I remember, back in the day, “The Play’s The Thing” was called one of the most boring SpongeBob SquarePants episodes of all time. After watching such snoozefests like “The Clash of Triton”, “Porous Pockets”, “Rise and Shine”, and the worst of them all thus far, “Hocus Pocus”, I want to see if this holds up.
This episode begins…interestingly. I mean, I was delighted to see SpongeBob act like a little weirdo, but this whole scene felt very slow. And yes, I know that this scene is one of those ones featured in those “subliminal messaging” or “adult jokes in SpongeBob” videos, which I think is a load of barnacles, to borrow some show terminology. He’s blowing up balloons guys, get your minds outta the gutter. I like how the mailman ended up running out in terror though, that was hilarious.
I think one thing I like about this episode is that it further establishes Squidward as someone with hobbies and creative aspirations. Like, we already knew this of course, but I like episodes like this that show the reality of it instead of just talking about it. Like when we get to see him painting, or playing clarinet, or in this case directing and starring in a play. It’s just fun, and gives his character more depth. When Squidward gets the letter, I love how we continue this running joke of Mr. Krabs being perplexed by Squidward’s happiness. And SpongeBob having a happy break is so very him. The part where Squidward reads the letter (after preemptively quitting, showing how arrogant he is lol) is pretty entertaining, I love how he just circles back to reclaim his job. Mr. Krabs isn’t even fazed at this point, he fires and rehires his employees multiple times a week at this rate. SpongeBob’s constant riding of the Squidward hype train reminds me a lot of “Can You Spare A Dime?”, which is great for me.
This episode also is very reminiscent of “Culture Shock”. And yes, reminiscent. No “rip-off” or anything like that, y’all know I don’t use that word unless absolutely necessary (I still haven’t seen “Yellow Pavement”, but I have seen some clips of it…the word might be necessary there). I also love how SpongeBob clearly is learning from Mr. Krabs as he comes up with that marketing genius. Kinda feels like a continuation from “Kracked Krabs” in that way. And the name SpongeBob comes up with, Singy-Eaty Time, is hilarious. I’d go to that over dinner theatre any day.
The part with the anchovies was a nice reference to “Help Wanted”, but the joke with Mr. Krabs not paying then landed weirdly because they all reacted way too long after he said that. It almost felt like they were just wasting time here, it was weird. And so the joke wasn’t as funny as it could’ve been because the timing was off. The comedy regains its footing again once the play gets started. The part where Harold is eating Nat’s arm, and Nat just gives him seasoning is pretty funny.
And then we get to the actual play. And it’s, it’s fine! Squidward basically just monologues throughout the scene while having continuous interruptions from the customers and Mr. Krabs. And because the play is about Squidward working at the Krusty Krab, it just feels like Squidward dramatizing the work he’s already doing, so it works well. And there’s some pretty funny moments in here, like the way Squidward gets in that customer’s face about his soul, or when he calls Mr. Krabs a skinflint and then has to backtrack a little bit. Unfortunately, SpongeBob’s lack of acting chops kind of brings down the episode, because it’s just awkward and not in a fun way. But it doesn’t last too long, because we’re back to the dramatic monologuing by Squidward together with SpongeBob’s randomness. But then of course SpongeBob ends up being the better actor once he realizes he burnt the Krabby Patties lol.
Things take a turn for Squidward as his arrogance bites him in the butt…or hits him in the face. And I am again reminded of “Culture Shock”, as Mr. Krabs takes advantage of the customers’ anger towards Squidward. At least SpongeBob tries to save Squidward, using one of my favorite kinds of moments, where SpongeBob says something profound, and the town ends up being like “screw that!”. Though this time there’s a little bit of a twist, as Patrick shows up out of nowhere to start the food fight. Poor SpongeBob gets involved too, he didn’t deserve that patty to the face lol. I also love how Plankton somehow ends up being thrown, like that was a fun little easter egg. The episode ends quite well too, with SpongeBob and Squidward laughing dementedly when Mr. Krabs says there’s gonna be more plays in the future.
Yeah, no, “The Play’s The Thing” is absolutely not boring. And it’s for sure a hidden gem of this season. I really cannot see where the boring came from, because I had a pretty good time here! The only real issue I had with the episode was that weirdly-landing joke with the anchovies, but everything else was pretty good here. A good fit for my “Amazing” tier, that’s for sure.
Episode Tier: Amazing
Episode Score: 9/10