Bob's Burgers pairs up Tina and Tammy in a Cyrano-inspired episode

Pairing up Tina and Tammy always makes for a magical combination. “Sleeping With the Frenemy” pulls them together in one of the most hilarious and compelling ways yet when Tina has to give Tammy the words to say to an out-of-town cutie (Andy Samberg plays the BFOT or boy from out of town). Tina always tries her best to be her best, so she invites Tammy to stay with her when Tammy’s family leaves her behind while they’re on a cruise. But as usual, Tina’s efforts are tested when Tammy tries her best to be her absolute worst.

One of the best things about Tina is that even though she sometimes struggles, she is very confident in who she is. When she’s with Tammy you can see that she appreciates her own work ethic, obscure interests, writing skills, and glasses. The fact that the BFOT appreciates all that, too, while Tammy is oblivious proves that Tina is on the right track and Tammy’s life maybe isn’t as glamorous as she makes it out to be. That’s also highlighted in the juxtaposition between Tammy’s family, who seem to not care at all that their daughter is left behind on her own, and the Belchers, who are constantly around each other and worship the teeth that fall out of their children’s mouths.

The Cyrano (er, Cyra-yes) de Bergerac storyline in comedies isn’t new, but here it feels fresh. Even the secondary story about Gene losing his last baby tooth could have come off as stale, but Gene and Bob needing to get a black market tooth to give her is definitely something that hasn’t been seen. It’s always impressive how Bob’s Burgers can take classic sitcom tropes and turn them into something so complex, compelling, and surprising. And the song-writing once again hits it out of the park with the duet between Tammy and Tina that finishes things off. It’s those touches that always make the show stand-out regardless of any bumps along the way.

The last few episodes of the show, while filled with amazing jokes and storylines, have taken a little too long to get to the point. This week things seemed like they were going to be about Tina getting her Thunderful badge, then about Spring Break, then about Tammy annoying the Belchers, and it was a little bit about all those things. But the meat was in Tina helping Tammy court the boy she had a crush on. Maybe next week things will get rolling earlier on in the half hour without losing the one-liners and original narratives.

Stray Observations:

• Burgers of the Day: “The Turn the Beets Around Burger,” “The Rosemary’s Baby Spinach Burger”
• Ways Tina tried to get her Thunderful badge: planting a tree in the middle of soccer field, dropping trash into the ocean, trying to walk an unwilling old woman across the street
• “Is that the sound you make when you’re happy? That’s horrible.” -Louise
• “If that’s what I wanted, I’d get an ex-girlfriend!” -Gene
• “That’s lip gloss? I thought you always just finished eating a rotisserie chicken.” -Louise
• “Alcohol does not solve problems, missy miss, it just makes them go away.” -Linda
• “Oh look, another butt cloud.” -Tammy