"Praise the Magic Conch! WOOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOO!"
Club SpongeBob
Original air date: 7/12/2002 (produced in 2001; released on DVD on 3/12/02)
SpongeBob and Patrick get Squidward into their little club... which takes them all the way out into the middle of the Kelp Forest.
"Club SpongeBob" contains examples of:
- Accidental Good Outcome: A nearby plane is about to fall, so it jettisons some food and other things... which land near SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward, who are lost in a jungle. And this was right after Squidward had said, "As if the solution to all their problems would fall right out of the sky!".
- Added Alliterative Appeal:SpongeBob: This copyrighted conch is the cornerstone of our organisation!
- An Aesop:
- No matter how stupid you may regard others or their beliefs, it is unwise to berate them as you never know when you yourself might need their assistance.
- Don't always assume warnings are threats or insults. There genuinely wasn't enough room for Squidward in the club at first.
- Don't cut off your nose to spite your face. Squidward made clear he thought the whole idea of the club was stupid and only forced his way in because he took offense that they made a point of excluding him, which it was led to them getting lost in the forest in the first place.
- When you get lost in the woods, stay put and help will eventually find you.
- Already the Case: When Squidward bemoans being stuck in the Kelp Forest with SpongeBob and Patrick, they remark it could be worse; he could be bald and have a big nose. Of course, Squidward already has both of those.
- Ambiguously Evil: Considering that the Magic Conch Shell is supportive of SpongeBob and Patrick, and that its command to do "Nothing" led to them getting food, and that another one led someone with a machete to them, it is a bit hard to tell if the Magic Conch Shell is genuinely useless/malicious and the benefits the characters get are just Contrived Coincidence, or the Conch is just mean to those who doubt it and actually is correct that doing nothing will lead to them getting out of the Kelp Forest. Related to Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane below.
- Big Damn Heroes: Subverted. The park ranger is just as lost (and loony) as they are.
- Big "WHY?!": Squidward exclaims this after he is launched into the kelp forest with SpongeBob and Patrick, and wonders why every 11 minutes of his life is filled with misery.
- Break the Haughty: Happens to Squidward when the Magic Conch Shell keeps saying no.
- Broken Record: "Could I have something to eat?!" "No." "Could I have something to eat?!" "No." "Could I have something to eat?!" "No."
- Comically Missing the Point:Squidward: Well, I'll have you know that I am a member of over 20 different exclusive clubs all across the sea bottom!
Patrick: What did he say?
SpongeBob: I don't know. Something about his nose?
Patrick: Squidward, you and your nose will definitely not fit in! - Companion Cube: The Magic Conch Shell which SpongeBob and Patrick base all their decisions on. Their devotion to it borders on Cargo Cult.
- Dagwood Sandwich: There are quite a few Dagwood sandwiches in the picnic supply that falls right out of the sky. Patrick refers to them as "yummy, delicious, super-terrific sandwiches" and eats one by literally inhaling it.
- Disproportionate Retribution: While Squidward was being a bit of a Jerkass, he had every right to doubt the Magic Conch Shell, seeing how it looked like a toy on the outside. Unfortunately, the Conch apparently has it in for Squidward, as it's willing to let him starve to death by that reason alone.
- The Dog Bites Back: Squidward squashes a bug under his foot and cooks it in a skillet, intending to eat it for dinner whilst denying it to SpongeBob and Patrick. Once Squidward tempts fate and picnic supplies fall right out of the sky to SpongeBob and Patrick, the bug comes back to life, grabs Squidward's stick, and whacks him on the head with it.
- Downer Ending: It's really only such an ending for Squidward, but still an effective one nonetheless. At the end of the episode, he is stuck with the crew after the ranger takes the conch shell's "advice" to do nothing. With very little sanity left, Squidward finally gives in and joins the crew in doing nothing.Squidward: ALL HAIL THE MAGIC CONCH!
- Emergency Cargo Dump: A plane carrying picnic supplies has to jettison its cargo to keep from crashing. It all lands neatly in front of SpongeBob, Patrick and Squidward.
- Exact Words: Patrick warns Squidward against trying to join the club, as he "wouldn't fit in". Squidward climbs up and as it turns out, he literally could not fit into their treehouse as it was way too small. Patrick, who had been stuck up there with SpongeBob for three days is very quick to lampshade this.
- Food Porn: A good minute is dedicated to SpongeBob and Patrick gobbling down a smorgasbord of food that looks absolutely delicious.
- Gilligan Cut: Squidward mocks SpongeBob and Patrick for thinking the answers to all their problems will just "fall right out of the sky". Next scene:Pilot: Dude! We're falling right out of the sky!
- Going in Circles: Squidward attempts to find his own way out of the kelp forest, but soon finds himself lost, until he sees an opening. Upon leaping through it, he initially thinks he's free... until he notices he's back in the same clearing with SpongeBob and Patrick, finally making him give up.Squidward: There's no way out of here.
- Hope Spot:
- Squidward's attempt to get out of the kelp forest gets him lost, but he sees an opening and celebrates freedom after jumping through it. He then sees SpongeBob and Patrick right next to him and realizes he just came back to where he started.
- From Squidward's POV, the park ranger who finds him turning out to have a Magic Conch Shell, and thus be another member of SpongeBob and Patrick's club instead of someone sane. And said ranger's Shell gives the same "Nothing" advice.
- It's All About Me: Squidward squishes a bug and refuses to share food with SpongeBob and Patrick while mocking them for listening to the Magic Conch Shell.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: "Why must every 11 minutes of my life be filled with MISERY? WHY???"
- Laser-Guided Karma: Regardless how he felt about SpongBob and Patrick's Magic Conch, the fact that he dissed it prompts the toy to "diss" him right back, even preventing the club members from sharing their food.
- Literal-Minded: SpongeBob and Patrick display cult-like obedience to the Magic Conch, which includes interpreting her instruction to do "nothing" to get out of the kelp forest as literally as possible. They don't just refrain from actively making any effort to escape the forest, they sit there like zombies, not talking, not moving, not even flinching when Squidward throws a stick at them.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: Related to the ambiguity mentioned above, is the Magic Conch Shell genuinely all-knowing as Patrick claims, or is it just a useless toy as Squidward thinks? The fact that no proper resolution is reached (see below), and that the picnic supplies falling and the other Club Member's Conch sending him to the rescue (sort of) may have been Contrived Coincidences leaves it a bit up in the air...
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Calling Squidward a villain is a bit of a stretch, but SpongeBob and Patrick wouldn't have gotten out of the treehouse if it wasn't for Squidward accidentally slingshotting it and causing it to smash open.
- No Ending: There's no resolution to the problem of getting out of the forest. Spongebob, Patrick, and a ranger that finds them, with his own Magic Conch, are advised by said Conch to do nothing instead of leaving. Squidward finally gives up and joins them.
- Pet the Dog: Patrick asks the Conch whether Squidward can have any food and apologizes to him when the Conch says no.Patrick: Here, let me try. Magic Conch, could Squidward have some of this yummy, delicious, super-terrific sandwich?
Magic Conch: No.
Patrick: Hmm... Could I have this yummy, delicious, super-terrific sandwich?
Magic Conch: Yes.
Patrick: All right! (vacuums in the sandwich and burps) Sorry, Squidward. - Poor Communication Kills: The episode's conflict starts when Squidward jokes about the probably dumb requirements of SpongeBob and Patrick's club and they respond that he "couldn't get in even if [he] tried", referring to their cramped treehouse. Squidward instead assumes they meant he isn't good enough to join their club and squeezes himself inside.Squidward: Well, this is stupid. There's no room up here!
Patrick: That's what we've been trying to tell you!
SpongeBob: We've been stuck up here for 3 days.
Patrick: We told you you wouldn't fit in. - Prematurely Marked Grave: Lost in the kelp forest, Patrick is seen building coffins for himself, SpongeBob and Squidward until SpongeBob says it isn't the end to a physically and literally deflated Squidward.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Squidward gives a smug one to SpongeBob and Patrick for listening to the Magic Conch Shell while holding a pan with a bug on it.Squidward: Doesn't that smell good, SpongeBob? You haven't eaten in days. How about you, Patrick? A big boy's gotta eat! Well, you can't have any. And do you know why, SpongeBob? Because your club president is a shell! (shakes his butt in SpongeBob's face) If you'd have listened to me, you'd have food, shelter, and a roaring fire. But instead you listened to a talking clam... that tells you nothing! As if the answers to solve all your problems will fall right out of the sky! (laughs) Fall right out of the sky!
(camera switches to an airplane falling out of the sky) - Robinsonade: SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward go through this. But ironically, this is only a bad thing for Squidward. If anything, it's an improvement for SpongeBob and Patrick over their previous situation!
- Sanity Slippage: Squidward completely breaks once he realizes the rescuer is another Magic Conch Shell follower and joins him, SpongeBob, and Patrick in the act.
- Sausage String Silliness: When Squidward notices smoked sausages among the banquet, which are his favorite, he sniffs them. Unfortunately, Patrick then starts sucking them up, along with Squidward's sausage-shaped nose.
- Shaking the Rump: Squidward does this in front of SpongeBob while mocking him for listening to the Magic Conch Shell.
- Snarky Inanimate Object: The Magic Conch Shell sure has it in for Squidward, despite him being a Jerkass to it.
- Tree Buchet: Squidward accidentally propels the clubhouse into the woods when he tries to pull his way out, creating a trebuchet.
- Treehouse of Fun: The clubhouse, built on a tall seaweed stalk.
- Troll: The Magic Conch Shell towards Squidward.Squidward: Could I have something to eat?!
Magic Conch: No.
Squidward: Could I have something to eat?!
Magic Conch: No.
Squidward: Could I have something to eat?!
Magic Conch: No.
Squidward: Can't you say anything else but "no"?!
Magic Conch: Try asking again.
Squidward: (hopefully) Can I have something to eat?
Magic Conch: (snarkily) No! - Wish Upon a Shooting Star: As the clubhouse is flung through the kelp forest, a couple mistook it as a shooting star and the man tells his wife to make a wish.
What a way to spend the first day of Spring.
My Pretty Seahorse
Original air date: 7/12/2002 (produced in 2001)
SpongeBob befriends a seahorse he calls Mystery, but trouble ensues when it follows him to the Krusty Krab.
"My Pretty Seahorse" contains examples of:
- An Aesop:
- Don't bring home or tame wild animals if you don't know how to care for them properly.
- Don't bring pets to work, as it can be disruptive — especially animals too big and hungry to be pets.
- A pet is not worth having if it interferes with you working at your job.
- At times, it's better to let your friends go, no matter how painful it may be.
- Animals Hate Him: All it takes is Squidward flatly saying good morning to his flowers, and the flowers end up hissing at him like stray cats.
- Ass Shove: Implied when two fish mistake Mystery for a kiddie ride and search for the coin slot.
- Big Eater: Mystery. SpongeBob completely underestimates her appetite, thinking she'd be full with just one Krabby Patty. Not even the Krusty Krab's entire food inventory is able to keep her full.
- Brick Joke: When SpongeBob says that Patrick is building a stable for Mystery, it cuts to Patrick with a board nailed to his head. The board remains there when he appears at the end.
- Burger Fool: Summarised by Squidward.Squidward: In case you've forgotten, here's how things work: I order the food, you cook the food, then the customer gets the food. We do that for 40 years, and then we die. Seems like a pretty good deal to me. Whadda you say?
- Chased Off into the Sunset: As Mr. Krabs comforts SpongeBob for letting Mystery go, Squidward suddenly interrupts the conversation and reveals that Mystery ate all the money in the vault, making Krabs and SpongeBob run after Mystery, disappearing into the distance.Squidward: Hey, Mr. Krabs! Looks like ol' Mystery had an after-dinner salad!
(points at money vault, nearly empty with bits of eaten cash)
Mr. Krabs: GET THAT HORSE!
(he and SpongeBob run after Mystery)
SpongeBob: Mystery! Yoo-hoo!
Mr. Krabs: Mystery! Come back!
SpongeBob: Mystery! Uh, weesnaw!
Both: Mystery! Come back here! - Comically Missing the Point: When Mr. Krabs first tells SpongeBob to get rid of Mystery:SpongeBob: I knew I should have named her Debbie.
- Cosmic Plaything: Lampshaded by Squidward, who resists saying anything rude to SpongeBob knowing bad things always happens to him when he does. And yet karma seems to punish him anyway by causing him to fall off his bike, down a cliff, and explode, despite doing nothing to deserve it.
- Eaten Alive: Old Man Jenkins gets eaten up by Mystery, who later spits him back out.
- End-of-Episode Silliness: The above scene of SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs chasing after Mystery is only the penultimate scene of the episode. The final scene is a random Overly Long Gag of Patrick trying to walk through a doorway that he can't fit through because of the wooden board nailed to his head.
- Epic Fail:
- SpongeBob asks Patrick to build a stable for Mystery, and Patrick somehow manages to nail a plank to his head.
- Mystery had to stay hidden from Mr. Krabs for the rest of SpongeBob's shift, which was eight hours. She comes out of hiding after only 12 seconds.
- Everything Makes a Mushroom: Happens twice in the episode.
- First, when Squidward is riding his bike to work, his front paddlenote pops off, causing him to fly off and fall down a cliff. Just a second after hitting the ground, he explodes into a mushroom cloud (though he's perfectly fine a minute later).
- Second, when Scooter tries to insert a coin into Mystery (believing she is a kiddie ride) outside the Krusty Krab, she bucks him off, launching him into the distance where he explodes in a mushroom cloud.
- Extreme Omnivore: Mystery eats many things in the Krusty Krab, including SpongeBob's hat, his spatula, all the patties, the stove, Mr. Krabs' money, even Old Man Jenkins! (He gets better.)
- Eye Pop:
- SpongeBob is determined to find out who is eating his flowers when he's not looking, so he extends his eyeballs for extra focus. He ends up doing this for three days, periodically watering his eyes so they don't dry out. Then Patrick passes by and says hello, and in the brief moment SpongeBob looks away to greet him back, the flower gets eaten.
- Mr. Krabs has this reaction when he sees that SpongeBob still hasn't gotten rid of Mystery.
- False Reassurance: After the customers demand to know where their food is, Squidward tries calming them down in typical Squidward fashion.Squidward: Take it easy! The food's no good here, anyway.
- The Ghost: Who did leave that bowl of onions lying around?
- Good-Times Montage: After Mystery eats SpongeBob's floral bookmark, we see a montage of the two of them having fun together.
- I Ate WHAT?!: Two customers spit out their Krabby Patties when they overhear Mr. Krabs telling SpongeBob that, "the kitchen is no place for a live horse."note
- Jerkass Has a Point: It was ridiculously shallow for Mr. Krabs to compare the sentimental value of SpongeBob's horse to a dollar bill, but he does make a good point that seahorses don't belong in fast food restaurant kitchens and they're much happier back in the wild.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Played for Laughs as mentioned above in Cosmic Plaything, Squidward tries to defy this trope as he knows that making a snarky comment about SpongeBob and his seahorse, Mystery, will lead to this trope. But since this is Squidward we're talking about, he gets some anyway just because the universe felt like as he falls off his bike, tumbles down a hill and explodes.
- Malicious Misnaming:Mr. Krabs: Squidward, what's going on in here?
Squidward: Why don't you go ask CowBob RanchPants, and his faithful companion, Sir Eatsalot?
Mr. Krabs: (bursts into kitchen) SpongeBob! What's the meaning of all these nicknames?! - Mistaken for Bad Vision: While SpongeBob is taking care of Mystery the seahorse in the Krusty Krab, Mr. Krabs sees Mystery puke out Old Man Jenkins after eating him. Mr. Krabs plucks off his eyes to clean them, thinking he has bad eyesight.Mr. Krabs: So, my eyes are correct! You still have that horse after I ordered you to get rid of it!
- No, You:SpongeBob: That's not a monster, Mr. Krabs. It's a horse! She's my friend. Her name is Mystery.
Mr. Krabs: You're a mystery, SpongeBob. - Onion Tears: Squidward seems to be crying for Mystery, but in reality, there's a bowl of onions next to him. Later, a random customer is seen crying, but it turns out Squidward has passed the onions on to him.
- Running Gag: Someone crying during a Tear Jerker due to a bowl of onions under their face.
- Secret Pet Plot: SpongeBob adopts a seahorse and takes it to work, though Mr. Krabs orders him to get rid of the animal after it accidentally injures a customer. SpongeBob disobeys his boss and hides the pet in the kitchen's cupboard, where it causes trouble once more by eating various objects. Finding out the truth, Krabs surprisingly feels sympathy for his employee and softly convinces him to set the seahorse free.
- Series Continuity Error: In most episodes, the grill at the Krusty Krab is under the window directly behind the cash register. In this episode it's against the back wall across from the window.
- Shoo the Dog: Played for Laughs (sort of) when SpongeBob, overcome with emotion and sobbing into his hands, doesn't realise Mystery has already left and continues to shoo her away, then unwittingly shoos away Patrick as well.SpongeBob: Just get out of here, you stupid, dumb animal! (Patrick walks away without reaction)
- Shout-Out: The title of this episode is an obvious take on My Little Pony.
- Stuff Blowing Up: Happens on two occasions.
- The first is when Squidward randomly explodes after crashing his bike and falling down a cliff.
- The second is when Scooter gets kicked into the distance by Mystery after mistaking her for a kiddie ride. He explodes on impact.
- Swallowed Whole: Old Man Jenkins.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: After being hissed at by flowers, tumbling off a cliff, exploding and dealing with angry customers throughout the episode, Squidward gets to have the last laugh as SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs chase after Mystery.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Mr. Krabs' barking at SpongeBob to get rid of Mystery was blatantly rash and hostile. The second time Mr. Krabs sees SpongeBob with his seahorse, SpongeBob reasons that, as destructive as Mystery can be, he still loves her. Mr. Krabs then breaks it down more gently on why he should still release Mystery anyway, since she'd be healthier and happier back in the wild and not in a restaurant kitchen.
