Future Schlock

Future Schlock
Season	4
Episode	12b
Broadcast Information
Airdate	October 10, 1996
Episode Guide
Previous	Put to Pasture
Next	Turkey Time

Future Schlock is episode 51b of Rocko's Modern Life. This episode is set seventeen years into the future, where Filburt's children ask Filburt the meaning of a banana which they found in a refrigerator.

Plot

During the future of O-Town, Norbert and Gilbert are searching through the inside of Rocko's abandoned house when they come across a photo of them as infants with Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt. When Gilbert's tracking device beeps, he discovers that it is coming from the "refriger-izer" and he and Norbert check inside to find a very old banana. Norbert pulls it out and discerns it. He and Gilbert go to the O-Town retirement building to show it to their father Filburt, who now appears to be old, even though he is only 38. After being asked a couple of peripheral questions, Filburt disappears and Shelbert arrives just in time for Gilbert and Norbert to show them the old banana. This prompts Filburt to return and reminisce as Shelly joins her siblings to do so. Filburt elucidate the time he put it in the refrigerator.

Seventeen years ago, the children had taken a picture with Rocko, Spunky, and Heffer as Filburt snapped the picture. Ed, in deference to Bev, reluctantly takes the next photo of Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt with the children. As Filburt takes the children home, Heffer spots a money in its cage by the Bigheads' garage. As Ed takes the cage to the garage, Rocko reads the sign that says "Top Secret Space Monkey" and is appalled that Ed is going to send the monkey to space. When night falls, Rocko, Spunky, and Heffer sneak into the Bigheads' front lawn and try to steal the monkey away. When they proceed to open the garage, Heffer gives the monkey a banana, causing it to run wild and crash into Ed's car, breaking the cage. As he is now free, the monkey takes off with Ed's car and Rocko, Spunky, and Heffer chase after him. Filburt comes around and finds a banana on the sidewalk. He walks into Rocko's house and stores the banana inside the refrigerator. He searches for Rocko and Heffer and find that they are nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Rocko, Spunky, and Heffer continue to chase after the monkey through the Conglom-O building and end up in a rocket ship, which takes off instantly as Ed (who had arrived at Rocko's house to confront Filburt to ask him what happened to his monkey) and Filburt watch it fly to outer space.

Back to the future, Filburt concludes his story and says that he never saw his friends again. Just then, he sees the same rocket ship flying in the sky from his window and he and his progeny run outside as the rocket ship lands infront of Rocko's house. Rocko, Spunky, and Heffer exit out of the ship and the monkey and a group of bananas exit out as well. The monkey snatches the old banana from Filburt's hand and return to the ship with the other bananas. Before they leave, they confront an old Ed Bighead and tell him that he would've gotten away with it had he just taken the sticker off the banana. As they transport along with Ed, Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt are inside Rocko's house as Rocko is glad that he is back home and Filburt is now fit and robust. His progeny enter the rocket ship and ride away before Filburt has a chance to remind them that they had yet to learn how to drive. The rocket ship flies out of site and returns to crash through Rocko's house, which flies along with it.

Characters Featured

• Rocko
• Spunky
• Heffer
• Filburt
• Missy Shellbach
• Norbert Shellbach
• Shellbert Shellbach
• Gilbert Shellbach
• Ed Bighead
• Bev Bighead

Trivia

• This episode marks the only appearance of Filbert's kids as adults.
• O-Town of the future is a spoof of The Jetsons (1962).
• Joe Murray stated that he intended for this episode to be the series finale. Turkey Time/Floundering Fathers aired after Future Schlock for Thanksgiving, but Future Schlock was the last episode made.

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