Episode Recap: Love's Labours Lost in Space

Leela has a date with a handsome man named Doug at a romantic
restaurant. Leela finds herself attracted to Doug because of his
apparent open-mindedness regarding her single eye. But her interest ends
when his reptilian tongue slurps a mint off of the table. Her colleagues
decide it is up to them to find a suitable mate. They escort Leela to a
retro nightclub that features a "futuristic" Jetsons-type theme. Though
Fry finds a woman to go home with that night, Leela ends up alone. The
next morning, the Professor briefs his staff on their next assignment:
rescuing animals from Vergon 6, a planet once filled with dark matter, a
substance used to fuel starships. Indiscriminate mining has left the
planet completely hallow. According to the Professor, it is expected to
collapse in three days. As the journey gets underway, the Planet Express
spaceship is detected by the starship Nimbus, which is under the control
of Zapp Brannigan. Zapp instructs his first officer, Kif Kroker, to
destroy the vessel, as it is attempting to break through a security
perimeter around Vergon 6.

The Planet Express crew detects the presence of Zapp's starship. When
Leela rattles off Zapp's many accomplishments, Fry realizes he would
make her a perfect boyfriend. Leela, however, is more interested in
lobbying Zapp for his assistance in rescuing the animals. The Planet
Express ship docks with the Nimbus. Zapp compliments Leela on her sexy
good looks. But when Leela mentions her intention to aid the animals of
Vergon 6, Zapp has Leela and the others imprisoned. Later, Zapp tells
Kif that the only way to deal with an adversary as formidable as Leela
is to seduce her. He instructs him to lead Leela to his quarters. Kif
does as he is told. Leela, however, is greatly unimpressed with Zapp's
bachelor pad, which includes a heart-shaped, levitating bed. She claims
she would much rather spend time in prison than make love to him. Zapp
breaks down and begins sobbing. He claims he is incredibly lonely and
feels pathetic. Leela attempts to cheer him up by patting him on the
shoulder. When she awakens the next morning, she finds herself lying
next to Zapp. A horrified look sweeps across her face.

When Zapp awakens, Leela labels the events of the previous evening a
"mistake," describing how she was overwhelmed by a sense of pity. She
states her intention to save the animals of Vergon 6 with or without
Zapp's help. Surprisingly, Zapp allows Leela and the others to leave the
ship. The Planet Express ship touches down on Vergon 6, and the crew
sets about collecting the various animals. Leela is particularly
enamoured of a squat, winged creature which she dubs "Nibbler." She
places it inside the cargo bay area with the other creatures. But when
Leela opens the hatch a short time later, she realizes that Nibbler
devoured all of the other animals. Suddenly, the planet begins to
collapse. The crew races inside the ship, only to discover that the fuel
tank is empty. Fry points out that Zapp's starship is nearby, and can be
contacted for assistance. Leela, however, refuses to go "crawling back."
Bender and Fry suddenly realize that Leela slept with Zapp. As the
ground rumbles, Leela has a change of heart. She contacts the Nimbus and
requests help. Zapp refuses to organize a rescue until Leela abandons
Nibbler. Unwilling to compromise her ideals, Leela refuses. She presses
a console button, ending the communication. Moments later, the crew
hears an enormous clang. They rush into the cargo bay, where they
discover an enormous shiny black sphere inside Nibbler's litter box.
Leela realizes that the "dropping" is dark matter. Bender loads the
pellet into the engine, and the ship blasts off as the entire planet
collapses. Later, Leela records an entry into her diary. She writes that
although she did not find love on the mission, she did befriend a cute
creature who excretes starship fuel.