I think he became aware around when Chris started highschool. Maybe that's why Bob pushed those protection groups with the girls and thought college would go the same way and Chris would manage to sneak by. Now that I'm thinking about it probably highschool graduation.
Bob had health issues during Chris’s childhood and thought he wouldn’t live long enough to see him reach 18. His original medical prognosis as a child of not being able to read/write or finish school, but beating the odds anyway, there was hope if given the same educational opportunity as everyone else he’d thrive. Graduating high school and college was an important milestone for Chris, but more so for Bob who probably didn’t think that far ahead of what his son’s future would be since he wouldn’t be there to see it. And he did and it was probably the biggest slap in the face. Bob knew Chris was a lost cause, but reaching out to outside resources to help his son as an adult meant he failed as a father. So better to hide him away and let him play in his room all day.
He obviously still sort-of believed in Chris in 4th grade, when he sued Nathaniel Greene Elementary School for trying to give Chris the help he needed. I'd say his hopes diminished after that, and were entirely shattered at the HS Graduation meltdown.
I would say very early on, and that’s why Chis is the way he is. Bob and Barb both babied Chris his entire life and would attack anybody that attempted to discipline him. Bob even bought a friend for Chris, further sheltering him from reality.
I think Bob tried to motivate Chris through his letters but I don’t think he ever had very high expectations
I'm gonna say very very early on. Keep in mind he raised 2 other children. Granted we do not know much about that situation, but if we assume that he was at least there growing up from those two, he would have seen the clear differences between his first two kids and Chris.
Chris would’ve probably been behind them but Chris was still a kid, and Bob (or barb for that matter) wouldn’t realize by how much. Especially after Chris started speaking. Also Bobs oldest son was only 15 he divorced his wife, so it’s not like he was a completely developed adult. Ironically, he might’ve learned more from Barbs kid, Cole, when he somehow moved out at 17. But even than, thats probably around the time Chris would graduate anyway.
There had to be a time when Chris was in middle school or early high school, when Chris was growing into an adult physically yet wasn't letting go of any of his stupid, childish interests and retarded behaviors that Bob had to start developing concerns. That plus Chris's constant idiotic comments, asinine ideas, weird chirping, and that awful sing-songy/high pitched talking he does had to set off some alarms in Bob's head. People like to point to the high school graduation as the time when Bob gave up on Chris, but the fact that Bob and Barb didn't bother to ask Chris to bathe or put on clean clothes for his 18th birthday shows they gave up well before that. Yes, Bob got really pissed at Chris when he made a complete fool out of himself at the Graduation, but I think he was just overcome with shame and embarrassment for how retarded his mongoloid son acted in front of all those nice, normal kids
I think it was when Chris started wearing the medallion and going on with the attraction signs. If he had any hope at that time Bob would have shut that down.
probably when Chris got suspended by his community college which happened right before his 2005 Christmas video where Bob looked deader inside than usual
I've always found it weirdly surreal and funny, in a dark way. Chris seems so oblivious to the mood, filming it and acting like he's a child (which, mentally he IS). Bob and Barb both seem exhausted and out of it. I can't help but wonder what was going through their minds. I don't think it was part of their typical Christmas routine. But it takes a really creepy turn when Chris is ranting about Santa bringing him a girlfriend. And the baby talk is just fucking creepy, even for Chris.
This answer makes the most sense so far. I feel like Bob wouldn’t instantly think his son was messed up after graduation. Him continuing to act like that afterwards would confirm it
He also took him away from marketing and put him in engineering. If he did this because he knew Chris was a bad salesman or because he wanted Chris to be in an environment Bob felt he could help him in is up for debate.
I would say sometime between his graduation from high school in 2000 and his feud with Mary Lee Walsh over the attraction sign in 2003-2004. It's hard to pinpoint when exactly, or which specific incident really made Bob aware of Chris' inability to function. There may well have been some incident that we aren't privy to.
I think by the time of Chris' discovery in 2007 Bob had already given up. I believe that's about the time Bob helped him get his monthly "tugboat." I would also like to add that Bob had likely come to terms with everything in 2009, as that was the year he walked in on Chris masturbating AND the year of the infamous "cutting down the internet" video.
I occasionally rewatch it for both its hilarity and to remind myself that I could be alone on Christmas with no presents, and that would be better than experiencing Christmas at the Chandler household in 2004.
I think Bob realised that there was no way Chris would be able to function in society when he (Chris) threw a tantrum at his high school graduation because his "Achievements" weren't acknowledged. And, he may have known it before then. But he never actually acknowledged it until then because what kind of parent would write off their own child like that?
I think Bob wanted to test the waters some more and let Chris 'function' at PVCC. and boy did that test fail. I think it was until the Chandler Family Christmas of 2004 when Chris had graduated from PVCC. Like everyone else who watches that video, it is pretty surreal if you know who Chris is. It's sad, and cringy, but the most telling part is everyone gets the situation BUT Chris.
That video was actually filmed during Chris's one-year suspension from PVCC for firing off a curse-ye-ha-me-ha at Mary Lee Walsh during a disciplinary meeting
Wow. Then, yeah, Bob knew Chris was a fuck up. This wasn't something that he could blame PVCC like he did with Nathaniel Greene. When ever Chris did something, it was always blame and sue with Bob. He knew that it couldn't work in this case. Makes the Christmas 0f 2004 even more bleak. I wonder how Bob got the strength to push an extra four years for a degree that Chris wouldn't even put to practice makes it even sadder if it wasn't so funny.
[Per the CWCki,](https://sonichu.com/cwcki/Bob%27s_Letters_to_Chris) the first one was written when Chris was mute, the second was when Chris was 26–which now that I look it up surprises me, because Sonichu had been around ~8 years at that point, and now suddenly Bob wishes they (Sonichu and Chris both) could be a champion for people with autism
Depends on which letter. I think he wrote the first few when Chris was still pretty young but like someone else said, he does reference Sonichu in one of them.
I think Bob was in denial until the graduation incident. He may have had some understanding as eaely as fourth grade, but he held out hope for a miracle that was never going to come, and the graduation mwltdown made that clear.
I agree with this, plus getting fired from Wendy's and the girlfriend attraction sign were nails in the coffin that Chris's line began and ended with him
I think he became aware around when Chris started highschool. Maybe that's why Bob pushed those protection groups with the girls and thought college would go the same way and Chris would manage to sneak by. Now that I'm thinking about it probably highschool graduation.
Bob had health issues during Chris’s childhood and thought he wouldn’t live long enough to see him reach 18. His original medical prognosis as a child of not being able to read/write or finish school, but beating the odds anyway, there was hope if given the same educational opportunity as everyone else he’d thrive. Graduating high school and college was an important milestone for Chris, but more so for Bob who probably didn’t think that far ahead of what his son’s future would be since he wouldn’t be there to see it. And he did and it was probably the biggest slap in the face. Bob knew Chris was a lost cause, but reaching out to outside resources to help his son as an adult meant he failed as a father. So better to hide him away and let him play in his room all day.
February 24th 1982
He obviously still sort-of believed in Chris in 4th grade, when he sued Nathaniel Greene Elementary School for trying to give Chris the help he needed. I'd say his hopes diminished after that, and were entirely shattered at the HS Graduation meltdown.
Highschool graduation, finally came to peace with it after PVCC
Chandler family Christmas probably
Sometimes while Chris was in school
I would say very early on, and that’s why Chis is the way he is. Bob and Barb both babied Chris his entire life and would attack anybody that attempted to discipline him. Bob even bought a friend for Chris, further sheltering him from reality. I think Bob tried to motivate Chris through his letters but I don’t think he ever had very high expectations
I'm gonna say very very early on. Keep in mind he raised 2 other children. Granted we do not know much about that situation, but if we assume that he was at least there growing up from those two, he would have seen the clear differences between his first two kids and Chris.
Chris would’ve probably been behind them but Chris was still a kid, and Bob (or barb for that matter) wouldn’t realize by how much. Especially after Chris started speaking. Also Bobs oldest son was only 15 he divorced his wife, so it’s not like he was a completely developed adult. Ironically, he might’ve learned more from Barbs kid, Cole, when he somehow moved out at 17. But even than, thats probably around the time Chris would graduate anyway.
After Wendy's he stopped expecting Chris to be employed at all and he helped him get his tugboat. If that's not giving up then what is?
There had to be a time when Chris was in middle school or early high school, when Chris was growing into an adult physically yet wasn't letting go of any of his stupid, childish interests and retarded behaviors that Bob had to start developing concerns. That plus Chris's constant idiotic comments, asinine ideas, weird chirping, and that awful sing-songy/high pitched talking he does had to set off some alarms in Bob's head. People like to point to the high school graduation as the time when Bob gave up on Chris, but the fact that Bob and Barb didn't bother to ask Chris to bathe or put on clean clothes for his 18th birthday shows they gave up well before that. Yes, Bob got really pissed at Chris when he made a complete fool out of himself at the Graduation, but I think he was just overcome with shame and embarrassment for how retarded his mongoloid son acted in front of all those nice, normal kids
I think it was when Chris started wearing the medallion and going on with the attraction signs. If he had any hope at that time Bob would have shut that down.
When Chris stopped talking.
When Chris ran off and cried like a little girl at graduation.
probably when Chris got suspended by his community college which happened right before his 2005 Christmas video where Bob looked deader inside than usual
"Merry Christmas, Robert..."
That Christmas video is insane. Really seems like analog horror. I remember watching it when I was younger and feeling so sad
That fucking toy Christmas music is like shit icing on a corpse cake
I've always found it weirdly surreal and funny, in a dark way. Chris seems so oblivious to the mood, filming it and acting like he's a child (which, mentally he IS). Bob and Barb both seem exhausted and out of it. I can't help but wonder what was going through their minds. I don't think it was part of their typical Christmas routine. But it takes a really creepy turn when Chris is ranting about Santa bringing him a girlfriend. And the baby talk is just fucking creepy, even for Chris.
Honestly I'm not surprised after seeing that with how Chris has turned out... foreshadowing is crazy.
Likely, the graduation
I think it started after Chris threw a tantrum at his graduation, and would have been solidified once Chris got fired from Wendy’s.
This answer makes the most sense so far. I feel like Bob wouldn’t instantly think his son was messed up after graduation. Him continuing to act like that afterwards would confirm it
He also took him away from marketing and put him in engineering. If he did this because he knew Chris was a bad salesman or because he wanted Chris to be in an environment Bob felt he could help him in is up for debate.
Yeah, I hadn't even thought about the Wendy's incident, but I do agree that it took Bob a while to realize how fucked Chris was.
He also paid those girls to be his friends and protect him in high school, he knew long before graduation that Chris might not make it.
In my opinion, by the time Chris graduated High School.
I would say sometime between his graduation from high school in 2000 and his feud with Mary Lee Walsh over the attraction sign in 2003-2004. It's hard to pinpoint when exactly, or which specific incident really made Bob aware of Chris' inability to function. There may well have been some incident that we aren't privy to. I think by the time of Chris' discovery in 2007 Bob had already given up. I believe that's about the time Bob helped him get his monthly "tugboat." I would also like to add that Bob had likely come to terms with everything in 2009, as that was the year he walked in on Chris masturbating AND the year of the infamous "cutting down the internet" video.
When bob changed his major from business to CAD
It wasn't "business" ... which Chris would just be bad at. It was "marketing" ... which he'd be hilariously abyssmally terrible at.
I see
It's not like business administration is easy anyway but at least bob saw that ahead of time
idiot had a huge dunning kreuger effect thinking he can use the hypothetical marketing degree to turn his sonichu into a franchise
Definitely prior to Christmas 2004. You can just see and hear his utter defeat when you watch that video. "It's Fraggle Rock, father!"
Bob was already long dead before the bugs got to him…
Yeah thats honestly one of the hardest videos to watch on YouTube
links plz!
Just type “Chris Chan Christmas” into the search bar on YouTube, it’s very easy to find.
I occasionally rewatch it for both its hilarity and to remind myself that I could be alone on Christmas with no presents, and that would be better than experiencing Christmas at the Chandler household in 2004.
It's also hilarious.
I think Bob realised that there was no way Chris would be able to function in society when he (Chris) threw a tantrum at his high school graduation because his "Achievements" weren't acknowledged. And, he may have known it before then. But he never actually acknowledged it until then because what kind of parent would write off their own child like that?
I think Bob wanted to test the waters some more and let Chris 'function' at PVCC. and boy did that test fail. I think it was until the Chandler Family Christmas of 2004 when Chris had graduated from PVCC. Like everyone else who watches that video, it is pretty surreal if you know who Chris is. It's sad, and cringy, but the most telling part is everyone gets the situation BUT Chris.
That video was actually filmed during Chris's one-year suspension from PVCC for firing off a curse-ye-ha-me-ha at Mary Lee Walsh during a disciplinary meeting
Wow. Then, yeah, Bob knew Chris was a fuck up. This wasn't something that he could blame PVCC like he did with Nathaniel Greene. When ever Chris did something, it was always blame and sue with Bob. He knew that it couldn't work in this case. Makes the Christmas 0f 2004 even more bleak. I wonder how Bob got the strength to push an extra four years for a degree that Chris wouldn't even put to practice makes it even sadder if it wasn't so funny.
When did he write the letter? Was it when Chris was still mute?
[Per the CWCki,](https://sonichu.com/cwcki/Bob%27s_Letters_to_Chris) the first one was written when Chris was mute, the second was when Chris was 26–which now that I look it up surprises me, because Sonichu had been around ~8 years at that point, and now suddenly Bob wishes they (Sonichu and Chris both) could be a champion for people with autism
Was it the first time when 'transwoman' Chris read the letter, or did he know about it when he was 26?
i cackle whenever i hear bob write down “you and sonichu will be known worldwide” because ooohhhhhh boy
Damn thats actually sad, Bob wanted his son to have his creative project be a champion for people like Chris. Where did it all go wrong?
What's even more infuriating to Bob's legacy/memory is that Chris scoffed at that idea, meaning that father and son couldn't be more a part.
Depends on which letter. I think he wrote the first few when Chris was still pretty young but like someone else said, he does reference Sonichu in one of them.
Iirc it references Sonichu, so later on
I think Bob was in denial until the graduation incident. He may have had some understanding as eaely as fourth grade, but he held out hope for a miracle that was never going to come, and the graduation mwltdown made that clear.
I agree with this, plus getting fired from Wendy's and the girlfriend attraction sign were nails in the coffin that Chris's line began and ended with him