SpongeBob SquarePants

About

SpongeBob SquarePants is a long-running American television series created by Stephen Hillenburg, airing on Nickelodeon. Currently on its ninth season, the series revolves around its titular character, SpongeBob SquarePants, and his many misadventures in the underwater town of Bikini Bottom. With all kinds of entertaining and humorous moments and scenes, the show has produced several memes.

History

Stephen Hillenburg conceived SpongeBob SquarePants in 1984, while he was teaching and studying marine biology at what is now the Orange County Ocean Institute. He became interested in animation, writing a comic book entitled The Intertidal Zone that featured various anthropomorphic forms of sea creatures, many of which would evolve into SpongeBob SquarePants characters.

Among these characters was “Bob the Sponge”, who resembled an actual sea sponge, and also went under the early working name “SpongeBoy” (see above).^[12] After studying animation further, Hillenburg eventually landed a job at Nickelodeon. He successfully pitched the show to the network’s executives, and it premiered in May 1999 with the episodes “Help Wanted”, “Reef Blower”, and “Tea at the Treedome”.^[1]

Reception

The show’s first season was only a modest success, but the show eventually received worldwide popularity during its second season.^[2] The theatrical film The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie was released in November 2004 to positive reviews, with box office revenues totaling $140,161,792.^[3] The show has also found appeal with older audiences, even gaining airtime on MTV^[4] and Spike TV.^[5]IGN ranked SpongeBob SquarePants 15th on its list of the Top 100 Animated Series.^[6]Entertainment Weekly ranked the show 4th on their list of the 25 Greatest Animated TV Series.^[7]SpongeBob SquarePants has won several awards, including 7 Golden Reel Awards, 5 Annie Awards and an Emmy Award.^[8]

The show’s ninth and most recent season premiered with the episode “Extreme Spots”/“Squirrel Record”, which aired on July 21, 2012 to positive reviews from critics and drew 3.7 million American viewers.^[13][14] The same year, a follow-up theatrical sequel entitled SpongeBob SquarePants 2 was announced, which is set for a 2015 release.^[15]

Online Presence

The large popularity of SpongeBob SquarePants gave it a significant online presence, and the show has spawned several memes. Its official Facebook page has accumulated over 47 million likes as of March 2014.^[9] The official SpongeBob SquarePants’s Twitter account, as of March 2014, has accumulated 999,000 followers.^[12]

Fandom

Countless YouTube Poop videos of the series have been uploaded, while image macros of screenshots from the show and its characters are also widespread. In addition, there are numerous wiki-style resource website dedicated to show, including The SpongeBob SquarePants Wiki^[10] and SpongePedia.^[11]

Related Memes

Chocolate!

“Chocolate!” is a quote from the episode “Chocolate with Nuts”, shouted by recurring character Tom Smith. It spawned a popular YTMND fad, which has since spread to YouTube and other sites.

Handsome Squidward

Handsome Squidward / Squidward Falling is a meme based on a looped sequence from the episode “The Two Faces of Squidward”. The sequence consists of the character Squidward Tentacles, who is accidentally turned handsome in the episode, falling down in slow motion. The meme is prevalent in YouTube, where users often loop the sequence and pair it with their music of choice.

I’ll Have You Know / I Only Cried For 20 Minutes

I’ll Have You Know / I Only Cried For 20 Minutes is an image macro series based on a scene from the episode “No Weenies Allowed” typically describing minor unfortunate scenarios using the snowclone template “I’ll have you know I X / And I only cried for 20 minutes”.

Inappropriate Timing SpongeBob Banner

Inappropriate Timing SpongeBob Banner is a photoshop meme based on a bumper banner featuring SpongeBob SquarePants laughing with the caption “Up Next.” The banner is typically juxtaposed with emotional scenes from various films and television shows to mock poorly timed cross-promo ads displayed in the lower thirds during broadcast.

Moar Krabs / Morbid Krabs

Moar Krabs / Morbid Krabs is a meme based on a short scene featuring an odd-looking variation of the character Eugene Krabs in the episode “Jellyfish Hunter”. It is commonly used in YouTube Poop, usually paired with the song “Gentle Breeze” from the video game Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2.

Morbid Squidward

Morbid Squidward is an odd-looking image of Squidward from the episode “Just One Bite”, in the same fashion as Moar Krabs. Following the popularity of Moar Krabs, Morbid Squidward also became a YouTube Poop staple. It is also often paired with “Gentle Breeze” in YouTube Poop videos.

No, This Is Patrick

No, This Is Patrick is a quote spoken by the character Patrick Star in the episode “Big Pink Loser” while answering a phone call. In forums, it is often used as a response to a poster who asks something along the lines of “Is that X?” or “Is this X?”

Not When I Shift Into Maximum Overdrive

Not When I Shift Into Maximum Overdrive is a meme based on a quote by the character Sheldon J. Plankton from the episode “Krusty Krab Training Video”. It utilizes the snowclone template “Not when I shift into maximum over-X.”

Patrick Hates This Channel

Patrick Hates This Channel is an exploitable scene from the episode “Squidville”, featuring Patrick saying “I hate this channel” while pressing a remote. Scenes from various television shows and films are often edited into the scene, playing before Patrick changes channels.

Push It Somewhere Else, Patrick

Push It Somewhere Else Patrick is an image macro series based on a scene featuring the character Patrick Star from the episode “Sandy, SpongeBob and the Worm”. In the episode, Patrick provides a possible solution for dealing with the threat of an Alaskan Bull Worm, by suggesting they relocate the entire town. The captions used in the macro series typically use the snowclone template “We should take X and put it Y” or “We should X and Y" to suggest an alternative solution to a given problem.

SpongeBob Uses Too Much Sauce

SpongeBob Uses Too Much Sauce is a video meme involving a clip from the episode “The Algae’s Always Greener”, where the character Plankton scolds SpongeBob for using too much sauce in his Krabby Patties. SpongeBob’s confused and emotional reaction has become a popular clip, spawning various YouTube parodies and remixes.

Surprised Patrick

Surprised Patrick is an image of Patrick from The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie that is often photoshopped onto different base images of various humorous contexts. In the images, Patrick always appears to be in a state of shock or bewilderment with his mouth agape.

Time Cards

Time Cards are often used throughout the series, with the duration of time usually read out by a French narrator. These time cards are frequently used in rage comics.

Welcome to the Salty Spittoon. How Tough Are Ya?

“Welcome to the Salty Spittoon. How tough are ya?” is a meme based on a scene from the episode “No Weenies Allowed”. It features a character attempting to enter a bar named the Salty Spittoon, a club renowned for its toughness, by proving his toughness with a personal anecdote. Usual variations feature the character telling the club’s bouncer, Reg, part of story proving his toughness after being asked “How tough are ya?”. Following this, Reg laughs due to it alone not being considered tough. Then, an additional detail is provided that makes the story seem much more strenuous and Reg allows access.

Wumbo

Wumbo is nonsensical word coined by Patrick in the episode “Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy IV”. “Wumbo”, along with several other words derived from it (“Wumbology”, etc.), has managed to be a strongly popular fad based on its common usage in various forums and other websites.

Insane Set

Insane Set (Japanese: ハッキョーセット, Hakkyo Set) is a series of MAD remix videos based on McDonald Japan’s TV commercial for SpongeBob Squarepants-themed Happy Meal toys that aired in 2011.

X Drops by Squidward’s House

X Drops by Squidward’s House is a YouTube fad based on editing a scene from the episode “Have You Seen This Snail?” where Patrick Star and SpongeBob SquarePants walk in on Squidward Tentacles bathing. The exploitable scene is edited to replace SpongeBob and Patrick with other assorted characters.

You Like Krabby Patties, Don’t You Squidward?

You Like Krabby Patties, Don’t You Squidward? is a quote spoken by SpongeBob SquarePants in the episode “Just One Bite”. The phrase is used to caption images in which the subject smiles knowingly, usually after a realization, as well as images of SpongeBob SquarePants with aforementioned smile.

Who Put You On This Planet?

“Who Put You on the Planet?” is an expression used in online conversations as an insult towards another poster for his/her perceived stupidity or ignorance. The quote was originally said by Christian televangelist Reverend X in an episode of his public access TV program The Spirit of Truth that aired sometime in the early 2000s, but its colloquial usage came through its inclusion in an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants.

Search Interest

Google Insights shows a very large spike in searches for the show between August 2004 and July 2005, reaching its peak in November 2004 following the release of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.

External References