On Mother's Day, when all of Earth's robots honor Mom, Mom decides she wants to rule the world, and uses a remote control to send the robots on a destructive spree. As it happens, only one man can stop the carnage and save everyone—her old flame, Professor Hubert Farnsworth.
Tropes
- Agony of the Feet: Mom slams a door against the Professor's foot repeatedly. Thanks to his poor memory, he forgets what he was doing and why his foot hurts.
- The Art of Bra Removal: To get the remote hidden in Mom's bra, Prof. Farnsworth has to romance her and then unhook the bra. It proves to be a tough task for the arthritic Hubert.
- Artistic License – Biology: The Couch Gag line is a play on "Kid-Tested, Mom-Approved" but Imago is the term for the adult form of an insect. A pupa is the chrysalis or cocoon formed after the larval stage before they grow into imagos.
- Berserk Button: Don't take Bender's liquor away from him. Learning that alcohol will be replaced by synthetic fuel once the robot rebellion is complete is enough to turn him against them.
- Black Comedy: Even by the standards of this show, Bender tearing Comrade Greeting Card to shreds while it screams pitifully when he learns there'll be no more alcohol after the robot revolution is dark humour.
- Brick Joke:
- The Professor plans to design an albino shouting gorilla to shout Mom's name from the rooftop. At the end of the episode, several of these gorillas show up.
- In the flashback, Farnsworth presents the little Q.T. McWhiskers toy to Mom, who plans to redesign it as a giant killer robot. The giant Q.T. McWhiskers is seen later in the present day as part of the robot riot.
- Comically Missing the Point: When Mom suggests enlarging and weaponizing the Professor's Q.T. Mcwhiskers doll, he angrily says that giant things aren't cute, citing his Colossal Tammy Tinkle Doll as a failure because of this and overlooking the other, more obvious problem of its size.
- Connected All Along: Mom is revealed to be Farnsworth's ex-girlfriend.
- Cut His Heart Out with a Spoon: Mom says of Prof. Farnsworth, "If I ever see that man again, I swear I'll jam a squirrel in him!"
- Death Glare: Bender, to Comrade Greeting Card, when it declares there'll be no liquor in the Robot Worker's Paradise.
- Description Cut: After building an incredibly shoddy cart, Fry states they'll need something to pull it. Cut to Fry having to pull the cart.
- Dirty Communists: The Greeting Card Bender bought is robotic enough to rebel along with all the other robots. It spouts communist diatribes about the workers' revolution all the while.
- Distracted by the Sexy: Farnsworth's supposed to get Mom's bra off, grab the remote, and leave. Instead, he gets her bra off, glances between the remote and her breasts, then gets busy.
- Driven to Suicide: Played for laughs with one man during the rampage montage. The minute the ATM steals his credit card and refuses to give it back, he tries using a Suicide Booth, which refuses to work, leaving him screaming in despair at the sky.
- Enemy Mine: Mom's sons team up with the crew to end the robot rebellion.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Subverted with Bender. While he's initially shown to love Mom to the point of buying (instead of stealing) gifts for her, one of the buttons on Mom's remote says, "GIVE GIFTS", implying his actions are a result of the remote and not of his own volition.
- Everything Is Online: A variation in that seemingly every electronic device is a robot susceptible to Mom's remote control. Justified, as she explains she included antennae on all of them for this express purpose.Fry: [groaning after the fan moves the remote out of his reach] Is anything here not a robot?Lamp: I'm not a robot.
- Fan Disservice: The elderly Farnsworth and Mom are shown in the nude after having sex. They're so horribly wrinkled that Fry actually mistakes them for elephant-skin rugs and gasps in horror upon realizing what he's looking at.
- Fingore: After the Professor says, "My magic fingers still know how to do their stuff," he cracks his knuckles, bending his fingers in disturbing directions. One finger goes into a spiral!
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: The buttons on Mom's remote can only be seen for a second as she makes the robots rebel. The buttons consist of "GIVE GIFTS", "TIDY UP WORLD", "REBEL", "SERVE MAN (REGULAR)" and "SERVE MAN (IRONIC)".
- Half the Man He Used to Be: Comrade Greeting Card, torn in half by Bender. And then torn into smaller pieces.
- Hand in the Hole: The garbage disposal tries to trick Amy into reaching inside it by claiming that there's a diamond ring inside it. Amy has to be restrained to keep her from falling for the obvious trap.
- Happy Fun Ball: Q.T. McWhiskers, a cute toy that Farnsworth designed while at Mom's factory. Mom wanted to make it eight feet tall and have lasers shoot from its eyes, then sell it on the intergalactic arms market. Later, one of them is seen in action during the robot rampage.
- Hypocritical Humor:
- Bender declares that with robots on strike, the humans will have to do all the work now. Just to ram home the point, Bender sits down on the couch, which has a Bender-shaped groove in it.
- The Professor declares that without robots to feed and clothe humanity (and compose smooth jazz), it will be the end of civilized society. Then he belches and spits.
- Inventing the Wheel:
- Or rather, reintroducing the wheel. Fry being Fry, he messes it up.
- Meanwhile, the Professor devises a new invention of a pointy rock tied to a stick (which, as it turns out, isn't tied very well).
- Ironic Echo Cut:Mom: [recording on a standee] I love each and every robot most of all.
Mom: [in real life] Jerkwad robots make me sick to my ass! - Just the Introduction to the Opposites: At the museum Bender explains the history of the greatest robot artist, Vincent Van Gobot. He was built without an ear but went crazy and had one installed.
- Lost Common Knowledge: After centuries of hovering vehicles, no one knows about the wheel. Fry tries to reintroduce it, but naturally, he gets the shape all wrong and cuts them into long, awkward ovals.Leela: Shouldn't it be round?Fry: It's my invention, we do it my way!
- Low-Tech Spears: Mom makes all the machines in the world turn against humans, forcing them to return to the basics of living. During this time, Professor Farnsworth shows off his "new invention" — a stick with a sharpened stone tied to it.
- Mistaken for Exhibit: The cast visits a wax museum of famous historical robots:Fry: Hey, who's this guy?
Janitorbot: I'm the janitor. I'm trying to take a nap here.
Fry: I'm sorry, I-I thought you were made of wax.
Janitorbot: I am made of wax, what's it to you?
Fry: I mean I thought you were one of the wax robots.
Janitorbot: Is there some reason a robot made of wax can't take a nap standing up in the middle of a bunch of wax robots? Or does that confuse you?
[Fry backs away slowly] - Mundane Utility: Zoidberg's claws are useful for opening cans of food. This is only after Fry spends several hours smashing it against whatever surface he can find.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Amy goes and shoots her mouth off about how "the plan worked" right in front of Mom, making her reject Farnsworth again.
- No Can Opener: Subverted. After all electrical appliances rebel, Fry boasts that he can still open cans with his pocketknife. It's only when he can't that he starts to despair. Dr. Zoidberg then uses his pincers to open the can.Zoidberg: Hooray, I'm useful! I'm having a wonderful time!
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Everyone is shocked when Bender reveals that he bought presents for Mom rather than stealing them.
- Parental Sexuality Squick: Igner is horrified at the thought of Farnsworth hooking up with Mom.
- Schmuck Bait: The garbage disposal claims it's on humanity's side. Then it mentions someone dropped a diamond ring down it. Amy tries to reach it, only to be restrained by everyone else.
- Screaming at Squick: Igner, twice. Once when he realizes that the Professor is "going to touch Mommy," and again literally when Professor unbuttons his shirt.
- Sexy Discretion Shot: Happens between Professor Farnsworth and Mom when attempting to seduce her to get the robot controls from her bra, only for Farnsworth to throw away the bra, blinded by his lust for Mom. Later, the rest of the Planet Express crew barges into the house and after Fry opens the bedroom door, we see both Farnsworth and Mom in bed naked.
- Sickeningly Sweet: Comrade Greeting Card's poem is nauseatingly sweet. The crew even acts disgusted.
- Shout-Out: During the riots, a robot trashcan throws itself through a Sal’s Pizzeria window.
- Skewed Priorities: Played with. The Professor hands Q.T. McWhiskers to Mom, who immediately decides to turn it into an eight-foot-tall weapon. The Professor is hurt and quits... because things eight feet tall "aren't cute". He soon gets over it but becomes upset about it again when Mom wants to make it sixteen feet tall.
- Slap-Slap-Kiss: The Professor and Mom engage in a furious shouting match upon reuniting before inevitably hitting it off.Farnsworth: Go to hell! I was a fool to think you'd changed, you old bat!Mom: [shouting] Filthy, toothless nerd bastard!Farnsworth: [shouting] Damned she-fossil!Mom: [shouting] Stink pig! [They grab each other and kiss].
- Took a Level in Dumbass: It takes only a day for the Planet Express crew to become too dumb to figure out how to make fire.Amy: What do we do if the fire runs out?Hermes: We go across the street to Pottery Barn and steal their fire!(Mom's sons enter)Hermes: Outsiders!Professor: Defend the fire!
- To Serve Man: Appears as a Freeze-Frame Bonus on Mom's control, under the name "Serve Man (Ironic)" just below "Serve Man (Regular)". Played With, given Mom is also human and the robots don't need to eat anything (although aliens that eat humans have been seen on the show).
- Turned Against Their Masters: Sort of. More like the robots have turned for their new master.
- Vengeful Vending Machine: "I've got a big, big thirst for human blood!"
- Victoria's Secret Compartment: Mom keeps the remote that controls all the robots in her bra.
- Was It All a Lie?: Mom is dejected to hear that Farnsworth hooking up with her was simply a plan to seduce the remote from her. She tells him to Get Out! and she never wants to see him again.
- Woman Scorned: Mom's bad attitude stems in part from her failed relationship with the Professor.Mom: Some snot-eating bastards say it made me a bitter woman...Larry: Gee, ma, you're not-Mom: CRAM IT, APE! (slaps him)Walt: Hell hath no fury like the vast robot armies of a woman scorned!
- You No Take Candle: Leela devolves to this after one day of the robot uprising.Leela: Leela bring fire?Walt: No, we're set for fire, thanks.
You created me, Mom,
So, I guess you're to blame,
For the love that I feel,
Just from hearing your name,
You're as tender as corned beef,
And warm as pastrami,
So, I guess you're to blame,
For the love that I feel,
Just from hearing your name,
You're as tender as corned beef,
And warm as pastrami,
I wuv my Mommy!
