Squidward and Spongebob's Relationship

[BabySmitty]

I just thought I'd do a post about this because whatever.

A lot of people say that Spongebob has a crush on Squidward, but I don't really think he does. I think that Spongebob is a surrogate little brother to Squidward. And Squidward is Spongebob's surrogate grumpy / aloof older brother.

This has been alluded to a couple times in the show, with Krabs starting an "Employee Brotherhood Day" in "Dying for Pie" and Spongebob claiming "we're like brothers, only closer" in "Can You Spare A Dime."

Spongebob annoys the crap out of Squidward and often makes his days miserable. Squidward has occasionally bullied Spongebob to the point of tears, and frequently calls him names. But they clearly care about each other. Spongebob obviously thinks of Squidward very highly (acting kind of like a fanboy / worshipping little brother,) and Squidward is protective of Spongebob in his own way. No matter how much of a jerk Squidward is to Spongebob, he will usually stick up for Spongebob when anyone ELSE is giving him a hard time.

Does anyone else interpret their relationship like this? I honestly don't think Spongebob has a crush on Squidward. A lot of younger siblings put their older sibling on a metaphorical pedestal. Spongebob's constant fawning over Squidward and demanding his attention seems to be more misguided admiration than anything else.

"All right, all right! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I admit it, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you, in fact, I like you! I like living next door, I like your foghorn alarm in the morning and your high-pitched giggling at night!"

 

[DadMom AngryPants]

SpongeBob and Squidward's big brother-little brother relationship is my favourite relationship in the whole show. SpongeBob's dynamic with the other characters is usually fairly constant and clear cut but his relationship with Squidward is more subtle and unpredictable.

As far as SpongeBob is concerned they're close friends, but in reality it's an extremely one-sided friendship. Deep down Squidward does care about SpongeBob, but it's very deep down and therefore we only see that side of him occasionally, which makes it all the more special when he does protect SpongeBob or feels bad for upsetting him.

Squidward likes to act high and mighty but he's secretly curious and maybe even a little jealous of SpongeBob's sense of fun and wonderment. We've seen that he gets dragged into SpongeBob's games (Bubblestand, Idiot Box, Snowball Effect etc) and sometimes ends up enjoying it.

For the most part, Squidward is grouchy, stuck-up and disdainful towards SpongeBob, but there is a connection between them as much as Squidward hates to admit it. SpongeBob is pretty much his punching bag but he'll still stick up for him if push comes to shove.

 

[iedasb]

I see them as neighbors and co-workers, and sometime friends...
SpongeBob treats him like a brother, or something, but Squidward likes him just like a friend.
And SpongeBob annoys Squidward in purpose... Just like some friends do.
He likes seeing Squidward mad, he even have a day for it.

But you know there are people, almost all the time, who are fan of brothers relationship(Yes, I like some animes like this, and it's weird).
A cool example of things like this is Oreimo(an anime/Light novel).
Where usually the younger brother(in this case SpongeBob) really likes and annoys the old brother(Squidward) and in the end, stay together as a couple, no matter their genders...

But people need to start noticing that SpongeBob isn't an anime oO

 

[BabySmitty]

SpongeBob and Squidward's big brother-little brother relationship is my favourite relationship in the whole show. SpongeBob's dynamic with the other characters is usually fairly constant and clear cut but his relationship with Squidward is more subtle and unpredictable.

Mine too!

I have nothing against Patrick as a character (in fact, I've grown very fond of him recently,) but I feel like "The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (2004)" would have been about ten times better if it had been about Spongebob and Squidward. Just picture that for a second. It'd be almost like "Pizza Delivery" on a much larger scale.

 

[SpongeyKid]

It's hard to tell. There are situations where Squidward shows compassion for SpongeBob (Dying For Pie) and there are times where Squidward shows much hatred towards SpongeBob (Sponge Cano) But at the end of the day, I believe their relationship represents a little brother annoying the crap out of the older brother.

 

[BabySmitty]

It's hard to tell. There are situations where Squidward shows compassion for SpongeBob (Dying For Pie) and there are times where Squidward shows much hatred towards SpongeBob (Sponge Cano) But at the end of the day, I believe their relationship represents a little brother annoying the crap out of the older brother.

Even the most loving of siblings fight and occasionally treat each other badly, though. I know me and my older sibling have gotten into plenty of fights. (Sometimes physical ones, when we were younger.)

The fact that their relationship is so volatile at times makes them appear even MORE like brothers. "Employee of the Month" could be said to represent sibling rivalry.

 

[SpongeyKid]

Even the most loving of siblings fight and occasionally treat each other badly, though. I know me and my older sibling have gotten into plenty of fights. (Sometimes physical ones, when we were younger.)

The fact that their relationship is so volatile at times makes them appear even MORE like brothers. "Employee of the Month" could be said to represent sibling rivalry.

I definitely think of them as a sibling type of thing (I too have been in many fights/altercation with my older brothers) and you just know by the way they treat each other. I do wish Squidward would have more sympathy sometimes for SpongeBob, but hey, I guess older bros don't think like that :P

 

[BabySmitty]

I definitely think of them as a sibling type of thing (I too have been in many fights/altercation with my older brothers) and you just know by the way they treat each other. I do wish Squidward would have more sympathy sometimes for SpongeBob, but hey, I guess older bros don't think like that :P

Then again, a lot of Spongebob's teasing of Squidward is on purpose, albeit not maliciously. He even has his very own "Annoy Squidward Day" on his calendar.

Yeah... it was a real dick move of Squidward to make Spongebob cry in "Patty Hype," "Grandma's Kisses," and "Dying for Pie." Especially since Spongebob wasn't really doing anything wrong in those instances. He was just trying to A) promote his cute ideas, B) be a good grandson, and C) give Squidward a present.