A More-Than-Affectionate Tribute to Bob's Burgers
Season Four
I try not to trace these things; I’m not an artist; so, here’s the best I could do with Teddy, one of my favorite non-Belcher characters. Directly beneath is the image I was working from)
The end of Season Three led inexorably to the beginning of Season Four.
Season Three ushered in a golden period that would last for at least five more years, depending on whom you ask.
What to say, what to say…
I feel like I'm supposed to identify a unifying theme running through each season, or in this case, season 4. Isn’t that my responsibility, to you, the reader?
I’ll try.
While the restaurant remains the center of the show, more episodes begin to take place outside of it. In the very first episode of the season, the family goes on a camping trip, Bob eats some undercooked fish and gets terribly sick, and the family gets separated only to find each other through the magic of television writing. It’s fun, there are some funny moments, it just didn’t make my favorites.
In other episodes which I probably won't write about at length, Jimmy Pesto rips off Bob's idea for a Super Bowl commercial (meh), Gene becomes a cheerleader (“Gene it On,” actually quite funny - I should’ve included it as a favorite, Mr. Ambrose is his horrible hilarious self), and Bob and Linda have to meet with Mr. Frond to discuss some essays the children have written for a school project, in each of which he is depicted unfavorably (love the 1st segment, the other two didn’t do anything for me).
There really is no unifying theme. Or if there is, I’m too lazy to figure it out, especially since no one is reading this, and Substack actually charges you a penny for each person not reading your thing. I don’t HAVE 8.2 billion pennies. So, if you want to read about unifying themes and other academic ephemera in future installments, leave a comment saying: “WHERE’S THE UNIFYING THEME?”
Basically, everything stays the same as in Season 3. There are at least 9 gems I wanna write about.
"Fort Night", written by Mike Olsen
The kids can't wait to go trick or treating, armed as they are with Darrell's (voiced by Aziz Ansari) list of the best houses for candy in town. First they have to stop off at the Belcher kids’ fort, a marvel of kiddie inventiveness hidden in the alley behind the restaurant. Unfortunately, a truck backs into the alley, stranding them inside the fort. And the only person who can help them is Millie, voiced by Molly Shannon, a... different sort of child who is obsessed with Louise and drives her crazy. When Louise inevitably loses her temper with her very special admirer, Millie begins tormenting the kids inside the Fort.
Meanwhile, Bob and Linda are working on the kids' dragon costume and getting increasingly annoyed with their failure to appear.
You know how you listen to a song you love a million times until it can never have the same impact? Well I haven't quite reached that point with this episode yet, but I've come regrettably close. It's so good. It's got an atmosphere to it, heightened by the first appearance of Millie, whose mind is so warped that it gets its own eerie music.
“My Big Fat Greek Bob”, written by Scott Jacobsen
Initially annoyed at the prospect of serving as a temporary cook for a frat, Bob discovers that he enjoys hanging out with the lovable losers from Beta House, drinking beer, singing karaoke while drinking beer, and learning exotic new methods of drinking beer. His arrival comes in the middle of a “prank war” instigated by a rival, less squalid frat. When elder Frat Guy Dr. Yap becomes the victim of a vicious assault, he rallies his (much younger) brothers to strike back at their rivals.
Of the two Fox Sunday-night-animated-sitcom-Animal-House parodies of which I’m aware, I’d say this one actually bests The Simpsons’ “Homer Goes to College,” which suffers from a bit too much Wacky-Homer-itis (the great gag of his absurd vendetta against the quite likable Dean notwithstanding). And it’s always a hoot when the kids tag along to someplace no responsible adult would bring them.
WATCH/LISTEN FOR:
Bob’s karaoke scene (I had to google the lyrics of the song he’s singing to figure out the title and artist; it’s marvelous)
“Bob and Deliver”, written by Greg Thompson
Bob is asked to fill in for the Home Economics teacher of Tina’s class at Wagstaff School. The kids are initially resistant to his attempts to teach, but he wins them over and manages to get them excited about cooking. Their attempt to start an in-school restaurant becomes so successful that the soulless corporate overlords who run the school cafe determine to put a stop to it. Bob also becomes so jazzed by his connection with the high schoolers that he kind of forgets Tina’s existence, which is messed up.
An overt (see the episode title) homage to the ‘80s movie Stand and Deliver, which I haven’t seen since I was in my teens in the 80s. So I’m not sure what’s directly taken from the movie and what’s not. Doesn’t matter, this works whether you’ve seen the original or not. Hildy the Lunchperson is especially funny, a marvel of over-the-top aggression.
“Christmas in the Car,” written by Stephen Davis and Kelvin Yu
A last-minute quest to find a Christmas tree results in the Belchers being hunted down by the invisible driver of a Candy Cane-striped 18-wheeler.
One of the things I love about Bob’s Burgers is its use of atmosphere, and this episode has it in loads: the Belchers wind up hiding out, stranded in their car in a dark snowy forest, from the rage-crazed driver of a truck whom Linda wittingly pissed off. It seems incredibly cozy, until the driver finds them. Yet even with the threat to their lives, there are plenty of laughs here. And of course, a happy Christmas ending.
LISTEN/WATCH FOR:
“Jingle in the Jungle,” the bongo-driven Christmas song you didn’t know you needed
Bobcat Goldthwait as Gary the truck driver
“Slumber Party,” written by Scott Jacobson
Linda gets it in her head that Louise needs a sleepover with some of her classmates. Louise, begging to differ, systematically drives them all back to the safety of their homes - all, that is, but one, who is hiding a secret and can’t leave until she is sure it won’t be discovered.
One of those episodes that is just plain fun: there’s the surprise slumber party (listen for Louise’s rundown to her mother of her guests’ personality defects), Louise playing mind games to get rid of said guests, and a pillow fight with one of my favorite lines in the entire series.
“Presto-Tina-O”, written by Kit Boss
With the town hosting a Festival of Magic, the restaurant is over-run with magicians. A thrifty bunch, their loitering so annoys Bob that he kicks them out, and finds himself cursed. Meanwhile, at school, Tina talks Jimmy Jr. into letting her be his assistant for Young Magician’s Competition, but he is so focused on his dancing that Tina decides to compete against him.
Oh, Tina. Will you never learn that Jimmy Jr. is a self-absorbed ass, and that there are so many other boys you could be stalking? Sazerac the Magician (voiced by Andres Du Bouchet) is one of the great one-shot characters in the show’s history.
LISTEN FOR:
“Don’t Mix Romance with Magic,” a zippy little tune with some jazzy scatting based on words of wisdom offered by the proprietor of the town’s magic store (presumably this is Horace? Played by Jordan Peele?)
“Ambergris,” written by Scott Jacobson
The kids discover a foul-smelling waxy ball on the beach. The Internet informs them that it’s ambergris, a foul-smelling waxy substance which whales pass when their stomachs become irritated. It’s potentially worth thousands of dollars, but it’s illegal to sell it. All the better! says Louise, and the kids turn to reformed bank robber Mickey for help finding a fence. But the prospect of making $30,000 somehow does not bring out Louise’s better side, and Tina becomes concerned as she watches her sister become increasingly paranoid and money-obsessed.
Meanwhile, Bob’s desire to simply get his bathroom sink fixed is thwarted by Felix, Mr. Fischoeder’s younger brother, who has far grander plans.
This episode introduces Felix Fischoeder (voiced by Zach Galifanakis). Much of it takes place near or at the wonderfully seedy Wonder Wharf amusement park. It’s funny AND disturbing watching Louise transform from an ordinary 9-year-old little- girl schemer into a money-mad, hyper-vigilant young lady.
“Wharf Horse (or How Bob Saves/Destroys the Town Pt. 1)” written by Nora Smith
Felix convinces Bob to try to talk his brother into selling Wonder Wharf so he and some developers can put condos up and make a fortune (also impressing Felix's new girlfriend, who has a thing for money). After initially agreeing, Mr. Fischoeder changes his mind, sending Felix into a murderous rage. How murderous, you ask? Murderous enough to murder.
LISTEN/WATCH FOR:
“Oh, Nice Things Are Nice,” the song Bob sings to butter up Mr. Fischoeder and convince him to sell his beloved amusement park.
Jordan Peele as Fanny, Felix’s girlfriend, who is also an aspiring singer with her own song (“Mr. Dance Floor”)
“World Wharf 2: The Wharfening (or, How Bob Saves/Destroys the Town Part 2)” written by Lizzie Molyneux and Wendy Molyneux
As Bob and Mr. Fischoeder face a grim death beneath the piers of Wonder Wharf, Linda and the kids frantically try to determine the meaning of what seem to be a series of drunken texts but are actually Bob’s desperate attempts to summon help. Will they find him in time to save him?
This has to be the best 2-part animated sitcom episode since “Who Shot Mr. Burns?” Genuinely suspenseful - it seems possible that Bob and Mr. Fischoeder will be left to die - and also quite funny.
These aren’t exactly complaints, more like observations: Jordan Peele’s interpretation of Fanny is in wonderfully bad taste (Fanny is a woman with an absurd voice who is very proud of her butt and wants everyone to see it, so, nothing offensive there!). Also, whenever I watch this episode, I get pissed off at Mr. Fischoeder for his cavalier attitude towards Felix’s clearly serious plan to murder him and Bob - he actually mocks his younger brother even as he’s leaving them to drown.
LISTEN FOR:
“Oh Bad Things are Bad,” the minor-key answer record to “Oh Nice Things Are Nice” for when you’re tied up under a pier and waiting to die.