Mr. Peppy

Mr. Peppy drifts through the vast, crowded background of Futurama's 31st-century New New York, one more oddball face in a universe stuffed with them. He appears fleetingly, existing mostly to color a scene rather than drive it, saying little and asking for nothing beyond his moment on screen.

He works because Maurice LaMarche can make even a passing bit part sound fully inhabited, dropping in a voice with its own texture and comic timing before moving on. That's the pleasure of Futurama's crowded world: even the characters who barely register get treated like they matter, if only for a line.