When will Squilliam return from war? This isn’t the last time we see him (that would be in “Back to the Past”. He appears in a gag in Code Yellow but that doesn’t really count), but it might as well be. I miss Squilliam. We haven’t even seen him in widescreen LMAO. Anyway, today I’m here with “Keep Bikini Bottom Beautiful”, an episode that I think seems to be taken more negatively? I don’t see much talk surrounding it so I don’t really know, but without reading any other comments about it, that’s my gut feeling.
We begin with Squidward just completely vibing…at least until he steps on some chewing gum, which is so nasty. It’s like “The Gift of Gum” part 2 for Squidward here, as he gets himself covered with the stuff, which involves some pretty fun visuals so I enjoy myself. And then Squidward proves himself to be a real hypocrite, talking about litterers before littering himself. And as we all know, in this town, if you litter, you’re gonna get the full hammer of the law brought down on you. And that’s what happens to Squidward here.
And then…Squilliam! I love him and Squidward’s rivalry, it’s always hilarious. And I love how this episode really leans into the competition between them. The way Squidward fully just trips a child to steal their wagon is so bad yet so funny. And then we get a surprise SpongeBob appearance as he offers to help Squidward out. I love how SpongeBob is just randomly studying the complete life cycle of a Krabby Patty, like that’s the kind of obsessive behavior I like to see! And then I love that Squidward ends up getting his universal justice when the mother of the kid whose wagon he stole beats him up. As she should. The way the cop keeps showing up is pretty funny too.
Squidward eventually lets SpongeBob help him out, and I love how Squidward’s like “I hate you a little less now”. And I love that SpongeBob takes it for such a glowing compliment, because it kind of is. I also really like how the episode reveals how SpongeBob “helped” Squidward. It leaves us in suspense by not answering the question immediately, and taking it’s time in showing Squidward’s house. But once the camera pans over as Squidward walks and we see his “house”…we know. And Squidward’s obliviousness is hilarious. Honestly this was all rather impressive of SpongeBob, to make a full replica of Squidward’s house using trash. Using those interior design skills from “Squid’s Visit”, it seems.
Once Squidward realizes what’s happened, his reaction is hilarious. The cop’s continued appearance is also just so funny, such a good running gag. Squidward’s complete inability to win with this guy is absolutely hysterical. At first I thought it would get annoying, but it never did. SpongeBob making a statue of Squidward out of garbage is both funny and wholesome. And then Squilliam comes back, and honestly I’m just shocked he said “SpongeBob” lol. But Squilliam’s reappearance also marks the end of the episode, where Squilliam finally gets his universal justice. Everyone ends up getting tickets, and I love it.
“Keep Bikini Bottom Beautiful” was just a very enjoyable episode for me, that’s all there is too it. The running gag with the cop was absolutely hysterical, and all the other humor in the episode is pretty good too. I also really loved seeing Squilliam again. Nothing to complain about here!
Episode Tier: Amazing
Episode Score: 9.3/10