The Bleakening/Trivia

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Trivia[]

Table read date: February 17, 2017.
This episode originally aired as an hour-long episode. It was later edited into two episodes with unique credits and with some scenes edited/cut that was briefly made available on Hulu and FOXNOW in January 2018 before the hour-long version was restored on these services. As of November 2018, the individual parts are on Hulu and the hour-long version is no longer available but is on iTunes.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly before the episode aired, series creator Loren Bouchard teased Adam Driver's role as Art.^[1]
The title continues the series of episodes titled with "The ...ening", following on from "The Deepening", "World Wharf II: The Wharfening", and "The Hauntening."
These are the first episodes of the show to air in the month of December since Season 5's "Tina Tailor Soldier Spy" and the last episodes to air in 2017.
Last appearances of Marshmallow in the series until the Season 14 season premiere "Fight at the Not Okay Chore-ral" and the last where she is voiced by her original voice actor David Herman. Between these episodes, Marshmallow additionally appeared on the end credits to The Bob's Burgers Movie but had no lines.
The script covers had the subtitle "A Kind of Special Bob's Burgers Christmas Special".
At the table read, the scripts had a back cover as well as a front cover. The back cover features Charles M. Schulz's Peanuts style drawings of the Belcher Family and several of the recurring characters featured in the episode.
First episodes where storyboard artist Simon Chong is credited. Chong joined Bento Box Entertainment after being offered a job by Bouchard upon seeing his unofficial Archer/Bob's Burgers crossover.^[2]
Billy Eichner and Tim Meadows are listed on the press release as voicing Mr. Ambrose and Mike the Mailman respectively. Mr. Ambrose is absent from this episode and Mike appears at Linda's party and is seen being questioned during a montage but doesn't have any lines. Meadows probably recorded some dialog which was later cut.
Dalton Crespin, the brunch blogger from "Brunchsquatch", appears. He appears animated in the show's usual animation style for the first time after being showcased in multiple fan art animations in "Brunchsquatch."
The music featured in these episodes was recorded at the recently re-opened Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, Los Angeles. Classic albums including Nirvana's Nevermind were recorded at the legendary studios.
On December 3, 2018, it was announced that these episodes had been nominated for the Annie Award for Best General Audience Animated Television/Broadcast Production at the 46th Annie Awards. It later lost to BoJack Horseman.^[3]

Part 1[]

The sign outside the restaurant advertising Linda's party says "BEST HOLIDAY PARTY EVER! FREE SLIDERS AND EGGNOG".
Tina, Gene, and Louise are seen wearing the Christmas sweaters they wore for the Nice Capades in "Nice-Capades" at the party. Teddy is also seen wearing the Christmas sweater he wore in "The Last Gingerbread House on the Left."
Gene refers to the El Niño weather phenomenon during Teddy's story about The Bleaken.
Matt Berninger, lead singer of The National, voices a singer in this episode. He is credited under the name Matthew D. Berninger on the 'also starring' credits. Berninger's EL VY collaborator Brent Knopf arranged all the original songs featured in this episode.
Olsen Benner references the Elton John song "Tiny Dancer" in her news report on The Wiggle Room's closure.
The Ebeneezer Bleu-ge Burger appears as the Burger of the Day for two consecutive days in the full-length version meaning it also appears in the Christmas Eve scene in the restaurant. The individual Part 1 has a new burger of the day for the Christmas Eve scene, the "Twas the Nut Before Christmas Burger" which comes with walnut aioli.
Louise's stocking has been tampered with, presumably by herself. It is been cut in half with the two halves joined together with a new band of material to make it even larger.
The sword held by Louise during the musical sequence is modeled very closely to the Atlantean sword used by the titular character from the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian.

Part 2[]

The streets Garfield, Jackson, and Johnson are all names of former U.S. presidents.
Gene refers to Santa as Lord Santa in a scene, a previous reference to "Father of the Bob" when the kids call Santa this in their Christmas prayer to him.
The EDM (Electronic dance music) songs being played at the rave were produced by house and techno DJ Cesar Cardoza (aka Robert Download, Jr.).
Among the decorations at the underground rave is a dreidel, referencing that the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah is also in and around Christmastime.
When Teddy is outside setting up the blow-up Santa, one of the people who walks by is the DEA agent from Bob Fires the Kids who buys "blueberries" from Tina.
Both Gene and Louise's dancing during the end credits appears similar to the way they danced in the Sleater-Kinney music video for "A New Wave."
Marshmallow states that she's twenty-three.

Goofs[]

Andrew Joslyn's musician credit is missing from the hour-long version's credits. It appears on the individual credits for Parts 1 and 2.
The credits for "Do You Hear What I Hear" is missing from Part 2.

Part 1[]

The brim on Mike the mailman's Santa hat is colored red instead of white in the overhead shot of the restaurant party.
When Jimmy Pesto and Trev arrive at the restaurant and when she is shown leaving the restaurant Janine's glasses are colored black.
When Linda gives Dalton the glass of eggnog, Janine's glasses cord is mostly missing and is cut off just above her mouth.
When Janine is leaving the restaurant she walks in the direction of the Store Next Door. Janine's store and presumed residence is Yours Truly Stationery which is located opposite It's Your Funeral Home & Crematorium which is on the other side of the restaurant to the store next door. It's also possible she could have been heading somewhere else first.
When Linda says "Mort's back on the list", she erases Jimmy Pesto's name. She should have erased Mort's crossed out name and then rewritten it.
The art model changes his pose during the still-life class. One of the artists is drawing a different third pose.

Part 2[]

Dalton's freckles disappear when the light from his smartphone is shining on his face at the rave.
When Teddy says "It all started earlier...", the harness around Bob's chest appears over his arm and is skin-colored.
Gene is shown wearing a red hoodie when him, Louise, and Tina are watching Miss Triple X-Mas, but in all the other scenes he’s shown wearing a dark blue hoodie
Bob tells the kids that Linda had trouble understanding the hidden door mural, but when the kids entered they left the door open behind them.

Part 1 and Part 2 edits[]

The episode has also been edited into two separate episodes with Part 1 and Part 2 suffixes for syndication and foreign dubs. To make the episodes fit within the usual length for individual episodes some scenes were cut entirely, shortened or recycled into other sequences. Some additions also appear that didn't appear in the full-length version including heavier snowfall in some shots, an additional burger of the day, a rectified background shot, and unique credits for each part.

Part 1[]

The opening shot differs with the "Four Days until Christmas" caption is positioned along the sidewalk instead above the restaurant's sign and below the roof. There is also heavier snowfall and the sign isn't illuminated.
The scene where Louise comments to Gene and Tina that she feels the Bleaken may be coming after Linda's conversation with Dalton at the party is deleted.
The scene where Calvin Fischoeder appears on Mort's surveillance camera ahead of Mort's appearance on the camera is deleted. The removal of this scene effectively removes the character from the episode.
Bob and Linda's short exchange of dialog before they enter Reflections in a close-up shot is deleted. They instead enter the store in the long-shot where they started their exchange in the full-length version.
Edith's line "Good, get out, leave, and take your cookie tray" is truncated with 'leave' not being said.
The montage where Linda and Teddy sing "O Christmas Tree" over it with amended lyrics is deleted but some of the animation is recycled into a unique end credits sequence for this episode with "O Christmas Tree" sung by the backing singers instead of Linda and Teddy. After Edith orders Bob and Linda to leave it cuts straight to the establishing shot on Christmas Eve with the very start and end of "O Christmas Tree" edited together.
The Burger of the Day, The Ebeneezer Bleu-ge Burger, is replaced by the "Twas the Nut Before Christmas Burger" in the scene set on Christmas Eve, effectively removing the error of the former being used for two days.
A commercial break slot has been added between the scene where the kids tell Bob and Linda about the Bleaken and the scene where the kids are shown heading to the police station removing the slide transition and an extra music cue is added when the episode cuts back in.
A shorter edit of "Carol of the Bells" plays while the kids sneak out before fading into the opening drumbeat of "O Christmas Tree" before the credits start.
Ends with a "To Be Continued..." caption to indicate the continuation in Part 2.

Part 2[]

Part 2 starts when the kids are first shown walking around the factory area and the abridging scene where Teddy inflates his inflatable Santa with him inside it before that is moved into where the following commercial break in the full-length version was.
When Tina suggests to Louise that they turn around and go home, the background has been altered to appear as though they are further away from it. (Note:The original zoomed-in background also appears to have a highway overpass not seen in at all in other shots.)
A commercial break slot is inserted between the scenes when Bob and Linda park up outside the factories and with Teddy and Mrs. Chang. A music cue is also added before the break.
Gene's line "This is what I thought a rave looked like but it is not what I thought a rave smelled like" is deleted.
The end credits sequence for Part 2 is the same as the hour-long version but is shorter without Mr. Present and Mrs. Chang's appearances and a shorter version of "Twinkly Lights".