Line #25 WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants


1	!!This page is for the show; for the ''[=SpongeBob SquarePants=]'' franchise as a whole, see ''Franchise/SpongeBobSquarePants''.
2	%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1542951135086630200
3	%% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread.
4	%%
5	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spongebob_poster.png]]
6	[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Tagline}} Be there & be square!]][[note]]'''Top, counterclockwise from bottom:''' [[FatIdiot Patrick Star]], [[TheFriendlyTexan Sandy Cheeks]], [[CrankyNeighbor Squidward Tentacles]], [[NervousWreck Mrs. Puff]], [[PennyPinchingCrab Mr. Krabs]], [[BrattyTeenageDaughter Pearl Krabs]], and [[RoboticSpouse Karen]]\
7	'''Bottom, L-to-R:''' [[CatStereotype Gary the Snail]], [[AllLovingHero SpongeBob SquarePants]], and [[TheNapoleon Sheldon J. Plankton]][[/note]]]]
8	->''Are you ready, kids? (Aye-aye, captain!)\
9	I can't heeear you! (AYE-AYE, CAPTAIN!)\
10	Ohhhhhh...\
11	Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? (SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!)\
12	Absorbent and yellow and porous is he! (SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!)\
13	If nautical nonsense be something you wish… (SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!)\
14	Then drop on the deck and flop like a fish! (SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!)\
15	Ready?\
16	[=SpongeBob SquarePants!=]\
17	[=SpongeBob SquarePants!=]\
18	[=SpongeBob SquarePants!=]\
19	[=SpongeBooooob SquarePaaaaaaaants!=]''
20	-->-- '''Patrick Pinney''', "[=SpongeBob=] [=SquarePants=] Theme Song"
21
22	A Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} {{animated series}} about a highly energetic and absorbent (and [[OpeningShoutOut yellow and porous]]) sea sponge named [[Characters/SpongeBobSquarePantsTitularCharacter [=SpongeBob SquarePants=]]] (Creator/TomKenny) who, [[OpeningShoutOut as stated above]], lives in a pineapple under the sea and gets into escapades of nautical nonsense.
23
24	''[=SpongeBob SquarePants=]'' is the tenth entry in the Franchise/{{Nicktoons}} series of cartoons, and is easily the most [[LongRunner long-running]] of them all. It is about the eponymous sea sponge, who is [[ThePollyanna extremely optimistic]] as well as [[{{Manchild}} childish]], [[IdiotHero naïve]], yet [[AllLovingHero kind-hearted]]. He works at the local [[XtremeKoolLetterz Krusty Krab]] fast food restaurant with his [[PennyPinchingCrab greedy]] [[MeanBoss boss]] [[Characters/SpongeBobSquarePantsMrKrabs Eugene Krabs]] (Creator/ClancyBrown) and [[TheCynic grumpy]] [[ButtMonkey coworker]]/[[CrankyNeighbor next-door neighbor]] [[Characters/SpongeBobSquarePantsSquidwardTentacles Squidward Tentacles]] (Creator/RodgerBumpass). He and his [[TheDitz dimwitted]] [[HeterosexualLifePartners best bud]] [[Characters/SpongeBobSquarePantsPatrickStar Patrick Star]] (Creator/BillFagerbakke) mistake their neighbor Squidward for a close friend, [[SurroundedByIdiots much to his]] [[OnlySaneMan chagrin]].
25
26	[=SpongeBob=] dreams of obtaining his boating license but fails every [[DrivingTest driving test]] he takes, usually causing mass destruction and endangering his teacher [[NonGivingUpSchoolGuy Mrs. Puff]] (Creator/MaryJoCatlett) in the process. While he may be a reckless driver, [=SpongeBob=] is a fantastic fry cook who serves delicious Krabby Patty burgers to the townspeople of Bikini Bottom. He also has a [[AccidentalHero knack for saving the day]] from the [[TheNapoleon tiny villain]] [[Characters/SpongeBobSquarePantsSheldonPlankton Sheldon J. Plankton]] (Creator/MrLawrence) and his [[TalkingApplianceSidekick talking computer wife]] Karen (Jill Talley). They own a rival restaurant across the street called the Chum Bucket and go to desperate lengths to steal the successful Krabby Patty formula. As proven time and time again, [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption failure is the only option]] for them.
27
28	Other friends include [[IntellectualAnimal Gary]] (Kenny), [=SpongeBob's=] [[SapientPet smart pet snail]] who communicates by meowing like a cat; [[BrattyTeenageDaughter Pearl]] (Creator/LoriAlan), Mr. Krabs' teenage daughter who is a [[HugeSchoolgirl gigantic sperm whale]]; and [[TheAce Sandy]] [[BadassBookworm Cheeks]] (Carolyn Lawrence), [=SpongeBob=]'s Texas-accented squirrel friend [[FishOutOfWater who lives in an underwater dome]] and ventures forth wearing a bubble-helmet diving suit.
29
30	The show is in a constant state of underwater bizarreness, frequently using the RuleOfFunny (apparently a wood fire is a possible underwater as long as you [[PuffOfLogic don't point it out]]). Its sharp, clever writing helped the show [[ParentalBonus gain a huge following]] outside of its intended audience.
31
32	Funnily enough, series creator Stephen Hillenburg had a degree in marine biology and worked as a marine science teacher before moving into animation. After failing to get a publisher for his comic book ''ComicBook/TheIntertidalZone'', he decided to create a show about a sea sponge ("the weirdest animal," in his words) because he was really fed up with SmallTaxonomyPools.
33
34	''WesternAnimation/{{The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie}}'' came out in 2004, and a second [[TheMovie movie]], ''[[WesternAnimation/TheSpongebobMovieSpongeOutOfWater The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water]]'', was released in February 2015, with a third movie, ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobMovieSpongeOnTheRun'', released in March 2021. Four additional films are currently in development: a theatrical one, and three spin-offs focusing on other characters that will be released for Creator/ParamountPlus.
35
36	After the release of the first movie, Stephen Hillenburg stepped down from his position as showrunner and intended to end the franchise with a movie finale. Some ExecutiveMeddling occurred, causing Nickelodeon to quickly renew the show for a fourth season without the direct involvement of either Hillenburg or co-creator Derek Drymon. Paul Tibbitt, Hillenburg's good friend, took over as showrunner for Seasons 4-9, assisted by an almost entirely-new writing staff (save for veteran storyboarders Aaron Springer and Doug Lawrence). While he had relatively minimal input on episodes produced during this period (beyond reading each script and wielding the ability to veto story pitches that violated his vision for the show, among them an attempted flashback episode detailing Pearl's origin), Stephen Hillenburg continued to be credited as an executive producer. Hillenburg would return to work on the series in January 2015 (during production on the ninth season), but would sadly pass away on November 26, 2018 from ALS; season 13 was resultantly the first season of the show to be produced entirely without his involvement. Following Tibbitt's departure in 2016, Vincent Waller and Marc Ceccarelli currently act as the series' showrunners.
37
38	In June of 2019, a CGI-animated spin-off, ''[[WesternAnimation/KampKoral Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years]]'', was greenlit. Detailing [=SpongeBob=]'s experience at summer camp [[SpinOffBabies as a 10-year-old]] alongside the rest of the Bikini Bottom crew, the series premiered on Paramount+ in March 2021. In August 2020, another spin-off series, ''WesternAnimation/ThePatrickStarShow'', [[https://deadline.com/2020/08/spongebob-squarepants-spinoff-series-the-patrick-star-show-set-nickelodeon-bill-fagerbakke-1203006633/ was announced]]. Centering around Patrick and his family hosting a late-night talk show, it premiered on July 9, 2021 on Nickelodeon. On December 29, 2022, ''[=SpongeBob=] [=SquarePants=]'' would surpass the original run of ''[[NewsBroadcast Nick News with Linda Ellerbee]]'' to become the longest-running series in Nickelodeon history.[[note]]If the 2020 reboot is still counted, ''Nick News'' still remains the longest at 27 years and counting, excluding the 5 year hiatus.[[/note]]
39
40	There have also been multiple [[LicensedGame video game]] adaptations of the show and [[Theatre/TheSpongebobMusical a Broadway musical]]. For more information on the franchise as a whole, see [[Franchise/SpongeBobSquarePants the franchise page]].
41	----
42	!!Are ya ready, tropers?
43
44	[[index]]
45	* SpongeBobSquarePants/TropesAToC
46	* SpongeBobSquarePants/TropesDToI
47	* SpongeBobSquarePants/TropesJToP
48	* SpongeBobSquarePants/TropesQToZ
49	[[/index]]
50
51	[[AC:Tropes with their own pages:]]
52
53	[[index]]
54	* [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking/SpongeBobSquarePants Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking]]
55	* [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness/SpongeBobSquarePants Early Installment Weirdness]]
56	* [[EyeScream/SpongeBobSquarePants Eye Scream]]
57	* [[FamilyUnfriendlyViolence/SpongeBobSquarePants Family-Unfriendly Violence]]
58	* [[Flanderization/SpongeBobSquarePants Flanderization]]
59	* [[Foil/SpongeBobSquarePants Foil]]
60	* [[GainaxEnding/SpongeBobSquarePants Gainax Ending]]
61	* [[Jerkass/SpongeBobSquarePants Jerkass]]
62	* [[LaserGuidedKarma/SpongeBobSquarePants Laser-Guided Karma]]
63	* [[MediumBlending/SpongeBobSquarePants Medium Blending]]
64	* [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone/SpongeBobSquarePants My God, What Have I Done?]]
65	* [[NoEnding/SpongeBobSquarePants No Ending]]
66	* [[OverlyLongGag/SpongeBobSquarePants Overly-Long Gag]]
67	* [[ParentalBonus/SpongeBobSquarePants Parental Bonus]]
68	* [[PoliceAreUseless/SpongeBobSquarePants Police Are Useless]]
69	* [[RunningGag/SpongeBobSquarePants Running Gag]]
70	* [[ShaggyDogStory/SpongeBobSquarePants “Shaggy Dog” Story]]
71	* [[ShoutOut/SpongeBobSquarePants Shout-Out]]
72	* [[StuffBlowingUp/SpongeBobSquarePants Stuff Blowing Up]]
73	[[/index]]
74	----
75	->''Come with me, to the land I love!\
76	It's not right here, down the street, or up above!\
77	It's down and below, in the deep, blue sea,\
78	Where [=SpongeBob=] lives, and the fun is always free!\
79	Down, down, down! To the bottom of the sea!\
80	Where our salty friend, [=SpongeBob=], waits for you and me!\
81	Down, down, down! Aw, we'll have lots of fun!\
82	You and me forever in the underwater sun!''
83	-->-- '''[[Music/TheCramps Lux Interior]]''', "Underwater Sun"

Context WesternAnimation / SpongeBobSquarePants