"The Duh-Vinci Code" is the fifth episode in the
sixth season
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...
of the American 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 ...
'', and the 93rd episode of the series overall. It originally aired on
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...
in the United States on July 15, 2010. In the episode, Fry finds a drawing of a lost
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 1452 - 2 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested o ...
invention which leads him and Professor Farnsworth to planet Vinci.
The episode's title and plot is a parody of ''
The Da Vinci Code
''The Da Vinci Code'' is a 2003 mystery thriller novel by Dan Brown. It is “the best-selling American novel of all time.”
Brown's second novel to include the character Robert Langdon—the first was his 2000 novel '' Angels & Demons''� ...
''. It received positive reviews from critics and went up one-tenth in the 18-49 demographic from the previous episode, "
Proposition Infinity".
Plot
Fry misses the first question on ''Who Dares to Be a Millionaire?'', and
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 ...
berates him for his stupidity. Farnsworth explains that he is a proud scientist who greatly admires classic geniuses of history, mainly
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 1452 - 2 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested o ...
, and it pains him that one of his relatives (Fry) is such an idiot. Farnsworth shows Fry his most precious possession, Da Vinci's beard. Fry accidentally destroys it, uncovering a secret project of Da Vinci's. After two weeks of fruitless research, Farnsworth orders
Bender to steal Da Vinci's original
''Last Supper'', and using an x-ray machine, learns that
Saint James was a robot.
The Planet Express crew goes to Rome to find the tomb of Saint James. They discover a robot in the tomb, who suddenly comes back to life and explains to the crew that he is Animatronio, a robot version of the original Saint James created by Leonardo da Vinci. Farnsworth asks Animatronio about Da Vinci's secret project, but Animatronio realizes that if they do not know about the "Machina Magnifica", they must not be a part of Da Vinci's secret society. He carelessly reveals that Da Vinci's secret is in a fountain, and proceeds to self-lash himself and fakes death to deny them any other information. Farnsworth uses clues from a statue of Neptune in the room to deduce that they need to look in the
Trevi Fountain
The Trevi Fountain () is an 18th-century fountain in the Trevi (rione of Rome), Trevi district in Rome, Italy, designed by Italian architect Nicola Salvi and completed by Giuseppe Pannini in 1762 and several others. Standing high and wide, it i ...
.
The crew arrives at Trevi Fountain, and Bender dives in to steal the coins at the bottom. He fights a mutant octopus for the coins and discovers a secret door that leads to a room filled with many of Da Vinci's famous inventions. Animatronio reappears and after an attempt at their lives, carelessly mentions that all the inventions fit together.
Fry triggers one of the inventions, which assembles itself into a spaceship and sends Fry and Farnsworth to the planet Vinci. They find Leonardo da Vinci, who reveals his great secret: He is from the planet Vinci, which is populated by a humanoid, near-immortal, highly intelligent alien race that takes pleasure in education. Farnsworth is elated, and runs off to explore and learn. Fry confesses his stupidity to Leonardo, who sympathizes and says that he is actually the dumbest person on planet Vinci, and lived on Earth during
the Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
because he could not withstand the continuous
bullying
Bullying is the use of force, coercion, Suffering, hurtful teasing, comments, or threats, in order to abuse, aggression, aggressively wikt:domination, dominate, or intimidate one or more others. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. On ...
from his race. Earth's relatively stupid inhabitants were also intolerable to him, so he eventually returned to Vinci. Leonardo mentions the lost plans for his Machina Magnifica, which Fry happens to be carrying, and Leonardo takes them happily.
Fry helps Leonardo build the Machina Magnifica, under the assumption that they are plans for an ice cream machine. Farnsworth is having difficulty keeping up with the academic rigors on Vinci, and is ridiculed for his relative stupidity. Leonardo eventually reveals that his Machina Magnifica is a doomsday device, and attempts to use it on all those who tormented him. Fry is appalled at the machine's true purpose and tries to sabotage it, only to jam the gears when he falls in among them. The people of Vinci laugh at the failed machine, and Leonardo defiantly pulls a lever and is killed by a giant cog that falls on him. Farnsworth and Fry fly home in Leonardo's ship, and Farnsworth clumsily apologizes to Fry for insulting his intelligence.
Cultural references
The basic plot and title of the episode is a parody of ''
The Da Vinci Code
''The Da Vinci Code'' is a 2003 mystery thriller novel by Dan Brown. It is “the best-selling American novel of all time.”
Brown's second novel to include the character Robert Langdon—the first was his 2000 novel '' Angels & Demons''� ...
''.
They also make a reference to
Achilles' Heel
An Achilles' heel (or Achilles heel) is a weakness despite overall strength, which can lead to downfall. While the mythological origin refers to a physical vulnerability, idiomatic references to other attributes or qualities that can lead to do ...
and ''
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (WWTBAM) is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Televis ...
''.
Reception
In its original broadcast on Comedy Central, "The Duh-Vinci Code" was viewed by an estimated 2.204 million viewers (up nearly 200,000 or 10% from "
Proposition Infinity") with a 1.5 household rating and a 1.1 rating in the 18-49 demographic, up 1/10 of a point from the previous week and making it the 3rd highest rated episode of the season behind premiere week's doubleheader of "
Rebirth
Rebirth may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Film
* ''Rebirth'' (2011 film), a 2011 Japanese drama film
* ''Rebirth'' (2016 film), a 2016 American thriller film
* ''Rebirth'', a 2011 documentary film produced by Project Rebirth
* '' ...
" and "
In-A-Gadda-Da-Leela".
Robert Canning of
IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
gave the episode an 8.0/10 stating in his review "As wary as dated references and repurposed story ideas have been making me feel, it's hard not to enjoy an episode of Futurama that can deliver fun twists and an unexpected Achilles' Heel gag."
Zack Handlen of
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
gave a B and also said in his review "Generally, I like shows that build on emotional relationships, but the rules are different here. Although I'm starting to wonder if a little more cohesion might do the show good".
See also
*
Cultural references to Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci (April 15, 1452 – May 2, 1519) was an Italian Renaissance painter and polymath who achieved legendary fame and iconic status within his own lifetime. His renown primarily rests upon his brilliant achievements as a painter ...
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duh-Vinci Code
Futurama season 6 episodes
2010 American television episodes
Depictions of Leonardo da Vinci on television
Renaissance in popular culture
Television episodes set in Rome