History Fridge / SpongeBobSquarepants

** Keep in mind that Mrs. Puff can't stand Spongebob at all, and would like nothing more than for him to leave her boating school for good. It's entirely possible she told Flatts Spongebob reported him ''on purpose'' as a way to get rid of Spongebob for good. Even at the end of the episode, she threatens to kick Spongebob's butt herself when it looks like he beat up Flatts! So either Mrs. Puff is ridiculously inattentive when it comes to bullying, or she was intentionally being as unhelpful and antagonistic as possible because it was Spongebob it was happening to.

** Notably, Rodrick doesn't even bother looking into ''why'' Spongebob struggles with driving, instead immediately going into harsh, angry lectures that involve a lot of yelling, which is the WORST possible thing you can do for someone who's self-conscious about something.

** Actually, he DID manage to teach Spongebob... by forcing him to drive blindfolded, which is not only illegal, but extremely dangerous as well, hence why Mrs. Puff's boss obviously does not allow him to drive like that during the test. The fact that Roderick's ''teachings'' involved him forcing his students to use illegal methods once again reinforces how much of an incompetent dangerous fool he is. As much as Mrs. Puff can't stand Spongebob and seemingly fails to teach him anything, she wouldn't be caught dead doing something blatantly dangerous like that since it would tarnish her reputation as an instructor and put her in legal trouble.

** Yet another reason why Roderick is a failure is that he didn't bother teaching Spongebob how to drive normally or make sure he was ready for the test. He obviously should have known that Spongebob wouldn't be allowed to use a blindfold on the driving test, yet he not only failed to inform Spongebob of this ahead of time, he also didn't have him drive around normally to make sure he actually knew what he was doing. He's a failure as a teacher because while he found a way for the student to learn, he forced them to learn in a completely different way they can't grasp, and didn't do anything to help or ease them into it. Notably, he also doesn't even bother looking into ''why'' Spongebob struggles with driving, instead immediately going into harsh, angry lectures that involve a lot of yelling, which is the WORST possible thing you can do for someone who's self-conscious about something.

* "Artist Unknown" as a whole is a deconstruction of why Squidward is such a reviled artist by everyone in Bikini Bottom. Art collector/critic Monty P. Moneybags hates all of Squidward's works, and the only flaw he sees with Spongebob's otherwise beautiful David sculpture is the nose Squidward modeled after his own and pasted on it (with Squidward himself saying it wasn't "complete" without it). In fact, the only one of Squidward's works Monty actually ''likes'' is the sculpture Squidward unintentionally creates at the end of the episode and doesn't even realize he made. Why is this significant? Monty hates all of the self-centered art Squidward creates, but he recognizes the masterpieces that have nothing to do with Squidward's image. This means that Squidward's incessant need to model all of his works after himself is what is actively holding him back from being a genius in the art world.

*** Heck, this example alone sums up everything wrong with Squidward: He's noticeably annoyed and exasperated by Monty's criticisms and the quality of Spongebob's art, but rather than taking the hint or learning anything from it, he immediately jumps to steal credit from Spongebob when Monty absolutely loves it. The fact that Squidward is only interested in the fame and prestige he'd get from people seeing his artwork reinforces his complete lack of passion or respect for the field, preferring to steal credit from a more talented artist rather than listening to a professional or trying to improve his own.
** Another thing to note is Monty is initially hesitant about Squidward's artwork and only launches into his BrutalHonesty after Squidward asks him why he doesn't like it. It could be chalked up to just Monty being a dick, but keep in mind: he's an ''art critic''. As in, criticizing people's work is his ''job''. It's possible Monty was initially trying to let Squidward down easy, but once he saw Squidward ''genuinely had no idea what was wrong with it'' did he start bluntly telling him it was worthless garbage. Monty, being a professional in the field, no doubt recognized almost immediately that Squidward had absolutely no passion or respect for the craft, and reacted accordingly. Not to mention, Squidward's artwork was so terrible, it was ''actively insulting his profession and the art field as a whole'', not helped by Squidward's smug attitude and refusal to heed Monty's criticisms. Not exactly the kind of person whose works you'd want to show off.

* The drill sergeant shark Roderick that replaces Mrs. Puff in "Mrs. Puff, You're Fired." is your standard DrillSergeantNasty...and is also a complete failure of a teacher for the opposite reason. Mrs. Puff is too nice to tell Spongebob that he's a terrible student before her Flanderization kicked in, but Roderick is far too vicious for anyone to stick around. Real Drill Sergeants, or at least the competent ones, know when to ease the cruelty back for the sake of teaching--there's a point where you have to give instruction, not scare recruits. The fact his entire class abandoned him on the spot should have been a hint he's actually an incompetent buffoon, even before he jumps in front of a speeding boat to stop it and the obvious happens. Which brings up another point--he's not even a Sergeant, he's a corporal (only has two marks on his sleeve) playacting at being one. No wonder he couldn't teach Spongebob!

** [[ComicallyMissingThePoint But sponges and octopi aren't technically fish.]]

** They extended said joke and turned it into an episode called "Bubble Trouble," with very real side effects to oxygen deprivation: dizziness, delirium, and even, at one point, unconsciousness. While there are a couple jokes in the episode, the danger of Sandy actually dying is played more realistically than most physical humor in the show. And of course, [=SpongeBob=] and Patrick helped cause it, and they managed to get Mr. Krabs and Pearl involved. How guilty would they feel if they weren't able to save Sandy, and she actually died? Yeah it's a cartoon, but it's clear this show was trying to portray this more realistically. (They even bring up that Pearl would be full of Oxygen being a whale.)

* In the episode "The Fry Cook Games" Patrick tries to pole vault over a deep-fat fryer. He ends up hitting the handle, and it ends up hitting a crowd of people, turning them into fish sticks. Patrick just killed an entire group of people.

* In "The Algae's Always Greener", episode where Plankton uses the machine to switch lives with Mr. Krabs, we see that Plankton can't survive ONE DAY in his new life, due to [=SpongeBob=]'s perfectionism, Squidward's and customers' behaviour, Pearl's brattiness and finally constant attacks from Mr. Krabs, who tries to steal the formula. Since Plankton switched places with Mr. Krabs and we see that Plankton is driven insane in ONE DAY by living Mr. Krabs' life. Mr. Krabs has to suffer from [=SpongeBob=]'s, Squidward's, Patrick's and Pearl's antics and constant attacks from Plankton, who might ruin his business and if Plankton can't survive ONE DAY and was already driven insane, imagine what this must have done to Mr. Krabs: to be annoyed by his fry cook, less than enthusiastic cashier, his bratty daughter and constant danger of his business going down due to attacks from his ArchEnemy, and he must endure it EVERY SINGLE DAY, while Plankton couldn't survive '''''one day'''''. Imagine psychological effects of it on Krabs. Maybe Krabs is insane and very twisted because of the torture he must suffer everyday and his JerkAss actions are result from constant torture from other characters?

* Episode "Squidward in Clarinetland" has a major Fridge Horror at the beginning of the episode: Krabs opens the locker and there are bones and a skull inside. He says "Appears to be Corporal Sterling, lad. Heh...forgot all about that prank". Does this mean that he locked someone in the locker and that person DIED? Mr. Krabs KILLED SOMEONE.
** We also don't know Mr. Krabs rank. Now, think about this. If we don't know his Navy rank, he may have killed one of his own troops or ''his own CO.''

** Patrick could have just reached into his mouthed and pulled them out in a cartoonish fashion. That's always a possibility.

* From The Card we get this line from Patrick: "[=SpongeBob=], you can't always expect my usual brand of stupidity. I like to mix it up, keep you on your toes." Some have interpreted this as meaning that [[WebVideo/TheMysteriousMrEnter he's doing it on purpose.]] All those other times when Patrick did something dangerously stupid, he might have been ''aware'' that it was dangerously stupid the entire time! There's also the fact that he cries genuinely hard whenever something he wants can't be given to him, but when he sees his best friend near death, he doesn't cry nearly as hard or genuinely. And once we add all this knowledge with the events of Pet Sitter Pat...Patrick may even be a bigger [[TheSociopath Sociopath]] than "Bent on World domination" Plankton or "Drive you to suicide" Mr. Krabs.

* "Friend Or Foe" establishes that Mr. Krabs and Plankton's rivalry began when their first customer, Old Man Jenkins, was poisoned after eating their Krabby Patty accused the other of messing up the formula. The fact that they pretty much blamed each other for his apparent death back then suggests their feud [[ItsPersonal is actually much more personal]], or at least subconsciously since neither of them seemed to remember him.
** True, although it's possible Old Man Jenkins wasn't necessarily *killed* from eating their food, as he (and a million other old fish claiming to be named "Old Man Jenkins,) appear numerous times after this episode. It is possible, however, that the Old Man Jenkinses we see in the present-day episodes are simply relatives of his, considering the time period this episode takes place in.
* In "Whatever Happened to [=SpongeBob=]", the Bikini Bottomites go on a riot and bring the city to chaos just because [=SpongeBob=] wasn't around to make Krabby Patties. Who knows how they'll react if they find out [=SpongeBob=]'s absence is because of his friends yelling at him and running him of out town...

** This actually becomes further brilliance since this episode is the last appearance of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy until Season 4 (they are also absent from "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie"). Since the movie was originally intended to be the series finale, this means we indeed never see Barnacle Man being referred to as his original name again! It also serves as FridgeHeartwarming, since the last we see of the duo is them having a laugh together, and Mermaid Man promising to give Barnacle Boy more respect as promised.

* It seems rather silly that, at the end of "Your Shoe's Untied", the only person in Bikini Bottom who knows how to tie shoe laces is Gary... who is a snail. But it's much less surprising [GeniusBonus if you've read up on your Aquatic Biology]], as then you'd know that the part of a snail's body that touches the ground is called its ''[[{{Pun}} foot]]''.

* In "Spongebob Meets the Strangler" Squidward happily goes to Spongebob's parties multiple times despite not liking him. Why would he? Because in "Party Pooper Pants" (which coincidentally premiered as "Spongebob Meets the Strangler) was in production) shows that Spongebob can actually organize a really good party.

** Another thing to note is Monty is initially hesitant about Squidward's artwork and only launches into his BrutalHonesty after Squidward asks him why he doesn't like it. It could be chalked up to just Monty being a dick, but keep in mind: he's an ''art critic''. As in, criticizing people's work is his ''job''. It's possible Monty was initially trying to let Squidward down easy, but once he saw Squidward ''genuinely had no idea what was wrong with it'' did he start bluntly telling him it was worthless garbage. Monty, being a professional in the field, no doubt recognized almost immediately that Squidward had absolutely no passion or respect for the craft, and reacted accordingly. Not to mention, Squidward's artwork was so terrible, it was ''actively insulting his profession and the art field as a whole'', not helped by Squidward's smug attitude and refusal to heed Monty's criticisms. Not exactly the kind of person who's works you'd want to show off.

** Squidward is actively furious that Spongebob is doing exactly what he told him to do, and that Spongebob is incapable of creating another masterpiece. Squidward knows full well that his artwork is terrible, but he doesn't want to admit it and instead takes the credit for Spongebob's natural talent.

** Squidward is actively furious that Spongebob is doing exactly what he told him to do, and that Spongebob is incapable of creating another perfect sculpture. Squidward knows full well that his artwork is terrible, but he doesn't want to admit it and instead takes the credit for Spongebob's natural talent.

* In 'I Was a Teenage Gary' why does the snail Squidward have a shell while [=SpongeBob=] doesn't? Simple: prehistoric cephalapods had shells so Squidward likely has some residual genetics for growing a shell. [=SpongeBob=], being a sponge, doesn't have that same ability.

* In "Biddy Sitting", [=SpongeBob=] asks where an old lady would go, and Patrick says "Back in time!" This seems like a NonSequiter, but ''WesternAnimation/ThePatrickStarShow'' actually shows that Patrick did have a time machine in his house as a kid — of course he'd view it as a possibility!

** On a more basic note, the whole episode centers on the horror of [=SpongeBob=] essentially dying because he ate a bomb. Who was almost about to do just that before Spongebob? Mr. Krabs. That tiny bite he was about to eat was enough to blow a hole out the back of the restaraunt, and the only reason that didn't go off inside Mr. Krabs was because he decided to go for some milk and happened to trip. Also, as much as it's PlayedForLaughs, think seriously about his line after that happens...

* In "The Algae's Always Greener", episode where Plankton uses the machine to switch lives with Mr. Krabs, we see that Plankton can't survive ONE DAY in his new life, due to [=SpongeBob=]'s perfectionism, Squiward's and customers' behaviour, Pearl's brattiness and finally constant attacks from Mr. Krabs, who tries to steal the formula. Since Plankton switched places with Mr. Krabs and we see that Plankton is driven insane in ONE DAY by living Mr. Krabs' life. Mr. Krabs has to suffer from [=SpongeBob=]'s, Squidward's, Patrick's and Pearl's antics and constant attacks from Plankton, who might ruin his business and if Plankton can't survive ONE DAY and was already driven insane, imagine what this must have done to Mr. Krabs: to be annoyed by his fry cook, less than enthusiastic cashier, his bratty daughter and constant danger of his business going down due to attacks from his ArchEnemy, and he must endure it EVERY SINGLE DAY, while Plankton couldn't survive '''''one day'''''. Imagine psychological effects of it on Krabs. Maybe Krabs is insane and very twisted because of the torture he must suffer everyday and his JerkAss actions are result from constant torture from other characters?

* In one episode, Plankton steals Sandy's fur. Long story. He turns Sandy's fur into a robot and goes to the Krusty Krab in it. The fur has the bikini on it, but not the diving suit. So Sandy, dressed like she usually is whenever she's at home except for the fish-bowl thing on her head and her lack of fur, goes to the Krusty Krab. On the way, everyone yells at her to put some clothes on while she's wearing a bikini! And at the end, the police arrest her at the Krusty Krab for indecent exposure while she's wearing a bikini! Keep in mind that Squidward doesn't wear pants. Could this mean Squidward ''lost'' his private parts? Possibly even having Krabs cut them off? It is not like Krabs wouldn't cut off people's genitals (he's commited genocide once)... Or worse: what if Bikini Bottom's government is stacked against women?

* In one episode, Squidward's grandma has a recipe for really delicious chum; so good it's better then any Krabby Patty. But, as people have posted above, chum is ground up fish. Squidward's grandma might be a serial murderer...