It was only a matter of time. Bob’s Burgers finally put its input on the topic of alien contact.For many students, the science fair was a school activity we could not avoid and were forced to participate in . “U.F.O No You Didn’t” brought back the second appearance of the Wagstaff’s science fair along with the introduction of a new character. Susmita was introduced as Tina’s science partner and these two seemed like an interesting nerdy duo fans have been missing.
Photo Source: FOX – Bob’s Burgers
Tina has never been the most talented at academic pursuits so when Susmita offered the idea of creating a means to search for signals in space, the episode immediately took an interesting turn. This idea was far better than Tina’s peanut butter plan, once again proving she is not the smartest cookie in the jar when it comes to school work. The two convene in the lunchroom and this is where Tina has another, more bold, idea. She states her interest in not just listening for signals but to send one out in hopes of contacting someone. Henry Haber, a reoccurring character who is often portrayed with an undefined stance to the Belcher siblings, overhears these plans and quickly decides to step in. He states that there are chances for life beyond our own but with those changes come a lot of factors. One of these factors includes the possibility of a race bent on the destruction of other societies which is often discussed when the topic of alien contact is opened. Tina, unswayed by his words, is still determined to make contact with extraterrestrial lifeforms. After some setup, thanks to Teddy, the girls are ready to send their signal through a binary code in the hope someone would hear it.
Photo Source: FOX – Bob’s Burgers
Consequently, Gene and Louise receive mysterious notes in their lockers to meet someone in secret. Unsurprisingly, its Henry who wanted to meet them and seek their services for interfering with Tina and Susmita (this could have been done out of general fear or competitiveness). Upon the agreement of a gift card, they help rig the satellite so instead of aliens, they would be the ones sending them messages. I felt really bad for Tina and Susmita because jokes are funny and this was really not funny, especially when you see them panicked. Thankfully, Gene and Louise realize that their actions were not ok as they watched Tina live in fear/ regret upon the interference. Of course, they don’t reveal the trick until a day later, after she goes around kissing boys (Jimmy Jr. and Zeke) and saying her goodbyes.
Photo Source: FOX – Bob’s Burgers
Tina, while hurt and upset, and Susmita is relieved to learn that they indeed did not make alien contact or endangered the planet. Despite this new found information, the two girls divide, Susmita now agrees with Henry that the Earth should not seek out alien life but this is an opinion that Tina does not share. Eventually, all leads up to the science fair with Susmita repeating her previous statement and Tina clearly unprepared. It seems like everything is coming to an anticlimactic conclusion until Tina surprised us with one of her few moments of insight. Tina tells all that she wanted to do her previous project but because the two couldn’t agree, they went different ways. Tina said that the benefits out way the risks when you consider what path the Earth is currently on so fear should not rule our decisions moving forward because without change we are all (most likely) doomed. While her speech was simple, she managed to make a few good points and change a few minds.
Don’t worry, Bob and Linda have not been forgotten. The majority of people who grew up with technology know that often when something is on sale it can not be returned but this is a fact that escaped Bob. Bob purchased five, I repeat FIVE, coat racks on sale thinking he could return them but upon their arrival realized he could not. To make matters worse, they were children toy coat racks so even though they were small, they were harder to get ride off or find a use for. At first, they try desperately to sell them but no one looking for a burger comes out with a child’s coat rack (they never said it directly but I thought these could be toy coat racks). In a fun twist, the coat racks play a role in Bob out doing Jimmy Pesto which is always a highlight since Pesto often belittles Bob. The fact that Bob and Linda share a romantic kiss in the rain was also really cute to watch (especially as Bob fails to lift Linda).
Finally, we work in a few comments on the show. Personally, I want Susmita and Tina to be friends so I really hope she becomes a reoccurring character. The two seem to have some decent chemistry and with Tina lacking any close, exclusive friends like her siblings, this could set a nice new pass for future Tina episodes/ plots. On the topic of aliens, the space race has certainly expanded over the years and with humans wanting to expand/ learn, aliens are becoming a bigger concern for many. Changing gears, it appeared strange that these girls were so capable of making something so complicated (these girls are teens) so one didn’t really get the sense that they would actually succeed. I am also not well versed on this topic but I wondered if anyone has ever tried to make contact because this doesn’t seem like something no one has ever tried so that brings to question if these girls did any research. Furthermore, Bob and Linda’s story-line, being basic and unexciting, was far to relate-able to ignore (especially to those with experience in online shopping). Shopping online, while convenient, is also very risky so always be careful.
Thank you for reading and I hope your holiday shopping is going well. Be sure to like and comment with your opinions of the show and stay nerdy.
