EmployeeAMillion
Season 12 Time!
Squirrel Jelly (Season 11, Episode 26a)
Original Airdate: November 18 2018 (Episode 460)
Plot: Sandy gets far too competitive while jellyfishing with SpongeBob and Patrick
Written by Zeus Cervas and Kaz
This seems to be the new format for season finales on this show, one 16 minute episode followed by a 6 minute short. I can get down with this, as long as they’re good in some way, and last season’s certainly was. Feral Friends took full advantage of a concept that was too big for a standard 11 minute episode, but not quite worthy of being converted into a special, and there was also Don’t Wake Patrick thrown in to fill up time. I don’t know how they messed up this formula so quickly though, because this season’s take on it almost had things the wrong way around. I’m going to start with Squirrel Jelly, Sandy’s introduction to Jellyfish Fields, and what an introduction it was.
We open on Goo Lagoon, where most of the characters happen to be. SpongeBob, Patrick and Sandy play some volleyball and partake in a hotdog eating contest, but Sandy’s impatient with how her friends take so much time just goofing around. They even just drivble the volleyball for ten minutes. This prompts her to be a more aggressive sportswoman, even when she’s playing against other people. She somehow manages to play 1 on 3 volleyball against Squidward, Mr Krabs and Larry, and wins. It’s a strong opening that displays her willingness to win, even if it’s against the wishes of her friends. Perhaps a little too strong.
SpongeBob and Patrick need a place to chill out again, but they have a pointless fight over whether it should be Jellyfish Fields. After that, the annoyance manages to continue as Sandy bothers them some more. She gets excited over the idea of jellyfishing being another sport, but they try and fail to convince her it’s just a leisurely activity. The reason it fails is because she can’t cool down, and it’s really ticking me off by this point. I keep remembering that she’s in Bikini Bottom in the first place to study the life around her, not to disturb it in the way she does. If you watched the episode, you’d know just how far out of character they push her.
As the day goes on, Sandy can’t help but catch more and more jellyfish before releasing them, becoming very dangerous by the time she’s stuffing them all into her suit. That seems to be her model of catching them throughout the next couple minutes, and the visual gags they make of it get tiresome, like they’re padding the conflict out. The only way I can still tell Sandy’s a sort of smart character around this point is when she upgrades to an astro suit, just to catch more jellyfish in a giant cage. What also really stings about this build-up of events is that SpongeBob and Patrick hate it, but don’t have the backbone to calm their friend down. You’d think they would tell her off at some point, but no that’d he logical.
The astro suit does wonders for Sandy’s hardcore take on jellyfishing, but the rocket boots set fire to Jellyfish Fields, setting it on fire, and getting SpongeBob and Patrick even more injured. Sandy’s game had gone way too far long before this point, so I find it hard to relate to her when she takes a second to realise she did a bad. Again, it’s not her job to clean and protect Bikini Bottom (yet), but this would get her in serious trouble with the chimps if we’re looking at the bigger picture. At least she realises this and goes home to meditate, but she can’t even do that without cockily claiming she’s the best at it.
The jellyfish turn against her, due to the family-friendly steroids she fed them, turning into a massive hive of jellyfish that wants to take her down, with SpongeBob and Patrick alerting her, even though she’s been a terrible friend to them all day. They get caught in the battle Sandy and the jellyfish have, where Sandy at first tries to be a pacifist, but then just dashes it all and blasts it from the inside with zen power. She doesn’t really learn anything, SpongeBob and Patrick were pretty much servants the whole way through, and Jellyfish Fields is restored back to normal for no reason. It’s a rather bad story overall that really, really didn’t require any more than 11 minutes to tell.
Another big crime with the episode is that the jokes aren’t fully realised. It’s mostly just skin-deep routines, like SpongeBob suggesting he and Patrick go jellyfishing, but Patrick also wants to go jellyfishing. Hur dur, it’s an illogical conversation. They also make some unflattering jokes out of Sandy, like her burping real hard in SpongeBob and Patrick’s faces, and releasing jellyfish from her suit’s butt, making it that much harder to put myself in her place. Something’s amiss when my favourite joke of the whole episode is the one it opens on, with SpongeBob and Patrick mindlessly dribbling their volleyball while Sandy grows impatient. It’s a good read of what both parties want to get out of sport, and it happens before the story kicks in, which is a plus.
It should be clear by now that I don’t like this episode, but the animation isn’t one of the bad things about it. Sure, there are things that could’ve been done more efficiently, like making the destruction of Jellyfish Fields more gradual, and not making Patrick’s head turn into a horse’s one at the end. That’s just disturbing after a whole episode about him being a horse where it wasn’t needed. On the flip side, I don’t mind the visual gag of the jellyfish tag teaming via a park bench, although when they feed on the Frankenstein food, then swarm together, that’s a little confusing. It would’ve made more sense without the Frankenstein food, as it would’ve vaguely taught Sandy that underwater nature isn’t a kind thing. Speaking of the climax, I also think Sandy’s zan garden looks alright, but it’s not dabbled in far enough to feel like an integral part to the story.
The characters are far too simple for this sort of story, and that’s the big problem with Sandy. It’s hard enough to like her after destroying Jellyfish Fields, but the story’s message of “don’t be a dick” isn’t quite the same as her “try to keep games fun for your friends” arc, so neither’s really completed. I’ve also already argued as to why SpongeBob and Patrick aren’t much better characters, because they don’t leave an impact on the story. Them leaving Sandy at some point would’ve added more depth to the lesson, and made them more empathetic. I get that they shouldn’t go over the edge in making SpongeBob in particular anime-level deep, but giving him wants and needs is enough to make him a legitimate character. There isn’t much to say about the other characters, they’re just there at the very start, except an injured Larry who rubs in how rough Sandy can be. Again, something I’m sure she’d be smart enough to figure out by herself.
In short, not a good start to the last episode of the season. They spiralled out of control and made Sandy a very unappealing character, and I can’t tell if they tried to keep her in-check. The whole meditation climax seems to be their way of fixing her back up, but it also feels subversive. It’s the reason I don’t like Squirrel Jelly, I can’t understand what they were doing with Sandy here. The episode isn’t totally without its draws, as there are a couple jokes buried throughout the muck, and the animation, though going towards such an awful story, is still good in places. My viewing recommendation is for those who loved Sandy in Pre-Hibernation Week, and were dying to see that side of her return. You’ll definitely be satisfied, but I’m not keen on seeing the return of the scum in a run-of-the-mill older episode.
Final Verdict: Bad 4/10 (not worth your time)
Out of the Picture < Squirrel Jelly < Sanctuary!
Question of the Day: What episode do you think screwed up Sandy’s character the most?
I don’t know if the short finale can truly pull it off.
Original Airdate: November 18 2018 (Episode 460)
Plot: Sandy gets far too competitive while jellyfishing with SpongeBob and Patrick
Written by Zeus Cervas and Kaz
This seems to be the new format for season finales on this show, one 16 minute episode followed by a 6 minute short. I can get down with this, as long as they’re good in some way, and last season’s certainly was. Feral Friends took full advantage of a concept that was too big for a standard 11 minute episode, but not quite worthy of being converted into a special, and there was also Don’t Wake Patrick thrown in to fill up time. I don’t know how they messed up this formula so quickly though, because this season’s take on it almost had things the wrong way around. I’m going to start with Squirrel Jelly, Sandy’s introduction to Jellyfish Fields, and what an introduction it was.
We open on Goo Lagoon, where most of the characters happen to be. SpongeBob, Patrick and Sandy play some volleyball and partake in a hotdog eating contest, but Sandy’s impatient with how her friends take so much time just goofing around. They even just drivble the volleyball for ten minutes. This prompts her to be a more aggressive sportswoman, even when she’s playing against other people. She somehow manages to play 1 on 3 volleyball against Squidward, Mr Krabs and Larry, and wins. It’s a strong opening that displays her willingness to win, even if it’s against the wishes of her friends. Perhaps a little too strong.
SpongeBob and Patrick need a place to chill out again, but they have a pointless fight over whether it should be Jellyfish Fields. After that, the annoyance manages to continue as Sandy bothers them some more. She gets excited over the idea of jellyfishing being another sport, but they try and fail to convince her it’s just a leisurely activity. The reason it fails is because she can’t cool down, and it’s really ticking me off by this point. I keep remembering that she’s in Bikini Bottom in the first place to study the life around her, not to disturb it in the way she does. If you watched the episode, you’d know just how far out of character they push her.
As the day goes on, Sandy can’t help but catch more and more jellyfish before releasing them, becoming very dangerous by the time she’s stuffing them all into her suit. That seems to be her model of catching them throughout the next couple minutes, and the visual gags they make of it get tiresome, like they’re padding the conflict out. The only way I can still tell Sandy’s a sort of smart character around this point is when she upgrades to an astro suit, just to catch more jellyfish in a giant cage. What also really stings about this build-up of events is that SpongeBob and Patrick hate it, but don’t have the backbone to calm their friend down. You’d think they would tell her off at some point, but no that’d he logical.
The astro suit does wonders for Sandy’s hardcore take on jellyfishing, but the rocket boots set fire to Jellyfish Fields, setting it on fire, and getting SpongeBob and Patrick even more injured. Sandy’s game had gone way too far long before this point, so I find it hard to relate to her when she takes a second to realise she did a bad. Again, it’s not her job to clean and protect Bikini Bottom (yet), but this would get her in serious trouble with the chimps if we’re looking at the bigger picture. At least she realises this and goes home to meditate, but she can’t even do that without cockily claiming she’s the best at it.
The jellyfish turn against her, due to the family-friendly steroids she fed them, turning into a massive hive of jellyfish that wants to take her down, with SpongeBob and Patrick alerting her, even though she’s been a terrible friend to them all day. They get caught in the battle Sandy and the jellyfish have, where Sandy at first tries to be a pacifist, but then just dashes it all and blasts it from the inside with zen power. She doesn’t really learn anything, SpongeBob and Patrick were pretty much servants the whole way through, and Jellyfish Fields is restored back to normal for no reason. It’s a rather bad story overall that really, really didn’t require any more than 11 minutes to tell.
Another big crime with the episode is that the jokes aren’t fully realised. It’s mostly just skin-deep routines, like SpongeBob suggesting he and Patrick go jellyfishing, but Patrick also wants to go jellyfishing. Hur dur, it’s an illogical conversation. They also make some unflattering jokes out of Sandy, like her burping real hard in SpongeBob and Patrick’s faces, and releasing jellyfish from her suit’s butt, making it that much harder to put myself in her place. Something’s amiss when my favourite joke of the whole episode is the one it opens on, with SpongeBob and Patrick mindlessly dribbling their volleyball while Sandy grows impatient. It’s a good read of what both parties want to get out of sport, and it happens before the story kicks in, which is a plus.
It should be clear by now that I don’t like this episode, but the animation isn’t one of the bad things about it. Sure, there are things that could’ve been done more efficiently, like making the destruction of Jellyfish Fields more gradual, and not making Patrick’s head turn into a horse’s one at the end. That’s just disturbing after a whole episode about him being a horse where it wasn’t needed. On the flip side, I don’t mind the visual gag of the jellyfish tag teaming via a park bench, although when they feed on the Frankenstein food, then swarm together, that’s a little confusing. It would’ve made more sense without the Frankenstein food, as it would’ve vaguely taught Sandy that underwater nature isn’t a kind thing. Speaking of the climax, I also think Sandy’s zan garden looks alright, but it’s not dabbled in far enough to feel like an integral part to the story.
The characters are far too simple for this sort of story, and that’s the big problem with Sandy. It’s hard enough to like her after destroying Jellyfish Fields, but the story’s message of “don’t be a dick” isn’t quite the same as her “try to keep games fun for your friends” arc, so neither’s really completed. I’ve also already argued as to why SpongeBob and Patrick aren’t much better characters, because they don’t leave an impact on the story. Them leaving Sandy at some point would’ve added more depth to the lesson, and made them more empathetic. I get that they shouldn’t go over the edge in making SpongeBob in particular anime-level deep, but giving him wants and needs is enough to make him a legitimate character. There isn’t much to say about the other characters, they’re just there at the very start, except an injured Larry who rubs in how rough Sandy can be. Again, something I’m sure she’d be smart enough to figure out by herself.
In short, not a good start to the last episode of the season. They spiralled out of control and made Sandy a very unappealing character, and I can’t tell if they tried to keep her in-check. The whole meditation climax seems to be their way of fixing her back up, but it also feels subversive. It’s the reason I don’t like Squirrel Jelly, I can’t understand what they were doing with Sandy here. The episode isn’t totally without its draws, as there are a couple jokes buried throughout the muck, and the animation, though going towards such an awful story, is still good in places. My viewing recommendation is for those who loved Sandy in Pre-Hibernation Week, and were dying to see that side of her return. You’ll definitely be satisfied, but I’m not keen on seeing the return of the scum in a run-of-the-mill older episode.
Final Verdict: Bad 4/10 (not worth your time)
Out of the Picture < Squirrel Jelly < Sanctuary!
Question of the Day: What episode do you think screwed up Sandy’s character the most?
I don’t know if the short finale can truly pull it off.