so. Actually, her rejection of Fry can also be interpreted as tragic on her end. She must feel rather foolish that she fell in love with some worms. She merely held out hope for a last-ditch effort.

Ironically, this does seem to counter and/or aid her flattered reaction to Fry's admission of love in "War is the H-Word". There, though, she was in disguise. However, she still seemed rather flattered. Leela may have very well been cool with the idea of this goofball being enamored with her, but doesn't necessarily feel the same way - at least, not in his current state.

And that's all she wrote for that relationship? Fry moves on to date more women than Kirk and Riker combined, right?

No.

Don't get me wrong - Fry is depressed that his chance with Leela sunk. He does appear to mourn the end of the relationship. And then, he pulls out a copy of My First Holophonor. And he manages to generate an (admittedly rather crude) image of Leela in the holo-sphere.

He wants to become the man he was the day before. He wants to be as close to that person as possible. And, given that the Holophonor was cited to be among the toughest instruments to learn in the history of the world, the fact that he made that really does showcase the flashes of brilliance behind the goofball. In effect, Leela shoving the holophonor in his face was, to him, an edict - shape up.

Remember in "Space Pilot 3000", where he was generally cool with his position in life as a delivery boy (as long as he goes into space)? In "When Aliens Attack" and "Why Must I Be A Crustacean In Love?", where he just wanted to sit in front of a TV? That Fry, the one content with his path in life, has now changed, even if only slightly.

This is the episode that launched the Freela ship. There were hints before, but this one put Fry/Leela in the same category as Kirk/Spock or Doctor/Seven-Of-Nine. From this point forward, there was no turning back. Even if the ship died, the fans would've paired the two to the heat death of the universe, and beyond.

Moving on from Fry and Leela, there's also the fantastic setting of the plot. Futurama took the "journey to the center of the body" sci-fi trope (most well known from Fantastic Voyage), and executed it in one of the most hysterical ways possible. Between the way the worms were transmitted inside the body (gas station restroom sandwich), to the mere "Tholian Web"-esque self-repair system, to their ability to construct a society deep within the recesses of Fry's colon, they are some hysterical and brilliant antagonists.

The interactions between the crew were also hysterical. It's one of the first "ensemble" episodes - a trend which would continue in Seasons 6 and 7. Seeing Bender, Zoidberg, Amy, Farnsworth, and Hermes all work with each other is actually pretty funny.

What really makes this episode work, though, is the execution of everything. Technically, the episode is astounding. The animation? Brilliant - not a frame feels out of place. The music? Every single note is hit and hit well. The voice acting, like always, is impeccable. All of this, however, combines so beautifully during the first holophonor performance. It is among the most beautiful scenes in Futurama history.

Now, we must return to the question I posed at the beginning of this review - is "Parasites Lost" the zenith of Futurama?

I wouldn't go that far, at least on a personal level.

However, I will acknowledge that "Parasites Lost" was the episode that sent Futurama to the stars. It's character interactions are fantastic, it's ending is fantastically tragic, and it's construction is no less than astonishing. It is easily a top ten episode.

And the holophonor plays on...

Tidbits:

• The end of this episode reminds me vaguely of the end to "The Inner Light", an episode of The Next Generation. And yes, I cried during both endings. One is mournful for the life Picard never got to live - the other, hopeful for the life Fry wants to live.
• "He'll be as strong and flexible as Gumby and Hercules combined!" "Gumberceles? I like that guy!" Easily among my favorite Zoidberg quotes. Also cool to see this dialogue between Hermes and Zoidberg - given how often the two are at each other's throats (or rather, how Hermes is at Zoidberg's throat).
• I also love the implication that worms are in all sorts of food in the 31st century. It was implied during a throwaway gag in "Fear of a Bot Planet". Now... it's implied more heavily.
• Oh, and the next episode is a Christmas episode. Ho ho ho?

Favorite Scene: The aforementioned holophonor scene. In fact, the first and last holophonor scene tie. Not a whole lot more needs to be said.

Best Character: Fry, a thousand times over.

Memorable Quote: "Abandon ship!" - Bender, several times, for reasons ranging from the justifiable to the silly. Figured I needed a quirky comic quote given how heavy the episode is.

Score: 10. One of the all time greats, this one.