Fools in April
Original air date: 4/1/2000 (produced in 1999)
April Fools' Day is SpongeBob's favorite holiday — and Squidward's worst nightmare! But when Squidward tries to turn the tables on SpongeBob and plays a trick on him, it all goes horribly wrong.
"Fools in April" contains examples of:
- Actually Pretty Funny: The customer SpongeBob pranks gets upset when he thinks SpongeBob did something with his drink. When SpongeBob tells him he just put one ice cube in instead of two, the customer is relieved and admits it was pretty funny.
- Animate Body Parts: SpongeBob's tongue detaches from his body and starts laughing with him. SpongeBob even pranks it.
- April Fools' Plot: With April Fools Day being SpongeBob's favourite holiday, he spends most of the episode playing harmless pranks on people (including himself at one point). Squidward then plays a prank on SpongeBob in return, but takes it too far.
- Artistic License – Animal Care: Subverted- While SpongeBob is pulling his first prank on Gary in thinking they're moving, he gives him scalloped clam shells and adds salt to them. Salt is extremely dangerous to snails in real life as it could kill them in an instant; Gary started crying when SpongeBob added the salt, likely alerting this.
- Asshole Victim: Bubble Bass. He clearly didn't appreciate having SpongeBob slammed into his butt. Although, considering how much of a Jerkass he is, it's no mystery why he doesn't get any sympathy both in-universe and from viewers.
- Black Comedy: In-Universe. Squidward's idea of a great prank involves SpongeBob getting hurt in sadistic and creative ways. When his Rube Goldberg Device goes off and SpongeBob is thrown all over the restaurant, Squidward is in stitches. However, he did not anticipate that SpongeBob would take it personally, or that nobody else would find it funny. He comes to this conclusion himself when looking at the damage of his prank.Squidward: Why is it whenever I'm having fun, it's wrong?
- Break the Cutie: Squidward does this to SpongeBob with his prank, but soon realizes that he went too far.
- Bystander Syndrome: Inverted since SpongeBob was tied up and was in the air. The customers didn’t know about the prank and couldn’t really do anything but stare in horror of what happening to SpongeBob.
- The Cameo: Bubble Bass was unwittingly used as a part of Squidward's prank, and wouldn't reappear on the show until Season 8.
- Cannot Spit It Out: Squidward has a hard time apologizing to SpongeBob because 1). he's not a very nice person, and 2). he hates SpongeBob more than anything else. After several unsuccessful attempts to apologize, Squidward says his apology with his head in a bubble. Of course, it's too muffled for SpongeBob to even hear, but Squidward insists that his conscience is clear regardless. It isn't until he remembers his own shaming that he finally gives SpongeBob a proper apology.
- Delayed "Oh, Crap!": Squidward questions as to why SpongeBob is happy on April 1st, only to quickly realize it's also April Fools Day.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Upon being receiving a prank call from SpongeBob and Krabs, Squidward attempts to quit his job, only for SpongeBob to convince him otherwise by assuring that he won't play any more pranks on him again. SpongeBob keeps his word as he plays a series of playful and harmless pranks on other people while leaving Squidward alone, but Squidward cannot stand the laughter and plays one on SpongeBob that consists of putting him through a Rube Goldberg Device designed to injure and humiliate him.
- Dude, Not Funny!: The Bikini Bottomites give Squidward this reaction to his elaborate and cruel prank on SpongeBob.
- Early Installment Character-Design Difference: Squidward's mother looks very different to how she would appear in seasons four to twelve. Her hairstyle is different, her hair color is white rather than light purple, she has lipstick and eyelashes and no wrinkles on her face.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Squidward has a painting of another Octopus, an elderly looking one in a sailor's uniform (possibly meant to be a relative of some kind). Later episodes would usually only have Squidward have paintings of himself.
- Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: What finally causes Squidward to apologize to SpongeBob is an Imagine Spot of his own mother telling him "You stink!"
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Downplayed and played with. Squidward is genuinely confused and dismayed that no one else found his prank funny because he thought it was hilarious... at first. But when he actually looks around at the damage to the restaurant and realizes that his prank was cruel and meant to hurt and humiliate SpongeBob so that he could laugh at him, whereas Spongebob's were harmless, funny and meant to make other people laugh. Once the difference sinks in, he goes through such a Jerkass Realization that even he couldn't find the prank funny anymore.
- Exact Words: SpongeBob pranks a customer by putting one ice cube on his drink, when he ordered a couple of ice cubes.
- Gagging on Your Words: Every time Squidward tries to say "I'm Sorry" to SpongeBob, he ends up making some bizarre noise instead.
- Inconsistent Coloring: Bubble Bass is purple in this episode for some reason, as opposed to being olive green everywhere else.
- Impact Silhouette: SpongeBob leaves a himself-shaped mark on the wall of the Krusty Krab at one point during Squidward's prank. The self shaped marks helped Squidward realized his how awful his prank truly was.
- "Just Joking" Justification:
- Squidward tries to use this after his brutal prank drives SpongeBob tearfully out of the Krusty Krab, but nobody is convinced.
- After learning that everyone was listening to his apology to SpongeBob as their own April Fools joke, he's simply left Laughing Mad and claims in his insanity that he was joking too.Squidward: ...April Fools! You're right! APRIL FOOLS! I JUST FOOLED YOU ALL! (runs home laughing)
SpongeBob: What would we do without Squidward?
- Look Behind You: SpongeBob pranks a customer by shouting, "Hey! What's that?", followed by turning around to show a smiley face painted on his back.
- Metaphoric Metamorphosis: One of Squidward's failed attempts to apologize to SpongeBob has him braying as his head morphs into that of a donkey — in other words, he feels like a jackass.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Squidward after he realizes just how mean his prank on SpongeBob was.
- Noodle Incident: SpongeBob asks if Squidward's apology is true, "even the part about the lima beans and the car chase". Subverted in that it was another April Fools prank.
- Oblivious Guilt Slinging: Patrick tells Squidward that SpongeBob is in his house feeling "impressed" (instead of depressed) and remarks "it must've been pretty good to make him cry like that." Needless to say, this makes Squidward feel even more guilty.
- Oh, Crap!: When SpongeBob declares "April Fools!" after Tom has finished his drink, Tom immediately goes into a panic, thinking SpongeBob spiked his drink.Tom: WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY DRINK?!
- Luckily, SpongeBob assures him he asked for a couple of ice cubes, but he only gave him one; it was all just a harmless prank for April Fools Day. Realizing this, Tom calms down and happily admits that it was Actually Pretty Funny.
- Prank Gone Too Far: The page image. The prank Squidward pulled on SpongeBob left him physically harmed and humiliated. The Bikini Bottomites are rightfully appalled by this, and even Squidward himself realizes that was uncalled for.
- Pranking Montage: The first half of the episode has SpongeBob pull April Fool's pranks on everyone. Fortunately, the pranks that SpongeBob pulled off are harmless and no one seemed to bear any ill will towards him for this; they even considered the pranks to be quite funny, though Squidward doesn't seem to understand it that way.
- Shamed by a Mob: The Bikini Bottomites express their disgust toward Squidward's rotten prank on SpongeBob.Customer# 1: Aww, man..... poor kid.
Customer# 2: (about Squidward) That guy has definitely got some issues to work out.
(all the customers leave in disgust)
Customer# 3: (disgusted towards Squidward) April Fools, jerk!
Squidward: Wait, don't go!
Customer #4: Hey, you STINK!!! - Shout-Out: Squidward is physically incapable of saying the word "sorry" in the same way that the Fonz is physically incapable of saying "wrong".
- Stress-Induced Mental Voices: Squidward hears the voices of those who criticized him for his prank while trying to walk away from apologizing to SpongeBob.
- Tampering with Food and Drink: Subverted. A customer believes SpongeBob did something to his drink after he yells "April Fools", but laughs it off when SpongeBob explains that all he did was give him only one ice cube instead of a couple like he asked for.
- Tempting Fate: After Squidward's insincere apology, he insists his conscience is now clear. Cue the Stress-Induced Mental Voices.
- The Unapologetic: Played with. Squidward does feel guilty about his cruel prank, and wants to apologize to SpongeBob for it, but his personal disdain for SpongeBob makes it hard for him to do so.Squidward: (seeing that his disdain towards SpongeBob is making it difficult for a decent apology) This... is gonna be tougher than I thought.
- Ungrateful Bastard: After Squidward threatens to quit work because of SpongeBob's prank on him, SpongeBob promises to not play any more pranks on him for the day, and true to his word, SpongeBob upholds his promise and only plays pranks on other people. However, Squidward is annoyed by how loud SpongeBob is with his pranks and decides to get revenge on him in spite of SpongeBob upholding his end of the bargain.
- Vocal Dissonance:
- The deep voice that shouts "You stink!" to Squidward turns out to be his own mother.
- "This is an extreme thirst!"
- What the Hell, Hero?: The customers become angry with Squidward and call him out for making SpongeBob cry with his mean prank. "April fools, jerk" indeed.
- Whoopee Cushion: SpongeBob puts one on Mr. Krabs' chair.
- Your Head A-Splode: One of Squidward's many failed attempts to apologize to SpongeBob causes his head to explode.
And thus was crowned King SpongeBob of Atlantis.
Neptune's Spatula
Original air date: 4/1/2000 (produced in 1999)
SpongeBob has pulled King Neptune's legendary spatula from a bucket of grease, and now Neptune has come to claim him as his royal fry cook, but SpongeBob must first prove himself in an epic cook-off against Neptune himself.
"Neptune's Spatula" contains examples of:
- Alternate Catchphrase Inflection: Normally, Spongebob's "I'm ready!" catchphrase is shouted in a happy, upbeat way to show how optimistic he is. But when Neptune challenges him to a cook-off with his career as a fry cook on the line, he says it in a quieter, more serious way to show that he understands the stakes of the challenge, but refuses to back down anyway.
- Back from the Dead: Patrick is reduced to a pile of ash by King Neptune, but is quickly brought back to life at SpongeBob's request... only with his face on his butt.
- Bait-and-Switch Sentiment: When SpongeBob prepares to leave for Atlantis, Mr. Krabs bursts into tears:
- Brick Joke: Neptune laughs at the possibility of SpongeBob pulling out the legendary spatula. When it's pointed out again:Neptune: It is even funnier the second time!
- Near the end of the Cooking Duel, he tries out SpongeBob's sole Krabby Patty and loves it so much...Neptune: Why, it tastes so good, I think I'd like to try it a second time!
- Near the end of the Cooking Duel, he tries out SpongeBob's sole Krabby Patty and loves it so much...
- Butt-Monkey: Patrick keeps getting blasted by King Neptune. At one point, he gets reduced to ashes and brought back with his face on his butt.
- Came Back Wrong: Patrick is killed after King Neptune blasts him to dust. SpongeBob convinces the king to bring him back... only now his face is stuck on his butt.
- Can't Take Criticism: King Neptune constantly zaps Patrick every time he calls him out in a silly manner.
- Cassandra Truth: Neptune initially does not believe SpongeBob pulled out the spatula. Even when Patrick shows him the picture he took as proof, he still thinks SpongeBob lacks the quality of a fry cook.
- Cooking Duel: Between SpongeBob and Neptune, which determines if the sponge is truly worthy of being his fry cook or if he should give up cooking altogether. The goal is to make a thousand Krabby Patties, which Neptune uses magic to accomplish, while SpongeBob only manages to make one by hand. That one patty, however, tastes far better than the ones Neptune made, and the king forfeits.
- Creator Cameo: Tom Kenny plays the live action guy in the shower that Neptune unwittingly shows as a reward.
- Crushing Handshake: Neptune and SpongeBob share handshakes before their competition, but Neptune's thunder-charged hands instantly disintegrate SpongeBob's. Good thing they grow back.
- Do Not Taunt Cthulhu: Patrick does this to Neptune, and is blasted repeatedly for every taunt until he's a black smear on the ground.
- Friend-or-Idol Decision: After SpongeBob wins the cook-off, Neptune invites him to Atlantis, but bluntly informs him that his friends can't come. Faced with the choice between ascending to godhood or staying in Bikini Bottom with his friends, SpongeBob initially chooses the latter, but when Neptune refuses to take no for an answer, SpongeBob takes a third option and offers to teach Neptune to cook for himself instead (without magic).
- Furry Confusion: The swordfish Neptune uses are not anthropomorphized in any way. Nor are the seahorses that put on his apron.
- Graceful Loser: For all his Jerkass traits, Neptune immediately concedes that SpongeBob is the winner with no fuss after trying his patty.
- Hypocritical Humor: Mr. Krabs assures SpongeBob that he has the utmost confidence that he'll win. Then he rushes to the betting window to put all his money on Neptune to win.
- Jerkass Gods: King Neptune. He insults and belittles SpongeBob, refuses to believe he is worthy even after being shown photographic evidence of him pulling the spatula out, going as far as trying to make up excuses as why SpongeBob is not fully qualified, blasts Patrick into ash for standing up for SpongeBob, rubs his (apparent) cook-off victory in SpongeBob's face, and even after conceding, he refuses to take no for an answer and forces that SpongeBob to join him in Atlantis by making him a god. It didn't work out so well.
- Lethal Chef: Neptune's burgers turn out to be terrible to eat, prompting him to give SpongeBob's patty a try and loving it.
- Karma Houdini: Downplayed as while Neptune doesn’t receive any immediate comeuppance for tormenting SpongeBob, as well as the damage caused to Patrick, he is being forced to take orders from SpongeBob at the end of the episode while serving as his "trainee" fry cook.
- Medium Blending: Neptune accidentally showing the live-action guy in the shower (Tom Kenny).
- Medium-Shift Gag: In one closeup, Neptune's fist around SpongeBob's body changes from a drawing to a photo of a live-action fist digitally colored green.
- Misplaced Sorrow: After SpongeBob wins and has to go live with Neptune, Mr. Krabs is crying not because SpongeBob is leaving but because he lost all his money betting against him.
- Moving the Goalposts: When it becomes clear to Neptune that SpongeBob is indeed the one who pulled out his spatula, he begins adding in and changing requirements to be qualified as his royal fry cook. He must be left-handed (SpongeBob has two), and wear red— no, blue underwear (he has both for some reason). Eventually, Patrick interrupts the gag, only to be smited.
- Not Quite Back to Normal: After blasting Patrick to dust, Neptune returns him to normal... except his face is on his butt. He stays like that for the rest of the episode.
- Oh, Crap!: SpongeBob and the old lady both have this reaction after clouds form above SpongeBob, signifying Neptune's arrival.
- Only the Chosen May Wield: Only a fry cook worthy of Neptune can pull his spatula from the dried grease. SpongeBob has had enough experience on the grill to qualify, but King Neptune has doubts.
- Out of Focus: Although Squidward is not relevant to the plot of the episode, he doesn't even appear at the end in the Krusty Krab, as SpongeBob is running the cash register.
- Overly Long Gag: Neptune keeps smiting Patrick when he eggs the god on that SpongeBob can handle anything he throws at him. It got to the point that he was reduced to a charred stain on the floor.
- Pet the Dog: Neptune quickly agrees to restore Patrick back to normal (sort of) at SpongeBob's request.
- The Power of Love: How SpongeBob is able to win the duel: while Neptune uses his powers to simultaneously cook and assemble 1,000 burgers, they taste terrible. SpongeBob only makes one, but because he put his heart and soul into it to make it perfect, it tastes incredibly good, and Neptune forfeits.Neptune: Perfect patties are made with love, not magic.
- Quality over Quantity: See The Power of Love.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: "You hurt my friend! You're not a king! You're a bully and a liar!"
- Rule of Three: Neptune laughs at the prospect of SpongeBob pulling out the spatula, and laughs again when someone he considers more worth tells him the sponge did it. When it's pointed out a third time, he starts losing patience at the "joke".
- Screaming at Squick: The audience in the Cooking Duel certainly did not want to see Neptune spit out SpongeBob's Krabby Patty just to eat it a second time.
- Shock and Awe: Neptune can shoot lightning out of his hands. He uses this to help cook his patties.
- Shout-Out: Neptune's Golden Spatula is a parody of Excalibur.
- Special Guest: John O'Hurley as King Neptune.
- Spoof Aesop: “Perfect patties are made with love, not magic.”
- Visual Pun: Neptune smites Patrick to ash for constantly talking back. When SpongeBob makes him undo it, he puts Patrick's face on his butt. In other words, he's literally talking out of his ass.
- Vocal Dissonance:
- The old lady at the beginning gains a scratchy baritone.Old Lady: HOLY SMOKES!
- Also SpongeBob when he becomes a god.SpongeBob: Wait, Neptune! I have another idea!
- The old lady at the beginning gains a scratchy baritone.
- Wowing Cthulhu: Neptune is so overwhelmed at how good SpongeBob's Krabby Patty is that he concedes the contest.
