Insane in the Mainframe
Encyclopedia
"Insane in the Mainframe" is the eleventh episode of the third season
of the American animated sitcom Futurama
, and originally aired in North America on April 8, 2001. The episode was written by Peter Avanzino
and directed by Bill Odenkirk
. In the episode, Fry
and Bender are admitted to an insane asylum for robots after being charged for their roles in holding up a bank. Fry's attempts to convince the asylum's staff that he is a human fail; he is eventually made to believe that he is a robot, and is deemed "cured" and released from the asylum. After being released, the Planet Express crew try to make him rediscover his humanity; these attempts fail, until Fry bleeds and realizes he is in fact, human.
The episode introduces the recurring Futurama character Roberto.
and Bender
become involved in a holdup. The criminally insane robot Roberto hands them bags of cash for their trouble, and after he runs off, Fry and Bender are charged for their role in the robbery. At the trial, Roberto surreptitiously threatens to kill Fry should Fry testify against him. After pleading insanity on the advice of their lawyer, Fry was going to be sent to a human asylum, and Bender to a robot asylum; yet since Fry's is overcrowded (as poverty has been deemed a mental illness), both Fry and Bender are sent to the HAL
Institute for Criminally Insane Robots.
Once there, Fry takes a body test to Bender's enjoyment, but to his own torture. To make matters worse, the doctors refuse to acknowledge that Fry is human, due to their use of the logic that, if Fry is a patient in a robot asylum, he must be a robot, completely disregarding that he is biological life being. Fry is roomed with car-dealer Malfunctioning Eddie, who is undergoing treatment for his exploding problem when surprised or shocked. Fry perseveres, surviving on food coughed up by a sick vending machine
robot.
But just when Fry thinks he is going to be released, Eddie gets released instead, and Fry gets a new roommate: the insane bank robber Roberto, who was captured after robbing the same bank again. The day after suffering a complete mental breakdown, Fry is released, having been "cured" of his delusion
of humanity, causing him to think he is a robot. Roberto, fed up with life in the asylum
, breaks out and takes Bender with him.
Back at the Planet Express building, Fry attempts to discover his function as a robot but has no success as a foodmotron since no one wishes to eat the sandwiches from his "compartment" (the crotch of his pants), has even less success as a calculator since he cannot identify a plus sign, and has no success as a toolbot since he cannot unscrew a bolt (even after he puts oil in his armpits). Fed up with Fry's attempts at proving he is a robot, Leela passionately kisses Fry in order to remind him of his humanity - but it fails to work.
A newly escaped Roberto decides to rob the Big Apple Bank a third time, and Bender takes him back to the Planet Express building to hide out after nearly getting caught. New New York police surround the building, and Roberto takes the staff hostage including Bender who is now convinced that Roberto is a maniac. After waking up from a drunken stupor, Fry, now convinced that he is a battle droid
, takes on Roberto, who jumps out a window after stabbing a can of oil in Fry's chest pocket (thereby "proving" to Roberto he really is a robot and thus a battle droid) and is apprehended by the police. Fry, seeing that he was cut and bleeding after Roberto threw the knife at him before jumping, overcomes his insanity completely. The Planet Express crew praises him for his bravery and Bender tells Fry that he has the heart of a robot inside - just like the severed human heart Bender has in his own body.
Futurama (season 3)
Futurama third season began airing in 2000 and concluded after 22 episodes in 2001. The entire season is included within the Volume Three DVD box set, which was released on March 9, 2004.- Episodes :-Nielsen ratings:...
of the American animated sitcom Futurama
Futurama
Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a late 20th-century New York City pizza delivery boy, Philip J...
, and originally aired in North America on April 8, 2001. The episode was written by Peter Avanzino
Peter Avanzino
Peter Avanzino is an American animation director. He has directed several episodes of Futurama, and currently serves as supervising director on the 6th season of the series. He has also directed episodes of Drawn Together, Duckman, The Wild Thornberrys, Sit Down, Shut Up, and The Ren and Stimpy Show...
and directed by Bill Odenkirk
Bill Odenkirk
Bill Odenkirk is an American comedy writer.Odenkirk was born in Naperville, Illinois. He is the brother of American comedian Bob Odenkirk, and worked as a writer, producer and actor on sketch comedy TV show Mr. Show with Bob and David, which featured his brother as co-star. Odenkirk went on to...
. In the episode, Fry
Philip J. Fry
Philip J. Fry, known simply as Fry, is a fictional character, the main protagonist of the animated science fiction sitcom Futurama. He is voiced by Billy West using a version of his own voice as he sounded when he was 25.-Character overview:...
and Bender are admitted to an insane asylum for robots after being charged for their roles in holding up a bank. Fry's attempts to convince the asylum's staff that he is a human fail; he is eventually made to believe that he is a robot, and is deemed "cured" and released from the asylum. After being released, the Planet Express crew try to make him rediscover his humanity; these attempts fail, until Fry bleeds and realizes he is in fact, human.
The episode introduces the recurring Futurama character Roberto.
Plot
While at Big Apple Bank to open a retirement fund, FryPhilip J. Fry
Philip J. Fry, known simply as Fry, is a fictional character, the main protagonist of the animated science fiction sitcom Futurama. He is voiced by Billy West using a version of his own voice as he sounded when he was 25.-Character overview:...
and Bender
Bender Bending Rodríguez
Bender Bending Rodríguez, designated Bending Unit 22, is a fictional robot character in the animated television series Futurama. He was created by series creators Matt Groening and David X. Cohen and is voiced by John DiMaggio. In the series, Bender plays the role of a comic anti-hero, and is...
become involved in a holdup. The criminally insane robot Roberto hands them bags of cash for their trouble, and after he runs off, Fry and Bender are charged for their role in the robbery. At the trial, Roberto surreptitiously threatens to kill Fry should Fry testify against him. After pleading insanity on the advice of their lawyer, Fry was going to be sent to a human asylum, and Bender to a robot asylum; yet since Fry's is overcrowded (as poverty has been deemed a mental illness), both Fry and Bender are sent to the HAL
HAL 9000
HAL 9000 is the antagonist in Arthur C. Clarke's science fiction Space Odyssey saga. HAL is an artificial intelligence that interacts with the astronaut crew of the Discovery One spacecraft, usually represented as a red television-camera eye found throughout the ship...
Institute for Criminally Insane Robots.
Once there, Fry takes a body test to Bender's enjoyment, but to his own torture. To make matters worse, the doctors refuse to acknowledge that Fry is human, due to their use of the logic that, if Fry is a patient in a robot asylum, he must be a robot, completely disregarding that he is biological life being. Fry is roomed with car-dealer Malfunctioning Eddie, who is undergoing treatment for his exploding problem when surprised or shocked. Fry perseveres, surviving on food coughed up by a sick vending machine
Vending machine
A vending machine is a machine which dispenses items such as snacks, beverages, alcohol, cigarettes, lottery tickets, consumer products and even gold and gems to customers automatically, after the customer inserts currency or credit into the machine....
robot.
But just when Fry thinks he is going to be released, Eddie gets released instead, and Fry gets a new roommate: the insane bank robber Roberto, who was captured after robbing the same bank again. The day after suffering a complete mental breakdown, Fry is released, having been "cured" of his delusion
Delusion
A delusion is a false belief held with absolute conviction despite superior evidence. Unlike hallucinations, delusions are always pathological...
of humanity, causing him to think he is a robot. Roberto, fed up with life in the asylum
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
, breaks out and takes Bender with him.
Back at the Planet Express building, Fry attempts to discover his function as a robot but has no success as a foodmotron since no one wishes to eat the sandwiches from his "compartment" (the crotch of his pants), has even less success as a calculator since he cannot identify a plus sign, and has no success as a toolbot since he cannot unscrew a bolt (even after he puts oil in his armpits). Fed up with Fry's attempts at proving he is a robot, Leela passionately kisses Fry in order to remind him of his humanity - but it fails to work.
A newly escaped Roberto decides to rob the Big Apple Bank a third time, and Bender takes him back to the Planet Express building to hide out after nearly getting caught. New New York police surround the building, and Roberto takes the staff hostage including Bender who is now convinced that Roberto is a maniac. After waking up from a drunken stupor, Fry, now convinced that he is a battle droid
Battle droid
Battle Droids are a fictional, robotic combat unit used in the Star Wars Universe. Though developed earlier, battle droids served as frontline units in the Trade Federation Army and for the Confederacy of Independent Systems during the Clone Wars era. They were mass produced on Confederate planets...
, takes on Roberto, who jumps out a window after stabbing a can of oil in Fry's chest pocket (thereby "proving" to Roberto he really is a robot and thus a battle droid) and is apprehended by the police. Fry, seeing that he was cut and bleeding after Roberto threw the knife at him before jumping, overcomes his insanity completely. The Planet Express crew praises him for his bravery and Bender tells Fry that he has the heart of a robot inside - just like the severed human heart Bender has in his own body.
Cultural references
- The title is a reference to the 1993 Cypress HillCypress HillCypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. Cypress Hill was the first Latino hip-hop group to have platinum and multi-platinum albums, selling over 18 million albums worldwide...
song "Insane in the BrainInsane in the Brain"Insane in the Brain" is a hit single by the American hip hop group Cypress Hill. It was released in 1993 and in addition to hitting number 1 on the US rap chart, the song also was a surprise crossover hit, reaching number 19 in the Hot 100 chart in 1994. It was highly successful in other countries...
". - The name "Hal Institute for Criminally Insane Robots" refers to HAL 9000HAL 9000HAL 9000 is the antagonist in Arthur C. Clarke's science fiction Space Odyssey saga. HAL is an artificial intelligence that interacts with the astronaut crew of the Discovery One spacecraft, usually represented as a red television-camera eye found throughout the ship...
, a spaceship-installed robot from the Space Odyssey series that murderously turns against its human crew. - Robotic nurse Ratchet is an allusion to another nurseNurse RatchedNurse Mildred Ratched is the primary antagonist from Ken Kesey's 1962 novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, as well as the 1975 film. A cold, sociopathic tyrant, Nurse Ratched has become the stereotype of the nurse as a Battleaxe...
from Ken KeseyKen KeseyKenneth Elton "Ken" Kesey was an American author, best known for his novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest , and as a counter-cultural figure who considered himself a link between the Beat Generation of the 1950s and the hippies of the 1960s. "I was too young to be a beatnik, and too old to be a...
's 1962 novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NestOne Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (novel)One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a novel written by Ken Kesey. Set in an Oregon asylum, the narrative serves as a study of the institutional process and the human mind, as well as a critique of Behaviorism and a celebration of humanistic principles. Written in 1959, the novel was adapted into a...
. It may also be a reference to the Autobot in TransformersTransformersA transformer is a device that transfers electrical energy from one circuit to another by magnetic coupling.Transformer may also refer to:* ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, an Android 3.2 Honeycomb tablet computer manufacturer by Asus...
. - Fry's being assumed to be insane because he is in an insane asylum is a reference to the Rosenhan experimentRosenhan experimentThe Rosenhan experiment was a famous experiment into the validity of psychiatric diagnosis conducted by psychologist David Rosenhan in 1973. It was published in the journal Science under the title "On being sane in insane places." The study is considered an important and influential criticism of...
.