| “ | Maybe it's just the Magic Marker smell making me dizzy, but I'm into this! | ” |
— Arnold Evans about Soul Breezers
| ||
"The (Raccoon) King and I" is the seventh episode in Season 14, being the two-hundredth-and-sixty-seventh episode overall.
Plot[]
During a neighborhood block party, Linda makes a mistake that could threaten the life of her favorite alley raccoon.
Full story[]
Bob and his kids are looking out of the restaurant, watching people set up an enormous stage in front of Bob's Burgers for Ocean Avenue's block party. Bob is upset because he won't be able to look at the musicians performing on the set since they were initially building it by Mort's mortuary. While drinking coffee at the counter, Teddy states he believes Mort bribed the people in charge of the event. Bob was looking forward to the block party because of the Soul Breezers performance, which started in the '70s and only produced one hit (which Bob remembers so well). Louise is also upset about the stage because she sold tickets to kids in her class in exchange for candy so they could watch the event from their apartment: Regular Sized Rudy, Andy and Ollie Pesto, and Arnold Evans. Gene adds he's helping Louise so he can get ten percent of her share. Louise mentions the only way to watch the performance upstairs is by "squeezing [one's] face against the window in Gene's room and closing one eye while [one stands] on tiptoe." Unlike her dad and the rest of her siblings, Tina remains optimistic. She wants to attend the concert and become a "cheerer" instead of a "clapper" at these events. She tries to whoo, but her whoo's don't impress Louise. Bob tries cheering himself up by telling himself the block party will attract people to the restaurant, and he will still hear the Soul Breezers play, even if he won't see them. As Bob pours Teddy more coffee, Linda enters the restaurant from the back. She declares she's getting buns for Little King Trashmouth and a coffee for herself. Tina asks if the raccoon is fine since Linda's been in the alley the whole time. Linda says there's something wrong with the King's paw, but she needs to figure out the specifics. As Linda finishes compiling her supplies, Teddy finishes his coffee and goes out with Linda to see Little King Trashmouth. Gene and Louise leave after wiping down the menus and return to the apartment to fix up Gene's room for their guests. Bob tries getting them to return since Linda is also gone, and he needs help running the restaurant. However, they ignore him, and Tina also tries sneaking away from Bob to see Little King Trashmouth. Tina hurries out before her father can get her to stay.
In the alley, Linda, Tina, and Teddy watch Little King Trashmouth lick his broken paw after they fed him a burger bun in the crevice between the dumpster and the restaurant's exterior walls. Their neighbor, Mr. Huggins, in the apartment behind the restaurant, claims he saw the King limp in the space. Tina asks where Gary, the King's husband, is, but Linda is uncertain. Linda notices that Little King Trashmouth doesn't like the bread, so she returns to the restaurant to find something else for him to eat and pee.
Meanwhile, Regular Sized Rudy comes to the Belchers and gives Louise candy so he can watch the concert. He's the first to show up, so they head to Gene's room. Gene and Louise have put chairs in Gene's room so Rudy and the other kids can watch the concert. However, Rudy looks out one of Gene's windows and notices he won't be able to see the band there. Louise mashes Rudy's face to the window and tells him he can watch the event like this, convincing him it's a 'premium experience.'
Linda returns from the restaurant with a pickle in hand. She tosses it to Little King Trashmouth and tells Tina and Teddy she called animal control to help them. Teddy starts getting nervous because he thinks they will kill the King, especially since he's a raccoon. As Mr. Huggins confirms Teddy's suspicions by talking about television shows with animal control in them, the block party starts, and the first band starts playing. Tina tries wooing, but it doesn't satisfy her. She also urges Linda to call animal control back. Linda calls them and tries convincing them there's no raccoon to call off the hit, but the respondent doesn't believe her and hangs up. Linda, Tina, and Teddy decide to catch Little King Trashmouths themselves and hide him so animal control won't take him. Linda, Teddy, and Tina return to the restaurant, and as Bob serves burgers to the customers, she tells her husband she's getting a "raccoon box from the basement." Teddy sees Bob cooking fries and asks if he can order some, but he refocuses and goes to the basement with Linda. As he goes, an older man enters the restaurant and asks for the Burger of the Day. Bob asks if the person is one of the people performing for the block party, and the man reveals himself as part of the Soul Breezers. The man tells Bob he's Ian, the band's road manager. Bob compliments Ian's group, telling him it's inspiring how they're still "doing what they love." However, Ian laughs because the Soul Breezers are miserable and broke, and so is he. Bob lets Ian take some of his napkins since he wants them to clean up spills on the bus and use them as toilet paper.
Linda, Tina, and Teddy return to the alley with a blanket, not a box, since they couldn't find one. Linda makes her and Tina stand on each side of the dumpster so Little King Trashmouth won't escape, and she plans to trap him with the towel. Teddy pulls back the dumpster so Linda and Tina can go through the opening. Mr. Huggin returns to watch and warns them that the raccoon will bite them, and Tina starts making her nervous groans. While looking at Little King Trashmouth, Linda notices that the cause of his pain is a splinter in his foot, and he manages to get it out with his licking. When Linda tries to jump the King, the raccoon escapes between Linda's feet. Linda gets concerned again because of the impending arrival of animal control. Still, Tina becomes optimistic, thinking that they won't be able to find Little King Trashmouth since he can run again.
Andy, Ollie, and Arnold are back in the apartment in Gene's room with Rudy. They're discussing asking for a refund with each other, and Louise and Gene are observing them without alerting them. The guests go to Louise and Gene, telling them they'd rather watch the concert from outside, like everyone else. When they ask for their candy back, Louise gets desperate and leads them to the living room, showing them they can see backstage from where the "real stuff" happens. Louise's friends still need convincing, so Louise offers them free snacks. Louise sways Andy and Ollie when she allows them to sleep in her bathtub later. Rudy and Arnold Evans stopped voicing their concerns and returned to watching the people backstage. Gene brings the seat from his room over, in addition to the Belcher's "cushiest seat cushions" or Bob and Linda's bed pillows.
Back at the restaurant, Linda is 'chopping' onions while looking at the alley door, nervously waiting for animal control to arrive. Bob asks his wife if she wants to be at the counters instead of the kitchen, but Linda refuses. When Linda sees their van pull up, she and Teddy go to the alley to meet them. Linda, Tina, and Teddy try convincing the officer to leave by telling a story about a dog. While they're lying, the officer sees Little King Trashmouth limping behind them from a distance. The officer returns to her van to get her catch pole and a cage, and she heads for the raccoon. Little King Trashmouth disappears, but it doesn't stop the woman from trying to catch him. When the animal control officer is out of earshot, Tina suggests she, her mom, and Teddy split up to find the King, and she could follow the officer and shout if the woman sees him. They all follow Tina's plan. Meanwhile, Ian continues to talk to Bob about how depressing his and the Soul Breezer's jobs are. Ian's speech affects Bob, and the Belcher starts thinking about his career, worrying he'll end up like Ian and the Soul Breezers.
In the apartment, Louise's guests continue watching the block party backstage crew. Gene makes 'merch' for the guests by finding old t-shirts and writing on them with a black Magic Marker. Rudy buys one with some of his candy, and Andy, Ollie, and Arnold follow.
Linda, Teddy, and Tina remain split up, trying to find Little King Trashmouth. Tina sees that the animal control officer has found the raccoon, so Tina shouts to get her mom's and Teddy's attention. Linda can't get to the King because of a fence, so she goes through Barry's alcohol store, asks Barry if she can borrow one of his empty boxes, and gets to the alley through Barry's backdoor. As the officer is about to catch Little King Trashmouth, Linda traps him in a box and takes him with her. She runs back to the restaurant to hide the King.
While Bob is back in the kitchen, cooking burgers, he can't help but think about what Ian said to him. He pictures himself aging as he continues to cook burgers for the rest of his life, but Ian snaps him out of it, telling Bob that Soul Breezers is playing "Gas in My Car" onstage right now, Bob's favorite song of theirs (and their only hit). Louise's friends enjoy the Soul Breezer's hit in the apartment and begin dancing.
The animal control officer returns to her van, unable to find Little King Trashmouth. Linda emerges from hiding as the woman leaves in her van, and she, Tina, and Teddy cheer. They see Gary from a distance, and they let the King out. Gary and his husband reunite, and Tina whoos. Teddy compliments Tina's cheer, and they head inside the restaurant to give Little King Trashmouth and Gary some privacy.
As Ian eats the soft serve that Bob made for him, Bob looks out of the window and points out that the Soul Breezers look like they're having fun. Ian agrees. Bob is confused because Ian told him they were miserable. Ian doesn't argue with Bob, but he tells the restaurateur that there are "moments" that make their professions worth it. Bob looks at the Soul Breezers again, seeing them enjoying themselves. Bob's concerns are over, and he starts dancing to the band's music. Gene and Louise come down from the apartment to get snacks for their guests. Bob continues dancing as Linda, Tina, and Teddy come in, and Teddy orders a burger and fries for himself and the raccoon couple.
Back at the alley, Little King Trashmouth and Gary leave together to the distance.
Videos[]
External links[]
- "The (Raccoon) King and I" on IMDb
- "The (Raccoon) King and I" press release via The Futon Critic
- "The (Raccoon) King and I" script via Springfield! Springfield!
References[]
| Season 14 Episode Navigation | v • t • e | |
|---|---|---|
| Fight at the Not Okay Chore-ral • The Amazing Rudy • The Pickleorette • Running Down a Gene • Bully-ieve It or Not • Escape from Which Island? • The (Raccoon) King and I • Wharf, Me Worry? • Fraud of the Dead: Zombie-docu-pocalypse • The Nightmare 2 Days Before Christmas • Mission Impossi-Bob • Jade in the Shade • Butt Sweat and Fears • The Big Stieblitzki • The Right Tough Stuff • To Catch a Beef | ||
| ← Season 13 | See also: Episode Guide | Season 15 → |