After a surprise birthday party to celebrate his hundred and fiftieth birthday Professor Farnsworth dwells on the fact that he has yet to name a successor. While he is off in the lab deciding who should be selected the others each come up with reasons they should be selected... only to be disappointed that the successor will not be one of them it will be the professor's obnoxious clone Cubert... who they'd not heard of before as he was growing in a large glass tube! The professor is keen for Cubert to follow in his footsteps but he just mocks his life's work considering it useless. Shortly afterwards the professor realises that he was wrong about being one hundred and fifty; he is in fact one hundred and sixty which means he must be taken away to the Near Death Star. When the crew learn what has happened they set off to break him out; they just have to find it first!
While I'm not too keen on Cubert's character this episode contains plenty of laughs; the best ones coming in the opening scenes where the Professor things he is up in front of a disciplinary hearing so harangues the panel before learning it is actually his birthday party! Sci-fi fans will be spotting references all over the place; the most obvious ones being to 'Star Wars', 'The Matrix' and an episode of the classic 'Star Trek' series. The escape from the Near Death Star was suitably dramatic and by the end Cubert learns some respect the Professor and his work in a way that gives a feel good conclusion that is also quite funny.
While I'm not too keen on Cubert's character this episode contains plenty of laughs; the best ones coming in the opening scenes where the Professor things he is up in front of a disciplinary hearing so harangues the panel before learning it is actually his birthday party! Sci-fi fans will be spotting references all over the place; the most obvious ones being to 'Star Wars', 'The Matrix' and an episode of the classic 'Star Trek' series. The escape from the Near Death Star was suitably dramatic and by the end Cubert learns some respect the Professor and his work in a way that gives a feel good conclusion that is also quite funny.
