EmployeeAMillion
Season 12 Time!
Pineapple RV (Season 12, Episode 3b)
Original Airdate: July 17 2020* (produced in 2018, released early digitally on July 14 2020)
Episode 467 in standard order, Episode 497 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Patrick take Squidward on a trip to see a musical waterlily
Written by Luke Brookshier
On the other face of the coin, it’s not a pretty sight to see that SpongeBob’s still around producing episodes where Squidward’s life sucks, and SpongeBob and Patrick’s only role is to make it worse. Fans got tired of these plots around Season 4, and eight seasons on, they haven’t changed a whole lot. They’re easy means of putting Squidward through the gauntlet, and making SpongeBob and Patrick look more foolish than they need to. At least the core structure of Squid Abuse episodes can be garnished with clever comedy and memorable setpieces, and this is one where I really want to like the setpiece they chose. So...could this be fine?
Squidward’s preparing to go on vacation with his new RV, up a mountain called Porpoise Peak, to see the Warbling Waterlily, a flower that blooms once every 500 years. He exposits this all to SpongeBob and Patrick when they ask if they can join him on his trip. He doesn’t let them. They ask some more. Get ready for portrayals of them that are very attention hungry. They mean well and all, and even pack some stuff for Squidward, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t being annoying here, nor does it excuse their rudeness, or in Patrick’s case, accidentally undocking the RV and letting it get wrecked.
As a compromise, SpongeBob and Patrick then remove Squidward from his house while he’s sleeping, and introduce him to SpongeBob’s makeshift Pineapple RV. It’s the pineapple house on wheels, and I wish they made more jokes about this, but this is just a small portion of the story. A means to an end. Gary as a trucker is cool to see though, but Patrick really wanting to eat Squidward’s half-swallowed pancakes isn’t. And neither is the scene where the RV speeds up a really dangerous mountain with a couple recent fatalities to its name. Don’t ask me why there aren’t any rails to prevent future accidents, or why it hasn’t been blocked off in the first place after several car crashes, they wanted to make a dark joke, and by gum they did it.
They survive the trip of Porpoise Peak though, and things seem to be going well for Squidward. He’s the first in line to experience the oddly unguarded Warbling Waterlily, but Patrick yanks it out of the ground and gives it to him, where it blooms for a bit then withers up. The crowd blames Squidward for no reason and beat him up for his crime of holding the flower that Patrick hurt, but the episode isn’t done yet. It didn’t make that many jokes about the eponymous pineapple RV yet, so its solution is to forget the story and briefly become a different episode. I can’t say that’s a bad Plan B.
Squidward takes the RV and leaves SpongeBob and Patrick for dead while they’re taking a leak (did SpongeBob forget his house has a bathroom? That’s something you shouldn’t forget about your house), but Squidward feels guilty and goes back, soon discovering the two have been taken by sea bears. It turns out they’re all having a tickle fight, because sea bears love that, but they beat up Squidward, because he karate chopped one on the backside, and sea bears hate that. I forgot this scene was here until I rewatched the episode. It adds nothing and is probably just filler. Filler in a Post-Sequel episode!
After getting his RV destroyed, kidnapped, tossed around and beaten up for most of the runtime, Squidward is allowed to return home to Conch Street, and there’s some silver lining for him, but not for me as the viewer. SpongeBob’s kept the (smuggled) Warbling Waterlily safe, and it blooms again for Squidward. He and the plant play clarinet, which annoys SpongeBob and Patrick so they leave the scene. End episode. That was annoying. Squidward gets some fun with the waterlily and SpongeBob and Patrick recieve some level of just desserts, but the last thing I needed was more sensory overload for those last couple seconds.
The story might be one of the most hateable of the past few years, but there are some decent little jokes throughout the episode. I like the idea of Old Man Walker replacing Squidward as the Krusty Krab’s cashier, and Gary’s got a real winning streak now, having his cute moment to shine as autosnail of the RV. Both of those, and Patrick wrapping himself up in toilet paper, really getting the hang of it, are the parts of the episode I laughed at, the rest were painful. If you only care about the small jokes in the new seasons, not the stories or the big jokes from the stories, you may not be too bothered by Pineapple RV, I’ll say that much.
The animation here is fine enough, it’s all smooth, well-timed, and still way more interesting than Season 6, 7, 8 and 9a episodes of this nature. There are points I’m happy they didn’t just rely on being gross, like the half-swallowed pancakes only having saliva on them, and points I think they were a tad too violent, like when Squidward gets beat up by the sea bears. Still what they needed to convey, like the creepy atmosphere in Squidward’s nightmare, Gary getting tired from driving, and the Warbling Waterlily withering, they did so with good effect. It never feels like they’re putting no effort into it anymore.
The script on the other hand...this is a pretty typical portrayal of Squidward at least. He has a lapse of judgement when he abandons his neighbours at Porpoise Peak, but it’s only because his day’s going terribly, and he needs to act out somehow. SpongeBob and Patrick always mean well at least, but they are so annoying here. It’s not Ink Lemonade where they’re yelling everything, but someone was feeling nostalgic for the likes of Good Neighbors and Pineapple Fever. SpongeBob even dons those “Springer Cheeks” for a moment for the first time in a while. But the Bikini Bottomites were total Piantas towards Squidward, and the Sea Bears only feel like they’re here, again, for the purpose of reliving former glories.
In conclusion, this one kind of bites. More than the typical Annoy Squidward Day traditions this episode honours, what bothers me the most about it is these stories have so little impact now. Even if these was your favourite kind of SpongeBob plot, I’m certain there’s more than enough across the show’s whole run to keep you satiated for the rest of your life. As a longtime SpongeBob reviewer, I’m more than tired of explaining why these stories have been run into the ground, and I’ve still got the likes of Squid’s On a Bus, Insecurity Guards and Jolly Lodgers to get though. They might be better or worse than this, but their stories aren’t worth a karate chop to me anymore.
Final Verdict: 4/10 (Weak)
The Nitwitting < Pineapple RV < The Krusty Slammer
At least the next episode has more of a leg to stand on, creatively. Goodbye for now.
Original Airdate: July 17 2020* (produced in 2018, released early digitally on July 14 2020)
Episode 467 in standard order, Episode 497 in airing order
Plot: SpongeBob and Patrick take Squidward on a trip to see a musical waterlily
Written by Luke Brookshier
On the other face of the coin, it’s not a pretty sight to see that SpongeBob’s still around producing episodes where Squidward’s life sucks, and SpongeBob and Patrick’s only role is to make it worse. Fans got tired of these plots around Season 4, and eight seasons on, they haven’t changed a whole lot. They’re easy means of putting Squidward through the gauntlet, and making SpongeBob and Patrick look more foolish than they need to. At least the core structure of Squid Abuse episodes can be garnished with clever comedy and memorable setpieces, and this is one where I really want to like the setpiece they chose. So...could this be fine?
Squidward’s preparing to go on vacation with his new RV, up a mountain called Porpoise Peak, to see the Warbling Waterlily, a flower that blooms once every 500 years. He exposits this all to SpongeBob and Patrick when they ask if they can join him on his trip. He doesn’t let them. They ask some more. Get ready for portrayals of them that are very attention hungry. They mean well and all, and even pack some stuff for Squidward, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t being annoying here, nor does it excuse their rudeness, or in Patrick’s case, accidentally undocking the RV and letting it get wrecked.
As a compromise, SpongeBob and Patrick then remove Squidward from his house while he’s sleeping, and introduce him to SpongeBob’s makeshift Pineapple RV. It’s the pineapple house on wheels, and I wish they made more jokes about this, but this is just a small portion of the story. A means to an end. Gary as a trucker is cool to see though, but Patrick really wanting to eat Squidward’s half-swallowed pancakes isn’t. And neither is the scene where the RV speeds up a really dangerous mountain with a couple recent fatalities to its name. Don’t ask me why there aren’t any rails to prevent future accidents, or why it hasn’t been blocked off in the first place after several car crashes, they wanted to make a dark joke, and by gum they did it.
They survive the trip of Porpoise Peak though, and things seem to be going well for Squidward. He’s the first in line to experience the oddly unguarded Warbling Waterlily, but Patrick yanks it out of the ground and gives it to him, where it blooms for a bit then withers up. The crowd blames Squidward for no reason and beat him up for his crime of holding the flower that Patrick hurt, but the episode isn’t done yet. It didn’t make that many jokes about the eponymous pineapple RV yet, so its solution is to forget the story and briefly become a different episode. I can’t say that’s a bad Plan B.
Squidward takes the RV and leaves SpongeBob and Patrick for dead while they’re taking a leak (did SpongeBob forget his house has a bathroom? That’s something you shouldn’t forget about your house), but Squidward feels guilty and goes back, soon discovering the two have been taken by sea bears. It turns out they’re all having a tickle fight, because sea bears love that, but they beat up Squidward, because he karate chopped one on the backside, and sea bears hate that. I forgot this scene was here until I rewatched the episode. It adds nothing and is probably just filler. Filler in a Post-Sequel episode!
After getting his RV destroyed, kidnapped, tossed around and beaten up for most of the runtime, Squidward is allowed to return home to Conch Street, and there’s some silver lining for him, but not for me as the viewer. SpongeBob’s kept the (smuggled) Warbling Waterlily safe, and it blooms again for Squidward. He and the plant play clarinet, which annoys SpongeBob and Patrick so they leave the scene. End episode. That was annoying. Squidward gets some fun with the waterlily and SpongeBob and Patrick recieve some level of just desserts, but the last thing I needed was more sensory overload for those last couple seconds.
The story might be one of the most hateable of the past few years, but there are some decent little jokes throughout the episode. I like the idea of Old Man Walker replacing Squidward as the Krusty Krab’s cashier, and Gary’s got a real winning streak now, having his cute moment to shine as autosnail of the RV. Both of those, and Patrick wrapping himself up in toilet paper, really getting the hang of it, are the parts of the episode I laughed at, the rest were painful. If you only care about the small jokes in the new seasons, not the stories or the big jokes from the stories, you may not be too bothered by Pineapple RV, I’ll say that much.
The animation here is fine enough, it’s all smooth, well-timed, and still way more interesting than Season 6, 7, 8 and 9a episodes of this nature. There are points I’m happy they didn’t just rely on being gross, like the half-swallowed pancakes only having saliva on them, and points I think they were a tad too violent, like when Squidward gets beat up by the sea bears. Still what they needed to convey, like the creepy atmosphere in Squidward’s nightmare, Gary getting tired from driving, and the Warbling Waterlily withering, they did so with good effect. It never feels like they’re putting no effort into it anymore.
The script on the other hand...this is a pretty typical portrayal of Squidward at least. He has a lapse of judgement when he abandons his neighbours at Porpoise Peak, but it’s only because his day’s going terribly, and he needs to act out somehow. SpongeBob and Patrick always mean well at least, but they are so annoying here. It’s not Ink Lemonade where they’re yelling everything, but someone was feeling nostalgic for the likes of Good Neighbors and Pineapple Fever. SpongeBob even dons those “Springer Cheeks” for a moment for the first time in a while. But the Bikini Bottomites were total Piantas towards Squidward, and the Sea Bears only feel like they’re here, again, for the purpose of reliving former glories.
In conclusion, this one kind of bites. More than the typical Annoy Squidward Day traditions this episode honours, what bothers me the most about it is these stories have so little impact now. Even if these was your favourite kind of SpongeBob plot, I’m certain there’s more than enough across the show’s whole run to keep you satiated for the rest of your life. As a longtime SpongeBob reviewer, I’m more than tired of explaining why these stories have been run into the ground, and I’ve still got the likes of Squid’s On a Bus, Insecurity Guards and Jolly Lodgers to get though. They might be better or worse than this, but their stories aren’t worth a karate chop to me anymore.
Final Verdict: 4/10 (Weak)
The Nitwitting < Pineapple RV < The Krusty Slammer
At least the next episode has more of a leg to stand on, creatively. Goodbye for now.