Six reasons you should be watching Bob's Burgers
Even people who don't typically watch animation (I understand that is a thing that exists) will find something to like in Bob's Burgers, the upstart sitcom that's taking Fox's Sunday night line-up by storm.
1. Talent
Pretty much anyone who's anybody in the world of comedy is or has been on the show. The main characters are voiced by H. Jon Benjamin, Dan Mintz, Eugene Mirman, John Roberts, and the sublime Kristen Schaal. Sarah Silverman, her sister Laura Silverman, Tim Meadows, and Kevin Kline voice recurring characters.
Guest stars include Megan Mullally, Ron Lynch, Wendy Molyneux, Paul F. Tompkins, Aziz Ansari, Robert Ben Garant, Tim Heidecker, Bill Hader, Oscar Nunez, John Glaser, and many more. The line-up for future episodes is getting longer and starrier by the day.
2. Great Storytelling
This is a show that knows how to pace itself. The story builds and builds, and each new step is a perfectly reasonable one given what has come before it, but by the end of the episode everything has become completely deranged.
This kind of dramatic pacing has become something of a lost art, particularly on animated shows. It puts a lot of faith in the audience's ability to be attentive and patient enough to follow the plot and watch it unfold. This is no small thing in our smartphone-addled world, and most shows fall back on cut-aways, or multiple plotlines that go nowhere in the end.
3. It's hilarious!
Bob's Burgers consistently makes me laugh harder and more often than just about every other show on television. There is a lot to like about the show, but let's not lose touch of the most important part: It's really really funny.
4. Acceptance of the weird
In any other show, Bob and Linda Belcher would be the cranky, conservative, authoritarian foils for their wacky children to play against. But on Bob's Burgers, the parents are as affable and accepting of strangeness as you could possibly want. Not only do they know that their kids are weird; they CHERISH the weirdness.
Bob and Linda don't just tolerate their children's obsessions and quirks, they often go out of their way to nurture them. Not only does this make for a funnier show; it also makes you think what a great world it would be if everyone was a little more like the Belchers.
5. Acceptance of female sexuality
Most of this falls to Tina, whose burgeoning pubescent sexuality pops out in bizarre ways. Whether she's having sex dreams about zombies, or painting her face with a ton of make-up and wearing a side ponytail, Tina seems - more so than most teens - to really be struggling to navigate her way through life. And her family may be creeped out by it at times (who wouldn't?) but they either accept or ignore her indiscretions, rather than ostracizing or chastising her.
I find this particularly gratifying because Western culture generally treats female sexuality like some kind of nuclear weapon. It's dangerous, embarrassing and best kept out of sight. (Meanwhile, male sexuality is inescapable in the media. You're soaking in it!) And that's REGULAR sexuality; we're not even talking the weird stuff Tina gets into.
Sure, Louise is often grossed out by Tina's sexuality. But not because she feels that Tina's sexuality deviates from the norm. Quite the contrary, Louise's reaction stems from the fact that she takes it personally.
As a girl who is herself on the verge of puberty, Louise is understandably freaked out and horrified by the thought of what's about to happen to her. In other words, Louise is only grossed out by Tina's sexuality BECAUSE she accepts it as normal.
When I first watched Bob's Burgers I was annoyed that they hadn't hired women to voice the female characters. But as I watched the show, I eventually gave it a pass on this count because A) The voices are hilarious, and B) This is one of the most female-positive shows on television, second only to the likes of Parks & Recreation.
6. They live within their means
As Grantland writer Tara Ariano points out, every other animated sitcom plays fast and loose with the real world rules of income versus lifestyle. Whereas there are entire episodes of Bob's Burgers which hinge on the fact that the Belchers are constantly struggling to make ends meet, supporting a family of five on the income of a small independent restaurant.
The Belchers' struggle is real in a way that most other TV families (live action or animated) are not.
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