Futurama: Cultures: Decapodians

We first see Decapod 10 when Zoidberg and the crew return to his home world so he can participate in the mating frenzy. Their planet is much like Earth, in that it’s mostly water. The main difference is that instead of rock and dirt, they have sand. It’s a giant beach! The perfect environment for a bunch of crustaceans.

They don’t feel love; they just feel the urge to mate. Not unlike most teenage males, and a few older ones. If that urge turns ugly, they engage in a ritual known as Claw Plock. They fight to the death over matters of honor, and whether abbreviations count in Scrabble. Star Trek fans will recognize the concept very well.

Unfortunately, if they mate, they die. As Fry says, “You mean you have to choose between a life without sex and a gruesome death? Tough call.” I guess masturbation isn’t in the Decapodian lexicon. So Zoidberg goes back to Earth after missing the frenzy, keeping his life if not his sanity.

We next see his people much later in the series. Zoidberg eats the Earth flag on Freedom Day, getting himself arrested and sentenced to death. His people invade Earth in retaliation, doing a damn good job of it. Apparently, that lack of maturbatory urge leaves time for excellent weapons development. Although it’s hard to take a warship seriously that looks like a giant sandcastle. In the end, Zoidberg helps defeat his own people, sending them back across the stars, never to be seen again.

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Futurama reviews are © 2006 Chrystal Litchford.
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