It's a Hardback Life

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This volume brings together the five Bob’s Burgers comic book titles released so far. I can’t see it being of much interest to anyone who isn’t a fan of the show, though it does have a quirky humor that might work for some, even without context.

Bob’s Burgers is one of the best shows on TV. There, I said it. It harkens back to the best early seasons of The Simpsons, when it was more of a family sitcom than a pop culture recycling factory, but with even more heartwarming absurdity. These comics are fun, but they do sacrifice something in print- the voices on the show are one of its best features. The five books collected here are divided into the same five segments, one for each character and in a signature style. Tina’s are “friend fiction,” focusing on her ongoing obsession with horses, zombies and Jimmy Jr. Honestly, they stand out as the best- not a surprise, as Tina is my favorite Belcher (and the internet’s too, I think). Gene’s stories are musical and written in rhyme, Louise “solves” mysteries, Linda writes kooky letters to various companies about her inventions (who wouldn’t want to watch a raccoon reality show filmed in a dumpster?) and Bob makes lists of his signature pop-culture-themed burgers. These are all done with varying levels of success, especially Gene’s segments, since the rhyming is often more gimmicky than funny, but all are clearly done in the spirit of the show and generally enjoyable.

Written and illustrated by contributors of the show, and declared “canonical” as such, fans of the show will have fun with these additional (mis)adventures of the Belcher clan, and enjoy the extra artwork and variant covers in here as well. It doesn’t necessarily bring anything new to the table, but if you just can’t get enough of the Belchers, this one might be for you.