Bob’s Burgers Stays Heartwarming 14 Years Later Because of This Small Detail

After a long enough runtime, it’s common for shows to start losing their charm or end up changing enough throughout the seasons that it just doesn’t feel the same. While it’s been 14 years since it started, Bob’s Burgers is among the shows that manage to maintain consistency throughout its life so far. It’s not perfect, but even episodes you might feel are lackluster or don’t suit your taste are still watchable. You can go through hours of Bob’s Burgers episodes without the need to skip any, then return to the start and do it again. In the process, you might realize that one detail in the way episodes are designed plays a big role in what keeps the show appealing over a decade after it first aired.

Bob’s Burgers focuses on the Belcher family, who live in a rented apartment above their restaurant, appropriately named Bob’s Burgers. The restaurant has loyal customers, like Teddy and Mort, but it’s not the most successful. As a result, Bob and Linda often deal with tight financial situations that make it tough to keep the restaurant running, pay rent, and afford the expenses of three children. While considered among other series in the adult animation categories, Bob’s Burgers is a more equitable portrayal of the complex bonds of a family, not singling out or hating on any individual member of the Belchers. As a result, this helps Bob’s Burgers stand out among other shows of its kind, even in how it handles dysfunction and conflict.

The Belchers’ Familiar Struggle

What they lack in money, the Belchers make up for in passion. It creates a setting that’s relatable, but also makes the characters feel well-rounded. Bob is living his dream by running his own restaurant, but it’s never easy for him. He takes pride in his food, but struggles to draw in the same number of customers as his rival across the street—Jimmy Pesto—who runs a pizzeria. Despite their mutual dislike for each other, Bob and Jimmy’s kids are friends, meaning they often cross paths.

Of course, a lot of episodes include plots that you wouldn’t expect to see in real life, but that creates the perfect blend of entertainment, comedy, family moments, and relatability. You probably won’t find yourself in a situation where your daughter spread a rumor that you make your burgers out of humans and end up having your restaurant shut down as a result, but you’ve likely been in a situation where you or somebody else told a lie that spun out of control. The show has a talent for taking the threads of everyday life, then weaving them into the episode in a way that’s filled with charm.

What Makes Bob’s Burgers Different

Basing plots on real life, then taking them to an unrealistic extreme isn’t unique to Bob’s Burgers, and you’ll find it in a lot of adult animation shows. However, Bob’s Burgers has a consistent detail that keeps it heartwarming in a way that sets it apart from other shows. Where you often have characters who are antagonized by family members in other shows, such as Meg in Family Guy or Bart in The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers refrains from singling out one of the Belchers as the butt of jokes or a character that’s repeatedly bullied.

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Instead, Bob’s Burgers often revolves around the strong bonds that exist between the members of the Belcher family, which you can see in every episode, like in the Christmas episodes where Linda does her best to bring cheer to the people around her. Tina, Gene, and Louise aren’t always thrilled about being part of Linda’s mission to spread cheer, but they still participate in activities like caroling and working at their grandpa’s restaurant so Bob can reconnect with his father.

Bob’s Burgers has more realistic portrayals of family relationships and dynamics in a healthy family environment. They don’t always agree with each other—and there are episodes where they argue or fight—but in the end, those issues are resolved because the Belchers have strong bonds. Bob and Linda genuinely love each other. Meanwhile, Tina, Gene, and Louise often work together to accomplish goals instead of trying to sabotage each other. When Louise has the flu, her entire family plus Teddy try to fix her favorite toy after they accidentally ruined it. Louise is made at first, but she’s able to realize that it wasn’t done on purpose, and her toy doesn’t need to be perfect.

Bob’s Burgers will likely bring more of this heartwarming dynamic when season 15 returns from its midseason break. But until then, there are 14 full seasons available on streaming services that you can revisit anytime you need to see this masterpiece of a show that makes you laugh while reminding you how important the people in our lives can be.