Only my opinion, but I’m determining if each of the main character of Bob’s Burgers are autistic or not
Again, only my opinion and will give reasons why I believe they are.
Bob Belcher: Yes. From being antisocial to his special interests, I can absolutely confirm that he is potentially on the spectrum. The most specific episode I can think of is Season 1 Episode 11 where Bob is focused on building a replica of a bus from Speed. While Linda wants to have a second honeymoon, he wants to do something he is interested in. While nice to see Bob enjoy himself in simple activities, we see how his introvert side kicks in and special interests takes over being social and wanting to spend time with anyone, even the people he loves. Another example is when he is nervous, he has a vocal tic of making his voice go high. It’s normal when neurodivergent people are nervous, they will often make sounds that reflect there feelings and Bob doesn’t mask a lot of the time. Masking is when a neurodivergent individual hides there traits in order to seem “neurotypical”. It’s crap, yes, but Bob does do that from time to time in pushing through things that make him uncomfortable. (E.g. Season 5 episode 6 when Bob pushes through spending Christmas Eve at his father’s restaurant). Then again they had a tumultuous relationship so maybe there’s more to unpack with that, but still it was an environment that he was uncomfortable with and attempts to get out with no success (thanks to Linda). With this, I can conclude in my opinion that Bob Belcher is on the autism spectrum or have Asperger’s syndrome.
Linda Belcher: Debatable. While I don’t believe that Linda is on the spectrum, there are some traits that I can see with Linda being on the spectrum potentially. For instance, Linda has no filter. The most potential trait I could see is her singing songs to herself, to the chagrin of Bob (e.g. Season 3 episode 5 Thanksgiving special. The Turkey song). It’s a vocal stim to help Linda either express excitement or calm herself down. In this case, Linda uses her singing to express excitement. She also doesn’t have a filter and is impulsive at times when she makes decisions, specifically with button pushing (Bob’s Burgers movie). Something Gene gets from her and is often very honest with what is happening. (E.g. whenever she burps and toots/farts and poops). However, I do see her as an enthusiastic extroverted female who could have asperger’s syndrome but in my opinion I don’t think she is on the spectrum.
Tina Belcher: Yes, Tina is definitely on the spectrum. The most prominent trait is her vocal stims and special interests. Similar to Bob Belcher, Tina is often fascinated by horses and her favorite horse themed TV show Equesternauts (similar to My Little Pony tv show). She knows her facts and often daydreams about horses and the show. She also isn’t afraid to share her facts and special interests with her family and is met with support from them, especially Linda and Bob. (Though, Bob is reluctant, however gets into it due to acting as a spy to get Tina’s rare horse back in season 4 episode 17). She also is a fan of the Thundergirls and despite almost being in high school, she is still a Thundergirl and isn’t ashamed to be part of a community that embraces her. Tina, over the course of the show has really come into her own and stopped wanting to impress others. Tina also has her own vocal tic and often gets nervous. There’s no specific episode when she does this as it’s often throughout the series, but she is more likely to not mask compared to Bob. An episode where her traits potentially come out is season 3 episode 7 where Tina tries to lie after a parking lot accident and fails miserably. Whether it’s her guilt or something more can be determined by you all. However, in conclusion, I do believe that Tina Belcher is on the spectrum.
Gene Belcher: Yes. Unlike Bob or Tina, who are reserved, Gene is extremely extroverted. His special interests are music, specifically his keyboard. He also wants things done in a specific way (e.g. wants to improvise in the season 5 episode 17 where the band wants to practice compared to Gene). He often has his own beat and wants to do things in an unconventional way (season 10 episode 9 where his audition goes off-script from what the script said). Gene, similar to Tina beats to his own drum and is often not shy about his opinion and has some vocal tics thought not as consistent as Bob and Tina. He can also be very honest on his thoughts and inappropriate (e.g. that’s what I call my testicles gag and the “Gene” line said by Bob). He often doesn’t have a filter compared to Bob and similar to Tina as she often thinks about Jimmy Jr’s butt. In conclusion, I believe that Gene Belcher could be on the spectrum. Also, bonus tidbit, he does have an imaginary friend named Kevin and often talks to him, though he is not as mentioned as much compared to earlier seasons.
Louise: Yes. While she is also a social bug, she also has her special interests (e.g. Kuchi Kopi and Voodoo) and often wants to share her interests with her family and her friends, Rudy and Darryl. Louise is seen in her design to have a security item with her pink bunny ears and is very intense about her ears on her at all times (e.g. Season 2 episode 3 when the gym teacher attempts take her ears, resulting in which Louise comes up with an excuse to keep her ears on her). It’s a security item that makes her feel safe and doesn’t want to take them off for any reason, though does grow to have her ear hat fall off (Bob’s Burgers movie). When her ears are off, no one sees her hair and is determined to get them back (season 3 episode 1). Similar to Linda, Tina, and Gene, Louise has no filter and is very blunt in how she feels or wants (though they toned down her chaotic nature in later seasons). Her special interest, Kuchi Kopi is special to her and when it gets destroyed by the Belcher family, she gets so angry that she can’t enjoy her slapping as she is deeply hurt. (Season 7 episode 1). I can conclude that Louise, in my opinion is autistic.
That is all for now, thanks for reading and be on the lookout for my Tuner movie review!
