My comfort television show is Bob's Burgers.
It's funny, but it's a different kind of funny than Family Guy or South Park or anything else, really, because it's not mean. It's funny without being mean, and in that way, it reminds me of Spongebob (I saw hundreds of episodes on hockey trips), which is also not mean.
Look, I understand that mean is funny, a lot of the time. But it's also not relaxing, at least to me. And it's much harder to be funny without being mean.
That's what Bob's Burgers does, and for me, I think it's mostly because of Gene.
Gene is Bob's 11-year-old son, and everything he says is off the wall. It's as if they crammed Steven Wright into a child's body and just let him loose.
Some of my favorite Gene quotes:
--Camera, take the day off. I added ten pounds to myself!
--I’m gonna take a nap under a warm tortilla and then eat my way out when I wake up.
--What kind of god would give you those legs and no rhythm?
--Would you rather have a lifetime of regret or an afternoon of mild disappointment?
--You know what's weird about the farmers market? I've never seen them sell one farmer.
--Who better to do math than a robot? They're made of math! And this, when he saved his sister Tina:
Gene, you saved us. I owe you my life."
"No thanks. I've seen it and I'm not impressed."
Lots of seasons, too. I watch one when I'm lifting weights or eating or any time I want some peace from the world.