The constant cancelations and resurrections of “Futurama” have taught its makers to be nimble.
The initial run of “Futurama” lasted four seasons from March 1999 until August 2003.
At the time, it seemed like that was the end of things, but it would prove to be a mere five-year hiatus. “Futurama” returned in 2008 in the form of four straight-to-dvd feature-length movies. The first one, “Bender’s Big Score” was about a mysterious time-travel code tattooed on Fry’s butt.
The second, “The Beast with a Billion Backs,” was about a lovelorn Lovecraftian space deity that romances everyone on Earth.
“Bender’s Game” saw the Planet Express crew transported into a Gygaxian fantasy universe (likely serving as the inspiration for Matt Groening’s “Disenchantment”).
“Into the Wild Green Yonder” concerns psychic waves pulsing through the universe, tinfoil hats, and a feminist uprising.
The movies were eventually broadcast on TV, each one split up into four episodes.
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