A Man. And His Blog.

Surprisingly a better episode than the pilot. A more proper story, which was actually funny, but yet the series successfully tried to stay true to itself (considering that the writers never want to be that archaic like the Seth MacFarlane animated comedies).

The story was actually really cool. I can understand why Bob decided to stay in the walls, when Gloria was visiting. If she would be a real-life character, she would have been one of the craziest in television history ever. I just loved her stepping into the walls and hunting for Bob, who hadn’t much space to run to, when Gloria was coming closer and closer. And the rest of Bob’s days in the walls were interesting too. I saw a bunch of movie references during the scenes, and I never wanted it to end. There were so many interesting things to make un of with Bob in the walls.

The rest of the episode was okay. It was nice that the kids were part of the episode, giving them all three troubles in school. But with the exception of Louise, their stories weren’t really funny. Here I could imagine that Louise is going to be the Bart/Stewie/Bender/Rollo character in the show, when the writers actually want to have such a character in the show. But I love her anyway, and I hope she will continue to be this crazy in this season.

And there isn’t really much more to write about. It was a solid episode, I could laugh a couple of times, and I still think that Bob looks like he is masturbating during the end credits. Furthermore I was glad to see that not all the stories seem to revolve around the restaurant. It’s the second episode, and the in-laws was the virus for Bob, without any action in the restaurant. 7.5/10

The Walking Dead meets Tina

A peaceful sleep - with a crazy dream

I was never very curious about FOX’ animation domination on Sundays. I don’t really watch THE SIMPSONS like I should, I’m not really a fan of FAMILY GUY and AMERICAN DAD, and the only show which could have been a favorite of mine on that slot would be FUTURAMA – but this show ain’t on FOX anymore. Last year I hoped that THE CLEVELAND SHOW would bring me a bit closer to the animation domination, but the series failed to impress me. This time I’m hoping that BOB’S BURGERS will be good enough to be considered a good show in my schedule, which I will follow throughout the season. Unfortunately, the first episode wasn’t good enough for BOB’S BURGERS to be such a show, but I was still surprised that it was a good-enough episode to hope that the series will survive for a second season. Not that this episode was a highlight, but it was good entertainment.

It was nice to see that the first episode didn’t rely much on the humor, and was telling a story. Something I am always missing in THE SIMPSONS or FUTURAMA episodes is a proper way of storytelling, where the episodes don’t need a five-minute-prologue, which explains how the characters get from point A to point B and have their part of their story. BOB’S BURGERS was completely different here (again: I can’t remember anything from FAMILY GUY, and I have never seen AMERICAN DAD), and told one simple storyline, starting with the first second, ending with the last second. Not much of a B plot, not even a C storyline. It was just an easy way to get into a show’s premise without overworking much of it.

There is basically not much to tell about the story itself. Bob wants to re-re-re-open his burger shop, but gets into sticking points, thanks to his son Gene, who is incapable of listening to his father, thanks to his daughter Tina, who seems to be autistic, yet not autistic, thanks to his younger daughter Louise, who managed to turn the family into cannibals during one day. And in the midst of it, Bob even forgets the anniversary of his wedding day. The story could serve for some hilarious gags, similar to FUTURAMA, but at the end I was glad that the writers didn’t bring so many gags (or I couldn’t see them as gags, because I wasn’t able to laugh, or wasn’t able to recognize them). Instead the pilot delivered a nice little story about marriage, and Bob’s little efforts to keep his family together. He just wants the best for his small business and his kids, but like in any other animated comedy, the kids are stupid, the wife doesn’t think about the worth of the family business, and Bob is just a small person, but with a big heart.

The episode wasn’t really funny for me. Louise’s “show and tell”, which brought the cannibal-madness to Bob’s family, didn’t bring me laughter; and how the health inspector finalized his suspicions that Bob’s Burgers is a store to close, because he has the power to do so. It was more of a little dramedy, especially with Bob failing in re-re-re-opening his store after all the disasters before (yes, I kinda felt for him during his “talking to the restaurant” scene). Furthermore, I liked the ending scene on an emotional basis, when he was reconnecting with his family again – just to be punked by his son.

If BOB’S BURGERS is becoming more funnier in future episodes, and developing a breakout character (similar to Bart, Stewie, or Rollo), the series could definitely be on my schedule for the remainder of the season (as long as FOX doesn’t cancel it early). The pilot showed that it wants to be something else than just an animated sitcom, which is why I liked it. 7.5/10

The health inspector becomes a problem for Bob

The end of a bad day: Bob is reflecting