No one loves Thanksgiving more than Bob Belcher, but his plans never seem to turn out the way he wants. From troublesome in-laws to vengeful turkeys, there’s always something keeping Bob from having a regular Thanksgiving dinner with his family. Prepare for the upcoming Turkey Day with this ranked list of every Thanksgiving episode in Bob’s Burgers.
Season 8, “Thanks-hoarding”
The weakest Thanksgiving episode of Bob’s Burgers was not necessarily bad, but it placed the focused more on Bob’s friend Teddy than on the Belcher family. The day before Thanksgiving, Teddy needed Bob’s help with making dinner for his family. While helping Teddy prepare his home, Linda and the kids discovered that Teddy’s dining room was filled with junk that he had been hoarding. The Belchers then tried to help Teddy reorganize his stuff and let go of some of the clutter in his life. Bob, on the other hand, took charge of preparing dinner while attempting to calm Teddy’s nerves.
Season 9, “I Bob Your Pardon”
The Belchers attended the town’s turkey pardoning on the day before Thanksgiving but were disappointed when the deputy mayor took over the event. After discovering that the turkey was actually being sent to a slaughterhouse, the Belcher kids decided to save him. Tina convinced Bob to follow the mayor’s assistant with the turkey, which resulted in a high stakes car chase and a dangerous trip to the forest. An opportunistic reporter and local political drama bring some excitement into the plot, but the episode as a whole feels a bit out of sync with the rest of the series.
Season 3, “An Indecent Thanksgiving Proposal”
The first Thanksgiving episode of the series introduced Bob Belcher’s obsession with having a perfect family dinner. His plans were disrupted when the landlord, Mr Fischoeder, requested that Linda and the kids pretend to be his family so that he could impress a woman who likes married men. Bob agreed to the plans on the condition that he wouldn’t be charged rent for five months. He also agreed to cook their dinner for the evening but didn’t want to miss out on his usual Thanksgiving traditions. The Belchers then had to deal with Bob’s drunken jealousy while trying to convince Fischoeder’s love interest that they were really his family.
Season 10, “Now We’re Not Cooking with Gas”
The Season 10 Thanksgiving episode saw Bob in his most desperate state as he got hold of a perfect turkey but wasn’t able to cook it. Bob bought an exclusive heritage turkey after being on a waiting list for years, which put him in an unusually excitable mood. This quickly changed when he discovered that his entire block had a gas leak and he couldn’t get his oven to turn on. Desperate for a solution, Bob made a fire in the alleyway outside his apartment and attempted to cook the turkey while his day continued to get worse.
Season 11, “Diarrhea of a Poopy Kid”
The most recent Thanksgiving episode put Gene Belcher in an uncomfortable position when he picked up a stomach bug and had to spend the day in the bathroom. Bob had planned out a sophisticated new menu for dinner, but the delicious smells coming from the kitchen made Gene feel sad about missing out. Tina and Louise tried to cheer him up by making up stories about food that would make Gene not want to eat. The episode steps outside of the reality of Bob’s Burgers to illustrate the Belcher kids’ stories, but the family’s attempts to include Gene in their celebration brings forth the heartwarming undertone that makes the show so special.
Season 5, “Dawn of the Peck”
“Dawn of the Peck” was one of the most chaotic episodes that took place outside of Bob’s home. The Belchers decided to spend Thanksgiving at a turkey festival and fun run on the wharf, which Bob wasn’t too happy about. The conniving Fischoeder brothers got a truck full of assorted violent birds for the turkey run, which led to havoc at the Wonder Wharf. Trapped at the theme park, the Belchers had to figure out how to escape the crazy turkeys. Meanwhile, Bob tried to find ways to occupy himself at home since it was the first time in years that he didn’t have to cook Thanksgiving dinner.
Season 6, “Gayle Makin’ Bob Sled”
Any episode with Linda’s eccentric sister Gayle is bound to take a strange turn. In this episode, Bob braved snowy weather to fetch Gayle for his family’s Thanksgiving dinner. After waiting a while for Gayle to get ready, Bob discovered that his car was snowed in while he was in the apartment. Bob decided that the only solution would be to walk home, but Gayle’s sprained ankle meant that he would need to drag her along in an inflatable pool. Back at home, Linda and the kids were tasked with cooking Thanksgiving dinner in Bob’s absence. Instead of following Bob’s instructions, the Belcher kids got creative with the menu.
Season 4, “Turkey in a Can”
“Turkey in a Can” is a sweet but silly reminder of how much Bob adores his family. The Belchers invited guests over for Thanksgiving dinner, so Bob decided to prepare his turkey three days in advance to enhance the flavor. Problems arose when Bob discovered that someone had stuffed his raw turkey into the toilet. The Belchers became suspicious of each other as they tried to figure out who kept throwing the turkeys in the toilet, and the culprit was revealed in an amusing twist. In the midst of this, Bob also had to deal with a deli employee who was convinced that Bob kept buying turkeys because he was attracted to him.
Season 7, “The Quirk-ducers”
“The Quirk-ducers” is the only Thanksgiving episode of Bob’s Burgers that takes place at Wagstaff School, with special appearances by Tina’s group of friends. Tina wrote an erotic fictional story called “The Quirky Turkey” after her school friends labelled her as quirky. Louise was not looking forward to Mr. Frond’s boring school play before Thanksgiving and had the idea that Tina’s story should be turned into a play. Determined to get a half-day at school, Louise took charge of putting together an inappropriate production that would definitely get shut down. Back at the restaurant, Linda became attached to a potato that looked just like her grandfather.
Bob’s Burgers airs Sunday nights on FOX.
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