[7.5/10] A nice “You’ve always had the power, my dear” type episode for Tina. The concept of a ghost teenage boy in a box is a pretty silly one, even for Tina’s romantic interests. But I like the idea that having a boyfriend, however imaginary, helps give Tina the confidence she needs to stand up to her fellow kids and demand to be treated with respect. The realization that what everyone in their friend group saw in “Jeff” was what they really wanted from themselves is a nice insight.
There’s some good character stuff here. Louise initially pranking Tina but then feeling bad when things go too far is a good beat. And Tina figuring it out and turning the tables on her classmates is a good win for her after being the butt of the joke.
Speaking of which, the jokes here are great. Gene makes a great Greek Chorus as always. (His “Nobody’s saying it, but Jef is a scoundrel!” line cracked me up.) And Zeke was in rare form too. Linda’s excitement and seriousness about the ghost was also a great source of laughs.
The B-story back at the restaurant was on the milder side. That said, its interesting to see Bob be a little sterner and angrier in these earlier seasons. Him disbelieving in the whole ghost thing, and getting right annoyed at his family over it almost seems out of character for the later, more tolerant Bob. Still, him embracing the idea of a ghost in their basement when it’s good publicity for the restaurant, replete with a couple of ghost hunters (including Jordan Peele!) is a nice touch.
Overall, a fun Bob’s Burgers story with some cute Tina material and a nice win for her at the end as well.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2023-10-25T02:22:47Z
[7.5/10] A nice “You’ve always had the power, my dear” type episode for Tina. The concept of a ghost teenage boy in a box is a pretty silly one, even for Tina’s romantic interests. But I like the idea that having a boyfriend, however imaginary, helps give Tina the confidence she needs to stand up to her fellow kids and demand to be treated with respect. The realization that what everyone in their friend group saw in “Jeff” was what they really wanted from themselves is a nice insight.
There’s some good character stuff here. Louise initially pranking Tina but then feeling bad when things go too far is a good beat. And Tina figuring it out and turning the tables on her classmates is a good win for her after being the butt of the joke.
Speaking of which, the jokes here are great. Gene makes a great Greek Chorus as always. (His “Nobody’s saying it, but Jef is a scoundrel!” line cracked me up.) And Zeke was in rare form too. Linda’s excitement and seriousness about the ghost was also a great source of laughs.
The B-story back at the restaurant was on the milder side. That said, its interesting to see Bob be a little sterner and angrier in these earlier seasons. Him disbelieving in the whole ghost thing, and getting right annoyed at his family over it almost seems out of character for the later, more tolerant Bob. Still, him embracing the idea of a ghost in their basement when it’s good publicity for the restaurant, replete with a couple of ghost hunters (including Jordan Peele!) is a nice touch.
Overall, a fun Bob’s Burgers story with some cute Tina material and a nice win for her at the end as well.