Bob's Burgers - General Discussion

[Amethyst]

24 minutes ago, ganesh said:

She really likes horses so the one horse she gets assigned to doesn't like her? Why would they have that kind of horse in a camp for kids?

She's a good kid and doesn't deserve that. I get that the plot of bonding with the horse is tropey and they wanted to do something different. They could have just had it that once Tina finally got to interact with a live animal that it was completely different than her fantasy. Maybe the horse didn't like being ridden, but still liked Tina. 

This.  It was a lame plot and they could have done better.  I know day camps can be iffy (at least the ones I went to were) but we're talking about a horse camp and the main attraction is either headbutting the riders, trudging along, or crapping itself silly.  Not much fun for a kid.  Plops shouldn't have even been an option.  Most parents would be livid if that's the experience they ended up paying for.  The instructor clearly didn't care, but either Tina should have been given a new horse, or gotten her money refunded.  

I know this might seem like too much, but considering how realistic the family is about their money problems (it's one of the show's biggest strengths imo) they're basing too many episodes showing how the Belchers can be screwed out of what little money they have, just for laughs or cheap sentiment.  It's even worse when the situation is their own doing.  If Tina had enjoyed herself at the camp, then the loss of the money for their fryer wouldn't have been felt so deeply.

[Actionmage]

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 If Tina had enjoyed herself at the camp, then the loss of the money for their fryer wouldn't have been felt so deeply.

Strangely, while I agree with most of your post, I disagree with the first part of this sentence.

I think that as frustrated with Plops as Tina got, it was her chance to live the dream, as it were. As she told Jericho, camp was a way to ride a real horse. During the end with the parents, not just Bob and Linda admired Tina for her form, despite her lack of equine companion. Bob even agreed that Tina was beautiful as she was going through her routine. I think that Linda and Bob may figure it was a wash. Tina seemed to enjoy her time/seemed to get something good out of the experience, but they still don't have the fryer fixed and Teddy was going through withdrawals.

It was funny with all the kids making the same sound when the horses went to trot.

Jocelyn nagging (*g*) her dad for an imaginary horse was gold. His "on it" response was very funny and sad.

[Amethyst]

13 minutes ago, Actionmage said:

I think that Linda and Bob may figure it was a wash. Tina seemed to enjoy her time/seemed to get something good out of the experience, but they still don't have the fryer fixed and Teddy was going through withdrawals.

But Tina didn't start enjoying herself until the very end, once Plops threw her off and she had to re-imagine Jericho for the exhibition.  She may have ended it having fun, but it doesn't negate the lousy experience she was having during that week.  

I do agree that Bob and Linda wrote it off as a wash, though.  

[PinkRibbons]

I was honestly surprised (well, not really) that Bob and Linda didn't demand a refund in exchange for not suing for criminal negligence. It's one thing to give a first-time rider a badly-mannered horse, but it's another to have her pulled off the trail and thrown off by said horse. She could have broken her neck on that fall, plus no one came to look for her. There isn't a lawyer out there that wouldn't take that case.

Loved Teddy trying to use The Power of Christ on the deep fryer.

[Writing Wrongs]

I laughed so hard at Tina's imaginary horse riding exhibition. "She has perfect form."

[theatremouse]

11 hours ago, ganesh said:

She really likes horses so the one horse she gets assigned to doesn't like her? Why would they have that kind of horse in a camp for kids? 

It wasn't that she got assigned a horse that didn't like her; the counselor knew that was their most difficult horse and intentionally assigned it to her because she was being a know-it-all before they started, which is shit on the counselor since just because a kid is enthusiastic and can answer your questions outloud does not mean they aren't still a first time rider who has no idea what they're actually doing. It was unnecessarily vindictive but people are assholes sometimes. It didn't ring true to me that all the kids would be assigned the same horse every day at the camp either, from my experiences, although I know I have a small sample size, and the plot did depend on the adult being unreasonable so I suppose I can't hold it to that. It does annoy me when a plot is entirely dependent on a person being all IDGAF when logically, legally, they really should somewhat, or at least pretend to. I know it's a comedy. We're supposed to suspend disbelief but I think if the point isn't to draw out how unreasonable that is, this kind of plot dependency is kind of cheap? The thing is also even if the instructor didn't like Tina, she should still care about the well being of the horse. And if the horse were having that difficult a time with Tina, they should've had another person there getting the horse to chill if Tina couldn't. I've taken riding lessons and been on the "difficult" horse and they were doing it to try to get him to be able to remain chill.

[ganesh]

Everyone is all upset about Tina!

[peeayebee]

I didn't know that was Paul Rudd voicing Jericho until the end credits. Loved this character. "Gallop gallop gallop gallop gallop..." That fantasy sequence of Jericho and Tina on the beach was directly out of The Black Stallion.

Linda had some fun activities at Restaurant Camp, not to be confused with Camp Restaurant. The canoe races were something I could get into. Loved Linda 'swimming' back to Bob and then moving her arms as one does to stay in place in the water.

As always, there was great animation here. My favorite example was when Plops was walking right next to the fence, causing Tina's pants to twist. What a great detail.

Also great was Bob playing along at the end by being Old Man Belcher. I'm so glad he did that.

Teddy: The power of Christ compels you!

Gene: I love my weird brave sister!

Edited May 16, 2016 by peeayebee

[Mazer]

I sadly disagree with most people here. I am seeing posts about how the trainer should be fired but to be honest, this is the common theme of Bob's Burgers. Almost every adult outside of the Belcher family is insane. We have a teacher who - in full view of a class of kids - destroyed Louise's volcano, called other kids stupid, and openly belittled others. A guidance counselor who is constantly unhinged and takes personal vendettas against children whom he thinks are conspiring against him. A cafeteria worker who physically attacked a kid and also tried to scald Bob's hands under hot water. The list just goes on. So it makes sense that after being interrupted so many times, this person would purposely ruin Tina's day. As for Tina's horse experience: I wanted her to have a flawless adventure but at the same time I felt it was good she experienced a REAL horse. Horses are not always the greatest personalities. I had one who kept trying to bully another horse during a trail ride. Also had a horse who tried to bite me several times whenever I didn't let him run. Horses can be jerks just like any other animal and it was - to me - good for Tina to see that horses are not as black and white as she believes. I didn't want a rehash of Lisa's Horse which - except for homer - went flawlessly and suddenly a 9 year old can take care of a full grown animal almost by herself. Also; this is the only time I didn't mind Bob losing his money because I personally feel it was worth it at the end. Tina performed an imaginary horse ride in front of an audience without hesitation. This is the same Tina who used to have panic attacks at the drop of a hat. That ending showed off a ton of confidence and everyone's reaction would help Tina's confidence even further. Worth the 500$..

[ganesh]

Just because it's a common theme doesn't mean we can't get on their case about it. The woman was mean to Tina, and I didn't like it.

32 minutes ago, Mazer said:

As for Tina's horse experience: I wanted her to have a flawless adventure but at the same time I felt it was good she experienced a REAL horse

As I said previously, they could have done that in a more interesting way. We commend the show for being real enough for a lot of the details they put into it. But this one was a little over the line. She was literally thrown from a horse. That's not experiencing a real horse. It's a fair criticism. It would have been OOC for the show if Tina did have a flawless experience, but they made Tina out to be pathetic. She puts her bra on one boob at a time. She didn't deserve being thrown from a horse.

[SmithW6079]

On 5/16/2016 at 11:35 AM, ganesh said:

Everyone is all upset about Tina!

I'm not particularly. I find Tina's sexual harassment of every boy she meets to be creepy. If Tina had been the son as envisioned in the pilot, no one would find him a break-out character; they'd be calling him sexist and misogynistic.

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Almost every adult outside of the Belcher family is insane. 

The Belcher parents are none too sane either.

Bob's blasé attitude about his deep fryer continues my obsession with how poorly run his restaurant is. Seriously, who eats burgers without fries at a greasy spoon? WTF, Bob? Although Teddy and his outbursts freak me out (he's a serial killer in the making), he was right in this instance. Chips was a good-enough suggestion as a substitute, but Bob hadn't even planned for that. And couldn't he have rigged up something where he could have made the fries? I doubt he's hand-peeling potatoes to make fresh fries.

Edited May 17, 2016 by SmithW6079

[theatremouse]

Yeah, I dig that they may have made the choice to not fix the fryer, but the result of that being "no fries" was dumb. He doesn't have a big restaurant sized pot he can put oil in with a thermometer and fry that way? I know that's a bit more labor intensive but it's doable. Or he could've bought a cheap-ish smaller, not-at-all restaurant worthy deep fryer and done smaller batches as a holdover. If the restaurant is as empty as implied, that would've been a better bandaid than nothing. Or just buy chips and serve them instead of fries temporarily, didn't need to make the chips. For a guy who thinks of such clever burgers of the day, no inventiveness on the crispy-potato-based-sides front.

[vibeology]

1 hour ago, SmithW6079 said:

 I doubt he's hand-peeling potatoes to make fresh fries.

I'm confident he does. If there's one thing that makes the whole plot even more confusing is that Bob takes such pride in serving great, fresh food. I cannot believe he'd serve something frozen out of a bag. But then, if that's really what matters, why wouldn't he have some sort of fry replacement ready to go. I get why he opted to send Tina to camp, because he loves his children and wants to make them happy, but I have a hard time believing he'd serve that burger with no side.

[Amethyst]

The no chips/fries thing is a good point.  I can believe that Bob wouldn't have any emergency money squared away for something like a cheap fryer to make do, but having no substitute at all was absurd, especially since the customers were clearly expecting fries.  He could have just bought a few bags of chips instead of serving nothing at all.  Little plots holes like these seem like they're trying to make the Belchers dumber to justify why they can't make any real money.  And re-writing characterization late in the game is usually a sign that the writers are running out of ideas.  JMO.

[Slovenly Muse]

Yes, the fries thing is dumb. No way would Bob not have a plan for that. (Though the fact that he doesn't could be an indicator of why the business isn't doing so well.) Tina's camp experience, however, gave me the feels in the best way. Horses are tricky animals, and Tina's experience is not uncommon! I went to a riding camp as a kid (older than Tina, though), and got the old temperamental horse who was totally over being ridden (she wasn't dangerous and didn't throw people, she just didn't acknowledge that there was anyone on her back, or tried to scrape off her riders, which made her difficult to control). I loved it! She took me through bushes and bumped my knees into tree trunks, and actually scraped me off her back once going under a tree (left me dangling from thick branch), but I dusted myself off and got back on. I totally bonded with her, and chose her for every ride, even when I could have picked a different horse! I enjoyed the unpredictability of the ride! Tina's experience was totally my childhood. Actually, come to think of it, The Black Stallion was one of my very favourite movies as a kid, and, while I didn't have an imaginary horse, I DID have a jar of spare change on my shelf that I intended to one day use to buy a horse (which was going to be black and named "Midnight"), so maybe we're not so different after all!

Anyway, I'm not trying to defend the counsellor, who should definitely have let Tina ride a different horse (even changing it up for everyone from time to time would be good), just saying that I had a very similar experience as a kid that I now look back on as one of the fondest memories of my youth. And somehow I think Tina will too!

[ganesh]

With no fryer, why not make cole slaw? I can't imagine Bob wouldn't make a great slaw. 

2 hours ago, Slovenly Muse said:

Horses are tricky animals, and Tina's experience is not uncommon!

Right. Instead of Tina just getting thrown from her horse in the woods and just left there though, they could have taken that concept and had Tina bond with the horse without riding. So at the end, they could have had Jericho and Plops trotting side by side behind Tina who would be leading them along. They made Tina look like kind of a sad sack and the Belchers kind of chumps.

[OnceSane]

I want Jerome.  Wait, that's a lie…I want Paul Rudd.

Tina was great.  I loved that she didn't let the cantankerous horse ruin her experience, and did an amazing performance while riding her imaginary horse.

[dcalley]

On 4/18/2016 at 9:48 AM, vibeology said:

Also, the shipper in me was very happy that Tina and Zeke got to kiss and that he also proposed to her in the fantasy sequence. I think Zeke is way better than Jimmy Jr.

I noticed that Zeke's diamond was bigger than Jimmy Jr.'s.

[mtlchick]

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I want Jerome.  Wait, that's a lie…I want Paul Rudd.

Especially in cutoffs.

 

It wasn't too bad, but I agree with all about the fries.  Bob clearly takes pride in his burgers and his cooking.  It's a small kitchen so it wouldn't have been that hard to buy a small fryer for 100 bucks.  I can't see them THAT strapped for cash to get that in the short term.  Or at least a substitute.  Maybe he should have thought about making a salad as a side and realizing people need fries so he broke down and bought one?

 

Oh man.  I am also one of those people worried for a restaurant.  IN A CARTOON!  

[Actionmage]

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Oh man.  I am also one of those people worried for a restaurant.  IN A CARTOON!  

One of us!! One of us!!

[OnceSane]

1 hour ago, Actionmage said:

One of us!! One of us!!

Gooble gobble! Gooble gobble!

[bad things are bad]

I think it would be non-canonical (NON CANONICAL!) for Bob to figure out a logical short term solution to the "no fries" thing. Like go to Target and buy a Fry Daddy for $50 

[mtlchick]

As someone who was (and in some ways still is) a fan of New Kids on the Block, this spoke to me.  Especially when a member recognizes you (not by a slap though sometimes I feel like that member needs it.) 

[Dewey Decimate]

On 5/18/2016 at 0:15 PM, OnceSane said:

I want Jerome.  Wait, that's a lie…I want Paul Rudd.

I felt weird the whole ep wondering why I felt... slightly attracted to Jericho the horse. So relieved upon seeing who voiced him.

[radishcake]

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Tina’s ideas of love and romance are tested when she volunteers at a nursing home to earn her next Thunder Girls badge. Meanwhile, Bob makes new friends who lead him to make some questionable choices.

[radishcake]

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The kids’ goop war lands Bob in a sticky situation. The prank happens to occur on the same day that Skip Marooch calls to tell Bob that a journalist is coming to the restaurant to write a profile and the whole town gets involved.

[Galileo908]

Neighbor: Don't Go Chasing Waterbeds

Externinator: You Mouse Remember This

Burger(s) of The Day: Aww Nuts Burger, The Glass Fromagerie burger

I love the small details of Teddy's sad life. "Make me sound cool!"

It seems to be totally Gene to be obsessed with Meryl's pearls. "He won't be able to pull them off!" I liked the show ended up not going the obvious route, and that there WAS an Admiral and that the pearls weren't stolen. Although that did lead to Bosco coming back and being a hilarious asshole.

[Amethyst]

Aw, this was a great episode.  The emotional notes hit the right keys this time.  Loved Joel getting his when Sgt. Bosco went to his apartment.

[Galileo908]

Neighbor: 100 cent store

Burger(s) of The Day: The Hand That Rocks The Bagel Burger (comes with everything bagel), Put Me in a Poached Burger (comes with a poached egg)

Hey, the Felix toilet is still there and important! It's great that Bob and Linda were okay with Gene flushing his stuffed animals down the employee toilet because "he's a big boy now" and they just have to deal with it.

Teddy is still sad and great. He's actually going to therapy! And he's abandoned it to kick a door down, shirtless in front of everyone.

So this was the 100th episode, and just about everyone was in this. Dr. Yap, Mr. Fischoeder, even the rollerskater were all here. You gotta love how on a milestone episode that Bob finally points out all the crazy stuff that's happened here. And during the "Toilet Bob" chant, people like Zeke, Rudy, even the bikers were spotted (and even more during the credits, like Ron!). It's nice that the store finally got a win out of this. An embarassing win, but a win nonetheless. 

.The song, was, as always, amazing and catchy. I'm gonna miss this show all summer.

[commadrama]

This was a sweet episode. Sgt. Bosco scoldingly hitting Joel on the head with his notepad made me laugh.

[BooksRule]

I thought that was Cloris Leachman as Meryl, but I wasn't sure until I saw the end credits.  It was funny how they dressed up Bob to be the Admiral (with him half-asleep).  'Don't touch the shoulder cheese!'  What did he have pinned to his jacket to represent medals?  (My signal kept pixelating, so I missed some lines).

[Amethyst]

That was a good season finale.  I liked that Louise owned up the mess.  Also liked that they finally acknowledged how crazy things have been.  It lessens the sting of the Belchers constantly losing, and actually feels like there was a point to all of it.  

And the write up they got from Coasters was awesome.  It wasn't flawless (that sad pic of Bob on the toilet) but I wouldn't expect it to be.  It got some much-needed business for the restaurant and I hope it continues.

[MaryTylerMoore]

I loved Bob hanging out with the young chefs. I wished it had resulted in a great write up for the restaurant or more business. I really want to see Bob succeed.

Another great episode my only complaint is there wasn't enough Louise.

[ganesh]

1 hour ago, Amethyst said:

And the write up they got from Coasters was awesome.

They didn't even have the food, and they said good things about the restaurant. Finally, some good advertising! I'm glad that it ended on an awesome song and a positive outlook for the restaurant.

[mtlchick]

It's nice that the final hour of the season ended on a high note for Bob: getting respect from the hot chefs with all night drinking sessions and then Skip coming back to get the profile for him.  Sure it wasn't the best profile but it's a start. 

 

Side note: both of my parents managed to confuse crazy glue for eye drops.  

[OnceSane]

There was an admiral!  I think that was the best part of the episode for me.  Well, that and Tina realizing Louise was wrong about everything.

Nice to see Bob get out with his fellow chefs, and his tiredness reminded me of when he drove a cab to make money for Tina's party.

[bad things are bad]

I picked it up at my library and some of the recipes sound great...also accompanying text is very Bobs Burger-y

[peeayebee]

Cloris Leachman did great voice work. I loved the character of Meryl. The whole thing with Tina was lots of fun. I'm glad the nephew got in trouble. He puts the "EW" in nephew. 

I also loved Gene saying that 'Don't tell Meryl' was some kind of phrase. "I just farted. Don't tell Meryl."

[peeayebee]

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Side note: both of my parents managed to confuse crazy glue for eye drops.

Yikes! What happened?

I liked this ep. It was a good season finale.

I was surprised that as the ep started, we actually see the name of the business on the building next door. Granted, it's being taken down, but still, it's there instead of the usual For Lease sign. Has that ever happened before?

Poor Bob. Jimmy Pesto is such an ass, but at least this all had a happy ending. I love that Louise confessed.

The song was great. One of my favorite parts was when Bob and Louise floated up into the sky, and Bob's pants were still around his ankles.

[ShortyMac]

I love the names of the businesses on the show. Not Awful Falafel, You Book Marvelous, Elegant Doily Retirement Home. They crack me up.

[OnceSane]

Terrific season finale!  Maybe we can stop worrying so much about a fictional cartoon restaurant; I know I was hoping for a win for Bob. Loved the write-up using his toilet picture and saying good things.  And customers!  Yay!

Louise taking responsibility may have been the biggest surprise. 

[mtlchick]

peeayebee: trips to the doctor.  They came out of it ok other than having some egos being bruised. 

[cpcathy]

I haven't loved all this season's episodes, but the ones that are great are really something special. This was was excellent.

[ganesh]

I like when the kids all plot together. And Bob always gets roped in and plays along. Oh, I'm a different admiral, and walks away. 

It's too bad Bob couldn't have a little moderation. Maybe just go out with the guys once a week instead?

[kokapetl]

"HE'S DEAD! GO AWAY! HE'S DEAD!"

[peeayebee]

53 minutes ago, ganesh said:

I like when the kids all plot together. And Bob always gets roped in and plays along. Oh, I'm a different admiral, and walks away. 

What was the name he made up? I loved it. 

[ganesh]

I think it was a reverse of the real admiral's name. Even comatose, Bob *commits* to the role.

[PinkRibbons]

I loved the episode, my only complaint is that by ending the season on episode 100, we got a shortened season.

And damn, when are they going to release that music cd already? I'll bet we've got songs to fill up several volumes by now.

[cpcathy]

I love all the kids together too. And Gene slayed this week, as usual.

[SmithW6079]

20 hours ago, peeayebee said:

I was surprised that as the ep started, we actually see the name of the business on the building next door. Granted, it's being taken down, but still, it's there instead of the usual For Lease sign. Has that ever happened before?

 

 

I don't think so. It was a surprise to me too.

18 hours ago, OnceSane said:

Terrific season finale!  Maybe we can stop worrying so much about a fictional cartoon restaurant; I know I was hoping for a win for Bob. Loved the write-up using his toilet picture and saying good things.  And customers!  Yay!

Louise taking responsibility may have been the biggest surprise. 

 

Her duet was Bob was really nice.