I’ve never really cared much for TV, but from what I’ve heard, everyone and their mother has seen Bob’s Burgers at least once. Which actually confused me in a lot of ways, because why the heck is everyone raving about a cartoon family who owns a burger restaurant? Seriously, what kind of premise is that? I remained skeptical for a long time, but when I started noticing all of the posts online about Tina Belcher and why bloggers believed she could be the next feminist icon, I couldn’t resist. I had to see what all the fuss was about. And I was surprised.
Whether or not you’re a fan of the show as a whole, you’ve got to admit there’s just something about Tina, the awkward teen girl who works the grill at her father’s restaurant. She’s not glamorized, she’s not sexualized and half the time she’s more uncomfortable than anything, which is all a little more relatable than Marissa from the O.C. or any of the Kardashians. She was even named the Best Character on TV Right Now by voters at Entertainment Weekly last month. Don’t believe me? Here are ten reasons why this animated lady is on her way to becoming the ultimate spirit animal for the women of our generation.
1. She’s fabulous and she knows it. I mean, seriously, who has this kind of killer confidence as a teenager? I know I didn’t, but life probably would have been a whole lot easier if I had. Tina is a normal teenage girl, but she knows her self worth and isn’t afraid to let it be known. I think that’s something we could all use in our lives.
2. She asks the important questions in life. Come on, we were all thinking it, right? We’ve all got those burning questions in our heads that we’re too afraid to ask because honestly, they probably sound really stupid out loud. But hey, you’re never going to know if you never ask.
3. She’s comfortable with her feelings. What girl hasn’t had a crush (or twenty-five) at some point in her life? But what gets me about Tina is that she totally owns it. She doesn’t hide her feelings or do that thing where she pretends she feels the opposite of how she does. Not only does that take guts, but it takes a lot of self-esteem. Props to any girl who owns up to her feelings and tells it how it is.
4. She’s comfortable with taking the initiative, too. I have a lot of respect for people who know what they want and aren’t afraid to go after it, mostly because that’s not always something that’s easy to do. Maybe it doesn’t always go well, but it’s the intent that matters.
5. So comfortable, in fact, that sometimes she goes a little overboard. Most girls are guilty of this in some way, whether it’s getting a little too invested in a crush or straddling the line between knowing someone and stalking them. It’s part of human nature to be optimistic about your love interest, but that doesn’t exactly mean you’re being logical about it. I can relate, at least.
6. Naturally, she gets her heart broken like the rest of us, too. There’s no need to glamorize it. We aren’t part of some Hollywood movie where we get hurt, take off our glasses, put on a pretty dress and bam, suddenly someone loves us and we can put behind the rejection that spurned such a transformative moment. Sometimes we just have to lay on the floor and groan it out. (Confession: change the kitchen floor to my roommate’s bedroom floor and add in a bottle of vodka and I’ve had some strikingly similar moments to this one.)
7. She understands the struggle of looking presentable. Some days you wake up feeling like you’re straight out of a Beyoncé music video; other days you feel like a cheap imitation of Lindsay Lohan’s mug shot. Keeping up on your A-game is tough, and it takes a lot of patience and dedication. At least we have someone that can attest that not everyone wakes up looking perfectly manicured. Everyone has their ratchet days.
8. She’s ambitious about the things she cares about. Whether it’s working toward your career goals or just writing freaky friend fiction, it’s important that you feel like what you’re doing is important. Tina may have some strange hobbies, but I can’t say that I don’t admire the dedication.
9. She’s got her down days. Every TV show in the history of TV shows have some sort of drama, but I think Tina deals with it a little realistically than other characters. It goes to show that angst isn’t only solved by making stupid decisions to distract yourself. Sometimes you’ve just got to lay on the floor and do a signature Tina Belcher groan. Because life is hard, and sometimes all you have to do is put in as little effort as humanly possible to feel better.
10. All and all, she’s just an ordinary girl that everyone can understand at some level. Love the show or hate it, that doesn’t take away the fact that there’s something so compelling about Tina as a character. Because while I may not be a die-hard fan of the show, I’ve seen enough gifs and posts on the internet that made me laugh and think, “Yeah, I totally get that.” TV is full of women characters that are interesting enough to watch, but a lot of the times they kind of miss the mark on what it’s like to be a woman in real life. Maybe Tina’s a bit out there, but she’s also just grounded enough to make you feel like maybe, on some level, somebody actually gets it. And that, my friends, is priceless.