These Larry themed episodes seem to get more and more interesting. I like Larry, I think he's a pretty likable character. And this episode perfectly transforms him into an entertaining antihero. I wasn't sure what to expect with this episode. The title sounded premising, but I wasn't too sure what we'd get out of the plot. I really liked seeing Larry take the role of Krabs at the end of The Checkup, I thought that was a pretty clever plot twist, so seeing Larry take the role as Krusty Krab manager for real, is pretty intriguing.
First off, I need to get something out of my way. This episode is half original/half ripoff in a sort of way. When I use the term "ripoff", I use it very lightly, because I know it's never the writers' intentions to rip off a previously established episode. I generally use this to describe episodes that have the same general theme as an older episode. On one hand, seeing Larry act as temporary manager is pretty original, and interesting. But on the other hand, this episode feels like a mix of Krusty Dogs and Bossy Boots. Goodness, this episode even replaces Krabby Patties with salads! However, the execution of this episode differs from that of Bossy Boots, and instead goes the route of Krusty Dogs, in which Squidward and SpongeBob try to revert the Krusty Krab back to it's former glory. And honestly...I kind of like it. Krusty Dogs, although a good episode, had kind of an awkward vibe to it. The pacing of it was very slow, and most of the episode's humor was executed in a very surreal, and somewhat mean spirited way. This episode, however, has tons of goofy, funny gags. Turning the Krusty Krab into an over-the-top gym was pretty funny to witness. And in this case, it makes sense why the restaurant is turned into the gym, seeing that Larry owns one now. Oh yeah, Larry's Gym is still part of the continuity. His gym is referenced a few times in this episode, so the changes he makes to the Krusty Krab are kind of expected from a super healthy, and fit guy. A lot of the humor in this episode is really funny, especially the extreme, over-the-top flexing from Larry and the buff fish. I like how the episode doesn't really focus that much on how the food at the Krusty Krab is affected, but rather the experience at the Krusty Krab is changed. This is what separates this episode from the likes of Bossy Boots and Krusty Dogs. The premise seems eerily similar to Bossy Boots, and a lot of plot devices (Particularly Squidward and SpongeBob's plans) are very similar to that of Krusty Dogs, but the episode's humor, and characters come off as very original.
This is probably one of the funniest episodes out there, that centers on visual humor. There's a lot of creativity with the visual gags in this episode, that actually makes them quite enjoyable to watch. It doesn't feel lazy (Like the gags in Sportz?), nor does it come off as "Lol Random" humor (Like in The Clam Whisperer).
As I said, I really like Larry's character in this episode. His intentions in this episode perfectly fits his character. Especially, since he runs a Gym, his view of the Krusty Krab when running it is bound to conflict with the standards of the Krusty Krab. Plus, there are plenty of jokes surrounding his character in this episode, that I found pretty funny. From his whimpering pecs, to his extreme flexing, Larry was a pretty enjoyable character in this episode. The rest of the characters in this episode are pretty good, SpongeBob was perfectly in character, Squidward did have some flaws (Primarily when he went crazy at the beginning of the episode), and some unfunny moments, but he was alright, I guess. Krabs was a pretty decent character, and I found Bubble Bass to be pretty funny in this episode. The highlight of this episode by far is seeing Fred finally yelling "My LEG!" (With Mr. Lawrence voicing him!). :myleg: FINALLY! After many attempts, they got it right!
Overall, this is a very solid episode. Full of funny, creative gags, an interesting plot, a solid conclusion, it's a Great Episode. All in all, it gets a 9/10.