Ah, “Squiditis”. This episode I literally have nothing to say about, or rather I had nothing to say about it prior to rewatching it, and that’s because I hardly remembered the thing. As always, this could either be a bad omen, or it could be meaningless. Let’s find out which it is, shall we?
Obviously, this is a Squidward-focused episode, and I find him to be pretty good here. He’s channeling the energy of everyone who’s ever worked a summer job, I feel like, especially with that beautiful day talk at the beginning. Maybe I’m thinking of summer job because of my own summer job. Not that I don’t work during the other seasons lol, but there’s something special about missing out on the beauty of summer. Anyway, he also does the thing that I’m sure many service workers and beyond have also fantasized about—faking sick. I’ve never faked sick, but I have called off work with no real reason 1 time. I also really like the small little bit we see of Squidward and Mr. Krabs’ relationship in this episode. I get that feeling I used to get all the time that they’ve known each other longer than Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob have known each other. It’s at times like these that I realize all my favorite dynamics (Mr. Krabs and Squidward friendship, Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob quasi-father-son + mentor-mentee relationship) go together nicely lol.
The first half of this episode is really good for me. Like there’s lots of funny moments between all the Mr. Krabs scenes (he’s really great in this episode), SpongeBob’s dramatics over Squidward’s fake sickness (like the gas mask, and later when he’s talking to Mr. Krabs), and Squidward’s commentary. I also liked how Squidward’s plan failed at first, because that scene between him and Mr. Krabs was good, and also a good commentary on. That scene was pretty good, and it’s even a commentary on corporate culture LMAO. Especially during this pandemic we’ve got going on (and yes, it’s still a thing even if everyone pretends it’s over, don’t start with me), it’s quite relevant.
I think where the episode begins to slow down and fall apart on me is after Squidward goes home. Watching SpongeBob become a hypochondriac is not really that fun to watch, to be quite honest. Neither is him trying to figure out the home remedies for sickness. Eventually SpongeBob gets sent home too, which ruins Squidward’s day of relaxation. Universal justice! Unfortunately, this isn’t all that funny either. Well, SpongeBob showing up in Squidward’s house was pretty funny. Poor Mr. Krabs is unable to run the ship, which is why he should hire more employees LMAO. And when SpongeBob and Squidward go back to the Krusty Krab, we see the results of said running the ship alone. But hey, looks like SpongeBob found a cure in romantic comedies, right?
“Squiditis” was another alright episode. The first half was really, really good. But then the second half kind of fell off because it was a lot more boring than the first. And that’s a shame, because this episode could’ve easily been an Amazing-tier episode if it weren’t for that. As it is, I think a very high Good is the best that I can do.
Episode Tier: Good
Episode Score: 7.9/10
