099b. SpongeHenge

My 2nd least favorite episode (my first is The Great Patty Caper
 
The episode is horrible, but the best part is the argument over who's ruler of the sea at the beginning.

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I gonna mention someone here. Hey @Da Appetizer? I think you might disagree with this but im neutral to this one. YES MY FRIENDS I AM NEUTRAL! The plot is dark i kinda like dark stuff but SpongeHenge had some decent jokes. That tune was pretty great to hear in my ears but the ending? The ending was easily the lowlight of this episode.

Rating: Okay Episode

Rankings:
Roller Cowards (Perfect)
The Two Faces of Squidward (Perfect)
Friend or Foe (Perfect)
Mermaid Man Vs. SpongeBob (Perfect)
Goo Goo Gas (Amazing!)
Spy Buddies (Amazing!)
SpongeBob Vs. The Patty Gadget (Amazing!)
20,000 Patties Under the Sea (Amazing!)
Atlantis SquarePantis (Great)
Sing a Song of Patrick (Great)
Bucket Sweet Bucket (Great)
Krab a la Mode (Great)
The Donut of Shame (Great)
Slimy Dancing (Great)
BlackJack (Great)
Picture Day (Great)
Breath of Fresh Squidward (Great)
Rise and Shine (Great)
The Krusty Plate (Great)
Le Big Switch (Great)
Pest of the West (Good)
Boat Smarts (Meh)
A Flea in her Dome (Meh)
Fungus Among Us (Meh)
Night Light (Alright)
SpongeHenge (Okay)
The Krusty Sponge (Okay)
The Original Fry Cook (Okay)
New Digs (Okay)
The Inmates of Summer (Okay)
To Save a Squirrel (Okay)
Good Ol' Whathisname (Bad)
Money Talks (Bad)
Blackened Sponge (Bad)
The Battle of Bikini Bottom (Bad)
Pat No Pay (Horrible)
WhoBob WhatPants (aka Whatever Happened to SpongeBob) (Terrible)
To Love a Patty (Terrible)
Waiting (Terrible)
 
Ah “SpongeHenge”…this episode is frequently called one of the weirdest, oddest, most disturbing episodes in the show. And I’m inclined to agree, because this is a very, very weird episode. And honestly, I dig it, because I admire the commitment to the bizarre that is this episode, and this commitment has been almost entirely unmatched (I can think of only 2-3 other episodes at the moment that really meet this episode in terms of weird vibes).

The fact that the title card for this episode is Dancing The Hula somehow makes the vibes even better because the episode starts out so innocently just from that music. Really, everything about this episode has an air of…weird to it, which honestly makes me think that this episode is proof of writing talent, but I’ll talk about that later. The beginning scene, which is already a bit different than normal SpongeBob SquarePants episodes given that it’s basically a cold open, or as close as this show can get to one given that its title sequence comes before everything. But this scene already gives off weird energy because of how it’s delivered. It feels…slow. It’s hard to explain. And then when the leftovers hit SpongeBob in the face and he opens his window to a windy, empty night, the vibes stay weird. It’s kinda eerie, just hearing the sound of wind. But these vibes are nothing compared to what we’ll see later. Things get moving pretty quickly once SpongeBob realizes that his pores make musical noises in the wind, and the whole segment of him playing with that is entertaining enough. It doesn’t take long for jellyfish to start flocking to him, though. And then we get a very random joke about the moon and sun having faces lol, which again just adds to the weirdness, and suddenly it’s daytime and SpongeBob’s gotta go to work. Unfortunately, the wind and jellyfish have other plans, as the two in tandem continuously prevent him from going in a bunch of at least visually interesting gags. Things get better once we finally get the entrance of another character into this episode (excluding the cold open), with SpongeBob calling Mr. Krabs, who as always provides some great deadpan reactions to SpongeBob’s shenanigans. And luckily Mr. Krabs is able to get SpongeBob to work using a fishing pole in a pretty amusing scene.

This segment at the Krusty Krab, and the whole reeling in scene before it, is probably the most “typically SpongeBob SquarePants” part of this episode, but it too is not without its weird undertones. The wind shows up again in the Krusty Krab, meaning that SpongeBob’s pores emit the whistling tones, and so the jellyfish return. But also, the Krusty Krab just feels so…empty? Maybe because SpongeBob hardly interacts with anyone else during the entire scene. This episode is extremely SpongeBob focused which again just adds to the weirdness. And then of course the wind ends up blowing the whole restaurant away, which then marks Patrick’s entrance to the episode. It’s funny that Patrick is so bored by his TV, because so far I’m being bored by his scene lol. And unfortunately SpongeBob finds no sanctuary in Patrick’s house, as once the wind somehow knocks it open the jellyfish come back and Patrick kicks SpongeBob out, which was a little uncalled for but I’ll let it slide.

Finally, SpongeBob is able to lose the jellyfish in a deep, dark cave. This segment is of course, the most explicitly purposefully eerie given how SpongeBob talks about how dark and scary the cave is. But of course SpongeBob starts to go a little bit mad inside the cave, starting to carve the rocks out of his own image. At this point we have no idea how much time has passed, only that it is now “later”. SpongeBob’s madness in this episode is less entertaining that it was in “To Save A Squirrel” though, so this scene is kind of just dull more than anything. SpongeBob gets the idea to take his replica outside to attract the jellyfish away from him, and we see that even though it’s been long enough for SpongeBob to grow a full head of hair, it’s still extremely windy outside. And his plan doesn’t quite work, at least not in its current iteration. I love how SpongeBob turns into a whole engineering intellectual as he figures out what he has to do to get the jellyfish off of his back. After another indeterminate amount of time, SpongeBob succeeds in making 7 giant rock versions of himself. The design of those things look kind of eerie, so I guess I’ll just add that to the list of eerie things in this episode lol. Of course, we all know what happens now. SpongeBob’s plan works, but when he returns to the Krusty Krab, he finds that it’s been lost to time, buried in the sand (which is a reference to Planet of the Apes). This ending makes the episode feel…well it’s hard to say what the right word is. Not incomplete, but like that the episode doesn’t tell the whole story, you know? Like what happened to the Krusty Krab? To everyone else? How long has it been? Why does the rest of Bikini Bottom seem to still be intact (other than for reveal reasons)? Did they look for SpongeBob? Why is the wind still blowing?

And then of course, we get the coda, which makes the Stonehenge allusion as clear as can be, while also just adding yet another bizarre element to this episode with the 3000 years later and the aliens. And if that wasn’t enough, we get the on the surface cute but in really extremely unsettling ending of the pan into one of the statues’ mouths and SpongeBob laughing.

Well! That was interesting. The utter weirdness of this episode is actually one of the greatest examples of brilliant writing that this show has to offer, and I’m being almost entirely serious. And let me tell you why.
  • The extremely strong wind never being truly addressed, other than a weather report in the middle of the episode, really just makes things feel slightly unsettling throughout the entire thing. Because the wind never gets any better or worse, and so we’re left feeling this uneasy feeling of another shoe about to drop, but that metaphorical shoe never does. Not to mention the ending of the episode implies the wind just kept going on forever. Wind is also just a kind of weather phenomenon you associate with wide open areas, and so it being the chief plot driver of this episode lends itself to the empty, liminal feeling here.
  • The jellyfishes’ endless pursuit of SpongeBob also adds to that feeling of anxiety underscoring the whole episode, because there really is nowhere safe for SpongeBob, except for apparently that cave. And the fact that even after months or years or however much time that they still pursue SpongeBob only exacerbates the anxiety.
  • The writing for the actual scenes in this episode also seem to be geared towards creating feelings of unease. The cold open, the stilted jokes, the lengthy segments of nothing much happening…2 of these elements are typically detrimental to an episode (and they aren’t not detrimental here, but I’ll talk about that later), but here they just add to the feeling that something is wrong here. So I think it’s impressive how detractors are turned to modifiers here.
  • And then of course, we have the last minute or so of the episode, with the SpongeBob ending and the coda, which takes all the weird vibes we get from this episode and extends them, makes them part of the actual plot, but it doesn’t resolve them at all. Not a single question is answered in this episode about anything. Not the wind, not the Krusty Krab, not the passage of time. So the ending is wide open, a great tool for making something feel off, eerie, anxiety-inducing, etc. Really, everything I’ve been saying so far does well to turn this episode into almost a psychological horror, which sets it apart from many other episodes and makes it unique.
Now, don’t mistake my gushing over the brilliantly-crafted atmosphere as an indication for my rating of this episode. Because “SpongeHenge” is surely not an “Amazing”-tier episode. The atmosphere is perfect, and I love it, but the other elements of this episode just aren’t up to par. And while this does help with the crafting of the atmosphere, it comes at the expense of my enjoyment. And as shown by “SB-129” and another episode I won't say yet because I don't want pitchforks, bizarre can be done while still being enjoyable and funny. This episode, sadly, is boring almost all the way through, and there’s really only one funny moment with Mr. Krabs reeling SpongeBob in, as well as his little quip earlier while on the phone. Without the eerie feeling, this episode would be completely unremarkable. So I am curious what the goal was of this episode, I wish we could hear more about the behind-the-scenes, because this episode is insanely interesting to me, always has been. And I hate that I don't love it more because I hate spouting similar opinions to the people who don't like this episode. Like no no no no, don't lump me in with them okay, because I get this episode, I do, it just doesn't work for me. Most other people don't get this episode, and that's a real shame.

Episode Tier: Okay
Episode Score: 6.6/10
 
Pugs4Thugs said:
Well! That was interesting. The utter weirdness of this episode is actually one of the greatest examples of brilliant writing that this show has to offer, and I’m being almost entirely serious. And let me tell you why.
  • The extremely strong wind never being truly addressed, other than a weather report in the middle of the episode, really just makes things feel slightly unsettling throughout the entire thing. Because the wind never gets any better or worse, and so we’re left feeling this uneasy feeling of another shoe about to drop, but that metaphorical shoe never does. Not to mention the ending of the episode implies the wind just kept going on forever. Wind is also just a kind of weather phenomenon you associate with wide open areas, and so it being the chief plot driver of this episode lends itself to the empty, liminal feeling here.
  • The jellyfishes’ endless pursuit of SpongeBob also adds to that feeling of anxiety underscoring the whole episode, because there really is nowhere safe for SpongeBob, except for apparently that cave. And the fact that even after months or years or however much time that they still pursue SpongeBob only exacerbates the anxiety.
  • The writing for the actual scenes in this episode also seem to be geared towards creating feelings of unease. The cold open, the stilted jokes, the lengthy segments of nothing much happening…2 of these elements are typically detrimental to an episode (and they aren’t not detrimental here, but I’ll talk about that later), but here they just add to the feeling that something is wrong here. So I think it’s impressive how detractors are turned to modifiers here.
  • And then of course, we have the last minute or so of the episode, with the SpongeBob ending and the coda, which takes all the weird vibes we get from this episode and extends them, makes them part of the actual plot, but it doesn’t resolve them at all. Not a single question is answered in this episode about anything. Not the wind, not the Krusty Krab, not the passage of time. So the ending is wide open, a great tool for making something feel off, eerie, anxiety-inducing, etc. Really, everything I’ve been saying so far does well to turn this episode into almost a psychological horror, which sets it apart from many other episodes and makes it unique
Click to expand...
YES YES YES YES YES
TO ALL OF THIS
 
The only reason people hate this is because of the ending a pieguyrulz who i just found out retired and honestly i just like the weird feeling and the tune is mysterious and cool at the same time honestly i give it a good episode
 
I really liked this one its a overhated one really
8.5/10
  1. The Two Faces Of Squidward
  2. Friend or foe (10/10)
  3. The Donut Of Shame (10/10)
  4. Roller Cowards (10/10)
  5. Krabs à La Mode (10/10)
  6. Spy Buddies (10/10)
  7. Pest Of The West (9.5./10)
  8. Spongebob Vs The Patty Gadget (9.5/10)
  9. Bucket Sweet Bucket (9.5/10)
  10. The Krusty Sponge (9.5/10)
  11. Sing A Song Of Patrick (9.5/10)
  12. Inmates Of Summer (9.5/10)
  13. The Krusty Plate (9/10)
  14. Rise And Shine (9/10)
  15. SpongeHenge (8.5/10)
  16. New Digs (8.5/10)
  17. Blackened Sponge (8.5/10)
  18. BlackJack (8.5/10)
  19. Night Light (8.5/10)
  20. Money talks (8.5/10)
  21. Goo Goo Gas (7.5/10)
  22. Breath Of Fresh Squidward (7.5/10)
  23. The Battle of Bikini Bottom (6.5/10)
  24. Pat No Pay (6.5/10)
  25. Slimy Dancing (5.5/10)
  26. Le Big Switch (5/10)
  27. 20,000 Patties Under The Sea (4.5.10)
  28. The Original Fry Cook (4.5/10)
  29. Good Ol'Whatshisname (3.5/10)
  30. Boat Smarts (3/10)
  31. Picture Day (2.5/10)
  32. A Flea In Her Dome (2/10)
  33. What Ever Happened To Spongebob? (1.5/10
  34. To Save A Squirrel (1/10)
  35. Waiting (1/10)
  36. Fungus Amongus (0.5/10)
  37. To love a patty (0/10)
  38. Atlantis Squarepantis (-99999/10)
 
honestly i cannot express how overhated this episode is
 
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