Review: "War is the H-Word" (Season 2, Episode 17)

Airdate: November 26th, 2000

Synopsis: Fry and Bender enlist in the Army in an attempt to get a discount on gum. There's no mandate for length of servitude unless war is declared. Within seconds of their enlistment... well, take a lucky guess. Leela also enlists to make sure the duo don't kill themselves. Because of the sexist enlistment policy (no women allowed), she goes in drag, as Lee Lemon.

They go to the planet of Spheron 1, a desolate planet with nothing of note. While there, Fry's attempts to save himself result in him becoming Kif's surprisingly abused assistant, Zapp becomes attracted to Lemon, and an injured Bender is jerry rigged in an attempt to end the conflict once and for all.

Review (SPOILERS): "War is the H-Word" is, at the surface, a parody of war movies, such as Saving Private Ryan. However, since I don't really know any "proper" war movies, I'm going to analyze it on another level - being a direct riff on the Star Trek franchise, and the values contained within said franchise. Oh, and review the characters in this episode.

(I am aware that this was a parody of Starship Troopers, but I never saw that film, so I'm reviewing this episode on my own merits.)


First, we begin with a single quote:

"Your world of starship captains doesn't include women!" 

This line from Janice Lester, from the Star Trek: The Original Series finale "Turnabout Intruder", is considered one of the most controversial lines in the entire Trek canon. It has been interpreted a number of ways - some defend the line as just Kirk refusing to have a long-term relationship while in command of the Enterprise. Others point to the line as evidence of a chauvinistic attitude in the TOS writers room, a viewpoint that is arguably aided by the rest of the episode and some other lines in other episodes. It was the sixties, but still, awkward.

"War is the H-Word", at least in the army, takes gender politics back to the age of Kennedy and LBJ. Zapp's refusal to serve alongside women is fueled largely (if not purely) by his sexist views on women, and it's implied that he clamped down in an attempt to curb any sort of sexual harassment lawsuit against him. This, however, can still be interpreted one of two ways - an edict made by consensus, showing the sexism prevalent in their society, or an edict from the Zapper, showing the disturbing amount of power he holds, even if it's just over the defense forces of Earth.

I'll get back to this topic in a minute.

Also, while the ranks of the federation in Star Trek want to be in Starfleet, and are the best and brightest, in Futurama, the Earthican army itself is full of morons who just want the discounts provided with military benefits, not least of all, Fry and Bender.

Going even further is just how callous the Earthican army is. Granted, the Federation in Star Trek did make some questionable decisions, but at it's heart, it was a foundation meant to expand the intellect and moral good of the universe. Here, the Earthican forces not only declare war on a barren hellhole for the hell of it, but they resort to planting a bomb in Bender to try and wipe the planet off the face of the universe. Oh, and they invaded the home planet for spheroids. Yeah, Nixon declared war for fun, and got a barren planet, at the cost of scores of lives... and that was the better result.

This episode also gives some insight into Fry. Nice as he is, he does have his drawbacks, and this episode showcases his idiocy and, arguably, cowardice. The dude shoots himself into a hole when he realizes that the Spheroids are going to crush him, against the wishes of a soldier. Granted, the mission was (pretty obviously) a senseless mission. But that's not really an excuse - his cowardice still almost kills his friends. Whether you believe he had a genuine reason for self-defense, or was just acting out of cowardice, either way, he sorta tries to make amends... and does so when realizing that his friends and an entire planet are in even more genuine danger.

Leela's role in this episode is within the B-plot, and provides a lot of the comedy involved in the episode. Sexism in the military aside, her disguise as Lee Lemon is pretty obviously a disguise. Only through the idiocy of pretty much everybody does she manage to slip through the cracks. As far as her above-average athleticism, not only was that established prior to the creation of this episode, but if Fry and Bender enlisted to get discounts, than a hell of a lot of other people who aren't physically prime likely did the same.

Thing is, Zapp also feels an un-ironic attraction to "Lemon," without knowing who the soldier really is. Surprisingly, in spite of being a lout, he seems to be content with the fact that he might not be straight - even going as far as to put the moves on "Lemon". (Ironically, this helps undermine his argument that the ban on women was to prevent distractions, so to speak.) Zapp's definitely not enlightened, but it is pretty interesting to see that homosexuality is far from a big deal in the 31st Century - a note that will be brought up in two future episodes - yet sexism remains tolerated.

Probably the funniest character in this episode has to be Kif. Finally placed in direct command of somebody, he finally snaps, treating Fry as a slave. Has Zapp warped him? Has he finally gone insane after being forced to do humiliating tasks for Branigan? Does absolute power corrupt absolutely? No matter how you look at it, this is strangely hysterical.

The entire episode, in fact, is brilliant. "War is the H-Word" is full to the brim with quirks, great comedy, and a pretty brilliant resolution. It's going to be hard to decide my favorite episode of the season - two of the past three (counting this one) have been sublime.

Tidbits:

• This episode, I think, is the first episode to downright confirm Fry's crush on Leela. It was implied in "I Second That Emotion" ("I love every living creature!" "Even me?" "As a friend." "Damn!"), but otherwise, it's been largely put on the wayside this season, with the exception of maybe "X-Mas Story". In fact, Leela actually seems somewhat flattered at this news. Keep this in mind for the third season. The ship has sailed.
• The Spherons are some of the most hysterically tragic "antagonists" Futrurama has ever had. From their attempts at negotiating peace, to their utterly hysterical fables, to the ability to crush enemies without munitions, to the fact that they genuinely were doing it for self-defense? How brilliant.
• Of note, John DiMaggio nailed Henry Kissenger's head. It was amusing to see him talk with Bender, also voiced by DiMaggio. What a yin-yang.
• Although I thought that the countdown of Bender's most used words went too far, I did love the reveal of his second most used word - "Daffodil". I also love how they used every word on the list afterwards, so at least it paid off.

Favorite Scene: I really think every scene with the Spheroids stood out.

Least Favorite Scene: Again, I could've done without the dramatic countdown of Bender's most used words. Only real flaw this episode has, and it still paid off.

Memorable Quote: This exchange:

Fry: Just out of curiosity, we could use the cards to buy gum, then immediately quit the army, right?

Bender: Y'know, playing you all for chumps?

Recruitment Officer: Correct. There's no obligation... [Fry and Bender laugh as they sign. The man takes their papers back.] ...unless, of course, war were declared. [Cue sirens.]

Fry: What's that?

Recruitment Officer: (Folds hands) War were declared.

Score: 9.