I can't be the only one who has noticed the following inconsistencies, yet I haven't seen any real comment on the matter. Please note that the following comments and observances serve only to open the door just a bit (ohh so tiny a bit) about the current situation and make us face the fact that TV and its distant relatives radio and CB, have not formed into the "new reality" that producers had led us to believe it would. We still must maintain jobs, relationships with family, and sexual tensions with neighbors, in spite of all that TV has promised. Damn this tele-vision and its false promises.
Anyway, with regard to Robots 3000, I found the following inconsistencies:
1. It took Fry twenty-two minutes to get from the rocket docks to the robot arms apartment complex, yet according to the city plans presented in the third episode, such a trip would take no more than twelve minutes. What happened during that extra ten minutes? This is a lulu of a screw up, similar to the 45 minute car ride in the last episode of Too Close for Comfort. We, the viewers lost ten minutes of screen time. There is no mention of these missing events at all (unless you count the "worm hole" theorem presented Abstract Physics Vol. III, with dissenting opinion by Dr. Sid Frill)
2. On occasion Bender consumes entire bottles of beer (glass and all) yet my study of Bender's blueprint and electronic engineering CAD design prove that although alcohol can serve as a substitute for AC all-volt charges, glass (at least as it is currently produced--that is under 1999 manufacturing standards) will counter-act the neutraic charge of the base compounds present in most grain and wood based alcohol, thus rendering Bender powerless. Yet he still continues to consume glass and entertain us with his dancing.
3. One of the biggest problems appear in the now famous "Ghost Town" episode (where the family is locked up in a jail in an old western ghost town and little Cindy and Bobby must rescue the entire family, including a rather drunk Alice). Where was Bender during this episode? Fry? Leela? Any of the cartoonist characters we know and love? And why did the producers feel it necessary to film this episode with live action actors? And why the campy 1970's fashion? Cutting edge is one thing but this episode has to be reconsidered. I hope we've seen the last of that Greg character. Although I think the sexual tension between him and the Marsha character was interesting, its not really what I had in mind when I tune into Fox to watch an animated sci-fi sit-com like Robot 3000.
4. Finally, there's the "magic dust" of episode 2. On the DVD version, a still-pause at 21:23:04 captures a clear image of a magic dust covering the right side of Bender's head. This dust is unrecognizable at normal viewing speeds. It then shows up again with a careful still-pause at 25:43:55. Look to the left of Leela's left arm, just above the light switch. The magic dust has reappeared on the wall. And boy does it seem angry! How it got there and why it left Bender's skull frame I have no idea. The writers really messed that one up. I can only hope we'll get some answers in an upcoming episode.