Meanwhile (Futurama)

"Meanwhile" is the twenty-sixth and final episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series Futurama, the 140th episode of the series overall and the finale of the second run. The episode was written by Ken Keeler and directed by Peter Avanzino.^[1] It premiered on Comedy Central in the United States on September 4, 2013, along with Futurama Live, a special preshow and aftershow for the occasion.

Set in a retro-futuristic 31st century, the series follows the adventures of the employees of Planet Express, an interplanetary delivery company. Originally written as a conclusion to the series, the episode revolves around the romantic relationship between Fry and Leela. The plot involves Professor Farnsworth inventing a device that allows the user to travel backwards in time by ten seconds. However, it is stolen and abused by Fry, who wants to use it to prolong the sunset during a romantic dinner after his marriage proposal to Leela.

"Meanwhile" was the fourth episode written to serve as a series finale to Futurama. It follows "The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings", "Into the Wild Green Yonder", and "Overclockwise", all of which were also written by Ken Keeler. "Meanwhile" was watched by 2.21 million people in its original broadcast, making it the 5th most watched episode ever to originally air on Comedy Central, and it received acclaim from television critics. After the airing of this episode, the characters only subsequently appeared on The Simpsons crossover "Simpsorama" on November 9, 2014, until the show returned on Hulu for new episodes in 2023, with "The Impossible Stream", the premiere of Season 8, picking up directly after the events of "Meanwhile".^[2]