Futurama

A Taste of Freedom

Season 5, Episode 4, Aired 12/22/02

Episode Summary

Dr. Zoidberg is accused of flag desecration when, at a Washington D.C. celebration, he cannot restrain himself from eating a large flag. After Zoidberg is sentenced to death, his people send an invasion force to enslave the people of Earth and teach them the meaning of freedom.moreless

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Cast & Crew

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David Herman

Mayor Poopenmayer, Professor Ogden Wernstrum, Scruffy, Toronga Morris, Larry, Dwayne, Various
Katey Sagal

Turanga Leela, Various
Billy West

Philip J. Fry, Professor Hubert Farnsworth, Dr. John Zoidberg, Zapp Brannigan, Leo Wong, Various

Fan Episode Reviews (8)

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oh, Zoidberg

10

"Perfect"

By futuramarama, Nov 04, 2009 Report Abuse

This episode is easily one of the funniest episodes, if not just for that Waterfall character that dies near the end. He makes this a funny episode.

Zoidberg eats an American Flag on Freedom Day, where people have freedom to do whatever they want. But he eats a flag and everyone hates him. So him and the Decapodians enslave humanity to teach them a thing or two about freedom.

This is a series classic, and this is one of the episodes that makes Zoidberg my favorite character. He is absolutely hilarious and is used quite well in this episode. A+ for suremoreless

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hillarious episode

10

"Perfect"

By Blind_Legend, Jul 02, 2008 Report Abuse

This episode was funny on so many accounts. The first is the fact that it pokes fun at the flag burning controversy. The second is the fact that it continues to show how rediculous Zoidberg and his whole species is. I especially enjoy the part where his mother critizies his choice to become a comedian and tells him about becoming a doctor, and then he becomes a doctor and she asks what happened to his dream of becoming a comedian. I also loved the lawyer who represented Zoidberg. He lead a rediculous life. He had several wives a husband and was purely crazy. He exercized his freedoms to the extreme. This goes on the list of my all time favorite episodes.moreless

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A hilarious episode as Zoidberg goes through US law the hard way.

9.7

"Superb"

By Iverson82094, Feb 19, 2008 Report Abuse

The crew celebrates Freedom Day, a day where you can do anything you want, regardless of the consequences. Dr. Zoidberg seems affectionate about the holiday, as he loves the idea of freedom, something he did not have on his home planet Decapod 10. At the big Freedom Day celebration in Washington, D.C., Earth President Richard Nixon's head unveils the Earth flag ("Old Freebie") to celebrate the spirit of the holiday but the flag is eaten by Zoidberg. Zoidberg feels this is an expression of his freedom on Freedom Day; however, the rest of the crowd sees him as a traitor. Zoidberg is chased around town and takes cover in his planet's embassy.

Zoidberg is put on trial and the crew hires lawyer Old Man Waterfall to represent him. Zoidberg, however, is found guilty and sentenced to death when he refuses to apologize publicly. After Earth's army storms the Decapodian embassy to seize Zoidberg (which constitutes an act of war, since the embassy is technically on Decapodian mud), the Decapodian ambassador to Earth summons the Decapodian military to retaliate. The Decapodian army easily defeats Earth's defense forces (thanks in no small part to Zapp Brannigan's incompetence, after he hands over the activation codes for the entire global defense network to a thinly disguised Decapodian operative named "Hugh Man") and Earth is enslaved by the crustacean extraterrestrials.

Zoidberg does nothing to help his former coworkers, claiming that Earth didn't deserve its freedom. Later, Fry, Bender, Leela, Zapp, and Kif find a heat-seeking missile and launch it toward the Decopodians' newly-constructed Mobile Oppression Palace (a gigantic vehicle left behind by the Decapodians to keep the people of Earth subjugated, as it is much cheaper than an occupation force and just as effective). However, the palace is "cold-blooded," like the Decapodians themselves, and the palace continues its destructive rampage. It eventually crushes Old Man Waterfall for standing in its way, whom Zoidberg respected for defending him when no one else would. Zoidberg then lights a flag on fire and throws it toward the Mobile Oppression Palace, attracting the missile and thus destroying the palace. Zoidberg is declared a hero and is honored by Nixon at a ceremony, where he unveils a new Earth flag, out of which Zoidberg is allowed to take a bite. Zoidberg concludes that Earth, not Decapod 10, is now his true home planet.moreless

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Zoidberg eats a flag and is sentenced to death.

9.0

"Superb"

By mataletea, Feb 02, 2007 Report Abuse

During Freedom Day, a day where all citizens are free to do as they please to celebrate the freedom Earth has to offer, Dr Zoidberg eats an Earth flag. Everybody is incensed at his actions and he is put on trial and sentenced to death.

Hearing of Zoidbergs plight, the Decapodians send ships to Earth to enslave the planet to teach them the real meaning of freedom. Zoidberg is unsure what his people are doing is the right thing and assists Fry and Leela to take back the planet. He is hailed a hero for his actions in saving the planet.moreless

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This is a sweet episode.

9.7

"Superb"

By ian_ralph12345, Jul 05, 2006 Report Abuse

This is one of my favorite episodes. This episode is all about Zoidberg. It's super funny.

There is a new holiday. It's called freedom day. You can do whatever you want. Since you can do whatever you want, Zoidberg eats the earth flag. Everyone gets really mad at him. He goes to court. There was only one person who defneded him. He wasn't guilty. Zoidberg's people inslave the human race. They get the power codes and turn off all of the power. They get everyone to build a huge mobile palace. Fry has an idea. They go to a museum and steal a heat seeking missile. They fire in, but the modile palace is cold blooded. Zoidberg realizes what he's done and he burns an earth flag. He throws it at the palace and the missile hits the palace and it blows up. He gets a medal for saving earth.

I give this episode a 9.7 out of 10.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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Trivia
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- Goof: When Zoidberg sets fire to the Earth flag, shouldn't the heat seeking missile go after Zoidberg because he had a fiery flag and it should go after Bender because of his cigar? It could depend on the strength of the heat signal Edit
- Lady Justice's scale is weighed down on one side by a bag of money. She is also lacking her sword. Edit
- After the opening sequence, Bender along with others is having a can of beer, but when he goes to put on his hat, his Beer dissappears. Right after that Fry's beer dissappears. I say dissappears because there is no way they could set it on the railing, and when the shot zooms out for the opening for the Hot Tub, you can see that they have not been set on the ground. Edit
Notes
ADD NOTES
- The design for the Klingon embassy was originally for the Barbie homeworld embassy. But the writers got tired of the joke and changed it. Edit
- Several scenes were removed from the show for time, including the nude pool. You can find them on the Season 4 DVD. Edit
Quotes
ADD QUOTES
- Dr. Zoidberg: I wonder what the Shroud of Turin tastes like. Edit
- Chief Justice: Also, in a rare Double-Whammy decision, the court finds polygamy constitutional. Old Man Waterfall: I can't wait to tell my husband. (Spectators boo louder) Edit
- Leela: Zoidberg you set us free! I feel like I could stand to hug you! I can't but you know what I'm trying to say. Edit
Allusions
ADD ALLUSIONS
- Welcome Back, Kotter Washington DC is rededicated in 2475 to Washington the Sweathog. The Sweathogs were a group of unruly remedial students on the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter and Freddy "Boom Boom" Washington, played by Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, was the hip, African-American, basketball enthusiast. Edit
- The speech made by the chicken lawyer against Zoidberg's defense speech refers to a very famous Bible verse (Matthew 15:11): "What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him." Edit
- Voltaire Old Man Waterfall paraphrases the oft-misquoted Voltaire line "I may not agree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." Edit

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