A Head in the Polls
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| Futurama episode | |
| "A Head in the Polls" | |
 Bender argues with Richard Nixon's head. |
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| Episode no. | 16 |
| Prod. code | 2ACV03 |
| Airdate | December 12, 1999 |
| Writer(s) | J. Stewart Burns |
| Director | Bret Haaland |
| Opening subtitle | From The Makers Of Futurama |
| Opening cartoon | "Koko's Earth Control" |
| Guest star(s) | Claudia Schiffer as herself |
| Season 2 November 1999 – December 2000 |
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| List of all Futurama episodes... | |
"A Head in the Polls" is the third episode in the second production season of Futurama. It originally aired in North America on December 12, 1999 as episode seven in the second broadcast season. The episode was written by J. Stewart Burns and directed by Bret Haaland. Claudia Schiffer makes a guest appearance as herself. The title is a joke misspelling of the common phrase "Ahead in the polls".[1]
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The election race for President of Earth is in full swing, with two clones as candidates and the Planet Express crew registers to vote. Meanwhile, a mining disaster sends the price of titanium through the roof, and Bender seizes the opportunity to make a quick buck by pawning his 40% titanium body.
As a head with a pile of cash, Bender begins enjoying his new lifestyle. During a trip to the Hall of Presidents in the New New York Head Museum, Richard Nixon's head ruins Bender's illusions about the glamor of a life without a body. The next day Bender heads off to the pawn shop to retrieve his body, but it has been sold. Later, Nixon's head announces its candidacy for President of Earth, using Bender's body to escape a constitutional provision that "nobody can be elected more than twice".
Fry, Leela, and Bender take off to Washington, D.C. to stop Nixon and recover Bender's body. Directly confronting Nixon fails to recover Bender's body, so the crew infiltrates Nixon's room at the Watergate Hotel. Leela successfully separates the sleeping head from the robot body, but Fry accidentally wakes Nixon. Confronting the intruders, Nixon begins ranting about his future plans for Earth. However, Bender records the conversation and knowing that the tape would ruin his election chances if released, Nixon trades the body for the tape.
On election day, Nixon wins by a single vote. He regained the robot vote by replacing Bender's body with a giant war robot while Leela and Fry forgot to vote against him. The episode ends with Nixon on a rampage through Washington D.C., escorted by Secret Service agents into the White House.
[edit] Reception
In Doug Pratt's DVD Pratt noted that this episode was one of the "less inspired" episodes of the second season.[2]
[edit] Cultural references
This episode is the first to heavily feature the character of Richard Nixon's head. Although Nixon is often remembered only as "Tricky Dick" the writers for this episode not only mocked his "ruthless drive" but also showed his resilience and relevance.[3] This episode also showcases the show-within-a-show The Scary Door, a parody of The Twilight Zone featured in multiple episodes. At the beginning of this episode the classic Twilight Zone episode "Time Enough at Last" is spoofed.[4]
[edit] Trivia
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- This episode contains numerous references to Nixon's presidency:
The Watergate Scandal: When Leela is breaking into Nixon's room, Fry asks why he's staying at the Watergate, and Leela responds "They give you a discount if you've been here before", referring to the Watergate scandal. (Nixon, however, was not part of the group that broke into the Watergate complex.) Nixon says later, "Don't expect me to grant a pardon like that sissy Ford," a reference to Gerald Ford's pardoning of him of the Watergate scandal. Foreign Relations: Nixon tells Fry, Bender, and Leela to leave his room "before I get Cambodian on your asses", a reference to tense American-Cambodian relations during his presidency. He also repeatedly refers to them as hippies and Communists. Leela also mentions his re-opening of relations with China. The head of Checkers, his dog, is on the wall of his dressing room.
- While dreaming, Nixon references Betty Friedan, an influential feminist.
- The head of Gerald Ford says, "Frankly, I've never felt voting to be all that essential to the process," a reference to him being the only US president not elected into office.
- As the group is walking in the head museum, Leela and Bender's head pass by a section with the heads of TV stars, one of which is Katey Sagal, best known as Peg Bundy on Married...With Children and the voice of Leela on this show.
- In Bender's dream, a two does appear in the lower right part of the screen. The binary code in the final frame before the bigger numbers appear can be translated into the sentence "get a life".
- When Amy goes to the hemp booth, the hippie says "Dave's not here, man." This is a reference to Cheech and Chong, a stand up comedy duo.
- During his speech, Nixon sings White Rabbit.
[edit] References
- ^ Cook, Vivian. Accomodating Brocolli in the Cemetary, 128.
- ^ Pratt, Douglas. Doug Pratt's DVD: Movies, Television, Music, Art, Adult, and More!, 474.
- ^ Greenberg, David. Nixon's Shadow: The History Of An Image, 346.
- ^ Booker, M. Keith. Drawn to Television: Prime-Time Animation from The Flintstones to Family Guy, 115-124.
[edit] External links
- A Head in the Polls at TV.com
- A Head in the Polls at the Internet Movie Database
- A head in the Polls at The New York Times Movies
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