[7.6/10] This is a fun one. I’m mostly in it for the humor, since the storyline spins out a bit in places. But I like the central idea of it -- that Bob wants to make a local Super Bowl commercial and is willing to bet the family’s savings on it, nominally to help the business but mostly to get back at Jimmy Pesto.
That’s a fine enough idea. It adds stakes to the proceedings, plays on the preexisting rivalry between Bob and Jimmy, and creates an unofficial competition that makes you want to see what’ll happen next. But what really kicks this one into gear is how that provides a spine to hang the jokes on.
Louise’s feud with Radny over who’s in charge of the shoot, and the surprisingly even match of wits between a wannabe film director and a little girl, is a hoot. Linda’s reluctance to pursue this turned enthusiasm when she learns she’ll get to sing is a blast. Tina’s efforts to make her “wow factor” stand out got a chuckle out of me. And I particularly enjoyed local football legend Sandy “Can Can” Frye’s matter of fact chipperness through every part of the episode.
The show also gets a lot of comic mileage out of doing a local ad. The sort of low budget awkwardness of family business commercials is definitely mined for some great laughs here. And at the same, the cheesiness of shoehorning local sports celebrities into commercials is good for plenty of yuks as well. The super bowl setup is used for good humor, even as the story feels wobbly in places.
But that’s okay. Even if it’s a tad tacked on, Bob realizing that he veered too far away from loving and supporting his family and instead just made the commercial about trying to beat Jimmy in as soulless a way as possible is a good througline. And as tepid as the Gene “super bowel movement” subplot is, I like that it wraps back around into the main story by messing up Jimmy Pesto’s super bowl extravaganza. Bob getting a whole three extra customers out of the ordeal is an amusingly measured win for him despite everything.
Overall, there’s plenty of laughs and a good story idea here, which helps to make up for some weakness in the actual execution of the story.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-05-25T18:53:09Z
[7.6/10] This is a fun one. I’m mostly in it for the humor, since the storyline spins out a bit in places. But I like the central idea of it -- that Bob wants to make a local Super Bowl commercial and is willing to bet the family’s savings on it, nominally to help the business but mostly to get back at Jimmy Pesto.
That’s a fine enough idea. It adds stakes to the proceedings, plays on the preexisting rivalry between Bob and Jimmy, and creates an unofficial competition that makes you want to see what’ll happen next. But what really kicks this one into gear is how that provides a spine to hang the jokes on.
Louise’s feud with Radny over who’s in charge of the shoot, and the surprisingly even match of wits between a wannabe film director and a little girl, is a hoot. Linda’s reluctance to pursue this turned enthusiasm when she learns she’ll get to sing is a blast. Tina’s efforts to make her “wow factor” stand out got a chuckle out of me. And I particularly enjoyed local football legend Sandy “Can Can” Frye’s matter of fact chipperness through every part of the episode.
The show also gets a lot of comic mileage out of doing a local ad. The sort of low budget awkwardness of family business commercials is definitely mined for some great laughs here. And at the same, the cheesiness of shoehorning local sports celebrities into commercials is good for plenty of yuks as well. The super bowl setup is used for good humor, even as the story feels wobbly in places.
But that’s okay. Even if it’s a tad tacked on, Bob realizing that he veered too far away from loving and supporting his family and instead just made the commercial about trying to beat Jimmy in as soulless a way as possible is a good througline. And as tepid as the Gene “super bowel movement” subplot is, I like that it wraps back around into the main story by messing up Jimmy Pesto’s super bowl extravaganza. Bob getting a whole three extra customers out of the ordeal is an amusingly measured win for him despite everything.
Overall, there’s plenty of laughs and a good story idea here, which helps to make up for some weakness in the actual execution of the story.