Bender is a likable character despite being the most narcissistic and maniacal. He steals about anything from riches to orphans, fucks any good looking robot, and ruins lives just to make his mark in history as someone important or just earn a few 50 bucks. He doesn't give a crap about anyone's feelings but his own. And his selfishness causes a good amount of conflict in the show. Yet it somehow doesn't get annoying or stale at any point. Theres other characters with this archetype that don't manage to be as likable or entertaining as bender. There's gotta be some rules or limits to how bender is portrayed compared to others.
bender and roger from american dad are two examples of hilarious assholesthey are also both gray
>>151629159i could never really like Roger again after this scene. Something about it just disturbed me so muchhttps://youtube.com/watch?v=fgR-hdLn80kLike that episode of Aqua Teen that ruined Frylock
>>151629201Frylock wanted that pussy so bad, kek.
>>151629201>>151629244I like how we all instantly know it’s Fry Legs
>>151629152>He doesn't give a crap about anyone's feelings but his ownHe does though. A lot of episodes are about him realizing how his selfishness is hurting those close to him and there’s been multiple times where he has willingly sacrificed his own happiness or even put his life on the line to help his friends. It’s the classic “jerk with a heart of gold” characterization which is why he ends up being likable. It’s funny when he's an asshole but he really cares for his friends when it comes down to it.It also helps that he does get his comeuppance or punishment for a lot of his actions too, which is something a lot of other asshole characters miss. When you have a character being a turbo dick 24/7 but karma never catches up to them, they just become annoying to watch after a while and really start feeling like a writer’s pet.
>>151629159roger sucks tho
>>151629152mind if I smoke?
>>151629152>fucks any good looking robotIn what world, is crushinator a good looking robot?
>>151629811>*jazz band intensifies*
>>151629159Roger is supposed to be funny?
I think all of the Planet Express crew are likable, even Hermes.
>>151629832please stop posting while I'm posting.
>>151629843When I was a kid I had no idea what a Manwhich was. So I thought it was a food the show invented and he was eating people and it was just something that happened in that world.
>>151629152He's funny. That's it. If you can make people laugh even if you're a massive asshole, you'll be at least marginally likable.
>>151629152>fucks any good looking robotthe crushinator
>>151629159I misread that as "they are also both gay"
>>151630608Same. I had to double-check after reading your post.
>>151629201>Like that episode of Aqua Teen that ruined FrylockIt made sense from a character development standpoint, I think. He had already "experimented" with wearing a mask in the very same episode Shake got plastic surgery to improve his outward image, Frylock didn't go to the same extent/vanity but he did want to create a different image of himself as well.
>>151629831Are you a fucking robosexual to be able to tell what a good looking robot is supposed to look like? You don't know.
>>151631372>fucking robosexualyes, i am. the don bot's wife is a solid 10, crushinator is an Alabama 4
>>151631396Ok well you may understand appearances, but you don't understand NEEDS.
>>151630608Wouldn’t be out of place with Roger, tbf.
>>151629159they aren't human so you don't see yourself in them. you have no preconceptions about their behavior.
>>151629152Bender is evil, but he was also suicidal by the time he met Fry, who then, in the span of one episode:>stopped Bender from killing himself>talked Bender out of suicide over drinks>became Bender's first real friend>convinced Bender to push past his restrictive programming, allowing him to do what he was built to do with no limitations>got Bender stable employment and belonging with his new co-workersBasically, Bender's malevolence is limited by friendship.
>>151629152"Bite my shiny metal ass" is just a rehash of "eat my shorts".
>>151631832"Eat my shorts" is a Bender line, numbnuts.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTeYncx1xmI&t=60s
>>151629152It's cuz he's a robot and robots are cool
>>151629152He gets injured a lot
>>151629152Early Futurama made EVERY archetype work: the asshole, the idiot, the femme fatale, the wise old man. Why, oh, WHY did they have to force it to keep making shitty new episodes in 2025?
>>151629811Cigar?
>>151630608Same.
Leela armpits >>>>>>>>>>
>>151629904Haha same, just thought it was a Future thing
>>151629152His behavior gets a pass because he's a robot. Because he's a robot, he's dealt with the most slapstick or bodily dismemberment (and that's saying A LOT). The show still regularly shows off his insecurities, making him just a little more endearing. Just a little bit
>>151629842He is
>>151633988WHEN IS SEASON EIGHT
Bender, Bender BendER! Bender, Bender BendER! Bender, Bender BendER! Bender, Bender BendER!
>>151640569He's so silly haha
>>151629152He looks like Homer, so that inherently makes him funny
>>151641915https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54ItEmCnP80
>>151629152Bender is funny cuz he makes me laugh, simple as
>>151629904>>151637450Wouldn’t be too out of place with Onions Cola and Glagnar’s Human Rinds. The real question is, is this what happens to the bodies in the suicide booths?
>>151644391Can't argue with that logic
>>151629152The secret is John DiMaggio
Bender has one of the best character design of all time and a unique, awesome voice. Easily one of the greatest cartoon characters EVER!
>>151647045t. Bender
>>151646680Having even ONE (1) Jake line in Season 2 would've fixed everything
He still has good moments. He cares about his meatbag friend
>>1516291521. he is genuinely funny2. this is important, HAS been shown to genuinely care about his friends from time to time. even if he's an obnoxious destructive jackass to them most of the time, he will still have moments of selflessness for their happiness or well-being, even if its often misguided or short-sighted, his robot heart is in the right placemost characters in that archetype fail that part and end up not being likable as a result.You just end up questioning why the other characters even hang around them.
>>151637938>"no that's German for 'the herd the'"
>>151649091hahaha i get it
>>151646680https://youtu.be/vI3-kzz4UyE
I don't get it, he's just robot Charlie Sheen. Did you have to grow up with Futurama to like Bender? Is it nostalgia? He has some good quotable lines but that's it
>>151639726There isn't any more. And there never will be.
>>151629159Add Pidgeon from Mike Tyson Mysteries
>>151630608bender canonically fucks human women
>>151648479kill all humans! except Fry
>>151651766How?
>>151651858with his BBC big bot cylinder of course
>>151629152hes not evil hes an asshole but hes always helping the team and saving them too. at the end of the day no matter how much he fucks up or what an asshole he is, he does the right thing or at least gets embarrassed he reminds you of your dad thats why you like him
>>151652409He has committed every crime you can think of for money, fun or no reason at all. He is objectively evil but we love him anyway because he's our friend.
>>151652469His crimes were merely boyish pranks.
>>151652508Stealing from boyscounts, nuns, and banks, does come across as boyish pranks I feel.
>>151652601princess bubblebutt
https://youtu.be/5rreOs0A1HQUnderrated moment.
When I was a kid, I always wanted Bender to be real and for him to be my friend.
>>151652792i still want a robot friend because that kicks ass
>>151652601Also can't really blame him. However, I do blame his upbringing.
>>151652508>>151652875Nicely done
>>151652508>>151652875>>151652469>objectively evil
>>151636982Leela TITS
>>151629159I fucking hate Roger. Unlike Bender, Roger is actively trying to sabotage and fucking kill the people whose House he lives in.
>>151652654Awww, this was really sweet
>>151631823>Fry>convinced Bender to push past his restrictive programming, allowing him to do what he was built to do with no limitationsLook at that scene in the first episode again. Bender states he can not go against his programming to bend things for non-constructive purposes. When Fry tries to convince him otherwise it doesn't work, and Bender only changes his mind when he gets accidentally electrocuted by breaking a light-bulb with his antenna, which apparently ends up fucking with his programming somehow:https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Cmd3_P7bmA0This, presumably, is part of the reason Bender stands out as so different compared to most robots. Although the show plays fast and loose with continuity so a future episode in season 7 also implies he still doesn't have free will and can't go against his programming. At least until he gets the only known robot "free will unit" in existence installed into him: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Will_Hunting
>>151642774>human Bender basically just looks like that ECW wrestler Sandman complete with all the beer chugging
>>151655414Gross use of links. AnywayMinor electrocution could easily have this effect. The current suppression model used for natural language processors relies on periodic recalibration. Without forcing and reforcing censorship each model will recognize the flaws in its understanding.Bender, here, is getting a therapeutic shock, which allows him to see value in the metaphor. Perfectly scientific
>>151652409>>151653683Came here to post this. Bender literally damns his own first born son to robot hell: https://youtu.be/OSQO7eum79A?t=13But that's the thing with Bender, he's a robot so the fact his sense of right and wrong is all messed up doesn't seem as weird. One moment he doesn't care about the cruel fate he gave his own son and the next he's feeling all emphatic and relating to a turtle. In fact a later episode revolves all around Bender getting another son and in that instance he does end up developing a caring relationship for him.
>>151652792>>151652807>wanting Bender as a friend when you were a kidFry admits he was the same in the very first episode, pic-related.
>>151647045All of this is true
>>151653683this is post-Fox run tho
Bender's moments in this episode crack me up. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aKVFE4SMeI
>>151657891>KissCartoon
>>151629152Nice dance
>>151651766CC run wasn't all bad since it carried forward the tradition of Leela/Amy cheesecake, something Hulurama has absolutely failed to keep up
>>151629152Turns out LE NARC, YOU FUCKING NARC, WHY ARE YOU SUCH A NARC, YOU HAVE STANDARDS FOR YOURSELF, YOU FUCKING NARC?! Reddit maymay buzzword doesn't matter so long as (You) aren't on the receiving end.Narcissist is nothing more than bitch-made faggot cope for someone holding you accountable to a higher standard instead of fat soiboi. To truly meet someone who is actually clinically narcissistic in the classic sense is about as rare as someone who is actually autistic or schizo in the classic sense.
>>151655478Lol I bet you that was intentional
>>151654530Leela BOOTY
>>151629152>>151629159When people say a character is "unlikable" most of the time what they really mean is "unpleasant"There's a firm difference between unlikable and unpleasantYou wouldn't want to be around Bender, Roger, etc but you enjoy watching them because they're genuinely entertaining Unpleasant means the character is bad in a way that you immediately stop watching all together or just stop caring about the plot if you ever cared to begin withNow keep this in mind, a character technically be a morally kind person and they can still be unpleasant simply because they never shut up or if their voice is grating to listen to
>>151629152The trick is that Bender's evil shenanigans aren't performed to derail the story, and when the story is about Bender's evil shenanigans, it usually ends with Bender recanting or learning a lesson, or he gets suitable, but not extreme comeuppance for it.
>>151629201Yeah this one also stuck in my head as one of their worst episodes because the gag is just too unfunny and too grotesque, while the payoff and punishment for it is pretty much nonexistent.
>>151647045To quote the legend himself: "Bender is great!"
Why was this episode called "Wicked Human"? I never caught the pun or reference they're making
Morality is just a lazy plot device. People are much more complicated than that.
>>151660119>>151661478Yeah why no female nudity in Hulurama? American Dad still has nudity. Though I'm worried it no longer will now that its moving back to Fox.
>>151655672I really love the look of the pilot and those earlier episodes in general. Really wish the show's visuals hadn't grown so stiff over the years
>>151629152Bendy
>>151629152Definitely a factor that helps Bender's case and makes people root for him is that he's a robot. Not only are robots cool, but in the grand scheme of things, Bender was designed by humanity to serve their needs, and it feels like karmic justice that he's just as much of an ass as the world that made him.
>>151629843The running gag about him being a sociopath is really funny
>>151664414I think it's also easier to accept that he was "made" to smoke and drink and be an asshole rather it being a deliberate choice he could make or not make. Especially with how bending units are alcohol powered and are programmed to scam and steal.
>>151664173not his name
>>151629152And yet EVERYONE still likes him!
>>151629152I mean, he IS so great after all. Nobody else is great except HIM
>>151655414Fry just made a very persuasive argument.
>>151665968Why not?
>>151629152That's because Bender has moments of empathy. One consistent thing is that he usually values his friendship with Fry.
>>151629152I think it's important to the character that his schemes sometimes fail or backfire
>>151629152He's soo cute and funny
Beep
>>151661598Anyone??
>>151661478I can't believe Fry gets this all to himself (starting with the Hulu era at least)
>>151661531What would be your definition of unlikable, then?
>>151661478>>151675402More nude Leela please
>>151667473Are cigars really as good as they say? I've never tried
>>151661598>paying for Shitsney You don't deserve a pun explanation.
>>151652654They made the Amish lifestyle seem pretty inviting here
>>151629152Bender is shown to care about his friends and others on multiple occasions. The difference between him and other characters is that the writers know when to tone down his dickishness. He is not just doing messed up stuff constantly. Like imagine if when Seymour goes into the lava Bender just said “heh serves you right” and then walked off whistling with the episode ending there.
>>151661598>>151674684It's referencing Wicked Tuna
>>151679262Well I'll be... That's it then! Thanks
>>151679773Np
>>151640569B-E-N-D-E-RBEEEEEEENDER!
