Review: Bob’s Burgers “Bully-ieve It or Not”

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)

Jimmy Pesto Sr. returns after an extended rat problem and starts bugging Bob once again, this time by stealing one of Bob’s Burger of the Day ideas which gets him local acclaim and annoys Bob to no end. Meanwhile, Zeke comes face to face with a new student he has a rough past with, namely that Zeke used to bully him.

OUR TAKE

The title of this episode is interesting in that, while it mainly refers to Zeke and his history with this new character William, it can also refer to Jimmy Pesto who is once again bullying Bob in his own way. Titles can mean TWO things! It’s a DOUBLE ENTENDRE! But yeah, Pesto Sr. is back with a noticeably new voice, veteran voice actor Eric Bauza. Why the recast? Well, turns out his original voice Jay Johnston was present for a certain…historical event at the nation’s capital on January 6th 2021, then later identified the following December and subsequently fired from his role on the show. What makes this extra funny is that, as some have pointed out, Jimmy Pesto would more likely have CLAIMED to have been at the insurrection to get clout than actually gone, which I would’ve liked for them to hint at in his return, but no such luck. That’s not at all important to talking about the episode’s plot, but it felt interesting context that was worth bringing up. The plot itself is pretty standard Bob/Jimmy rivalry with a nice ending, with Bob realizing that Jimmy stealing from him simply means that Bob has good ideas that are worth stealing, and he’ll have another good one before long.

Then there’s the plot focusing on Zeke, who hasn’t gotten a ton of plots just about him, but they usually follow a theme of him being seemingly a bad kid who has hidden talents or a good heart in order to subvert the initial perception that he would be a problem child. He’s bored in cooking class? Well, turns out he actually has a perfect palette and could be a great chef someday. He’s skipping school and stole a mascot costume? Well, turns out he’s using it to cheer up his grandma who has a fondness for that mascot. And now, this episode starts with a new kid seemingly someone who bullied Zeke when they were younger, but SYKE! ZEKE was the bully! They subverted the subversion! Zeke WAS a bad kid! Well, to be more accurate, he was a kid who was easily influenced by his need for attention and acceptance and this kid got caught in the crossfire, which Zeke clearly regrets. But the true reveal later is a bigger shock, that Zeke bullied this kid for his lisp, something Zeke’s current best friend Jimmy Jr. also clearly deals with. But it’s clear by the end Zeke is remorseful and does his best to apologize, proving he’s good after. He subverted the subversion’s subversion! Anyway, good episode, hope the rest are all like this one.