Well, this is gonna be a quick one, shortest review since season 1 type beat because 1) this episode is 4 minutes long and 2) I'm tired and don't have the energy to really bulk this one up so...yeah. Today we've got "SpongeBob Vs. The Patty Gadget", which if I remember correctly is typically considered to be the best of the season 5 4-minute shorts, and I can definitely see why.
I really liked the structure of this episode, with the rhyming narration. It makes the episode stand out immediately. And there’s plenty of funny moments within the narration, such as the “bad face acne” comment. The narration is also just so expressive and well done (every say thank you Tom Kenny), and it really makes the episode even more entertaining and interesting to watch, as it helps build the tension and raise the stakes of the action. I also liked that the dialogue was fit into the rhymes as well. Just very well-crafted. The dialogue in this episode also just flows excellently because of the rhyming, which makes it very satisfying to listen to.
Thinking about it, this episode reminds me a lot of “Pickles” because of the duel between SpongeBob and the machine. This episode also has some fun visuals as well. Like, the face SpongeBob makes in the window is hilarious, and also a reaction meme lol. But anyway, I love that we get a “patty war” in this episode, the duel between SpongeBob and the Patty Gadget is super cool and fun to watch. I also like that other characters we know are in this episode, like Sandy and Patrick. SpongeBob’s determination in the face of automation (oh god now I’m rhyming, that wasn’t on purpose I swear) is also really fun to watch, and also still quite relevant (told y’all this show has commentary on labor relations!)
And then I love the fake-out we get of SpongeBob possibly dying, where it turns out to just be the Patty Gadget’s grave. SpongeBob dancing on the grave is legitimately hilarious, like that makes me think of
#ripbozo lmao.
Told y'all this would be a short review! Can you believe this used to be my typical review length lol. Anyway, I really like this episode a lot. It's fun little short that's really enjoyable to watch and rewatch again and again. The rhyming is a really cool gimmick, and I love love love the duel in this episode, as well as the ending. Clearly deserves to be in my "Amazing" tier.
Episode Tier: Amazing
Episode Score: 9.1/10