Might as well get this out of the way, this is considered her introduction, a cold open, turning this into a bit of a venting session. Twitter... what the fuck!? No, seriously, what the actual fuck!? For context to describe what I am talking about, allow me to explain. By now, if you scroll through Twitter, you come across a few posts about a few changes on the platform. One of which is the limit on how many posts you make. Originally, it was 2,400 posts per day for everyone, blue checkmark or not, which was fine. No biggie despite hitting it once, and I had to be careful with it.
That was until this past weekend, during a Toonami live blogging session, right as Tokyo Revengers was coming on, transitioning from Blue Lock to Tokyo Revengers, when I got hit with a flag that read that I got flagged for “being a bot”, which I am not. At first, when getting it, I thought someone had reported me and was checking my email to see if I could appeal. Turns out, it was because I was over my limit. And what’s odd is that I didn’t even reach 2,400 posts. Only to find out that Twitter freaking changed the rules for unverified users like me from 2,400 posts to about 50 posts. You read that right, 50 posts per day.
All this to combat spam. I get why, because the site, literally social media as a whole, has been dealing with bots and is totally incompetent to handle it, and we, the users, have to fend for ourselves. But for someone like me who had been doing the live blogging business since late 2012, since late 2012, when I was a sophomore in high school, it felt like a heavy hit. And if you say that it was because of the spamming and whatnot, blame the pacing for each episode from each show. I had to stop the live blogging there for Toonami once I got the note, continuing on Tumblr, BlueSky, and Mastodon. Similarly with Bob’s Burgers (to the point where Twitter is off limits), and similarly goes for Regular Show with The Lost Tapes.
It really makes you think that they said that it’s for preventing spam and bots in the platform, and while that is a problem that really shouldn’t rely on AI to do the job, in actuality, it’s pushing people into purchasing a subscription just to get the old limit back. It’s the same thing with YouTube, with how it pushes people to buy Premium just by showing annoying ads in each of the videos, some with double or triple ads. Pretty stupid to make a push just to force people to buy a subscription.
In this week’s episode of Bob’s Burgers, the first of the double-billing of the week to close out Season 16, Bob gets stuck on an elevator with the person he wishes he didn’t want to share it with, Hugo, on his way to the store at the mall, as Tina bears the responsibility of taking care of an item that Jimmy Jr gives to her after a day at the Wharf in my spoilerific review of the fourteenth episode of Season 16 of Bob’s Burgers, titled “Stuck in the Middle with Hu(go)”.
There’s nothing more than anything in life that you want to deal with when being stuck in a situation where you are a few or more miles away from your home. Stuck in some sort of situation like a prolonged traffic jam or, in this episode’s case, a broken elevator at the mall, and the person you are stuck with in the same spot as you happen to be the person you hate. And for Bob, he has many enemies, and in this episode, it’s Hugo who would take the mantle. Especially when having to be stuck in an elevator at the mall.
It was pretty much an excuse to have Hugo in after being absent for quite a while, aside from earlier in the season in “Get Her to the Zeke” alongside Ron, which was the first time to see the two since the movie. So, of course, got someone like Hugo to have a major role in an episode where both he and Bob butt heads with each other while being stuck in an elevator. And while some think it might be an interesting episode because Hugo hadn’t gotten an episode of his own since the likes of “Nude Beach”, out of the two that came out this week, might as well break this episode down before we get to the nitty gritty of things that is “Smellbound”. This is “Stuck in the Middle with Hu(go)”.
The episode starts with Teddy entering the restaurant after a long day’s work of putting up drywall, as the day is about to enter the evening hours, with Bob making a gotcha joke of telling him that he is out of meat for the burgers, only to tell him that there is enough for him to give him his food. Never make a joke about running out of food to a guy who is a regular in the establishment, like he’s this generation’s Wimpy from Popeye. Especially in the current state of this economy. But that should be enough of that. With the evening hours approaching, Bob has to prepare to run a quick errand. A trip to the mall to return a blowtorch he purchased. It’s not a defective issue because Bob is having fun using it.
It’s because he was hoping for a reaction from customers about the use, as if he were clout-chasing. Especially when he gave the customer his food and was hoping for a reaction as if he was hoping for something good, but instead, met with some mixed emotions. I mean, you’re running a burger restaurant, and you’re out here thinking that you are running a Michelin-star-rated restaurant just by using a blowtorch you could probably get from Amazon. God forbid from freaking Temu. So, now Bob plans on heading to the mall to make a return deposit. And because the day is about to come to an end, heading towards the evening hours, Bob leaves the restaurant so he can make it to the mall on time, because the store closes at 6:00 PM; otherwise, he is stuck with it, regardless of the cost of the item in question. So, Bob leaves...
And here comes Tina, Gene, and Louise making their return from their day at the Wharf. Enjoying their time off there, with Louise chewing on a gumball and Gene getting a temporary tattoo on his arm that is fading fast the moment he enters the building, along with his sisters. Even though Louise and Gene had a time at the Wharf during their time off from the restaurant, the focus is on Tina for this episode’s subplot because she came across Jimmy Jr by many of the machines you get where you insert a quarter to get a novelty item in those plastic containers.
And for Tina, it’s a huge deal because, of course, anything from or involving Jimmy Jr becomes important to her if it means getting close to the guy (even though I think she deserves better, just putting it out there), spewing in the Tinimmy propaganda that the show is putting out. And this time around, that got Tina on high alert because she is being tasked to watch over something while Jimmy Jr is away for a bit, while he goes and wrestles with Zeke on the beach. Which, to Tina, per context, thinking that the ring was a “token for their connection”. Treating it as how you would give jewelry to your significant other as a gift to make sure the relationship is fully committed. Like a freaking marriage proposal of some sort. But that’s not what Louise heard.
It’s just to tell Tina to watch over the ring because he knew that Tina could be responsible for anything, and she was in attendance with her siblings while at the Wharf, so he came to her to do him a favor. And knowing that it’s him making a small request, and knowing Tina, since it was made by Jimmy Jr to watch something as small and easily replaceable as a ring from a machine at the Wharf, she has to accept the offer as if her life depends on this small request. And she has all day to make sure it is safe and secure without any damage whatsoever... I played these games before.
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| From "Bee's All That Adventure" (03x09) | Air Date: November 27, 2022 |
The subplot to the Season 3 episode of The Great North, “Bee’s All That Adventure”. And if you remember that subplot, it has Ham having to take care of Crispin’s cactus while he is away as part of the student exchange program, which he can’t turn down, and has some issues with the potted plant, before things went downhill after the plant was accidentally thrown out and landed at a landfill. Who to say that this might be a repeat for Tina’s side of things when having to look after Jimmy Jr’s plastic ring. The subplot to it was giving me vibes of that episode’s subplot, and it looks like that might be the case as the episode progresses.
Going back to the main plot of the episode, where we have Bob driving his way to the mall to return the blowtorch to the shop to get his refund, he decides to talk to himself, to his object, the blowtorch, on his way to his destination. Nothing too concerning because you should be getting used to that for the past fifteen seasons of this show. We transitioned to the mall later on, with Bob ready to use the elevator as the quickest route available to get to the store, hopefully to make it there early before it closes for the day, when he spots Hugo walking away from the direction where the food court is, shouting at one of the food court employees over a health inspection that just occurred. Hoping not to be seen by one of his ops and quickly presses the button to enter the elevator and mashes once again to close the door...
Only for Hugo to enter the elevator right as the door is about to close. Making this elevator ride into an awkward one between enemies. A restaurant owner and a health inspector having to share an elevator at the mall. You can feel the awkwardness that is going on between the two adults on their way up to the second floor. But if there is anything that taught us when it comes to these things, as long as you or someone you hate doesn’t make eye contact with each other and tries to make small talk, then they should be in the clear, since it is a short ride and the mall should be at least two stories tall.
Too bad that God is a persistent asshole as we wrap up the first act of the episode and go into the second. The elevator that Bob and Hugo are on immediately gets stuck mid-lift as if something had happened regarding the electricity that powers the elevator. All but the emergency button, which Bob pressed to send in an SOS to the repairman, voiced by Cedric Yarbough, whom I thought at first thought it was Gary Anthony Williams, based on the voice alone. Bob and Hugo, mostly Bob, explain the current situation they’re in with the elevator being defunct and requiring his help to fix the elevator. And the repairman agrees to help them in the situation they are in; however, the estimated time to get them out is going to be quite a while when he means “in no time” when given the ETA to both Bob and Hugo on when they’ll be getting out of the elevator.
And besides, have them get along in the meantime? Have you met these two? Those two hate each other and want nothing to do with each other. Sure, the obvious being Bob is a restaurant owner, and Hugo is a health inspector who always comes up with a surprise health inspection out of spite, mainly because Hugo still can’t get over Linda dumping his ass for Bob a few days before their wedding, which, of course, stung him and will haunt him for the rest of his life. But the fact of having those two get along while being stuck in a small space like an elevator, you are asking for a disaster waiting to happen.
The same way you would pair a Blood and a Crip, a liberal and a conservative, or... hell, someone who is pro-Israel and pro-Palestine in a small room where it's just them and have to treat it like it's a therapy session. What do you think the result is going to be? Going to treat it like it’s a 20-v-1 Jubilee type shit. So, for Bob and Hugo to bury the hatchet for once, calling for a temporary truce, just to get out of the elevator, is going to be as tricky as it sounds. But stranger things can happen, so who knows if that is going to be the case here.
Back to the subplot of the episode, quiet as a mouse at the restaurant while Bob is away. Usual normal stuff for the rest of the Belchers to do their work. Although Teddy is feeling a bit queasy after eating his burger, as if there’s something wrong with it, or how his body is reacting to the food. Either that or he’s full. And it’s mostly caused by the egg being a part of the burger of the day. Or what’s in the burger that Teddy ate that is starting to make him feel constipated? While that is starting to take place, Tina is now panicking because the item, the ring that Jimmy Jr won back at the Wharf and entrusted Tina to take care of, is now missing. She was supposed to be responsible for it because it is a request from Jimmy Jr that she cannot turn down. And now that is missing, this puts Tina in a very tight spot. Not because it was missing as the only concern, but also Jimmy Jr could return at any moment to pick up the item. So, the pressure is through the roof for Tina as she prepares to abandon her restaurant duties and probably tear the place apart to retrieve the missing ring.
Going back to the main plot of the episode, as both Bob and Hugo continue to play the waiting game, Hugo now begins to believe that something doesn’t sit right when it comes to the elevator abruptly stopping mid-lift. I mean, some elevators in certain occurrences stopped working, and most of the blame goes towards mechanical problems like a fuse or an out-of-nowhere power outage that affected the building. But Hugo doesn’t think it was all caused by mechanical issues that caused the elevator to stop. He now thinks that there is a conspiracy that is unfolding. Thinking that someone or something is out to get him just for doing his job.
And the finger pointing is towards the two food court workers when looking through the glass of the elevator. Hugo thinks that this is revenge for the recent health inspections, and they were not happy with the results they got, just because a few businesses got a couple of health violations. Bob doesn’t think so, and calling Hugo out for being paranoid just because he was just doing his job. But the more they stick around, the more that the little conspiracy that Hugo is cooking up about the workers putting out a hit on him just for doing his job as a health inspector may not sound as crazy as it looks.
Checking back on the subplot where we have Tina frantically searching for the missing ring that she may have accidentally misplaced. You think that it would’ve been easier for Tina to just place the item into her pocket than having it placed somewhere in the open that may accidentally be thrown out, swept, stolen, or accidentally eaten in, and thinks that it’s a condiment.
Which would explain why Teddy’s stomach was feeling a little queasy after finishing his burger. Tina doesn’t believe that at first because there is no way the ring was in the burger that Teddy ate. And even if he did, he would’ve spit it out because of how hard the plastic was, the same way you had to put on that plastic mouthpiece thing whenever you go to the dentist to get an X-ray of your mouth, and you try not to swallow it. Then again, this is Teddy the Belchers are talking about. He can eat anything small without even realizing it, like one-half of an earbud... only to accidentally swallow another half of the earbud. Putting two and two together, the worst may have been realized that Teddy swallowed the ring that was in the burger. And much like the cactus that Ham was supposed to take care of in “Bee’s All That Adventure”, gone without a trace.
Checking back at the main plot as we are nearing the end of the first half of the episode. Hugo is still paranoid that the two food court workers are out to get him, especially when looking through the window and spying on their conversation. Treating it like a stakeout, hoping for when they will make their next move. Meanwhile, you have Bob wishing for the repairman to quickly arrive so he can get out of the elevator and not want to deal with any of Hugo’s crap. Not to mention, he needs to get to the store on the second floor to make a return deposit with the blowtorch before the door closes at 6:00. So, Bob sees the two workers leaving, proving his point that Hugo was being paranoid about everything. But Hugo doesn’t believe in it and is still on high alert that the workers might be making their move in their attempt to get their revenge on Hugo.
Getting impatient over the estimated wait time for the repairman to drop by, the same way you’re waiting for a package to arrive at your stuff, Hugo attempts to call someone else to help them with his and Bob’s problem at the elevator, now believing that the repairman they came in contact with earlier in the episode might be in cahoots. Like, holy hell, the guy thinks that people are out to get him just to do his job. Thinking that he came across a secret society or something that he is not supposed to come across, straight out of the movie Eyes Wide Shut. He tried to make contact with one of the people who worked at the Department of Community Affairs... denied. Trying to call Ron for backup... denied because he is currently enjoying time off. Hence, the quick scene of him riding through the sidewalk on a pedal bike with his phone on mute. Good for Ron, he needs it.
The repairman makes contact once more with Bob and Hugo to share an update with the two trapped men on the elevator, with some good news and some bad news. With the good news that the repairman found the cause of the problem that caused the elevator to shut off. Turns out to be a fuse, which should be handled at no time as quickly as the guy can to get things up and running. The bad news, well, there was some incompetence. One of the people whom the repairman knows, probably an electrician, doesn’t have the fuse to fix the elevator at the moment and would have to take a 20-minute drive just to get a replacement. And unless it’s a good idea to get someone to open the ceiling and pull the two men out, as Bob is suggesting as a last-ditch effort, unless breaking the glass in the elevator and finding something to serve as a climbing rope with no available resources but their clothes, the waiting game continues going into the second half of the episode. Oh, and to make things worse, apparently, the workers came back into their range with a crowbar and a box. Pretty much proving Hugo’s paranoia to be correct, as much as Bob hates to admit it.
So, going into the second half of the episode, they are on high alert as they prepare for possible retribution from the two food court workers. Bob tries to make sense of why two food court workers are out to get Hugo, making him their target, even though it was pretty obvious they were upset with him over a routine health inspection. So, until the repairman arrives with the fuse, or having to improvise their way to escape, they now have to get ready to face what is about to come, waiting for the workers’ retribution towards Hugo, with Bob getting caught in the crossfire. Makes you really wish Bob had used the stairs or escalators rather than using the elevator as a go-to to get on the second floor and not deal with this shit.
We check up on the subplot for a bit, with Tina quickly going into desperation mode following the news that the ring she was supposed to watch over is now inside Teddy’s stomach. She tries to reason with Teddy to evacuate his bowels if she wants to get the ring back in time for Jimmy Jr’s return. She is truly hedging on this as if her life depends on the safety of the plastic ring from a machine at the Wharf. Which, to Tina, is to her because it is from Jimmy Jr, and we all know that she wants to be close to the guy. And watching over something as small as a plastic ring, to her, feels like she is one step closer to being with him. Like, girl, it’s not that deep. I get that you’re head over heels for him since the start of the series, but it’s not that deep.
So, after getting scolded by Linda for threatening Teddy to make him poop the ring out of his body, which Teddy doesn’t mind because he feels bad about it, to put Tina in a tight spot, she, along with Gene and Louise, talks in private about what to do to get Teddy to quickly get the ring out before Jimmy Jr returns. And it looks like they do to make Teddy feel constipated to get him a one-way ticket to the toilet. That being a bottle of laxatives, or magnesium citrate, waiting in the medicine cabinet once used by Bob. And, of course, Louise, in Season 10’s “Poops... I Didn’t Do It Again”, when trying to go do her business ahead of her overnight stay at the aquarium. Nice little callback there. And if it means putting Teddy, who butts into the private conversation, through some torture by taking a spoonful of laxatives to get the ring, well, it’s Teddy; he’s willing to do anything. So, no worries there, or until Jimmy Jr returns to pick up the ring, then Tina should be extremely worried.
Back to the main plot of the episode, with Bob and Hugo currently on high alert for any moves that the two food court workers are planning on making, especially with a loot crate and a box in their arsenal. Of course, Bob has to remind Hugo that all of this started because he was doing his job, which got the workers upset following a health inspection routine. Even though there were some violations that not just the two restaurants, but the entirety of the food court was dealing with some health violations, like having fire ants crawling around, and a can opener that did not meet food and safety standards, to the point where he had to impound the can opener.
Case in point, the life of a health inspector is not that easy. Not because of worrying that your paycheck could be affected by bullshit cutting and regulation changes that the current regime is doing, but because of the judgment you would get, mostly at the behest of the government. Being treated like a judge at a county fair, judging each contestant’s bakery. You’re not here to make friends with the owners. You’re out here to decide whether your place of business should continue running or shut its doors like they’re getting a visit from the Grim Reaper.
It’s rough, but it’s a duty that you have to fulfill. Not out of spite or being petty, which is what Hugo sometimes does at the restaurant with his surprise inspections, but doing this because that’s what they do. To be on the lookout for everyone’s health, just for the love of the game. But mostly to make sure everything is up to code, so we don’t have to worry about another epidemic or pandemic erupting because one business failed at its inspection. If there’s one thing that we learned from the COVID pandemic: we are not ready for another one. We are FUCKED, all caps. Especially with Brainworm McGee running Health and Services, and every other position being run by either TV doctors or influencers who felt like they got it from WebMD or a conspiracy theorist loony for brains. Oh yeah, and uh, for Bob and Hugo, the retribution is about to begin once they feel something that feels like there was a slight shaking.
Transitioning back to the subplot for a bit, where the kids are stationed outside the bathroom, with Teddy already taking the laxatives off-camera, and is doing his best to get the ring out of his system, only to be scolded by Linda once more, telling them to get back to doing their work. That was before getting a phone call, and it ended up being Jimmy Jr on the line, telling Tina that he is on his way to pick up the plastic ring. Which is, you know, bad for Tina, knowing the situation she is in currently.
But, this is where things go from bad to worse for her, because according to Jimmy Jr, that plastic monster ring ain’t no random novelty junk you would get from the machine and just mess around because that’s what kids do. He tells her that he has collected those things since he was little. Had all the colors of the rainbow and a different set of monsters attached to it, but never got a chance to nab a purple ring. Up until earlier in the day at the Wharf, he finally got the item he was looking for to complete his collection. Oh, he is going to be devastated if he finds out that Teddy accidentally ate the ring.
And the pressure has officially cranked up to 200 for Tina once the phone call ends with Jimmy Jr on his way to the restaurant. Bad enough that she had to be scolded once more, to the point where her full government name had to be called out after admitting to giving Teddy laxatives. Even though, again, it wasn’t by force. Teddy chose this because he felt bad about what happened. And once again, girl, it’s not that fucking deep. I mean, unless the emergency last-minute plan is to run to the Wharf and find a replacement as if it was originally unscathed, pooping would be the way to go. And besides, those things are like loot boxes in plastic containers. It’s going to be impossible to find one that looks similar, unless you plan on smashing and robbing. In GTA, of course. In GTA.
So, going back to the main plot as we prepare to enter the final act of the episode, Bob and Hugo remain on high alert for whatever the two disgruntled food court workers are about to do with them while being trapped in the elevator. They’re going with Bob’s original plan, or suggestion, when talking to the repairman through the intercom earlier about climbing up to the ceiling to open the hatch. Only to not escape, but instead, to confront the two men who are about to unleash hell onto Hugo. But it’s a two-man team effort since neither of them is too tall to reach the hatch. Meaning that one of them would have to serve as the stool.
The first attempt didn’t go so well because, well, Hugo is way too small for him to reach the hatch. Way too small that he probably isn’t tall enough to ride any of the roller coasters in an amusement park if he wants to. There’s a short joke about Hugo, but the episode pretty much shows it with him trying to reach the hatch. So, they have to make a switch, and it’s Bob who is going to do the handiwork on it and reach the hatch, giving everything he can for someone who is not physically fit and whose bones in his body are seeing better days. At least he reached the hatch and is about to open it, but comes down with a flurry of fire ants falling onto them. Fire ants are one of the violations that Hugo spotted during his inspection. Well, A fire ant, but you get the idea.
Bob finally opens the hatch, going into the final act of the episode, and spots the two disgruntled food court workers, who were about to drop a lot of fire ants into the elevator for Hugo to suffer with Bob getting caught in the crossfire. They get caught red-handed when one of the workers tells his co-worker that they would not be caught. Bob tries to tell the disgruntled workers to stop what they are doing, which is pouring fire ants onto him and Hugo, mostly him, because he just got caught in the crossfire in their little revenge tour. Of course, that little attempt didn’t work, and the workers aren’t sold. They are pissed at Hugo for the inspections at the food court, even though that is not their jurisdiction; that goes to management at the mall to react to what just happened, but regardless, the inspection made them mad. Pretty much going to lose their jobs because of the violations and decide to fight fire with fire... with fire ants.
Bob tries again to convince the disgruntled workers to stand down, but is given the opportunity to get out of dodge and possibly leave Hugo behind because he gets why they were upset with the guy. As he is also a restaurant employee (and owner) who had to deal with Hugo’s bullshit, mostly almost every week or two, with him pulling a surprise inspection because he is petty towards the guy, because Linda dumped his ass for him while they were engaged. That, and also doing his job, but mostly the first one. That should be enough for the workers to take Bob out of the elevator to get him out of dodge, since he has been caught in the crossfire, and leave the flurry of fire ants being poured onto Hugo...
Only for him to not take the offer at the last minute and decide, for once in his life, to defend Hugo. As much as he doesn’t like the guy as much as the next restaurant worker/owner, the restaurant business does need a guy like him to keep things regulated. To keep people safe so they don’t die and probably sue the business. Meeting standards to keep the place open and wanting to serve the community, because without regulations, you would deal with a disaster of epic proportions. For all the wrong reasons. Because, again, the last thing we want from a restaurant that needs to get its act together after failing its inspection is for that establishment to become ground zero for, God forbid, another epidemic or pandemic to erupt.
Was that enough to cause the two workers to abandon their plan to get revenge on Hugo? Well, they bailed once the elevator was up and running again after being stalled for nearly an hour, so that should be a sign that they called off the retribution, even though Bob and Hugo are being cornered, at the corner of the elevator, as if they were expecting a full box of fire ants crawling towards them. Did you know that if you kill an ant, they release some sort of pheromone that alerts their colony to immediate danger as if they’re about to be attacked? Think about that the next time you kill an ant. You've got to need more than just a bottle of Raid to deal with those sons of bitches.
Anyway, the elevator comes down with Bob and Hugo hanging onto each other for dear life as if they’re about to meet Death with fire ants crawling around the elevator. Though you think the biggest concern for this would be the elevator itself rather than the ants crawling inside. But no, they made it down safely, and the repairman arrives once the door is open. Seeing both Bob and Hugo clinging onto each other as if they were about to die, death by fire ant. But they made it out alive and well. Putting an end to this story in the episode, and for Bob and Hugo, probably thinking that they should agree not to speak about it to anyone. Or I guess Bob to the family and Hugo to Ron about it. But other than that, it should be between them and them only.
Back to the subplot of the episode, as we approach the two-minute warning, the result of Teddy attempting to shit the ring out of his system fails to go through. The laxatives didn’t work on the guy while doing his best to do his business as if he had an iron stomach or something that repels the medicine from ever taking effect. So, the ring is now likely going to be stuck inside Teddy’s stomach for the meantime. And for Tina, she has to now face the music on how she is going to tell Jimmy Jr about what happened to the ring.
And speak of the devil, Jimmy Jr entered the restaurant to pick up the ring. Tina tries to come up with an excuse for what happened to the ring, let alone why Teddy is in the bathroom without even bringing him up by name. Thinking it's Jason Momoa inside there. But knowing that it is the two-minute warning, past that mark in the timestamp, Tina can’t lie to Jimmy Jr with a short amount of time we have left and is about to tell him about the whereabouts of the ring. About to embrace possible disappointment from her friend/on-again-off-again crush once she is ready to tell Jimmy Jr about the ring and why Teddy, revealing that it's actually him inside the bathroom, that the ring is likely gone to a better place... deep inside Teddy’s stomach.
Or so we thought, because here comes Linda to bail Tina out of her situation with the ring in her hand and giving it to Jimmy Jr. So, it looks like Tina is clear from possible disappointment. Turns out that the ring was not in Teddy’s stomach, but instead, it was dropped between the table and the grill after making Teddy’s burger. So it wasn’t inserted into said burger for Teddy to eat. Tina is officially off the hook as a result of Linda finding the ring. And the same goes for Teddy, who remains in the bathroom and was about to make his way out... only for the laxatives to finally begin to take effect. Thus, having to stay put for the end of the episode.
And right on time for Bob to return from the mall after a day he had spent being trapped inside the elevator. Still having the blowtorch in hand because he was supposed to take it back to the store, but being trapped in the elevator with Hugo and having to deal with two food court workers being pissed at the guy for doing his job pretty much altered his plans. And now, he is stuck with the blowtorch now that the store is pretty much closed for the day. Too late to get his deposit back. So, the blowtorch is now his to keep, as well as a bag of soft pretzels to take as an apology... which happened to be filled with ants. Yeah, maybe that place should be shut down. Auntie Anne’s would never do this. Then again, some chains had some issues with that. But that is not going to stop Teddy from getting a bite of the ant-infested pretzel while taking a shit to close out the episode. The fact that he is not dead from eating the smallest of things that would be considered a choking hazard makes one question how powerful a stomach Teddy has. Really enjoying that plot armor since becoming one of the main characters on the show.
Reaction/Thoughts:
So, all in all, what do I think about the first half of the brand new double episodes of Bob’s Burgers? It’s pretty clear to say that this is considered the weakest episode of the double header this week. Let alone the weakest of the season. Because this episode was slow from start to finish and feels like, well, average. But below average at best. I mean, sure, we have Hugo as the center focus, and it was interesting to see those two try to work together because stranger things can happen in this show. But this isn’t the likes of what we saw with Louise, Rudy, and Millie as an example. Don’t expect lightning to strike as a result of this when it comes to this. Though that’s mainly because people want to get to “Smellbound” as they could during the double premiere.
As much as I do enjoy an episode where the side characters get expanded or get something to do for once, without having to be sent to the background without a speaking role, this one doesn’t cut it. I mean, there were some moments, but other than that, this episode feels like the weakest of the season. Mainly coming from the main plot, with Bob and Hugo being trapped in the elevator. Not to mention, the subplot is also not doing any wonders as well. Pretty obvious that the ring would be found and not in Teddy’s stomach. And it was giving me flashbacks to the subplot to “Bee’s All That Adventure” with Ham having to watch over Crispin’s potted cactus. So, while it’s not a bad episode, it was not a good episode either, and is pretty much the weakest of the two episodes that came out this past Sunday, and preferably the season altogether. So, I’ll give “Stuck in the Middle with Hu(go)”...
A 4 out of 10. But that’s my opinion, and I want to hear yours in the comments below. One more episode to go in these reviews for this season, and it is coming later this week. This weekend, to be exact, so be on the lookout for that with the finale of Season 16 and 2026 as a whole, yes, no new episodes until 2027 when Season 17 drops. So, enjoy it while we can with “Smellbound” as the next episode up to cover. So, be on the lookout for that on this upcoming Memorial Day Weekend.
Follow me on Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon, BlueSky, and Threads for updates and behind-the-scenes stuff. The 2026 Battle of the Week Voting Tournament is already underway with another set of double matches for this week, with Group C between Louise Belcher (Bob’s Burgers) and Lana Kane (Archer), as well as Cole Tillerman (Central Park) and Cricket Green (Big City Greens) in Group D. The poll for these two matches closes on Saturday. And y’all should know the drill by now...
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