What About Bob?/YMMV

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Alternate Character Interpretation: The story could easily be seen as Bob the Jerkass tormenting the stressed-out Dr. Marvin while everyone is too stupid to realize Bob is actually not as wonderful as they say he is. On the other hand, Dr. Marvin has legitimately peeved off a lot of people and his family was messed up before Bob, and Bob is, underneath his neuroses, a pretty nice and well-meaning guy.
  • The Woobie: Bob. Honestly, he doesn't necessarily mean to drive other people crazy because of his craziness. And you have to wonder what happened to him to make him so unbalanced and phobic in the first place.
  • Jerkass Woobie: Dr. Marvin. You can't blame him for wanting to get away from his job, where he has to deal with people with all manner of emotional problems, and recharge his batteries if you will, only to be incessantly stalked and harrassed by a patient who, after all, drove other shrinks insane before Dr. Marvin. One of Bob's previous shrinks is even said to have quit the profession because of him. None of this, however, alters the fact that Dr. Marvin already is totally lacking in the warmth needed to be a decent psychiatrist and a good family man.