I swear these Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy episodes always get me confused as to which episode I'm actually watching haha. Also, did SpongeBob SquarePants predict endless superhero movie sequels? Okay let me get to the actual review.
"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy III" is a good episode, but it starts...slowly. Truthfully, I'm nearly bored until SpongeBob and Patrick start freaking out over Man Ray. It helps that when they spot Man Ray it starts up a pretty funny gag, but for that first minute or two I'm ready to click off.
But of course, when Man Ray gets introduced things get much better. Once the episode picks up, it's absolutely hilarious. Man Ray is amazing in this episode, being the perfect straightman to SpongeBob and Patrick, occupying a similar yet completely different role to Plankton, who's very dramatic and crazy in his own way. But back to Man Ray, this man is truly the star of this episode. Every scene of his "rehabilitation" is a gold mine, the star of course being the wallet scene. Just peak humor for real. The tickle belt is also delightfully absurd while also being a horrific invention...like seriously I think I'd rather die than be forced to essentially laugh indefinitely.
I like the visual touches in this episode, such as the design of the Mermalair, or that moment when Patrick drops the box on Man Ray's foot and his little ear things droop, just adds a lot of personality to this episode and the designs.
I like how Man Ray and Patrick end up having beef by the halfway point of the episode. Man Ray snapping and beating up Patrick is honestly deserved, and Patrick's vindictive revenge is hilarious to watch (see, Patrick can be a jerkwad without it being the worst thing ever! Some episodes need a crash course in this).
The last act of the episode is probably the weakest, but I find myself enjoying it all the same. The only thing I don't like is the orb of confusion. The effects are cool but watching SpongeBob and Patrick become essentially confused vegetables isn't all that entertaining to me haha, but it doesn't last very long. It's a cool device though, I wonder how it works. I like that Man Ray does actually end up rehabilitated to some degree, more out of fear of retribution rather than actual change, at least that's how I took it.
This episode sits right in my "Great" tier because when it's good, it's excellent, and when it's not good, it's slow and almost boring. So to balance that out, it loses some points with me that would put it up a tier higher.
Episode Tier: Great
Episode Score: 8.3/10
