Bob’s Burgers is the quintessential struggling family show. You got a mom, a dad, and 2.5 kids working together to keep their struggling burger joint afloat amidst money woes and wacky happenings. Each character is a caricature of various family member archetypes almost anyone might have in their household, from the boy-crazy teeny bopper to the crazy cat lady aunt. It’s this kind of dedication to keeping the characters grounded and relatable (despite the number of times they have avoided certain death) that has made the show as popular as it is. In the premier of Season 8, the creators of the show, eager to show their love to their millions of fans, let their devotees take rein of the episode. Each segment, ranging from a simple front shot of the restaurant to a full two minutes of animation, was created and drawn by a fan team. An impressive 62 distinct animation styles were used overall, leading to a unique and inclusive start to the newest season.
Intent on focusing on the various animation styles, the plot of the episode, entitled Brunchsquach, was very simple, with the action restricted either to the house or the restaurant. In the episode, Bob and family decide to give brunch a try in the hopes of hauling in more customers on Sundays, but become overwhelmed when customers only show up to get drunk on mimosas. Meanwhile, the kids are angling for a dog but when they are told ‘no,’ they begin hiding their landlord’s brother, Felix Fischoeder, at their restaurant for spare cash in a mad game of hide and seek.
As stated, the premier was rather simple and maintained the entire episode within the walls of the restaurant and the house, making it easier on the animators to focus on only on two locations. The fun part was that the creators weren’t looking for outstanding or professional works by people who have been in the animation industry for two decades, but actual fans; as a result, there’s all manner of weird and goofy-looking animation on top of some pretty stellar, even cute work. There was even a bit of Claymation and felt creations added to the mix. The line work and coloring ranged from flash animation to crayon and marker, as if some kid scribbled out a piece. Mostly, it was just fun to see the different takes on the same characters, especially when the drawings are realistic and you get to see the family as actual people.
As the styles change, the voice actors keep steady through the changes and the jokes keep on rolling, making Brunchsquach a classic episode in a long line of classic episodes. It’s the perfect episode for fans to draw all over and proves just how cool the creators of show are. It’s like a giant coloring book and everyone gets a page!
If you haven’t checked out the episode, it’s streaming now on Hulu or, you know, wherever you watch your cartoons.