Dr. John A. Zoidberg

Lore & Background

Zoidberg is named after an Apple II game that series writer David X. Cohen created in high school called Zoid, similar to the game Qix. The game was rejected by the software company Broderbund. One of Cohen's inspirations for the character was that Star Trek character Leonard McCoy frequently administered medical treatment to aliens such as Spock, so Cohen wished human characters in Futurama to be in the uneasy situation of being treated by an alien doctor. During the first season, jokes about Zoidberg usually focused on his poor understanding of human anatomy and the fact that all of his co-workers hate him. Despite his incompetence, he believes that he is really an expert on human anatomy, and will blithely attempt to treat human patients as he would his own species. One of his running traits is his pronunciation of the word "robot", pronouncing it ROH-bət rather than ROH-bot. His use of English grammar and idioms resembles the stereotypical speech of Jewish people living in the northeastern United States, and elements of Jewish humor, and playful reversals on it, are a theme. As the series progressed, the writers gradually introduced themes that Zoidberg is poor, homeless, friendless, smelly, undignified, and repulsive—the opposite of a stereotypical doctor. In front of others, Zoidberg frequently pretends to be refined and successful, though this illusion is quickly dashed. Regardless of his flaws, Zoidberg is good-natured and means well, and will help the crew when the situation calls for it.

In Their Own Story

Zoidberg is the company doctor at Planet Express. He is the adopted brother of Turanga Leela. Although he claims to be an expert in human medicine, particularly internal medicine, his knowledge of human anatomy and physiology is practically nonexistent. He is unable to tell the difference between robots and humans (or human males and females), believes food is digested in the heart, and that humans have multiple mouths and a dorsal fin. His only knowledge of humans seems to come from television advertisements. In "Put Your Head on My Shoulders" he manages to successfully transplant Fry's head onto Amy's body after Fry's body incurs massive trauma in a vehicular accident that he caused. In Into the Wild Green Yonder he incorrectly declares Fry dead only for him to wake up a few seconds later. In Bender's Big Score, he performs several limb reattachments to moderate success. In "Parasites Lost", he comes to the conclusion that Fry, who is frequently injured, is a hypochondriac, an accusation he makes when Fry sits before Zoidberg with a pipe through his chest. He claims to be an MD, but states in "A Clone of My Own" that he lost his medical degree in a volcano. He later states in "The Duh-Vinci Code" that his PhD is in art history. The episode "The Tip of the Zoidberg" shows he is a competent doctor for alien species, such as the Yeti. In the episode, Professor Farnsworth says he is an expert in alien physiology. Despite his career as a physician, Zoidberg is repeatedly identified as living in poverty, lonely and desperate for friendship and attention. The crew are often disgusted by his foul habits, such as squirting ink or eating from trash cans. Hermes seems to have the most intense dislike of Zoidberg. However, when Fry reads Hermes' mind in Into the Wild Green Yonder, it is revealed that Hermes sees him as "pathetic but lovable". In "The Six Million Dollar Mon", after Hermes quits Planet Express and trades his own body parts for robot parts, a depressed Zoidberg recovers the discarded parts and sews them together to create a ventriloquist dummy of Hermes, which he later uses to transplant Hermes' brain out of his robot body and back into his original body. Zoidberg briefly becomes a hero when he saves Earth from enslavement to his own kind in "A Taste of Freedom". Fry and Professor Farnsworth are usually the only ones to refer to Zoidberg as a friend, and in Bender's Big Score, Zoidberg says of Fry, "He was the only one of you who never struck me!" during the latter's memorial. The reason the Professor continues to employ Zoidberg is revealed in "The Tip of the Zoidberg". The Professor is under the impression that he had been infected with the fatal disease hyper-malaria, and had asked Zoidberg to promise to kill him when the latent disease manifested itself. In that episode it is also explained that Zoidberg is a very competent physician for all other species except humans. Planet Express' main competitor, Mom, states that Zoidberg is "the best in the business" when it comes to alien anatomy; "at his price level". Mom tells Zoidberg that he could have been a millionaire with his own research lab if he had worked for her. When asked why he has stayed with Farnsworth, Zoidberg replied that it is because Farnsworth is his friend. When frightened or fleeing from danger, Zoidberg makes a high-pitched whooping sound, similar to Curly Howard of The Three Stooges, or squirts ink at his attacker. It is revealed in "The Cryonic Woman" that Zoidberg has always dreamed of becoming a grandmother. "A Taste of Freedom" and Futurama: Bender's Game indicate that Zoidberg harbored a childhood dream of working in show business as a comedian or song-and-dance man, but that his parents pushed him to become a doctor. Zoidberg's race, the Decapodians—from the sandy, beach-like planet Decapod 10—are crustaceans, generally lobster-like in appearance, with lobster-like claws, mouth tentacles, a hard exoskeleton, a fleshy, boneless interior, a fin that appears atop their heads during mating season or extreme anger, an ink pouch, two stomachs (one saltwater and one freshwater), four hearts, gonopores, and a complex system of internal organs, "most of which are either redundant or unnecessary." In "Roswell That Ends Well", he is not fazed when one of his hearts is removed by an alien autopsy team of human doctors, saying "Take it, take it, I have four of them!". Decapodians are able to molt their shell, like a lobster, leaving behind a whole exoskeleton—a trait which Zoidberg has used to fake his own death on occasion. In the episode "Bendin' in the Wind", Zoidberg produces tie-dye blue pearls after consuming large amounts of dirt.

Reader's Guide

Zoidberg is the company doctor at Planet Express. He is a Decapodian from the planet Decapod 10. His character is defined by his incompetence with human anatomy, his poverty (living in a dumpster), and his desperate loneliness. Despite his flaws, he is good-natured and means well. Key episodes include: "Put Your Head on My Shoulders" (successful head transplant), "Parasites Lost" (accuses Fry of hypochondria), "A Taste of Freedom" (saves Earth from his own kind), "The Tip of the Zoidberg" (revealed as a competent alien physician and explains why Farnsworth keeps him employed), "The Six Million Dollar Mon" (creates a ventriloquist dummy of Hermes and saves him), and "That's Lobstertainment!" (his uncle Harold Zoid advises him on comedy). Zoidberg is voiced by Billy West with a Yiddish-inflected accent. His signature sound is a high-pitched whooping sound when frightened, similar to Curly Howard.

Did You Know?

• Zoidberg is named after an Apple II game called Zoid that series writer David X. Cohen created in high school.
• Zoidberg's PhD is in art history, not medicine, as stated in 'The Duh-Vinci Code'.
• Zoidberg has four hearts, and in 'Roswell That Ends Well' he tells human doctors 'Take it, take it, I have four of them!' when one is removed.
• Zoidberg is the adopted brother of Turanga Leela.
• Zoidberg's uncle is Harold Zoid, a silent hologram star parodying Harold Lloyd.