Things we're thankful for: Our BOB'S BURGERS archive materials
One of the best part of our Austin Film Festival experience this year was our BOB'S BURGERS interview and presentation, where BOB'S writers (and all-around Foundation pals) Lizzie and Wendy Molyneux talked with us about their episode "Dawn of the Peck," the fifth season Thanksgiving episode, which aired this past Sunday. (If you didn't manage to DVR it, the most recent episodes are available on Hulu Plus, or on VOD if you're a Time Warner Cable subscriber. I don't say that to shill; I just happen to know it's available in those two places. If you know where else to watch it legally, email me and I'll update this post!) Lizzie and Wendy didn't just chat with us about writing the episode; they shared a ton of actual production materials with us, like script pages, joke lists, and even pre-production artwork. What we're able to share here on the website is limited, so if you'd like to see more, drop us a line and we'll set up an appointment to view the archival materials, or just stop by during library hours.
They (and the BOB'S writing staff) conceived the episode, in which a flock of angry turkeys, geese and other birds attacks the wharf, as an homage to horror flicks. The goods are right there in the title, a riff on DAWN OF THE DEAD; here's a screengrab from some of the pre-production artwork that shows that pedigree off. Because when there's no more room in Hell, the turkeys will walk the Earth:
Here's the opening scene in the episode's script, which riffs on JURASSIC PARK. During our interview in Austin, Lizzie and Wendy mentioned that the staff tries to create distinct personalities and relationships for every character on the show, even if they're only on screen for about a minute. Hence, Rusty and Dan:
As many of you may know, sitcom writers make it a point to come up with a variety of options for every joke, to account for things like an actor's performance or whether a joke looks better on the page than it sounds in real life (or sounds better in the writers' room than it does on the soundstage).
Here are a few of those "joke pods," along with a list of potential visual gags:
As I said before, more complete versions of all these documents are available in our archive, as well as lots more "Dawn Of The Peck" materials, like additional script pages, early table read drafts, and outlines.
In the meantime, have a great holiday. AND DON'T TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE TURKEY FOR A MINUTE.