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Normally I don't try to point out inconsistencies in Futurama, but when I find one which is a major plot point I start to question it.

According to the episode "When Aliens Attack" it takes roughly 1,000 years for TV signals to reach Omicron Persei 8. Later in that epside the attacking fleet watches Fry's finished episode of "Single Female Lawyer", but the fleet is in orbit just above the planet, which explains why there is no delay.

But in Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences the characters convince Orson Wells to make a fake war of the worlds (TV) broadcast. The broadcast is ment for Ndnd to see, but she manages to watch it all the way back on Omicron Persei 8 live, without a delay.

Did I miss something? Is there any kind of explanation for this?

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  • Obviously this slipped past the team of NASA astrophysicists that the Futurama writers consult with to make sure all the jokes are grounded in cold, hard science.
    – John O
    Jul 16, 2012 at 20:43
  • @John O: I don't expect Futurama to be completly grouned in hard science. If they came out and just decided that ALL transmissions where instant then I wouldn't question it. But I do expect Furturama to be consistant with their laws of science, espically when it's used as MAJOR plot points.
    – onewho
    Jul 16, 2012 at 20:55
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    One thing they got right: Omicron Persei really is 1000-1600 light-years away.
    – Keith Thompson
    Jul 17, 2012 at 2:10
  • The inconsistency is the joke. You're acting like it's a serious work. It doesn't make sense to criticize it. The show has a 4th dimensional whale and space bees for crying out loud.
    – John O
    Jul 17, 2012 at 3:47

2 Answers 2

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Per the Professor, the speed of light was increased in 2208, as its low value was too limiting. So post-change TV transmissions would travel much faster. Meanwhile, apparently older TV transmissions continue to travel at the old speed of light. So a current TV transmission is able to make the trip almost instantaneously.

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  • @onewho TV transmissions use radio, which is a form of light, ergo, they now travel faster.
    – user1027
    Jul 17, 2012 at 14:56
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There are many possibilities. One may be that they send the TV waves using a small wormole(Cubert made his own miniture black hole so it seems those kinds of things could happen). Another would be that they changed how TV signals act in space(changed the speed of light).

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