Joe is struggling with math at school, but he thinks his problems are over when David gives him a calculator. Wishbone imagines himself in The Time Machine by H. G. Wells.
This is one of the episodes that was written by Mo Rocca.
Tropes
- 30 Minutes, or It's Free!: The delivery guy notes that he delivered the pizza in under twenty minutes, and is a bit annoyed when Joe calculates a tip of 15 cents.
- Adaptation Explanation Extrication: No explanation is given as to how the world of the Eloi and Morlocks came about, although it can be said that this at least avoids the Adaptational Backstory Change that occurs in every other screen version of The Time Machine.
- Epic Fail: Joe is told to pay for a pizza and give a 15% tip. The pizza is $10, but he ends up calculating a tip of 15 cents and a tip of $15. And he was using his calculator for this.
- Everybody Hates Mathematics: The core of the real world plot is that Joe is struggling in math class.
- Gilligan Cut: Joe's math teacher explains how you need to challenge your mind or else it shrinks. Then we cut to Joe vegging out on the couch watching TV.
- Our Time Travel Is Different: It starts off as Videocassette Time Travel (like in the book) but then transitions to Wormhole Time Travel.
- Pop-Culture Pun Episode Title: Of course, the title "Bark to the Future" is a reference to the Back to the Future film series.
- Spared by the Adaptation: As in every other screen adaptation of the story, Weena doesn't die.
- Shout-Out: The episode has a rather neat nod to the book crumbling scene from the 1960 film version. Wishbone as the Time Traveler comes across The Collected Works of William Shakespeare (making this double as a Shout-Out to Shakespeare) and reads the famous "Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow" monologue from Macbeth, ending with the line "the way to dusty death." Then he touches the book and it collapses to dust.
- Steampunk: It's a Time Machine adaptation, so of course, the titular device is built in this style.
- Sure, Let's Go with That: Joe was supposed to give the pizza delivery guy a 15% tip ($1.50), but due to Joe's incompetence with math, it ends up as a 150% tip ($15). The pizza delivery guy is fine with that.
- Tempting Fate: Lampshaded. As Wanda sees that Joe doesn't have a calculator, she offers him a pencil and notepad, but he tells her "No, it's all right, I'm fine...", with Wishbone sarcastically repeating that statement and adding "Famous last words...".
- Truer to the Text: Despite how abbreviated it is, this version of The Time Machine is in many ways more faithful to the book than the 1960 film, to say nothing of the even less faithful 2002 film. Unlike in both those movies, the Time Traveller remains nameless, Weena doesn't get Promoted to Love Interest, and there's no Hollywood-style action climax in which the Time Traveller frees the Eloi from the Morlocks.
- You No Take Candle: Weena talks this way: "Morlocks no like light."
