But what’s so great about it? Ken Keeler, who has a doctorate in mathematics (and is probably the most responsible for the show after Matt Groening and David X. Cohen), wrote and apparently proved a new theorem in group theory in order to solve the main problem posed by the episode’s plot. Yes, I’m serious.

Even better, the proof itself is very clearly (but briefly) shown in the episode itself.

The last time I studied group theory was almost ten years ago, so I need to brush-up on it in order to fully understand the proof, but even if the idea is more-or-less trivial, it’s still incredible to see in an animated comedy show.

This should, at the very least, exonerate Keeler in the minds of many Comic Book Guys, since he also wrote the much loathed episode “The Principal and the Pauper” for The Simpsons… 13 years ago.

Why? Oh, let me count the ways…

• it actually addresses real questions in cosmology and metaphysics
• it references everything in science fiction from the writings of H.G. Wells to the films of James Cameron
• it has moments of tenderness and pathos, as well as soul-crushing despair
• it acknowledges past continuity in funny, relevant ways

And finally, there’s a hilarious parody of Zager & Evans’ “In the Year 2525″ that is a work of genius.

The team behind the show’s original run obviously haven’t lost their touch. (The new writers, on the other hand…) This episode is probably in the top 10 for me, and while it isn’t as mind-bending as “Roswell That Ends Well” or as heartbreaking as “Jurassic Bark”, it recaptures the essence of those episodes. At its best, Futurama was (and is) possibly the best comedy, the best science fiction and the best animated show to ever hit TV screens.

Here’s a clip from “The Late Philip J. Fry”: