A Big Piece of Garbage

Production Number: 1ACV08

Title Caption: Mr. Bender's Wardrobe By Robotany 500

First Aired: 5/11/99

Act I: "Tonight is a special night and I want all of you to be alive!"
Prof. Farnsworth tells the crew that they'll be making a delivery to Ebola 9, the Virus planet. He delays the delivery until the next day, so they will still be still be alive to attend the Accademy of Inventors annual symposium and see him unveal his new invention, the Death Clock.

Act II: "The Smelloscope is brilliant, I tell you!"
At the convention, the Farnsworth is confronted by his old nemesis, Prof. Wernstrum. Wernstrum makes fun of Farnsworth's entry the previous year - another Death Clock. Farnsworth quickly designs something else on a cocktail napkin. Wernstrum meanwhile presents the Reverse Scuba Suit, demonstrated by his pet fish Cinnamon. When Farnsworth's turn arrives, he presents his crude sketch of the Smelloscope, a device that would allow you to smell distant objects, but the audience just laughs at him and Wernstrum wins the academy prize. The next day, he remembers that he already built a Smelloscope last year, and with it Fry discovers a giant spaceborne ball of trash among the stars, headed straight for New New York.

Act III: "New New York is going to be destroyed by a giant ball of garbage!"
Farnsworth runs to warn the Mayor of New New York about the ball of garbage. Wernstrum, acting as the Mayor's science advisor, denounces Farnsworth as a crackpot, until a report comes in from Neptune confirming Farnsworth's claims. A plan is prepared to send the Planet Express crew to plant explosives to destroy it. The plan goes awry because Farnsworth set the bomb's timer wrong, and the crew has to dispose of the bomb so it won't blow them up.

Act IV: "Get that robot some more beer!"
In desperation, they come up with an alternate plan: to deflect the garbage ball by hitting it with another garbage ball. The people of New New York are called into action to start producing garbage. With guidance from Fry, they rise to the occassion and the new garbage ball is launched. The plan comes off without a hitch, and Wernstrum's Academy prize is taken and awarded to Farnsworth instead.

Quotes

 * Prof. Wernstrum: I give your invention the worst grade imaginable: An A-minus-minus.

Characters
(In alphabetical order)
 * Bender
 * Fry
 * Hermes
 * Leela
 * Debut: Linda
 * Debut: Mayor C. Randall Poopenmeyer
 * Debut: Morbo
 * Prof. Farnsworth
 * Debut: Professor Ogden Wernstrum
 * Debut: Ron Popeil's Head

Trivia

 * In this episode, the professor reveals that the planet Uranus has been renamed "Urectum."

Episode Credits

 * Writer
 * Lewis Morton
 * Director
 * Susan Dietter
 * Voice Actors
 * Billy West
 * Katey Sagal
 * John DiMaggio
 * Phil LaMarr
 * Dave Herman
 * Tress MacNeille
 * Lauren Tom (Deleted Scenes only)


 * Special Guest
 * Ron Popeil