well, i've only seen the pilot episode, i must confess. i have heard the same bad things about the changes they made to bring it to the screen before. but in the first enchanting hour, i think fry and laurie's irresistability easily makes up the loss of the delightful narrative voice. i was pleasantly surprised by how well they translated to the screen.

...in written canon i don't get bored the fourth time he's in any given situation, or even the tenth; but that may be where the narrative voice really comes in.