It feels a little silly to review Futurama at this point—the show aired its first episode in 1999 and survived multiple cancellations and revivals before, after a 10-year absence, finding a new home on Hulu in 2023. But season 14 is here, and season 13 was such a notably standout installment that we were curious to see if that trend would continue.
The answer is “sort of.” The six episodes (of 10) shared with critics provide that reliable Futurama mix of goofy entertainment and topical satire. But of the six, none quite reach the heights of last season’s Pacific Rim-inspired storyline pitting a giant Bender against a suspiciously familiar creature named “Godzooka,” that “PizzaGate” riff, or the near-perfect journey of futility in the season finale, “The White Hole.”
We mention Futurama’s recent past also because several of season 14’s episodes include elements from the Hulu era, including Planet Express-adjacent family members like Hermes’ father, Bender’s grandmother, and Kif and Amy’s youngest son, Newt. However, there are also some old-school references; you always know Mom is going to pop up eventually.
Mostly, though, season 14 focuses on the core cast, with episodes structured around subjects very contemporaneous to 2026 filtered through a far-future lens, with an added dose of sci-fi ridiculousness. This season’s crosshairs find lab-grown meat, scammers and catfishers, politicians determined to stay in office despite term limits, the cruel treatment of lab animals, and Ticketmaster, to name a few.
There’s also a surprisingly sweet entry about the power of love; as the official logline for the season teased, “the shocking return of Dr. Zoidberg’s lost love” does indeed happen, and it may indeed shock you.
Of course, wrapped into those storylines are also good-natured jabs at competitive eating, rigged carnival games, Smokey and the Bandit, pirates, vampires, Planet of the Apes, pop stars, “quiet luxury,” and beyond. And as always, you won’t want to glance away from the screen, lest you miss a carefully placed sight gag, hilarious throwaway quip, or pun-laden building sign.
In other words, if Futurama is one of your comfort shows, you’ll find much that’s pleasing about season 14—even if, of what we’ve seen so far, nothing quite transcends the familiar like season 13 managed to do. We’re not complaining about it; it’s genuinely nice to still have fresh Futurama hitting the streams in 2026. The weekly release, a change from last season’s binge experiment, also feels like the right choice.
And we’re very much looking forward to the trio of extended-length “XXXL-sized” episodes that were announced at San Diego Comic-Con, which will include a Christmas special (three words: Robot Santa Claus) and will arrive in 2027. Since Futurama’s Hulu seasons have been the show’s shortest—10 episodes, as opposed to 13 to 22 in earlier years—it’s an opportunity to go a little deeper with the storylines and bring some variety to the show’s pacing.
And after 27 stop-and-start years, you know this team can roll with just about anything. The cast of Futurama includes John DiMaggio, Billy West, Katey Sagal, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, Phil Lamar, and David Herman. Season 14 will drop its first two episodes August 3, with one episode per week after that on Hulu and Disney+.
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