HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Bender Bending Rodríguez (designated in-universe as Bending Unit 22, unit number 1,729, serial number 27160571,729 is the smallest number that can be represented as the sum of two cubes in two ways, 1³ + 12³ = 9³ + 10³, serial number 2716057 = (952³ - 951³
Why is the number 1,729 hidden in Futurama episodes?, Simon Singh, BBC News, 15 October 2013
/ref>) is one of the main characters in the animated television series ''
Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company and later revived by Comedy Central, and then Hulu. The series follows Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1 ...
''. He was conceived by the series' creators
Matt Groening Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is best known as the creator of the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Futurama'' (1999–2003, 2008–2013, 2 ...
and David X. Cohen, and is voiced by
John DiMaggio John William DiMaggio ( ; born September 4, 1968) is an American actor. His various voice roles include Bender on ''Futurama'', Jake the Dog on ''Adventure Time'', Marcus Fenix in the ''Gears of War'' series, Dr. Drakken on '' Kim Possible'', ...
. He fulfills a comic,
antihero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero or two words anti hero) or anti-heroine is a character in a narrative (in literature, film, TV, etc.) who may lack some conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism and morality. Al ...
-type role in the show, and is described by fellow character Leela as an "
alcoholic Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...
,
whore Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...
-mongering, chain-smoking gambler". According to the character's
backstory A backstory, background story, background, or legend is a set of events invented for a plot, preceding and leading up to that plot. In acting, it is the history of the character before the drama begins, and is created during the actor's prepara ...
, Bender was built in
Tijuana, Mexico Tijuana is the most populous city of the Mexican state of Baja California, located on the northwestern Pacific Coast of Mexico. Tijuana is the municipal seat of the Tijuana Municipality, the hub of the Tijuana metropolitan area and the most popu ...
(the other characters refer to his "swarthy
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
charm"), his name a reference to
bending In applied mechanics, bending (also known as flexure) characterizes the behavior of a slender structural element subjected to an external Structural load, load applied perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the element. The structural eleme ...
in Mexican
maquiladora A (), or (), is a factory that is largely duty (economics), duty free and tariff free. These factories take raw materials and assemble, manufacture, or process them and export the finished product. These factories and systems are present thro ...
s. Bender is known for being prejudiced against non-robots. For example, one of his signature expressions is "kill all humans". Those who are not subject to Bender's prejudicial attitude are documented on his "Do Not Kill" list, which includes only his best friend Philip J. Fry and his colleague Hermes Conrad (added after the episode " Lethal Inspection"). However, Bender is also occasionally portrayed as possessing a sympathetic side, suggesting that he is not as belligerent as he claims, a view often echoed by his friends.


Character biography

Bender, a high-tech industrial
metalworking Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals in order to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term, it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on e ...
robot, was built in 2996 at Fábrica Robótica De La Madre (Spanish: "Mom's Robot Factory"), a manufacturing facility of Mom's Friendly Robot Company in
Tijuana Tijuana is the most populous city of the Mexican state of Baja California, located on the northwestern Pacific Coast of Mexico. Tijuana is the municipal seat of the Tijuana Municipality, the hub of the Tijuana metropolitan area and the most popu ...
, Mexico. However, the story of his construction remains a mystery. Although different creation processes have been shown, Cohen has stated that the viewer has only been shown Bender emerging from the machine that created him, while what happened inside the machine has not yet been revealed. According to one version, suggested by Hermes' flashback, and also by a reverse aging process shown in the episode " Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles", a newborn Bender possessed a baby-like body. In " Bendless Love", however, Bender is portrayed with a normal, adult-sized body in a flashback sequence conveying his memory of coming into existence. As Bender's memory chip contains an adult form, the episode's content suggests that the character might actually be recalling a transfer to an adult body, rather than the moment of creation. Unlike most other robots, Bender is mortal and, according to
Professor Farnsworth Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''Futurama''. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express ...
's calculations, may have less than one billion years to live. Because of a manufacturing error that left Bender without a
backup In information technology, a backup, or data backup is a copy of computer data taken and stored elsewhere so that it may be used to restore the original after a data loss event. The verb form, referring to the process of doing so, is "wikt:back ...
unit, Bender's memory cannot be transferred or uploaded to another robot body. After reporting that defect to his manufacturer, Bender barely escapes death from a guided missile and a robot
death squad A death squad is an armed group whose primary activity is carrying out extrajudicial killings, massacres, or enforced disappearances as part of political repression, genocide, ethnic cleansing, or revolutionary terror. Except in rare cases in w ...
dispatched by
Mom A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gestatio ...
in order to eliminate him and effectively take the defective product off the market. At the factory, Bender was programmed for cold-bending
structural steel Structural steel is steel used for making construction materials in a variety of shapes. Many structural steel shapes take the form of an elongated beam having a profile of a specific cross section (geometry), cross section. Structural steel sha ...
. Bender later attended Bending State University, where he majored in bending and minored in Robo-American Studies. At the university, he was a member of Epsilon Rho Rho (ERR), a robot
fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...
, where he became something of a fraternity hero for his many shenanigans: one night he chugged an entire keg of
beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...
, streaked across campus, and stuffed 58 people into a
telephone booth A telephone booth, telephone kiosk, telephone call box, telephone box or public call box is a tiny structure furnished with a payphone and designed for a telephone user's convenience; typically the user steps into the booth and closes the boot ...
(although he concedes they were mostly children). Before meeting Fry and Leela and joining Planet Express (where he currently works as the assistant manager of sales and as company chef), Bender had a job at the metalworking factory, bending steel
girder A girder () is a Beam (structure), beam used in construction. It is the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams. Girders often have an I-beam cross section composed of two load-bearing ''flanges'' separated by a sta ...
s for the construction of suicide booths. Bender has an apartment (00100100, the ASCII code for the dollar sign "$") in the "Robot Arms Apts." building, where he eventually invites his best friend and coworker, Fry, to live with him. Although the pair enjoy living together, Bender is sometimes portrayed as manipulating his guileless friend. In the series' early episodes, Bender is shown preferring to occupy smaller areas of their apartment, like the closet, referring to them as "cozy", although in later episodes he is shown to have his own individual bedroom, like Fry. Throughout the series, he enters many romantic relationships of varying duration, and is commonly referred to as a womanizer by his friends. He does not seem to discriminate between human women and their robot or "fem-bot" counterparts, and is shown actively pursuing both. Likewise, his taste in fem-bot partners does not seem to be affected by the fem-bot's height or weight, and he is shown numerous times chasing fem-bots of all builds. In " Proposition Infinity", Bender's secret affair with coworker
Amy Wong This article lists the many characters of ''Futurama,'' an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a ...
leads to a
referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...
that, once approved, legalizes robosexuality. In " The Bots and the Bees", he has a sexual encounter with a fem-bot soda vending machine that leads to the almost-instantaneous birth of a son, whom he names Ben, after the first part of his own name.
Professor Farnsworth Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''Futurama''. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express ...
describes Bender to be constructed of an alloy of iron and
osmium Osmium () is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Os and atomic number 76. It is a hard, brittle, bluish-white transition metal in the platinum group that is found as a Abundance of elements in Earth's crust, trace element in a ...
- despite Bender himself claiming to be made of 40% titanium in Season 2 Episode 13. The Professor also states Bender contains a 0.04% nickel impurity, a trait which he claimed made himself unique. Bender hates magnets, as magnets interfere with his inhibition unit, causing him to uncontrollably start singing
folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...
/
folk songs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...
when near his head, and also causing him to reveal his secret ambition to be a folk singer. He once was able to attach a magnetic small faux-beard underneath his mouth without breaking into song. Bender also has a near-pathological fear of electric can openers due to the death of his father, caused by one, and the fact that it once ripped open the top of his head as it would a can.


Character


Creation

The name Bender was chosen by creator Matt Groening as an homage to John Bender (played by Judd Nelson), a character in ''
The Breakfast Club ''The Breakfast Club'' is a 1985 American independent teen coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes. The ensemble cast includes Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ring ...
''. In that film, John Bender told Principal Vernon (
Paul Gleason Paul Xavier Gleason (May 4, 1939 – May 27, 2006) was an American film and television actor. He was known for his roles on television series such as ''All My Children'' and films such as '' The Breakfast Club'', ''Trading Places'', and ''Di ...
), " Eat my shorts," an eventual catchphrase for another Groening creation,
Bart Simpson Bartholomew Jo-Jo "Bart" Simpson is a character in the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' who is part of the titular family. Bart made his television debut in the short " Good Night" on '' The Tracey Ullman Show'' on Apri ...
. Bender's visual design went through multiple changes before reaching its final state. One of the decisions which Groening found to be particularly difficult was whether Bender's head should be square or round. Initially he worked under the idea that all robots would have square heads in the year 3000; however, it was later decided that Bender's head should be round, a visual play on the idea that Bender is a "round peg in a square hole".


Voice

When casting for ''Futurama'', Bender's voice was the most difficult to cast, in part because the show's creators had not yet decided what robots should sound like. Because of this, every voice actor who auditioned, no matter for what role, was also asked to read for Bender. After about 300 auditions, even series co-creator Cohen attempted to audition after being told he sounded like a robot. John DiMaggio was eventually chosen for the role after his second audition. DiMaggio originally auditioned using his Bender voice for the role of
Professor Farnsworth Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''Futurama''. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express ...
and also used a voice later used for URL the police robot for Bender. He describes the voice he got the part with as a combination of a sloppy drunk,
Slim Pickens Louis Burton Lindley Jr. (June 29, 1919 – December 8, 1983), better known by his stage name Slim Pickens, was an American actor and rodeo performer. Starting off in the rodeo, Pickens took up acting, and appeared in dozens of movies and TV sho ...
, and a character one of his college friends created named "Charlie the sausage-lover". Casting directors liked that he made the character sound like a drunk, rather than an automaton. DiMaggio has noted that he had difficulty singing as Bender in " Hell Is Other Robots" because he was forced to sing the harmony part in a low key. On March 1, 2022, following publicized contract negotiations, DiMaggio confirmed he is reprising his role for the
Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...
revival.


Design

Bender's factory-set height is just over tall, including his antenna, and just under it without. In " The Farnsworth Parabox", Bender states that he flipped a coin to decide his color, ending up with foghat gray rather than gold. In " The Cyber House Rules", Bender shows the kids a black-and-white
mug shot A mug shot or mugshot (an informal term for police photograph or booking photograph) is a Portrait photography, photographic portrait of a person from the shoulders up, typically taken after a person is placed under arrest. The primary purpose ...
of himself taken after his arrest for theft. In "
Time Keeps on Slippin' "Time Keeps On Slippin" is the fourteenth episode in the third season of the American animated television series ''Futurama'', and the 46th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 6, 200 ...
", Bender is shown trying to join a basketball team and makes himself taller by simply extending his legs. His body has a "shiny metal ass", two legs, two "Extens-o-matic" arms (right called "Gropie" and left "Cheatie" by Bender) with three fingers each, a head with two replaceable eyes shaped like
light-emitting diode A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corre ...
s, and a mouth used for fuel intake and voice communication. In "
Bender Gets Made "Bender Gets Made" is the thirteenth episode in the Futurama season 2, second List of Futurama episodes, season of the American animated television series ''Futurama'', and the 26th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on the Fox ...
", Bender claims he also has a nose, but he chooses not to wear it. Bender's human-like characteristics are reinforced by his display of behaviors often regarded as exclusive to humans, such as whistling, snoring, having bloodshot eyes,
crying Crying is the dropping of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state or physical pain. Emotions that can lead to crying include sadness, anger, joy, and fear. Crying can also be caused by relief from a period ...
, feeling physical attraction, being tickled,
dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...
ing, and belching. Other bending units of the same model as Bender, such as Flexo, share the same hardware design, but differ in terms of their personality and behavior. For example, Flexo shows personality traits similar to those of Bender but is not quite as "evil" as Bender. In the episode "
Mother's Day Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family or individual, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world, most commonly in Mar ...
", Leela looks through a simulation of a bending unit's sight, which targets potential rubes and then denotes a plan to rob them and leave them in a ditch, implying that all bending robots are somewhat prone to theft and amoral by design. However, another unit, Billy West (named after the series voice actor of the same name), is helpful and kind, though he lives as a farmer on the Moon and insists on not being a bending unit. Bender's
serial number A serial number (SN) is a unique identifier used to ''uniquely'' identify an item, and is usually assigned incrementally or sequentially. Despite being called serial "numbers", they do not need to be strictly numerical and may contain letters ...
, 2716057, can be expressed as the sum of two cubes (9523 + (-951)3), which is humorous to Bender and Flexo after Flexo reveals that his serial number (3370318) has the same characteristic (1193 + 1193) (also, Bender’s designation 1729 is a taxicab number).


Functions

Bender was designed specifically for the relatively simple task of bending straight metal girders into various angles. Despite this apparent simplicity, he possesses numerous features superfluous to his original purpose, which become more apparent after an electric jolt to his antenna from an overhead light socket in the pilot episode. The scope of Bender's functionality is impressive; he often acts as if he were a multifunctional
gadget A gadget is a machine, mechanical device or any ingenious article. Gadgets are sometimes referred to as ''wikt:gizmo, gizmos''. History The etymology of the word is disputed. The word first appears as reference to an 18th-century tool in Glass ...
rather than a special bending machine. Similar to a contemporary computer, he hosts a number of input/output devices: his head has a data socket and remotely operated volume control. His body has a socket for a microphone jack, a dual-socket power receptacle, a
reset button In a computer or data transmission system, a reset clears any pending errors or events and brings a system to normal condition or an initial state, usually in a controlled manner. It is usually done in response to an error condition when it is ...
, a
kill switch A kill switch, also known more formally as an emergency brake, emergency stop (E-stop), emergency off (EMO), or emergency power off (EPO), is a safety mechanism used to shut off machinery in an emergency, when it cannot be shut down in the usu ...
, and a self-destruct button. Having the hardware-based self-destruct control on his body, rather than in his software, prevents Bender from killing himself in " A Head in the Polls" when he pawns everything but his head, grows desperate without it and desires to kill himself. Bender is capable of disassembling and reassembling his body at will and operating each detached body part individually and remotely, presumably by using his transmitter and antenna to send wireless signals. His head can be used for a wide range of functions, whether attached to his body or not. In one episode, Leela reassembles Bender into a functioning
go-kart A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of small sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performanc ...
(albeit in an event shown in the "What-If" machine). Bender uses his chest cavity as a locker, which seems to store much more than is physically possible; it is often used to store heads in jars, small children,
alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...
,
money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are: m ...
, loot, the world's last
darkroom A darkroom is used to process photographic film, make Photographic printing, prints and carry out other associated tasks. It is a room that can be made completely dark to allow the processing of light-sensitive photographic materials, including ...
, and, on a few occasions, Fry. In " The Route of All Evil", the cavity was also used as a boil kettle, hopback and fermentation tank to produce home-made beer. Upon inspection of his body, it appears to be empty, though devices like the F-Ray reveal that, despite appearing hollow, Bender's body contains gears and other robotic components. Being an electronic machine, he can perform quick mathematical calculations.


Build

As a bending unit, Bender possesses extraordinary strength, which he often demonstrates by lifting heavy objects, smashing through walls, and even bending an enormous steel girder marked "UNBENDABLE" (in " Bendless Love"). His mechanical nature also makes him far more durable than the rest of the cast, capable of surviving gunfire, explosions, extreme heat, deep water, or hard vacuum. Even when his body is seemingly destroyed or completely detached from his head, it has no effect on Bender's ability to think and communicate, indicating that his main processing facilities are located in his head. Bender's hardware is controlled by a factory-loaded
operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common daemon (computing), services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems scheduler (computing), schedule tasks for ...
, which reboots upon incidental shutdown and automatically adjusts its settings to the environment detected at the time of rebooting. For example, in " The Birdbot of Ice-Catraz", when Bender reboots, his visual sensors detect a colony of penguins, prompting his
boot loader A bootloader, also spelled as boot loader or called bootstrap loader, is a computer program that is responsible for booting a computer and booting an operating system. If it also provides an interactive menu with multiple boot choices then it's o ...
to re-initialize him with penguin-like behavior and language. He is equipped with a vast capacity of
computer data storage Computer data storage or digital data storage is a technology consisting of computer components and Data storage, recording media that are used to retain digital data. It is a core function and fundamental component of computers. The cent ...
, in excess of 100,001
terabyte The byte is a unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character of text in a computer and for this reason it is the smallest addressable un ...
s: 1 TB for general storage and 100,000 TB for the storage of pornography, though in " Overclockwise" Cubert Farnsworth deletes 12 TB of outdated catchphrases from Bender. Presumably either Bender has a separate "catchphrase drive" or the majority of the catchphrases are also pornographic.


Source of energy

Bender is powered by
alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...
-based fuels, which he can convert into an electrical power source sufficient to operate not only himself, but also small household appliances plugged into his power receptacle. Low alcohol intake levels decrease his production of electricity: when he stops drinking and begins to "sober", his behavior grows increasingly ebrious and dysfunctional, and he grows a red beard of
rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH) ...
. He is also, apparently, able to sustain himself by consuming mineral oil, though he considers this to be only 'functional'. Due to
Professor Farnsworth Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''Futurama''. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express ...
's flawed design, the energy conversion process inside Bender's body produces an inordinate amount of waste gases and heat. He can expel these products from his rear end or, more often, as a flaming belch. He also has a nuclear pile inside his body, as seen in " Godfellas". However, its location and purpose are not clear.


Personality

Bender often exhibits sociopathic behavior; he is a
pathological liar Pathological lying, also known as ''pseudologia fantastica'' (Latin for "fantastic pseudology"), is a chronic behavior characterized by the habitual or compulsive tendency to lie. It involves a pervasive pattern of intentionally making false ...
and rarely shows any
empathy Empathy is generally described as the ability to take on another person's perspective, to understand, feel, and possibly share and respond to their experience. There are more (sometimes conflicting) definitions of empathy that include but are ...
(his most frequent catchphrase to any bothersome person is "Bite my shiny metal ass!"). He has a mostly voluntary morality and constantly steals, ranging from the petty theft of wallets to crimes such as
kidnapping Kidnapping or abduction is the unlawful abduction and confinement of a person against their will, and is a crime in many jurisdictions. Kidnapping may be accomplished by use of force or fear, or a victim may be enticed into confinement by frau ...
Jay Leno James Douglas Muir Leno ( ; born April 28, 1950) is an American television host, comedian, and writer. After doing stand-up comedy for years, he became the host of NBC's ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Tonight Show'' from 1992 until 200 ...
's head and stealing Fry's blood and kidney. He also once stole Amy's earrings while giving her a hug. It was shown in " Roswell That Ends Well" that even in a disassembled state, his individual limbs carry on attempting to steal anything in proximity; the hand on his dismembered arm steals a wallet out of a scientist's pocket before becoming inactive again. He is shown throughout the series as having a secret desire to be a
folk musician Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has bee ...
that only manifests itself when a magnet is placed on or near his head. This desire is finally fulfilled in the episode " Bendin' in the Wind": an accident involving a giant
can opener A can opener (North American and Australian English) or tin opener (British English) is a mechanical device used to open metal tin cans. Although preservation of food using tin cans had been practiced since at least 1772 in the Netherlands, the ...
leaves him with a mutilated chest and paralyzed from the neck down. An encounter with
Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...
during his hospitalization leads to his becoming lead washboard player and the two teaming up for a musical tour that turns Bender into a
folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythology, mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in Folk music, folk songs, folk tales ...
for other broken robots, only for his career to end when he finally recovers. He is also fascinated with cooking, being the chef of the ''Planet Express Ship'', though he is shown to have no sense of actual
taste The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste. Taste is the perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth biochemistry, reacts chemically with taste receptor cells l ...
. In fact, his early dinners were so horrible that even the omnivorous Zoidberg could not eat it. In his first attempt, he creates a dinner for the crew that is so over-salted they all gag (which is aggravated further when their drinks turn out to be "salt with water in them"); he then remarks that the food was fine since the salt content was 10% below a lethal dose (unfortunately, Zoidberg had seconds). In " The Problem with Popplers", he creates dinner consisting of nothing but
caper ''Capparis spinosa'', the caper bush, also called Flinders rose, is a perennial plant that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers. The taxonomic status of the species is controversial and unsettled. Species with ...
s and
baking soda Sodium bicarbonate (IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda (or simply “bicarb” especially in the UK) is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt (chemistry), salt compose ...
, and mistakenly expresses his belief that humans eat rocks. He seems to improve his cooking skills over the series, cooking a lavish cake for Nibbler's birthday party and beating Elzar for the title of Iron Cook (though he uses a potion called "The Essence of Pure Flavor", which consists of water and a generous portion of
LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD (from German ; often referred to as acid or lucy), is a semisynthetic, hallucinogenic compound derived from ergot, known for its powerful psychological effects and serotonergic activity. I ...
to make the judges hallucinate that his food tastes good). In '' Into the Wild Green Yonder'', he mistakenly bakes prison guards a cake with
nutmeg Nutmeg is the seed, or the ground spice derived from the seed, of several tree species of the genus '' Myristica''; fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg ('' M. fragrans'') is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fru ...
thinking it was a natural human sleep drug, before being corrected by Amy that nutmeg is in fact a baking ingredient (nutmeg in high doses will in fact cause psychoactive effects). As a robot, he possesses an incredible amount of patience. In "Roswell That Ends Well", he is shown to wait over a thousand years in sand after his head is lost during a trip back in time to 1947, as well as many thousands of years in caverns under New New York City (although on this occasion he was also in the presence of multiple alternate versions of himself that had previously made the same 'trip'). Despite the long wait, it is implied that Bender does not power down, apparently enjoying his own company so much that he does not consider it necessary. However, in one episode, he shows next to no patience as a one-time joke. Although the consumption of alcohol is necessitated by Bender's design and should not be generally viewed as a vice for alcohol-fueled robots, he apparently drinks far more than he needs for energy. His excessive drinking contributes to his characterization as an alcoholic (" Hell Is Other Robots" reveals that robots can function equally well on mineral oil instead of alcohol, also contributing to the perception of Bender's alcohol use as a vice). If he is deprived of alcohol, for instance during periods of depression, he ceases to function properly and shows signs similar to human
drunkenness Alcohol intoxication, commonly described in higher doses as drunkenness or inebriation, and known in overdose as alcohol poisoning, is the behavior and physical effects caused by recent consumption of alcohol. The technical term ''intoxication ...
, including developing a rusty five o'clock shadow. As noted above, his disembodied head has survived for millennia with, presumably, no source of alcohol, so it may be that, when a mere head, Bender neither requires alcohol nor suffers from its absence. When he is sufficiently frightened or sickened,
brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...
s fall from his backside (a reference to the slang "shitting bricks"). When sufficiently fascinated by something, he may pull out a camera and snap a picture, adding the
catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
"Neat!". He has also been shown to be able to use his eyes as cameras. In addition to drinking, he also has an affinity for cigars, which he ignites with a
lighter A lighter is a portable device which uses mechanical or electrical means to create a controlled flame, and can be used to ignite a variety of flammable items, such as cigarettes, butane gas, fireworks, candles, or campfires. A lighter typic ...
built into his finger, although in " Decision 3012" he uses a
Zippo A Zippo lighter is a reusable metal lighter produced by Zippo Manufacturing Company of Bradford, Pennsylvania, Bradford, Pennsylvania, United States. Thousands of different styles and designs have been made since their introduction in 1933, incl ...
. Unlike drinking alcohol for fuel, Bender tells Fry that he smokes cigars simply because they "make imlook cool". Despite being a robot, he has been seen to show emotion on many occasions, even shedding a tear in "
Crimes of the Hot "Crimes of the Hot" is the eighth episode in the fourth season of the American animated television series '' Futurama'', and the 62nd episode of the series overall. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 10 ...
". One of the series'
running joke A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling. Though they are similar, catchphrases are not ...
s revolves around Bender having emotions, when technically he should be an unfeeling machine. Bender is seemingly unaware of his emotions, stating in the episode "Anthology of Interest II", "I mean, being a robot's great, but we don't have emotions, and sometimes that makes me very sad". In his very first appearance, he tries to commit suicide via a suicide booth out of guilt for having unknowingly contributed to their creation. He has also been known to be nonchalant to the point of appearing both uncaring and incredibly brave, even in life-threatening situations. Bender is a classic
narcissist Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own needs, often at the expense of others. Narcissism, named after the Greek mythological figure ''Narcissus'', has evolv ...
. He considers himself flawless, a "towering inferno of physical perfection", and refers to himself in both the first and third person. In " The Farnsworth Parabox" Bender seemingly falls in love with an alternate
gold-plated Gold plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of gold onto the surface of another metal, most often copper or silver (to make silver-gilt), by a chemical or electrochemical (electroplating) process. Plating refers to modern coating met ...
version of himself, stating that he has finally found someone "as great as me". Even his personal email address, [email protected], reflects his self-absorption. Despite these human characteristics, he has no verifiable
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
, as seen in " Obsoletely Fabulous" when he passes through a "soul detector" without setting off the alarm. However, in " Ghost in the Machines", Bender becomes a ghost who can't interact with people directly but can possess machinery: he uses this ability to "scare Fry to death". He eventually makes a deal with the Robot Devil (
Dan Castellaneta Daniel Louis Castellaneta ( ; born October 29, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for voicing Homer Simpson on the animated series ''The Simpsons'' (as well as other characters on the show such as Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, ...
) to get a new body. His relationships with the rest of the crew of Planet Express vary over time, although he treats nearly all biological organisms with disdain. The only one of his friends who he has openly shown affection for is Fry, his best friend and roommate. "Of all the friends I've had,
e is E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plu ...
the first." Although he is verbally and physically abusive towards Fry and considers him to be vastly inferior to him, he has been shown to care for him a great deal. In "
Jurassic Bark "Jurassic Bark" is the seventh episode in the fourth season of the American animated television series '' Futurama'', and the 61st episode of the series overall. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 17, 2002. Th ...
" he states that he loves Fry "the way a human loves a dog, or the way a gorilla loves a kitty", and in " I Second That Emotion" when Bender gets jealous of Leela’s pet Nibbler and flushes him down the toilet, a distraught Leela asks how he would feel if she did the same to Fry, describing Fry as Bender's pet (Bender responds with an apathetic "Only one way to find out."). He routinely takes advantage of his friends, including framing them for crimes, robbing them, stealing Fry's
blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood is com ...
on more than one occasion, stealing Fry's
power of attorney A power of attorney (POA) or letter of attorney is a written authorization to represent or act on another's behalf in private affairs (which may be financial or regarding health and welfare), business, or some other legal matter. The person auth ...
, using Fry's body to smash open a window, taking Fry's kidney and trying to sell it (it eventually gets eaten by Leela), and stealing jewelry from Amy. He is prone to using the ship’s doctor,
Zoidberg Dr. Johnathan Alfred Zoidberg, often referred to as John A. Zoidberg, or simply Zoidberg is a fictional character from the American animated series ''Futurama''. He is a Decapodian, a crustacean-like species of alien, who works as the staff doct ...
, in various get-rich-quick schemes, although it is probable he does not consider Dr. Zoidberg a friend, since in " Obsoletely Fabulous" Bender begged the 1X Robot to "save (his) friends, and Zoidberg" (Though it is seen that he helps Zoidberg from time to time, as seen in "
That's Lobstertainment! "That's Lobstertainment!" is the eighth episode in the Futurama season 3, third List of Futurama episodes, season of the American animated television series ''Futurama'', and the 40th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on the Fox ...
"). He even betrays Leela to
Zapp Brannigan This article lists the many characters of ''Futurama,'' an American Cartoon series, animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the ad ...
in '' Into the Wild Green Yonder'' when she becomes a wanted criminal, out of jealousy of her steadily growing rap sheet, only to break her out of prison again to ensure his own sheet remains lengthier. Although he regularly frustrates the crew, they have demonstrated a certain affection for him in return. During " How Hermes Requisitioned His Groove Back", the entire crew travels to the Central Bureaucracy to recover Bender’s brain after Morgan Proctor burned it onto a floppy disk and sent it away. Hermes Conrad (
Phil LaMarr Phil LaMarr is an American actor and comedian. He was one of the original featured cast members on the sketch comedy television series '' Mad TV'', where he stayed for five seasons. His voice acting roles in animated series include the Sam B of ' ...
) subsequently risks his bureaucratic license to locate the disc with Bender's brain on it by sorting the entire pile in just under four minutes. In the same episode, when Amy asked why they had to fix him, after being met with a brief period of uncertain silence, Leela says, "Those arguments aside, we're still going." Amy and Bender date for a time in " Proposition Infinity"; the relationship becomes so serious that Bender proposes to Amy and participates in a campaign to legalize human/robot marriage, although the relationship ends after he realizes that such marriage rights would necessitate
monogamy Monogamy ( ) is a social relation, relationship of Dyad (sociology), two individuals in which they form a mutual and exclusive intimate Significant other, partnership. Having only one partner at any one time, whether for life or #Serial monogamy ...
. Despite his often immoral attitude, he has a softer side; he can feel guilt and remorse over his actions if he goes too far (even by his own standards), indicating that he is not as selfish or unkind as he appears to be. In "Bendless Love", Bender intends to murder Flexo in order to win the love of fem-bot Angelyne, but when Flexo gets stuck under a gigantic steel girder, Angelyne shows sorrow for him. Bender decides that her happiness is more important than his own, and ends up saving Flexo. Also, in "Jurassic Bark", when Bender becomes jealous of Fry's petrified dog, Seymour, he decides to throw him in
magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma (sometimes colloquially but incorrectly referred to as ''lava'') is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also ...
. But when he realizes how his actions hurt Fry, Bender apologizes for his behavior and rescues the dog. In "Godfellas", he becomes the god of a microscopic alien race and abuses this position by commanding them to produce beer for him. When his abuse of power causes the entire species' demise, however, he cries in mourning and remorse.


Reception and cultural influence

In 2008, Bender took second place behind
the Terminator ''The Terminator'' is a 1984 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, written by Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd and produced by Hurd. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator, a cybernetic assassin sent back in t ...
in a poll for the "Baddest Movie Robot" on Techradar.com. The song "Bend It Like Bender!" from the Devin Townsend Project album '' Addicted'', is a direct reference to Bender. One of the lyrics in the song is "Game's over, losers! I have all the money!", which is a line Bender says in the episode " A Head in the Polls".


Appearances in other media

Being the show's
breakout character A breakout character is a character (arts), character in Serial (literature), serial fiction, especially a member of an ensemble cast, who becomes much more prominent, popular, discussed, or imitated than expected by the creators. A breakout c ...
, Bender has made several cameos in different episodes of ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'', another series by
Matt Groening Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is best known as the creator of the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Futurama'' (1999–2003, 2008–2013, 2 ...
. Within ''The Simpsons'', Bender has appeared in episodes " Future-Drama", " Bart vs. Lisa vs. the Third Grade", " Missionary: Impossible" and " Replaceable You". Bender, along with
Professor Farnsworth Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''Futurama''. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express ...
and Fry, also makes a cameo appearance in Matt Groening's latest series ''
Disenchantment In social science, disenchantment () is the cultural rationalization and devaluation of religion apparent in modern society. The term was borrowed from Friedrich Schiller by Max Weber to describe the character of a modernized, bureaucratic, ...
'', in the episode " Dreamland Falls" as a hologram from a crystal ball, within the one-way time machine from the ''Futurama'' episode " The Late Philip J. Fry". In the ''Simpsons''-''Futurama'' crossover episode " Simpsorama", Bender travels back in time in the 21st century to Springfield to kill
Homer Simpson Homer Jay Simpson is the main protagonist of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' who is part of the titular family. Homer made his television debut in the short " Good Night" on '' The Tracey Ullman Show'' on April 19, ...
, whose DNA is tied to the creatures rampaging in the 31st century. Bender ends up befriending Homer before learning that the creatures are in fact
Bart Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area in California. BART serves List of Bay Area Rapid Transit stations, 50 stations along six routes and of track, including eBART, a spur line running t ...
's genetic offspring. Once the crisis is averted, Bender goes into shutdown mode in the Simpsons' basement. Bender was still resting inert in the Simpsons' basement as of 2015 episode " Cue Detective" in which his empty body cavity was used to store the family's cash nest-egg. Bender also makes a background cameo appearance in the ''Simpsons'' episode " My Fare Lady", holding a shovel and bucket at the end of Homer's dream about ''
The Jetsons ''The Jetsons'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It originally aired in prime time from September 23, 1962, to March 17, 1963, on ABC, then later aired in reruns via syndication, with new episodes produc ...
''. Bender briefly appears in the episode "
Simprovised "Simprovised" is the twenty-first episode of the The Simpsons season 27, twenty-seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the 595th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Matthew Nastuk an ...
" holding a sign that says "Bring Back Futurama Again". In the episode "Real Veal / Celebrity Wife Swamp" of the TV show '' Mad'', Bender makes a cameo appearance in the segment "Real Veal", a parody of the 2011 film ''
Real Steel ''Real Steel'' is a 2011 American science fiction sports film starring Hugh Jackman and Dakota Goyo and co-produced and directed by Shawn Levy for DreamWorks Pictures. The film is based on the short story "Steel", written by Richard Mathes ...
''. He is seen in a robot boxing championship losing to "Real Veal", a robot-cow hybrid. He also appears as one of the enemies, along with Doctor Zoidberg, in '' The Simpsons Game''. Bender's head is featured in the background of the level "Clockwork Factory" in the
tower defense Tower defense (TD) is a Video game genre, subgenre of Strategy video game, strategy games where the goal is to defend a player's territories or possessions by obstructing the enemy attackers or by stopping enemies from reaching the exits, usual ...
video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
, '' Kingdom Rush: Vengeance''. Bender makes cameo appearances in several ''
Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...
'' episodes. In " Blue Harvest", he can be seen at the
Mos Eisley Mos Eisley is a spaceport town in the fictional ''Star Wars'' universe. Located on the planet Tatooine, it first appeared in the 1977 film ''Star Wars'', described by the character Obi-Wan Kenobi (played by Alec Guinness) as a "wretched hive of ...
cantina, and in " The Splendid Source", he is one of the repeaters of a dirty joke whose original author
Peter Griffin Peter Löwenbräu Griffin Sr. ( né Justin Peter Griffin) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the American animated sitcom ''Family Guy''. He is voiced by the series' creator, Seth MacFarlane, and first appeared on television, a ...
, Joe Swanson, and Glenn Quagmire are seeking. In the episode " Boopa-dee Bappa-dee", Peter attempts to use the guide on the television remote, turning
Stewie Griffin Stewart Gilligan "Stewie" Griffin is a fictional character from the animated television series ''Family Guy''. He is voiced by series creator Seth MacFarlane and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the Griffin family, in the ...
into a host of past and present Animation Domination characters, including Bender. In "Throw It Away",
Lois Griffin Lois Patrice Griffin ( Pewterschmidt) is a fictional character from the American animated television series ''Family Guy''. She is voiced by Alex Borstein and first appeared in the show's pilot episode, "Death Has a Shadow", on January 31, 19 ...
drags Stewie's time machine down the stairs which takes them to, in order, the 1950s, the 18th century, the future, with Chris Griffin replaced by Bender, and the prehistory.


References

{{Futurama Futurama characters Fictional characters from New York City Fictional couriers Fictional thieves Fictional gamblers Fictional Mexican people Fictional con artists Fictional alcohol abusers Fictional characters with superhuman strength Fictional characters who have made pacts with devils Television characters introduced in 1999 Animated characters introduced in 1999 Fictional attempted suicides Fictional humanoid robots Male characters in animated television series Male characters in television Fictional Hispanic and Latino American people Characters created by Matt Groening Fictional robots