Love, Death & Robots: Season 1 recap and review

Netflix

When the Yogurt Took Over

What really makes this episode more than anything is the Wellesian narration (Maurice LaMarche), which itself is a reference to the Orson Welles radio production of H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds that caused such a panic among listeners who believed the fictional news reports to be real. And while the story is actually super silly, there’s enough humorous social commentary to make it rather clever.

Humans accidentally created a sentient strain of Lacto Bacillus — the bacteria used in the making of yogurt — which at first seemed to be a failure. A scientist took the failed sample home to make her own yogurt and realized over breakfast that the yogurt was alive when it started spelling out messages using the granola in the bowl.

The yogurt designs a formula to eradicate the national debt and sells it to the government in return for Ohio. Of course, if the plan isn’t followed exactly, it will lead to the collapse of the economy and national ruin. The government does not follow the instructions. While the rest of the country is in chaos, Ohio thrives under the leadership of the yogurt.

The government declares martial law and gives yogurt supreme executive power. There was some resistance at first, but ten years later the country is restored and improved. Everyone is happy, healthy, and wealthy.

But there is a theory that the yogurt knew that humans wouldn’t follow the formula, leading to financial ruin and their inevitable rise to power. But of course, it wasn’t like the yogurt didn’t give humans the chance.

The yogurt has been experimenting with space technology, making humans fear that they intend to leave them behind – and what will happen then when humans are back in charge of their own government? I shudder to think.