In case you've somehow avoided social media for the last 14 hours, it is Milwaukee Day. So let's celebrate that time Milwaukee was the most romantic city on the entire planet. To do so, though, we're going to have to back ... to the future! Or at least back to an old episode of "Futurama" in this case.
On Valentine's Day weekend back in 2002 – back when the cult favorite animated sci-fi series was just into its fourth and then-final season on FOX – "Futurama" aired the love-centric episode "Love and Rocket" (with special voice performances by Sigourney Weaver and Lucy Liu!). The episode focused on the Planet Express crew trying to get a contract with Romanticorp (a division of General Emotions), the planet's go-to corporation for romance as well as those Valentine's Day message heart candies that everyone gets but nobody likes capital of the universe. And where is this hub of love located?
Ya-ya, Milwaukee, official animated home of the Beer Goggles!
As far as on-screen Milwaukees go, this one is actually one of the better ones, I'd say. It's certainly better than movies that say they're in Milwaukee when it's really California – cough, cough, "Bridesmaids" – or use Milwaukee only to end up calling it Washington – additional cough, additional cough, "Transformers 3." I mean, there's the U.S. Bank and the then-brand new Milwaukee Art Museum and even the 100 East building.
Yes, pretty much the rest of it is futuristic gobbledygook, but it's nice to see they bothered at least Googling some Milwaukee images unlike some movies that put the drive between Chicago and Milwaukee on a dirt backwoods road ("Bridesmaids" again, cough, "Bridesmaids").
If you'd like to watch the rest of the team's adventures in Milwaukee and beyond, "Futurama" is all on Netflix Instant. You won't see Milwaukee again in the episode, but at least you feel good about Milwaukee's future as the most romantic city on Earth. And hey, Milwaukee has a rail system in the clip, so maybe "Futurama," like "The Simpsons," can actually tell the future! Maybe a role as the romance capital of the globe is actually in our future.
That's right; watch out, Paris. We're coming for your title.
As much as it is a gigantic cliché to say that one has always had a passion for film, Matt Mueller has always had a passion for film. Whether it was bringing in the latest movie reviews for his first grade show-and-tell or writing film reviews for the St. Norbert College Times as a high school student, Matt is way too obsessed with movies for his own good.
When he's not writing about the latest blockbuster or talking much too glowingly about "Piranha 3D," Matt can probably be found watching literally any sport (minus cricket) or working at - get this - a local movie theater. Or watching a movie. Yeah, he's probably watching a movie.
