“Squidward in Clarinetland” is an episode I’ve been pretty excited to review, and I’m sure for anyone who’s been following these reviews, it’s obvious why. It’s weird! It’s a very weird episode. And I love weird. I mean, I loved “SpongeHenge”, “Gone” (except the ending ofc), “Squid’s Visit”…even “Pineapple Fever” had some elements of weird. So obviously, I was going to love the weirdness in this episode, that’s basically a given.
I already love that this episode starts with the track
Honolulu March, because it gives those “Help Wanted” vibes. Additionally, this episode begins with Squidward being uncharacteristically happy and unfazed, which is very similar to “Cephalopod Lodge”, so now I’m interested as to why he’s so happy. As Squidward walks into the Krusty Krab and his uncharacteristic behavior continues, we get a short break from that in the form of Mr. Krabs scratching his claws on a chalkboard we’ve never seen in this restaurant. Clearly, the sound designers have learned from season 6 because this sound isn’t really annoying, even as it’s excruciating in-universe. I love how this episode kind of calls to mind “Born Again Krabs” as Squidward maintains his chipper mood even in the face of all these annoying things happening to him, but eventually he completely loses it when a baby drools on his clarinet. I love that this episode continues a running gag of the whole show with Mr. Krabs being disgusted by actual workplace policies. In this way, this episode is almost like a Krusty Krab business practices plot, except obviously it’s not that in any way.
When Mr. Krabs brings out the locker and we get that morbid line about him having “forgotten about that prank” as there’s a literal skeleton in the locker, I’m taking this to believe two things: 1) Mr. Krabs has killed a man through negligence (forgot the guy was locked in the locker so he starved to death LMAO) and 2) this moment is kind of foreshadowing given what happens to Squidward later. I don’t think it’s meant to be foreshadowing, but I’m taking it that way. I also love all the throwaway lines in this episode showing how Mr. Krabs so…suspiciously or horribly runs his business lol. First he’s on the phone getting rude with his mother, and then SpongeBob says that they share hair nets (ew). It’s pretty funny. Honestly, Mr. Krabs is hilarious in this episode, such as that scene a little later in the episode when someone drops money on the floor and he goes apesh**.
From here, the episode starts getting
weird, and I love it. And I like that it starts off pretty slow. It starts with SpongeBob just putting velvet lining inside the locker, which is odd but not out of character for him. And then he walks in with a bunch of construction equipment, which makes us question wtf he’s about to do. And then we get the reveal that SpongeBob made an entire huge index system inside the locker, which already looks unnerving with its dark hallways and endless-looking filing cabinets. SpongeBob clearly went to the
Doctor Who school of dimensional engineering.
Of course, this isn’t the end of it, as Squidward returns to work only to hear increasingly concerning construction sounds. And now the inside of the locker is even larger than before, sending Squidward on a wild goose chase that feels like my anxiety dreams. The music cues in this scene really sell the weird feeling, and then Squidward starts chasing SpongeBob who’s only laughing. Honestly, this episode almost feels like a very, very kid-friendly, watered-down version of a creepypasta. All we need is a reveal that this place that Squidward is in is purgatory and then we’d be set.
I love how once Squidward finds Clarinetland (or the Horned Forest), his hat ends up disappearing. I’m taking this to mean that this is foreshadowing that he’s simply dreaming/having a psychotic break. Also, the background art for Clarinetland is gorgeous. And this part of the episode is where things get truly weird, as there’s just a giant bald eagle head that ends up saying that Squidward isn’t “worthy” to play his clarinet, which throws Squidward into a bunch of weird and random chaos. Like the scene with the mirrors, literally what was going on there? We also get a surprise Patrick appearance with the pinball scene. And then when a vacuum appears out of nowhere, I’m choosing to believe that this is a reference to “House Fancy”.
We then get the reveal that Squidward must have been dreaming or something, as the locker opens with just a velvet-lined inside, and Squidward sitting inside of it, before he melts onto the floor. I love how we get literally no explanation for what happened to Squidward LMAO. Like when did the dream begin? I’m assuming after SpongeBob lined the locker? Squidward shoves SpongeBob in the locker, which is kinda not deserved given that Squidward was dreaming(?) everything, but it’s funny so that’s fine lol. And then the ending of the episode is great, with SpongeBob just randomly being in the case so he could bring Squidward his clarinet, and Squidward just running out of the audition in horror. Someone on the wiki was
talking about how the whole dream Squidward had symbolized his anxiety over the audition, and I think I'll be adopting that interpretation, because that means this episode had some real tight writing, and we love to see that. Also, I think it makes sense.
“Squidward in Clarinetland” is a fun, yet very unexplained episode. And that’s fine with me, I don’t need an answer for every single thing that happens in this show. I think Squidward was just dreaming though, obviously. Anyway, this episode is also really funny, and really shines with some of its throwaway lines. A great addition to my “Amazing” tier, that’s for sure.
Episode Tier: Amazing
Episode Score: 9.2/10