“The Grill Is Gone” is one of those episodes that takes a pretty established, taken-for-granted part of the show, and messes with it. In this case, we’ve got SpongeBob’s grill. And as is indicated by the title, the grill is gone.
Now why does the episode start with such…grotesque imagery? It kinda makes me want to turn it off LMAO. After a Krabby Patty “sale”, the restaurant is extremely dirty, and so SpongeBob of course cleans it up. I’m reminded of those car detailing videos I like to watch from time to time…it’s been a while since I’ve seen one of those. Anyway, SpongeBob cleans with an enthusiasm, but it’s time to get back to work. Mr. Krabs realizes the grill’s not there, and SpongeBob says he took it outside to air dry. But when the two go and look, the grill’s gone, clearly dragged away. And SpongeBob proceeds to utterly freak out, while Mr. Krabs rolls his eyes lol.
SpongeBob and an exasperated Mr. Krabs follow the trail left by the grill to a clubhouse. The kids inside aim to turn it into a racing vehicle. And SpongeBob can hardly take it. Mr. Krabs naively believes that the kids who stole a literal restaurant grill are going to listen to him, the adult, and he learns real quick that reasoning with these guys ain’t gonna work. So SpongeBob gives it a try, citing his “heart of a child” as the reason why he’s gonna succeed. Well, I did like this joke lol, and I like the overt acknowledgement of SpongeBob’s existence toeing the line between child and adult.
I’m shocked that SpongeBob actually does manage to get through to them by acting all cool n stuff. I’m surprised, but I like it a whole lot. Because you know what this means? SpongeBob’s got some brains about him. And I like when episodes consider that. SpongeBob challenges the kids to a race, where whoever wins keeps the loser’s cart. Well, I gotta say I’m interested, cuz Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob racing some kids for the grill is a pretty entertaining-sounding plot. And it delivers. The next morning, SpongeBob brings a rickety-looking cart to the race. And then Plankton suddenly shows up, because he’d somehow heard of the race happening, and wanted to get in on getting that grill. But he’s foiled immediately, which was pretty funny.
And then it’s on. I love a good race. I prefer chasing scenes to race scenes, but I like both. I also really like the ultimate “message” of this race; to win a kid’s game, you gotta think like a kid, not an adult. So for once we see Mr. Krabs calling forth his inner child. Who knew Mr. Krabs could shred? And so, after getting seriously hurt, Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob win! But not for long, because the kids end up turning the whole restaurant into a go-cart. Too funny.
Episode Tier: Great
Episode Score: 8.4/10
