Although the animated sitcom “Bob’s Burgers” premiered in 2011 to mixed reviews, it’s now going into its 16th season more beloved than ever. Unlike its long-running network peers “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy,” “Bob’s Burgers” is that rare animated sitcom that doesn’t have a clear golden age it has fallen off from. There are no “bad” seasons fans can unanimously point to, nor are they any “jump the shark” moments like Principal Skinner (Harry Shearer) being revealed as an imposter on “The Simpsons” or Brian Griffin (Seth MacFarlane) being killed off on “Family Guy.”
The secret, according to the show’s creator Loren Bouchard, is that the characters of “Bob’s Burgers” have a goal they’re working towards. As he told Variety in September 2025:
“It’s a hopeful show about a working-class family with this irrational, creative, barely profitable dream at the heart of it — the restaurant. And because they never age, we’ll never know if they’ll succeed or they’ll fail, but we feel their drive and their fundamental optimism, and that’s probably valuable to some folks. Optimism is an underrated and complicated thing. Cynics can dismiss it, but that’s because when it’s done poorly in entertainment, it plays like schmaltz. ‘Bob’s’ is about a grittier, deeper hope and how it works for you, even in hard times.”
Bouchard also praised the characters themselves, noting, “In the end, if you’re making character-driven comedy, then you have to give credit to the characters for any success you might achieve. People have to want to spend time with them.”
Read more: 8 The Simpsons Celebrity Guest Stars That Aged Poorly
Bouchard may have pinpointed the problem with Bob’s Burgers’ peers
Homer Simpson and Peter Griffin hanging out with Bob at his restaurant in Family Guy – 20th Television Animation
When people talk about the differences between “Bob’s Burgers” and shows like “Family Guy” and “The Simpsons,” they’ll often point to the series’ animation styles or their differing senses of humor, but the family business aspect’s definitely an important factor often overlooked. The Simpsons and the Griffins are families with no long-term goals beyond going to school or work. Sometimes, one of the characters will start a business, but that adventure will be wrapped up in 22 minutes max. There’s an aimlessness to these characters’ lives that quietly haunts the shows, and it’s made all the more unsettling by how they never age. These characters aren’t striving for anything, and neither, it seems, are their series.
Admittedly, “Bob’s Burgers” has the advantage of not being as old as these shows. Even as it approaches its 40th anniversary, “The Simpsons” still manages to deliver some bangers every now and again. I’d even argue that it enjoyed another mini-golden age (a silver age, perhaps?) from seasons 17 to 21. Meanwhile, it’s unclear if “Bob’s Burgers” will last as long at its current high quality.
Still, the show’s going to try. As Bouchard explained in that Variety interview, “We’ll keep making the show as long as people want to see it and as long as we have stories to tell. In some ways we’re just getting started.”
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Read the original article on SlashFilm.
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