The Deep South

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The Deep South				Written by J. Stewart Burns
					Directed by Bret Haaland
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Production code: 2ACV12			Original Airdate: 16-Apr-2000

TV Guide synopsis:
    A civilization of mermaids is created from an unlikely
    source:  a caffeine leak.

Title Sequence

Opening theme promotion:
	A Stern Warning Of Things To Come

Opening theme cartoon: 
	Scrap Happy Daffy    {jk}

Did You Notice...

... Fry has the best luck fishing?
... Hermes' "Code of Conduct for Cannibalism" rulebook has
    a decorative bone-patterned border on the cover?
... the mayor presents a check drawn on Big Apple Bank, the
    same bank as Fry's in [1ACV06]?

Haynes Lee:
... Zoidberg whoops like Curly from The Three Stooges?

Voice Credits

- Starring
  - Billy West (Fry, Dr. Zoidberg, Prof. Farnsworth)
  - Katey Sagal (Leela)
  - John DiMaggio (Bender, Elzar)
- Also Starring
  - David Herman (Colonel, Mayor Poopenmeyer)
  - Phil LaMarr (Hermes, Merman)
  - Lauren Tom (Amy)

Movie (and other) References

+ 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne (Book)  {hl}
+ The Abyss (Movie)  {hl}
  - Sea station dragged to bottom of the sea by a cable.
  - Use of new technology to breathe underwater.
+ The Little Mermaid (Story, Movie)
  - Umbriel, like Ariel, is the name of a moon of Uranus.
    (Disney named the mermaid Ariel, it wasn't in the original story.)
+ Splash (Movie)  {hl}
  - Umbriel looks like Darryl Hannah.
  - Spoke high-pitched fish language.
+ Deliverance (Movie)  {hl}
  - Bender hums Dueling Banjos.
+ "Atlantis," by Donovan (Song)
  - Description of the fate of Atlanta is like the song's intro.  {ah}
+ The Beverly Hillbillies  {hl}
  - "Y'all come back now, you hear?"
+ The Bible  {hl}
  - Golden idol (of Ted Turner) results in turmoil.
  - Jonah and the whale.

Previous Episode References

- [1ACV04] Zoidberg talks about picking up crabs in the rotting
           carcass of a whale.  {hl}
- [1ACV06] Big Apple Bank appears.
- [1ACV09] Bender makes recreational use of electricity.

Freeze Frame Fun

- BOOTS: 10 PAIR
- Written in sunblock on Amy's back:  HONK IF BENDER IS GREAT
- "Code of Conduct for Cannibalism"
- Atlantic Monthly -- Short Fiction by a Clam
- Ruins of Atlanta in the background:
  - [[[domed building from midtown???]]]
  - Hyatt Regency
- Ted Turner statue on the SeaNN building
- The check:  Big Apple Bank / Bender Unit 22 / One Thousand Only

Animation, Continuity, and Other Goofs

While space is a near vacuum, a space ship would still have to
handle high pressure upon re-entry.  {hl}

Why does a spaceship have a depth gauge marked 500 to 10,000
feet?  Why does a depth gauge marked to 10,000 feet break at
7,000 feet?  {jw}

Reviews

Trevor Gensch:  The first half of this has to be my favourite of
    the season.  I had to be revived by paramedics after laughing
    so hard with the Fry "rescue" of the flooding ship.  The "0
    to 1" pressure line was also very good.  but the last half
    was pretty awful, mainly because being an aussie most of the
    gags meant little or nothing to me.  Is Atlanta really that
    boring, or is it just the city to be picked on this week?

Haynes Lee:  A nice change of pace in the sci-fi genre and made use
    of the whole crew.  (B+)

Andrew Levine:  [2ACV10] tried to mock some of the more prominent
    scientific implausibilities in Futurama, but I didn't like
    Cubert's arrogant tone in delivering them.  They were done much
    better here.  Bender accidentally burning down Zoidberg's home
    ("That just raises further questions!" -- one of Hermes' best
    lines yet) and the caffeine causing hyper-evolution were a nice
    way of saying, "We know the science is all screwed up, and we
    don't care."  The idea of an anti-pressure suppository is just
    too ridiculous to not be funny.  That said, there were a few
    plot holes.  Fry leaves Atlanta simply because he can't
    impregnate Umbriel?  He's not that shallow.  And didn't
    Farnsworth imply that there was no way to fix the ship?
    How was Donovan still alive in the 2500s+ without being a
    head in a jar?  But there were a few good moments (Atlantic
    Monthly, Fry recalling the airport, e.g.), but I still think
    the idea of mermaids is a little silly for this show.  (B/B+)

Eric Sansoni:  The show visits perhaps its most fascinating sci-fi
    environment yet, in an episode that skillfully blends classic
    fantasy themes like Atlantis and mermaids with the latest
    gimmicks from The Phantom Menace.  For once the intro scene is
    more routine and contains fewer ideas than the main story, but
    after the crew is underwater the fun never stops.  Dr. Zoidberg's
    unique character traits are particularly well-used.  Fry's romance
    provides the story's emotional interest and a lot of funny dialogue,
    but the way it ends is abrupt and blunt to say the least.  As
    absurd as the central idea here is, the show glides over every
    logical bump with creative and amusing explanations, that often
    threaten to become silly but never quite do.  (B+)

Comments and Other Observations

Atlanta

As an ex-Atlantan, I felt a bit homesick during this ep.  I
also noticed a complete absence of local color.  The references
are all things that an out of towner would know about without
visiting there: CNN, Ted Turner, the Braves, the airport, the
Symphony, a couple of other things.

If any of the writers had spent any time there, they could've
mentioned that the city is 2/3 Black (the suburbs are the
reverse), that it has a large and active Gay/Lesbian population,
that few residents of the Metro area have a distinct Southern
accent (especially among Gens X & Y), and that there are lots
of tattooed young poseurs with nose rings who are just about to
become the next great rock star/performing artist/poet/etc.
Instead they had a merman version of the KFC Colonel whose
daughter was a Scarlett O'Hara clone mermaid, and made the rest
of the mer-population Caucasian good old boys with strong
Southern drawls.  (Not that there's anything wrong with being
a Caucasian good old boy with a strong Southern drawl.)

I wanted to see a Black Lesbian mermaid develop a crush on
Leela.  {sc}

Donovan

Spiritual folk singer Donovan rose to fame in 1965.  With his
new and refreshing approach to folk music he proved so popular
that he became Ready, Steady, Go's first resident artiste which
led to a recording contract.  His style, along with denim cap
and harmonica stand created Britain's answer to the already
famous Bob Dylan.  A year later in 1966 he switched from his
folk image to Flower Power.  His soft rock backing and rhythmic
trance-like tunes brilliantly captured the mood at that time.
A little later he took up with Eastern mysticism and cosmic
philosophizing.  Among his hits were "Mellow Yellow", "Season of
the Witch," and "Universal Soldier," with Jean-Claude Van Damme
singing backup. (j/k) {al}

Quotes and Scene Summary

Hermes applied for a pet license for Nibbler, but when it
arrives ...

Hermes: Great Jah's dreadlocks!  There's been a mix-up.
        This isn't a pet license, it's a fishing license.
        And it's mandatory.

The crew flies the ship out to the exact center of the
Atlantic Ocean to do their mandatory fishing.

Bender: So, we're in international waters?
 Prof.: Indeed so.
        [Bender takes out a walkie-talkies]
Bender: Falcon, this is Blue Raven, the goose has nested.
        Repeat, the goose has nested.
        [A speedboat arrives and Bender makes a transaction]
Bender: Hey, guess what you're accessories to.

   Fry: I once caught a fish this big.
        [Fry holds his hands far apart]
Bender: Oh yeah?  I once caught a fish this big!
        [Bender's telescoping arms go out 100 feet or so]
 Leela: I'm afraid you're both out of your league, boys, 'cause
        you're looking at a woman who owns her own harpoon.
Bender: Harpoon my ass!
 Leela: Okay.  [She does so]

Fishing doesn't go too well for everyone, so they start
packing up.

Amy: Ahhhohhhahhh!  Sunburn!  My fabulous body, ruined!

Bender's caught something with the unbreakable tether line.

Prof.: Sweet zombie Jesus, it's huge!

It's a colossal-mouthed bass, and it pulls the whole ship
underwater with it, losing something in the process:

Hermes: My Speedos!

The spaceship can't handle the underwater pressure.  Pipes
burst and the ship starts filling up with water.

  Amy: We're all going to die!
  Fry: Wait!  I'll be back in a minute!
       [Fry flushes the toilet]
Leela: You did it, Fry!
  Fry: Did what?

Safe for now, but stuck on the bottom of the ocean without food.

Bender: Tempers are wearing thin ... let's just hope some robot
        doesn't kill everybody!

Hermes argues for calm, arguing for proper procedure, as per
the Code of Conduct for Cannibalism rulebook.

Hermes: Now, the first order of business is lunch.  I suggest a
        nice lobster Zoidberg ... I mean, eh, lobster Neuberg ...
        I mean, Doctor Zoidberg.

Fry wants to join Bender and Zoidberg in a search for food.

Hermes: Fry, no!  The pressure will crush you like a green snake
        under a sugar cane truck.
 Prof.: Not necessarily.  This is a chance for Fry to test out
        my experimental anti-pressure pill.
        [He produces a huge pill]
   Fry: I can't swallow that!
 Prof.: Well then, good news!  It's a suppository.

While looking for food, Bender grabs an electric eel, just for kicks.
(Kids, don't try this at home.  Just say no.)  Zoidberg finds a nice
shell to crawl into.

Zoidberg: Look at me, I'm Dr. Zoidberg ... homeowner!

After exploring a pirate ship, Bender goes into Zoidberg's shell to
help him move a couch.  Fry turns and sees a beautiful mermaid.  She
swims away, and he can't convince anyone he really saw her.  That
night, she comes knocking on his window.  He runs out to see her.

         [Fry screams as his suitcase of air floats away.]
Mermaid: Here you go, darlin'!
         [She gives him a noseplug device]
    Fry: Hey, I can breathe!  And talk!  Just like a fish!
Mermaid: Oh, you speak Fish?  Bululululu!  Lubulubulubulu!
    Fry: What?
Mermaid: I'm sorry, my accent's atrocious.

She introduces herself as Umbriel.

    Fry: So, uh, am I gonna drown?
Umbriel: 'Course not!  Just stay calm and let the gentle currents
         relax your every muscle.
    Fry: [Relaxing]  Ahhhh, yeahh.
Umbriel: Did it just get warmer?

    Fry: I like your tail.
Umbriel: Oh, you're sweet.  I like those wiggly doodads coming out
         of your hips.
    Fry: Aww, thanks.  They're called pants.

They spend a romantic day together.  Meanwhile, the ship is nearly
ready to leave, and the crew notices that Fry is missing.  They form
a search party.

Bender: In the event of an emergency, my ass can be used as a
        flotation device.
 Prof.: Oh, that reminds me:  You've all taken your pressure pills,
        right?
   Amy: Yes.  Stop asking.

The search leads them to an underwater city.

Bender: Bend me!

They find stone ruins:  CITY OF ATL[obscured by seaweed].

Prof.: Could it possibly be?  Are the old legends true?
       [Leela clears the seaweed, revealing:  CITY OF ATLANTA]
 Crew: Oooh.
Prof.: It is!  It's the fabled lost city ... of Atlanta!

A hillbilly merman greets them with a "Howdy, y'all!"  They head into
downtown and are greeted by The Colonel.  He offers them all some
of the noseplug devices.

Colonel: Have some "breathers," courtesy of our chamber of commerce.
  Prof.: This is uncomfortable and humiliating.  Now, if they could
         put it in the form of a suppository ...

They walk through Atlanta and learn its recent history.

 Bender: Whoa, whoa, whoa.  Wouldn't it take millions of years to
         evolve into mermaids?
Umbriel: Normally, yes.  But the caffeine really sped things up.

Hermes: Well, it's all very nice here, but we should be going.
        I miss me wife and me oxygen.
 Prof.: Yes, we all miss our loved ones and gasses.

Zoidberg: My home!  It burned down!  [breaks down crying]
          How did this happen?
  Hermes: That's a very good question.
  Bender: So that's where I left my cigar ...
  Hermes: That just raises further questions!

Fry: Why couldn't she be the other type of mermaid?  With the fish
     part on top, and the lady part on the bottom?

Contributors

Capsule authored by Jym Dyer.

{sc}  Steve Cross
{jd}  Jym Dyer
{tg}  Trevor Gensch
{ah}  Alan Hamilton
{jk}  Joe Klemm
{hl}  Haynes Lee
{al}  Andrew Levine
{es}  Eric Sansoni
{jw}  John Wasser