Beast with a Billion Backs

Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs ~ David Cross is a sick sick monkey, and I think he’s hilarious. His presence can virtually turn around a usually bad movie – witness Alvin and the Chipmonks, he made that flick fall-down-and-wet-yourself funny. So when I heard he had a major guest-starring role in the second “Futurama” feature I was already sold.

Things pick up from the last feature as if we hadn’t had to wait a few months. Amy and Kif get hitched, Fry gets a polyamorous girlfriend and there’s a rip in time and space above the earth. As with any extra-dimensional rift, it must be explored, and there a polyamorous tentacle monster named Yivo, played by Cross, is found. It goes downhill from there.

Little things like the Death Ball Arena, the Upscale Human Domicile, the Exorcist 2 and Wishmaster references and of course everything with David Cross are kind of amusing, but for the most part, this feature doesn’t come close to Bender’s Big Score or even the TV series. The subplots are boring and I’m being kind. If only there was more David Cross, love his gonorrhea joke though. Nothing on the DVD special features either this time out, although the preview for the next one looks fairly interesting - a spoof on Dungeons & Dragons. There are two more of these straight-to-DVD Futuramas coming so maybe they can make up for this one.