"SpongeBob SquarePants" (1999) TV series 1999-????

User Rating:

8.2/10   

Creator:

Stephen Hillenburg

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Release Date:

17 July 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

Plot:

The misadventures of a fast-food restaurant working sponge who lives under the sea.

Plot Keywords:

Friend | Sponge | Starfish | Crab | Underwater

Awards:

Nominated for 7 Primetime Emmys. Another 17 wins & 15 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Tue. Nov. 10	7:30 AM	NIK	Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy III; Squirrel Jokes	#2.4
Tue. Nov. 10	8:00 AM	NIK	Bubblestand; Ripped Pants	#1.2

Cast

Jens Jacob Tychsen	...	SvampeBob Firkant (144 episodes, 1999-2009)
Tom Kenny	...	SpongeBob SquarePants / ... (104 episodes, 1999-2009)
Bill Fagerbakke	...	Patrick Star / ... (88 episodes, 1999-2009)
Rodger Bumpass	...	Squidward Tentacles / ... (82 episodes, 1999-2009)
Clancy Brown	...	Mr. Eugene H. Krabs / ... (77 episodes, 1999-2009)
Peter Zhelder	...	Blækvard Tentakkel (72 episodes, 1999-2009)
Dee Bradley Baker	...	Fish #2 / ... (67 episodes, 1999-2009)
Mr. Lawrence	...	Plankton / ... (65 episodes, 1999-2009)
Nis Bank-Mikkelsen	...	Eugene Krabbe (59 episodes, 1999-2009)

Also Known As:

SpongeBob (USA) (short title)
Spongeboy Squarepants (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Irish Gaelic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Germany:o.Al. | Canada:G (video rating) | Canada:PG (video rating) | USA:TV-Y | USA:TV-Y7 (new rating) | New Zealand:G (seasons 1-6) | South Korea:All | Argentina:Atp | Brazil:Livre | Singapore:G | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Nicktoons Productions

Trivia:

Every time a license is seen, Spongebob says something about a mustache.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At numerous points in the series, the phrase "Galley Grub" on the Krusty Krab menu is misspelled as "Gally Grub."

Quotes:

[repeated line]
SpongeBob SquarePants: I'm ready. I'm ready. I'm ready. I'm ready.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Office: Ben Franklin (#3.14)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

SpongeBob SquarePants Theme Song

Awesome During its Peak Years

SpongeBob SquarePants is a show about a sponge(resembling a yellow kitchen sponge) who lives in a pineapple under the sea. SpongeBob is a childish, naive, and innocent "adult" who shares most of his adventures with either or both of his two neighbors, Patrick Star and Squidward Tentacles. Patrick, who is also SpongeBob's best friend is well, stupid, but SpongeBob doesn't seem to care or notice most of the time. Squidward often appears like a grouch or party pooper but I think he's usually jealous of how much fun SpongeBob and Patrick can have, mainly because they can find fun in the most simple things, like playing in a cardboard box, or with just a sheet of paper. Anyway, SpongeBob and Squidward are also employees of the fast food restaurant known as the Krusty Krab, which is owned by Mr. Krabs, who is a shamelessly greedy crab, willing to tear off a man's arm for a measly penny. Another of SpongeBob's friends is Sandy Cheeks, an intelligent and tough squirrel who lives in a dome under the sea. She and SpongeBob are known for their love of karate(kay-rah-tay in SpongeBob's words).

SpongeBob's greatest strength is its broad appeal from small children to teens and adults alike. I started watching the show back when it first aired in 1999 and I never really realised how great it was until the past couple of years. The inner jokes in many of the episodes are clever compared to a majority of the other cartoons that are on t.v. nowadays. The interactions between the characters are almost always hilarious and each character has his or her own really funny quality. For example, SpongeBob's hopeless confusion when dealing with double entendres("so you want this ship to look good AND scary?...or by looking scary you forget that it doesn't look good?"), Squidward's sarcasm and cheesy puns("I'll have to find a way to drum up a band...hehe...band humor" "he didn't know an oboe from an elbow...hehe..more band humor"), Patrick's utter stupidity ("don't genius live in a lamp?" "maybe it is stupid, but it's also dumb!"), and Mr. Krabs' obsession with money("But, what about the money?!....i mean, the children!"). Some of my favorite minor characters include Plankton, the evil (and tiny) nemesis of Mr. Krabs and owner of the Chum Bucket, who won't quit trying to steal the Krabby Patty formula, and Man Ray, a sadly underused villain of SpongeBob and Patrick's favorite semi-retired crime fighters, Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy.

I think random and crazy things are funny, and SpongeBob often showcased the weirdest story lines and moments. For example, SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward get lost in a kelp forest and SpongeBob and Patrick rely on the advice of a 'magic' conch shell(which is a lot like a magic 8 ball), whereas Squidward can't believe they're listening to a toy. SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs accidentally poison a health inspector with a Krabby Patty and think they've killed him, so they try and hide the body(it also has one of my favorite lines by Mr. Krabs: "Ice? Ice? There's never been any ice. Ice is just a myth!"). I agree with Idiot Box being one of the best episodes of SpongeBob, where SpongeBob and Patrick receive a big screen television in the mail, but only want the cardboard box to play with. Squidward keeps the television for himself but SpongeBob and Patrick seem to have much more fun than him, so he keeps trying to figure out how they are having so much fun(SpongeBob explains to him that they're only using their imagination).

Sadly, as great and original as the show was from 1999-2004, I guess it had to crash sometime. The show did get new writers and a new executive producer after the show's creator, Stephen Hillenburg left. All I have to say about season's 4 and 5, is that I can hardly consider them as "SpongeBob" episodes. It's unfortunate that SpongeBob had to die this way, but what can I say? They probably think kids would appreciate a cheap imitation of SpongeBob rather than none at all. Anyway, this is still my absolute favorite cartoon of all time. The ten points are just for the first three seasons.