Every Bob’s Burgers Thanksgiving Episode Ranked
“Kill the turkey, yeah!”
While Bob’s Burgers has been an iconic part of the pop culture world for the last several years, their Thanksgiving episodes often present the most hilarious and memorable moments in the show. From Bob and his obsession with perfecting his turkey technique to the family’s overarching love for each other, Thanksgiving is the perfect time to blend all the elements we as viewers adore about the show.
I have decided this year to do the arduous task of watching each episode from season 3 to the most current episode that premiered tonight, to determine which are the best and which are only so-so. My criteria includes quotable lines, prevalence of Thanksgiving traditions, and quintessential Belcher holiday songs. Let’s GO!
9. Now We’re Not Cooking with Gas, S9E8
Bob’s series-long obsession with turkeys continues when he gets the chance to cook a heritage turkey that has been raised in immaculate conditions, never frozen. His Thanksgiving mania reaches a fever pitch when he sets a fire in the alley in order to cook his turkey, and even comes close to burning Tina’s Thunder Girl Project in order to maintain a hot enough flame. This episode doesn’t come with many iconic Belcher laughs, which is why it’s so low on the list.
8. The Quirk-ducers, S7E6
In the Quirk-ducers, Louise hatches a diabolical plot to get a longer Thanksgiving break by ruining the yearly pre-break play. This episode loses some points as we don’t actually see Thanksgiving at all, just the week leading up. While the plots are entertaining, they don’t have much to do with Thanksgiving. There is in fact a song about being a quirky turkey, but it’s not really a Thanksgiving song. There also is no Bob talking to a turkey. Boooo.
7. Thanks-hoarding, S8E5
Thanks-hoarding finds the Belchers trying to wean Teddy off of his hoarding tendencies. This episode is fun because it captures the stress of your first time hosting Thanksgiving. Picking up your house so your friends and family don’t see how you actually live, trying to make do with your sad collection of silverware, and the general stress of hosting.
6. Gayle Makin’ Bob Sled, S6E4
In this episode we see some Belcher Thanksgiving classics: Bob talking to the turkey, Linda singing about wine, Belcher shenanigans, etc. Linda and the kids have to step to the plate and cook most of the Thanksgiving meal as Bob must pull Gayle through the snow to get back home. This episode shows something so quintessential about the Belchers: they may constantly rib each other but they’re always willing to pull together as a family. This is what makes this episode so perfect for Thanksgiving: a loving, if not goofy family coming together.
5. I Bob Your Pardon, S9E7
This episode starts off with one of my favorite Thanksgiving bits, Bob talking to his beloved turkey. A plot that continues throughout the episode is Bob’s insistence that fresh cranberry sauce is better than canned, sparking an eternal Thanksgiving controversy. This episode also features a classic Bob’s Burgers pun with the turkey name: Drew P. Neck. Full of Belcher shenanigans, ten out of ten.
4. Diarrhea of a Poopy Kid, S11E7
This one involves Tina and Louise cheering Gene up after he gets the stomach flu the day of Thanksgiving. They tell him two stories, intended to be takeoffs of The Predator and Air Force One but full of food puns, something we as viewers have come to love about the show. This also shows us something else we adore about the show: the love the family has for each other.
3. Dawn of the Peck, S5E4
While this episode is hilarious, it did lose some points for the fact that Linda runs in a Turkey Trot. THANKSGIVING IS FOR FOOD, NOT FOR MARATHONS. Bob is completely justified in his rage-drinking, which gives us one of the funniest Thanksgiving scenes as he has a full on conversation with the turkey baster. Truly one of the only reasons this episode isn’t lower on the list is because of Bob’s drunken conversations with inanimate objects and the action scene set to Donna Summers’ Dim All The Lights.
2. Turkey in the Can, S4E5
This episode gets points for giving us another classic Thanksgiving song AND for offering up the bizarre mystery of who put the turkey in the toilet. Bob comes out as possibly bisexual to a flirtatious butcher at the grocery store when he says “I’m straight-I mean, I’m mostly straight.” Tina encapsulates the universal struggle of the oldest child in transitioning out of the kid’s table, which is balanced out with Bob’s sleep-potty training. This was a very close second!
- An Indecent Thanksgiving Proposal, S3E5
This one is a classic. As the first Thanksgiving episode, it sets up some amazing traditions. This is also the episode where we get Linda’s iconic Thanksgiving song and even though there are a couple episodes with holiday songs, this is obviously the one that gets stuck in your head while you’re setting the table each year.
I want to hear from you! Did I hit the nail on the head or did I ruffle some feathers? Comment and share!
