We’re in the endgame now, boys and girls. We’re in the mother-flipping endgame. Two episodes to go...correction...one episode left in the season. Goddamn, time flies by huh. Summer is right around the corner. The offseason is now knocking on our doors. And let’s face it, this season of Bob’s Burgers, despite that we only have one episode left, which is next week’s season finale, and of course, it’s a Linda episode. Y’all kinda noticed that there’s somehow a trend since Season 9 where you have an episode that has Linda in the spotlight. Don’t know about Season 8 with the Belchers catering at a poorly planned wedding because that feels like the 21st episode. Though that was mostly because most people think that “The Bleakening”, the Christmas episode of that season, was considered a two-parter...despite treating it as a one-hour episode. Yeah, that’s a debate come never. But you get the idea. I think we all know how it all ended. And I think we know where this is heading.
In this week’s episode of Bob’s Burgers, in what is pretty much the most confusing synopsis to come up with, or reading it through what it said in the press release, Linda saves a dumb, old tradition from being taken away with a random building being the center of attention as Bob looks over an online cucumber...hopefully that is code for him looking over an adult website in my spoilerific review of the twenty-first episode of Season 11, titled “Tell Me Dumb Thing Good”.
Okay, correction, it’s not a building that needed to be saved by Linda. It’s the trash can. And knowing that little trend that I mentioned in the introduction where it’s the 21st episode in the season of the show, ever since Season 9, we have an episode where Linda is the focus, and it ends with either average or meh performance. Now, this isn’t like me shitting on Linda and her episodes that focus on her. There are some good episodes that have Linda being in the spotlight in focus. Not gonna to bore y’all with details. But you kinda noticed a trend with the past two seasons. And we pretty much continued that trend. As for the episode itself for this week, yeah...I think it may have fit the bill on this little “trend” we’re dealing with. Obviously, the main plot of the episode with the trash can seems somewhat mediocre. Sure, while it is somewhat straightforward and did rekindle a long-forgotten rivalry between both Linda and Cynthia, who made her return to the show since Season 5, this seems bland. It doesn’t mean it’s bad, but again, much like with the past two episodes, it’s not that good either.
And the same may go to the subplot. And I could see if there are some people out there where they do enjoy the subplot with Bob looking online with what is pretty much a live stream of a cucumber. A freaking cucumber. When I checked out the press release and discussions over at Discord leading up to the premiere, I thought that the subplot would not bode well with the episode. Thinking that it would be going nowhere and feels like it would serve nothing. Well...it was something. Mostly with the end of the episode. But throughout the episode is pretty much baseless filler to serve with the main plot over a cucumber. And to be fair...I thought the whole “online cucumber” thing would be Bob going through an adult website because...I’m pretty sure that sounds like him going to a website like that and “online cucumber” could be mean anything. But we might as well break the episode piece by piece and hopefully try to at least understand rather than sending me comments about how I do my reviews is putrid shit, this is “Tell Me Dumb Thing Good”.
So the episode begins with Linda ready to head out after putting in toilet paper into the customer bathroom as Bob looks over at the laptop and watching something that caught his eye and also not breaking away from the screen in the form of a neighborhood website, well through the camera, with one thing from the neighborhood watch security camera that catches Bob’s attention and that is regarding someone posting pictures of a cucumber. You wish they were joking. I do to with the whole Bob looking at an online cucumber idea for the subplot...yeah, there’s no joke. That’s actually a thing and that actually happened. Bob looks over at the laptop over the status of a cucumber that someone is taking photos of its progress and posting it online. And this gets stretched for the entire episode. I know that it’s the subplot and with the subplot, I should feel like that should be saved later on in the review. But...there’s not a lot to talk about with Bob looking over the laptop for a cucumber online and might as well treat it as pointless filler.
So Linda is preparing to head out to the store and also picking up the kids. And once she did those two items checked out from the list as they were on their home and noticed a building that once hosted a restaurant that appears to be an all-out rice restaurant with the place having a for lease poster attached to the window. Sadly, the building will not be the feature for this week’s episode, and instead, all the focus shifted towards the item in front. That item...a trash can. Yeah, it’s really happening, folks. It’s really happening. Linda noticed the trash can by the empty building and rather than leaving it alone and call it a day with both the bags and kids already picked up, she picks up a cup that somehow missed the opening from the bin and rather than throwing it away, she begins to decorate it by tearing the item in half, uses Tina’s pen from her backpack, and begins decorating it as she puts it on the ground and pretends that it’s a pair of shoes. Giving it a complete makeover before heading back home for the day. And of course, knowing that Linda touched something that was left on the sidewalk for who knows how long, germs might have already storming towards Linda’s palms and also Tina’s pen. Did I mention that we’re still in a pandemic and let’s face it, it’s unsanitary to pick it up.
Once the night hits and everyone but Bob and Linda asleep, Bob continues to check up on the laptop with the whole saga featuring the cucumber as Linda now check up on the comments, on the same laptop, over her trash can decoration and there are some who appreciated what she did in front of the abandoned building. But it mostly comments about where they can find free boxes. Sorta like checking on Instagram comments on pages that are verified you follow and see endless comments of spam, mostly with either those comments with porn bots or people wanting to get the attention that could possibly make your life a living hell with your information stolen and getting your phone a virus. But other than that, it looks like Linda got some positive responses to the trash can decoration and ends up sleeping happily over what she did and treats it like it’s some sort of accomplishment.
Of course, that little accomplishment that Linda had for the day doesn’t last long where we transition to the next day with Teddy coming in and alert her that her decoration for the trash can in front of the abandoned building has been defaced. And not like “defaced” in the form of some graffiti spray-painted onto the bin, though that is everywhere in most property around the area, though mostly on trains. Nope, it got picked up and just thrown away. Causing Linda and the kids to check up on the now-defaced trash bin. And at first, you’d thought that it would be the cleaning crew because...why not. They have to come in and clean up the bin and into the truck and noticed the design and take the design that Linda made and thinks that it’s leftover trash. That’s one way to put it. But then you noticed a “vandalism is prohibited” sign attached, thinking that what Linda did is vandalism, almost sounds like what a Karen would do to accuse someone of something that they didn’t even do, redo the redecoration where she left off yesterday.
Causing both Linda and the kids to ready to impose a stakeout to find and capture the asshole responsible by looking all normal while looking over at a vacuum store as they await for someone to drive or walk on by to the trash can for them to capture their suspect. They almost had it with a rando walking by and putting away his bag into the bin. So he’s not the suspect. But then they noticed a car stopping by the bin and try to get a good look at the person responsible, only to get Marta Bus’d by a truck but won’t let that happened to make their way across the street and sneak from the edge of the building and reveals...
To be none other Cynthia Bush, the town’s resident OG Karen. Pretty sure she is what lead to the Karen movement that we’re now facing. So Cynthia is the person responsible for taking down Linda’s decoration on the trash bin, which peeved Linda off over her cleaning up what she did. Of course, she has a reason why she had to take the decoration down from the bin. The reason? The town is getting a pretzel chain. Yeah, the town is getting a pretzel chain that will take over the building that they’re standing outside from with the trash bin and wants to make the city look good for when the council approves the notion of getting a well-known pretzel chain to set up shop in town. And she’ll make sure Linda doesn’t rebuild that decoration onto the trash can. So this episode pretty much rekindles the Linda/Cynthia rivalry. A rivalry that we haven’t seen since Season 5 when she made her last appearance. Of course, when it comes to Cynthia...she’s a total bitch. And the last time we saw her, when Bob gets his spot for the community garden, he had to agree to a deal he had to make with Cynthia in having Logan work for the restaurant and making Louise’s life a living nightmare. Not to mention, having Cynthia to come to the restaurant and forge his papers to make sure he gets into a good college. Though you’d think that the student would do the paperwork regarding accomplishments, volunteer work, extracurriculars. Those things. Logan probably has none of those things on his resume and that causes Cynthia to butt in and forge his work. Not to mention that she, along with her husband, and the family of Logan’s friends being not happy over what Louise did in bringing the One-Eyed Snakes to force him to hand over Louise’s ears, though that was all Logan who took the ears.
Of course, Linda ain’t having what Cynthia is doing to the trash bin with her throwing away the decoration, of course, have to cut to Bob for a bit to mention the cucumber situation and still looking at the updates and even dragging Teddy along for the ride. Again, not a lot to mention regarding that subplot of the episode where we continue to focus on Linda as she checks up on the kids coming up with their decoration for the trash bin to show Cynthia that decorating something like a trash bin is more entertaining and fun than...well, anything during the lockdowns this time last year. Linda and the kids make their way with their decoration at hand and begin dressing the trash bin up to shove it onto Cynthia’s face. Except that for no whatever reason which has Cynthia’s name written all over it...
Here comes the asshole himself to fuck things up courtesy of his mother being one step ahead of Linda in the fight to whether or not to dress the trash bin up like it’s a Barbie doll. Yeah, so Logan came back in this week’s episode by doing Cynthia’s bidding by taking the decorations that the kids made. Though you think that he would have a bigger role in this...nope. Just there taking the decorations that the kids made like an asshole like he was born with it. And this isn’t the only time because later on in the montage, along with Bob continuing looking over the cucumber updates, you have him and one of his friends, Caleb, messing around with Linda and the kids. It’s like Cynthia told Logan to take the decoration once Linda and the kids set up shop but he doesn’t want to do it. But she then mentions the Belcher kids are involved and of course, Louise is involved. Thus, the rivalry has to rekindle to berate Louise. Though again, Logan, despite that I fucking hate the guy, though not as more as Cynthia, is a total asshole. And of course...every time...every Logan appears in the episode and in the same room as Louise, you have the fucking locus nest ready to swarm around the fandom and fucking everything up into their potentially sick desire. Delusional fuckers. Almost in the same camp as the people of QAnon, though not as violent...yet. Of course, Linda decided to consider what Cynthia was doing as a declaration of war, hence, the montage with them trying to put the decorations, only for Logan and his cronies, sorry, crony to steal it away.
So once we get over with the montage that was in hand, Linda and the kids decided to head back to the trash bin and continue on decorating it like she hasn’t learned her lesson where she and the kids head off to hide behind the side of the building where she notices both Cynthia and three other people coming out from it. Seems to be inspecting the place for when the pretzel place is ready to come into town. The three people revealed to be members of the city council and are the people who will decide whether or not the chain comes into town. One of those members being Logan’s father and Cynthia’s husband, Tom. Who made his return since Season 3. You heard it correctly, folks. Season 3. Almost 9 years since he last made an appearance. And the last time we saw him was when he helped Mudflap gave birth to Sidecar in the restaurant following the confrontation between parents and bikers following Louise’s little stunt to get her ears back from Logan. Oh yeah, and he’s also one of the three members of the town council, so uh...Linda is now facing some massive trouble in hopes to keep the trash decoration legal. And I say that because knowing that Tom is Cynthia’s husband and Cynthia is the one who is not keen on the idea of what Linda is doing, not to mention, she’s now bringing up that she wants the whole trash decoration banned from city limits because she’s a Karen and Karens are not huge on anything fun. Meaning that Cynthia could possibly, if not, likely going to have her way. I mean, fuck...
Linda almost looks like she’s about to throw in the towel and just give up. Knowing that it’s no longer a rivalry between her and Cynthia over whether decorating trash bins is fun. It’s now her going against the city over the whole thing. And with Tom there and Cynthia being the one who proposes the ban on trash bin decoration, you’d think that would be it for Linda and think that it’s all over for the bin outside of the building? Yeah...no. It took a while until Linda decided to do what a good citizen would do when opposing ideas being brought up by someone who is not an official. And that is starting a petition and getting some signatures to make sure the decoration stays. Good luck with that, Linda. Though pretty sure for that to happen, you may need to do more than just standing around next to a trash bin in the next scene and dressed it up as a lion. At least try to knock on some people’s doors. Maybe do that. Wouldn’t hurt.
The Belcher kids, of course, decided to take matters into their own hands as well to make sure that Cynthia’s little proposal to the city doesn’t go into effect and might as well treat what they’re doing to save the trash bin decoration as pretty much a Mother’s Day gift for Linda. Which...uh okay, didn’t even notice that it’s an automatic Mother’s Day episode despite that Mother’s Day was just last week and why they didn’t even air that episode on that week instead of “Steal Magazine-olias”, but okay. So while Linda is firing up the petitions to get people to sign the forms to keep the bin decoration, the kids decided to take things in their way of keeping the idea. The idea being pressuring the city council to vote against Cynthia’s proposition by the time of the town meeting.
Starting with the only female member of the council over at a tennis club, so already we have one member who is pretty much a part of the establishment for someone who attends an exclusive club for us peasants to not attend. So the Belcher kids begin Operation: Persuade a Politician by sitting at a table next to one of the members is at and begin talking loudly in their attempt to change each of the members’ mind about the whole ordeal with the whole trash decoration issue. And while it did grab the attention of that member from the city council in an attempt to persuade her, it also grabbed the attention of security and have the Belcher kids escorted out from the club. So the result is somewhat pending on the persuasion front for one member.
Switching over to another member over at the park as he feeds the pigeons over at the park with the kids think that feeding the pigeons is illegal, though the councilmember doesn’t think so, as long as it is not bread, then you’re probably good to go. The kids try to persuade the councilmember and try their best to use the pigeon feeding over at the park as their way to make him look bad like it’s harming his political power. Though to be fair, most politicians are not even following what their voters want, either being from the left, middle, or right, once they get elected to office, won’t be doing the promises that he or she won’t be fulfilling. Especially once they take office. So we got a firm maybe from the council member over at the park, which is something that the Belcher kids would consider that as some brownie points, meaning that there’s one member left in the council that needs some persuasion. But first, let’s check on Bob in the not-so thrilling saga of watching over a cucumber.
And things are not looking good for Bob and Teddy when watching the cucumber updates like they’re watching the ongoing live streams that been going on for days like...remember Twitch Plays Pokémon back in 2014? Where apparently you have the people from Twitch playing every Pokémon game from hours on end a la nuzlocke? Yeah, it almost sorta like that. That is pretty much Bob and Teddy watching through with the status of the cucumber for the past few days...only for the page to stop doing updates. Causing Bob and Teddy to go into panic mode over their favorite thing no longer posting updates. Much a grin to nowadays to...oh I dunno...everything since the start of the digital age. At least they didn’t take the violent route, so just be mindful of that.
Back to the kids’ attempt to persuade city members like persuading babies to eat baby food, they have one final member of the councilmember that they need to make sure Cynthia’s little proposal to ban the trash decoration doesn’t become reality and of course...its Logan’s dad/Cynthia’s husband Tom in his doctor’s outfit. Trying to persuade him to go against his wife’s proposition for the upcoming meeting and probably heading towards Divorce Town if he goes against what his wife is doing. I feel like this episode, despite the lack of Logan in the episode, I feel like his dad might have some attention since he’s a member of the town council and of course, being Cynthia’s husband, he could be the deciding factor as if he already did in the episode later on during the meeting and we’ll get to that. But for now, it’s a firm maybe, but might be in the sign of a tilt of agreeing with Cynthia with the proposal and making the whole persuasion idea looking impossible to get through their thick skulls.
Onto Cucumber Watch with Bob looking over at the laptop the next day following the kids’ persuasion almost feels like a massive failure and oh...god why...we have a musical number that doesn’t feel like it belongs there. Another one with a corny ass song and it’s over a freaking cucumber. It’s like those fuckers never learned their lesson from what happened a few weeks ago. At least it’s somewhat decent than what happened in “Some Kind of Fender Benderful” with the whole “be responsible” idea and it’s over Bob’s time of watching something that pointless like a cucumber. But still...enough with the corny ass songs, will ya? Enough. Learn your lesson once we get into the offseason. Of course, Bob turns away from the cucumber issue and checks up on the kids and Linda with what they’re doing to make sure the trash bin decoration stays with them having nothing for Mother’s Day despite that the meeting starts in ten minutes. Yes, because the kids half-assed their attempt to find a good gift for Linda is more important than the fate of what Linda was doing in dressing up the trash bin could be banned from city limits. But it looks like they’re not ready to throw in the towel just yet because it looks like they got some more up their sleeves and that goes towards the laptop that Bob’s been using for the past few days, surprising how the family laptop held on for that long because for someone who doesn’t have a smartphone to check up on that, with a little secret weapon to make sure the councilmembers does not vote in favor for Cynthia’s little proposal. And of course, it may involve the spam comments from earlier in the episode regarding moving boxes.
Once we get to the town meeting over at town hall with the kids and Bob getting Linda out of the couch for her to make her case to the city council as an opposition to Cynthia wanting to ban the trash bin decoration for when the soft pretzel chain arrives in town. Linda begins her arguments on why she opposes what Cynthia is doing in banning trash bin decorations and thinks that it’s an attack on all things creative and what Cynthia is proposing is downright stupid. Not to mention trying to make the town a little lively because let’s face it, for a small town like the Seymour’s Bay area, it’s a downright bore-fest at its finest. Though said the woman last season who tried to prove to her daughter that their small town can be fun by following a former singer to her home. Linda stated her case and rather than doing the same, Cynthia pushes for the vote to happen so she can call it a day and rub it onto Linda’s face.
Though that took a pause button once everyone that read the comments from the laptop to enter the room for the kids’ gain to make sure the proposal doesn’t go through. So what the kids had to do when bringing in the people who came in and only went to the meeting because they thought there would be some free moving boxes and do the one thing that singlehandedly why congress had done a shit job in getting things done for the country that been there for decades. Oh yes, folks. That’s right...filibuster. The Belcher kids are filibustering their way to make sure things go into Linda’s way to keep the trash bin decoration from being outlawed. I mean fuck...they even threaten those three councilmembers’ jobs, especially with their current term ready to expire. Not to mention, they’re up for re-election next year. So what the Belcher kids, mostly Louise doing the talking, with her saying to the three members, “Hey, if you follow along with Cynthia here, you’re going to regret the notion. See these people behind me that just walked in? They ain’t gonna vote for your asses in the next election. Hope y’all like early retirement.” That causes one member, the first one that the kids came across with, to cast her vote against Cynthia’s proposal to ban trash ban decorating. Not that long until the second member of the council voted for Cynthia’s proposal to ban the trash bin decoration. So there goes his job. So the votes are tied at one apiece and all hopes lie on one member left who hasn’t set his vote in. And of course...
It’s Tom Bush. All eyes are on him with Cynthia really pushing the narrative to make sure the proposal gets a 2-1 pass to make the idea into law. And man, Cynthia is really pushing the narrative hard to make sure that her husband gets some brownie points (for her) by getting the resolution passed. But it looks like he will NOT be agreeing with what his wife was proposing and instead, he followed his conscience and agree with the kids. He is voting against Cynthia and with that, the votes are 2-1 against the proposal and the decoration on trash bins gets to stay. So it looks like Tommy boy here will not be getting laid tonight following what happened. Oh yeah, and the kids found their Mother’s Day gift for Linda at the last possible minute and that is the resolution to keep the trash bin decoration legal and for her to decorate the bin in front of the building. Just be thankful that this is not heading to the supreme court because...oh boy. So everyone got a happy ending in the episode, all except Cynthia over not getting her proposal to ban the extreme trash bin makeover. Also, Bob not getting a happy ending over the online cucumber not getting any updates. It was a waste of time anyway. But it looks like the writers to throw somewhat of a Hail Mary before closing out the episode because it looks like the cucumber saga isn’t really over as of it.
One of the guys who came into the meeting and wanting a moving box reveals to be the asshole responsible for sharing updates with the online cucumber that Bob lookup online for days and reveals that the reason why he hasn’t posted any updates is that he’s moving to another location. Hence, the lack of updates on social media. But at least Bob got a happy ending for the episode where he finally gets to see the cucumber and also calling in Teddy to come along as well to see the vegetables. Despite that, the subplot felt like filler and a waste of time with a song, while decent than the whole “be responsible” song a few weeks ago, felt like they don’t have to bring that up, at least the guy gets a happy ending over something that dumb like a vegetable that people mistake it as a pickle. And no, don’t think we have somewhat of a Rick and Morty reference regarding cucumbers. Just be thankful for that.
Reaction/Thoughts:
So all and all, what do I think about this week’s episode of Bob’s Burgers? Like I said at the start of the review and covered the basics from top to bottom moment by moment, it’s average, but in the line of bland. I mean there some decent moments throughout the episode, but it felt like it delivered almost nothing. I’m not bored with it. It’s not a bad episode. But much like with the past two episodes, it’s not that great either. Forgettable to say the least, much a grin to some episodes in, not just the season, but in general. The rewatch factor is there after the first viewing. But I feel like this might be the weakest of the season by far. Would say “so far” but knowing that we’re now only less than an episode left before taking a three, to four-month vacation...yeah, no. I think this is the weakest episode of the season.
I mean, the episode did have some potential. You have the episode that rekindled the rivalry between Linda and Cynthia, which we haven’t seen since 2015 in Season 5 with “Late Afternoon in the Garden of Bob and Louise”. Louise in the episode really went hard with the smarts for this week regarding how the whole trash bin decoration issue should not be banned by persuading city councilmembers leading up to the town hall meeting and even during the meeting by holding their jobs hanging by a thread. Do have to give Louise some pointers for what she did. Though, while thankfully that the locus nest may have dwindled down due to the fact that Logan has little to no screen time in the episode, it’s maybe to the point where he could’ve done more. I mean, fuck the shipping aspect, but he’s been underutilized and just there to mess around with Linda and the kids when setting up shop with the trash bin at the behest of Cynthia. At least Cynthia’s husband Tom got some moments in the episode in being the one who crushes her hopes and dreams. You can thank the kids for that.
The subplot...listen, while I’m okay with Bob getting a happy ending for once with him meeting the guy who posted updates on the cucumber and even got Teddy involved to see the vegetable that been breaking the internet over at the Belchers side of things, the subplot felt nothing more than filler and a potential waste of time. I thought it would be a waste of time when the press release came out and had no idea what an “online cucumber” would be around. We had our answer and that was a waste of time, but at least it gave Bob something to feel happy for once in his life. So at least they have to give him something to enjoy for once after a season where they might’ve thrown him under the bus.
So final thoughts, the episode had some potential, mostly with the main plot but didn’t somewhat deliver. Thought it would focus on the building and get some backstory regarding the family because it did state that Linda had to protect a tradition and such. Nope. Focus on a trash bin in front of the building instead. It was average, but more in line of mediocre. Forgettable at best. Possibly give it a few rewatches to try to understand. Guess the moral of the episode is “There’s nothing wrong with creativity. You’re just a cranky no fun bitch.” So I’ll give “Tell Me Dumb Thing Good”...
I say 5 out of 10. That has to be a safe score to give it to the episode. So 5 out of 10. And that’s pretty much my opinion and now I wanna hear yours. What do you think about this week’s episode of Bob’s Burgers? Do you like it? Do you hate it? Do you think that episode would've been done more? Would you consider decorating a trash can? And will you waste the day away by looking over a vegetable on the internet? All that and your mini-review down below in the comments. They said that one is the loneliest number because we’re now down to the last episode of the season. The season finale is this Sunday and remember when I said that “Vampire Disco Death Dance” would’ve been the episode that should’ve been aired earlier this month but got pulled before the week of May 2? Yep...that’s the season finale. A Bob and Tina episode is the season finale for Bob’s Burgers in the 2020-21 season. And the upcoming episode...this is make or break. It’s a make or break for Season 11 because the season, mostly the second half, with the exception of “Mr. Lonely Farts” and “Fingers-loose”, did not perform well. Especially after “Romancing the Beef”. So next week’s episode on May 23, “Vampire Disco Death Dance”...while I see most people pouring some hype into it, some are giving some caution, and honestly, I don’t blame them. We have to wait and see what happens this upcoming Sunday.
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