May 01, 2023

Bob's Burgers: Radio No You Didn't (13x20)

I love the storytelling episodes of Bob's Burgers!

Cons:

This isn't a problem with the episode, but I feel like I've been missing some stuff this season that I just hope we get to see again soon. Like, the school gang. Tina-focused episodes. Recently we've had stuff like the episode with the wrestling show, and the one where they all go to buy things at the Walmart-equivalent store, so we haven't had just... a school plot, or a restaurant plot, in a minute.

Pros:

Honestly, I don't really have any actual complaints about this episode, though! It was a lot of fun! The setup is simple. Linda comes across an old radio in the closet as she's cleaning it out, and Bob tells the story of his grandmother uncovering a Nazi spy ring in the '40s. I think what I like about the way the story unfolds is that it didn't have a joke/twist outcome? As I was watching, my initial thought was going to be that as Bob was telling the story, it was going to become obvious that his grandmother wasn't really a hero, the whole thing had been a misunderstanding. Or there would be some humorous reveal where Bob learned that the story had been made up entirely. But no! It really is a story about a mother with a new baby at home, noticing something strange and uncovering enemy spies! An actual piece of family history that a person might have, a small incident that carries great import in within a family, but doesn't make a huge historical splash. I was kind of into how simple it all was.

I also liked the characterization of Bob's grandma and great-grandma. There was some tension between this mother and daughter, but they worked together when push came to shove.

The red herrings about who the bad guy was made me laugh. One guy was sneaking around because he was planning a proposal with his girlfriend. The other guy was just taking out a lot of trash, no mystery there. It was the kindly old neighbor who was flirting with Bob's great-grandmother that ultimately was passing information off to the Germans!

I liked the song at the end over the credits, and all the old-timey radio vibes, with the static and the secret codes. It was just fun to explore a different setting in time as well as in place. I don't have a lot more to say about this episode, it was just a solid fun time all around! Shout out to the kids for being riveted by this story, only offering the occasional humorous interjection: I was honestly pretty happy to hang out within the story without too many interruptions!

9/10

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