Closing out season 11, we’ve got “The String”, which is a shorter episode given that its sister episode is 16 minutes long. Well, you won’t see me complaining…do you know how hard it is to review 49 segments in one month? And a 30-day month at that, not a 31-day month. But I did it! Anyway, “The String” is a fun little episode with a very, very simple plot. Which is the right direction for this episode to go in, again because of the shorter length.
Honestly, with such a simple plot, I’m not sure how to go about reviewing this episode LMAO. I guess I’ll just try and say everything I can about it. And the first thing I’ll say is that this episode is very, very full of visual gags. And they’re pretty good, generally speaking. And I like that the episode doesn’t spend the entire time on the string. I mean first we got the set up, the amusing bit with SpongeBob’s eyes, and then we got SpongeBob trying again and again to pull the loose thread in Squidward’s shirt, with Squidward being onto him. And then there’s other shenanigans throughout the episode, like Mr. Krabs trying to trick the rich dude into thinking that the “hair” in his soup is something valuable. Or Bubble Bass and those sea monkeys.
SpongeBob is so me, seeing a loose thread and immediately wanting to pull it. Squidward surprisingly lets him do it, so that SpongeBob will leave him alone. Famous last words for the guy, because when SpongeBob finally does get that coveted chance to pull it, he ends up pulling Squidward’s entire shirt apart. And then this is when the episode gets properly silly. As SpongeBob starts pulling the thread from everywhere. This is where we get a lot of fun visuals too, both string-related, like the money, and not-string-related, like Squidward walking away with the boat. Oh and Mr. Krabs for sure deserved that after doing Pearl like that LMAO.
Things continue getting sillier and sillier as SpongeBob starts pulling the thread on vehicles, signs, sidewalks, and more. He even tears off Sandy’s tail, and pops the treedome. And he keeps unraveling Squidward’s clothes. And then the episode goes full ridiculous and has SpongeBob unravel Bikini Bottom, the world, and the universe. And that, my friends, is why SpongeBob can beat Goku.
“The String” is just a silly little episode, there really isn’t anything else to say. It includes a variety of characters (including Patrick at the end, who unravels SpongeBob), and it’s a pretty funny episode. I can’t even say that it’s only “bad” point is that it’s short, because I think this episode works so well because it’s short. It would’ve had too much padding had it been longer. What a great way to end this season! It’s rare that a season gets to end on such a highly-rated episode (last time this happened was season 8).
Episode Tier: Amazing
Episode Score: 9.3/10
Note: And that is it for season 11! 49 segments…I’ll hardly miss ya. But don’t worry, I’ll be right back on that with season 12 LMAO. Like usual, the overview will go up tomorrow, and I’ll start season 12 on Sunday.
