Filler in SpongeBob

Hello there
I consider this a follow up to this topic: https://www.sbmania.net/forums/topic/59093-writers-heres-how-to-make-spongebob-great-again/
even though I didn't make that topic. but its something similar to that

anyway, a while ago (like 2 years ago?) someone made a comment about how SpongeBob doesn't have filler and that we shouldn't be complaining about filler in SpongeBob because it "just doesn't exist".

I thought about that while watching an episode and wondered "what if that person was wrong?"

and I want to explain why people would think a SpongeBob episode would have filler and why its annoying.

I need to talk about Bubble Troubles because that was the one I watched that inspired me to make this and probably has the most offensive and blatant examples of filler I've ever seen in the show.

The episode begins with SpongeBob and Patrick blowing bubbles, extremely slowly. Ok, I know what you're thinking and I agree wholeheartedly! This scene... is one of the most exciting things I've ever seen! How the bubble slowly travelled from one ::dolphin noise:: to the next, kept me on the edge of my seat!

...Ok for real, it's one of the most unexciting and uninteresting things in the show. This lasts for 3 minutes give or take. Despite the two buffoons oohing and aahing at ::dolphin noise::ing bubbles for what feels like 2 hours, SpongeBob is bored (about as much as the audience by now) and says that they need to spice up their bubble blowing. Patrick replaces the bubble mixture with a bottle of hot sauce. For the next few moments, SpongeBob and Patrick spend 2 minutes giggling and blowing hot bubbles into each others eyes as they burn up and scream and it drags on and on.
Finally, Squidward gets dragged into the scene. He gets disrupted by SpongeBob's annoying screeching and accidentally destroys his bonsai. He gets understandably upset and opens his window to angrily yell at the two morons. Of course, that can't happen and a giant hot bubble blown earlier by SpongeBob pops in Squidward's face and he is charred to ashes.

Now, what's the problem with this opening I hear you saying? Lets begin with the fact that it has nothing to do with the episode's plot.

The episode is supposedly about Sandy's dome running out of oxygen, so she, SpongeBob and Patrick venture around a couple locations in search for pockets of air for her to refresh her breath, even though about a quarter of the episode is spent on SpongeBob fumbling around with dangerous bubbles. (Honestly, this plot can fill 11 minutes. So why is the filler here?)

What does this opening have anything to do with the plot? I'll tell you:

Did that shock you?

Ok, I know what you're thinking. "But the spicy bubbles destroy Sandy's air tanks, which is what causes the conflict in the first place!"

And yes, this is true. But honestly, could they have been injected into the plot any worse? They could've done something so much more interesting with these bubbles to introduce them into the story. Heck, they don't even need them! Because Sandy says that her air tanks were clogged, so even without the bubbles the conflict could have began on that little detail to start the plot!

"Sandy needs air because her pipes are clogged", that's all you need! (Well, maybe they could also explain how they even got clogged to begin with but honestly, they don't even do that in the final episode.)

Episode openings are mostly used to establish the plot of an episode and let the viewers know why the story is even happening. I know, it wouldn't make sense to just have the episode begin with Sandy's pipes spontaneously bursting and her dome beginning to flood with no explanation. There needs to be context otherwise its gonna feel half assed. The viewer will feel left out and wonder what the ::dolphin noise:: just happened (which i find pretty funny tbh). Basically, It gives the episode some reason and motivation to occur in the first place.

OK, that's enough of that. How would I have made the opening had I been given the opportunity (god forbid)?

Why not start with SpongeBob and Patrick already at Sandy's house? Sandy is busy. SpongeBob is handling her groceries while Sandy is in her tree house thing and Patrick is bored messing around with bubbles. Patrick wonders how they could spice up bubble blowing. SpongeBob finds a bottle of hot sauce in one of the grocery bags. They have an idea. But SpongeBob takes them outside where they can't damage anything inside the dome. They switch the bubble bottle with the hot sauce and start blowing spicy bubbles everywhere. The bubbles disintegrate the air tanks and the water rushes into the tank. Sandy notices when she leaves the tree house thing and scolds SpongeBob and Patrick. They promise to help her find some more air and they take her in her submarine and this is where the plot, journey and the conflict begins.

You might be saying that this could actually be longer than what was used in the actual episode, but at least there's substance. At least it isn't just 3 minutes of two idiots screaming at each other, at least Squidward isn't horribly injured in it for no reason but to get a sick laugh, at least it establishes and segues to the plot rather than just having SpongeBob go "lol lets start the episode now"

Oh I didn't mention? At the end of the opening scene where nothing happens for 3 minutes, after Squidward gets hurt, SpongeBob deadpan just sits there and says "lets go to Sandy's house" where the episode actually starts to happen, which makes the scene feel pointless.

"sorry for making you sit through 3 minutes of nothing, here's the episode enjoy."

That pretty much proves that the whole moment was pointless and was only added to lengthen to episode to an acceptable run time.

I feel like I'm writing a novel rambling about everything this opening sequence does wrong but I think this is long enough and I'm just whining and ::dolphin noise::ing at this point so I'll stop now.

tl;dr yes filler exists in the show shut up

EDIT:
I'd like to hear your guys' thoughts about this. Lets have a discussion going.

I agree with all of this.

The Guy With the Computer said:

I agree with all of this.

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I'd like to hear more of your thoughts. I'd like to get a discussion going.

Completely agreed. I found the rest of that episode pretty good, but the opening was one of the worst scenes in SpongeBob history.

SpongeCob said:

Hello there
I consider this a follow up to this topic: https://www.sbmania.net/forums/topic/59093-writers-heres-how-to-make-spongebob-great-again/
even though I didn't make that topic. but its something similar to that

Click to expand...

Thanks for the shout-out, but how is this related to my topic? How is this a follow-up?

I disagree.

LET IT SHRIVEL UP AND DIE said:

I disagree.

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i love you

The opening to Bubble Troubles was perfect and not filler at all. The show has never had any filler in any episode ever. The closest thing would be the "cheap walk cycles" from The Lost Episode, which if that was done as filler, it just proves that SpongeBob is so perfect that it can make filler be one of the best moments in animation and TV history.

The fact that I don't remember any of the bubble stuff you're talking about basically proves it was filler

Oh shut up about filler being bad, you know very well the only reason why I would watch this show is so that I can watch Spongebob ring a doorbell for an entire minute!!!! :P

Serisualy though, I do remember thinking that the plot for that episode took too long to get started.

I'm not sure why writers were allowed to put in so much filler. Doesn't someone care about the quality of the show?! I mean, don't they have people who look over scripts and approve them?!?

SpongeBob is a Naruto wannabe.

You say that the first 3 minutes of Bubble Troubles are pointless and then proceed to point out that the spicy bubbles are what kickstart the plot. Your whole novel sized post died right there

You're mad because it's stupid and not funny. And I get that. But it isn't filler. The definition is literally "usually non-canon material that has no relation to the ongoing plot of the show". By it's very nature, this show can't have filler.

It's a friggin comedy with no overarching plot. There is no filler. There never will be. Now, something like Adventure Time? Something like the episode James II, which interrupts the flow of the arc following Finn's Dad and has nothing to do with the episodes that preceded it? I can see someone making an argument for that being filler.

This is a show where the town can blow up at the end of an episode and nobody remembers by the next. It's not a big deal. There is no filler.

Jibbix said:

You say that the first 3 minutes of Bubble Troubles are pointless and then proceed to point out that the spicy bubbles are what kickstart the plot. Your whole novel sized post died right there

You're mad because it's stupid and not funny. And I get that. But it isn't filler. The definition is literally "usually non-canon material that has no relation to the ongoing plot of the show". By it's very nature, this show can't have filler.

It's a friggin comedy with no overarching plot. There is no filler. There never will be.

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Most people and I consider it filler if 1. It's not funny or amusing 2. It has no relevance to the episode's plot or 3. The characters don't learn anything.

Also, while spicy bubbles are relevant to the plot, they don't need 3 minutes to set it up.

Jibbix said:

You say that the first 3 minutes of Bubble Troubles are pointless and then proceed to point out that the spicy bubbles are what kickstart the plot. Your whole novel sized post died right there

You're mad because it's stupid and not funny. And I get that. But it isn't filler. The definition is literally "usually non-canon material that has no relation to the ongoing plot of the show". By it's very nature, this show can't have filler.

It's a friggin comedy with no overarching plot. There is no filler. There never will be. Now, something like Adventure Time? Something like the episode James II, which interrupts the flow of the arc following Finn's Dad and has nothing to do with the episodes that preceded it? I can see someone making an argument for that being filler.

This is a show where the town can blow up at the end of an episode and nobody remembers by the next. It's not a big deal. There is no filler.

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You don't don't need 3 minutes to establish spicy bubbles. The beginning of Bubble Troubles drags like a dying tortoise before getting to the conflict.

Honest Slug said:

You don't don't need 3 minutes to establish spicy bubbles. The beginning of Bubble Troubles drags like a dying tortoise before getting to the conflict.

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Imagination said:

Most people and I consider it filler if 1. It's not funny or amusing 2. It has no relevance to the episode's plot or 3. The characters don't learn anything.

Also, while spicy bubbles are relevant to the plot, they don't need 3 minutes to set it up.

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Does it drag? Yes.
Is it stupid and unfunny? Yes.
Is it overlong? Yes.

But it establishes what drives the rest of the episode, therefore it's not filler. It IS relevant to the plot. Bad comedy? Setup that goes on way too long? Sure. Not filler. You can't just make a word mean what you want it to mean.

i love the episode bubble troubles and it's start none of it is filer because it sets up the episode

If it can be cut out of the episode without it affecting the plot whatsoever, then it's filler. So yes, I would say SpongeBob has filler.

I feel like filler can be entertaining if done creatively and in a way that makes the audience forget it's filler, but usually it's painfully obvious that it's just there to pad out the episode (The main one that comes to mind at the moment has to be in Pineapple Fever when SpongeBob spends about a minute listing all the activities they can do inside)

bad long jokes are NOT filler. Just like what jibbix said, filler is something is not relevant to the plot of the whole show. this show is a comedy, almost every episode doesn't matter for a bigger picture, so it has no filler.

"filler"

then explain this einstein

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRmQ6Tz81Xc

I dont think filler is as much of a problem in season 10 that it was in season 7