Perhaps you’ve already heard: Futurama is getting a revival on Hulu, and virtually every member of the voice acting cast has been confirmed to return except one: the man who lends his talent to Bender, the metallic face of the franchise, John DiMaggio. Fortunately, the Futurama voice-acting debacle was covered via the only medium through which we can handle the bad news, everyone: comics!
40% Curler
I hear they're having some Bender problems pic.twitter.com/o09s1xg0sg
— Andy Kluthe (@AndyKluthe) February 10, 2022
In a series of Tweets sent beginning on Thursday, February 10th, 2022, cartoonist Andy Kluthe shared a series of comics that saw the Planet Express crew getting a brand-new office cut-up: Curler!
The Planet Express crew is mortified by the replacement Bender, gasping in terror as he reaches for a (horror of horrors) hard cider. While there are plenty of objections, PlanEx bureaucrat Hermes Conrad points out that while they can’t morally replace Bender, they can legally replace Bender.
While Professor Farnsworth assures the crew that they’ll soon forget “Bonder” entirely, the internet doesn’t seem to agree! DiMaggio himself took to Twitter to clarify that his motivation in sparking #Bendergate come from wanting creative people to be paid what they’re worth (which does sound like a much nicer world of tomorrow than the one we’re actually facing, doesn’t it). Furthermore, he clarified that – although the rest of the cast accepted Hulu’s initial offer – he feels that everyone on the PlanEx payroll deserves to be paid what they’re worth… which is more than they’ve been offered!
Update: #bendergate pic.twitter.com/tBG7d9hQ3R
— John DiMaggio (@TheJohnDiMaggio) February 16, 2022
“REMEMBER ME!”
Did you get a chance to read Kluthe’s take on the Futurama Bender voice-acting debacle? Which Bender doppelganger would you find most bearable in the role (and is it Helper, the Bender-replacement the PlanEx crew found in the Futurama season four episode “Godfellas”)?
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