Bender Bending Rodríguez

Lore & Background

Bender was built in 2996 at Fábrica Robótica De La Madre (Mom's Robot Factory) in Tijuana, Mexico. The story of his construction remains a mystery; different creation processes have been shown, but Cohen has stated that what happened inside the machine has not yet been revealed. Unlike most other robots, Bender is mortal and, according to Professor Farnsworth's calculations, may have less than one billion years to live. He has a backup unit (his son Ben) and his memory can be transferred to another robot body. At the factory, he was programmed for bending girders for suicide booths. Before joining Planet Express as a bending unit (he was later given the title of assistant manager of sales in one episode), he bent steel girders for suicide booths. He lives in apartment 00100100 (ASCII for $) in the Robot Arms Apts building, where he eventually invites Fry to live with him.

In Their Own Story

Bender's life is a series of chaotic adventures. He enters many romantic relationships, not discriminating between human women and fem-bots. In "Proposition Infinity", his secret affair with Amy Wong leads to a referendum that legalizes robosexuality. In "The Bots and the Bees", a sexual encounter with a fem-bot soda vending machine leads to the almost-instantaneous birth of a son, whom he names Ben. Professor Farnsworth describes Bender as constructed of an alloy of iron and osmium, with a 0.04% nickel impurity, despite Bender claiming to be 40% titanium. He hates magnets, as they interfere with his inhibition unit, causing him to uncontrollably sing folk songs and reveal his secret ambition to be a folk singer. He also has a near-pathological fear of electric can openers due to the death of his father by one, and because one once ripped open the top of his head. His serial number 2716057 can be expressed as the sum of two cubes (952³ + (-951)³), a fact shared with Flexo's serial number 3370318 (119³ + 119³).

Reader's Guide

Bender is a high-tech industrial metalworking robot built in 2996 at Mom's Robot Factory in Tijuana, Mexico. He works at Planet Express as assistant manager of sales and company chef. His personality is defined by his prejudice against non-robots, his catchphrase "kill all humans", and his vices: alcohol, gambling, and womanizing. Despite this, he has a "Do Not Kill" list containing only Fry and Hermes Conrad, and friends often note a sympathetic side. He is mortal due to a manufacturing error that left him without a backup unit. His physical traits include a round head (a visual play on being a "round peg in a square hole"), a height just over 6 feet including his antenna, and a body made of an iron-osmium alloy with a 0.04% nickel impurity. He has specific weaknesses: magnets cause him to sing folk songs, and electric can openers terrify him. His voice, provided by John DiMaggio, is described as a combination of a sloppy drunk, Slim Pickens, and a character named "Charlie the sausage-lover".

Did You Know?

• Bender's serial number 2716057 can be expressed as the sum of a positive and negative cube: 952³ + (-951)³, but unlike Flexo's serial number 3370318 (119³ + 119³), it is not a taxicab number (a sum of two positive cubes)
• Bender's apartment number 00100100 is the binary ASCII code for the dollar sign ($).
• Bender's name was chosen by Matt Groening as an homage to John Bender from *The Breakfast Club*, whose catchphrase 'Eat my shorts' was later used for another Groening creation, Bart Simpson.
• Bender's voice actor John DiMaggio describes the voice as a combination of a sloppy drunk, Slim Pickens, and a character named 'Charlie the sausage-lover'.
• Bender has a near-pathological fear of electric can openers because his father was killed by one, and because one once ripped open the top of his head.

Origins and Manufacturing

Bender was built in 2996 at Fábrica Robótica De La Madre (Mom's Robot Factory) in Tijuana, Mexico. The story of his construction remains a mystery; different creation processes have been shown, but Cohen has stated that what happened inside the machine has not yet been revealed. According to one version, suggested by Hermes' flashback and a reverse aging process in "Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles", a newborn Bender possessed a baby-like body. In "Bendless Love", however, he is portrayed with an adult-sized body in a flashback, suggesting he might be recalling a transfer to an adult body. Unlike most robots, Bender is mortal and, per Professor Farnsworth, may have less than one billion years to live. A manufacturing error left him without a backup unit, so his memory cannot be transferred. After reporting this defect, he barely escaped a guided missile and a death squad dispatched by Mom. His serial number is 2716057, and his unit number is 1,729.

Education and Professional Life

Bender attended Bending State University, where he majored in bending and minored in Robo-American Studies. He was a member of Epsilon Rho Rho (ERR), a robot fraternity, where he became a hero for chugging an entire keg of beer, streaking across campus, and stuffing 58 people into a telephone booth (mostly children). Before joining Planet Express, he worked at a metalworking factory bending steel girders for the construction of suicide booths. At Planet Express, he works as assistant manager of sales and company chef. He lives in apartment 00100100 (the ASCII code for $) in the Robot Arms Apts building, where he eventually invites Fry to live with him.

Personality and Relationships

Bender is a comical antihero described by Leela as an "alcoholic, whore-mongering, chain-smoking gambler". He is prejudiced against non-robots, with a signature expression "kill all humans". His "Do Not Kill" list includes only Fry and Hermes Conrad (added after "Lethal Inspection"). He is occasionally portrayed with a sympathetic side. He enters many romantic relationships, not discriminating between human women and fem-bots. In "Proposition Infinity", his secret affair with Amy Wong leads to a referendum legalizing robosexuality. In "The Bots and the Bees", a sexual encounter with a fem-bot vending machine leads to the birth of a son named Ben. He is sometimes portrayed as manipulating his guileless friend Fry.

Physical Traits and Weaknesses

Professor Farnsworth describes Bender as constructed of an alloy of iron and osmium with a 0.04% nickel impurity, though Bender claims to be 40% titanium. His head is round, a visual play on being a "round peg in a square hole". His name honors John Bender from *The Breakfast Club*. His factory-set height is just over 6 feet including his antenna. He hates magnets, as they interfere with his inhibition unit, causing him to uncontrollably sing folk songs and reveal his secret ambition to be a folk singer. He has a near-pathological fear of electric can openers due to the death of his father by one, and because one once ripped open the top of his head. His serial number 2716057 can be expressed as the sum of two cubes (952³ + (-951)³), a property shared with Flexo's serial number 3370318 (119³ + 119³).