“Not Normal” is such an interesting episode. I think it’s so interesting to me because of how it takes a very core aspect of the show, SpongeBob’s oddities and weirdness, and removes that. Obviously this is on purpose because it’s the entire plot of the episode, so I don’t mean this in a bad way at all. In fact, I think it’s cool that the episode did this because it makes it that much more unique. And that’s kind of ironic, because while I don’t think this episode is forgotten by any means, it definitely isn’t talked about with much frequency, though I think that might be because its sister episode gets all the attention, and understandably so. But I’ll cover that episode tomorrow. Right now, we’re focusing on “Not Normal”.
SpongeBob in the first scene of this episode is cute, running around and just enjoying his morning. Also in this first scene, I realize pretty quickly that this episode is lowkey an allegory for the experiences of the neurodiverse. I mean it’s a storyline that can relate to anyone, but especially in SpongeBob’s crushing realization that he’s not “normal” I can see me and my ADHD-having self, so that’s pretty cool of this episode. This is made even more apparent in the “journey into normality” videotape SpongeBob watches (which I have many other soapbox thoughts about but I’ve already gotten on one so I’ll refrain). The tape reminds me a lot of the joke from “Doing Time”, which also makes me think this is a commentary on capitalism but that’s yet another soapbox I won’t be getting on today (that’s like 3 soapboxes so far lmao). Anyway, I love how lowkey creepy the videotape is, with the guy having that constant smile and only a name tag for his personal belongings.
Because this episode takes away SpongeBob’s weirdness (or really just morphs it into a different form, because “normal” Spongebob is quite weird), this episode has a very odd quality to it, like something is off. But unlike an episode like “SpongeHenge”, we know what exactly is “off” here, just from the first scene of SpongeBob acting “normal”. Tom Kenny did a really great job at making SpongeBob sound so off-putting here, removing all enthusiasm from his voice. SpongeBob turning his fry cook job into an office job is pretty funny to me, and its also rife full of commentary, especially once we see him start to print Krabby Patties (and once it backfires). Reminds me a lot of “Selling Out”. The “normal-field” Pineapple House is really neat looking too, and I love how Squidward does a whole slap-take. SpongeBob’s slow design change is pretty cool too, it’s so silly looking.
When Normal-Bob meets Patrick, I just want to say that I totally noticed the music from Krusty Krab Training Video in the background. And in more relevant commentary, I like how this interaction was kind of like a reverse of “Patrick SmartPants”, but not completely, since SpongeBob is acting “normal” not like a genius. And I love how just like Patrick in that episode, SpongeBob starts roasting Squidward over lacking the new quality he now has LMAO. And then I like how SpongeBob struggles to get back to the way he used to be, having to go to Patrick for tutelage (which calls to mind that part I liked from “Stanley S. SquarePants”). The montage of SpongeBob trying to act weird again was entertaining as well, and I like how it actually didn’t end up working in the end.
The ending of this episode is great, with the “normal” Squidward scaring SpongeBob back to his old self, I thought that was a pretty great brick joke. And “normal” Squidward does look quite…odd. I wonder how they ended up bringing him back. I feel like that's something I do a lot, wonder about what happens outside of the "camera", especially because this show is episodic.
“Not Normal” was a fun little episode with some surprisingly serious social commentary, which I appreciated. The episode is not particularly funny, but it is very fun to watch and I enjoy it all the way through, and the plot is pretty interesting. I feel like it's underrated, or at least it lacks acknowledgement, which is sad to see.
Episode Tier: Amazing
Episode Score: 9.1/10
