Top 10 Bender Moments — Full Breakdown & Transcript

[00:00] Hey everyone, Antonio here, but you can call me Bender. I got ants in my butt and I need to suck. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the top 10 Bender moments from Futurama.

[00:13] The human race can bite my shiny metal ass! Number 10, Stranded on an Island. We are... To compete with Planet Express's new robot, Bender heads in for an upgrade.

[00:33] Chickening out, he flees to a desert island where other obsolete robots reside. Who are you, and why should I care? Side A.

[00:45] We're a community of outdated robots who refused to upgrade and came here. Side B. to live a simpler existence. Although Bender initially misses technology, he soon adapts to the environment in more ways than once,

[00:59] trading his shiny body for a wooden one. Bender decides to live a peaceful life, which entails going back to civilization and destroying technology. I say the whole world must learn of our peaceful ways.

[01:12] By force. Roar! What? Ironically, a talking wooden robot is still more technologically advanced than anything the 21st century has produced thus far.

[01:25] While it all turns out to be an illusion, Fender's upgrade provides a rare window into his deep-seated insecurities and a not-so-rare glimpse at his maniacal tendencies. If that stuff wasn't real, how can I be sure anything is real?

[01:40] Is it not possible, nay probable, That my whole life is just a product of my or someone else's imagination? No, get out. Next! As the episode closes, we also see the world through Bender's filtered eyes.

[01:55] Number nine, Bender meets Fry. It's the moment that kicked off a sometimes beautiful and sometimes toxic friendship. Arriving in the future, Fry is amazed to encounter a real robot.

[02:08] And what's the first thing to come out of this high-tech machine's mouth? Bite my shiny metal ass. And with that, an iconic running gag was born. Given Matt Groening's success with Bartmania, it was only a matter of time until he got a Bender action figure that spouts familiar catchphrases.

[02:25] Act now and you'll get this Bender action figurine. Bite my shiny metal ass. Even in the 31st century, toys still have pull strings. Bender's most valuable asset became such a staple of the series

[02:39] that it took center stage in an episode. Although Bender told him to bite it the moment they met, Fry somehow overlooked his derriere all these years. I'm still missing the shiniest metal piece of all.

[02:51] Your thyroid? No, I'm talking about my ass. Huh, I never even knew you had an ass. Number eight, Bender loses his body. Before Bender lost his ass, he sold most of his body for cash.

[03:04] Pleasure doing business with you. Ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Game's over, loser! I have all the money! Considering Bender's funniest feature is his foul mouth, he loses none of his appeal as just a head.

[03:18] Being a bending unit, though, Bender eventually starts to miss everything from the neck down, especially when Richard Nixon buys his body. Sir the Constitution clearly states that nobody can be elected president more than twice That right no body But as you can plainly see I got a shiny new body

[03:36] To retrieve his body, Bender teams with Fry and Leela for what you could call Watergate 2.0. Once again, tapes prove to be Dick's downfall.

[03:48] We love that the 31st century still finds uses for retro tech like 8-track tapes. While Bender gets his body back, Nixon still becomes president of Earth. Why would robots vote for Nixon now that he's just a head in a jar?

[04:02] I give you the next president of Earth. We're not sure if this is a happy or sad ending, but it's certainly a humorous one.

[04:15] Number seven, Bender duplicates. Fender may be a supporting character, but he got top billing for Futurama's first feature. To complete a complicated time travel plot, Fender goes back to the year 2000 and emerges nearly 1,000 years later.

[04:29] I met all these really cool guys with treasures down in the Larmstone Cavern, so I invited them to stick around instead of coming up when they were logically supposed to.

[04:41] Fender doesn't get lonely during this period, convincing an army of time paradox duplicates to stick around. Rather than wrap up everything in a tidy package, Bender rips the fabric of time.

[04:53] It's a hilariously epic cliffhanger that leaves us with another classic Bender line. Well, we're both. While the time paradox duplicates are all doomed, this doesn't stop Bender from duplicating himself again later on,

[05:05] this time using the Professor's machine. What? This piece is crumbling with use. So there's more Benders around. As far as I'm concerned, that's good news. Some might argue that one bender is enough,

[05:17] but we say the more, the messier, and the messier, the merrier. Number six, bender on the Titanic. While the market was already oversaturated with Titanic parodies, Futurama delivered one of the funniest and most heartfelt.

[05:31] Now, without further ado, I cushion the ship. Titanic. Mm-hmm. In addition to expanding upon Fry and Leela's relationship,

[05:44] the doomed voyage sparks a star-crossed romance between the penniless Bender and the wealthy Countess. This leads to several send-ups of the 1997 film, including Bender drawing the Countess like one of his Earth robots.

[05:58] For all the in-jokes, we all forget to see a softer side of Bender as he puts someone else above his selfish needs, risking his life to save the Countess. In a role reversal, the contest meets her end while Bender's heart will go on in the form of a bracelet.

[06:13] Unfortunately, it's not as valuable as the heart of the ocean. What do you think it's worth? Big money. Number five, Bender loses his soul. Can a machine have a soul?

[06:25] It's a quandary that's been explored in countless sci-fi properties. But Futurama raises an even more perplexing question. Does Bender have a soul? Our money was on no until this episode.

[06:38] Finding religion, Bender converts to robotology and renounces all sinning. Brother Bender, do you accept the principles of robotology, own pain of eternal damnation and robot hell? Yes, I do.

[06:51] Then I will now baptize you. Press any key to continue. Obviously this doesn last long resulting in a visit from the robot devil voiced by Homer Simpson himself Dan Cattelaneta Sorry Bender you agreed to this when you joined our religion

[07:08] If you sin, you'll go to robot hell for all eternity. Ah, hell. I'm running heck. It's all right, you can say that here. Bender lands a spot in robot hell, which is naturally under Atlantic City.

[07:21] Fry and Leela's mission to rescue Bender comes complete with a glitzy musical number and a fiddle playing contest and a nod to The Devil Went Down to Georgia.

[07:45] Bender might belong in robot hell, but he rides above the devil's robot army in angelic fashion. Number four, death to humans. In another episode where Fry and Leela need to rescue Bender,

[07:58] the robot gets taken prisoner on a planet where humans are outlawed. If we're going to save Bender, we've got to look and act exactly like robots. I am fully operational, Captain. We'll have to walk like robots, talk like robots, and if necessary, solve complex differential equations like robots.

[08:13] The episode does an effective job building suspense as Fry and Leela worry about Bender's well-being, putting their lives on the line to save him. This makes it all the more hilarious when they finally find Bender.

[08:25] It's him! He's okay! That's the humans! Ah, it's good to hear his voice. In Less Than a Day, Bender goes from a prisoner to an extremist leader who vows to destroy all humans.

[08:40] Sometimes we forget how evil Bender can be until we're given a hard-hitting reminder. Bender's affection for his friends ultimately trumps his hatred for humanity. Of course, this wouldn't be the last time he joined a robot society and proclaimed death to humans.

[08:55] The human race can bite my shiny metal ass! Number three, becoming a father. Speaking of evil actions, even the robot devil thinks it's cold when Bender trades his estranged firstborn son for an army of the damned.

[09:11] Here you go! Wow, that was pretty brutal even by my standards. No backseat. Thankfully, Bender is a slightly better father to his next son, Ben.

[09:25] Even then, though, Bender initially tries to ditch Ben with his mother, Bev, a soda machine that sounds an awful lot like Wanda Sykes. Sorry, Bev, but I ain't cut out for fatherhood. So here's my certificate of abandonment drawn up by our notary.

[09:40] That'll be ten bucks. Now take your kid and hit the soup line. Since Bev is more neglectful, Bender is left to bond with Ben over belching booze and burglarizing. Alas, Ben isn't able to follow in his father's footsteps without a bending card.

[09:56] In one of his few selfless moments, Bender allows Ben to have a bending card installed, but it comes at the expense of his memory card and any knowledge of his upbringing. You sure take after your old man.

[10:08] I never knew my father. It's not important. What is important is that we get you to Bending State Santa Cruz in time for registration. Number two, Bender meets God entity. Hedonistic, sociopathic, nihilistic, these are just some of the words that have been used to describe Bender.

[10:26] So you can imagine the anarchy that ensues when he becomes God to a tiny civilization Those Peewees think I God huh Hard to blame them Even when Bender tries to do right the micro is destroyed

[10:39] As Bender continues to drift through space, he encounters an entity that may or may not be God. Either way, it's much wiser than Bender, but the entity doesn't have all the answers. So, do you know what I'm going to do before I do it?

[10:53] Yes. What if I do something different? Then I don't know that. Cool, cool. What ensues is a surprisingly profound conversation about why the entity doesn't answer every prayer,

[11:05] and when it does, it's usually with a light touch. When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all. As different as these two are, their meeting shows how God might not be much different than a mortal like Bender.

[11:20] Before we unveil our topic, here are a few honorable mentions. Bender in the robot mob. Born to be a goon. We're going to try you out with a little delivery job. It's for a private lottery that we run.

[11:32] Wow! You guys run numbers? Well, nothing fancy. You know, one is in jail, mostly. Bender the TV star. As per usual, Bender steals the show. Hey, everyone! Antonio here, but you can call me Bender.

[11:45] I got ants in my butt, and I need to shut. Bender the car. Move over, Christine. There's another lethal vehicle in town. Ow! Ow! Bender Sober.

[12:01] And you thought Drunk Bender was ugly. Leave me alone. Look at that five o'clock rust. You've been up all night not drinking, haven't you? Hey, what I don't do is none of your business.

[12:13] Bender meets Finn and Jake. From one John DiMaggio character to another. What time is it? Time for you to shut up! Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos.

[12:26] You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them. If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications. Number one, Hermes' connection to Bender.

[12:39] Before the show's Comedy Central run, we didn't see Bender and Hermes interact one-on-one much. In just one episode, though, they developed one of the most poignant bonds in all of Futurama. Hermes, old pal! Old pal, 8.5 seconds ago you said you hated me.

[12:54] Time heals all wounds. Realizing that he doesn't have a backup unit and will one day die, Bender sets out to find the inspector who allowed him off the assembly line. Hermes accompanies Bender in a road trip comedy of sorts.

[13:07] Application for ingress approved. And the other potential entrant? Uh, he's my pension shop now. You betcha! Proceed. After multiple failed attempts to find Inspector Five, Hermes helps Bender to accept his mortality and live with his flaws.

[13:26] As we see in a bittersweet ending, Hermes was Inspector Five all along. Years earlier, Hermes decided to give the defective Bender a chance to exist, altering both of their fates in the process.

[13:42] What's your favorite Bender moment? Let us know in the comments. Thank you.