When it comes to Thanksgiving, the Belchers truly know how to embrace the season of gratitude in Bob’s Burgers. Since Season 3, each season has been rolling out one episode dedicated to their Thanksgiving hijinks. But unlike its equally funny Fox counterpart, The Simpsons, which takes pride in sheer absurdity, Bob’s Burgers feels far more down-to-earth. Each Bob’s Burger Thanksgiving special typically starts out with a holiday-related conundrum, be it Bob’s elaborate dinner spread, Linda’s (John Roberts) wacky younger sister Gayle (Megan Mullally), or the Belcher siblings’ side quests. But at the end of the episode, viewers are left with an important life lesson relatable to any family, whether they observe Thanksgiving or not. Bob Belcher’s Famous Turkey Feast is the Running Gag of ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Family man, main Belcher patriarch, and all-around chef Bob Belcher (H. Jon Benjamin) takes full responsibility for the Thanksgiving dinner. It’s not a duty forced on him. To Bob, every Thanksgiving dinner is his pride and joy, arguably even his life’s greatest work. This devotion often becomes the butt of jokes from the rest of the Belcher family, though never enough to make him stop cooking. And to be fair, it’s easy to see why they tease him. One of the show’s running gags is Bob speaking endearingly to his turkey (either frozen or cooked) with genuine affection, as if it could understand every word. Being the cooking perfectionist he is, Bob sometimes takes his turkey cooking antics too far. In Season 12, Episode 8, “Stuck in the Kitchen with You,” the Belchers spend their Thanksgiving doing some good at an elderly retirement home. When two of the home’s cooks pull out of Thanksgiving, Bob is forced to step in, initially reluctant and eventually embracing his role. But when his youngest daughter, Louise (Kristen Schaal), steps in to help with her barely existent cooking skills, Bob brushes off his daughter instead, which eventually hurts Louise’s feelings. At one point, Louise could be seen taunting her father, calling him the ultimate “Thankzilla.” That isn’t even the worst version of “Thankzilla” audiences have seen. In Season 10, Episode 8, “Now We’re Not Cooking With Gas,” Bob receives a call that his very special turkey from Riverbrook Lake Farms the one where he had to wait for five years is finally his. With the high-end poultry’s precarious nature (“They’re, like, the Ferraris of turkeys.”), Bob becomes obsessed with cooking it to perfection. All hell breaks loose when there’s a gas leak, forcing him to cook it in a makeshift fire pit in a piss-stained alley. To make matters worse, he forces his family to bring in everything to burn before spiralling into a Mad Max state. Thankfully, in both episodes, Bob ultimately learns that no famous turkey or fancy spread should replace his loved ones. It’s Not Always a Traditional Thanksgiving Special in ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Some Bob’s Burgers Thanksgiving episodes aren’t as emotionally deep as others. In fact, some barely feel like Thanksgiving episodes at all. In Season 9, Episode 7 “I Bob Your Pardon,” a seemingly harmless turkey-pardoning ceremony takes a mystery-filled turn when the Belcher kids make a harrowing discovery. It turns out that the event is actually a cover-up by the mayor to send the chosen turkey to a slaughterhouse. Although the story is set during the holiday, what follows is an action-packed chase as the Belchers race to save the turkey, taking them through gas-station convenience stores, coyote-filled forests, and to a respectable farm that promises not to harm it. There’s also the more modest “Putts-giving.” Season 13, Episode 8 of Bob’s Burgers takes a more radical approach by doing the unexpected: not celebrating Thanksgiving at all. Instead of spending time at home, the Belchers visit the nearby mini-golf course all thanks to a 50% discount voucher that expires on the same day. Bob is just itching to get back home to craft the perfect meal, but his wife Linda is obsessed with scoring hole-in-ones. Speaking of unconventional, the very experimental “Dawn of the Peck” is what happens when the bumbling Linda gets put into horror scene straight out of a movie. If it isn’t obvious from the Dawn of the Dead-inspired title, Season 5, Episode 4 is a homage to the horror flick, all set within a Thanksgiving backdrop. The episode follows a turkey version of a bull run that goes absolutely bonkers. What was supposed to be an innocent festival at Wonder Wharf becomes a literal wild goose chase (as well as turkeys, ducks, and chickens). Each ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Thanksgiving Episode Reminds Viewers of the Importance of Family As eccentric as they can be, Bob’s Burgers Thanksgiving episodes stay grounded through their wholesome takeaways. Even one of the show’s wackiest installments, Season 7’s “The Quirk-ducers,” ultimately gives the usually meek eldest daughter, Tina (Dan Mintz) a well-earned moment to shine. Louise convinces Gene (Eugene Mirman) to sabotage Tina’s school play to score a half-day off, but things quickly spiral when Louise crosses the line: the audience gets sprayed with bloody animal innards. Amid everyone’s disgust, it’s Tina who steps up to save the play (and the day), channeling her main-character energy as she finally steps out of her shell. She even scores a kiss on the lips! Not all Thanksgivings go smoothly, as seen in Season 11, Episode 7, “Diarrhea of a Poopy Kid.” Fans might notice one particular Belcher missing from the dinner table: Gene. With an infectious stomach flu, he’s quarantined in the bathroom, excreting all kinds of bodily fluids from both his mouth and butt. The worst part is that he cannot indulge in his favorite foods! As much as we want to enjoy a lavish Thanksgiving meal, it’s not the same when one of our family members is left out. What happens next is just as hilarious and heartwarming: the Belchers sit outside the bathroom with their meals, verbally exchanging fictional stories to keep Gene distracted from the pain, proving that Thanksgiving is all about sticking together through all the good times and the bad.
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This Fox Sitcom Has the Greatest Annual Holiday Specials — and No, It’s Not ‘The Simpsons’
