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It's OK @MattTheSpongeFanatic. All is forgiven.
Re-Evaluating my opinions on SpongeBob Season 1-8
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I
Irónically, the Gary's voice actor is Tom Kenny, the same voice actor than Spongebob
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
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The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On the Run
Originally released: August 14 2020 (Canada), March 4 2021 (United States)
Story by Tim Hill,
Screenplay by Tim Hill, Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger
Sorry it’s been so many years since I last turned up here. Running a YouTube channel has been super fun, but it’s kept me in one place as far as my internet life goes. Every time I’ve finished a series review of something, I feel an urge to get the next one out within a month. It’s not the algorithm controlling me, I don’t care if I fall behind, it’s my own workaholism when it comes to reviewing. And if you saw my last post here, you’d probably understand why I’ve had little desire to review SpongeBob for a couple years now.
It’s hard to get through the mourning period.
It’s common knowledge that Stephen Hillenburg worked on Sponge On the Run before he died in 2018, and the whole Camp Coral plot had been announced before then too. But even with that glimmer of hope that he was fine with this movie and at least one of the spin-offs (keeping in mind most movies, including this one, get dozens of rewrites before the final product is released), I didn’t want to review all this stuff because I didn’t want to beat down on the current staff of these shows and movies. They’ve done nothing wrong in continuing to try to make SpongeBob as entertaining as they can, and it’s honestly rude to blame them for the current state of the franchise. I blame Nickelodeon the Company for this wonky attempt at exponential growth.
This is to say that it seems like all discussion surrounding Sponge On the Run is always going to have an air of cautiousness to it. While the first movie was a triumphant end to the classic era, and the second movie was a similarly triumphant revitalization of the show, this third one kicks off an era in which Nick has started to treat SpongeBob like this extended universe, when it could never hope to be that kind of franchise. It’s a funny yellow sponge man who makes burgers, not The Avengers.
But with my personal distaste for this new structural change in SpongeBob content, I don’t want to pepper my future reviews with “Stephen wouldn’t have wanted this” for a lot of reasons. One big reason being I don’t want to claim to know what he would’ve wanted, having never met him. A second being that there are people still working on the SpongeBob franchise who were close friends with him, and are doing their best to keep breathing life into his creations with the projects they’re given.
A third being that frame of mind would result in creative stagnation for SpongeBob. Want to know why Disney was in such a rough patch in the 70s and 80s? All the artists and producers kept asking themselves “What would Walt do?”, and since nobody knew exactly, nobody saw eye-to-eye on where the studio should go. I don’t want SpongeBob to continue if it means they’re going to keep trying and failing to recreate the first season down to the last grain of sand. Hillenburg’s been dead for 6 years, it’s long been time we accepted that. If the show has to continue forever, I want them to do something different. We’re going to get some failed experiments, but hopefully some successful ones that can push the series forward.
I want to permanently drop this topic as soon as this post goes live.
It seems hard to be optimistic at the moment, because the spin-offs haven’t been that well-received, this whole extended universe gimmick has been confusing, and the third and fourth movies have been off-putting in their own ways. Will we get a 2nd SpongeBob renaissance? Probably not at the moment, but if Nick never wants to drop the series, then it may happen some day in the far future. I want to hold on to that hope. People keep asking me to the new SpongeBob stuff, and I’d hate to see it, as well as the situation, keep getting worse.
But to start this look at Sponge On the Run on a positive note, I think Tim Hill was a good choice to write and direct the film. He had known Stephen Hillenburg since Rocko’s Modern Life, and co-wrote Help Wanted. Whether or not you like this movie, it would be very unfair, and downright misinformed, to assume the man didn’t care about SpongeBob. If you’ve already seen the rating I give the movie at the bottom of this post, you’d be right to think I’m not personally impressed by it anymore. But there are parts that you have to blame the company for, not the workers.
Now I gotta finally review this thing. I’m ready.
Act 1: On the Road Again
Another movie, another opening narrator. This one being a little more generic, but the visuals are already doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Seriously, this movie is still gorgeous. The first 15 minutes could be any SpongeBob story plotline. Aside from an opening montage driving home SpongeBob’s love for Gary, the Krusty Krab stuff feels like an episode script jammed into the start of the movie to get people familiar with the world, as if anyone left on this planet needs a refresher on what SpongeBob is. You could make a similar complaint about the wartime opening in Sponge Out of Water, but at least that segues into an inciting incident, the formula vanishing. Everything here about SpongeBob loving his job and Plankton trying to steal the formula yet again only sets up one thing- a comic relief robot played by a celebrity.
Otto, played by Awkwafina, is Sandy’s latest creation, who then becomes Plankton’s latest failed plan in a long line of failed plans. Karen and a wall of framed photos helpfully point that out. While it has funny things to say, it doesn’t feel like it has much chemistry with any of the other characters, nor does it seem like it was ever designed to. There’s also no reason they couldn’t have gotten one of the SpongeBob regulars to voice it. I know so little about Awkwafina that I have nothing against her, but it seems like overflow for a movie that’s soon going to have more notable and gratuitous guest stars.
So after all the Krusty Krab stuff, the plot really starts with King Poseidon getting his squire to kidnap Gary. Why does he want Gary? Because snail slime makes for an effective facial cream. Why doesn’t he use any other snail? Because he’s already used them all up. How does that make sense when we’ve been seeing other snails in the show since Dumped? I don’t think they had time to think about that. It was either: Poseidon’s been stealing snails slowly for thousands of years, or: Poseidon used up the ocean’s whole supply in a much quicker stretch of time. So they sort of went with the former, implied the latter for the rest of the movie, and built the rest of the plot on top of a house of cards. But maybe it’s got an ace down there.
So SpongeBob goes home to find Gary missing, mopes about it for a little bit while reminiscing about meeting Gary at Camp Coral, and I guess it’s finally time. The first time I ever review this setting in any capacity. No matter the context or intentions for its creation, I don’t like how it retcons a lot of character meetings just for the sake of creating a new backstory. To me, SpongeBob will have always adopted Gary from an animal shelter (Plankton’s Pet), been properly introduced to Mr Krabs and Plankton as an adult (Help Wanted, Plankton!) and met Sandy when she was fighting that giant clam (Tea at the Treedome). It may be silly to hold this prior information in such high regard, but I can’t help it.
The scenes of it shown in this movie are cute in a vacuum, but they’re always going to be bothersome to me, as someone who wonders why they waited this long to do an elaborate backstory for any reason other than marketing. That and the later flashbacks break up the pace of the movie. That and the spin-off show doesn’t even keep the name of the camp or the voice actors used here. That and this is seemingly the start of them taking continuity more seriously when it had been pretty lax for the prior 21 years. My feelings on Camp Coral as a concept and a show are overall pretty negative, but I don’t want to dwell on them right here right now.
Patrick comes over to see why SpongeBob’s so upset, and they’re both drawn to an adventure to “The Lost City of Atlantic City” to save Gary. Luckily, Plankton’s booked them a ride with Otto. Unluckily, this is part of a plan of his to kick SpongeBob out of Bikini Bottom. So this plot construction of SpongeBob and Patrick going on a road trip, trying to save Gary, in “Atlantis”, and SpongeBob being gone from Bikini Bottom and things falling to pieces, takes heavy inspiration from 2 movies and 2 specials. Someone call Guinness. A casual viewer might not be so distracted by this, I understand, but as a SpongeBob super nerd whose reviewed all this stuff years back, it’s gonna feel like a bunch of carbon copies to me. And when you have a chance of feeling like an inferior take on What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?, an eyebrow’s going up.
After an entertaining back-and-forth where SpongeBob and Patrick sit around wondering what the adventure’s gonna be like, Otto launches them out of the boat, we get the aforementioned scene of the Krusty Krab falling to pieces without SpongeBob. This may be umpteenth time Mr Krabs and Squidward have failed to satiate hungry customers, but there’s still some entertainment in it. At least it’s more SpongeBob-esque than the next few minutes of the movie, where they dive straight into a nonsensical dream sequence.
Act 2: In Atlantis Again
In a dream where SpongeBob and Patrick have been driven to a small Western town on the surface world (adding Pest of the West to the list of inspirations), they meet a talking tumbleweed called Sage. The novelty of it being Keanu Reeves’ head in a bush doesn’t wear thin, but the dream he comes from does. SpongeBob and Patrick go on this mini adventure to escape zombie pirates, get stuck in a song number featuring Snoop Dogg, and destroy their leader, El Diablo, by letting sunlight into his office. This scene gets longer and less funny every time I rewatch this movie.
To unfavourably compare this to Sponge Out of Water again, that movie took some strange detours, specifically into SpongeBob’s mind and to that space prism with Bubbles the Dolphin. But they don’t feel like they could easily be cut, since they make an impact on the story. The first reinforces on SpongeBob and Plankton’s relationship, reminding us that they can’t always be on good terms, and the second introduces Bubbles, who becomes important later. The only things this zombie pirate dream introduces are things that don’t feel essential to the scene. Keanu Reeves as a tumbleweed sage is already enough of a non sequitur to have come up naturally underwater, and the Challenge Coin they get is a cheap macguffin that doesn’t lead to anything.
If you own enough animated movies on DVD or Blu Ray, you’ve probably seen your fair share of deleted scenes, most never leaving the storyboard pitch. And if you hear the movie’s directors say anything about them, they’ll usually say they cut them for any number of reasons. Maybe they broke the flow of the story. Maybe they undercut a later scene. Maybe a more creative scene was pitched later and they went with that one. This whole pirate zombie dream feels like it was made to be a DVD extra in the deleted scenes menu, but someone put it back in the movie as a prank. That’s definitely not what happened, but I can’t see any reason this whole side story was kept the way it was.
For a minute, the movie cuts away to Mr Krabs giving Plankton the formula. It seems like a pretty easy victory for Plankton, seeing how many attempts he’s made on it, but the performances are just about able to sell it. Not just Clancy Brown’s and Mr Lawrence’s, but the animation too. It’s a scene where I can go, yeah, they’ve got a history and know each other well, and I can say the same for the writers. After all the retreads and sidetrack into weirdville, I think this scene’s comparatively decent.
I’m also quite fond of SpongeBob and Patrick’s trip into Atlantic City. There’s a Pleasure Island tinge to it, where they’re letting loose and getting roped into the joy and corruption of a Las Vegas-esque trap. The animation is clean and vibrant, all the scenes are useful in building the above point, and I don’t even mind the music being a licensed track here. Of course they’d be living la vida loca. Weird fun fact, but it topped the Billboard charts on May 8th 1999, making it the first single to top it after SpongeBob premiered. Did the filmmakers know? I doubt, but I hope they’re informed some day.
But this fun night out doesn’t mean much, as SpongeBob and Patrick wake up with the Sage pressing them to save Gary. They sneak onto the big theatre stage Poseidon is being entertained by (it’s not the Poseidome, but what is?), and after distracting him with a pattycake routine, they get arrested for trying to snatch Gary back. It’s a little embarrassing that it’s taken them this long to move the plot forward. I like the night out SpongeBob and Patrick had visually, but it didn’t have an effect on this scene in any way. Sure, they gamble away the Challenge Coin, but that never comes back.
Before Act 2 ends, Mr Krabs, Squidward and Sandy learn about Plankton’s plan, and they all team up to save SpongeBob and Patrick in Atlantic City. Their mode of transportation: The Pattymobile. If they going to have to repeat something from an earlier movie like this, at the very least, it’s good that they tried to go a little extra. Its transformation into a sleeker machine offers it some distinction, but with that, we’re done with the 2nd act, with these characters’ journey to Atlantic City remaining a mystery as to how they get there.
Act 3: SpongeBob turns into Baby Jesus
As SpongeBob and Patrick are about to be executed, Sandy and pals stop it to explain to Poseidon why SpongeBob should remain alive. They do this by explaining how they each first met him at Camp Coral, and everything about the next couple minutes of the movie are so strange.
First, how they stitch 4 flashbacks together in the middle of an execution scene. It breaks the pace of the movie, all to preview a spin-off which, as I said earlier, went through more revisions before premiering. They take time out of this SpongeBob production to foreshadow an unfinished version of an upcoming SpongeBob production. It wouldn’t be so bad if they were spaced out more throughout the movie. If they absolutely had to include these flashbacks, the order I’d play them would be
-SpongeBob meeting Gary, still the first, and still after Gary goes missing
-Meeting Sandy, as she expresses how she misses SpongeBob at the Krusty Krab
-Meeting Mr Krabs, right after Sandy’s reminiscing
-Meeting Patrick, while the two are in jail, Patrick thinking to himself what SpongeBob means to him
-Giving Squidward the talent show award, the big final one told by Squidward, to show that SpongeBob’s even brightened up his life
On the bright side, having most of them in one scene serves as a stronger testimony in-universe, but there was a better way to weave Camp Coral into the story handed to them on a silver platter.
What’s also strange about the latter 4 flashbacks is that they almost depict SpongeBob as this Christ figure, immediately improving the others’ lives and showing them the way as if they’re his apostles. It’s a ridiculous way of looking at it, but I want to be clear that I don’t like this interpretation of his relationships, that they were all destined to become his friends around the same time. SpongeBob is barely considered this holy, inspirational figure in the show. He’s got some friends, but it’s not like they see him as much more than an cheery goofball. It’s trying to apply this greater purpose to SpongeBob’s existence when it was never supported by the show or first 2 movies, and still isn’t.
But still, some of these ideas are sweet in a vacuum. SpongeBob meeting Sandy doesn’t really have any weight to it though. Sandy says she’s unsure if she can commit to science, SpongeBob tells her she can be smart, and that’s that. SpongeBob meeting Patrick by comforting him about his homesickness is wonderful. SpongeBob complimenting Mr Krabs on his food and encouraging him to open a restaurant throws Squilliam Returns and Friend or Foe into question, but I’ll shut my yap. But my favourite would be SpongeBob and Patrick cheering Squidward up after he bombs at a talent show. After all the madness they’ve put him through over the years, it’s a slight relief to see this interpretation that their dynamic started off innocently.
Boosting them slightly is the voice actors all turning in top notch work throughout the movie. Clancy Brown and Rodger Bumpass deserve some extra love for this scene, but everyone else clearly saw this movie as important. Sure, this is the deepest SpongeBob’s voice has ever been, but Tom Kenny is still irreplaceable, no matter how sore his throat’s getting. Matt Berry may sound familiar, but I can still look at Poseidon as his own king with his own struggles, which is just as easy to do with Neptune. Well, both of them. Sure, the celebrity voices like Reggie Watts and Tiffany Haddish aren’t phoning it in, but they didn’t need to be here either. It makes the SpongeBob voice actors’ performances pop more, reminding you what great voice acting can be like. Elevating this junk heap of a story that now has little time to resolve itself.
After singing SpongeBob’s praises, they all put on a song and dance to, once again, distract Poseidon and save Gary. They get a little further on this attempt, and have some time to run away from the guards, through a medieval section of the castle that gives off Dunces and Dragons vibes. If they had Colonel Carper ride a goo bubble out of a giant wave while eating a Frozen Krabby Patty at some point in this climax, it might’ve been a little clearer that they were trying to reference as many specials as they could. You could argue that this is one of the most essential scenes of the movie though, because it’s about a sponge that is, in fact, on the run.
But the chase ends outside as SpongeBob saves Poseidon’s social life. He finds out he doesn’t have any real friends, and SpongeBob gives him some sound advice that looks don’t matter as much as friendship. So after dressing down to a wrinkly old man with a beer belly, Poseidon feels better about his looks and releases all the snails he kidnapped, including Gary. If you think this is an easy way to resolve the situation, you’d be right. I find Poseidon happily throwing away all his good looks and exclaiming that he’s free to be funny, so I think it’s treated like a joke more than anything. This whole adventure is sidetracks galore concluded just like that. That itself is just bizarre.
The last scenes of the movie are back in Bikini Bottom, now that all the snails have been returned. It’s become a bit of a snail paradise, with everyone having their own kind to call their’s. It gives the illusion that progress has been made, by showing how one of the movie’s conflicts has been resolved, but it doesn’t feel like it’ll matter to the show. Again, the first movie is meant to be the end of the timeline, and the second acknowledges the show’s status quo and walks back Plankton’s development. It’s not an excellent choice, but they were aware that they had a show to tie into. Sponge On the Run is this offshoot that expects the show to tie into it. Technically it did, because Season 13 opens with an episode about pets, and they eventually reference Camp Coral, but the movie’s only focused on itself here.
But with all of that said, with all of those complaints, and all of those sheepish compliments, I don’t mind the tribute to Stephen Hillenburg at the end. Remember, this is Tim Hill’s movie, and he was there when those early SpongeBoy sketches were drawn. He was there when the SpongeBob theme started echoing through American homes in May 1999. He was there to provide some ideas for those early Post-Movie days. This feels like Tim’s way of saying thanks for the animation job of a lifetime. Like it came from the heart. I think this movie would be worse without that tribute, and I’m so tired of uneducated fans acting like it’s an offensive gesture to pay tribute to the creator of SpongeBob in a SpongeBob movie.
Other Things
There’s way bigger, and actual, problems with the movie. So many that the animation is the main reason I’d ever go back to it. Not the jokes, even if there are some good ones tucked away, and definitely not the disjointed adventure. Being the first fully CGI-based SpongeBob movie, they had a lot of hurdles to jump over, but I think the end result is a great encapsulation of what SpongeBob’s animation has always tried to do- make the ocean look vibrant and friendly. It took some influence from The Peanuts Movie and the Spider-Verse films, dropping the frame rate to better emphasise the action. That stylistic decision is always going to make it stand out in the context of the SpongeBob franchise, but not in a bad way.
All the sets are bubbly and detailed, and the character designs are mostly extraordinary. I say mostly, because I’m still getting used to Sandy’s extra-furry appearance. She looks more like a disheveled mad scientist than a nicer one, but it’s fine. SpongeBob’s design is amazing here. It skews much closer to his Pre-Movie design, which works in the sense that they’re wanting to explore his history. But it’s also good that they made him expressive without getting extra zany like in Season 10-12. I like that stuff, but remember, the casual fans are less fond of it.
The music is a mixed bag, so much worse than the banger-after-banger quality of the earlier movies. The score is good for what it is, Hans Zimmer will always deliver something good, but the overuse of licensed tracks doesn’t work for me. Some make sense, like On the Road Again and Livin’ la Vida Loca, but others like Dreamweaver and Take On Me add nothing but a couple thousand extra dollars to the movie’s budget. The songs written for the movie are a swing and a miss. The Weezer song works, given the franchise’s earlier affinity for alt rock, but the Tainy and J Balvin track that leads the credits isn’t my jam. I’m sure they’re talented musicians, but this song feels quite manufactured.
And I think that’s the core problem with Sponge On the Run. It feels manufactured, like a version of the franchise from another dimension that’s somehow worse off than our’s. I can’t call the writers lazy having their name on a script this messy, we all know this thing was re-written to Davey Jones’ Locker and back. But I don’t want to absolve them either. This is just what the pressure of working on such a movie can do. There had to have been a lot of interference from Nickelodeon to make the final product more licensed and referential. I can’t think of a good reason a SpongeBob movie should reference Skype and Facetime, except for some chart in a boardroom saying that would improve the movie’s box office numbers. What we’re left with is a plot that, to quote the other yellow long runner, is just a bunch of stuff that happened. It all feels like an unsuccessful mish-mash of elements from the earlier seasons and movies, and doesn’t come together as anything but a bunch of colours and songs.
I don’t hate this movie, and I’m not disappointed by it, but I have disagreements with it.
4/10, Poor Movie (or Weak, going by a more generous term)
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie > Sponge Out of Water > Sponge On the Run
Hopefully, this helps Sponge Out of Water’s standing. Some of us didn’t know how good we had it in 2015.
So now there’s a bunch more pets in Bikini Bottom. What next? Join me tomorrow for my first review of SpongeBob’s unluckiest season. Goodbye for now.
:sbthumbs:
Originally released: August 14 2020 (Canada), March 4 2021 (United States)
Story by Tim Hill,
Screenplay by Tim Hill, Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger
Sorry it’s been so many years since I last turned up here. Running a YouTube channel has been super fun, but it’s kept me in one place as far as my internet life goes. Every time I’ve finished a series review of something, I feel an urge to get the next one out within a month. It’s not the algorithm controlling me, I don’t care if I fall behind, it’s my own workaholism when it comes to reviewing. And if you saw my last post here, you’d probably understand why I’ve had little desire to review SpongeBob for a couple years now.
It’s hard to get through the mourning period.
It’s common knowledge that Stephen Hillenburg worked on Sponge On the Run before he died in 2018, and the whole Camp Coral plot had been announced before then too. But even with that glimmer of hope that he was fine with this movie and at least one of the spin-offs (keeping in mind most movies, including this one, get dozens of rewrites before the final product is released), I didn’t want to review all this stuff because I didn’t want to beat down on the current staff of these shows and movies. They’ve done nothing wrong in continuing to try to make SpongeBob as entertaining as they can, and it’s honestly rude to blame them for the current state of the franchise. I blame Nickelodeon the Company for this wonky attempt at exponential growth.
This is to say that it seems like all discussion surrounding Sponge On the Run is always going to have an air of cautiousness to it. While the first movie was a triumphant end to the classic era, and the second movie was a similarly triumphant revitalization of the show, this third one kicks off an era in which Nick has started to treat SpongeBob like this extended universe, when it could never hope to be that kind of franchise. It’s a funny yellow sponge man who makes burgers, not The Avengers.
But with my personal distaste for this new structural change in SpongeBob content, I don’t want to pepper my future reviews with “Stephen wouldn’t have wanted this” for a lot of reasons. One big reason being I don’t want to claim to know what he would’ve wanted, having never met him. A second being that there are people still working on the SpongeBob franchise who were close friends with him, and are doing their best to keep breathing life into his creations with the projects they’re given.
A third being that frame of mind would result in creative stagnation for SpongeBob. Want to know why Disney was in such a rough patch in the 70s and 80s? All the artists and producers kept asking themselves “What would Walt do?”, and since nobody knew exactly, nobody saw eye-to-eye on where the studio should go. I don’t want SpongeBob to continue if it means they’re going to keep trying and failing to recreate the first season down to the last grain of sand. Hillenburg’s been dead for 6 years, it’s long been time we accepted that. If the show has to continue forever, I want them to do something different. We’re going to get some failed experiments, but hopefully some successful ones that can push the series forward.
I want to permanently drop this topic as soon as this post goes live.
It seems hard to be optimistic at the moment, because the spin-offs haven’t been that well-received, this whole extended universe gimmick has been confusing, and the third and fourth movies have been off-putting in their own ways. Will we get a 2nd SpongeBob renaissance? Probably not at the moment, but if Nick never wants to drop the series, then it may happen some day in the far future. I want to hold on to that hope. People keep asking me to the new SpongeBob stuff, and I’d hate to see it, as well as the situation, keep getting worse.
But to start this look at Sponge On the Run on a positive note, I think Tim Hill was a good choice to write and direct the film. He had known Stephen Hillenburg since Rocko’s Modern Life, and co-wrote Help Wanted. Whether or not you like this movie, it would be very unfair, and downright misinformed, to assume the man didn’t care about SpongeBob. If you’ve already seen the rating I give the movie at the bottom of this post, you’d be right to think I’m not personally impressed by it anymore. But there are parts that you have to blame the company for, not the workers.
Now I gotta finally review this thing. I’m ready.
Act 1: On the Road Again
Another movie, another opening narrator. This one being a little more generic, but the visuals are already doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Seriously, this movie is still gorgeous. The first 15 minutes could be any SpongeBob story plotline. Aside from an opening montage driving home SpongeBob’s love for Gary, the Krusty Krab stuff feels like an episode script jammed into the start of the movie to get people familiar with the world, as if anyone left on this planet needs a refresher on what SpongeBob is. You could make a similar complaint about the wartime opening in Sponge Out of Water, but at least that segues into an inciting incident, the formula vanishing. Everything here about SpongeBob loving his job and Plankton trying to steal the formula yet again only sets up one thing- a comic relief robot played by a celebrity.
Otto, played by Awkwafina, is Sandy’s latest creation, who then becomes Plankton’s latest failed plan in a long line of failed plans. Karen and a wall of framed photos helpfully point that out. While it has funny things to say, it doesn’t feel like it has much chemistry with any of the other characters, nor does it seem like it was ever designed to. There’s also no reason they couldn’t have gotten one of the SpongeBob regulars to voice it. I know so little about Awkwafina that I have nothing against her, but it seems like overflow for a movie that’s soon going to have more notable and gratuitous guest stars.
So after all the Krusty Krab stuff, the plot really starts with King Poseidon getting his squire to kidnap Gary. Why does he want Gary? Because snail slime makes for an effective facial cream. Why doesn’t he use any other snail? Because he’s already used them all up. How does that make sense when we’ve been seeing other snails in the show since Dumped? I don’t think they had time to think about that. It was either: Poseidon’s been stealing snails slowly for thousands of years, or: Poseidon used up the ocean’s whole supply in a much quicker stretch of time. So they sort of went with the former, implied the latter for the rest of the movie, and built the rest of the plot on top of a house of cards. But maybe it’s got an ace down there.
So SpongeBob goes home to find Gary missing, mopes about it for a little bit while reminiscing about meeting Gary at Camp Coral, and I guess it’s finally time. The first time I ever review this setting in any capacity. No matter the context or intentions for its creation, I don’t like how it retcons a lot of character meetings just for the sake of creating a new backstory. To me, SpongeBob will have always adopted Gary from an animal shelter (Plankton’s Pet), been properly introduced to Mr Krabs and Plankton as an adult (Help Wanted, Plankton!) and met Sandy when she was fighting that giant clam (Tea at the Treedome). It may be silly to hold this prior information in such high regard, but I can’t help it.
The scenes of it shown in this movie are cute in a vacuum, but they’re always going to be bothersome to me, as someone who wonders why they waited this long to do an elaborate backstory for any reason other than marketing. That and the later flashbacks break up the pace of the movie. That and the spin-off show doesn’t even keep the name of the camp or the voice actors used here. That and this is seemingly the start of them taking continuity more seriously when it had been pretty lax for the prior 21 years. My feelings on Camp Coral as a concept and a show are overall pretty negative, but I don’t want to dwell on them right here right now.
Patrick comes over to see why SpongeBob’s so upset, and they’re both drawn to an adventure to “The Lost City of Atlantic City” to save Gary. Luckily, Plankton’s booked them a ride with Otto. Unluckily, this is part of a plan of his to kick SpongeBob out of Bikini Bottom. So this plot construction of SpongeBob and Patrick going on a road trip, trying to save Gary, in “Atlantis”, and SpongeBob being gone from Bikini Bottom and things falling to pieces, takes heavy inspiration from 2 movies and 2 specials. Someone call Guinness. A casual viewer might not be so distracted by this, I understand, but as a SpongeBob super nerd whose reviewed all this stuff years back, it’s gonna feel like a bunch of carbon copies to me. And when you have a chance of feeling like an inferior take on What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?, an eyebrow’s going up.
After an entertaining back-and-forth where SpongeBob and Patrick sit around wondering what the adventure’s gonna be like, Otto launches them out of the boat, we get the aforementioned scene of the Krusty Krab falling to pieces without SpongeBob. This may be umpteenth time Mr Krabs and Squidward have failed to satiate hungry customers, but there’s still some entertainment in it. At least it’s more SpongeBob-esque than the next few minutes of the movie, where they dive straight into a nonsensical dream sequence.
Act 2: In Atlantis Again
In a dream where SpongeBob and Patrick have been driven to a small Western town on the surface world (adding Pest of the West to the list of inspirations), they meet a talking tumbleweed called Sage. The novelty of it being Keanu Reeves’ head in a bush doesn’t wear thin, but the dream he comes from does. SpongeBob and Patrick go on this mini adventure to escape zombie pirates, get stuck in a song number featuring Snoop Dogg, and destroy their leader, El Diablo, by letting sunlight into his office. This scene gets longer and less funny every time I rewatch this movie.
To unfavourably compare this to Sponge Out of Water again, that movie took some strange detours, specifically into SpongeBob’s mind and to that space prism with Bubbles the Dolphin. But they don’t feel like they could easily be cut, since they make an impact on the story. The first reinforces on SpongeBob and Plankton’s relationship, reminding us that they can’t always be on good terms, and the second introduces Bubbles, who becomes important later. The only things this zombie pirate dream introduces are things that don’t feel essential to the scene. Keanu Reeves as a tumbleweed sage is already enough of a non sequitur to have come up naturally underwater, and the Challenge Coin they get is a cheap macguffin that doesn’t lead to anything.
If you own enough animated movies on DVD or Blu Ray, you’ve probably seen your fair share of deleted scenes, most never leaving the storyboard pitch. And if you hear the movie’s directors say anything about them, they’ll usually say they cut them for any number of reasons. Maybe they broke the flow of the story. Maybe they undercut a later scene. Maybe a more creative scene was pitched later and they went with that one. This whole pirate zombie dream feels like it was made to be a DVD extra in the deleted scenes menu, but someone put it back in the movie as a prank. That’s definitely not what happened, but I can’t see any reason this whole side story was kept the way it was.
For a minute, the movie cuts away to Mr Krabs giving Plankton the formula. It seems like a pretty easy victory for Plankton, seeing how many attempts he’s made on it, but the performances are just about able to sell it. Not just Clancy Brown’s and Mr Lawrence’s, but the animation too. It’s a scene where I can go, yeah, they’ve got a history and know each other well, and I can say the same for the writers. After all the retreads and sidetrack into weirdville, I think this scene’s comparatively decent.
I’m also quite fond of SpongeBob and Patrick’s trip into Atlantic City. There’s a Pleasure Island tinge to it, where they’re letting loose and getting roped into the joy and corruption of a Las Vegas-esque trap. The animation is clean and vibrant, all the scenes are useful in building the above point, and I don’t even mind the music being a licensed track here. Of course they’d be living la vida loca. Weird fun fact, but it topped the Billboard charts on May 8th 1999, making it the first single to top it after SpongeBob premiered. Did the filmmakers know? I doubt, but I hope they’re informed some day.
But this fun night out doesn’t mean much, as SpongeBob and Patrick wake up with the Sage pressing them to save Gary. They sneak onto the big theatre stage Poseidon is being entertained by (it’s not the Poseidome, but what is?), and after distracting him with a pattycake routine, they get arrested for trying to snatch Gary back. It’s a little embarrassing that it’s taken them this long to move the plot forward. I like the night out SpongeBob and Patrick had visually, but it didn’t have an effect on this scene in any way. Sure, they gamble away the Challenge Coin, but that never comes back.
Before Act 2 ends, Mr Krabs, Squidward and Sandy learn about Plankton’s plan, and they all team up to save SpongeBob and Patrick in Atlantic City. Their mode of transportation: The Pattymobile. If they going to have to repeat something from an earlier movie like this, at the very least, it’s good that they tried to go a little extra. Its transformation into a sleeker machine offers it some distinction, but with that, we’re done with the 2nd act, with these characters’ journey to Atlantic City remaining a mystery as to how they get there.
Act 3: SpongeBob turns into Baby Jesus
As SpongeBob and Patrick are about to be executed, Sandy and pals stop it to explain to Poseidon why SpongeBob should remain alive. They do this by explaining how they each first met him at Camp Coral, and everything about the next couple minutes of the movie are so strange.
First, how they stitch 4 flashbacks together in the middle of an execution scene. It breaks the pace of the movie, all to preview a spin-off which, as I said earlier, went through more revisions before premiering. They take time out of this SpongeBob production to foreshadow an unfinished version of an upcoming SpongeBob production. It wouldn’t be so bad if they were spaced out more throughout the movie. If they absolutely had to include these flashbacks, the order I’d play them would be
-SpongeBob meeting Gary, still the first, and still after Gary goes missing
-Meeting Sandy, as she expresses how she misses SpongeBob at the Krusty Krab
-Meeting Mr Krabs, right after Sandy’s reminiscing
-Meeting Patrick, while the two are in jail, Patrick thinking to himself what SpongeBob means to him
-Giving Squidward the talent show award, the big final one told by Squidward, to show that SpongeBob’s even brightened up his life
On the bright side, having most of them in one scene serves as a stronger testimony in-universe, but there was a better way to weave Camp Coral into the story handed to them on a silver platter.
What’s also strange about the latter 4 flashbacks is that they almost depict SpongeBob as this Christ figure, immediately improving the others’ lives and showing them the way as if they’re his apostles. It’s a ridiculous way of looking at it, but I want to be clear that I don’t like this interpretation of his relationships, that they were all destined to become his friends around the same time. SpongeBob is barely considered this holy, inspirational figure in the show. He’s got some friends, but it’s not like they see him as much more than an cheery goofball. It’s trying to apply this greater purpose to SpongeBob’s existence when it was never supported by the show or first 2 movies, and still isn’t.
But still, some of these ideas are sweet in a vacuum. SpongeBob meeting Sandy doesn’t really have any weight to it though. Sandy says she’s unsure if she can commit to science, SpongeBob tells her she can be smart, and that’s that. SpongeBob meeting Patrick by comforting him about his homesickness is wonderful. SpongeBob complimenting Mr Krabs on his food and encouraging him to open a restaurant throws Squilliam Returns and Friend or Foe into question, but I’ll shut my yap. But my favourite would be SpongeBob and Patrick cheering Squidward up after he bombs at a talent show. After all the madness they’ve put him through over the years, it’s a slight relief to see this interpretation that their dynamic started off innocently.
Boosting them slightly is the voice actors all turning in top notch work throughout the movie. Clancy Brown and Rodger Bumpass deserve some extra love for this scene, but everyone else clearly saw this movie as important. Sure, this is the deepest SpongeBob’s voice has ever been, but Tom Kenny is still irreplaceable, no matter how sore his throat’s getting. Matt Berry may sound familiar, but I can still look at Poseidon as his own king with his own struggles, which is just as easy to do with Neptune. Well, both of them. Sure, the celebrity voices like Reggie Watts and Tiffany Haddish aren’t phoning it in, but they didn’t need to be here either. It makes the SpongeBob voice actors’ performances pop more, reminding you what great voice acting can be like. Elevating this junk heap of a story that now has little time to resolve itself.
After singing SpongeBob’s praises, they all put on a song and dance to, once again, distract Poseidon and save Gary. They get a little further on this attempt, and have some time to run away from the guards, through a medieval section of the castle that gives off Dunces and Dragons vibes. If they had Colonel Carper ride a goo bubble out of a giant wave while eating a Frozen Krabby Patty at some point in this climax, it might’ve been a little clearer that they were trying to reference as many specials as they could. You could argue that this is one of the most essential scenes of the movie though, because it’s about a sponge that is, in fact, on the run.
But the chase ends outside as SpongeBob saves Poseidon’s social life. He finds out he doesn’t have any real friends, and SpongeBob gives him some sound advice that looks don’t matter as much as friendship. So after dressing down to a wrinkly old man with a beer belly, Poseidon feels better about his looks and releases all the snails he kidnapped, including Gary. If you think this is an easy way to resolve the situation, you’d be right. I find Poseidon happily throwing away all his good looks and exclaiming that he’s free to be funny, so I think it’s treated like a joke more than anything. This whole adventure is sidetracks galore concluded just like that. That itself is just bizarre.
The last scenes of the movie are back in Bikini Bottom, now that all the snails have been returned. It’s become a bit of a snail paradise, with everyone having their own kind to call their’s. It gives the illusion that progress has been made, by showing how one of the movie’s conflicts has been resolved, but it doesn’t feel like it’ll matter to the show. Again, the first movie is meant to be the end of the timeline, and the second acknowledges the show’s status quo and walks back Plankton’s development. It’s not an excellent choice, but they were aware that they had a show to tie into. Sponge On the Run is this offshoot that expects the show to tie into it. Technically it did, because Season 13 opens with an episode about pets, and they eventually reference Camp Coral, but the movie’s only focused on itself here.
But with all of that said, with all of those complaints, and all of those sheepish compliments, I don’t mind the tribute to Stephen Hillenburg at the end. Remember, this is Tim Hill’s movie, and he was there when those early SpongeBoy sketches were drawn. He was there when the SpongeBob theme started echoing through American homes in May 1999. He was there to provide some ideas for those early Post-Movie days. This feels like Tim’s way of saying thanks for the animation job of a lifetime. Like it came from the heart. I think this movie would be worse without that tribute, and I’m so tired of uneducated fans acting like it’s an offensive gesture to pay tribute to the creator of SpongeBob in a SpongeBob movie.
Other Things
There’s way bigger, and actual, problems with the movie. So many that the animation is the main reason I’d ever go back to it. Not the jokes, even if there are some good ones tucked away, and definitely not the disjointed adventure. Being the first fully CGI-based SpongeBob movie, they had a lot of hurdles to jump over, but I think the end result is a great encapsulation of what SpongeBob’s animation has always tried to do- make the ocean look vibrant and friendly. It took some influence from The Peanuts Movie and the Spider-Verse films, dropping the frame rate to better emphasise the action. That stylistic decision is always going to make it stand out in the context of the SpongeBob franchise, but not in a bad way.
All the sets are bubbly and detailed, and the character designs are mostly extraordinary. I say mostly, because I’m still getting used to Sandy’s extra-furry appearance. She looks more like a disheveled mad scientist than a nicer one, but it’s fine. SpongeBob’s design is amazing here. It skews much closer to his Pre-Movie design, which works in the sense that they’re wanting to explore his history. But it’s also good that they made him expressive without getting extra zany like in Season 10-12. I like that stuff, but remember, the casual fans are less fond of it.
The music is a mixed bag, so much worse than the banger-after-banger quality of the earlier movies. The score is good for what it is, Hans Zimmer will always deliver something good, but the overuse of licensed tracks doesn’t work for me. Some make sense, like On the Road Again and Livin’ la Vida Loca, but others like Dreamweaver and Take On Me add nothing but a couple thousand extra dollars to the movie’s budget. The songs written for the movie are a swing and a miss. The Weezer song works, given the franchise’s earlier affinity for alt rock, but the Tainy and J Balvin track that leads the credits isn’t my jam. I’m sure they’re talented musicians, but this song feels quite manufactured.
And I think that’s the core problem with Sponge On the Run. It feels manufactured, like a version of the franchise from another dimension that’s somehow worse off than our’s. I can’t call the writers lazy having their name on a script this messy, we all know this thing was re-written to Davey Jones’ Locker and back. But I don’t want to absolve them either. This is just what the pressure of working on such a movie can do. There had to have been a lot of interference from Nickelodeon to make the final product more licensed and referential. I can’t think of a good reason a SpongeBob movie should reference Skype and Facetime, except for some chart in a boardroom saying that would improve the movie’s box office numbers. What we’re left with is a plot that, to quote the other yellow long runner, is just a bunch of stuff that happened. It all feels like an unsuccessful mish-mash of elements from the earlier seasons and movies, and doesn’t come together as anything but a bunch of colours and songs.
I don’t hate this movie, and I’m not disappointed by it, but I have disagreements with it.
4/10, Poor Movie (or Weak, going by a more generous term)
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie > Sponge Out of Water > Sponge On the Run
Hopefully, this helps Sponge Out of Water’s standing. Some of us didn’t know how good we had it in 2015.
So now there’s a bunch more pets in Bikini Bottom. What next? Join me tomorrow for my first review of SpongeBob’s unluckiest season. Goodbye for now.
:sbthumbs:
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Season 13 Time!
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A Place For Pets (Season 13, Episode 1a)
Originally aired: October 22 2020
Episode 510 in standard order, Episode 498 in airing order
Plot: Mr Krabs allows pets to eat at the Krusty Krab, and soon after, only pets
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Benjamin Arcand
How convenient is it that the first season to air predominantly after Sponge On the Run kicks off with an episode about pets? I tend not to think of this as just another series premiere, but as the start of the 4th major era for the show. Season 1-3 was the Pre-Movie era, Season 4-SpongeBob You’re Fired was the Post-Movie era, and Lost in Bikini Bottom-Season 12 was the Post-Sequel era. Now we’re in the “Franchise era”, though you could still call this a sub-era to Post-Sequel. Season 13 also coincided with the premiere of the first 2 spin-offs, and the continuity of the main series was tweaked to fit them, not that war breaks out if SpongeBob retcons itself. My concern was if this would result in a blow to the show’s quality, which was fairly wavy across the Post-Sequel seasons. Will we be back in the messy dog food of Season 6 and 7, or will it be as pleasant and fluffy as the hug of a warm cat?
The story begins with the posh madam character, Lady Upturn, bringing her pet worm, Fifi, to the Krusty Krab, making Squidward’s allergies come out. Mr Krabs has to inform her that the place has a “No Pets Allowed” policy, but changes it when Lady offers to pay double for Fifi’s. Honestly, taking a large break from doing SpongeBob reviews makes this plot setup a little easier for me to accept. It’s not a new thing for Mr Krabs to do, but it’s comforting to see some things never change as long as they can build to jokes.
And jokes this episode delivers, as more Krustomers begin bringing their pets to the Krusty Krab. Of course Patrick has a pet rock, and that has to be my favourite joke of the episode. We see later in this scene that Sandy has a pet Alaskan bull worm, so some of the episode’s appeal, figuring out what pet some of the main characters would have, is here. But it takes a turn when the Health Inspector shows up and offers Mr Krabs a choice- either the Krusty Krab becomes a pets only restaurant, or they go back to just serving people. Mr Krabs chooses the former, since it makes him more money, leaving the Krustomers to eat at the Chum Bucket. That’s been a threat of their’s since Your Shoe’s Untied, and to see them go through with it shows that this is a more serious plot than it lets on.
But it takes the Krustomers no time at all to miss the Krabby Patties, so they hatch a plan to sneak back into the Krusty Krab disguised as pets. It barely works, but you can’t fault them for trying. It turns into a brawl before SpongeBob arrives to save the day. Musically, of course, with the help of the Health Inspector. The Pets Are People Too song is a classic-feeling song for the show, being this jaunty tune with quirky lyrics and a catchy melody. It almost seems like it resolves the conflict too quickly, especially with the Health Inspector leading it, but a loop is soon to be thrown.
After the song cheers everyone up, the Health Inspector gets rid of the “Pets or People” choice, letting them both eat at the Krusty Krab again. But this is a little too easy, so they throw in the Fire Department to shut the Krusty Krab down for being over capacity. This episode kept me guessing, I hope that’s what I’m getting at. The story isn’t poorly told at all, except for maybe the Health Inspector’s under-explained change of heart, but it doesn’t do that much to differentiate itself from earlier Krusty Krab fables on the script.
An episode about pets probably could’ve had a cuter variety of jokes too. There are some good ones, like Patrick aforementioned pet rock, but a lot of the stand-outs to me were on the dark and ugly side. Bubble Bass’ bunny costume having no effort placed into it works for his lazy character. Plankton accidentally getting digested by Spot is slightly violent, but I’m just happy to see Spot again. The Health Inspector’s many disguises is a cool idea for a shtick for him. Squidward having intense allergies and being in pain the whole time is…expected. Despite his bruises by the end, can’t even muster much of a negative reaction from me 13 seasons in.
The animation is an episode highlight. I don’t mean that they’re as zany and exaggerated as in Season 11 and 12. At this point, they’re showing a little more restraint and siphoning more of that earlier madness into The Patrick Star Show. There’s a sense of history on display in A Place for Pets, that they’re using as many old pet designs as they can to take advantage of this story opportunity. Snails, worms, clams, seahorses, bunnies and Alaskan bull worms are just the start, and the song featuring Nosferatu and the tan seal from Sun Bleached are extra bonuses.
Characterization here is rather fickle, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t working. Of course Mr Krabs is going to be fickle with his financial decisions. The Health Inspector isn’t a well developed enough character for us to expect a very serious appearance. SpongeBob appears rather late and doesn’t become relevant until the climax, but is fine as this light harbinger of peaceful resolve. A lot of characters like Patrick, Squidward, Sandy and Bubble Bass are just here for jokes and to fill crowd scenes, but it’s not bad they’re here at all.
The more I write about this episode, the more enthusiasm I have for it. But it’s one of those that’s more fun to talk about than to actually watch. A Place for Pets could be an episode that succeeds on its cute factor, if only it was cuter. It could be one that succeeds in having a compelling and high stakes decision for Mr Krabs to make, if only he wasn’t usually so fickle. But I’m fine with it succeeding in being this silly little hang-out episode for the Krustomers and their choices of pets. Whatever they like to do, there’s a pet who likes it too.
6/10 (Okay)
So far, the best episode of Season 13.
Next up is the last episode I’ve got to cover from 2020, and of course it has to have “Lockdown” in the title.
:sbthumbs:
Originally aired: October 22 2020
Episode 510 in standard order, Episode 498 in airing order
Plot: Mr Krabs allows pets to eat at the Krusty Krab, and soon after, only pets
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Benjamin Arcand
How convenient is it that the first season to air predominantly after Sponge On the Run kicks off with an episode about pets? I tend not to think of this as just another series premiere, but as the start of the 4th major era for the show. Season 1-3 was the Pre-Movie era, Season 4-SpongeBob You’re Fired was the Post-Movie era, and Lost in Bikini Bottom-Season 12 was the Post-Sequel era. Now we’re in the “Franchise era”, though you could still call this a sub-era to Post-Sequel. Season 13 also coincided with the premiere of the first 2 spin-offs, and the continuity of the main series was tweaked to fit them, not that war breaks out if SpongeBob retcons itself. My concern was if this would result in a blow to the show’s quality, which was fairly wavy across the Post-Sequel seasons. Will we be back in the messy dog food of Season 6 and 7, or will it be as pleasant and fluffy as the hug of a warm cat?
The story begins with the posh madam character, Lady Upturn, bringing her pet worm, Fifi, to the Krusty Krab, making Squidward’s allergies come out. Mr Krabs has to inform her that the place has a “No Pets Allowed” policy, but changes it when Lady offers to pay double for Fifi’s. Honestly, taking a large break from doing SpongeBob reviews makes this plot setup a little easier for me to accept. It’s not a new thing for Mr Krabs to do, but it’s comforting to see some things never change as long as they can build to jokes.
And jokes this episode delivers, as more Krustomers begin bringing their pets to the Krusty Krab. Of course Patrick has a pet rock, and that has to be my favourite joke of the episode. We see later in this scene that Sandy has a pet Alaskan bull worm, so some of the episode’s appeal, figuring out what pet some of the main characters would have, is here. But it takes a turn when the Health Inspector shows up and offers Mr Krabs a choice- either the Krusty Krab becomes a pets only restaurant, or they go back to just serving people. Mr Krabs chooses the former, since it makes him more money, leaving the Krustomers to eat at the Chum Bucket. That’s been a threat of their’s since Your Shoe’s Untied, and to see them go through with it shows that this is a more serious plot than it lets on.
But it takes the Krustomers no time at all to miss the Krabby Patties, so they hatch a plan to sneak back into the Krusty Krab disguised as pets. It barely works, but you can’t fault them for trying. It turns into a brawl before SpongeBob arrives to save the day. Musically, of course, with the help of the Health Inspector. The Pets Are People Too song is a classic-feeling song for the show, being this jaunty tune with quirky lyrics and a catchy melody. It almost seems like it resolves the conflict too quickly, especially with the Health Inspector leading it, but a loop is soon to be thrown.
After the song cheers everyone up, the Health Inspector gets rid of the “Pets or People” choice, letting them both eat at the Krusty Krab again. But this is a little too easy, so they throw in the Fire Department to shut the Krusty Krab down for being over capacity. This episode kept me guessing, I hope that’s what I’m getting at. The story isn’t poorly told at all, except for maybe the Health Inspector’s under-explained change of heart, but it doesn’t do that much to differentiate itself from earlier Krusty Krab fables on the script.
An episode about pets probably could’ve had a cuter variety of jokes too. There are some good ones, like Patrick aforementioned pet rock, but a lot of the stand-outs to me were on the dark and ugly side. Bubble Bass’ bunny costume having no effort placed into it works for his lazy character. Plankton accidentally getting digested by Spot is slightly violent, but I’m just happy to see Spot again. The Health Inspector’s many disguises is a cool idea for a shtick for him. Squidward having intense allergies and being in pain the whole time is…expected. Despite his bruises by the end, can’t even muster much of a negative reaction from me 13 seasons in.
The animation is an episode highlight. I don’t mean that they’re as zany and exaggerated as in Season 11 and 12. At this point, they’re showing a little more restraint and siphoning more of that earlier madness into The Patrick Star Show. There’s a sense of history on display in A Place for Pets, that they’re using as many old pet designs as they can to take advantage of this story opportunity. Snails, worms, clams, seahorses, bunnies and Alaskan bull worms are just the start, and the song featuring Nosferatu and the tan seal from Sun Bleached are extra bonuses.
Characterization here is rather fickle, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t working. Of course Mr Krabs is going to be fickle with his financial decisions. The Health Inspector isn’t a well developed enough character for us to expect a very serious appearance. SpongeBob appears rather late and doesn’t become relevant until the climax, but is fine as this light harbinger of peaceful resolve. A lot of characters like Patrick, Squidward, Sandy and Bubble Bass are just here for jokes and to fill crowd scenes, but it’s not bad they’re here at all.
The more I write about this episode, the more enthusiasm I have for it. But it’s one of those that’s more fun to talk about than to actually watch. A Place for Pets could be an episode that succeeds on its cute factor, if only it was cuter. It could be one that succeeds in having a compelling and high stakes decision for Mr Krabs to make, if only he wasn’t usually so fickle. But I’m fine with it succeeding in being this silly little hang-out episode for the Krustomers and their choices of pets. Whatever they like to do, there’s a pet who likes it too.
6/10 (Okay)
So far, the best episode of Season 13.
Next up is the last episode I’ve got to cover from 2020, and of course it has to have “Lockdown” in the title.
:sbthumbs:
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Season 13 Time!
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Lockdown for Love (Season 13, Episode 1b)
Originally aired October 22 2020
Episode 511 in standard order, Episode 499 in airing order
Plot: Karen locks Plankton inside the Krusty Krab until he’s proven he loves her
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by John Trabbic
Plankton and Karen’s relationship is something I’m happy to see get a steady amount of focus as the show has gone on. It’s kind of nice knowing that Plankton has a soft side, if only for his own technology, and that as sassy as Karen can be, she’s able to keep him on a leash and give him something to show affection for. So this episode rubbed me the wrong way when I first saw it. I don’t think it’s a bad one, but it’s like watching a couple you know bicker on a really rough day. With Patrick there too.
We see things kick off with what appears to be a very romantic date. Karen and Plankton, oh I’m sorry, Ray Ray, are having dinner in a hot air balloon, before Plankton notices Mr Krabs driving home and leaving the Krabby Patty secret formula on the road. He ditches the date for the formula, but then discovers he’s fallen for a trick. The date was a simulation in the Chum Bucket, cooked up by Karen, to see how much Plankton care about the formula over her. Still quite a lot, so out of anger, she locks the Chum Bucket up until Plankton can give her a heartfelt date. As selfish as Plankton is acting here, it’s quite an extreme measure on Karen’s part. Maybe there’s more Plankton in her than we assumed.
So Plankton’s cooking food for the date, when he sees Krabs leave the formula the exact same way as in the simulation. This is quite hard to believe in. I thought this had to be another sort of trick devised by Mr Krabs or Karen, but apparently not. Old man Krabs just likes taking the formula out of the safe some nights and not worrying if it falls out of his boat. Even more convenient is Patrick running around the area at night, and becoming interested in what Plankton’s doing, entering the Chum Bucket with no explanation. Even more convenient still is Larry and SpongeBob having a night jog with some kids, to fling the formula closer to Plankton just to tease him. It’s pretty easy to see through all this if you want a completely logical story, but Plankton has a plan for one of these conveniences.
Plankton takes a sawduster and shaves Patrick down to his size, then dresses him up as Ray Ray. I like the toon logic of this plan, but did not occur to him to smother Patrick in some green paint? When Patrick and Karen meet, Karen is in an overly romantic state, but surely she’d be able to notice if her husband’s a completely different colour. But it’s good enough to distract her while Plankton attempts to burn his way out of the Chum Bucket with a power tools. It’s inevitable that the plan will fall apart, but it’s so far been a strange and fruitful night.
So how does it fall apart? Mr Krabs notices the formula’s not in his boat, and rushes back to the Krusty Krab to find it. It doesn’t take him long for his natural suspicions to take over, and he goes to the Chum Bucket and finds Plankton trying to steal it. But Karen’s about to tell Patrick the formula anyway to reward what she thinks is Ray Ray’s good behaviour. Plankton leaves the bottle with Krabs and sprints to Karen to learn it, but that breaks the illusion, so she proceeds to delete the formula as punishment. A good old fashioned “heart attack at the finish line” ordeal with Plankton and the formula. The ending where Karen gets her hot air balloon date by chaining Plankton to the table is a little unsettling, but this is not the kind of episode to expect a normal end point from. Nor a black screen before the credits either, because I believe this is the first episode pairing where the cut straight from the episode to the credits. That’ll take some time to get used to.
Comedy-wise, Lockdown for Love is fine if you’re in the mood for it. It’s got an idiot plot with one too many leaps in logic, but when has that ever stopped the show before? I like a couple things, like when freaking out, Karen’s monitor briefly showing the letters “Y2K”. That’s a reference for the millennials and computer nerds. There aren’t many quotable lines here, it relies on the facial expressions and nature of the story to tell its jokes.
I know I said in yesterday’s review that they’re showing a little more restraint with the animation than in the last few seasons, but that doesn’t mean it fell to their bottom priority. Karen’s faces are quite great here. Patrick’s are a little wacky for my tastes, even after he’s transformed into Ray Ray, but it’s a taste thing. I still recognise the passion with which they’re drawn. A weird little animation highlight I have to point out is when Mr Krabs lifts the Krusty Krab when frantically searching for the formula. Wheras earlier, they would’ve animated it on paper, leading to way less detail on the model, here they kept a painted look. It’s cool how seamlessly it comes off. There’s a fear it could look too warped and take you out of it.
Plankton seems to be the only character here completely on point, because I have some issues with how Karen’s depicted here. While it seems she hasn’t been able to have a successful date with Plankton in ages, if ever, her locking Plankton inside the Chum Bucket makes her seem more evil than Plankton here. And going by how she treats him in the ending scene, it feels like she’s still lost it. Does she have a bug again? And this is a typical modern depiction of Patrick. Very Kaz-y, where every joke feels conventionally dumb. Karen and Patrick interacting could’ve led to something, given how we’re this far into the show and they’ve barely interacted. But Patrick having a speaker in his tooth for Plankton, I mean Ray Ray, to speak through closes some of that off. And like I said, Krabs not keeping a closer tab on the formula makes him seem quite dumb here too.
To no one’s surprise, this episode got the same rating from me as Plankton Gets the Boot from Season 10. They’re both marriage crises for Plankton and Karen, which sure, is important to show for any marriage to teach that you aren’t always going to get along with your spouse. But that can come at the cost of a story concept that feels like it should be in SpongeBob in the first place, or in Lockdown for Love’s case, an ending where the characters don’t learn anything about their relationship. I don’t want to seem like too much of a debbie downer with this episode, but there are better ones ahead.
5/10 (Average)
A Place for Pets > Lockdown for Love
Tomorrow’s another one with some teeny turmoil, and it’s probably going to leave more bite marks.
:sbthumbs:
Originally aired October 22 2020
Episode 511 in standard order, Episode 499 in airing order
Plot: Karen locks Plankton inside the Krusty Krab until he’s proven he loves her
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by John Trabbic
Plankton and Karen’s relationship is something I’m happy to see get a steady amount of focus as the show has gone on. It’s kind of nice knowing that Plankton has a soft side, if only for his own technology, and that as sassy as Karen can be, she’s able to keep him on a leash and give him something to show affection for. So this episode rubbed me the wrong way when I first saw it. I don’t think it’s a bad one, but it’s like watching a couple you know bicker on a really rough day. With Patrick there too.
We see things kick off with what appears to be a very romantic date. Karen and Plankton, oh I’m sorry, Ray Ray, are having dinner in a hot air balloon, before Plankton notices Mr Krabs driving home and leaving the Krabby Patty secret formula on the road. He ditches the date for the formula, but then discovers he’s fallen for a trick. The date was a simulation in the Chum Bucket, cooked up by Karen, to see how much Plankton care about the formula over her. Still quite a lot, so out of anger, she locks the Chum Bucket up until Plankton can give her a heartfelt date. As selfish as Plankton is acting here, it’s quite an extreme measure on Karen’s part. Maybe there’s more Plankton in her than we assumed.
So Plankton’s cooking food for the date, when he sees Krabs leave the formula the exact same way as in the simulation. This is quite hard to believe in. I thought this had to be another sort of trick devised by Mr Krabs or Karen, but apparently not. Old man Krabs just likes taking the formula out of the safe some nights and not worrying if it falls out of his boat. Even more convenient is Patrick running around the area at night, and becoming interested in what Plankton’s doing, entering the Chum Bucket with no explanation. Even more convenient still is Larry and SpongeBob having a night jog with some kids, to fling the formula closer to Plankton just to tease him. It’s pretty easy to see through all this if you want a completely logical story, but Plankton has a plan for one of these conveniences.
Plankton takes a sawduster and shaves Patrick down to his size, then dresses him up as Ray Ray. I like the toon logic of this plan, but did not occur to him to smother Patrick in some green paint? When Patrick and Karen meet, Karen is in an overly romantic state, but surely she’d be able to notice if her husband’s a completely different colour. But it’s good enough to distract her while Plankton attempts to burn his way out of the Chum Bucket with a power tools. It’s inevitable that the plan will fall apart, but it’s so far been a strange and fruitful night.
So how does it fall apart? Mr Krabs notices the formula’s not in his boat, and rushes back to the Krusty Krab to find it. It doesn’t take him long for his natural suspicions to take over, and he goes to the Chum Bucket and finds Plankton trying to steal it. But Karen’s about to tell Patrick the formula anyway to reward what she thinks is Ray Ray’s good behaviour. Plankton leaves the bottle with Krabs and sprints to Karen to learn it, but that breaks the illusion, so she proceeds to delete the formula as punishment. A good old fashioned “heart attack at the finish line” ordeal with Plankton and the formula. The ending where Karen gets her hot air balloon date by chaining Plankton to the table is a little unsettling, but this is not the kind of episode to expect a normal end point from. Nor a black screen before the credits either, because I believe this is the first episode pairing where the cut straight from the episode to the credits. That’ll take some time to get used to.
Comedy-wise, Lockdown for Love is fine if you’re in the mood for it. It’s got an idiot plot with one too many leaps in logic, but when has that ever stopped the show before? I like a couple things, like when freaking out, Karen’s monitor briefly showing the letters “Y2K”. That’s a reference for the millennials and computer nerds. There aren’t many quotable lines here, it relies on the facial expressions and nature of the story to tell its jokes.
I know I said in yesterday’s review that they’re showing a little more restraint with the animation than in the last few seasons, but that doesn’t mean it fell to their bottom priority. Karen’s faces are quite great here. Patrick’s are a little wacky for my tastes, even after he’s transformed into Ray Ray, but it’s a taste thing. I still recognise the passion with which they’re drawn. A weird little animation highlight I have to point out is when Mr Krabs lifts the Krusty Krab when frantically searching for the formula. Wheras earlier, they would’ve animated it on paper, leading to way less detail on the model, here they kept a painted look. It’s cool how seamlessly it comes off. There’s a fear it could look too warped and take you out of it.
Plankton seems to be the only character here completely on point, because I have some issues with how Karen’s depicted here. While it seems she hasn’t been able to have a successful date with Plankton in ages, if ever, her locking Plankton inside the Chum Bucket makes her seem more evil than Plankton here. And going by how she treats him in the ending scene, it feels like she’s still lost it. Does she have a bug again? And this is a typical modern depiction of Patrick. Very Kaz-y, where every joke feels conventionally dumb. Karen and Patrick interacting could’ve led to something, given how we’re this far into the show and they’ve barely interacted. But Patrick having a speaker in his tooth for Plankton, I mean Ray Ray, to speak through closes some of that off. And like I said, Krabs not keeping a closer tab on the formula makes him seem quite dumb here too.
To no one’s surprise, this episode got the same rating from me as Plankton Gets the Boot from Season 10. They’re both marriage crises for Plankton and Karen, which sure, is important to show for any marriage to teach that you aren’t always going to get along with your spouse. But that can come at the cost of a story concept that feels like it should be in SpongeBob in the first place, or in Lockdown for Love’s case, an ending where the characters don’t learn anything about their relationship. I don’t want to seem like too much of a debbie downer with this episode, but there are better ones ahead.
5/10 (Average)
A Place for Pets > Lockdown for Love
Tomorrow’s another one with some teeny turmoil, and it’s probably going to leave more bite marks.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
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Under the Small Top (Season 13, Episode 2a)
Originally aired April 16 2021
Episode 512 in standard order, Episode 506 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob buys some sea circus fleas, but they end up with Squidward instead
Written by Ben Gruber
Storyboard by Mike Dougherty
When this episode aired, SpongeBob had been on TV for nearly 22 years. Isn’t it amazing how many ways they’ve beat up Squidward over that time? It’s stayed a constant of the series, at the behest of some viewers who believe it’s gotten too cruel at points. But I think that if SpongeBob has to be on for as long as humanly possible, that they can still do episodes like this, as long as they’ve got a creative hook to each of them. Under the Small Top definitely does, as it’s about fleas. They maybe aren’t the most reliable parasite to base a SpongeBob episode around, just ask Sandy, but maybe a different breed to lead to something fresher.
The episode opens with a commercial for circus sea fleas. They gotta call every underwater variant of a land critter a “sea something”, huh. Well, at least their designs are cuter than when land fleas were seen, so it’s off to a fine start. SpongeBob’s apparently watching this at his mailbox, having dragged the TV out of the house. That and the mailman offering SpongeBob a million dollars, which he throws away, is a surefire clue that this episode is gonna be a little loopy. That is if the circus motif didn’t already. If the episode is telegraphing early that it’s gonna have a wild theme, then I’m more likely to go along with it.
The mailman doesn’t deliver the circus fleas to SpongeBob, accidentally delivering them to Squidward instead, who then disposes of the box. Angered, although we don’t know that yet, the fleas retaliate by breaking into Squidward’s kitchen while he’s preparing breakfast, and lifting all his food, making it appear like it’s floating. Sorry to spoil the fleas’ intentions, but it feels like there’s more to it than them just messing with Squidward by accident. And they do mess with him, as he thinks his house has been invaded by ghosts. Squidward’s been through so much that he’ll believe anything, can’t he? I’m reminded of when he thought he was dreaming in CopyBob DittoPants, or when he thought aliens were invading in Whirly Brains. But there’s also the obvious fact that he’s encountered ghosts before, like the Flying Dutchman.
In his crazed state, Squidward makes a good call by going back to bed to get some rest. But in no time, a sea flea circus materialises on top of his bedsheets, small top and everything. There’s some performances in there that Squidward sees, which are the fleas’ way of buttering him up so they can strike. But even before that happens, there’s some silly circus tricks shown to make up for the fact that the action’s about to get way itchier.
Squidward gets attacked by the fleas, as they bite him mercilessly and even plan to cook him in the oven. But Squidward won’t have that. Not without recommending different vegetables to serve him with at the very least. But SpongeBob’s able to save the day by hearing Squidward’s screams of pain from his mailbox. Who knows why he was still standing by his mailbox after the mailman came, but the point is, he saves Squidward with his ringleader techniques. He’d had hopes to train the circus fleas for some amusement, and is able to get them out of Squidward’s house successfully…before Squidward blows the whistle they’d left behind, summoning them back.
This plot template has been used so many times before that, if you’re watching the whole show in sequence like me, you have to rely on the jokes for something new. Thankfully, this episode has some good ones. The Bummer Dude & Sad Sponge commercials are already established in my mind as great, and another comedic highlight is Squidward risking cooking himself to teach the fleas how to do it right. It seems they’ve responded to the complaints that dialogue-based humour had fallen to the side in recent years, so an episode like this comes along to show that they can still do that well when they want to.
The animation in this episode is fine for what they’re doing. It could’ve looked grosser and stupider, but I’m glad it didn’t. Highlights of how it looks for me would be the backgrounds for the flea circus tent, and how they eventually become this collective sentient hive shaped like a fish. It looks like it was hard but satisfying to manage. You’ll notice that I’ve started including the storyboard artist in the opening credits to these reviews, to show that while SpongeBob is a script-driven show now, that the storyboarder still has a level of control over how the episode will turn out. We’re coming close to the end of Mike Dougherty’s tenure on the main show, and his influence on the show in the episodes following Sponge Out of Water should be considered.
The characters are portrayed quite loose here, so nothing atypical by this point. Squidward will lose his mind quite easily, then cook himself for a joke, but there’s enough of his cranky reactions to the world to keep him recogniseably Squidward. The same for SpongeBob, who doesn’t appear much, but stays optimistic and resourceful. But I have to admit, him saving the day at the last minute reminds my that I would’ve liked the episode more if he were the focus. Sure, the “SpongeBob’s new pet” well is getting quite deep now, but them starting and ending it with him being more interested in the fleas than Squidward gives the impression that I’d rather have seen him interacting with the fleas for most of this.
So while I’m lukewarm on some aspects, this would still be my favourite episode of Season 13 so far. I know, it’s getting off to a quite average start, but to focus on what I like more about this than A Place for Pets- I think this has a more fitting premise for this era. It’s bouncy, it’s weird, it’s indulgent, and that can be fun sometimes. It seems like it was a fun episode to work on, even if the end result will leave you itching for more.
6/10 (Okay)
Under the Small Top > A Place for Pets
If you’re sick of seeing Squidward getting put through pain, then don’t worry. Squidward will be just as sick tomorrow. I think.
:sbthumbs:
Originally aired April 16 2021
Episode 512 in standard order, Episode 506 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob buys some sea circus fleas, but they end up with Squidward instead
Written by Ben Gruber
Storyboard by Mike Dougherty
When this episode aired, SpongeBob had been on TV for nearly 22 years. Isn’t it amazing how many ways they’ve beat up Squidward over that time? It’s stayed a constant of the series, at the behest of some viewers who believe it’s gotten too cruel at points. But I think that if SpongeBob has to be on for as long as humanly possible, that they can still do episodes like this, as long as they’ve got a creative hook to each of them. Under the Small Top definitely does, as it’s about fleas. They maybe aren’t the most reliable parasite to base a SpongeBob episode around, just ask Sandy, but maybe a different breed to lead to something fresher.
The episode opens with a commercial for circus sea fleas. They gotta call every underwater variant of a land critter a “sea something”, huh. Well, at least their designs are cuter than when land fleas were seen, so it’s off to a fine start. SpongeBob’s apparently watching this at his mailbox, having dragged the TV out of the house. That and the mailman offering SpongeBob a million dollars, which he throws away, is a surefire clue that this episode is gonna be a little loopy. That is if the circus motif didn’t already. If the episode is telegraphing early that it’s gonna have a wild theme, then I’m more likely to go along with it.
The mailman doesn’t deliver the circus fleas to SpongeBob, accidentally delivering them to Squidward instead, who then disposes of the box. Angered, although we don’t know that yet, the fleas retaliate by breaking into Squidward’s kitchen while he’s preparing breakfast, and lifting all his food, making it appear like it’s floating. Sorry to spoil the fleas’ intentions, but it feels like there’s more to it than them just messing with Squidward by accident. And they do mess with him, as he thinks his house has been invaded by ghosts. Squidward’s been through so much that he’ll believe anything, can’t he? I’m reminded of when he thought he was dreaming in CopyBob DittoPants, or when he thought aliens were invading in Whirly Brains. But there’s also the obvious fact that he’s encountered ghosts before, like the Flying Dutchman.
In his crazed state, Squidward makes a good call by going back to bed to get some rest. But in no time, a sea flea circus materialises on top of his bedsheets, small top and everything. There’s some performances in there that Squidward sees, which are the fleas’ way of buttering him up so they can strike. But even before that happens, there’s some silly circus tricks shown to make up for the fact that the action’s about to get way itchier.
Squidward gets attacked by the fleas, as they bite him mercilessly and even plan to cook him in the oven. But Squidward won’t have that. Not without recommending different vegetables to serve him with at the very least. But SpongeBob’s able to save the day by hearing Squidward’s screams of pain from his mailbox. Who knows why he was still standing by his mailbox after the mailman came, but the point is, he saves Squidward with his ringleader techniques. He’d had hopes to train the circus fleas for some amusement, and is able to get them out of Squidward’s house successfully…before Squidward blows the whistle they’d left behind, summoning them back.
This plot template has been used so many times before that, if you’re watching the whole show in sequence like me, you have to rely on the jokes for something new. Thankfully, this episode has some good ones. The Bummer Dude & Sad Sponge commercials are already established in my mind as great, and another comedic highlight is Squidward risking cooking himself to teach the fleas how to do it right. It seems they’ve responded to the complaints that dialogue-based humour had fallen to the side in recent years, so an episode like this comes along to show that they can still do that well when they want to.
The animation in this episode is fine for what they’re doing. It could’ve looked grosser and stupider, but I’m glad it didn’t. Highlights of how it looks for me would be the backgrounds for the flea circus tent, and how they eventually become this collective sentient hive shaped like a fish. It looks like it was hard but satisfying to manage. You’ll notice that I’ve started including the storyboard artist in the opening credits to these reviews, to show that while SpongeBob is a script-driven show now, that the storyboarder still has a level of control over how the episode will turn out. We’re coming close to the end of Mike Dougherty’s tenure on the main show, and his influence on the show in the episodes following Sponge Out of Water should be considered.
The characters are portrayed quite loose here, so nothing atypical by this point. Squidward will lose his mind quite easily, then cook himself for a joke, but there’s enough of his cranky reactions to the world to keep him recogniseably Squidward. The same for SpongeBob, who doesn’t appear much, but stays optimistic and resourceful. But I have to admit, him saving the day at the last minute reminds my that I would’ve liked the episode more if he were the focus. Sure, the “SpongeBob’s new pet” well is getting quite deep now, but them starting and ending it with him being more interested in the fleas than Squidward gives the impression that I’d rather have seen him interacting with the fleas for most of this.
So while I’m lukewarm on some aspects, this would still be my favourite episode of Season 13 so far. I know, it’s getting off to a quite average start, but to focus on what I like more about this than A Place for Pets- I think this has a more fitting premise for this era. It’s bouncy, it’s weird, it’s indulgent, and that can be fun sometimes. It seems like it was a fun episode to work on, even if the end result will leave you itching for more.
6/10 (Okay)
Under the Small Top > A Place for Pets
If you’re sick of seeing Squidward getting put through pain, then don’t worry. Squidward will be just as sick tomorrow. I think.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
- Joined
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- 3,676
- Points
- 15,486
- Favorite Character
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Squidward’s Sick Daze (Season 13, Episode 2b)
Originally aired April 16 2021
Episode 513 in standard order, Episode 507 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob tends to Squidward when he fakes an illness to get out of work
Written by Ben Gruber
Storyboard by Sarah Visel
I’m not surprised there was an episode about falling ill so soon after COVID-19. That was a big deal in 2020, when this episode would’ve been produced, not that it doesn’t still effect people. I’d have thought they would shy away from sick day-esque episodes after Kwarantined Krab briefly got pulled, but I guess not. This current crew is fearless…which is why they’re making a retread of Squiditis. For those of you who have sat through Season 8 like me, you might remember that episode and just how inoffensively watchable it was. I hope they saw this as a chance to improve on aspects of that episode and make it more dynamic.
And my hope came true! This is a very good one!
It all starts with Squidward having a miserable day at the Krusty Krab, and I mean more miserable and annoying than usual. SpongeBob keeps poking him with his spatula, Mr Krabs makes messes for him to clean up, and his head eventually falls off. Not to sound cynical, but this is what watching the bad episodes can feel like a lot of the time, so impressive they were able to translate that into a visual experience. But it serves as a good foundation for what Squidward’s going through at the start of this episode. He’s so burnt out by work, and hasn’t got the time to finish his more engaging activities. What is he to do? Lie like the invertebrate he is.
Squidward phones up Mr Krabs to call in sick, but not from catching sight of the calendar, just a regular old illness so far. Krabs doesn’t buy it, in fact he sticks his eye through the phone wire to verify that Squidward is indeed healthy, but decides to play along. He turns up later today to deposit a SpongeBob to take care of the poor cephalopod, throwing a wrench into Squidward’s diabolical plan to take a break. I’m making this sound as interesting as I can, because while we’re closing in on the 500th time I’ve had to review these characters’ interplay, it’s particularly dynamic here. Mr Krabs just seems quite playful about the whole ordeal, deciding to teach Squidward a lesson while playing dumb.
We then get a couple minutes of SpongeBob tending to Squidward’s needs, mainly by helping out with his leisurely activities. He paints Squidward a portrait of their relationship, with SpongeBob as himself and Squidward being a baby with a bottle. It’s a little disturbing, but not so much that it ruins the mood. Squidward puking on the floor might, but that could add further credence to his sick act. SpongeBob then tries to play the clarinet for Squidward, but it ends with some slapstick at both of their expenses. And then later on in the kitchen, he gets Squidward’s temperature taken, which Squidward fakes with a strudel he’s baking, causing SpongeBob to (quite violently) try to get his temperature down. Any one of these could’ve been the jumping off point for the next plot beat, but I think it’s nice that they’re giving us some time to get used to the routine the episode is primarily about.
As SpongeBob starts talking about a cure, Squidward claims that his illness is something called “acute spotting sclorboritis”, or “Plerkinton’s syndrome”. SpongeBob looks it up, and discovers it to be a real and painful disease, so goes into overdrive finding a cure. This involves putting Squidward through even more pain than before, which I actually don’t mind in this context. Everyone knows medicine can be painful. From needles to pulling off a band aid to the yearly physical, it can sometimes feel worse before it feels better. Them having SpongeBob sting Squidward with jellyfish and prepare a huge variety of instruments to cut him up is a comedic exaggeration of the painful side of medicine. But as long as there’s a happy ending to all of it, hopefully it won’t put children off seeing the doctor.
And it does end well. Squidward may have been lying about having something, but that doesn’t mean SpongeBob doesn’t repair his body and soul. Handsome Squidward is back, SpongeBob did that good a job taking care of him. But this doesn’t last long. Squidward resumes his post at the Krusty Krab, and turns into a puddle of depression when he steps into the nightmare he was having that morning. It’s one way of bookending the story, but a less than triumphant way to reintroduce one of Squidward’s greatest designs.
But it doesn’t impact my overall enjoyment of the episode too much. This thing is really funny. SpongeBob happily holding a saw, no matter how nice his intentions are, will always stick with me as a comically dark visual. And it isn’t just the visual humour that works here. There’s the notion that he’s willing to go to the chilliest place in the sea just to get some ice for Squidward, him quickly finding all the names for diseases Squidward thought were bogus, and how he never quite understands why Mr Krabs is so gleeful to have him tend to Squidward. This isn’t even going over his characterization yet, just how good of a joke machine he is here.
I also like how this episode looks. Am I sounding like a broken record yet? Hopefully not, because here, it’s a bonus to the hilarious script. Much like yesterday’s episode, they push for a painful experience for Squidward, but not the audience. I’m sorry, I can’t help getting Season 6 flashbacks and going “it could’ve been worse”. Highlights for me include Squidward’s fantasies at the start, including the second one at the tropical waterfall, with the Tiki Land song and all. I should mention that they’re bringing back old background tracks more regularly, which slightly helps in making the tone closer to SpongeBob than full-on underwater Looney Tunes. Speaking of, SpongeBob’s “classic” cheek shape makes more appearances here than in maybe any episode since Lost in Bikini Bottom. My compliments to guest storyboarder, Sarah Visel.
It would be a hard sell to say SpongeBob behaves exactly how he would in the early seasons here, but I don’t mind because of how well he’s used regardless. I love his enthusiasm for everything here. He gets in over his head, but only because he wants Squidward to get well soon. His reaction when getting distracted by Squidward, that “Oh cool, a wall!“ encapsulates what he’s about here. Squidward and Mr Krabs are done well here, still totally recogniseable in this more heightened story. I’m not quite as keen on Patrick just coming in to drool on Squidward and eat his food. Doesn’t he have a spin-off to film? But again, it doesn’t drag the episode down to much.
While not flawless, I really got a kick out of Squidward’s Sick Daze. After the utter mania of the Post-Sequel era, they must’ve know we needed some time to relax, and that’s what this episode promises on paper. It’s all about Squidward fibbing his way into taking a break from it all. What they execute with that basis is still high energy, but has a foot in what may be a relatable struggle for some viewers. I can see why this may not rank high on some people’s Season 13 tier lists, but I see the value in what the characters want. What Squidward wants and what SpongeBob wants. And that makes it all worth it.
8/10 (Great)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > Under the Small Top
It looks like Season 13’s getting its act together. But can we get the band back together?
:sbthumbs:
Originally aired April 16 2021
Episode 513 in standard order, Episode 507 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob tends to Squidward when he fakes an illness to get out of work
Written by Ben Gruber
Storyboard by Sarah Visel
I’m not surprised there was an episode about falling ill so soon after COVID-19. That was a big deal in 2020, when this episode would’ve been produced, not that it doesn’t still effect people. I’d have thought they would shy away from sick day-esque episodes after Kwarantined Krab briefly got pulled, but I guess not. This current crew is fearless…which is why they’re making a retread of Squiditis. For those of you who have sat through Season 8 like me, you might remember that episode and just how inoffensively watchable it was. I hope they saw this as a chance to improve on aspects of that episode and make it more dynamic.
And my hope came true! This is a very good one!
It all starts with Squidward having a miserable day at the Krusty Krab, and I mean more miserable and annoying than usual. SpongeBob keeps poking him with his spatula, Mr Krabs makes messes for him to clean up, and his head eventually falls off. Not to sound cynical, but this is what watching the bad episodes can feel like a lot of the time, so impressive they were able to translate that into a visual experience. But it serves as a good foundation for what Squidward’s going through at the start of this episode. He’s so burnt out by work, and hasn’t got the time to finish his more engaging activities. What is he to do? Lie like the invertebrate he is.
Squidward phones up Mr Krabs to call in sick, but not from catching sight of the calendar, just a regular old illness so far. Krabs doesn’t buy it, in fact he sticks his eye through the phone wire to verify that Squidward is indeed healthy, but decides to play along. He turns up later today to deposit a SpongeBob to take care of the poor cephalopod, throwing a wrench into Squidward’s diabolical plan to take a break. I’m making this sound as interesting as I can, because while we’re closing in on the 500th time I’ve had to review these characters’ interplay, it’s particularly dynamic here. Mr Krabs just seems quite playful about the whole ordeal, deciding to teach Squidward a lesson while playing dumb.
We then get a couple minutes of SpongeBob tending to Squidward’s needs, mainly by helping out with his leisurely activities. He paints Squidward a portrait of their relationship, with SpongeBob as himself and Squidward being a baby with a bottle. It’s a little disturbing, but not so much that it ruins the mood. Squidward puking on the floor might, but that could add further credence to his sick act. SpongeBob then tries to play the clarinet for Squidward, but it ends with some slapstick at both of their expenses. And then later on in the kitchen, he gets Squidward’s temperature taken, which Squidward fakes with a strudel he’s baking, causing SpongeBob to (quite violently) try to get his temperature down. Any one of these could’ve been the jumping off point for the next plot beat, but I think it’s nice that they’re giving us some time to get used to the routine the episode is primarily about.
As SpongeBob starts talking about a cure, Squidward claims that his illness is something called “acute spotting sclorboritis”, or “Plerkinton’s syndrome”. SpongeBob looks it up, and discovers it to be a real and painful disease, so goes into overdrive finding a cure. This involves putting Squidward through even more pain than before, which I actually don’t mind in this context. Everyone knows medicine can be painful. From needles to pulling off a band aid to the yearly physical, it can sometimes feel worse before it feels better. Them having SpongeBob sting Squidward with jellyfish and prepare a huge variety of instruments to cut him up is a comedic exaggeration of the painful side of medicine. But as long as there’s a happy ending to all of it, hopefully it won’t put children off seeing the doctor.
And it does end well. Squidward may have been lying about having something, but that doesn’t mean SpongeBob doesn’t repair his body and soul. Handsome Squidward is back, SpongeBob did that good a job taking care of him. But this doesn’t last long. Squidward resumes his post at the Krusty Krab, and turns into a puddle of depression when he steps into the nightmare he was having that morning. It’s one way of bookending the story, but a less than triumphant way to reintroduce one of Squidward’s greatest designs.
But it doesn’t impact my overall enjoyment of the episode too much. This thing is really funny. SpongeBob happily holding a saw, no matter how nice his intentions are, will always stick with me as a comically dark visual. And it isn’t just the visual humour that works here. There’s the notion that he’s willing to go to the chilliest place in the sea just to get some ice for Squidward, him quickly finding all the names for diseases Squidward thought were bogus, and how he never quite understands why Mr Krabs is so gleeful to have him tend to Squidward. This isn’t even going over his characterization yet, just how good of a joke machine he is here.
I also like how this episode looks. Am I sounding like a broken record yet? Hopefully not, because here, it’s a bonus to the hilarious script. Much like yesterday’s episode, they push for a painful experience for Squidward, but not the audience. I’m sorry, I can’t help getting Season 6 flashbacks and going “it could’ve been worse”. Highlights for me include Squidward’s fantasies at the start, including the second one at the tropical waterfall, with the Tiki Land song and all. I should mention that they’re bringing back old background tracks more regularly, which slightly helps in making the tone closer to SpongeBob than full-on underwater Looney Tunes. Speaking of, SpongeBob’s “classic” cheek shape makes more appearances here than in maybe any episode since Lost in Bikini Bottom. My compliments to guest storyboarder, Sarah Visel.
It would be a hard sell to say SpongeBob behaves exactly how he would in the early seasons here, but I don’t mind because of how well he’s used regardless. I love his enthusiasm for everything here. He gets in over his head, but only because he wants Squidward to get well soon. His reaction when getting distracted by Squidward, that “Oh cool, a wall!“ encapsulates what he’s about here. Squidward and Mr Krabs are done well here, still totally recogniseable in this more heightened story. I’m not quite as keen on Patrick just coming in to drool on Squidward and eat his food. Doesn’t he have a spin-off to film? But again, it doesn’t drag the episode down to much.
While not flawless, I really got a kick out of Squidward’s Sick Daze. After the utter mania of the Post-Sequel era, they must’ve know we needed some time to relax, and that’s what this episode promises on paper. It’s all about Squidward fibbing his way into taking a break from it all. What they execute with that basis is still high energy, but has a foot in what may be a relatable struggle for some viewers. I can see why this may not rank high on some people’s Season 13 tier lists, but I see the value in what the characters want. What Squidward wants and what SpongeBob wants. And that makes it all worth it.
8/10 (Great)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > Under the Small Top
It looks like Season 13’s getting its act together. But can we get the band back together?
:sbthumbs:
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Goofy Scoopers (Season 13, Episode 3a)
Original Airdate: February 25 2022*
Episode 514 in standard order, Episode 515 in airing order
*completed in 2021
Plot: SpongeBob and Patrick try to reunite some of their favourite Goofy Goober performers
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Michelle Bryan
Something I’m pretty happy to see the show finally embracing is elements from the movie. There was a wall between Viacom and Paramount that prevented the show from using movie assets for a long time, but they finally got it cleared up by Season 11. At first, they made the Goofy Goober episodes Patrick-adjacent, with Patnocchio and The Goofy Newbie. But now, we’ve got SpongeBob in the mix, as well as a host of new animatronic mascots to use, so they want to do something new with this iconography. And I don’t mind new. Shock, I know. I review things on the internet and I don’t have an automatic “new bad” attitude, but that’s a little hard to have with Goofy Scoopers, because it’s a pretty decent romp.
SpongeBob and Patrick are enjoying themselves at Goofy Goober’s Ice Cream Party Boat, eating up the performances of the place’s staple animatronics- The Goofy Scoopers. Bongos Bear, Clem Clam and Rock T. Puss. It seems like a standard performance that the other, much younger patrons have gotten bored of, but SpongeBob and Patrick are losing it like they’re at a rock concert. It’s a little too much excitement for the manager, who kicks them out as it’s time to close up for the night. SpongeBob and Patrick then proceed to cry, having planned to get the Goofy Scoopers’ autographs. It seems they’re being extra childish today, but since this is a Goofy Goober episode, and implicitly set before SpongeBob’s character arc in the first movie, I’ll let it slide for now.
They wait outside all night for it to reopen, hoping to get some autographs from the Goofy Scoopers, only to discover that they’ve been thrown out overnight. The manager considered them too old fashioned, and has now replaced them with an ice cream mascot named DJ 2-Scoops, who plays dubstep that the kids instantly take a shine too. But not SpongeBob and Patrick, who miss their old icons, and soon plan to bring them back together for a reunion show. What I like about this conundrum is that dubstep peaked like a decade before this episode made it to air. I don’t know if DJ 2-Scoops would have young fans unless they were in a very specific nostalgic mood for his beats. I’m pointing out both the irony of dubstep being this fresh new thing, and that SpongeBob doesn’t hop to the latest trends, and waits for something to be established before considering joking about it. That, I think, is keeping their world relatively timeless.
SpongeBob and Patrick follow through on their plan to reunite the Goofy Scoopers, and they each have a new vocation they’ll have to leave. Clem Clam is now a balloon vendor at a circus, but is easy to persuade back to the big time due to his fear of clowns. So far so good for SpongeBob and Patrick, but I wasn’t expecting the clown from Don’t Feed the Clowns to have taken on a darker persona. Bongos Bear is now a masseur, and is also quick to be convinced to go back to music after his massages turn into percussion. And Rock T. Puss has the funniest new job, working at a construction site…as the construction. He’s holding a bridge together with his tentacles. He’s a very flexible robot, apparently.
Problem is, Rock doesn’t want to return to the Goofy Scoopers, much preferring holding a bridge together. This leaves the Goofy Scoopers without their lead singer, so at the reunion show, SpongeBob and Patrick have to improvise. They turn it into a heavy metal show for some reason. This doesn’t work, but miraculously, Rock T. Puss rocks back up to join them. This still doesn’t have perfect results in regaining their young audience, so then DJ 2-Scoops joins in, providing a modern flair to the Goofy Scoopers’ sound. It’s all a big, happy ending, with the manager even wearing a pacifier during the rave. If you know what that means, good for you.
Goofy Scoopers is an episode about happiness and reuniting icons, so the comedy isn’t going to be too oppressive here. There’s some weird ideas like Patrick getting signatures on his face, and the Little Clown really wanting to taunt Clem Clam for some reason. But some of the narrative humour is very good too. I love the misdirect with the SpongeBob and Patrick-shaped trash, where their plan was actually just to hijack the garbage truck. The garbage man also just agreeing to what’s going on with the Goofy Scoopers when they make it to the dump reinforces the light-hearted tone of the episode. What’s a little more grim is us seeing the bridge when it’s unattended by Rock T. Puss, but SpongeBob has always had flashed of dark humour like that to keep some audiences hooked.
It’s a Goofy Goober episode, of course it’s going to be colourful. The rave at the end satiates that itch for some vibrant colours and silly dancing, but it’s a nice-looking episode all around. Every time a new location like the Massage place or the stadium is created, the background artists never slack on it. And sure, the dumb is grosser than ever in HD, but it’s nice to see Filthy Muck’s cameo there. I’m not even a diehard fan of his episode, I just like the bonus continuity. In terms of character design, the Goofy Scoopers are all great too. Every era of SpongeBob has its own style of character design, and I think we’re in a good era for them at the moment. They’re strange, expressive, and you can tell what they’re about just by looking at them. Barbershop? That ain’t been popular since aught-six, dagnabbit!
The Goofy Scoopers are also fairly well developed characters too. Their collective character arc has to be squeezed into a fraction of an 11 minute episode, but it’s compelling enough. You forget that they’re robots sometimes, they’re so real to SpongeBob and Patrick. Clem and Rock are voiced by guest stars, with Christopher Guest returning to the show as Clem, and I like to think they only brought him back because of his surname. SpongeBob and Patrick are dialled up a bit here, but since their motivations are similar to in Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy’s debut, I can’t say they’re out of character. In fact, this might be the most balanced Patrick outing of the season yet.
There’s a lot to enjoy in this episode, but I think it would’ve had a more impactful story with a few adjustments. If SpongeBob and Patrick’s goal is similar to in a Pre-Movie episode, it’s a little distracting seeing them go about it with more modern characterizations. Plus, I feel the Goofy Scoopers would be more developed if this were an extended 15-16 minute episode. But those are a matter of taste, I can see anyone finding something to like here. It’s got a good plot structure and new set of characters, who I hope come back now. It doesn’t need to follow on from the events of thise debut, but I’m happy with the Goofy Scoopers becoming regular tertiaries.
7/10 (Good)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > Goofy Scoopers > Under the Small Top
The next episode’s going to the dogs.
:sbthumbs:
Original Airdate: February 25 2022*
Episode 514 in standard order, Episode 515 in airing order
*completed in 2021
Plot: SpongeBob and Patrick try to reunite some of their favourite Goofy Goober performers
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Michelle Bryan
Something I’m pretty happy to see the show finally embracing is elements from the movie. There was a wall between Viacom and Paramount that prevented the show from using movie assets for a long time, but they finally got it cleared up by Season 11. At first, they made the Goofy Goober episodes Patrick-adjacent, with Patnocchio and The Goofy Newbie. But now, we’ve got SpongeBob in the mix, as well as a host of new animatronic mascots to use, so they want to do something new with this iconography. And I don’t mind new. Shock, I know. I review things on the internet and I don’t have an automatic “new bad” attitude, but that’s a little hard to have with Goofy Scoopers, because it’s a pretty decent romp.
SpongeBob and Patrick are enjoying themselves at Goofy Goober’s Ice Cream Party Boat, eating up the performances of the place’s staple animatronics- The Goofy Scoopers. Bongos Bear, Clem Clam and Rock T. Puss. It seems like a standard performance that the other, much younger patrons have gotten bored of, but SpongeBob and Patrick are losing it like they’re at a rock concert. It’s a little too much excitement for the manager, who kicks them out as it’s time to close up for the night. SpongeBob and Patrick then proceed to cry, having planned to get the Goofy Scoopers’ autographs. It seems they’re being extra childish today, but since this is a Goofy Goober episode, and implicitly set before SpongeBob’s character arc in the first movie, I’ll let it slide for now.
They wait outside all night for it to reopen, hoping to get some autographs from the Goofy Scoopers, only to discover that they’ve been thrown out overnight. The manager considered them too old fashioned, and has now replaced them with an ice cream mascot named DJ 2-Scoops, who plays dubstep that the kids instantly take a shine too. But not SpongeBob and Patrick, who miss their old icons, and soon plan to bring them back together for a reunion show. What I like about this conundrum is that dubstep peaked like a decade before this episode made it to air. I don’t know if DJ 2-Scoops would have young fans unless they were in a very specific nostalgic mood for his beats. I’m pointing out both the irony of dubstep being this fresh new thing, and that SpongeBob doesn’t hop to the latest trends, and waits for something to be established before considering joking about it. That, I think, is keeping their world relatively timeless.
SpongeBob and Patrick follow through on their plan to reunite the Goofy Scoopers, and they each have a new vocation they’ll have to leave. Clem Clam is now a balloon vendor at a circus, but is easy to persuade back to the big time due to his fear of clowns. So far so good for SpongeBob and Patrick, but I wasn’t expecting the clown from Don’t Feed the Clowns to have taken on a darker persona. Bongos Bear is now a masseur, and is also quick to be convinced to go back to music after his massages turn into percussion. And Rock T. Puss has the funniest new job, working at a construction site…as the construction. He’s holding a bridge together with his tentacles. He’s a very flexible robot, apparently.
Problem is, Rock doesn’t want to return to the Goofy Scoopers, much preferring holding a bridge together. This leaves the Goofy Scoopers without their lead singer, so at the reunion show, SpongeBob and Patrick have to improvise. They turn it into a heavy metal show for some reason. This doesn’t work, but miraculously, Rock T. Puss rocks back up to join them. This still doesn’t have perfect results in regaining their young audience, so then DJ 2-Scoops joins in, providing a modern flair to the Goofy Scoopers’ sound. It’s all a big, happy ending, with the manager even wearing a pacifier during the rave. If you know what that means, good for you.
Goofy Scoopers is an episode about happiness and reuniting icons, so the comedy isn’t going to be too oppressive here. There’s some weird ideas like Patrick getting signatures on his face, and the Little Clown really wanting to taunt Clem Clam for some reason. But some of the narrative humour is very good too. I love the misdirect with the SpongeBob and Patrick-shaped trash, where their plan was actually just to hijack the garbage truck. The garbage man also just agreeing to what’s going on with the Goofy Scoopers when they make it to the dump reinforces the light-hearted tone of the episode. What’s a little more grim is us seeing the bridge when it’s unattended by Rock T. Puss, but SpongeBob has always had flashed of dark humour like that to keep some audiences hooked.
It’s a Goofy Goober episode, of course it’s going to be colourful. The rave at the end satiates that itch for some vibrant colours and silly dancing, but it’s a nice-looking episode all around. Every time a new location like the Massage place or the stadium is created, the background artists never slack on it. And sure, the dumb is grosser than ever in HD, but it’s nice to see Filthy Muck’s cameo there. I’m not even a diehard fan of his episode, I just like the bonus continuity. In terms of character design, the Goofy Scoopers are all great too. Every era of SpongeBob has its own style of character design, and I think we’re in a good era for them at the moment. They’re strange, expressive, and you can tell what they’re about just by looking at them. Barbershop? That ain’t been popular since aught-six, dagnabbit!
The Goofy Scoopers are also fairly well developed characters too. Their collective character arc has to be squeezed into a fraction of an 11 minute episode, but it’s compelling enough. You forget that they’re robots sometimes, they’re so real to SpongeBob and Patrick. Clem and Rock are voiced by guest stars, with Christopher Guest returning to the show as Clem, and I like to think they only brought him back because of his surname. SpongeBob and Patrick are dialled up a bit here, but since their motivations are similar to in Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy’s debut, I can’t say they’re out of character. In fact, this might be the most balanced Patrick outing of the season yet.
There’s a lot to enjoy in this episode, but I think it would’ve had a more impactful story with a few adjustments. If SpongeBob and Patrick’s goal is similar to in a Pre-Movie episode, it’s a little distracting seeing them go about it with more modern characterizations. Plus, I feel the Goofy Scoopers would be more developed if this were an extended 15-16 minute episode. But those are a matter of taste, I can see anyone finding something to like here. It’s got a good plot structure and new set of characters, who I hope come back now. It doesn’t need to follow on from the events of thise debut, but I’m happy with the Goofy Scoopers becoming regular tertiaries.
7/10 (Good)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > Goofy Scoopers > Under the Small Top
The next episode’s going to the dogs.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2016
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Pat the Dog (Season 13, Episode 3b)
Original Airdate: July 9 2021
Episode 515 in standard order, Episode 511 in airing order
Plot: Patrick thinks he’s a dog now
Written by Kaz
Storyboard by Mike Dougherty
If nothing else, the title’s clever. But I wasn’t looking forward to the 11 minutes which would followed that much. I love dogs, so it’s got that going for it, but this seemed like a Pat the Horse retread, which is an episode so cuckoo and unique that there’s no way you can discreetly repeat it. That and it would be an episode all about how dumb Patrick is, when they’ve got a spin-off to do that now. One of the benefits to The Patrick Star Show’s existence is that it allows that show to absord some of the more extreme and mindless comedic situations that were overtaking the new episodes, but it seems there’s still some left behind.
The episode starts with a very nice idea, SpongeBob volunteering at an animal shelter. And he’s not a saint with it either, letting the worms do whatever they want. But when Marvin the worm catcher gets a call from Squidward, he puts SpongeBob in charge of the worms while he’s away catching a pesky animal. A nice little scene of SpongeBob tending to their needs plays, before the invasive worm is introduced to the story. I hold onto this little scene, because it seems like a glimpse into a much better episode than what ended up getting made.
The animal turns out to be Patrick, who’s acting like a dog today, not that SpongeBob seems to think this is unordinary. He explains that Patrick gets like this whenever he eats pet food, which is explained so quickly that they can move on to the jokes. But it’s not reassuring when the first joke they do is Patrick urinating while SpongeBob’s carrying him. And then the next few minutes is Patrick being a menace, but pet standards. Rolling people over and creating a worm-racing derby back at the shelter. Basically, my takeaway is that Patrick’s annoying to control. It’s relieving to know nothing’s changed after all this time.
Infuriated, Marvin threatens to lock Patrick up, but SpongeBob saves Patrick from that fate by adopting him. Their pet play continues at his house, and no surprise Patrick continues to be a troublesome pet, wrecking SpongeBob’s things and giving him a sleepless night. You remember how in Dumped, Larry was a similarly difficult pet, and a point was made that SpongeBob couldn’t healthily live with him? I’m just saying, this is telegraphing that Patrick is about as bad as Larry.
The next morning, Patrick’s condition turns into a chance to beat up Squidward too, as he takes up SpongeBob’s offer to train him into being an ideal worm. What follows is Patrick getting Squidward into a lot of slapstick shenanigans, simply by having the mind of a worm. It’s not as enjoyable as it could be when Squidward is being tossed around by a character who’s in such a condition where they can’t be cognisant of Squidward’s pain. And Squidward’s reward for putting up with Patrick isn’t worth the hassle. While Marvin’s impressed with what Squidward’s done when he arrives, he gives Squidward Butcher, the shelter’s most disobedient dog, to tame, and Patrick reverts to normal very quickly after all of this. If there was any point to all of this, it’s either Patrick’s stupid or Squidward’s unlucky. I know those things.
As for jokes, there’s a couple good ones, like in nearly every episode. SpongeBob’s first encounter with Butcher sets up that he’ll have to deal with aggressive worms humourously enough, and there is one part of the second half I enjoy. Squidward being able to show off how he’s tamed Patrick by commanding him to be/do different things. It may not have the edge of being the first time they’ve done something like this, if you remember SpongeBob getting his per jellyfish to play dead, but it provides some fun visuals.
Onto the visual department, that’s as competently managed as any Season 13 romp so far. I can see Patrick panting being a fertile well for memes in the future, and the show referencing the Mocking SpongeBob meme was inevitable. I know they’re just drawing faces that they’d find enjoyment in, but that moment definitely felt like they were capitilising on SpongeBob’s memetic force, and it’s not bad if they do that sparingly. If I wanted to get extra critical, I could say the animal shelter is a dingy place to set some of the action. But it’s dingy for a reason, to show that worms can be difficult creatures to maintain. The worms themselves mostly look cuter here, especially in big crowds, so there’s that.
The character writing is what lets this one down for me. While Patrick’s condition is given a silly explanation, being stuck with a version of him that’s as brainless as possible is tiring. Not only brainless, but physically dangerous to be around too. SpongeBob can only be nice around him for so long before handing the leash to Squidward, and his personality and role are as by-the-books as Squidward can be. Butcher then just randomly becomes civilised at the end, because random. This is one where the cast feel more like heightened caricatures of themselves, and I don’t like to see that, because it gives outsiders ammunition to unfairly say the show can’t be good anymore.
In my perspective, there’s always going to be SpongeBob episodes you dislike more than others, no matter the season. It’s largely the same people working on every episode in a given block, and their genius will shine brighter sometimes. Pat the Dog doesn’t have much genius shining through very clearly. It’s kind of an excuse to dim the brain power and make something dense, and I thought they were either getting out of this or saving it for The Patrick Star Show. I personally think that this team can make much better episodes than this, with more creative uses for the animation and stronger character interactions. There’s still a lot about SpongeBob to like, and if Patrick being too much of a dog makes for one of the bad episodes, then they could be doing worse.
4/10 (Poor)
Lockdown for Love > Pat the Dog
Something more egregious this way comes, and it’ll make it here tomorrow. But not reviewed the same way the past 515 episodes were. I don’t have it in me to write thousand word text reviews anymore. On the plus side, I’ve decided to write a bunch of shorter reviews and post them all at once, so look forward to that format.
:sbthumbs:
Original Airdate: July 9 2021
Episode 515 in standard order, Episode 511 in airing order
Plot: Patrick thinks he’s a dog now
Written by Kaz
Storyboard by Mike Dougherty
If nothing else, the title’s clever. But I wasn’t looking forward to the 11 minutes which would followed that much. I love dogs, so it’s got that going for it, but this seemed like a Pat the Horse retread, which is an episode so cuckoo and unique that there’s no way you can discreetly repeat it. That and it would be an episode all about how dumb Patrick is, when they’ve got a spin-off to do that now. One of the benefits to The Patrick Star Show’s existence is that it allows that show to absord some of the more extreme and mindless comedic situations that were overtaking the new episodes, but it seems there’s still some left behind.
The episode starts with a very nice idea, SpongeBob volunteering at an animal shelter. And he’s not a saint with it either, letting the worms do whatever they want. But when Marvin the worm catcher gets a call from Squidward, he puts SpongeBob in charge of the worms while he’s away catching a pesky animal. A nice little scene of SpongeBob tending to their needs plays, before the invasive worm is introduced to the story. I hold onto this little scene, because it seems like a glimpse into a much better episode than what ended up getting made.
The animal turns out to be Patrick, who’s acting like a dog today, not that SpongeBob seems to think this is unordinary. He explains that Patrick gets like this whenever he eats pet food, which is explained so quickly that they can move on to the jokes. But it’s not reassuring when the first joke they do is Patrick urinating while SpongeBob’s carrying him. And then the next few minutes is Patrick being a menace, but pet standards. Rolling people over and creating a worm-racing derby back at the shelter. Basically, my takeaway is that Patrick’s annoying to control. It’s relieving to know nothing’s changed after all this time.
Infuriated, Marvin threatens to lock Patrick up, but SpongeBob saves Patrick from that fate by adopting him. Their pet play continues at his house, and no surprise Patrick continues to be a troublesome pet, wrecking SpongeBob’s things and giving him a sleepless night. You remember how in Dumped, Larry was a similarly difficult pet, and a point was made that SpongeBob couldn’t healthily live with him? I’m just saying, this is telegraphing that Patrick is about as bad as Larry.
The next morning, Patrick’s condition turns into a chance to beat up Squidward too, as he takes up SpongeBob’s offer to train him into being an ideal worm. What follows is Patrick getting Squidward into a lot of slapstick shenanigans, simply by having the mind of a worm. It’s not as enjoyable as it could be when Squidward is being tossed around by a character who’s in such a condition where they can’t be cognisant of Squidward’s pain. And Squidward’s reward for putting up with Patrick isn’t worth the hassle. While Marvin’s impressed with what Squidward’s done when he arrives, he gives Squidward Butcher, the shelter’s most disobedient dog, to tame, and Patrick reverts to normal very quickly after all of this. If there was any point to all of this, it’s either Patrick’s stupid or Squidward’s unlucky. I know those things.
As for jokes, there’s a couple good ones, like in nearly every episode. SpongeBob’s first encounter with Butcher sets up that he’ll have to deal with aggressive worms humourously enough, and there is one part of the second half I enjoy. Squidward being able to show off how he’s tamed Patrick by commanding him to be/do different things. It may not have the edge of being the first time they’ve done something like this, if you remember SpongeBob getting his per jellyfish to play dead, but it provides some fun visuals.
Onto the visual department, that’s as competently managed as any Season 13 romp so far. I can see Patrick panting being a fertile well for memes in the future, and the show referencing the Mocking SpongeBob meme was inevitable. I know they’re just drawing faces that they’d find enjoyment in, but that moment definitely felt like they were capitilising on SpongeBob’s memetic force, and it’s not bad if they do that sparingly. If I wanted to get extra critical, I could say the animal shelter is a dingy place to set some of the action. But it’s dingy for a reason, to show that worms can be difficult creatures to maintain. The worms themselves mostly look cuter here, especially in big crowds, so there’s that.
The character writing is what lets this one down for me. While Patrick’s condition is given a silly explanation, being stuck with a version of him that’s as brainless as possible is tiring. Not only brainless, but physically dangerous to be around too. SpongeBob can only be nice around him for so long before handing the leash to Squidward, and his personality and role are as by-the-books as Squidward can be. Butcher then just randomly becomes civilised at the end, because random. This is one where the cast feel more like heightened caricatures of themselves, and I don’t like to see that, because it gives outsiders ammunition to unfairly say the show can’t be good anymore.
In my perspective, there’s always going to be SpongeBob episodes you dislike more than others, no matter the season. It’s largely the same people working on every episode in a given block, and their genius will shine brighter sometimes. Pat the Dog doesn’t have much genius shining through very clearly. It’s kind of an excuse to dim the brain power and make something dense, and I thought they were either getting out of this or saving it for The Patrick Star Show. I personally think that this team can make much better episodes than this, with more creative uses for the animation and stronger character interactions. There’s still a lot about SpongeBob to like, and if Patrick being too much of a dog makes for one of the bad episodes, then they could be doing worse.
4/10 (Poor)
Lockdown for Love > Pat the Dog
Something more egregious this way comes, and it’ll make it here tomorrow. But not reviewed the same way the past 515 episodes were. I don’t have it in me to write thousand word text reviews anymore. On the plus side, I’ve decided to write a bunch of shorter reviews and post them all at once, so look forward to that format.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
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Something Narwhal This Way Comes (Season 13, Episode 4a)
Original Airdate: November 19 2021
Episode 516 in standard order, Episode 512 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob’s old friend from Camp Coral comes over to visit
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Piero Piluso
I was actually a little excited for this. I’m not keen on Kamp Koral, but they had to be able to do something with it in the main show. But it’s a bad sign that this is one of those “peaks with the intro” episodes. I like the dream SpongeBob has as an astronaut, but barely anything about the rest of the episode. Basically, Narlene the Narwhal breaks into SpongeBob’s house one night, and that’s a casual viewer like myself’s introduction to the character. I do know that Nobby was little in the spin-off, so making him buff in the present is a fine joke.
What isn’t a fine joke is all of Narlene’s foot gags. If she only used them a few times, that wouldn’t be so bad, but given what we’re continuously learning about Nickelodeon’s live action division, this wasn’t the right time for one of their animated shows to amp up the foot jokes. Narlene & Nobby are bringers of chaos, but by accident, so aren’t given anything to learn from their treatment of SpongeBob’s property. The rest of what’s memorable about this episode is just a bunch of hick jokes once Narlene’s brought her family over to Bikini Bottom. For good measure, they get Plankton’s southern family involved, and this appearance doesn’t have the same punch to it as their debut back in 2004. This episode is superior to Trench Billies, but that’s a low, looooow bar to clear.
3/10 (Bad)
Pat the Dog > Something Narwhal This Way Comes
C.H.U.M.S. (Season 13, Episode 4b)
Original airdate: November 19 2021
Episode 517 in standard order, Episode 513 in airing order
Plot: Plankton befriends his own creation, and comes to rule over it
Written by Ben Gruber
Storyboard by Bill Reiss & Vincent Waller
This is another one where the most memorable things don’t have to do with the bulk of it. I get a sense that the title is a reference to the sitcom Friends, which is interesting if it’s meant to be an “old show reference” because that ran at the same time as SpongeBob. I also like SpongeBob singing the F.U.N. Song to himself while working, it’s one of their more organic past episode references this season so far. It’s also kind of funny how SpongeBob instigates and ends the events of the story by complete accident. But SpongeBob’s miniscule role is the only thing I really enjoy about this episode.
On paper, I don’t mind the idea of Plankton confronting how gross his livelihood of chum is, but this episode is way too unpleasant to sit through. This is one of the most gross-out heavy episodes in a long time. Sure, the animation is better here than it was in the middle seasons, but the living chum is still hard to look at for minutes at a time. I care very little about the Chum leader, and will probably want to forget him the longer it becomes after I view this episode. At least the chum doesn’t look as gross in the battle it has with Mr Krabs, looking more like expired meat than fish guts, but that’s not a great leap. I also felt that the Bubble Bass cameo didn’t add anything, and that it all ended abruptly.
4/10 (Poor)
Pat the Dog > C.H.U.M.S. > Something Narwhal This Way Comes
SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas (Season 13, Episode 5)
Original airdate: December 10 2021
Episode 518 in standard order, Episode 514 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob saves Christmas again, and receives help from a longtime admirer
Written by Kaz
Storyboard by Benjamin Arcand
The prior 3 episodes were thankfully a slump it seems, because this one is much better. I wasn’t sure we needed another Christmas special only 3 years after Goons On the Moon, because it feels less special when they become such a frequent occurrence. But if Nickelodeon wants to clog its December schedules with SpongeBob specials, that’s their choice. This episode does something none of the other Christmas specials have done, and that’s show Santa’s workshop. I feel like I’ve seen that a hundred times in animation since I started reviewing other cartoons, but I don’t mind the way SpongeBob’s done it.
The story is that one Christmas, SpongeBob leaves a gift for Santa while Santa delivers gifts to him, but Santa doesn’t notice and it remains neglected for 7 months. So he, Patrick and Plankton head to his workshop to give it to him. Yes, Plankton joins them, offering them a ship there, but having his own secret plans to put himself on the fabled nice list. You want to know how many times SpongeBob and Patrick have trusted Plankton when they shouldn’t have? Because I haven’t kept count. I’m usually fine with them annoying him though, because in cases like this, he typically deserves it.
Perhaps the most surreal scene in this episode is when SpongeBob and Patrick meet an animated Patchy the Pirate working at a Christmas village. There’s a lot of reasons for this: the fact that he’s hand-drawn for the very first time, the fact that he’s meeting SpongeBob in person and doesn’t overreact, and the fear that they’re gonna keep animating if Patchy when/if Tom Kenny gets too old to perform as him in live action. Vincent Waller stated the reason he was animated here was for safety reasons due to COVID. But currently, this is the newest Patchy appearance I’ve seen, so I’ll wait to see where this goes.
By the time they get from one of those Christmas villages to the real North Pole, I feel like the episode’s gone on a little too long, but there’s still interesting stuff in this latter stretch of the episode. I know the elves got a bit popular in their own right, but I think the buff reindeer are funny in a Ren & Stimpy kinda way. I can take or leave the big battle the elves get into with SpongeBob and Patrick, as well as the belief Plankton has that SpongeBob’s present for Santa, a message in a bottle is the secret formula. But it leads to Plankton’s makeshift punishment for the episode, reading the message, which is a sappy letter SpongeBob wrote to Santa to express thanks for all he does.
So overall, while my least favourite Christmas episode so far, it has its moments, and is worth consideration for putting on during the holidays. The animation’s charming, and I like how SpongeBob and Patrick look. I think Benjamin Arcand did a good job on them. The story and jokes aren’t as strong as other episodes in the season, but I just know there’ll be better episodes in 2022.
Happy holidays to me!
6/10 (Okay)
Under the Small Top > SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas > A Place for Pets
Hopefully the next couple episodes are more baked than mashed.
:sbthumbs:
Original Airdate: November 19 2021
Episode 516 in standard order, Episode 512 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob’s old friend from Camp Coral comes over to visit
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Piero Piluso
I was actually a little excited for this. I’m not keen on Kamp Koral, but they had to be able to do something with it in the main show. But it’s a bad sign that this is one of those “peaks with the intro” episodes. I like the dream SpongeBob has as an astronaut, but barely anything about the rest of the episode. Basically, Narlene the Narwhal breaks into SpongeBob’s house one night, and that’s a casual viewer like myself’s introduction to the character. I do know that Nobby was little in the spin-off, so making him buff in the present is a fine joke.
What isn’t a fine joke is all of Narlene’s foot gags. If she only used them a few times, that wouldn’t be so bad, but given what we’re continuously learning about Nickelodeon’s live action division, this wasn’t the right time for one of their animated shows to amp up the foot jokes. Narlene & Nobby are bringers of chaos, but by accident, so aren’t given anything to learn from their treatment of SpongeBob’s property. The rest of what’s memorable about this episode is just a bunch of hick jokes once Narlene’s brought her family over to Bikini Bottom. For good measure, they get Plankton’s southern family involved, and this appearance doesn’t have the same punch to it as their debut back in 2004. This episode is superior to Trench Billies, but that’s a low, looooow bar to clear.
3/10 (Bad)
Pat the Dog > Something Narwhal This Way Comes
C.H.U.M.S. (Season 13, Episode 4b)
Original airdate: November 19 2021
Episode 517 in standard order, Episode 513 in airing order
Plot: Plankton befriends his own creation, and comes to rule over it
Written by Ben Gruber
Storyboard by Bill Reiss & Vincent Waller
This is another one where the most memorable things don’t have to do with the bulk of it. I get a sense that the title is a reference to the sitcom Friends, which is interesting if it’s meant to be an “old show reference” because that ran at the same time as SpongeBob. I also like SpongeBob singing the F.U.N. Song to himself while working, it’s one of their more organic past episode references this season so far. It’s also kind of funny how SpongeBob instigates and ends the events of the story by complete accident. But SpongeBob’s miniscule role is the only thing I really enjoy about this episode.
On paper, I don’t mind the idea of Plankton confronting how gross his livelihood of chum is, but this episode is way too unpleasant to sit through. This is one of the most gross-out heavy episodes in a long time. Sure, the animation is better here than it was in the middle seasons, but the living chum is still hard to look at for minutes at a time. I care very little about the Chum leader, and will probably want to forget him the longer it becomes after I view this episode. At least the chum doesn’t look as gross in the battle it has with Mr Krabs, looking more like expired meat than fish guts, but that’s not a great leap. I also felt that the Bubble Bass cameo didn’t add anything, and that it all ended abruptly.
4/10 (Poor)
Pat the Dog > C.H.U.M.S. > Something Narwhal This Way Comes
SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas (Season 13, Episode 5)
Original airdate: December 10 2021
Episode 518 in standard order, Episode 514 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob saves Christmas again, and receives help from a longtime admirer
Written by Kaz
Storyboard by Benjamin Arcand
The prior 3 episodes were thankfully a slump it seems, because this one is much better. I wasn’t sure we needed another Christmas special only 3 years after Goons On the Moon, because it feels less special when they become such a frequent occurrence. But if Nickelodeon wants to clog its December schedules with SpongeBob specials, that’s their choice. This episode does something none of the other Christmas specials have done, and that’s show Santa’s workshop. I feel like I’ve seen that a hundred times in animation since I started reviewing other cartoons, but I don’t mind the way SpongeBob’s done it.
The story is that one Christmas, SpongeBob leaves a gift for Santa while Santa delivers gifts to him, but Santa doesn’t notice and it remains neglected for 7 months. So he, Patrick and Plankton head to his workshop to give it to him. Yes, Plankton joins them, offering them a ship there, but having his own secret plans to put himself on the fabled nice list. You want to know how many times SpongeBob and Patrick have trusted Plankton when they shouldn’t have? Because I haven’t kept count. I’m usually fine with them annoying him though, because in cases like this, he typically deserves it.
Perhaps the most surreal scene in this episode is when SpongeBob and Patrick meet an animated Patchy the Pirate working at a Christmas village. There’s a lot of reasons for this: the fact that he’s hand-drawn for the very first time, the fact that he’s meeting SpongeBob in person and doesn’t overreact, and the fear that they’re gonna keep animating if Patchy when/if Tom Kenny gets too old to perform as him in live action. Vincent Waller stated the reason he was animated here was for safety reasons due to COVID. But currently, this is the newest Patchy appearance I’ve seen, so I’ll wait to see where this goes.
By the time they get from one of those Christmas villages to the real North Pole, I feel like the episode’s gone on a little too long, but there’s still interesting stuff in this latter stretch of the episode. I know the elves got a bit popular in their own right, but I think the buff reindeer are funny in a Ren & Stimpy kinda way. I can take or leave the big battle the elves get into with SpongeBob and Patrick, as well as the belief Plankton has that SpongeBob’s present for Santa, a message in a bottle is the secret formula. But it leads to Plankton’s makeshift punishment for the episode, reading the message, which is a sappy letter SpongeBob wrote to Santa to express thanks for all he does.
So overall, while my least favourite Christmas episode so far, it has its moments, and is worth consideration for putting on during the holidays. The animation’s charming, and I like how SpongeBob and Patrick look. I think Benjamin Arcand did a good job on them. The story and jokes aren’t as strong as other episodes in the season, but I just know there’ll be better episodes in 2022.
Happy holidays to me!
6/10 (Okay)
Under the Small Top > SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas > A Place for Pets
Hopefully the next couple episodes are more baked than mashed.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
- Joined
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Potato Puff (Season 13, Episode 6a)
Original airdate: April 22 2022
Episode 519 in standard order, Episode 518 in airing order
Plot: Mrs Puff replaces herself with a potato
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by David Thomas
The first thing that happens in this episode is SpongeBob almost running over a baby in a nursery, but then the baby grows super muscular legs and saves its parents. It’s rare that an episode starts with my least favourite joke, but then it gets better. Once again, SpongeBob fails his boating test, but we get a bit more of Mrs Puff’s perspective than usual. We see her call her guru about it, which she has today, and he suggests she find a way to be with SpongeBob without being with him. So she hatches a strange plan to steal a potato from the French Narrator, and replace herself with it on the next boating test so she can have some me time. Within context, it’s less strange, which is a rare delight in these seasons.
SpongeBob falls for the potato dummy, but without any instructions whatsoever, manages to cause untold destruction on the road. It’s like Mrs Puff’s nightmare from No Free Rides has become reality, while she’s chilling out at home distracted by wrestling. But she finds out via a news report, and manages to save the town from the firey destruction of her student. SpongeBob can be particularly airheaded around Mrs Puff, and that’s true today, believe the potato is her until the last minute, even after it’s mashed. This was an exciting and different-feeling Mrs Puff episode, with great expressions for her too, that only left me with one question. So the lighthouse at her boating school is a cannon now?
7/10 (Good)
Goofy Scoopers > Potato Puff > Under the Small Top
There Will Be Grease (Season 13, Episode 6b)
Original airdate: April 29 2022
Episode 520 in standard order, Episode 519 in airing order
Plot: Mr Krabs and Plankton team up to sell grease as a top-of-the-line product
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Fred Osmond
Didn’t we already do this 13 years ago? Grease somehow seems to be an alluring topic for the writers once in a while, but I don’t think how they used it here was very compelling. Mr Krabs and Plankton discover they’ve been leaving grease trails outside their restaurants for decades, and it’s combined to make a new kind of grease which they work to profit off. I’m not against them teaming these two up, it can work, but you’d think they would’ve learned a long time ago to stop teaming up for business ventures. This is where I’ll prefer episodes like Best FrEnemies and The Other Patty, where they’ll have a common goal to save their restaurants, but aren’t full-fledged business partners destined for a predictable break-up.
A lot of the jokes come from all the creative applications they can sell for this new kind of grease. At least before it causes controversies faster than Pretty Patties. The gags are hit-or-miss; it really depends on if it’s something the grease can be useful for, or something that’s too silly to imagine grease working with. The song doesn’t convince of that many. It’s another Season 13 episode where SpongeBob’s one of the best things about it. I like the realistic face the grease gives him at one point, and speaking of his face, I like how the animators are experimenting with bringing back the old cheek design. I want to see more of that. There Will Be Grease reminds me of the Plankton episodes they’d do in Season 8, and so does it being mid as heck.
5/10 (Average)
Lockdown for Love > There Will Be Grease > Pat the Dog
The Big Bad Bubble Bass (Season 13, Episode 7a)
Original airdate: May 6 2022
Episode 521 in standard order & airing order
Plot: Bubble Bass huffs and puffs and blows his chances at completing his collection
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
Of all the new little recurring trends modern SpongeBob has, I’m so far digging Karen as a fairy tale narrator. It’s a bonus that they picked a character and story that can go together well, with Bubble Bass standing in for the Big Bad Wolf. The reason he’s dressed up as a wolf in the first place is that he’s cosplaying to get a new toy, which offers a look into how his fascinating mind works. But when the toy he wants gets sold out, he tries to steal it from SpongeBob and Patrick, who’ve managed to get the last one.
Of the other things I like about the episode, there’s how grand of a foil they make SpongeBob and Patrick. Having a high security toy vault in SpongeBob’s house, then performing a dark ritual to banish the Porktastic Pigulon figure’s ghoulish possession. That whole part of the episode is the main highlight for me. The twist on the Three Little Pigs narrative that Bubble Bass is burping the houses down instead of blowing is gross, but I know I can expect Karen’s fairy tales to be pretty extreme like this, so I don’t mind. It’s a big part of the climax, but doesn’t ruin what I think is actually a pretty strong story about toy collecting. I feel good for SpongeBob and Patrick that they got their use out of the toy. This episode would probably be hated among professional toy collectors for that reason, but between this and The Card, at least the characters got their use out of the dang item the episode’s centred around.
8/10 (Great)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > The Big Bad Bubble Bass > Goofy Scoopers
Sea-Man Sponge Haters Club (Season 13, Episode 7b)
Original airdate: May 6 2022
Episode 522 in standard order & airing order
Plot: Many of SpongeBob’s friends and enemies bond over their experiences with him
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Kenny Pittenger
Call me a petty Pete, but my favourite scene in this episode is Mrs Puff’s recollection of SpongeBob as an evil driver. It keeps making the rounds on social media out of context, and people think it’s what SpongeBob looks like all the time now. That’s too funny to me. A positive is that it’s only a small part of an otherwise decent package. I have a liking for this episode for the setup alone, that Squidward has this secret club of fellow Bikini Bottomites whom SpongeBob drives insane. It feels like a story that could’ve been done at any point in the show, and the way it’s told here is distinctly Post-Sequel in a mostly positive sense.
There’s a Rashamon thing going on with how Squidward, Mrs Puff, Bubble Bass, Plankton and the mailman (who Squidward has a pre-existing relationship with) each have their own warped perspectives on SpongeBob. I really like what it says about SpongeBob’s relationship to some of the people he knows, that they’ve come to see him as a pest but he just wants to do what he can to make them happy. And I like how they draw SpongeBob here outside of the flashbacks, most of the time. There’s a good juxtaposition to him being on-model in reality, but an off-model gremlin in their minds, even if they still give him some wacky faces typical of the era. But also, Plankton’s flashback is like my thousandth reminder that Mocking SpongeBob is Tom Kenny’s favourite meme.
7/10 (Good)
Goofy Scoopers > Sea-Man Sponge Haters Club > Potato Puff
I’m hoping the next couple episodes also deliver.
:sbthumbs:
Original airdate: April 22 2022
Episode 519 in standard order, Episode 518 in airing order
Plot: Mrs Puff replaces herself with a potato
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by David Thomas
The first thing that happens in this episode is SpongeBob almost running over a baby in a nursery, but then the baby grows super muscular legs and saves its parents. It’s rare that an episode starts with my least favourite joke, but then it gets better. Once again, SpongeBob fails his boating test, but we get a bit more of Mrs Puff’s perspective than usual. We see her call her guru about it, which she has today, and he suggests she find a way to be with SpongeBob without being with him. So she hatches a strange plan to steal a potato from the French Narrator, and replace herself with it on the next boating test so she can have some me time. Within context, it’s less strange, which is a rare delight in these seasons.
SpongeBob falls for the potato dummy, but without any instructions whatsoever, manages to cause untold destruction on the road. It’s like Mrs Puff’s nightmare from No Free Rides has become reality, while she’s chilling out at home distracted by wrestling. But she finds out via a news report, and manages to save the town from the firey destruction of her student. SpongeBob can be particularly airheaded around Mrs Puff, and that’s true today, believe the potato is her until the last minute, even after it’s mashed. This was an exciting and different-feeling Mrs Puff episode, with great expressions for her too, that only left me with one question. So the lighthouse at her boating school is a cannon now?
7/10 (Good)
Goofy Scoopers > Potato Puff > Under the Small Top
There Will Be Grease (Season 13, Episode 6b)
Original airdate: April 29 2022
Episode 520 in standard order, Episode 519 in airing order
Plot: Mr Krabs and Plankton team up to sell grease as a top-of-the-line product
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Fred Osmond
Didn’t we already do this 13 years ago? Grease somehow seems to be an alluring topic for the writers once in a while, but I don’t think how they used it here was very compelling. Mr Krabs and Plankton discover they’ve been leaving grease trails outside their restaurants for decades, and it’s combined to make a new kind of grease which they work to profit off. I’m not against them teaming these two up, it can work, but you’d think they would’ve learned a long time ago to stop teaming up for business ventures. This is where I’ll prefer episodes like Best FrEnemies and The Other Patty, where they’ll have a common goal to save their restaurants, but aren’t full-fledged business partners destined for a predictable break-up.
A lot of the jokes come from all the creative applications they can sell for this new kind of grease. At least before it causes controversies faster than Pretty Patties. The gags are hit-or-miss; it really depends on if it’s something the grease can be useful for, or something that’s too silly to imagine grease working with. The song doesn’t convince of that many. It’s another Season 13 episode where SpongeBob’s one of the best things about it. I like the realistic face the grease gives him at one point, and speaking of his face, I like how the animators are experimenting with bringing back the old cheek design. I want to see more of that. There Will Be Grease reminds me of the Plankton episodes they’d do in Season 8, and so does it being mid as heck.
5/10 (Average)
Lockdown for Love > There Will Be Grease > Pat the Dog
The Big Bad Bubble Bass (Season 13, Episode 7a)
Original airdate: May 6 2022
Episode 521 in standard order & airing order
Plot: Bubble Bass huffs and puffs and blows his chances at completing his collection
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
Of all the new little recurring trends modern SpongeBob has, I’m so far digging Karen as a fairy tale narrator. It’s a bonus that they picked a character and story that can go together well, with Bubble Bass standing in for the Big Bad Wolf. The reason he’s dressed up as a wolf in the first place is that he’s cosplaying to get a new toy, which offers a look into how his fascinating mind works. But when the toy he wants gets sold out, he tries to steal it from SpongeBob and Patrick, who’ve managed to get the last one.
Of the other things I like about the episode, there’s how grand of a foil they make SpongeBob and Patrick. Having a high security toy vault in SpongeBob’s house, then performing a dark ritual to banish the Porktastic Pigulon figure’s ghoulish possession. That whole part of the episode is the main highlight for me. The twist on the Three Little Pigs narrative that Bubble Bass is burping the houses down instead of blowing is gross, but I know I can expect Karen’s fairy tales to be pretty extreme like this, so I don’t mind. It’s a big part of the climax, but doesn’t ruin what I think is actually a pretty strong story about toy collecting. I feel good for SpongeBob and Patrick that they got their use out of the toy. This episode would probably be hated among professional toy collectors for that reason, but between this and The Card, at least the characters got their use out of the dang item the episode’s centred around.
8/10 (Great)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > The Big Bad Bubble Bass > Goofy Scoopers
Sea-Man Sponge Haters Club (Season 13, Episode 7b)
Original airdate: May 6 2022
Episode 522 in standard order & airing order
Plot: Many of SpongeBob’s friends and enemies bond over their experiences with him
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Kenny Pittenger
Call me a petty Pete, but my favourite scene in this episode is Mrs Puff’s recollection of SpongeBob as an evil driver. It keeps making the rounds on social media out of context, and people think it’s what SpongeBob looks like all the time now. That’s too funny to me. A positive is that it’s only a small part of an otherwise decent package. I have a liking for this episode for the setup alone, that Squidward has this secret club of fellow Bikini Bottomites whom SpongeBob drives insane. It feels like a story that could’ve been done at any point in the show, and the way it’s told here is distinctly Post-Sequel in a mostly positive sense.
There’s a Rashamon thing going on with how Squidward, Mrs Puff, Bubble Bass, Plankton and the mailman (who Squidward has a pre-existing relationship with) each have their own warped perspectives on SpongeBob. I really like what it says about SpongeBob’s relationship to some of the people he knows, that they’ve come to see him as a pest but he just wants to do what he can to make them happy. And I like how they draw SpongeBob here outside of the flashbacks, most of the time. There’s a good juxtaposition to him being on-model in reality, but an off-model gremlin in their minds, even if they still give him some wacky faces typical of the era. But also, Plankton’s flashback is like my thousandth reminder that Mocking SpongeBob is Tom Kenny’s favourite meme.
7/10 (Good)
Goofy Scoopers > Sea-Man Sponge Haters Club > Potato Puff
I’m hoping the next couple episodes also deliver.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
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Food PBFFT! Truck (Season 13, Episode 8a)
Original airdate: May 13 2022
Plot: SpongeBob’s delivering patties in a truck, but with Squidward this time
Episode 523 in standard & airing order
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
The writers flipped a coin and it landed on the “Krusty Krab is making money today” side. But there’s a guy who doesn’t want to cross the road to order a Krabby Patty and settles for a burger from a food truck. That potential customer is such a little troll to Mr Krabs. It ticks him off so much that he puts SpongeBob and Squidward in a food truck. It’s sort of like 20,000 Patties Under the Sea again, but with a clearer goal- beat the competition. And they do so by going to Rock Bottom. The last time they went there for a scene in Out of the Picture, I wasn’t thrilled by how it was depicted, but they got one thing right here- it’s mysterious again.
I don’t think there’s any way they could one-up the original Season 1 episode, but as a sequel, bringing Squidward down there and showing new locations within it, it wasn’t lazy as far as sequel episodes go. SpongeBob and Squidward in Rock Bottom is such a fun idea, but the joke here that stuck out to me most was clowns now being a native to Rock Bottom. That makes sense. And it is pretty cool how SpongeBob is a tad more savvy to the place than Squidward. Show-wide character development is fleeting, so I’ll eat it up here. It’s one of those episodes that reminds me of others, but not to the point where I want to pause it and go back to those. It would’ve been an 8 if it was just a little funnier.
7/10
The Big Bad Bubble Bass > Food PBFFT! Truck > Goofy Scoopers
Upturn Girls (Season 13, Episode 8b)
Original airdate: May 13 2022
Episode 524 in standard & airing order
Plot: Pearl’s been living in an upturn world, until she meets up with a backstreet gal
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by Joe Crowley
This is so far the best Narlene episode of the show I’ve seen. 6/10. I can see what works about it. In the Kamp Koral days, when SpongeBob met Narlene, Pearl was a baby. So I get why they wanted her to be the next character she interacted with for a whole episode. It wasn’t a random choice. Plus the dichotomy of Pearl being a city girl and Narlene being a country girl can lead to some cultural differences worth a story. Them making a mess in a department store, near a skyscraper that literally scrapes the sky, gives Narlene a new world to play in. And as usual, it’s a vibrant world that the background and prop artists knocked out of the park.
Unfortunately, I don’t find this episode to be a laugh riot. They reveal in the main show that the posh lady’s name is Lady Upturn, and it’s clear that her shtick it getting more prolific, but not developing. They’re still making gross-out and foot jokes with Narlene, and the climax is nonsense, but at least it’s caring nonsense. There’s a sequel hook for a country episode, but what I’m gonna leave with is Nobby helping out in the kitchen with SpongeBob. He’s come a long way since those awkward first impressions as “Farmer Minion”.
6/10 (Okay)
SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas > Upturn Girls > A Place for Pets
Say Awww! (Season 13, Episode 9a)
Original airdate: May 20 2022
Episode 525 in standard & airing order
Plot: A duck eats everything
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Dan Becker
Today, Plankton’s problem is that he’s considered too dang cute by the Bikini Bottomites to pose any threat. So as revenge on the world, he builds a duckling robot that eats people when they say “Aww” in its presence. This premise is strange, both in terms of character motivation for Plankton, and the robot itself, named “QT Pi”. Plankton’s motivation is based on a problem he doesn’t face very often, so QT Pi being his next last resort is a leap of an idea. But at least it creates some interesting visual dichotomy with the forms it can take, and its name is a good bit of wordplay, something that’s been easier to find in this season so far.
Unfortunately, SpongeBob accidentally manages to find every word to describe QT Pi except “Aww”, and is left unaffected for the longest time while the rest of Bikini Bottom is taken into its mercy. But eventually, after a lot of comedic doddling, he gets eaten too, and becomes part of the solution to hatch an escape route from within the robot. In its pouch, there’s a lot of visual variety with the many Bottomites seen. It’s not just old characters too, because they have this new nurse character that I think is alright. The actual animation, the movement, is on the more exaggerated side today, which isn’t always my cup of tea. But overall, I find this episode to be exciting enough to make up for its out-there plot, even if the ending with QT Pi becoming an attraction at Glove World is a very random way to close it all up.
6/10 (Okay)
A Place for Pets > Say Awww! > Lockdown for Love
Patrick the Mailman (Season 13, Episode 9b)
Original airdate: May 20 2022
Episode 526 in standard & airing order
Plot: Patrick delivers mail across Bikini Bottom. Just not to the right houses.
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Nick Lauer & Kurt Snyder
Even though I think Patrick episodes have been some of the most uneven of the recent seasons I’ve covered, I thought this one was pretty decent. It starts with Patrick at least wanting to do something nice, take over the the mailman’s job while he takes a rest. Even better, SpongeBob helps him out, so they’ve got a charming team-up as the basis of the adventure. It was on a very strong path in the first 2 acts, with Squidward getting a beneficial gift, and the heartwarming scene of them giving Old Man Walker a package that wasn’t his.
Also, hi Kevin.
This was an unusual place to reintroduce him, and it could’ve been any minor antagonist from the series’ past (besides Bubble Bass, who appears here, but briefly). It is cool to see him fight against Patrick over something, introducing a new dynamic that could get embellished in the future. I really don’t mind when old characters are reintroduced, as long they’re here to be put in new and distinct stories. That’s why this episode has been a positive for the season so far, even if the climactic ending, with SpongeBob and Patrick comitting mail fraud, dampens my interest. They seem really invested in fighting the other mailmen, which is a stark contrast to the reason they’re delivering mail in the first place, even if their current motives come from a generous yet warped idea. I have the same feelings about this ending I had with Employee of the Month, only Post-Sequel-ified.
7/10 (Good)
Sea Man Sponge Haters Club > Patrick the Mailman > Potato Puff
For tomorrow, you best prepare for villainy, spooks and takeoff.
:sbthumbs:
Original airdate: May 13 2022
Plot: SpongeBob’s delivering patties in a truck, but with Squidward this time
Episode 523 in standard & airing order
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
The writers flipped a coin and it landed on the “Krusty Krab is making money today” side. But there’s a guy who doesn’t want to cross the road to order a Krabby Patty and settles for a burger from a food truck. That potential customer is such a little troll to Mr Krabs. It ticks him off so much that he puts SpongeBob and Squidward in a food truck. It’s sort of like 20,000 Patties Under the Sea again, but with a clearer goal- beat the competition. And they do so by going to Rock Bottom. The last time they went there for a scene in Out of the Picture, I wasn’t thrilled by how it was depicted, but they got one thing right here- it’s mysterious again.
I don’t think there’s any way they could one-up the original Season 1 episode, but as a sequel, bringing Squidward down there and showing new locations within it, it wasn’t lazy as far as sequel episodes go. SpongeBob and Squidward in Rock Bottom is such a fun idea, but the joke here that stuck out to me most was clowns now being a native to Rock Bottom. That makes sense. And it is pretty cool how SpongeBob is a tad more savvy to the place than Squidward. Show-wide character development is fleeting, so I’ll eat it up here. It’s one of those episodes that reminds me of others, but not to the point where I want to pause it and go back to those. It would’ve been an 8 if it was just a little funnier.
7/10
The Big Bad Bubble Bass > Food PBFFT! Truck > Goofy Scoopers
Upturn Girls (Season 13, Episode 8b)
Original airdate: May 13 2022
Episode 524 in standard & airing order
Plot: Pearl’s been living in an upturn world, until she meets up with a backstreet gal
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by Joe Crowley
This is so far the best Narlene episode of the show I’ve seen. 6/10. I can see what works about it. In the Kamp Koral days, when SpongeBob met Narlene, Pearl was a baby. So I get why they wanted her to be the next character she interacted with for a whole episode. It wasn’t a random choice. Plus the dichotomy of Pearl being a city girl and Narlene being a country girl can lead to some cultural differences worth a story. Them making a mess in a department store, near a skyscraper that literally scrapes the sky, gives Narlene a new world to play in. And as usual, it’s a vibrant world that the background and prop artists knocked out of the park.
Unfortunately, I don’t find this episode to be a laugh riot. They reveal in the main show that the posh lady’s name is Lady Upturn, and it’s clear that her shtick it getting more prolific, but not developing. They’re still making gross-out and foot jokes with Narlene, and the climax is nonsense, but at least it’s caring nonsense. There’s a sequel hook for a country episode, but what I’m gonna leave with is Nobby helping out in the kitchen with SpongeBob. He’s come a long way since those awkward first impressions as “Farmer Minion”.
6/10 (Okay)
SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas > Upturn Girls > A Place for Pets
Say Awww! (Season 13, Episode 9a)
Original airdate: May 20 2022
Episode 525 in standard & airing order
Plot: A duck eats everything
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Dan Becker
Today, Plankton’s problem is that he’s considered too dang cute by the Bikini Bottomites to pose any threat. So as revenge on the world, he builds a duckling robot that eats people when they say “Aww” in its presence. This premise is strange, both in terms of character motivation for Plankton, and the robot itself, named “QT Pi”. Plankton’s motivation is based on a problem he doesn’t face very often, so QT Pi being his next last resort is a leap of an idea. But at least it creates some interesting visual dichotomy with the forms it can take, and its name is a good bit of wordplay, something that’s been easier to find in this season so far.
Unfortunately, SpongeBob accidentally manages to find every word to describe QT Pi except “Aww”, and is left unaffected for the longest time while the rest of Bikini Bottom is taken into its mercy. But eventually, after a lot of comedic doddling, he gets eaten too, and becomes part of the solution to hatch an escape route from within the robot. In its pouch, there’s a lot of visual variety with the many Bottomites seen. It’s not just old characters too, because they have this new nurse character that I think is alright. The actual animation, the movement, is on the more exaggerated side today, which isn’t always my cup of tea. But overall, I find this episode to be exciting enough to make up for its out-there plot, even if the ending with QT Pi becoming an attraction at Glove World is a very random way to close it all up.
6/10 (Okay)
A Place for Pets > Say Awww! > Lockdown for Love
Patrick the Mailman (Season 13, Episode 9b)
Original airdate: May 20 2022
Episode 526 in standard & airing order
Plot: Patrick delivers mail across Bikini Bottom. Just not to the right houses.
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Nick Lauer & Kurt Snyder
Even though I think Patrick episodes have been some of the most uneven of the recent seasons I’ve covered, I thought this one was pretty decent. It starts with Patrick at least wanting to do something nice, take over the the mailman’s job while he takes a rest. Even better, SpongeBob helps him out, so they’ve got a charming team-up as the basis of the adventure. It was on a very strong path in the first 2 acts, with Squidward getting a beneficial gift, and the heartwarming scene of them giving Old Man Walker a package that wasn’t his.
Also, hi Kevin.
This was an unusual place to reintroduce him, and it could’ve been any minor antagonist from the series’ past (besides Bubble Bass, who appears here, but briefly). It is cool to see him fight against Patrick over something, introducing a new dynamic that could get embellished in the future. I really don’t mind when old characters are reintroduced, as long they’re here to be put in new and distinct stories. That’s why this episode has been a positive for the season so far, even if the climactic ending, with SpongeBob and Patrick comitting mail fraud, dampens my interest. They seem really invested in fighting the other mailmen, which is a stark contrast to the reason they’re delivering mail in the first place, even if their current motives come from a generous yet warped idea. I have the same feelings about this ending I had with Employee of the Month, only Post-Sequel-ified.
7/10 (Good)
Sea Man Sponge Haters Club > Patrick the Mailman > Potato Puff
For tomorrow, you best prepare for villainy, spooks and takeoff.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
- Joined
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- Favorite Character
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Captain Pipsqueak (Season 13, Episode 10a)
Original airdate: July 22 2022
Episode 527 in standard & airing order
Plot: Plankton tries to fit in the with the big bad guys
Written by Richard Pursel
Storyboarded by Zeus Cervas
Richard’s most recent contribution to the show to date is one of his best. An episode all about Plankton trying to join E.V.I.L. as a supervillain, but not before a chill start with Karen giving him a spa. It’s cute that she can give him a spa so easily at his size. This leads directly into the early low point of the episode that’s easy to get over- showing Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy, but keeping them mute, reminding you that there’s always gonna be something missing from the show now. This was better than their last appearance in Man Ray Returns, because it helps sells the impression that their presence in the SpongeBob universe can actually persist.
All the scenes of Plankton mingling with E.V.I.L. though? Delightful. There’s new people there besides Man Ray and the Dirty Bubble, Notodoris and The Foot, and I think they’ll integrate into the rogue’s gallery smoothly. Some others are given cameos during the audition scene, including Prawn from Battle for Bikini Bottom, which was more incredible to see than your usual old character reappearance. I’m not sure about Nosferatu though, because he’s a pal in the SpongeBob universe. Perhaps there’s more to him than we thought.
As for the story, what exactly E.V.I.L. does is still ridiculously petty. They’re just hoodlums, making it all the funnier that they had genuine menaces like the Strangler up for audition. And yet, the conclusion is that they find Plankton’s series-wide plan to be soft by their standards. It gets you to think about Plankton as a character, how he’s one of the most iconic villains in animation history, yet nearly all his schemes are just for a burger recipe. That’s what makes this a fairly important episode for him in this era.
8/10 (Great)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > Captain Pipsqueak > The Big Bad Bubble Bass
Plane to Sea (Season 13, Episode 10b)
Original airdate: July 22 2022
Episode 528 in standard & airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Patrick join Squidward on a plane trip
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by Dan Becker & Zeus Cervas
Another one of these, huh? SpongeBob and Patrick annoying Squidward, and that being every scene. I know this is a formula that the show has always had and will never do away with, but there’s gotta be a way to keep it fresh besides setting it in a new location. Now it’s on a plane, and missed opportunity to call this “Squid’s On a Plane” aside, it feels like they’ve fully slipped back to the Season 6 characterizations for this one. And to give the famed “Squidward torture” episodes from that season, like Pineapple Fever, credit, they at least had the pretense of build-up and atmosphere, whereas Plane to Sea is full-on Post-Sequel adrenaline.
This thing is all gags and little to no story or character. I don’t mind that it knows what kind of episode it is, but I still think the jokes could’ve been tighter. There’s a few I like, such as the photo they all take that turns into live action, but stuff like Patrick getting flight attendants flung out of the plane are the episode’s bread and butter. Just madness that you shouldn’t be invested in. Plus the twist joke at the end bites. You just know Squidward isn’t going to get what he wants, that’s what a majority of episodes in this style bank on, but the way it’s done here is especially blunt. So far, this season’s been as turbulent as the plane ride, and I don’t want to need a paper bag to get through it.
3/10 (Bad)
C.H.U.M.S. > Plane to Sea > Something Narwhal This Way Comes
Squidferatu (Season 13, Episode 11a)
Original airdate: October 14 2022
Episode 529 in standard & airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Squidward give Nosferatu his mail back
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Dave Becker & Fred Osmond
What if SpongeBob in Randomland was gothic? I’m sure that can give you a good idea of what Squidferatu is. SpongeBob and Squidward making a mail delivery to Nosferatu’s home after Squidward’s kept recieving it. Nosferatu going from a non-sequitor in Graveyard Shift, to a surprise return in The Night Patty, to a regular tertiary character now is a fine joke in itself, but I understand why a lot of fans simply don’t find it as effective as the original joke in Graveyard Shift. They repeat it here with the Phantom of the Opera to compensate. To give credit, Alexander Ward is giving it his all in the photos they take of him, hamming it up to spooky effect in this particular episode.
I hole it isn’t a disappointment to say that I found most of the jokes here to be rather tepid. I didn’t need to see a run over guy slowly swallowing a Krabby Patty, and the Peter Lorre guy, now called Slappy, isn’t giving me any reason to follow him on his own adventures. The best gag is the lights joke when SpongeBob and Squidward are in bed; that’s too bizzare not to laugh at. The saving grace of this episode is that it’s gorgeous. The gothic 19th century Europe look is something new, and the colour palette shift goes that extra mile in making it refreshing. I think I’m easy to please in that department though. And if more people really are watching the 1920s Nosferatu movie due to these episodes, I guess there’s a net positive.
6/10 (Okay)
Under the Small Top > Squidferatu > SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas
Slappy Daze (Season 13, Episode 11b)
Original airdate: October 22 2022
Episode 530 in standard & airing order
Plot: We follow Slappy around
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Kenny Pittenger
When I said above that Slappy isn’t the kind of character you can follow on his own, I was foreshadowing my thoughts on this shorter romp. It’s an experiment, but I’ll call out the fact it was an unsuccessful one. I can tell the staff are making it for themselves, having already based Slappy not entirely on Peter Lorre, but the caricatures of him in old Looney Tunes. So you’ve got a character who’s a reference to a referential caricature, and people wonder why his placement in the SpongeBob universe is so out of place.
The story here isn’t especially thrilling. Slappy’s on his own while Nosferatu’s at a physician, and he goes to a carnival, runs into a potential girlfriend, all the things you never thought this character could be capable of. The climactic scene of him picking Nosferatu up had something going for it, with the effect Nosferatu had on the place, but then it’s brushed over for the ending. As a whole, the atmosphere of that building and Nosferatu’s hometown are well executed, but Squidferatu did a lot of the heavy lifting in the latter department. As for jokes, I like the one with the clown squirters at the carnival the most. It’s quick and it works. But as for following a Slappy, I’d prefer the squirrel.
4/10 (Poor)
Pat the Dog > Slappy Daze > C.H.U.M.S.
Get prepared for the tidal wave that was 2023.
:sbthumbs:
Original airdate: July 22 2022
Episode 527 in standard & airing order
Plot: Plankton tries to fit in the with the big bad guys
Written by Richard Pursel
Storyboarded by Zeus Cervas
Richard’s most recent contribution to the show to date is one of his best. An episode all about Plankton trying to join E.V.I.L. as a supervillain, but not before a chill start with Karen giving him a spa. It’s cute that she can give him a spa so easily at his size. This leads directly into the early low point of the episode that’s easy to get over- showing Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy, but keeping them mute, reminding you that there’s always gonna be something missing from the show now. This was better than their last appearance in Man Ray Returns, because it helps sells the impression that their presence in the SpongeBob universe can actually persist.
All the scenes of Plankton mingling with E.V.I.L. though? Delightful. There’s new people there besides Man Ray and the Dirty Bubble, Notodoris and The Foot, and I think they’ll integrate into the rogue’s gallery smoothly. Some others are given cameos during the audition scene, including Prawn from Battle for Bikini Bottom, which was more incredible to see than your usual old character reappearance. I’m not sure about Nosferatu though, because he’s a pal in the SpongeBob universe. Perhaps there’s more to him than we thought.
As for the story, what exactly E.V.I.L. does is still ridiculously petty. They’re just hoodlums, making it all the funnier that they had genuine menaces like the Strangler up for audition. And yet, the conclusion is that they find Plankton’s series-wide plan to be soft by their standards. It gets you to think about Plankton as a character, how he’s one of the most iconic villains in animation history, yet nearly all his schemes are just for a burger recipe. That’s what makes this a fairly important episode for him in this era.
8/10 (Great)
Squidward’s Sick Daze > Captain Pipsqueak > The Big Bad Bubble Bass
Plane to Sea (Season 13, Episode 10b)
Original airdate: July 22 2022
Episode 528 in standard & airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Patrick join Squidward on a plane trip
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by Dan Becker & Zeus Cervas
Another one of these, huh? SpongeBob and Patrick annoying Squidward, and that being every scene. I know this is a formula that the show has always had and will never do away with, but there’s gotta be a way to keep it fresh besides setting it in a new location. Now it’s on a plane, and missed opportunity to call this “Squid’s On a Plane” aside, it feels like they’ve fully slipped back to the Season 6 characterizations for this one. And to give the famed “Squidward torture” episodes from that season, like Pineapple Fever, credit, they at least had the pretense of build-up and atmosphere, whereas Plane to Sea is full-on Post-Sequel adrenaline.
This thing is all gags and little to no story or character. I don’t mind that it knows what kind of episode it is, but I still think the jokes could’ve been tighter. There’s a few I like, such as the photo they all take that turns into live action, but stuff like Patrick getting flight attendants flung out of the plane are the episode’s bread and butter. Just madness that you shouldn’t be invested in. Plus the twist joke at the end bites. You just know Squidward isn’t going to get what he wants, that’s what a majority of episodes in this style bank on, but the way it’s done here is especially blunt. So far, this season’s been as turbulent as the plane ride, and I don’t want to need a paper bag to get through it.
3/10 (Bad)
C.H.U.M.S. > Plane to Sea > Something Narwhal This Way Comes
Squidferatu (Season 13, Episode 11a)
Original airdate: October 14 2022
Episode 529 in standard & airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Squidward give Nosferatu his mail back
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Dave Becker & Fred Osmond
What if SpongeBob in Randomland was gothic? I’m sure that can give you a good idea of what Squidferatu is. SpongeBob and Squidward making a mail delivery to Nosferatu’s home after Squidward’s kept recieving it. Nosferatu going from a non-sequitor in Graveyard Shift, to a surprise return in The Night Patty, to a regular tertiary character now is a fine joke in itself, but I understand why a lot of fans simply don’t find it as effective as the original joke in Graveyard Shift. They repeat it here with the Phantom of the Opera to compensate. To give credit, Alexander Ward is giving it his all in the photos they take of him, hamming it up to spooky effect in this particular episode.
I hole it isn’t a disappointment to say that I found most of the jokes here to be rather tepid. I didn’t need to see a run over guy slowly swallowing a Krabby Patty, and the Peter Lorre guy, now called Slappy, isn’t giving me any reason to follow him on his own adventures. The best gag is the lights joke when SpongeBob and Squidward are in bed; that’s too bizzare not to laugh at. The saving grace of this episode is that it’s gorgeous. The gothic 19th century Europe look is something new, and the colour palette shift goes that extra mile in making it refreshing. I think I’m easy to please in that department though. And if more people really are watching the 1920s Nosferatu movie due to these episodes, I guess there’s a net positive.
6/10 (Okay)
Under the Small Top > Squidferatu > SpongeBob’s Road to Christmas
Slappy Daze (Season 13, Episode 11b)
Original airdate: October 22 2022
Episode 530 in standard & airing order
Plot: We follow Slappy around
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Kenny Pittenger
When I said above that Slappy isn’t the kind of character you can follow on his own, I was foreshadowing my thoughts on this shorter romp. It’s an experiment, but I’ll call out the fact it was an unsuccessful one. I can tell the staff are making it for themselves, having already based Slappy not entirely on Peter Lorre, but the caricatures of him in old Looney Tunes. So you’ve got a character who’s a reference to a referential caricature, and people wonder why his placement in the SpongeBob universe is so out of place.
The story here isn’t especially thrilling. Slappy’s on his own while Nosferatu’s at a physician, and he goes to a carnival, runs into a potential girlfriend, all the things you never thought this character could be capable of. The climactic scene of him picking Nosferatu up had something going for it, with the effect Nosferatu had on the place, but then it’s brushed over for the ending. As a whole, the atmosphere of that building and Nosferatu’s hometown are well executed, but Squidferatu did a lot of the heavy lifting in the latter department. As for jokes, I like the one with the clown squirters at the carnival the most. It’s quick and it works. But as for following a Slappy, I’d prefer the squirrel.
4/10 (Poor)
Pat the Dog > Slappy Daze > C.H.U.M.S.
Get prepared for the tidal wave that was 2023.
:sbthumbs:
EmployeeAMillion
Season 13 Time!
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2016
- Messages
- 3,676
- Points
- 15,486
- Favorite Character
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Welcome to Binary Bottom (Season 13, Episode 12a)
Original airdate: January 13 2023
Episode 531 in standard & airing order
Plot: What if Bikini Bottom was populated by robots?
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Fred Osmond
2021 and 2022 were pretty quiet years for the main show, and we all know the spin-offs were the reason for that. It’s not as though the entirety of Season 13 was produced in that time, it took 3 years for it to get made from episode 1 to 26. But right around the midway point, they tried out a new format- an anthology. This is what I like to see the show doing, something new. It tracks that this was the most Nickelodeon put into promoting a special in about 6 years. The downside is that you need to check out the spin-offs to see how the overarching story thread here begins, but the upside is that it’s enough of a silly non-sequitor divorced from that context.
Frenchie introduces us to “The Tidal Zone”, a common device in more recent seasons, with its Twilight Zone influence never clearer. But it really feels like a gimmick episode for the first stretch, depicting the Bikini Bottomites as robots and banking on that for humour. The setting isn’t specified as the future, so obviously, not everything is chrome. Like virtually every episode nowadays, it’s well rendered, and I was as surprised as everyone else to see Karen depicted as a fish. But at the same time, even when the story gets chaotic with the Sandy robot head (this being one of her only appearances in Season 13 so far), it’s hard to see this episode as anything other than a gimmick. The one where they’re robots.
5/10 (Average)
Lockdown for Love > Welcome to Binary Bottom > There Will Be Grease
You’re Going to Pay…Phone (Season 13, Episode 12b)
Original airdate: January 13 2023
Episode 532 in standard & airing order
Plot: Mr Krabs buys a haunted pay phone
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
Frenchie kicks this segment off with a Night Gallery homage to shake things up, and even though this segment is the closest thing to a normal episode, it might be my favourite of the trilogy. Mr Krabs chases a quarter out of the Krusty Krab and into a pay phone. Remember those? But that pay phone is in a store owned by a blue starfish who seems to be some kind of foreign merchant. Before you can ask “It’s 2023 and they’re still doing foreign merchant jokes?”, the merchant offers it to Krabs, but Krabs ignores the obvious warnings that it’s cursed.
What follows is some decent screwery on the phone’s part. It keeps putting Mr Krabs in a trance that makes him give away things, (I like SpongeBob happily providing the patties away for free) only for him to snap out of it confused, thinking that the phone withdrawing the same quarter is it providing him with more quarters. Most of the time, Krabs getting punished for his greed can make for an effective storyline if it actually sinks in by the end, so it’s good they went all in on that with the end. Turns out there was a tiny demon in the phone, and then the demon switches places with Krabs, dooming him to be trapped with the quarters he loves so much. That’s some old fashioned karma right there.
7/10 (Good)
Sea-Man Sponge Haters Club > You’re Going to Pay…Phone > Patrick the Mailman
A Skin Wrinkle in Time (Season 13, Episode 12c)
Original airdate: January 13 2023
Episode 533 in standard & airing order
Plot: GrandPat makes it back home…or does he?
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Fred Osmond
Technically, this isn’t a standalone episode in production terms, but the reason I’m counting this as a separate episode and not the House Worming short is because it’s clearly intended to be a part of this trilogy. It’s about GrandPat from The Patrick Star Show travelling through time and getting into mishaps. First, he travels back to the beginning of SpongeBob SquarePants and replaces the title character in the theme song, a wild bit of meta humour, then he meets a cowboy and turns his family into moths. It’s only marginally more coherent than I’m making it sound.
If you’re still not keen on the spin-off continuity, these 3 minutes of time travel help in that by adding an alternate timeline angle. And for someone like me, whose exposure to The Patrick Star Show they’ve kept to a minimum, this episode offers a taste at the madness that show contains. But it’s ultimately more of a cross-promotion tool than a full-blown episode.
5/10 (Average)
There Will Be Grease > A Skin Wrinkle in Time > Pat the Dog
Abandon Twits (Season 13, Episode 13a)
Original airdate: January 20 2023
Episode 534 in standard & airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Squidward are tasked with building a boat
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Dan Becker
I actually really like this episode. It’s not a masterpiece, but it’s got chemistry, setpieces and physical comedy that all blend together very well for me. Mr Krabs brings SpongeBob and Squidward to the beach to build a yacht…out of a giant model kit. Many of the jokes in the building process are just Squidward getting beaten up by the parts, but I’m sure that’s painfully relatable to anyone who builds this sorts of models as a hobby. The good thing about this is that SpongeBob’s participation in the building is never oppressive to Squidward, he just wants to get it done and have fun with it. Thankfully, Mr Krabs douses their unfinished yacht in paint, which makes all the difference in one of the best pay-offs for the season yet.
Shortly after they’re on the lagoon, there’s a montage of SpongeBob delivering patties to the beach-goers, and that’s another season highlight for me. It’s got the right music, the right framing, the right peppy tone, it’s got some of that classic SpongeBob beach party atmosphere but in HD. There is a downer ending, with the yacht hitting an a**berg belonging to Bubble Bass. But the final joke of the yacht being handled by a sea monster that turns into a Rodney Dangerfield caricature is a special kind of out of left field. Even though it still might be a bit loose to some, I found Abandon Twits to be “ship-shape”.
8/10 (Great)
Captain Pipsqueak > Abandon Twits > The Big Bad Bubble Bass
Wallhalla (Season 13, Episode 13b)
Original airdate: January 20 2023
Episode 535 in standard & airing order
Plot: Someone’s living in SpongeBob’s walls
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
There are points in this episode where I was really, really into it. I love the idea of it, SpongeBob exploring the inside of his home’s walls and finding an entirely new world in them. The backgrounds are especially vibrant here. And it was hitting me with some banger jokes at first, like the implication that Gary does math tests. But as it went on, it struggled to maintain that momentum. Maybe I set my expectations too high, but Wallhalla felt like it got a little worse as it went on.
There’s a man who’s been living in SpongeBob’s walls, Wally Sheet, who used to be a handyman before…the incident. He’s been driven mad by SpongeBob’s shoe sounds and laughter over the years, but can’t recognise them when the sponge is right in front of him befriending him. I’ll chalk this plothole up to Wally not being of sound mind. This is all a creepy but interesting way of acknowledging how long the show’s been on. If someone was living with SpongeBob all this time, they’d be a loon by now. But unfortunately, the Patrick jokes towards the end make this so much less funny. It’s like he walked onto the set unscripted, because he doesn’t need to have a substantial role in the story. He’s a big detriment to what is otherwise a fascinating one.
6/10 (Okay)
Potato Puff > Wallhala > Under the Small Top
Thank you for indulging me in my Season 13 reviews up to its halfway point. I’ve seen the rest of it, and have a good idea of what I want to say about each episode. But I’ve got a writer’s block at the moment, so I’ll finish it some other time when I’m more relaxed. And maybe saltier.
:sbthumbs:
Original airdate: January 13 2023
Episode 531 in standard & airing order
Plot: What if Bikini Bottom was populated by robots?
Written by Mr Lawrence
Storyboard by Fred Osmond
2021 and 2022 were pretty quiet years for the main show, and we all know the spin-offs were the reason for that. It’s not as though the entirety of Season 13 was produced in that time, it took 3 years for it to get made from episode 1 to 26. But right around the midway point, they tried out a new format- an anthology. This is what I like to see the show doing, something new. It tracks that this was the most Nickelodeon put into promoting a special in about 6 years. The downside is that you need to check out the spin-offs to see how the overarching story thread here begins, but the upside is that it’s enough of a silly non-sequitor divorced from that context.
Frenchie introduces us to “The Tidal Zone”, a common device in more recent seasons, with its Twilight Zone influence never clearer. But it really feels like a gimmick episode for the first stretch, depicting the Bikini Bottomites as robots and banking on that for humour. The setting isn’t specified as the future, so obviously, not everything is chrome. Like virtually every episode nowadays, it’s well rendered, and I was as surprised as everyone else to see Karen depicted as a fish. But at the same time, even when the story gets chaotic with the Sandy robot head (this being one of her only appearances in Season 13 so far), it’s hard to see this episode as anything other than a gimmick. The one where they’re robots.
5/10 (Average)
Lockdown for Love > Welcome to Binary Bottom > There Will Be Grease
You’re Going to Pay…Phone (Season 13, Episode 12b)
Original airdate: January 13 2023
Episode 532 in standard & airing order
Plot: Mr Krabs buys a haunted pay phone
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
Frenchie kicks this segment off with a Night Gallery homage to shake things up, and even though this segment is the closest thing to a normal episode, it might be my favourite of the trilogy. Mr Krabs chases a quarter out of the Krusty Krab and into a pay phone. Remember those? But that pay phone is in a store owned by a blue starfish who seems to be some kind of foreign merchant. Before you can ask “It’s 2023 and they’re still doing foreign merchant jokes?”, the merchant offers it to Krabs, but Krabs ignores the obvious warnings that it’s cursed.
What follows is some decent screwery on the phone’s part. It keeps putting Mr Krabs in a trance that makes him give away things, (I like SpongeBob happily providing the patties away for free) only for him to snap out of it confused, thinking that the phone withdrawing the same quarter is it providing him with more quarters. Most of the time, Krabs getting punished for his greed can make for an effective storyline if it actually sinks in by the end, so it’s good they went all in on that with the end. Turns out there was a tiny demon in the phone, and then the demon switches places with Krabs, dooming him to be trapped with the quarters he loves so much. That’s some old fashioned karma right there.
7/10 (Good)
Sea-Man Sponge Haters Club > You’re Going to Pay…Phone > Patrick the Mailman
A Skin Wrinkle in Time (Season 13, Episode 12c)
Original airdate: January 13 2023
Episode 533 in standard & airing order
Plot: GrandPat makes it back home…or does he?
Written by Andrew Goodman
Storyboard by Fred Osmond
Technically, this isn’t a standalone episode in production terms, but the reason I’m counting this as a separate episode and not the House Worming short is because it’s clearly intended to be a part of this trilogy. It’s about GrandPat from The Patrick Star Show travelling through time and getting into mishaps. First, he travels back to the beginning of SpongeBob SquarePants and replaces the title character in the theme song, a wild bit of meta humour, then he meets a cowboy and turns his family into moths. It’s only marginally more coherent than I’m making it sound.
If you’re still not keen on the spin-off continuity, these 3 minutes of time travel help in that by adding an alternate timeline angle. And for someone like me, whose exposure to The Patrick Star Show they’ve kept to a minimum, this episode offers a taste at the madness that show contains. But it’s ultimately more of a cross-promotion tool than a full-blown episode.
5/10 (Average)
There Will Be Grease > A Skin Wrinkle in Time > Pat the Dog
Abandon Twits (Season 13, Episode 13a)
Original airdate: January 20 2023
Episode 534 in standard & airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Squidward are tasked with building a boat
Written by Luke Brookshier
Storyboard by Dan Becker
I actually really like this episode. It’s not a masterpiece, but it’s got chemistry, setpieces and physical comedy that all blend together very well for me. Mr Krabs brings SpongeBob and Squidward to the beach to build a yacht…out of a giant model kit. Many of the jokes in the building process are just Squidward getting beaten up by the parts, but I’m sure that’s painfully relatable to anyone who builds this sorts of models as a hobby. The good thing about this is that SpongeBob’s participation in the building is never oppressive to Squidward, he just wants to get it done and have fun with it. Thankfully, Mr Krabs douses their unfinished yacht in paint, which makes all the difference in one of the best pay-offs for the season yet.
Shortly after they’re on the lagoon, there’s a montage of SpongeBob delivering patties to the beach-goers, and that’s another season highlight for me. It’s got the right music, the right framing, the right peppy tone, it’s got some of that classic SpongeBob beach party atmosphere but in HD. There is a downer ending, with the yacht hitting an a**berg belonging to Bubble Bass. But the final joke of the yacht being handled by a sea monster that turns into a Rodney Dangerfield caricature is a special kind of out of left field. Even though it still might be a bit loose to some, I found Abandon Twits to be “ship-shape”.
8/10 (Great)
Captain Pipsqueak > Abandon Twits > The Big Bad Bubble Bass
Wallhalla (Season 13, Episode 13b)
Original airdate: January 20 2023
Episode 535 in standard & airing order
Plot: Someone’s living in SpongeBob’s walls
Written by Danny Giovannini
Storyboard by Zeus Cervas
There are points in this episode where I was really, really into it. I love the idea of it, SpongeBob exploring the inside of his home’s walls and finding an entirely new world in them. The backgrounds are especially vibrant here. And it was hitting me with some banger jokes at first, like the implication that Gary does math tests. But as it went on, it struggled to maintain that momentum. Maybe I set my expectations too high, but Wallhalla felt like it got a little worse as it went on.
There’s a man who’s been living in SpongeBob’s walls, Wally Sheet, who used to be a handyman before…the incident. He’s been driven mad by SpongeBob’s shoe sounds and laughter over the years, but can’t recognise them when the sponge is right in front of him befriending him. I’ll chalk this plothole up to Wally not being of sound mind. This is all a creepy but interesting way of acknowledging how long the show’s been on. If someone was living with SpongeBob all this time, they’d be a loon by now. But unfortunately, the Patrick jokes towards the end make this so much less funny. It’s like he walked onto the set unscripted, because he doesn’t need to have a substantial role in the story. He’s a big detriment to what is otherwise a fascinating one.
6/10 (Okay)
Potato Puff > Wallhala > Under the Small Top
Thank you for indulging me in my Season 13 reviews up to its halfway point. I’ve seen the rest of it, and have a good idea of what I want to say about each episode. But I’ve got a writer’s block at the moment, so I’ll finish it some other time when I’m more relaxed. And maybe saltier.
:sbthumbs: