List of SpongeBob SquarePants episodes

Stephen Hillenburg, shown here in 2011, created SpongeBob SquarePants, which premiered on May 1, 1999.

SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. The series is set in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom, and centers on the adventures and endeavors of SpongeBob SquarePants, an over-optimistic sea sponge that annoys other characters. Many of the ideas for the show originated in an unpublished, educational comic book titled The Intertidal Zone, which Hillenburg created in the mid-1980s. He began developing SpongeBob SquarePants into a television series in 1996 after the cancellation of Rocko's Modern Life, another Nickelodeon television series that Hillenburg previously directed.

Since its debut on May 1, 1999, SpongeBob SquarePants has broadcast

This article is about the television series. For the title character, see SpongeBob SquarePants (character). For the film series, see SpongeBob SquarePants (film series). For the franchise, see SpongeBob SquarePants (franchise).

List of SpongeBob SquarePants episodes
The series' logo. It features the word "SpongeBob" written in a yellow sponge-like font, with the word "SquarePants" written below in a white font on a blue wooden board. A light blue splash of water is behind the words.
Genre	Comedy Surreal comedy
Created by	Stephen Hillenburg
Developed by	Derek Drymon Tim Hill Nick Jennings
Creative director(s)	Derek Drymon (1999–2004) Vincent Waller (2005–2015)
Voices of	Tom Kenny Bill Fagerbakke Rodger Bumpass Clancy Brown Mr. Lawrence Jill Talley Carolyn Lawrence Mary Jo Catlett Lori Alan (Complete list)
Narrated by	Tom Kenny (various episodes)
Theme music composer	Derek Drymon Mark Harrison Stephen Hillenburg Blaise Smith
Opening theme	"SpongeBob SquarePants Theme Song" (performed by Patrick Pinney)
Ending theme	"SpongeBob Closing Theme" (composed by Steve Belfer)
Composer(s)	Steve Belfer Nicolas Carr Sage Guyton Jeremy Wakefield Brad Carow (1999–2002) The Blue Hawaiians (1999–2002) Eban Schletter (2000–present) Barry Anthony Trop (2005–2014)
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	13
No. of episodes	276 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Stephen Hillenburg (1999–2018) Paul Tibbitt (2008–2017) Marc Ceccarelli (2018-present) Vincent Waller (2018-present)
Producer(s)	Donna Castricone (1999–2002) Helen Kafatic (2002–2004) Anne Michaud (2001) Dina Buteyn (2005–2010) Jennie Monica Hammond (2010–present)
Running time	11 minutes (regular episodes only) 22–44 minutes (special episodes only)
Production company(s)	United Plankton Pictures Nickelodeon Animation Studio
Release
Original network	Nickelodeon
Picture format	NTSC (1999–2012) HDTV 1080i (2009, 2012–present)
Audio format	Stereo (1999–2012) Dolby Surround 5.1 (2009, 2012–present)
Original release	May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01) – present
Chronology
Related shows	Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years The Patrick Star Show
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

SpongeBob SquarePants (or simply SpongeBob) is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. The series chronicles the adventures of the title character and his aquatic friends in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom. Being the fifth-longest-running American animated series, its high popularity has made it a media franchise. It is the highest rated series to air on Nickelodeon as well as the most profitable property for Paramount Consumer Products, having generated over $13 billion in merchandising revenue as of 2019.

Many of the series' ideas originated in The Intertidal Zone, an unpublished educational comic book that Hillenburg created in 1989 to teach his students about undersea life. He began developing SpongeBob SquarePants into a television series in 1996, and in 1997, a seven-minute pilot was pitched to Nickelodeon. The network's executives wanted SpongeBob to be a child in school, but Hillenburg preferred SpongeBob to be an adult character. He was prepared to "walk out" on Nickelodeon and abandon the series, but he compromised by creating Mrs. Puff and her boating school, so that SpongeBob could attend school as an adult.

Nickelodeon aired a preview for the series in the United States on May 1, 1999, following the airing of the 1999 Kids' Choice Awards. The series later officially premiered on July 17, 1999. It has received worldwide critical acclaim since its premiere and had gained enormous popularity by its second season. The thirteenth season began airing in October 2020, and the series was renewed for a fourteenth season on March 24, 2022. The series has inspired three feature films: The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004), Sponge Out of Water (2015), and Sponge on the Run (2020). Two spin-off series, Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years and The Patrick Star Show, premiered in 2021. As of February 2022, four additional films are in the works  – consisting of three character spinoff films for Paramount+ and a new theatrical SpongeBob film.

SpongeBob SquarePants has won a variety of awards including six Annie Awards, eight Golden Reel Awards, four Emmy Awards, 19 Kids' Choice Awards, and two BAFTA Children's Awards. A Broadway musical based on the series opened in 2017 to critical acclaim.

Premise

Setting

Bikini Atoll, a coral reef in the Pacific Ocean. Tom Kenny confirmed the fictitious city of Bikini Bottom is named after Bikini Atoll.

The series takes place primarily in the fictional benthic underwater city of Bikini Bottom located in the Pacific Ocean beneath the real-life coral reef known as Bikini Atoll. Its citizens are mostly multicolored fish who live in buildings made from ship funnels and use "boatmobiles", amalgamations of cars and boats, as a mode of transportation. Recurring locations within Bikini Bottom include the neighboring houses of SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward; two competing restaurants, the Krusty Krab and the Chum Bucket; Mrs. Puff's Boating School, which includes a driving course and a sunken lighthouse; the Treedome, an oxygenated glass enclosure where Sandy lives; Shady Shoals Rest Home; a seagrass meadow called Jellyfish Fields; and Goo Lagoon, a subaqueous brine pool that is a popular beach hangout.

When the SpongeBob crew began production of the series' pilot episode, they were tasked with designing stock locations, to be used repeatedly, where most scenes would take place like the Krusty Krab and SpongeBob's pineapple house. The idea was "to keep everything nautical", so the crew used plenty of rope, wooden planks, ships' wheels, netting, anchors, boilerplates, and rivets to create the show's setting. Transitions between scenes are marked by bubbles filling the screen, accompanied by the sound of rushing water.

The series features "sky flowers" as a main setting material. When series background designer Kenny Pittenger was asked what they were, he answered, "They function as clouds in a way, but since the show takes place underwater, they aren't really clouds. Because of the tiki influence on the show, the background painters use a lot of pattern." Pittenger said the sky flowers were meant to "evoke the look of a flower-print Hawaiian shirt".

Characters

Main article: List of SpongeBob SquarePants characters

File:SpongeBob SquarePants characters promo.png

The series' main characters. Top row, from left to right: Pearl, Plankton, and Karen. Bottom row: Sandy, Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob, Squidward, Gary, Patrick, and Mrs. Puff.

The series revolves around the title character and an ensemble cast of his aquatic friends. SpongeBob SquarePants is an energetic and optimistic yellow sea sponge who lives in a submerged pineapple. SpongeBob has a childlike enthusiasm for life, which carries over to his job as a fry cook at a fast food restaurant called the Krusty Krab. One of his life’s greatest goals is to obtain a boat-driving license from Mrs. Puff's Boating School, but he never succeeds. His favorite pastimes include "jellyfishing", which involves catching jellyfish with a net in a manner similar to butterfly catching, and blowing soap bubbles into elaborate shapes. He has a pet sea snail with a pink shell and a blue body named Gary, who meows like a cat.

Living two houses away from SpongeBob is his best friend Patrick Star, a dim-witted yet friendly pink starfish who resides under a rock. Despite his mental setbacks, Patrick sees himself as intelligent. Squidward Tentacles, SpongeBob's next-door neighbor and co-worker at the Krusty Krab, is an arrogant, ill-tempered octopus who lives in an Easter Island moai. He enjoys playing the clarinet and painting self-portraits but hates his job as a cashier. He also dislikes living between SpongeBob and Patrick because of their childish nature. The owner of the Krusty Krab is a miserly, greedy red crab named Mr. Krabs who talks like a sailor and runs his restaurant as if it were a pirate ship. He is a single parent with a teenage daughter, a grey sperm whale with a red-heart nose and yellow ponytail named Pearl, to whom he wants to bequeath his riches. Pearl does not want to continue the family business and would rather spend her time listening to music or working at the local shopping mall. Another of SpongeBob's friends is Sandy Cheeks, a thrill-seeking and athletic squirrel from Texas, who wears an air-filled diving suit to breathe underwater. She lives in a tree enclosed in a clear glass dome locked by an airtight, hand-turned seal and is an expert in karate, as well as a scientist.

Located across the street from the Krusty Krab is an unsuccessful rival restaurant called the Chum Bucket. It is run by a small, green, one-eyed copepod named Plankton and his computer wife, Karen. Plankton constantly tries to steal the secret recipe for Mr. Krabs's popular Krabby Patty burgers, hoping to gain the upper hand and put the Krusty Krab out of business. Karen supplies him with evil schemes to obtain the formula, but their efforts always fail and their restaurant rarely has any customers. When SpongeBob is not working at the Krusty Krab, he is often taking boating lessons from Mrs. Puff, a paranoid but patient pufferfish. SpongeBob is Mrs. Puff's most diligent student and knows every answer to the oral exams he takes, but he panics and crashes when he tries to drive a real boat. When Mrs. Puff endures one of SpongeBob's crashes or is otherwise frightened, she puffs up into a ball.

An unseen figure called the French Narrator often introduces episodes and narrates the intertitles as if the series were a nature documentary about the ocean. His role and distinctive manner of speaking are references to the oceanographer Jacques Cousteau.

Recurring guest characters appear throughout the series including: the retired superheroes Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, who are idolized by SpongeBob and Patrick; a pirate specter known as the Flying Dutchman; the muscular lifeguard of Goo Lagoon, Larry the Lobster; and the merman god of the sea, King Neptune.

Special (generally half-hour or hour-long) episodes of the show are hosted by a live-action pirate named Patchy and his pet parrot Potty, whose segments are presented in a dual narrative with the animated stories. Patchy is portrayed as the president of a fictional SpongeBob fan club, and his greatest aspiration is to meet SpongeBob himself. Potty likes to make fun of Patchy's enthusiasm and causes trouble for him while he tries to host the show.

Production

Development

Early inspirations

Before creating SpongeBob SquarePants, Stephen Hillenburg taught marine biology to visitors of the Ocean Institute (located in Dana Point, California).

Series' creator Stephen Hillenburg first became fascinated with the ocean as a child and began developing his artistic abilities at a young age. Although these interests would not overlap for some time—the idea of drawing fish seemed boring to him—Hillenburg pursued both during college, majoring in marine biology and minoring in art. After graduating in 1984, he joined the Ocean Institute, an organization in Dana Point, California, dedicated to educating the public about marine science and maritime history.

While Hillenburg was there, his love of the ocean began to influence his artistry. He created a precursor to SpongeBob SquarePants: a comic book titled The Intertidal Zone used by the institute to teach visiting students about the animal life of tide pools. The comic starred various anthropomorphic sea lifeforms, many of which would evolve into SpongeBob SquarePants characters. Hillenburg tried to get the comic professionally published, but none of the companies he sent it to were interested.

A large inspiration to Hillenburg was Ween's 1997 album The Mollusk, which had a nautical and underwater theme. Hillenburg contacted the band shortly after the album's release, explaining the baseline ideas for SpongeBob SquarePants, and also requested a song from the band, which they sent on Christmas Eve. This song was "Loop de Loop", which was used in the episode "Your Shoe's Untied".

Conception

While working as a staff artist at the Ocean Institute, Hillenburg entertained plans to return eventually to college for a master's degree in art. Before this could materialize, he attended an animation festival, which inspired him to make a slight change in course. Instead of continuing his education with a traditional art program, Hillenburg chose to study experimental animation at the California Institute of the Arts. His thesis film, Wormholes, is about the theory of relativity. It was screened at festivals, and at one of these, Hillenburg met Joe Murray, creator of the popular Nickelodeon animated series, Rocko's Modern Life. Murray was impressed by the style of the film and offered Hillenburg a job. Hillenburg joined the series as a director, and later, during the fourth season, he took on the roles of producer and creative director.

Martin Olson, one of the writers for Rocko's Modern Life, read The Intertidal Zone and encouraged Hillenburg to create a television series with a similar concept. At that point, Hillenburg had not even considered creating his own series. However, he realized that if he ever did, this would be the best approach. He began to develop some of the characters from The Intertidal Zone, including the comic's "announcer", Bob the Sponge. He wanted his series to stand out from most popular cartoons of the time, which he felt were exemplified by buddy comedies like The Ren & Stimpy Show. As a result, Hillenburg decided to focus on a single main character: the "weirdest" sea creature he could think of. This led him to the sponge. The Intertidal Zone's Bob the Sponge resembles an actual sea sponge, and at first, Hillenburg continued to use this design. In determining the new character's behavior, Hillenburg drew inspiration from innocent, childlike figures that he enjoyed, such as Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, Jerry Lewis, and Pee-wee Herman. He then considered modeling the character after a kitchen sponge and realized this idea would match the character's square personality perfectly. Patrick, Mr. Krabs, Pearl, and Squidward were the next characters Hillenburg created for the show.

To voice the series' central character, Hillenburg turned to Tom Kenny, whose career in animation had started alongside Hillenburg's on Rocko's Modern Life. Elements of Kenny's own personality were employed to develop the character further. Initially, Hillenburg wanted to use the name SpongeBoy—the character had no last name—and the series was to have been called SpongeBoy Ahoy! However, the Nickelodeon legal department discovered—after voice acting had been completed for the original seven-minute pilot episode—that the name "SpongeBoy" was already in use for a mop product, and a character of the same name was already trademarked by Flaming Carrot Comics creator Bob Burden. In choosing a replacement name, Hillenburg felt he still had to use the word "Sponge", so that viewers would not mistake the character for a "Cheese Man". He settled on the name "SpongeBob". "SquarePants" was chosen as a family name after Kenny saw a picture of the character and remarked, "Boy, look at this sponge in square pants, thinking he can get a job in a fast food place." When he heard Kenny say it Hillenburg loved the phrase and felt it would reinforce the character's nerdiness.

Assembling the crew

Derek Drymon, who served as creative director for the first three seasons, has said that Hillenburg wanted to surround himself with a "team of young and hungry people." Many of the major contributors to SpongeBob SquarePants had worked before with Hillenburg on Rocko's Modern Life: this included: Drymon, art director Nick Jennings, supervising director Alan Smart, writer / voice actor Doug Lawrence (often credited as Mr. Lawrence), and Tim Hill, who helped develop the series bible.

Although Drymon would go on to have a significant influence on SpongeBob SquarePants, he was not offered a role on the series initially. As a late recruit to Rocko's Modern Life, he had not established much of a relationship with Hillenburg before SpongeBob's conception. Hillenburg first sought out Drymon's storyboard partner, Mark O'Hare—but he had just created the soon-to-be syndicated comic strip, Citizen Dog. While he would later join SpongeBob as a writer, he lacked the time to get involved with both projects from the outset. Drymon has said, "I remember Hillenburg's bringing it up to Mark in our office and asking him if he'd be interested in working on it ... I was all ready to say yes to the offer, but Steve didn't ask; he just left the room. I was pretty desperate ... so I ran into the hall after him and basically begged him for the job. He didn't jump at the chance." Once Hillenburg had given it some thought and decided to bring Drymon on as creative director, the two began meeting at Hillenburg's house several times a week to develop the series. Drymon has identified this period as having begun in 1996, shortly after the end of Rocko's Modern Life.

Jennings was also instrumental in SpongeBob's genesis. Kenny has called him "one of SpongeBob's early graphics mentors". On weekends, Kenny joined Hillenburg, Jennings, and Drymon for creative sessions where they recorded ideas on a tape recorder. Kenny performed audio tests as SpongeBob during these sessions, while Hillenburg voice acted the other characters.

Hill contributed scripts for several first-season episodes (including the pilot) and was offered the role of story editor, but turned it down—he would go on to pursue a career as a family film director. In his stead, Pete Burns was brought in for the job. Burns hailed from Chicago and had never met any of the principal players on SpongeBob before joining the team.

Pitching

The execs from Nickelodeon flew out to Burbank, and we pitched it to them from the storyboards. We had squeezy toys, wore Hawaiian shirts, and used a boom box to play the Tiny Tim song ['Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight'] that comes on in the third act. We really went all out in that pitch because we knew the pilot lived or died by if the execs laughed. When it was over, they walked out of the room to discuss it. We figured they would fly back to New York and we'd hear in a few weeks. We were surprised when they came back in what seemed like minutes and said they wanted to make it.

—Derek Drymon

While pitching the cartoon to Nickelodeon executives, Hillenburg donned a Hawaiian shirt, brought along an "underwater terrarium with models of the characters", and played Hawaiian music to set the theme. The setup was described by Nickelodeon executive Eric Coleman as "pretty amazing". They were given money and two weeks to write the pilot episode "Help Wanted". Drymon, Hillenburg, and Jennings returned with what was described by Nickelodeon official Albie Hecht as, "a performance [he] wished [he] had on tape". Although executive producer Derek Drymon described the pitch as stressful, he said it went "very well". Kevin Kay and Hecht had to step outside because they were "exhausted from laughing", which worried the cartoonists.

In an interview, Cyma Zarghami, then-president of Nickelodeon, said, "their [Nickelodeon executives'] immediate reaction was to see it again, both because they liked it and it was unlike anything they'd ever seen before". Zarghami was one of four executives in the room when SpongeBob SquarePants was screened for the first time.

Before commissioning the full series, Nickelodeon executives insisted that it would not be popular unless SpongeBob was a child who went to school, with his teacher as a main character. Hillenburg recalled in 2012 that Nickelodeon told him, "Our winning formula is animation about kids in school... We want you to put SpongeBob in school." Hillenburg was ready to "walk out" on Nickelodeon and abandon the series, since he wanted SpongeBob to be an adult character. He eventually compromised by adding a new character to the main cast, Mrs. Puff, who is a boat-driving teacher. Hillenburg was happy with the compromise and said, "A positive thing for me that came out of it was [how it brought] in a new character, Mrs. Puff, who I love."

Executive producers and showrunners

Stephen Hillenburg, creator of SpongeBob SquarePants

Until his death in 2018, Hillenburg had served as the executive producer over the course of the series' entire history and functioned as its showrunner from its debut in 1999 until 2004. The series went on hiatus in 2002, after Hillenburg halted production on the show itself to work on the feature film The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. Once the film was finalized and the third season finished, Hillenburg resigned as the series' showrunner. Although he no longer had a direct role in the series' production, he maintained an advisory role and reviewed each episode.

It reached a point where I felt I'd contributed a lot and said what I wanted to say. At that point, the show needed new blood, and so I selected Paul [Tibbitt] to produce. I totally trusted him. I always enjoyed the way he captured the SpongeBob character's sense of humor. And as a writer, you have to move on—I'm developing new projects.

—Stephen Hillenburg, The Washington Post

When the film was completed, Hillenburg intended it to be the series finale, "so [the show] wouldn't jump the shark." However, Nickelodeon wanted more episodes. Hillenburg appointed Paul Tibbitt, who had previously served on the show as a writer, director, and storyboard artist, to take over his role as showrunner to produce additional seasons. Hillenburg considered Tibbitt one of his favorite members of the show's crew, and "totally trusted him".

On December 13, 2014, it was announced that Hillenburg would return to the series in an unspecified position. On November 26, 2018, at the age of 57, Hillenburg died from complications from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which he had been diagnosed with in March 2017. Nickelodeon confirmed via Twitter the series would continue after his death. In February 2019, incoming president Brian Robbins vowed Nickelodeon would keep the show in production for as long as the network exists.

As of the ninth season, former writers and storyboard directors Vincent Waller and Marc Ceccarelli act as showrunners.

Writing

According to writer and storyboard artist Luke Brookshier, "SpongeBob is written differently to many television shows." Unlike most of its contemporaries, SpongeBob SquarePants does not use written scripts. Instead, storylines are developed by a team of five outline and premise writers. A two-page outline is then assigned to a team of storyboard directors, who produce a complete rough draft of the storyboard. One of the methods used to assemble storyboards was to use Post-it notes. Most of the dialogue and jokes are added during this stage. Brookshier has likened this process to how cartoons were made "in the early days of animation."

The decision to eschew scripts for storyboards is one that Hillenburg made early in the series' development. Rocko's Modern Life had also used storyboarding derived from short outlines, and having worked on that series, Hillenburg felt strongly about adopting the process for SpongeBob SquarePants—even though Nickelodeon was beginning to show a greater preference for script-driven cartoons. Another series' writer, Merriwether Williams, explained in an interview that she and Mr. Lawrence would write a draft for an episode in an afternoon and be done at 4:00 pm.

The writing staff often used their personal experiences as inspiration for the storylines of the series' episodes. For example, the episode "Sailor Mouth", where SpongeBob and Patrick learn profanity, was inspired by creative director Derek Drymon's experience as a child of getting into trouble for using the f-word in front of his mother. Drymon said, "The scene where Patrick is running to Mr. Krabs to tattle, with SpongeBob chasing him, is pretty much how it happened in real life". The end of the episode when Mr. Krabs uses even more profanity than SpongeBob and Patrick, was inspired "by the fact that my [Drymon's] mother has a sailor mouth herself". The idea for the episode "The Secret Box" also came from one of Drymon's childhood experiences. Hillenburg explained, "Drymon had a secret box [as a kid] and started telling us about it. We wanted to make fun of him and use it."

Almost every episode is divided into two 11-minute segments. Hillenburg explained: "[I] never really wanted to deliberately try to write a half-hour show". He added, "I wrote the shows to where they felt right".

Voice actors

Further information: List of SpongeBob SquarePants cast members and List of SpongeBob SquarePants guest stars

Steve described SpongeBob to me as childlike and naïve. He's not quite an adult, he's not quite a kid. Think a Stan Laurel, Jerry Lewis kind of child-man. Kind of like a Munchkin but not quite, kind of like a kid, but not in a Charlie Brown child's voice on the TV shows.

—Tom Kenny

SpongeBob SquarePants features the voices of: Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Rodger Bumpass, Clancy Brown, Mr. Lawrence, Jill Talley, Carolyn Lawrence, Mary Jo Catlett, and Lori Alan. Most one-off and background characters are voiced by: Dee Bradley Baker, Sirena Irwin, Bob Joles, Mark Fite and Thomas F. Wilson.

Kenny voices SpongeBob and a number of other characters, including SpongeBob's pet snail Gary and the French narrator. He also physically portrays Patchy the Pirate in live-action segments of most special episodes. Kenny previously worked with Stephen Hillenburg on Rocko's Modern Life. When Hillenburg created SpongeBob SquarePants, he approached Kenny to voice the main character. Kenny originally used the voice of SpongeBob for a minor character on Rocko. He forgot how to perform the voice initially and did not intend to use it afterward. Hillenburg, however, used a video clip of the episode to remind Kenny of the voice. When Hillenburg heard Kenny perform the voice, he knew immediately he wanted it for his character. He said to Nickelodeon executives, "That's it—I don't want to hear anybody else do the voice. We've got SpongeBob." The network insisted on auditioning more actors, but Hillenburg turned them down; in the words of Tom Kenny, "one of the advantages of having a strong creator is that the creator can say, 'No, I like that—I don't care about celebrities.'" While Kenny was developing SpongeBob's voice, the show's casting crew wanted him to have a unique, high-pitched laugh in the tradition of Popeye and Woody Woodpecker.

Fagerbakke voices Patrick Star and other miscellaneous characters. At the same time when Hillenburg, Derek Drymon and Tim Hill were writing the pilot "Help Wanted", Hillenburg was also conducting auditions to find voices for the characters. Fagerbakke auditioned for the role of Patrick after Kenny had been cast. Fagerbakke recalled that during this audition, "Hillenburg actually played for me a portion of Tom [Kenny]'s performance [as SpongeBob], and they were looking for a counterpoint." In an interview, Fagerbakke compared himself to the character and said, "It's extremely gratifying". Whenever Patrick is angry Fagerbakke models his performance after American actress Shelley Winters.

Squidward Tentacles is voiced by Rodger Bumpass, who describes him as "a very nasally, monotone kind of guy." He said the character "became a very interesting character to do" because of "his sarcasm, and then his frustration, and then his apoplexy, and so he became a wide spectrum of emotions". Arthur Brown, author of Everything I Need to Know, I Learned from Cartoons!, has compared Squidward's voice to that of Jack Benny's, a similarity Bumpass says is mostly unintentional. Voice acting veteran Clancy Brown voices Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob's boss at the Krusty Krab. Hillenburg modeled Mr. Krabs after his former manager at a seafood restaurant, whose strong Maine accent reminded Hillenburg of a pirate. Brown decided to use a "piratey" voice for the character with "a little Scottish brogue" after hearing Hillenburg's description of his boss. According to Brown, his Mr. Krabs voice was mostly improvised during his audition and it was not challenging for him to find the correct voice.

Mr. Lawrence had met Hillenburg before on Rocko's Modern Life. While working on the pilot episode of SpongeBob, Hillenburg invited him to audition for all the characters. Since other voices had been found for the main cast already, Lawrence began by voicing a variety of minor characters. This included Plankton, who was initially only set to appear in one episode. Mr. Lawrence recalls that Nickelodeon executives told Hillenburg, "'we could stunt-cast this. You know, we could have Bruce Willis do this voice.' And Steve was just like, 'it's Doug [Lawrence], don't you hear it? This is the character! This is the guy!'" Jill Talley, Tom Kenny's wife, voices Karen Plankton. Being a Chicago native, she uses a Midwestern accent for the character. Electronic sound effects are underlaid by the series' audio engineers to create a robotic sound when she speaks. Talley and Mr. Lawrence often improvise Plankton and Karen's dialogue. Lawrence called improvisation his "favorite part of the voice over" in 2009. He elaborated in a 2012 interview, saying, "I always enjoy the back-and-forth. [Talley and I] start to actually overlap so much talking to each other that [the voice directors] have to tell us, 'hey, stop doing that, separate what you're saying!'"

Carolyn Lawrence voices Sandy Cheeks. She was in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, with a friend who knew SpongeBob SquarePants casting director Donna Grillo. Her friend said to Grillo that Lawrence had "an interesting voice". Grillo invited her to audition and she got the role. American actress Mary Jo Catlett, who is known for her live-action roles on television programs from the 1970s such as Diff'rent Strokes and M*A*S*H provides Mrs. Puff's voice. As of 2017, voicing Mrs. Puff has become her only regular television role; Catlett described herself as "basically retired" in 2013, since she feels that voicing Mrs. Puff requires less preparation than her performances in person. Lori Alan voices Pearl Krabs. During her audition for the role, Alan was shown an early drawing of the characters and noted that Pearl was much larger than the rest of the cast. She decided to reflect the character's size in her voice by making it deep and full in tone. She aimed to make it invoke the sound of whales' low vocalizations while also sounding "spoiled and lovable." In an interview with AfterBuzz TV, Alan said she knew Pearl "had to sound somewhat like a child," but needed "an abnormally large voice."

In addition to the regular cast, episodes feature guest voices from many professions, including actors, athletes, authors, musicians, and artists. Recurring guest voices include: Ernest Borgnine, who voiced Mermaid Man from 1999 until his death in 2012; Tim Conway as the voice of Barnacle Boy from 1999 until his death in 2019; Brian Doyle-Murray as the Flying Dutchman; and Marion Ross as Grandma SquarePants. Notable guests who have provided vocal cameo appearances include: David Bowie as Lord Royal Highness in the television film Atlantis SquarePantis; John Goodman as the voice of Santa in the episode "It's a SpongeBob Christmas!"; Johnny Depp as the voice of the surf guru, Jack Kahuna Laguna, in the episode "SpongeBob SquarePants vs. The Big One"; and Victoria Beckham as the voice of Queen Amphitrite in the episode "The Clash of Triton".

Voice recording sessions always include a full cast of actors, which Kenny describes as "getting more unusual". Kenny said, "That's another thing that's given SpongeBob its special feel. Everybody's in the same room, doing it old radio-show style. It's how the stuff we like was recorded". Series writer Jay Lender said, "The recording sessions were always fun ..." For the first three seasons, Hillenburg and Drymon sat in the recording studio and directed the actors. Andrea Romano became the voice director in the fourth season, and Tom Kenny took over the role during the ninth. Wednesday is recording day, the same schedule followed by the crew since 1999. Casting supervisor Jennie Monica Hammond said, "I loved Wednesdays".

Animation

Approximately 50 people work together to animate and produce an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants. Throughout its run, the series' production has been handled domestically at Nickelodeon Animation Studio in Burbank, California. The finished animation has been created overseas at Rough Draft Studios in South Korea. The California crew storyboard each episode. These are then used as templates by the crew in Korea, who animate each scene by hand, color each cel on computers, and paint backgrounds. Episodes are finished in California, where they are edited and have music added.

During the first season, the series used cel animation. A shift was made the following year to digital ink and paint animation. In 2009, executive producer Paul Tibbitt said: "The first season of SpongeBob was done the old-fashioned way on cells [sic], and every cell sic had to be part-painted, left to dry, paint some other colors. It's still a time-consuming aspect of the process now, but the digital way of doing things means it doesn't take long to correct".

In 2008, the crew began using Wacom Cintiqs for the drawings instead of pencils. The fifth season episode "Pest of the West", one of the half-hour specials, was the first episode where the crew applied this method. Series' background designer Kenny Pittenger said, "The only real difference between the way we draw now and the way we drew then is that we abandoned pencil and paper during the fifth season". The shift to Wacom Cintiqs let the designers and animators draw on computer screens and make immediate changes or undo mistakes. Pittenger said, "Many neo-Luddites—er ... I mean, many of my cohorts—don't like working on them, but I find them useful. There's no substitute for the immediacy of drawing on a piece of paper, of course, but digital nautical nonsense is still pretty fun".

File:SpongeBob SquarePants characters by Screen Novelties.jpg

Screen Novelties created character models based on the works of Rankin/Bass for the show's stop-motion episodes.

Since 2004, the SpongeBob crew has periodically collaborated with the LA-based animation studio Screen Novelties to create stop-motion sequences for special episodes. The studio produced a brief claymation scene for the climax of the first theatrical film. It was re-enlisted in 2009 to create an exclusive opening for the series' tenth anniversary special. The abominable snow mollusk, an octopus-like creature made of clay who acts as the antagonist of the double-length episode "Frozen Face-Off", was also animated by the company. Animation World Network reported that "within the SpongeBob creative team, there was always talk of doing a more involved project together" with Screen Novelties. As a result, the group was asked to create an episode animated entirely in stop motion in 2011. This project became "It's a SpongeBob Christmas!", which reimagined the show's characters as if they were part of a Rankin/Bass holiday film. Tom Kenny, who is normally uninvolved in the writing process, contributed to the episode's plot; he said in 2012 that he and Nickelodeon "wanted to do something just like those old school, stop-motion Rankin-Bass holiday specials ... which I watched over and over again when I was a kid growing up in Syracuse." Unconventional materials such as baking soda, glitter, wood chips and breakfast cereal were used in mass quantities to create the special's sets. Members of the Screen Novelties crew received one win and two nominations at the 30th Annie Awards, a nomination at the 2013 Golden Reel Awards, and a nomination at the 2013 Annecy International Animated Film Festival for animating the episode. The team built a dolphin puppet named Bubbles, voiced by Matt Berry, for The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water. Sequences involving Bubbles included a blend of stop motion and traditional animation. A second special animated in stop motion, themed around Halloween and using the same Rankin/Bass-inspired character models, was produced for season 11.

Music

[The music has gone] from mostly sea shanties and Hawaiian music à la Roy Smeck meets Pee-wee Herman—still the main style for the show—in the early episodes, but it now includes film noir, West Side Story to [Henry] Mancini, Jerry Goldsmith and [Steven] Spielberg. There's Broadway-type scores and plain old goofy, loopy, weird stuff. I try to push the envelope on this show without getting in the way of the story, and I try to push it up and way over the top when I can get away with it, all the time keeping it as funny and ridiculous as possible.

—Music editor Nicolas Carr

Mark Harrison and Blaise Smith composed the SpongeBob SquarePants theme song. Its lyrics were written by Stephen Hillenburg and the series' original creative director Derek Drymon. The melody was inspired by the sea shanty "Blow the Man Down". An old oil painting of a pirate is used in the opening sequence. Dubbed "Painty the Pirate", according to Tom Kenny, Hillenburg found it in a thrift shop "years ago". Patrick Pinney voices Painty the Pirate, singing the theme song as the character. Hillenburg's lips were imposed onto the painting and move along with the lyrics. Kenny joked this is "about as close of a glimpse as most SpongeBob fans are ever going to get of Steve Hillenburg", because of his private nature.

A cover of the song by Avril Lavigne can be found on the SpongeBob SquarePants Movie soundtrack. Another cover by the Violent Femmes aired on Nickelodeon as a promotion when the series moved to prime time.

Steve Belfer, one of Hillenburg's friends from CalArts, wrote and performed the music heard over the end credits. This theme includes ukulele music at Hillenburg's request. Drymon said, "It's so long ago, it's hard to be sure, but I remember Hillenburg having the Belfer music early on, maybe before the pilot".

The series' music editor and main composer is Nicolas Carr. After working with Hillenburg on Rocko's Modern Life, he struggled to find a new job in his field. He had considered a career change before Hillenburg offered him the job. The first season's score primarily featured selections from the Associated Production Music Library, which Carr has said includes "lots of great old corny Hawaiian music and big, full, dramatic orchestral scores." Rocko's Modern Life also used music from this library. It was Hillenburg's decision to adopt this approach. Carr has described the selections for SpongeBob SquarePants as being "more over-the-top" than those for Rocko's Modern Life.

Hillenburg felt it was important for the series to develop its own music library, consisting of scores that could be reused and re-edited throughout the years. He wanted these scores to be composed by unknowns, and a group of twelve was assembled. They formed "The Sponge Divers Orchestra", which includes Carr and Belfer. The group went on to provide most of the music for later seasons, although Carr still draws from the Associated Production Music Library, as well as another library that he founded himself—Animation Music Inc.

Broadcast

Episodes

Main article: List of SpongeBob SquarePants episodes

Season		Episodes	Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
	1	20	May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01)	March 3, 2001 (2001-03-03)
	2	20	October 26, 2000 (2000-10-26)	July 26, 2003 (2003-07-26)
	3	20	October 5, 2001 (2001-10-05)	October 11, 2004 (2004-10-11)
	4	20	May 6, 2005 (2005-05-06)	July 24, 2007 (2007-07-24)
	5	20	February 19, 2007 (2007-02-19)	July 19, 2009 (2009-07-19)
	6	26	March 3, 2008 (2008-03-03)	July 5, 2010 (2010-07-05)
	7	26	July 19, 2009 (2009-07-19)	June 11, 2011 (2011-06-11)
	8	26	March 26, 2011 (2011-03-26)	December 6, 2012 (2012-12-06)
	9	26	July 21, 2012 (2012-07-21)	February 20, 2017 (2017-02-20)
	10	11	October 15, 2016 (2016-10-15)	December 2, 2017 (2017-12-02)
	11	26	June 24, 2017 (2017-06-24)	November 25, 2018 (2018-11-25)
	12	26	November 11, 2018 (2018-11-11)	TBA
	13	13	October 22, 2020 (2020-10-22)	TBA

Tenth anniversary

Ten years. I never imagined working on the show to this date and this long...I really figured we might get a season and a cult following, and that might be it.

—Stephen Hillenburg

Nickelodeon began celebrating the series' 10th anniversary on January 18, 2009, with a live cast reading of the episode "SpongeBob vs. The Big One". The reading—a first for the series—was held at that year's Sundance Film Festival. The episode, which premiered on TV on April 17, 2009, features Johnny Depp as a guest star. Other celebratory actions taken by the network included the launching of a new website for the series (spongebob.com) and the introduction of new merchandise. A "SpongeBob and water conservation-themed element" was also added to Nickelodeon's pro-social campaign The Big Green Help. In an interview, Tom Kenny said, "What I'm most proud of is that kids still really like [SpongeBob SquarePants] and care about it ... They eagerly await new episodes. People who were young children when it started 10 years ago are still watching it and digging it and think it's funny. That's the loving cup for me."

Three nights before the official anniversary date, an hour-long documentary on the series, Square Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePants, premiered on VH1. Critically acclaimed duo Patrick Creadon and Christine O'Malley created the film as a followup to I.O.U.S.A.—a documentary on America's financial situation. Creadon remarked, "After spending two years examining the financial health of the United States, Christine and I were ready to tackle something a little more upbeat. Telling the SpongeBob story feels like the perfect fit." On Friday, July 17, Nickelodeon marked the official anniversary of the series, with a 50-hour television marathon titled "The Ultimate SpongeBob SpongeBash Weekend". It began with a new episode, "To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants". Saturday saw a countdown of the top ten episodes as picked by fans, as well as an airing of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. The marathon finished on Sunday, with a countdown of episodes picked by celebrities and the premiere of ten new episodes.

Nickelodeon continued celebrating the anniversary through the rest of the year. An eight-episode DVD set featuring To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants was released shortly after the marathon on July 21. Next a 2,200 minute, 14-disc DVD set titled The First 100 Episodes was released on September 22. Finally, on November 6, an hour-long television film, titled Truth or Square, debuted on Nickelodeon. The film is narrated by Ricky Gervais and features live action cameo appearances by: Rosario Dawson, Craig Ferguson, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, LeBron James, P!nk, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, and Robin Williams. It was released as part of a five-episode DVD set on November 10, 2009.

Twentieth anniversary

On February 11, 2019, Nickelodeon announced it would recognize the twentieth anniversary of SpongeBob SquarePants with a series of celebrations known as the "Best Year Ever". In honor of the anniversary, Pantone created color shades known as "SpongeBob SquarePants Yellow" and "Patrick Star Pink" to be used by Nickelodeon's licensing partners. Romero Britto, Jon Burgerman, and the Filipino art collective Secret Fresh were commissioned by Nickelodeon to create art pieces devoted to SpongeBob SquarePants. Some of these pieces were to be adapted into commercial products. On February 12, in conjunction with Nickelodeon's announcement of the "Best Year Ever", Cynthia Rowley presented a SpongeBob SquarePants-themed wetsuit during New York Fashion Week. A month later, Marlou Breuls presented the SpongeBob SquarePants-themed "Icon Collection" during Amsterdam Fashion Week. That summer, Nike, in collaboration with Kyrie Irving, released a SpongeBob SquarePants series of shoes, accessories, and apparel. In July, for the first time ever, SpongeBob SquarePants became the theme of a cosmetics line, which was released as a limited time offering by HipDot Studios. The "Best Year Ever" also introduced an official SpongeBob SquarePants YouTube channel and a new mobile game based on the series, along with new toy lines.

The "Best Year Ever" formally began on July 12, 2019, with the premiere of the one-hour, live-action/animated TV special SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout. It continued that month at San Diego Comic Con, with two panels, a booth, and various activities devoted to the series. The "Best Year Ever" was recognized on Amazon Prime Day with an exclusive early release of SpongeBob SquarePants: The Best 200 Episodes Ever!, a 30-disc DVD compilation of two box sets, SpongeBob SquarePants: The First 100 Episodes and SpongeBob SquarePants: The Next 100 Episodes. The collections received a standard nationwide release on August 27. The "Best Year Ever" continued into 2020 culminating with the August 14 release of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run.

Reception

Ratings and run-length achievements

Within its first month on air, SpongeBob SquarePants overtook Pokémon as the highest rated Saturday-morning children's series on television. It held an average national Nielsen rating of 4.9 among children aged two through eleven, denoting 1.9 million viewers. Two years later, the series had firmly established itself as Nickelodeon's second highest-rated children's program, after Rugrats. SpongeBob SquarePants was credited with helping Nickelodeon take the "Saturday-morning ratings crown" for the fourth straight season in 2001. The series had gained a significant adult audience by that point—nearly 40 percent of its 2.2 million viewers were aged 18 to 34. In response to its weekend success, Nickelodeon gave SpongeBob SquarePants time slots at 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM, Monday through Thursday, to increase the series' exposure. By the end of 2001, SpongeBob SquarePants boasted the highest ratings for any children's series, on all of television. Weekly viewership of the series had reached around fifteen million, at least five million of whom were adults.

In October 2002, another Nickelodeon series, The Fairly OddParents, ranked as the number two program for children between two and eleven years old. Its ratings at that time were almost equal to SpongeBob SquarePants' then-average of 2.2 million viewers per episode. The Fairly OddParents even briefly surpassed SpongeBob SquarePants, causing it to drop into second place. At this time, The Fairly OddParents had a 6.2 rating and nearly 2.5 million child viewers, while SpongeBob SquarePants had a 6.0 rating and 2.4 million child viewers aged two to eleven. Nickelodeon "recognized" The Fairly OddParents for its climbing ratings and installed it in a new 8:00 PM time slot, previously occupied by SpongeBob SquarePants. In an interview, Cyma Zarghami, then-general manager and executive vice president of Nickelodeon, said, "Are we banking on the fact that Fairly OddParents will be the next SpongeBob? ... We are hoping. But SpongeBob is so unique, it's hard to say if it will ever be repeated."

In 2012, however, the series' ratings were declining. The average number of viewers aged two to eleven watching SpongeBob at any given time dropped 29% in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to Nielsen. Wall Street Journal business writer John Jannarone suggested the series' age and oversaturation might be contributing to its ratings' decline and might also be directly responsible for the decline in Nickelodeon's overall ratings. Media analyst Todd Juenger attributed the decline in Nickelodeon's ratings directly to the availability of streaming video content on services like Netflix, a provider of on-demand Internet streaming media.

Philippe Dauman, the president and CEO of Viacom, contradicted that notion, saying: "We are getting nice revenues through these subscription VOD deals", adding Netflix only has "some library content" on its service. A Nickelodeon spokesman said, "SpongeBob is performing consistently well and remains the number one rated animated series in all of children's television." He added, "There is nothing that we have seen that points to SpongeBob as a problem." Dauman blamed the drop on "some ratings systemic issues" at Nielsen, citing extensive set-top-box data that "does in no way reflect" the Nielsen data.

Juenger noted SpongeBob could affect the ratings of other Nickelodeon programming because children often change channels to find their favorite programs, then stay tuned to that network. Nickelodeon reduced its exposure on television. In the first quarter of 2012, the network cut back on the number of episodes it aired by 16% compared to a year earlier.

On April 22, 2013, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings announced their intentions not to renew their existing deal with Viacom. Viacom's deal with Netflix expired, and shows such as SpongeBob and Dora the Explorer were removed. However, seasons five through eight of SpongeBob are still available to stream on Netflix in Canada. On June 4, 2013, Viacom announced a multi-year licensing agreement which would move its programs, such as SpongeBob and Dora the Explorer, to Amazon.com, Netflix's top competitor. Amazon agreed to pay more than $200 million to Viacom for the license, its largest subscription streaming transaction ever.

SpongeBob SquarePants is one of the longest-running series on Nickelodeon. It became the network's series with the most episodes during its eighth season, surpassing the 172 episodes of Rugrats. In the ninth season, its 26 episodes brought the number of episodes produced to 204. In a statement, Brown Johnson, Nickelodeon's animation president said, "SpongeBob's success in reaching over 200 episodes is a testament to creator Stephen Hillenburg's vision, comedic sensibility and his dynamic, lovable characters. The series now joins the club of contemporary classic Nicktoons that have hit this benchmark, so we're incredibly proud."

Critical reception

SpongeBob SquarePants has been widely praised particularly for its appeal to different age groups, and the show has earned numerous awards and accolades throughout its run. James Poniewozik of Time magazine described the title character as "the anti-Bart Simpson, temperamentally and physically: his head is as squared-off and neat as Bart's is unruly, and he has a personality to match—conscientious, optimistic and blind to the faults in the world and those around him." According to Laura Fries of Variety magazine, the series is "a thoughtful and inventive cartoon about a hopelessly optimistic and resilient sea sponge ... Devoid of the double entendres rife in today's animated TV shows, this is purely kid's stuff. ... However, that's not to say that SpongeBob is simplistic or even juvenile. It's charming and whimsical, but clever enough to appeal to teens and college-aged kids, as well." The New York Times' critic Joyce Millman said SpongeBob "is clever without being impenetrable to young viewers and goofy without boring grown-ups to tears. It's the most charming toon on television, and one of the weirdest. And it's also good, clean fun, which makes sense because it is, after all, about a sponge." Millman wrote, "His relentless good cheer would be irritating if he weren't so darned lovable and his world so excellently strange. ... Like Pee-wee's Playhouse, SpongeBob joyfully dances on the fine line between childhood and adulthood, guilelessness and camp, the warped and the sweet."

Robert Thompson, a professor of communications and director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University, told The New York Times

There is something kind of unique about [SpongeBob]. It seems to be a refreshing breath from the pre-irony era. There's no sense of the elbow-in-rib, tongue-in-cheek aesthetic that so permeates the rest of American culture—including kids' shows like the Rugrats. I think what's subversive about it is it's so incredibly naive—deliberately. Because there's nothing in it that's trying to be hip or cool or anything else, hipness can be grafted onto it.

In another interview with Los Angeles Times, he commentated on the show's adult audience: "[On one hand] It's a kind of time machine that transports parents back to when they watched TV in their footie [pajamas]. On the other hand, it's very hip in the way it's presented. It is very edgy to adults who know how to read and listen between the frames." Television critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz ranked SpongeBob SquarePants as the 22nd greatest American TV series of all time in their 2016 book TV (The Book). In a 2007 interview, Barack Obama said SpongeBob is his favorite TV character and admitted that SpongeBob SquarePants is "the show I watch with my daughters."

Awards and accolades

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by SpongeBob SquarePants

SpongeBob SquarePants has received many awards and nominations; among these are four Emmy Awards (Outstanding Special Class Animated Program in 2010; Outstanding Sound Editing – Animation" in 2014; Outstanding Children's Animated Series in 2018; and Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program in 2018 for Kenny); six Annie Awards; and two BAFTA Children's Awards. In 2006, IGN ranked SpongeBob SquarePants 15th on its list, Top 25 Animated Series of All Time, and in 2013, it ranked the series 12th on its list, The Top 25 Animated Series for Adults. In addition, the website's UK division ran a Top 100 Animated Series list, and like its US counterpart, ranked SpongeBob SquarePants 15th.

TV Guide listed SpongeBob SquarePants himself at number nine on its list 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time in 2002. In June 2010, Entertainment Weekly named SpongeBob one of the 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years. Viewers of UK television network Channel 4 voted SpongeBob SquarePants the 28th Greatest Cartoon in a 2004 poll. The series is among the All-TIME 100 TV Shows as chosen by Time television critic James Poniewozik in 2007. He said, "It's the most funny, surreal, inventive example of the explosion in creative kids' (and adult) entertainment that Nick, Cartoon Network and their ilk made possible." In 2013, the publication ranked SpongeBob SquarePants the eighth Greatest TV Cartoon of All Time. Television critic Matt Zoller Seitz included the series in his 2016 book with Alan Sepinwall titled TV (The Book) as the 22nd greatest American television series of all time, saying that "SpongeBob SquarePants is an absurdist masterpiece that Salvador Dalí and Groucho Marx would have watched together in their smoking jackets".

Legacy

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File:Wax Museum Plus (6344827249).jpg

SpongeBob SquarePants wax statue, in National Wax Museum Plus, in Dublin, Ireland

In July 2009, Madame Tussauds wax museum in New York launched a wax sculpture of SpongeBob in celebration of the series' 10th anniversary. SpongeBob became the first animated character sculpted entirely out of wax.

The character has also become a trend in Egypt at Cairo's Tahrir Square. After the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, SpongeBob became a fashion phenomenon, appearing on various merchandise items from hijabs to boxer shorts. The phenomenon led to the creation of the Tumblr project called "SpongeBob on the Nile". The project was founded by American students Andrew Leber and Elisabeth Jaquette and attempts to document every appearance of SpongeBob in Egypt. Sherief Elkeshta cited the phenomenon in an essay about the incoherent state of politics in Egypt in an independent monthly paper titled Midan Masr. He wrote, "Why isn't he [SpongeBob] at least holding a Molotov cocktail? Or raising a fist?" The phenomenon has even spread to Libya, where a Libyan rebel in SpongeBob dress was photographed celebrating the revolution. Although The Guardian and Vice have asserted that the trend has little to no political significance, "joke" presidential campaigns have been undertaken for SpongeBob in Egypt and Syria.

A clip was posted to YouTube in February 2013 that features soldiers in the Russian army and navy singing the SpongeBob SquarePants theme song as they march. According to the website that uploaded the video, this is one of the "most popular marching songs" in the Russian military. The video garnered nearly 50,000 views within its first week.

Following Hillenburg's death in November 2018, more than 1.2 million fans signed a petition for the National Football League to have the song "Sweet Victory" from the season 2 episode "Band Geeks" performed in his honor at the Super Bowl LIII halftime show. Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium's Twitter account, the venue of the show, tweeted a GIF of SpongeBob dancing in "Band Geeks" in December. Maroon 5 who were performing at the game, included a brief clip of SpongeBob in a preview video, leading fans to believe the song would be performed. While the song's opening was ultimately included, it served as a transition into artist Travis Scott's set, which left many fans disappointed. In response to fans' disappointment at not hearing the complete "Sweet Victory" song during the halftime show at the Super Bowl LIII, the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League showed a clip of the full "Sweet Victory" song during a game at the American Airlines Center. In the clip, the characters' band uniforms are recolored green after the Stars.

Several species of organism have been named in reference to SpongeBob. In May 2011, a new species of mushroom, Spongiforma squarepantsii, was described and named after the series' title character. In 2019, a species of sea sponge, Clathria hillenburgi, was named in honor of Hillenburg, also referencing his creation of SpongeBob SquarePants. In 2020, a species of abyssal sea star, Astrolirus patricki, was described and named after Patrick Star; individuals of this species were found to be closely associated with hexactinellid sponges, and it was thus named after Patrick as a reference to the character's friendship with SpongeBob.

In honor of Stephen Hillenburg, a non-profit fan project, titled The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Rehydrated, was released online on May 1, 2022. It consists of a recreation of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie reanimated by 300 people with re-recorded music and dialogue. Amid the YouTube premiere, the video was taken down by Paramount Global due to copyright laws. As a result, the hashtag #JusticeForSpongeBob became trending on Twitter against Paramount's action. The video was restored the following day.

Criticism

Controversies

In 2005, an online video that showed clips from SpongeBob SquarePants and other children's shows set to the Sister Sledge song "We Are Family" to promote diversity and tolerance was attacked by an evangelical group in the United States. They saw SpongeBob being used to "advocate homosexuality". James Dobson of Focus on the Family accused the video of promoting homosexuality because it was sponsored by a pro-tolerance group. The incident prompted the question whether SpongeBob is gay. Although the character has enjoyed popularity with gay viewers, series creator Stephen Hillenburg had already denied SpongeBob is gay three years earlier, clarifying at the time he considered the character to be "somewhat asexual". After Dobson's comments, Hillenburg reasserted his position, stating that sexual preference does not play a part in what they are "trying to do" with the series. Tom Kenny and other production members were distraught that the issue had arisen. Dobson later said his comments were taken out of context and his original complaints were not with SpongeBob, the video, or any of the characters in the video, but rather with the organization that sponsored the video, the We Are Family Foundation. Dobson said they posted pro-gay material on their website, but later removed it. After the controversy, John H. Thomas, the United Church of Christ's general minister and president, said they would welcome SpongeBob into their ministry. He said: "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we."

Queer theorist Jeffery P. Dennis, author of the journal article "Queertoons", argued that SpongeBob and Sandy are not romantically in love, but added he believed SpongeBob and Patrick "are paired with arguably erotic intensity". Martin Goodman of Animation World Magazine called Dennis' comments regarding SpongeBob and Patrick "interesting". Ukrainian website Family Under the Protection of the Holy Virgin, which has been described as a "fringe Catholic" group by The Wall Street Journal, criticized SpongeBob SquarePants for its alleged "promotion of homosexuality". The group sought to have the series banned, along with several other popular children's properties. The National Expert Commission of Ukraine on the Protection of Public Morality took up the matter for review in August 2012. Questions of SpongeBob's sexuality resurfaced in 2020 after Nickelodeon's official Twitter account posted an image of the character, in rainbow colors with text celebrating the LGBTQ+ community and its allies during Pride Month. Although the post did not make any assertions about SpongeBob's sexual orientation, numerous users responded on social media, claiming they already had their suspicions that he might be gay or reasserting Hillenburg's description of asexuality.

In April 2009, Burger King released a SpongeBob-themed advertisement featuring a parody of Sir Mix-a-Lot's song "Baby Got Back". The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood protested the ad for being sexist and inappropriately sexual, especially considering SpongeBob's fan base includes young children. In official statements released by Burger King and Nickelodeon, both companies claimed the campaign was aimed at parents.

"The children who watched the cartoon were operating at half the capacity compared to other children."

—Angeline S. Lillard, University of Virginia

A 2011 study conducted at the University of Virginia, published in the journal Pediatrics, suggested that allowing preschool-aged audiences to watch the series caused short-term disruptions in mental function and attention span because of frequent shot changes, compared to control groups watching Caillou and drawing pictures. A Nickelodeon executive responded in an interview the series was not intended for an audience of that age and that the study used "questionable methodology and could not possibly provide the basis for any valid findings that parents could trust."

Several of the series' episodes have also been the subject of controversy. In a report titled "Wolves in Sheep's Clothing", which documents the increase in potentially violent, profane, and sexual content in children's programming, the Parents Television Council, a watchdog media group, claimed the season 2 SpongeBob SquarePants episode "Sailor Mouth" was an implicit attempt to promote and satirize use of profanity among children. "SpongeBob's Last Stand" (season 7) and "Selling Out" (season 4) have been criticized for promoting environmentalism and left-wing politics because of their negative portrayal of big business. "SpongeBob, You're Fired" (season 9) caused widespread controversy and sparked a political debate over its portrayal of unemployment; after Fox News and the New York Post commented on the episode, Media Matters for America accused the two organizations of using the episode to "attack the social safety net." This statement was echoed by Al Sharpton, who claimed conservatives' "new hero" to be "a sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea." In 2014, the education minister of Kazakhstan, Zabira Orazalieva, deemed the show too violent for children, labeling the titular character a "self-absorbed hooligan" who "regularly inflicts violence on others in his community and seems to enjoy what he does."

In 2019, University of Washington professor Holly M. Barker stated that the show promotes "violent and racist" colonialism, since Bikini Bottom is named after Bikini Atoll, a place where natives were resettled by the US government for nuclear testing. Barker also pointed out that cultural appropriation of Pacific culture in the show. Because of such content, children have "become acculturated to an ideology that includes the U.S. character SpongeBob residing on another people’s homeland", according to Barker. ViacomCBS eventually pulled the episode "Mid-Life Crustacean" (season 3), first aired in 2003, out of circulation in March 2021, presumably due to its ending in which SpongeBob, Patrick, and Mr. Krabs partake in a panty raid. "We determined some story elements were not kid-appropriate", a Nickelodeon representative stated. A later episode, "Kwarantined Krab" (season 12), was also made unavailable for release, over its similarities to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Declining quality

Various media outlets including MSN, The A.V. Club, and Vulture have reported that SpongeBob's popularity declined following the release of the 2004 film and Hillenburg's departure as showrunner. In 2012, MSN cited a post on Encyclopedia SpongeBobia, a Fandom-hosted wiki, which said that many fans felt the series had "jumped the shark" following the release of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie and that online fansites were becoming "deserted."

As of 2011, episodes produced since the first film have been variously categorized by DVD Talk and DVD Verdict as "tedious;" "boring" and "dreck;" a "depressing plateau of mediocrity;" and "laugh-skimpy." In 2018, Vulture noted the most popular online memes of the series usually focused on episodes from the first three seasons. That same year, The A.V. Club wrote that as the series went on, "[it] leaned hard into kid-friendly physical humor and gross out moments that appealed to no one in particular".

Nickelodeon faced criticism from fans and former staff like Paul Tibbitt when the network greenlit spinoffs (see below) after the death of Hillenburg, who had previously expressed hesitation in deriving from the parent series. "The show is about SpongeBob, he's the core element, and it's about how he relates to the other characters," Hillenburg told Television Business International. "Patrick by himself might be a bit too much. So I don't see any spin-offs."

Other media

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (franchise)

Spin-offs

Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years

Main article: Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years

On February 14, 2019, it was announced that a SpongeBob SquarePants spin-off is in development. On June 4, it was announced the spinoff will be titled Kamp Koral. The plot will focus on a 10-year-old SpongeBob and his friends at the titular camp located in the Kelp Forest, where they spend the summer catching jellyfish, building campfires, and swimming in Lake Yuckymuck. It serves as a tie-in to the animated film The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run. It was confirmed production of the series began in June 2019.

Nickelodeon animation head Ramsey Naito said of the series, "SpongeBob has an incredible universe to expand upon and the greenlight for Kamp Koral is a testament to the strength and longevity of these characters known and loved by generations of fans around the world." Like SpongeBob SquarePants, the series is co-executive produced by Marc Ceccarelli, Jennie Monica, and Vincent Waller. Kamp Koral is produced using computer animation rather than the digital ink and paint animation used for SpongeBob SquarePants.

On February 19, 2020, it was announced that the series had an official title of Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years, and would be premiering in July 2020. On July 30, 2020, it was announced that the series would be released on CBS All Access (now Paramount+), the ViacomCBS streaming service, in early 2021. On January 28, 2021, it was announced that the series would premiere on March 4, 2021.

The Patrick Star Show

Main article: The Patrick Star Show

On August 10, 2020, it was reported that a Patrick Star talk show titled The Patrick Star Show was in development with a 13-episode order. The show is similar to other talk shows such as The Larry Sanders Show and Comedy Bang! Bang!. The series premiered on Nickelodeon on July 9, 2021, with the series set to be available on Paramount+ later on.

Streaming

Originally, SpongeBob SquarePants was streaming on Netflix. However, the series was removed in 2013 due to their deal with Viacom not being renewed. The series was also available to stream on Hulu starting in 2012 until being removed in 2016. The series later streamed on Amazon Prime Video in 2013 after the Netflix deal ended. As part of the rebranding plan of Paramount+, the series joined along with other ViacomCBS shows on July 30, 2020.

Currently, the first 6 seasons are available to be streamed on Prime Video and the first 12 seasons through Paramount+. The series is available to stream on Netflix in Canada.

Home video

SpongeBob SquarePants DVD releases

Season		DVD release date
		Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
	1	October 28, 2003	November 7, 2005	November 30, 2006
	2	October 19, 2004	October 23, 2006	November 30, 2006
	3	September 27, 2005	December 3, 2007	November 8, 2007
	4	September 12, 2006	November 3, 2008	November 7, 2008
		January 9, 2007
	5	September 4, 2007	November 16, 2009	December 3, 2009
		November 18, 2008
	6	December 8, 2009	November 29, 2010	December 2, 2010
		December 7, 2010
	7	December 6, 2011	September 17, 2012	September 12, 2012
	8	March 12, 2013	October 28, 2013	October 30, 2013
	9	October 10, 2017	TBA	October 7, 2020
	10	October 15, 2019	TBA	October 7, 2020
	11	March 31, 2020	TBA	October 7, 2020
	12	January 12, 2021	TBA	TBA
	13	TBA	TBA	TBA

Comic books

Main article: SpongeBob Comics

The 32-page bimonthly comic book series, SpongeBob Comics, was announced in November 2010 and debuted the following February. Before this, SpongeBob SquarePants comics had been published in Nickelodeon Magazine, and episodes of the television series had been adapted by Cine-Manga, but SpongeBob Comics was the first American comic book series devoted solely to SpongeBob SquarePants. It also served as SpongeBob SquarePants creator Stephen Hillenburg's debut as a comic book author. The series was published by Hillenburg's production company, United Plankton Pictures, and distributed by Bongo Comics Group. Hillenburg described the stories from the comic books as "original and always true to the humor, characters, and universe of the SpongeBob SquarePants series." Leading up to the release of the series, Hillenburg said, "I'm hoping that fans will enjoy finally having a SpongeBob comic book from me."

Chris Duffy, the former senior editor of Nickelodeon Magazine, serves as managing editor of SpongeBob Comics. Hillenburg and Duffy met with various cartoonists—including James Kochalka, Hilary Barta, Graham Annable, Gregg Schigiel, and Jacob Chabot—to contribute to each issues. Retired horror comics writer and artist Stephen R. Bissette returned to write a special Halloween issue in 2012, with Tony Millionaire and Al Jaffee. In an interview with Tom Spurgeon, Bissette said, "I've even broken my retirement to do one work-for-hire gig [for SpongeBob Comics] so I could share everything about that kind of current job."

In the United Kingdom, Titan Magazines published comics based on SpongeBob SquarePants every four weeks from February 3, 2005, through November 28, 2013. Titan Magazines also teamed up with Lego to release a limited edition SpongeBob-themed comic.

Films

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (film series)

Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies produced The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, an animated film adaptation of the series released on November 19, 2004. The film was directed by Hillenburg, and written by long-time series writers Derek Drymon, Tim Hill, Kent Osborne, Aaron Springer, Paul Tibbitt, and Hillenburg. He and Julia Pistor produced the film, while Gregor Narholz composed the film's score. The film is about Plankton's evil plan to steal King Neptune's crown and send it to Shell City. SpongeBob and Patrick must retrieve it and save Mr. Krabs' life from Neptune's raft and their home, Bikini Bottom, from Plankton's plan. It features guest appearances by Jeffrey Tambor as King Neptune, Scarlett Johansson as the King's daughter Mindy, Alec Baldwin as Dennis, and David Hasselhoff as himself, and received a positive critical reception, It grossed over $140 million worldwide. Three television films were released: SpongeBob's Atlantis SquarePantis in 2007, SpongeBob's Truth or Square in 2009, and SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout in 2019.

A sequel to the 2004 film, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, was released in theaters on February 6, 2015. The series' main cast members reprised their roles. The underwater parts are animated traditionally in the manner of the series—the live-action parts use CGI animation with the SpongeBob characters. The film has a budget similar to the previous film and cost less than $100 million to produce.

On April 30, 2015, Viacom announced a third film was in development. In April 2018, Tim Hill was named as director, and the film's original title, It's a Wonderful Sponge, was revealed. Paramount originally scheduled a release date of July 17, 2020, later moving it earlier to May 22, 2020. In October 2018, it was announced the movie will be an origin story of how SpongeBob came to Bikini Bottom and how he got his square pants. Around the same time, it was announced that Hans Zimmer will compose the music. The first poster along with a title change to Sponge on the Run was revealed on November 12, 2019, with the first trailer releasing on November 14. The film was later delayed to July 31, 2020 (and later August 7, 2020) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film's worldwide theatrical release was later cancelled in June 2020 and it was announced that it would be released in Canadian theaters on August 14, 2020, followed by a release on premium video on demand before heading to Paramount+ in early 2021. On January 28, 2021, it was announced that the film would be released on the service on March 4, 2021.

Future films

In November 2019, a "music-based" Squidward project was reported to be in development for Netflix. In early March 2020, ViacomCBS announced that it would be producing two spin-off films based on the series for the streaming service.

On August 24, 2021, Brian Robbins, CEO of Nickelodeon, has stated that a new SpongeBob film is "in the works." On February 15, 2022, it was announced that three character spinoff films were in the works for Paramount+, as well as a theatrical SpongeBob film. The first character spinoff film is set to be released in 2023.

Music

Collections of original music featured in the series have been released on the albums SpongeBob SquarePants: Original Theme Highlights (2001), SpongeBob's Greatest Hits (2009), and The Yellow Album (2005). The first two charted on the US Billboard 200, reaching number 171 and 122, respectively.

Several songs have been recorded for the purpose of a single or album release, and have not been featured on the show. The song "My Tidy Whities" written by Tom Kenny and Andy Paley was released only on the album The Best Day Ever (2006). Kenny's inspiration for the song was "underwear humor," saying: "Underwear humor is always a surefire laugh-getter with kids ... Just seeing a character that odd wearing really prosaic, normal, Kmart, three-to-a-pack underwear is a funny drawing ... We thought it was funny to make a really lush, beautiful love song to his underwear."

A soundtrack album The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie – Music from the Movie and More..., featuring the film's score was released along with the feature-length film in November 2004. Various artists including the Flaming Lips, Wilco, Ween, Motörhead, the Shins, and Avril Lavigne contributed to the soundtrack that reached number 76 on the US Billboard 200.

Theme park rides

Main articles: SpongeBob SquarePants 4-D and SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge

Entrance and lift hill of SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge ride at the Mall of America

The SpongeBob SquarePants 4-D film and ride opened at several locations including Six Flags Over Texas, Flamingo Land Resort, and the Shedd Aquarium. The ride features water squirts, real bubbles, and other sensory enhancements. In 2012, Nickelodeon teamed up again with SimEx-Iwerks Entertainment and Super 78 to produce SpongeBob SquarePants 4-D: The Great Jelly Rescue. The attraction opened in early 2013 at the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration. It was also installed at the Nickelodeon Suites Resort Orlando in Orlando, Florida. The seven-minute film follows SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy up to their old hijinks, while rescuing the jellyfish of Jellyfish Fields from Plankton's evil clutches.

SpongeBob SquarePants appears at the Mall of America's Nickelodeon theme park re-branded from the Mall of America's Park at MOA, formerly Camp Snoopy, to Nickelodeon Universe in the Minneapolis-St. Paul suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. The new theme park features a SpongeBob-themed Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter custom roller coaster. The SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge, which opened March 15, 2008, has replaced the Mystery Mine Ride and Olde Time Photo store at the west end of the theme park.

On May 23, 2015, an interactive 3D show titled SpongeBob SubPants Adventure opened in Texas at Moody Gardens. According to Moody Gardens President and CEO John Zendt, "Visitors will be able to interact with the Nickelodeon characters on a digital stage as they have never been able to do before."

Video games

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants video games

Numerous video games based on the series have been produced. Some of the early games include: Legend of the Lost Spatula (2001) and SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom (2003). In 2013, Nickelodeon published and distributed SpongeBob Moves In!, a freemium city-building game app developed by Kung Fu Factory for iOS and Android. On June 5, 2019, THQ Nordic announced SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated, a full remake of the console versions of the original 2003 game. The game was released 1 year later on June 23, 2020 and includes cut content from the original game. On May 28, 2020, Apple Arcade released a game called Spongebob Squarepants: Patty Pursuit. In 2021, EA Sports introduced a SpongeBob-themed level to the Yard section of its Madden NFL 21 video game.

On September 17, 2021, THQ Nordic announced SpongeBob Squarepants: The Cosmic Shake, a new original game based on the franchise.

SpongeBob SquareShorts

Nickelodeon launched the first global SpongeBob SquarePants-themed short film competition, SpongeBob SquareShorts: Original Fan Tributes, in 2013. The contest encouraged fans and filmmakers around the world to create original short films inspired by SpongeBob for a chance to win a prize and a trip for four people to a screening event in Hollywood. The contest opened on May 6 and ran through June 28, 2013. On July 19, 2013, Nickelodeon announced the competition's finalists. On August 13, 2013, the under 18 years of age category was won by David of the United States for his The Krabby Commercial, while the Finally Home short by Nicole of South Africa won the 18 and over category.

Theater

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (musical)

SpongeBob SquarePants was adapted as a stage musical in 2016 by director Tina Landau. SpongeBob SquarePants, The Broadway Musical premiered in Chicago in 2016 and opened on Broadway at the Palace Theatre on December 4, 2017. The musical opened to critical acclaim, and tied for most-nominated production at the 2018 72nd Tony Awards with twelve Tony nominations.

SpongeBob in internet culture

Tom Kenny told Time that SpongeBob memes are very relatable and good-natured. Beyond the happy nature of the show’s characters and plot points, they also lend themselves easily to meme creating. Kenny said that the characters are complex, but they are also simple, there is so much content for meme makers to work with. Matt Schimkowitz, a senior editor for Know Your Meme told Time that a combination of factors make SpongeBob memes so popular. He claimed the reasons are nostalgia for the past, and the fact that the cartoon was made for children actually makes it easier to design memes. He also told them that SpongeBob memes are very good at expressing emotions.

One of the most famous templates is the mocking SpongeBob meme, referring to an image macro featuring a picture of SpongeBob that is used to indicate a mocking tone towards an opinion or point of view. The image of SpongeBob comes from the episode of the called "Little Yellow Book", which first aired on November 25, 2012. In the episode, Squidward reads SpongeBob's diary, where he discovers that whenever SpongeBob sees plaid, he acts like a chicken. The earliest version of the scene being used as a meme occurred on May 4, 2017.

Merchandise

File:SpongeBob-SquarePants-characters-toys.jpg

A set of SpongeBob SquarePants figures modeled after the main characters

Further information: List of SpongeBob SquarePants merchandise

The popularity of SpongeBob SquarePants inspired merchandise from T-shirts to posters. It was reported that the franchise generated an estimated $8 billion in merchandising revenue for Nickelodeon. It is also the most distributed property of Paramount Media Networks. SpongeBob is viewed in 170 countries speaking 24 languages, and has become "a killer merchandising app". The title character and his friends have been used as a theme for special editions of well-known family board games, including Monopoly, Life, and Operation, as well as a SpongeBob SquarePants edition of Ants in the Pants, and Yahtzee.

In 2001, Nickelodeon signed a marketing deal with Target Corporation and Burger King, expanding its merchandising. The popularity of SpongeBob has translated well into sales. In 2002, SpongeBob SquarePants dolls sold at a rate of 75,000 per week—faster than Tickle Me Elmo dolls were selling at the time. SpongeBob has gained popularity in Japan, specifically with Japanese women. Nickelodeon's parent company Viacom purposefully targeted marketing at women there. Skeptics initially doubted that SpongeBob could be popular in Japan, as the character's design is very different from already popular designs for Hello Kitty and Pikachu. Ratings and merchandise sales showed SpongeBob SquarePants has caught on with parents and with college audiences. In a 2013 promotion, college-oriented website Music.com gave away 80,000 SpongeBob T-shirts, four times more than during a similar promotion for Comedy Central's South Park.

Kids' meal tie-ins have been released in fast food restaurants in many parts of the world, including Burger King in Europe and North America, as well as Wendy's in North America, and Hungry Jack's in Australia. A McDonald's Happy Meal tie-in with SpongeBob-themed Happy Meal boxes and toys was released in Europe and other international markets in the summer of 2007. In Australia, the advertisement for the McDonald's SpongeBob Happy Meal won the Pester Power Award because the ads enticed young children to want its food because of the free toy. As a tie-in beverage for the DVD release of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, 7-Eleven released the limited edition Under-the-Sea Pineapple Slurpee in March 2004. Pirate's Booty released limited edition SpongeBob SquarePants Pirate's Booty snacks in 2013.

In 2007, high-end SpongeBob-themed electronics were introduced by Imation Electronics Products under the Npower brand, including MP3 players, digital cameras, a DVD player, and a flatscreen television. Pictures of SpongeBob SquarePants began to appear on the labels of 8 ounce cans of Green Giant cut green beans and packages of frozen Green Giant green beans and butter sauce in 2007, which featured free stickers. This was part of an initiative to encourage kids to eat their vegetables. The Simmons Jewelry Co. released a $75,000 diamond pendant as part of a SpongeBob collection. In New Zealand, the UK-based Beechdean Group unveiled the SpongeBob SquarePants Vanilla Ice Cream character product as part of a license deal with Nickelodeon. NZ Drinks launched the SpongeBob SquarePants bottled water.

Build-A-Bear Workshop introduced the new SpongeBob SquarePants collection in stores and online in North America on May 17, 2013. Shoppers can dress their SpongeBob and Patrick plush in a variety of clothing and accessories. Sandy Cheeks and Gary the Snail are also available as pre-stuffed minis. Build-A-Bear Workshop stores nationwide celebrated the arrival of SpongeBob with a series of special events from May 17 through May 19.

On July 13, 2013, Toyota, with Nickelodeon, unveiled a SpongeBob-inspired Toyota Highlander. The 2014 Toyota Highlander was launched on SpongeBob Day at the San Diego Padres v. Giants game. The SpongeBob Toyota Highlander visited seven U.S. locations during its release, including the Nickelodeon Suites Resort Orlando in Florida.

In April 2019, Nickelodeon released a series of toys adapted from various SpongeBob Internet memes. These included "Handsome Squidward", "Imaginaaation SpongeBob", "Mocking SpongeBob", "SpongeGar", and "Surprised Patrick". Shortly after the release of the line, most of the toys sold out on Amazon.com.

External links

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episodes, and its twelfth season premiered on November 11, 2018. On July 17, 2019, the series was renewed for its thirteenth season. It will consist of 13 episodes. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, a feature-length film, was released in theaters on November 19, 2004 and grossed over US$140 million worldwide. Atlantis SquarePantis, a television film guest starring David Bowie, debuted as part of the fifth season. In 2009, Nickelodeon celebrated the show's tenth anniversary with Square Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePants and SpongeBob's Truth or Square. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, a stand-alone sequel, was released in theaters on February 6, 2015 and grossed over US$324 million worldwide.

Episodes of SpongeBob SquarePants have been nominated for a variety of different awards, including 17 Annie Awards (with six wins), 17 Golden Reel Awards (with eight wins), 15 Emmy Awards (with one win), 19 Kids' Choice Awards (with 18 wins), and four BAFTA Children's Awards (with two wins). Several compilation DVDs have been released. In addition, the first twelve seasons have been released on DVD, and are available for Regions 1, 2 and 4 as of January 12, 2021.

Series overview

Season		Episodes	Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
	1	20	May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01)	March 3, 2001 (2001-03-03)
	2	20	October 26, 2000 (2000-10-26)	July 26, 2003 (2003-07-26)
	3	20	October 5, 2001 (2001-10-05)	October 11, 2004 (2004-10-11)
	4	20	May 6, 2005 (2005-05-06)	July 24, 2007 (2007-07-24)
	5	20	February 19, 2007 (2007-02-19)	July 19, 2009 (2009-07-19)
	6	26	March 3, 2008 (2008-03-03)	July 5, 2010 (2010-07-05)
	7	26	July 19, 2009 (2009-07-19)	June 11, 2011 (2011-06-11)
	8	26	March 26, 2011 (2011-03-26)	December 6, 2012 (2012-12-06)
	9	26	July 21, 2012 (2012-07-21)	February 20, 2017 (2017-02-20)
	10	11	October 15, 2016 (2016-10-15)	December 2, 2017 (2017-12-02)
	11	26	June 24, 2017 (2017-06-24)	November 25, 2018 (2018-11-25)
	12	26	November 11, 2018 (2018-11-11)	TBA
	13	13	October 22, 2020 (2020-10-22)	TBA

Episodes

Season 1 (1999–2001)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 1)

The first season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 20 episodes (41 segments, since the first episode has three segments). This is the only season that used cel animation. The episodes are ordered according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	Prod. code	U.S. viewers (millions)
1a	1a	"Help Wanted"	Alan Smart	Stephen Hillenburg, Derek Drymon, and Tim Hill	May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01)	2515-127	6.90
1b	1b	"Reef Blower"	Fred Miller and Tom Yasumi	Stephen Hillenburg, Derek Drymon, and Tim Hill	May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01)	2515-126	6.90
1c	1c	"Tea at the Treedome"	Tom Yasumi	Peter Burns, Mr. Lawrence, and Paul Tibbitt	May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01)	2515-101	6.90
2a	2a	"Bubblestand"	Tom Yasumi	Ennio Torresan, Erik Wiese, Stephen Hillenburg, Derek Drymon, and Tim Hill	July 17, 1999 (1999-07-17)	2515-105	1.90
2b	2b	"Ripped Pants"	Edgar Larrazabal	Paul Tibbitt and Peter Burns	July 17, 1999 (1999-07-17)	2515-106	1.90
3a	3a	"Jellyfishing"	Alan Smart	Steve Fonti, Chris Mitchell, Peter Burns, and Tim Hill	July 31, 1999 (1999-07-31)	2515-103	N/A
3b	3b	"Plankton!"	Edgar Larrazabal	Ennio Torresan, Erik Wiese, and Mr. Lawrence	July 31, 1999 (1999-07-31)	2515-114	N/A
4a	4a	"Naughty Nautical Neighbors"	Fred Miller	Sherm Cohen, Aaron Springer, and Mr. Lawrence	August 7, 1999 (1999-08-07)	2515-116	2.10
4b	4b	"Boating School"	Tom Yasumi	Ennio Torresan Jr., Erik Wiese, and Mr. Lawrence	August 7, 1999 (1999-08-07)	2515-104	2.10
5a	5a	"Pizza Delivery"	Sean Dempsey	Sherm Cohen, Aaron Springer, and Peter Burns	August 14, 1999 (1999-08-14)	2515-107	N/A
5b	5b	"Home Sweet Pineapple"	Tom Yasumi	Ennio Torresan Jr., Erik Wiese, and Mr. Lawrence	August 14, 1999 (1999-08-14)	2515-124	N/A
6a	6a	"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy"	Sean Dempsey	Paul Tibbitt, Mark O'Hare, and Mr. Lawrence	August 21, 1999 (1999-08-21)	2515-119	2.20
6b	6b	"Pickles"	Tom Yasumi	Steve Fonti, Chris Mitchell, and Peter Burns	August 21, 1999 (1999-08-21)	2515-111	2.20
7a	7a	"Hall Monitor"	Edgar Larrazabal	Chuck Klein, Jay Lender, and Mr. Lawrence	August 28, 1999	2515-108	2.10
7b	7b	"Jellyfish Jam"	Fred Miller	Ennio Torresan, Jr., Erik Wiese, and Peter Burns	August 28, 1999	2515-118	2.10
8a	8a	"Sandy's Rocket"	Tom Yasumi	Sherm Cohen, Aaron Springer, and Peter Burns	September 4, 1999	2515-110	1.90
8b	8b	"Squeaky Boots"	Fred Miller	Steve Fonti, Chris Mitchell, and Mr. Lawrence	September 4, 1999	2515-102	1.90
9a	9a	"Nature Pants"	Sean Dempsey	Paul Tibbitt, Mark O'Hare, and Peter Burns	September 11, 1999	2515-120	N/A
9b	9b	"Opposite Day"	Tom Yasumi	Chuck Klein, Jay Lender, and Mr. Lawrence	September 11, 1999	2515-112	N/A
10a	10a	"Culture Shock"	Edgar Larrazabal	Paul Tibbitt, Mark O'Hare, and Mr. Lawrence	September 18, 1999	2515-122	N/A
10b	10b	"F.U.N."	Fred Miller	Sherm Cohen, Aaron Springer, and Peter Burns	September 18, 1999 (1999-09-18)	2515-121	N/A
11a	11a	"MuscleBob BuffPants"	Edgar Larrazabal	Ennio Torresan, Jr., Erik Wiese, and Mr. Lawrence	September 25, 1999 (1999-09-25)	2515-123	N/A
11b	11b	"Squidward the Unfriendly Ghost"	Fred Miller	Sherm Cohen, Aaron Springer, and Peter Burns	September 25, 1999 (1999-09-25)	2515-115	N/A
12a	12a	"The Chaperone"	Sean Dempsey	Sherm Cohen, Aaron Springer, and Peter Burns	October 2, 1999	2515-113	N/A
12b	12b	"Employee of the Month"	Sean Dempsey	Paul Tibbitt and Mr. Lawrence	October 2, 1999	2515-125	N/A
13a	13a	"Scaredy Pants"	Sean Dempsey	Paul Tibbitt and Peter Burns	October 28, 1999	2515-109	N/A
13b	13b	"I Was a Teenage Gary"	Edgar Larrazabal	Steve Fonti, Chris Mitchell, and Mr. Lawrence	October 28, 1999	2515-117	N/A
14a	14a	"SB-129"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer, Erik Wiese, and Mr. Lawrence	December 31, 1999	2515-129	N/A
14b	14b	"Karate Choppers"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer, Erik Wiese, and Merriwether Williams	December 31, 1999	2515-135	N/A
15a	15a	"Sleepy Time"	Edgar Larrazabal	Paul Tibbitt, Ennio Torresan Jr., and Mr. Lawrence	January 17, 2000	2515-141	2.00
15b	15b	"Suds"	Edgar Larrazabal	Paul Tibbitt, Ennio Torresan Jr., and Mr. Lawrence	January 17, 2000	2515-132	2.00
16a	16a	"Valentine's Day"	Fred Miller	Chuck Klein, Jay Lender, and Merriwether Williams	February 14, 2000	2515-128	N/A
16b	16b	"The Paper"	Fred Miller	Chuck Klein, Jay Lender, and Mr. Lawrence	February 14, 2000	2515-134	N/A
17a	17a	"Arrgh!"	Sean Dempsey	Sherm Cohen, Vincent Waller, and Merriwether Williams	March 15, 2000	2515-130	2.10
17b	17b	"Rock Bottom"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Ennio Torresan, and David Fain	March 15, 2000	2515-138	2.10
18a	18a	"Texas"	Sean Dempsey	Sherm Cohen, Vincent Waller, and David Fain	March 22, 2000	2515-139	N/A
18b	18b	"Walking Small"	Sean Dempsey	Aaron Springer, Erik Wiese, and Mr. Lawrence	March 22, 2000	2515-133	N/A
19a	19a	"Fools in April"	Fred Miller	Aaron Springer, Erik Wiese, and Merriwether Williams	April 1, 2000	2515-140	N/A
19b	19b	"Neptune's Spatula"	Fred Miller	Chuck Klein, Jay Lender, and David B. Fain	April 1, 2000	2515-137	N/A
20a	20a	"Hooky"	Edgar Larrazabal	Sherm Cohen, Vincent Waller, and Merriwether Williams	April 8, 2000	2515-136	N/A
20b	20b	"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy II"	Tom Yasumi	Chuck Klein, Jay Lender, and Mr. Lawrence	April 8, 2000	2515-131	N/A

Season 2 (2000–03)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 2)

The second season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 20 episodes (39 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	Prod. code
21a	1a	"Your Shoe's Untied"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	November 2, 2000	5571-142
21b	1b	"Squid's Day Off"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	November 2, 2000	5571-145
22a	2a	"Something Smells"	Edgar Larrazabal	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	October 26, 2000	5571-143
22b	2b	"Bossy Boots"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mr. Lawrence	October 26, 2000	5571-146
23a	3a	"Big Pink Loser"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, William Reiss, and Merriwether Williams	November 16, 2000	5571-144
23b	3b	"Bubble Buddy"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, William Reiss, and Mr. Lawrence	November 16, 2000	5571-148
24a	4a	"Dying for Pie"	Edgar Larrazabal	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	December 28, 2000	5571-147
24b	4b	"Imitation Krabs" "(Robot Krabs)"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, Mr. Lawrence	December 28, 2000	5571-150
25a	5a	"Wormy"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	February 17, 2001	5571-149
25b	5b	"Patty Hype"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, William Reiss, and Mr. Lawrence	February 17, 2001	5571-152
26a	6a	"Grandma's Kisses"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	March 6, 2001	5571-154
26b	6b	"Squidville"	Edgar Larrazabal	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	March 6, 2001	5571-156
27a	7a	"Prehibernation Week"	Edgar Larrazabal	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	May 5, 2001	5571-151
27b	7b	"Life of Crime"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, William Reiss, and Mr. Lawrence	May 5, 2001	5571-157
28	8	"Christmas Who?" "(The SpongeBob Christmas Special)"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mr. Lawrence	December 6, 2000	5571-155
29a	9a	"Survival of the Idiots"	Larry Leichliter	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	March 5, 2001	5571-160
29b	9b	"Dumped"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Walt Dohrn, and Merriwether Williams	March 5, 2001	5571-161
30a	10a	"No Free Rides"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Mr. Lawrence	March 7, 2001	5571-162
30b	10b	"I'm Your Biggest Fanatic"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, William Reiss, and Mr. Lawrence	March 7, 2001	5571-159
31a	11a	"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy III"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Walt Dohrn, and Merriwether Williams	November 27, 2000	5571-158
31b	11b	"Squirrel Jokes"	Larry Leichliter and Lenord Robinson	Paul Tibbitt, Walt Dohrn, and Merriwether Williams	November 27, 2000	5571-164
32a	12a	"Pressure"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, William Reiss, and David Fain	March 8, 2001	5571-166
32b	12b	"The Smoking Peanut"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Walt Dohrn, and Mr. Lawrence	March 8, 2001	5571-163
33a	13a	"Shanghaied"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	March 9, 2001	5571-165
33b	13b	"Gary Takes a Bath"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	July 26, 2003	5571-183
34a	14a	"Welcome to the Chum Bucket"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mr. Lawrence	January 21, 2002	5571-167
34b	14b	"Frankendoodle" "(DoodleBob)"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	January 21, 2002	5571-167
35a	15a	"The Secret Box"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	September 7, 2001	5571-168
35b	15b	"Band Geeks"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	September 7, 2001	5571-173
36a	16a	"Graveyard Shift"	Sean Dempsey	Mr. Lawrence, Jay Lender, and Dan Povenmire	September 6, 2002	5571-196
36b	16b	"Krusty Love"	Sean Dempsey	Mr. Lawrence, Jay Lender, and William Reiss	September 6, 2002	5571-170
37a	17a	"Procrastination"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mr. Lawrence	November 30, 2001	5571-175
37b	17b	"I'm with Stupid"	Frank Weiss	C.H. Greenblatt, Aaron Springer, and Mark O'Hare	November 30, 2001	5571-179
38a	18a	"Sailor Mouth"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Merriwether Williams	September 21, 2001	5571-182
38b	18b	"Artist Unknown"	Sean Dempsey	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mark O'Hare	September 21, 2001	5571-174
39a	19a	"Jellyfish Hunter"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mark O'Hare	September 28, 2001	5571-181
39b	19b	"The Fry Cook Games"	Tom Yasumi	Dan Povenmire, Jay Lender, and Merriwether Williams	September 28, 2001	5571-171
40a	20a	"Squid on Strike"	Tom Yasumi	Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, and Mark O'Hare	October 12, 2001	5571-185
40b	20b	"Sandy, SpongeBob, and the Worm"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Dan Povenmire, and Merriwether Williams	October 12, 2001	5571-180

Season 3 (2001–04)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 3)

The third season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 20 episodes (37 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	Prod. code
41a	1a	"The Algae's Always Greener"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	March 22, 2002	5572-188
41b	1b	"SpongeGuard on Duty"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Mark O'Hare	March 22, 2002	5572-187
42a	2a	"Club SpongeBob"	Andrew Overtoom	Walt Dohrn and Mark O'Hare	July 12, 2002	5572-192
42b	2b	"My Pretty Seahorse"	Tom Yasumi	Kent Osborne and Paul Tibbitt	July 12, 2002	5572-193
43a	3a	"Just One Bite"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Merriwether Williams	October 5, 2001	5572-194
43b	3b	"The Bully"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	October 5, 2001	5572-191
44a	4a	"Nasty Patty"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kaz, and Mark O'Hare	March 1, 2002	5572-195
44b	4b	"Idiot Box"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	March 1, 2002	5572-178
45a	5a	"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy IV"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Merriwether Williams	January 21, 2002	5572-177
45b	5b	"Doing Time"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	January 21, 2002	5572-186
46a	6a	"Snowball Effect"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	February 22, 2002	5572-189
46b	6b	"One Krab's Trash"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Mark O'Hare	February 22, 2002	5572-184
47a	7a	"As Seen on TV"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	March 8, 2002	5572-172
47b	7b	"Can You Spare a Dime?" "(Squidward Quits a Job)"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Merriwether Williams	March 8, 2002	5572-190
48a	8a	"No Weenies Allowed"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	March 15, 2002	5572-200
48b	8b	"Squilliam Returns"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Merriwether Williams	March 15, 2002	5572-199
49a	9a	"Krab Borg"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Mark O'Hare	March 29, 2002	5572-197
49b	9b	"Rock-a-Bye Bivalve"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Mark O'Hare	March 29, 2002	5572-103
50a	10a	"Wet Painters"	Frank Weiss	C.H. Greenblatt, Kaz, and Mark O'Hare	May 10, 2002	5572-202
50b	10b	"Krusty Krab Training Video"	Frank Weiss	Aaron Springer, C.H. Greenblatt, Kent Osborne	May 10, 2002	5572-198
51	11	"Party Pooper Pants" "(SpongeBob's House Party)"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Mark O'Hare	May 17, 2002	5572-204
52a	12a	"Chocolate with Nuts"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kaz, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	June 1, 2002	5572-196
52b	12b	"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy V"	Frank Weiss	C.H. Greenblatt, Kaz, and Merriwether Williams	June 1, 2002	TBA
53a	13a	"New Student Starfish"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Mark O'Hare	September 20, 2002	5572-201
53b	13b	"Clams"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Mark O'Hare	September 20, 2002	5572-207
54	14	"Ugh" "(SpongeBob B.C.)"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt and Kent Osborne	March 5, 2004	5572-208
55a	15a	"The Great Snail Race"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Joe Liss (TV), Merriwether Williams (DVD)	January 24, 2003	5572-216
55b	15b	"Mid-Life Crustacean"	Frank Weiss	C.H. Greenblatt, Kaz, and Mark O'Hare	January 24, 2003	5572-210
56a	16a	"Born Again Krabs" "(A Penny Saved)"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	October 4, 2003	5572-213
56b	16b	"I Had an Accident" "(Safety Freak)"	Frank Weiss	C.H. Greenblatt, Kaz, and Merriwether Williams	October 4, 2003	5572-214
57a	17a	"Krabby Land"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Mark O'Hare	April 3, 2004	5572-212
57b	17b	"The Camping Episode" "(Squid Gets Mauled)"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Merriwether Williams	April 3, 2004	5572-215
58a	18a	"Missing Identity"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	January 19, 2004	5572-209
58b	18b	"Plankton's Army" "(Plankton's Last Stand)"	Sean Dempsey	Jay Lender, Sam Henderson, and Merriwether Williams	January 19, 2004	5572-211
59	19	"The Sponge Who Could Fly" "(The Lost Episode)"	Andrew Overtoom and Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	March 21, 2003	5572-217
60a	20a	"SpongeBob Meets the Strangler" "(Litter Bug)"	Tom Yasumi	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, C.H. Greenblatt, and Merriwether Williams	October 11, 2004	5572-221
60b	20b	"Pranks a Lot"	Andrew Overtoom	Paul Tibbitt, Kent Osborne, and Merriwether Williams	October 11, 2004	5572-218

Season 4 (2005–07)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 4)

The fourth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 20 episodes (38 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	Prod. code	U.S. viewers (millions)
61a	1a	"Fear of a Krabby Patty"	Alan Smart	C.H. Greenblatt and Paul Tibbitt	May 6, 2005	5574-401	2.60
61b	1b	"Shell of a Man"	Tom Yasumi	Mike Bell and Paul Tibbitt	May 6, 2005	5574-402	2.60
62a	2a	"The Lost Mattress"	Alan Smart	Mike Bell and Tim Hill	May 13, 2005	5574-406	N/A
62b	2b	"Krabs vs. Plankton"	Tom Yasumi	Tim Hill, Mike Mitchell, and Vincent Waller	May 13, 2005	5574-403	N/A
63	3	"Have You Seen This Snail?" "(Where's Gary?)"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer and Paul Tibbitt	November 11, 2005	5574-404	7.93
64a	4a	"Skill Crane"	Alan Smart	Kyle McCulloch, Aaron Springer, and Vincent Waller	May 20, 2005	5574-407	N/A
64b	4b	"Good Neighbors"	Tom Yasumi	Mike Bell	May 20, 2005	5574-408	N/A
65a	5a	"Selling Out"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese and Tim Hill	September 23, 2005	5574-409	N/A
65b	5b	"Funny Pants"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	September 30, 2005	5574-410	N/A
66	6	"Dunces and Dragons" "(Lost in Time)"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Tim Hill	February 20, 2006	5574-412	8.60
67a	7a	"Enemy In-Law"	Andrew Overtoom	Tom King, Luke Brookshier, and Tim Hill	October 14, 2005	5574-414	N/A
67b	7b	"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy VI: The Motion Picture"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Paul Tibbitt	October 7, 2005	5574-411	N/A
68a	8a	"Patrick SmartPants"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Tim Hill	October 21, 2005	5574-415	N/A
68b	8b	"SquidBob TentaclePants"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Steven Banks	November 4, 2005	5574-416	N/A
69a	9a	"Krusty Towers"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	April 1, 2006	5574-417	N/A
69b	9b	"Mrs. Puff, You're Fired"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Tim Hill	April 1, 2006	5574-418	N/A
70a	10a	"Chimps Ahoy"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	May 5, 2006	5574-426	N/A
70b	10b	"Ghost Host"	Alan Smart	Erik Wiese, Zeus Cervas, and Tim Hill	May 5, 2006	5574-419	N/A
71a	11a	"Whale of a Birthday"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Paul Tibbitt	May 12, 2006	5574-423	N/A
71b	11b	"Karate Island"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Steven Banks	May 12, 2006	5574-421	N/A
72a	12a	"All That Glitters"	Andrew Overtoom	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Steven Banks	June 2, 2006	5574-422	N/A
72b	12b	"Wishing You Well"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	June 2, 2006	5574-420	N/A
73a	13a	"New Leaf"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Steven Banks	September 22, 2006	5574-425	N/A
73b	13b	"Once Bitten"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Steven Banks	September 29, 2006	5574-424	N/A
74a	14a	"Bummer Vacation"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Dani Michaeli	October 13, 2006	5574-427	N/A
74b	14b	"Wigstruck"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Dani Michaeli	November 17, 2006	5574-428	N/A
75a	15a	"Squidtastic Voyage"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Dani Michaeli	October 6, 2006	5574-431	N/A
75b	15b	"That's No Lady"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Steven Banks	November 25, 2006	5574-430	N/A
76a	16a	"The Thing"	Andrew Overtoom	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Steven Banks	January 15, 2007	5574-429	N/A
76b	16b	"Hocus Pocus"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Steven Banks	January 15, 2007	5574-432	N/A
77a	17a	"Driven to Tears"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	February 19, 2007	5574-434	N/A
77b	17b	"Rule of Dumb"	Tom Yasumi	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Dani Michaeli	February 19, 2007	5574-433	N/A
78a	18a	"Born to Be Wild"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	March 31, 2007	5574-437	N/A
78b	18b	"Best Frenemies"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Dani Michaeli	March 31, 2007	5574-436	N/A
79a	19a	"The Pink Purloiner"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	February 19, 2007	5574-440	N/A
79b	19b	"Squid Wood"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Dani Michaeli	July 24, 2007	5574-438	N/A
80a	20a	"Best Day Ever"	Larry Leichliter	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Steven Banks	November 10, 2006	151-507	6.70
80b	20b	"The Gift of Gum"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas, Erik Wiese, and Dani Michaeli	February 19, 2007	5574-439	N/A

Season 5 (2007–09)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 5)

The fifth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 20 episodes (41 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
81	1	"Friend or Foe"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Mike Mitchell, Steven Banks, and Tim Hill	April 13, 2007	N/A
82a	2a	"The Original Fry Cook"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, Steven Banks, and Dani Michaeli	July 30, 2007	N/A
82b	2b	"Night Light"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, and Steven Banks	July 30, 2007	N/A
83a	3a	"Rise and Shine"	Andrew Overtoom	Nate Cash and Steven Banks	February 19, 2007	N/A
83b	3b	"Waiting"	Alan Smart	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Steven Banks	February 19, 2007	N/A
83c	3c	"Fungus Among Us"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Richard Pursel	September 29, 2007	N/A
84a	4a	"Spy Buddies" "SpyBob"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Dani Michaeli	July 23, 2007	N/A
84b	4b	"Boat Smarts"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Richard Pursel	July 23, 2007	N/A
84c	4c	"Good Ol' Whatshisname"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Richard Pursel	July 23, 2007	N/A
85a	5a	"New Digs"	Andrew Overtoom	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Richard Pursel	July 25, 2007	N/A
85b	5b	"Krabs à La Mode"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Eric Shaw	July 25, 2007	N/A
86a	6a	"Roller Cowards"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	July 27, 2007	N/A
86b	6b	"Bucket Sweet Bucket"	Larry Leichliter	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Richard Pursel	July 27, 2007	N/A
87a	7a	"To Love a Patty"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Eric Shaw	July 26, 2007	N/A
87b	7b	"Breath of Fresh Squidward"	Tom Yasumi	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Richard Pursel	July 26, 2007	N/A
88a	8a	"Money Talks"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Dani Michaeli	July 31, 2007	N/A
88b	8b	"SpongeBob vs. The Patty Gadget"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier and Richard Pursel	July 31, 2007	N/A
88c	8c	"Slimy Dancing"	Tom Yasumi	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Richard Pursel	July 31, 2007	N/A
89a	9a	"The Krusty Sponge"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer and Eric Shaw	July 24, 2007	N/A
89b	9b	"Sing a Song of Patrick"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Steven Banks	February 19, 2007	N/A
90a	10a	"A Flea in Her Dome"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Steven Banks	August 1, 2007	N/A
90b	10b	"The Donut of Shame"	Tom Yasumi	Nate Cash and Dani Michaeli	August 1, 2007	N/A
90c	10c	"The Krusty Plate"	Tom Yasumi	Tuck Tucker and Eric Shaw	August 1, 2007	N/A
91a	11a	"Goo Goo Gas"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, and Dani Michaeli	July 19, 2009	4.95
91b	11b	"Le Big Switch"	Tom Yasumi	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Richard Pursel	September 29, 2007	N/A
92	12	"Atlantis SquarePantis"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Steven Banks, and Dani Michaeli	November 12, 2007	9.22
93a	13a	"Picture Day"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander and Dani Michaeli	August 2, 2007	N/A
93b	13b	"Pat No Pay"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas and Dani Michaeli	August 2, 2007	N/A
93c	13c	"BlackJack" "SpongeBob's Cousin"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Richard Pursel	August 2, 2007	N/A
94a	14a	"Blackened Sponge" "The Black Sponge"	Tom Yasumi	Greg Miller, Aaron Springer, and Eric Shaw	August 3, 2007	N/A
94b	14b	"Mermaid Man vs. SpongeBob"	Tom Yasumi	Nate Cash, Tuck Tucker, and Eric Shaw	August 3, 2007	N/A
95a	15a	"The Inmates of Summer"	Alan Smart	Chris Reccardi, Aaron Springer, and Dani Michaeli	November 23, 2007	N/A
95b	15b	"To Save a Squirrel"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash, and Dani Michaeli	November 23, 2007	N/A
96	16	"Pest of the West"	Andrew Overtoom and Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Tom King, Steven Banks, and Richard Pursel	April 11, 2008	6.10
97a	17a	"20,000 Patties Under the Sea"	Tom Yasumi	Chris Reccardi, Aaron Springer, and Richard Pursel	November 23, 2007	N/A
97b	17b	"The Battle of Bikini Bottom"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash, and Eric Shaw	November 23, 2007	N/A
98	18	"What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?" "WhoBob WhatPants?"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Steven Banks	October 13, 2008	7.70
99a	19a	"The Two Faces of Squidward"	Tom Yasumi	Charlie Bean, Aaron Springer, and Steven Banks	November 23, 2007	N/A
99b	19b	"SpongeHenge"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Richard Pursel	November 23, 2007	N/A
100a	20a	"Banned in Bikini Bottom"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer and Steven Banks	November 23, 2007	N/A
100b	20b	"Stanley S. SquarePants" "SpongeBob's Klutzy Cousin"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash, and Eric Shaw	November 23, 2007	N/A

Season 6 (2008–10)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 6)

The sixth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 26 episodes (47 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
101a	1a	"House Fancy"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	June 6, 2008	4.03
101b	1b	"Krabby Road"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Eric Shaw	March 3, 2008	4.77
102a	2a	"Penny Foolish"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	March 7, 2008	4.77
102b	2b	"Nautical Novice"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	March 29, 2008	4.67
103a	3a	"Spongicus"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	March 29, 2008	4.67
103b	3b	"Suction Cup Symphony"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Richard Pursel	March 6, 2008	4.50
104a	4a	"Not Normal"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	March 4, 2008	4.66
104b	4b	"Gone"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Steven Banks	March 5, 2008	4.59
105a	5a	"The Splinter"	Tom Yasumi	Nate Cash, Sean Charmatz & Steven Banks	June 2, 2008	4.00
105b	5b	"Slide Whistle Stooges"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	February 16, 2009	4.51
106a	6a	"A Life in a Day"	Andrew Overtoom	Chris Reccardi & Dani Michaeli	June 4, 2008	4.00
106b	6b	"Sun Bleached"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash, Richard Pursel	June 5, 2008	4.10
107a	7a	"Giant Squidward"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Richard Pursel	June 3, 2008	4.33
107b	7b	"No Nose Knows"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	August 4, 2008	3.75
108a	8a	"Patty Caper"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Eric Shaw	August 5, 2008	3.83
108b	8b	"Plankton's Regular"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	August 6, 2008	3.70
109a	9a	"Boating Buddies"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	August 7, 2008	3.77
109b	9b	"The Krabby Kronicle"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	August 8, 2008	3.62
110a	10a	"The Slumber Party"	Alan Smart	Tom King & Dani Michaeli	November 28, 2008	N/A
110b	10b	"Grooming Gary"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	November 28, 2008	N/A
111	11	"SpongeBob SquarePants vs. The Big One"	Andrew Overtoom & Alan Smart	Aaron Springer, Paul Tibbitt & Steven Banks	April 17, 2009	5.80
112a	12a	"Porous Pockets"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Derek Iversen	November 28, 2008	N/A
112b	12b	"Choir Boys"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	March 20, 2009	N/A
113a	13a	"Krusty Krushers"	Alan Smart	Nate Cash, Sean Charmatz & Derek Iversen	November 28, 2008	N/A
113b	13b	"The Card"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Steven Banks	November 28, 2008	N/A
114a	14a	"Dear Vikings"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	November 28, 2008	N/A
114b	14b	"Ditchin'"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	November 28, 2008	N/A
115a	15a	"Grandpappy the Pirate"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	February 18, 2009	4.27
115b	15b	"Cephalopod Lodge"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Richard Pursel	February 17, 2009	4.67
116a	16a	"Squid's Visit"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	June 4, 2009	N/A
116b	16b	"To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Steven Banks	July 17, 2009	N/A
117a	17a	"Shuffleboarding"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Derek Iversen	February 16, 2009	4.51
117b	17b	"Professor Squidward"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	February 19, 2009	4.47
118a	18a	"Pet or Pests"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	March 18, 2009	4.21
118b	18b	"Komputer Overload"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	March 19, 2009	4.00
119a	19a	"Gullible Pants"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Derek Iversen	June 5, 2009	N/A
119b	19b	"Overbooked"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexender, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	July 19, 2009	5.17
120a	20a	"No Hat for Pat"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	July 19, 2009	5.09
120b	20b	"Toy Store of Doom"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Dani Michaeli	March 17, 2009	N/A
121a	21a	"Sand Castles in the Sand"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	March 16, 2009	N/A
121b	21b	"Shell Shocked"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	June 1, 2009	N/A
122a	22a	"Chum Bucket Supreme"	Tom Yasumi	Sean Charmatz & Dani Michaeli	July 19, 2009	4.68
122b	22b	"Single Cell Anniversary"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Richard Pursel	June 3, 2009	N/A
123-124	23-24	"Truth or Square" "Stuck in the Freezer"	Andrew Overtoom, Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash, Steven Banks & Paul Tibbitt	November 6, 2009	7.70
125a	25a	"Pineapple Fever"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Derek Iversen	June 2, 2009	N/A
125b	25b	"Chum Caverns"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	July 18, 2009	4.67
126	26	"The Clash of Triton"	Andrew Overtoom & Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Aaron Springer, Steven Banks & Paul Tibbitt	July 5, 2010	5.18

Season 7 (2009–11)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 7)

The seventh season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 26 episodes (50 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
127a	1a	"Tentacle-Vision"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Derek Iversen	July 19, 2009	4.95
127b	1b	"I ♥ Dancing"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	July 19, 2009	4.95
128a	2a	"Growth Spout"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	July 19, 2009	5.17
128b	2b	"Stuck in the Wringer"	Alan Smart	Zeus Cervas, Sean Charmatz & Derek Iversen	July 19, 2009	5.17
129a	3a	"Someone's in the Kitchen with Sandy"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	July 19, 2009	5.37
129b	3b	"The Inside Job"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	July 19, 2009	5.37
130a	4a	"Greasy Buffoons"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Derek Iversen	November 27, 2009	5.51
130b	4b	"Model Sponge"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	November 27, 2009	5.51
131a	5a	"Keep Bikini Bottom Beautiful"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Dani Michaeli	January 2, 2010	N/A
131b	5b	"A Pal for Gary"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	January 2, 2010	N/A
132a	6a	"Yours, Mine and Mine"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Steven Banks	September 11, 2010	4.53
132b	6b	"Kracked Krabs"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	September 11, 2010	4.53
133a	7a	"The Curse of Bikini Bottom"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	October 24, 2009	4.95
133b	7b	"Squidward in Clarinetland"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	March 24, 2010	N/A
134	8	"SpongeBob's Last Stand"	Andrew Overtoom & Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer, Steven Banks & Derek Iversen	April 22, 2010	4.76
135a	9a	"Back to the Past"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	February 15, 2010	4.39
135b	9b	"The Bad Guy Club for Villains"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	February 15, 2010	4.39
136a	10a	"A Day Without Tears"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Steven Banks	March 22, 2010	3.95
136b	10b	"Summer Job"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	March 23, 2010	N/A
137a	11a	"One Coarse Meal" "Plankton Got Served"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	March 25, 2010	4.19
137b	11b	"Gary in Love"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	February 6, 2010	5.52
138a	12a	"The Play's the Thing"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Steven Banks	March 26, 2010	N/A
138b	12b	"Rodeo Daze"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Richard Pursel	February 6, 2010	5.52
139a	13a	"Gramma's Secret Recipe"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	July 6, 2010	N/A
139b	13b	"The Cent of Money"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	July 7, 2010	N/A
140a	14a	"Legends of Bikini Bottom: The Monster Who Came to Bikini Bottom"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	January 28, 2011	6.05
140b	14b	"Legends of Bikini Bottom: Welcome to the Bikini Bottom Triangle"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Dani Michaeli	January 28, 2011	6.05
141a	15a	"Legends of Bikini Bottom: The Curse of the Hex"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	June 11, 2011	4.52
141b	15b	"Legends of Bikini Bottom: The Main Drain"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	January 28, 2011	6.00
142a	16a	"Legends of Bikini Bottom: Trenchbillies"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	January 29, 2011	6.55
142b	16b	"Legends of Bikini Bottom: Sponge-Cano!"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	January 28, 2011	6.00
143	17	"The Great Patty Caper" "Mystery with a Twistery"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Steven Banks & Dani Michaeli	November 11, 2010	6.10
144a	18a	"That Sinking Feeling"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	July 8, 2010	N/A
144b	18b	"Karate Star"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	July 9, 2010	N/A
145a	19a	"Buried in Time"	Andrew Overtoom	Nate Cash, Sean Charmatz & Mr. Lawrence	September 18, 2010	4.74
145b	19b	"Enchanted Tiki Dreams"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer, Sean Charmatz & Richard Pursel	June 19, 2010	3.72
146a	20a	"The Abrasive Side"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	November 27, 2010	4.54
146b	20b	"Earworm"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	November 27, 2010	4.54
147a	21a	"Hide and Then What Happens?"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	August 9, 2010	4.38
147b	21b	"Shellback Shenanigans"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Richard Pursel	September 18, 2010	4.74
148a	22a	"The Masterpiece"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Steven Banks	October 2, 2010	3.99
148b	22b	"Whelk Attack"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Richard Pursel	October 2, 2010	3.99
149a	23a	"You Don't Know Sponge"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Derek Iversen	August 9, 2010	4.38
149b	23b	"Tunnel of Glove"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	February 12, 2011	5.01
150a	24a	"Krusty Dogs"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	October 9, 2010	4.58
150b	24b	"The Wreck of the Mauna Loa"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	October 9, 2010	4.58
151a	25a	"New Fish in Town"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer & Derek Iversen	January 15, 2011	4.71
151b	25b	"Love That Squid"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Sean Charmatz & Richard Pursel	February 12, 2011	5.01
152a	26a	"Big Sister Sam"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	January 15, 2011	4.71
152b	26b	"Perfect Chemistry"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	February 26, 2011	4.80

Season 8 (2011–12)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 8)

The eighth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 26 episodes (47 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
153a	1a	"Accidents Will Happen"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Dani Michaeli	July 18, 2011	N/A
153b	1b	"The Other Patty"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	June 25, 2011	N/A
154a	2a	"Drive Thru"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	July 19, 2011	N/A
154b	2b	"The Hot Shot"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Derek Iversen	June 18, 2011	N/A
155a	3a	"A Friendly Game"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Steven Banks	March 26, 2011	N/A
155b	3b	"Sentimental Sponge"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Mr. Lawrence	April 2, 2011	N/A
156	4	"Frozen Face-Off"	Andrew Overtoom & Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Derek Iversen, Dani Michaeli & Richard Pursel	July 15, 2011	5.76
157a	5a	"Squidward's School for Grown Ups"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer, Sean Charmatz & Richard Pursel	June 4, 2011	N/A
157b	5b	"Oral Report"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	March 26, 2011	N/A
158a	6a	"Sweet and Sour Squid"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Mr. Lawrence	July 20, 2011	N/A
158b	6b	"The Googly Artiste"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash & Derek Iversen	July 21, 2011	N/A
159	7	"A SquarePants Family Vacation"	Andrew Overtoom & Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer, Sean Charmatz & Derek Iversen	November 11, 2011	N/A
160a	8a	"Patrick's Staycation"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Nate Cash, Sean Charmatz & Dani Michaeli	November 8, 2011	N/A
160b	8b	"Walking the Plankton"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	November 7, 2011	N/A
161a	9a	"Mooncation"	Alan Smart	Sean Charmatz, Vincent Waller, Steven Banks	November 10, 2011	N/A
161b	9b	"Mr. Krabs Takes a Vacation"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli, Sean Charmatz & Steven Banks	November 9, 2011	N/A
162	10	"Ghoul Fools"	Andrew Overtoom & Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	October 21, 2011	3.91
163a	11a	"Mermaid Man Begins"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Sean Charmatz & Richard Pursel	September 23, 2011	2.65
163b	11b	"Plankton's Good Eye"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Marc Cecarrelli & Derek Iversen	September 23, 2011	2.65
164a	12a	"Barnacle Face"	Andrew Overtoom	Aaron Springer, Andrew Goodman, Dani Michaeli	September 16, 2011	4.39
164b	12b	"Pet Sitter Pat"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	September 16, 2011	4.39
165a	13a	"House Sittin' for Sandy"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer, Sean Charmatz & Derek Iversen	September 30, 2011	3.33
165b	13b	"Smoothe Jazz at Bikini Bottom"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	September 30, 2011	3.33
166a	14a	"Bubble Troubles"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	November 25, 2011	3.27
166b	14b	"The Way of the Sponge"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Derek Iversen & Andrew Goodman	November 25, 2011	3.27
167a	15a	"The Krabby Patty That Ate Bikini Bottom"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	November 25, 2011	3.27
167b	15b	"Bubble Buddy Returns"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Mr. Lawrence	November 25, 2011	3.27
168a	16a	"Restraining SpongeBob"	Tom Yasumi	Sean Charmatz, Vincent Waller & Paul Tibbitt	April 2, 2012	N/A
168b	16b	"Fiasco!"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	April 5, 2012	N/A
169a	17a	"Are You Happy Now?"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Dani Michaeli	March 31, 2012	N/A
169b	17b	"Planet of the Jellyfish"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Mr. Lawrence	March 31, 2012	N/A
170a	18a	"Free Samples"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Dani Michaeli	April 6, 2012	N/A
170b	18b	"Home Sweet Rubble"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	April 4, 2012	N/A
171a	19a	"Karen 2.0"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	April 13, 2012	N/A
171b	19b	"InSPONGEiac"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	April 9, 2012	N/A
172a	20a	"Face Freeze!"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	July 21, 2012	3.65
172b	20b	"Glove World R.I.P."	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	April 3, 2012	N/A
173a	21a	"Squiditis"	Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer & Derek Iversen	April 11, 2012	N/A
173b	21b	"Demolition Doofus"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	July 21, 2012	3.65
174a	22a	"Treats!"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	April 10, 2012	N/A
174b	22b	"For Here or to Go"	Andrew Overtoom	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Steven Banks	April 12, 2012	N/A
175	23	"It's a SpongeBob Christmas!"	Mark Caballero & Seamus Walsh	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli, Derek Iversen & Mr. Lawrence	November 23, 2012 (CBS) December 6, 2012 (Nickelodeon)	3.61 / 4.61
176a	24a	"Super Evil Aquatic Villain Team Up is Go!"	Alan Smart	Aaron Springer & Dani Michaeli	October 14, 2012	2.28
176b	24b	"Chum Fricassee"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Richard Pursel	October 21, 2012	2.30
177a	25a	"The Good Krabby Name"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	September 3, 2012	3.36
177b	25b	"Move It or Lose It"	Andrew Overtoom	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	October 21, 2012	2.30
178	26	"Hello Bikini Bottom!"	Alan Smart, Andrew Overtoom & Tom Yasumi	Aaron Springer, Sean Charmatz & Dani Michaeli	October 8, 2012	2.76

Season 9 (2012–17)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 9)

The ninth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 26 episodes (49 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
179a	1a	"Extreme Spots"	Tom Yasumi	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	July 21, 2012	3.70
179b	1b	"Squirrel Record"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	July 21, 2012	3.70
180a	2a	"Patrick-Man!"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Derek Iversen	October 27, 2012	4.10
180b	2b	"Gary's New Toy"	Tom Yasumi	Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	October 14, 2012	2.36
181a	3a	"License to Milkshake"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	September 7, 2012	3.13
181b	3b	"Squid Baby"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	September 3, 2012	3.36
182a	4a	"Little Yellow Book"	Alan Smart	Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli & Derek Iversen	March 2, 2013	4.73
182b	4b	"Bumper to Bumper"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	November 17, 2012	4.01
183a	5a	"Eek, an Urchin!"	Alan Smart	Marc Ceccarelli, Luke Brookshier & Mr. Lawrence	October 27, 2012	4.10
183b	5b	"Squid Defense"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Blake Lemons & Derek Iversen	January 1, 2013	3.70
184a	6a	"Jailbreak!"	Alan Smart	Marc Ceccarelli, Luke Brookshier & Mr. Lawrence	March 16, 2013	3.81
184b	6b	"Evil Spatula"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Blake Lemons & Andrew Goodman	March 9, 2013	4.04
185	7	"It Came from Goo Lagoon"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Marc Ceccarelli, Luke Brookshier, Derek Iversen & Mr. Lawrence	February 17, 2014	4.04
186a	8a	"Safe Deposit Krabs"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Blake Lemons & Derek Iversen	May 25, 2013	4.18
186b	8b	"Plankton's Pet"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Marc Ceccarelli, Luke Brookshier & Mr. Lawrence	January 19, 2013	4.37
187a	9a	"Don't Look Now"	Tom Yasumi	Marc Ceccarelli, Luke Brookshier & Mr. Lawrence	October 14, 2013	3.42
187b	9b	"Séance Shméance"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	October 14, 2013	3.42
188a	10a	"Kenny the Cat"	Tom Yasumi	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, Blake Lemons & Mr. Lawrence	March 29, 2014	4.33
188b	10b	"Yeti Krabs"	Alan Smart	Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas & Mr. Lawrence	March 29, 2015	2.25
189	11	"SpongeBob, You're Fired"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Marc Ceccarelli, Luke Brookshier & Mr. Lawrence	November 11, 2013	5.19
190a	12a	"Lost in Bikini Bottom"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Jack Pendarvis	July 16, 2015	3.20
190b	12b	"Tutor Sauce"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Jack Pendarvis	July 16, 2015	3.20
191a	13a	"Squid Plus One"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Kyle McCulloch & Jack Pendarvis	September 7, 2015	1.98
191b	13b	"The Executive Treatment"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Jack Pendarvis	September 7, 2015	1.98
192a	14a	"Company Picnic"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Kyle McCulloch & Jack Pendarvis	September 25, 2015	1.61
192b	14b	"Pull Up a Barrel"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Jack Pendarvis	September 18, 2015	2.09
193a	15a	"Sanctuary!"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Kyle McCulloch	October 16, 2015	1.28
193b	15b	"What's Eating Patrick?"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Kyle McCulloch and Jack Pendarvis	October 2, 2015	1.77
194a	16a	"Patrick! The Game"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Kyle McCulloch	November 11, 2015	2.05
194b	16b	"The Sewers of Bikini Bottom"	Alan Smart & Tom Yasumi	Kaz	November 11, 2015	2.05
195a	17a	"Married to Money"	TBA	Josh Androsky & Daniel Dominguez	January 25, 2016	TBA
TBA	TBA	"Mall Girl Pearl"	TBA	Clare O'Kane	2016	TBA
TBA	TBA	"Two Thumbs Down"	TBA	Kyle McCulloch	TBA	TBA
200	22	"Factory Fresh"	TBA	Kyle McCulloch	TBA	TBA

Season 10 (2016–17)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 10)

The tenth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 11 episodes (22 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order. It is the shortest season, lacking the usual 26 episode length.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation director	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
205a	1a	"Whirly Brains"	Bob Jaques	TBA	October 15, 2016 (2016-10-15)	1.77
SpongeBob and Patrick buy a popular toy, where the user detaches their brain from their head, then flies it around as a drone. A cranky old man kidnaps all the brains, so SpongeBob and Patrick get Sandy's help to confront him. Guest appearance: Ed Asner as the Angry Old Timer.
205b	1b	"Mermaid Pants"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 29, 2016 (2016-10-29)	2.17
SpongeBob and Patrick have fun pretending to be Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy. Mr. Krabs, secretly a fan of the series, has him and Squidward play along as supervillains.
206a	2a	"Unreal Estate"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 3, 2017 (2017-06-03)	1.69
Squidward tricks SpongeBob into fearing that he has become allergic to his pineapple. When Squidward takes SpongeBob to find a new house, he ends up coming across one that he wants instead, and tries to convince SpongeBob not to buy it.
206b	2b	"Code Yellow"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 3, 2017 (2017-06-03)	1.69
Squidward goes to get a nose job at the hospital. SpongeBob is mistaken for a doctor, and has to help various patients, culminating in Squidward's nose surgery.
207a	3a	"Mimic Madness"	Bob Jaques	TBA	February 25, 2017 (2017-02-25)	2.12
Upon learning that "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" from Squidward, SpongeBob impresses his friends through impressions of them. He becomes so obsessed with impressions that he loses his own identity, and SpongeBob's friends need to imitate him to remind him who he is.
207b	3b	"House Worming"	Alan Smart	TBA	February 25, 2017 (2017-02-25)	2.12
SpongeBob takes pity on a worm and allows it to live in his body. However, the worm takes advantage and invites many of his friends over, resulting in SpongeBob becoming infested with worms, unable to get rid of them. Short: Prickles the Worm in: Clam Up!
208a	4a	"Snooze You Lose"	Alan Smart	TBA	March 4, 2017 (2017-03-04)	2.12
Squidward has a clarinet recital and finds himself unable to sleep. When he passes out in SpongeBob's house, SpongeBob and Patrick are unable to wake him up. They go inside Squidward's body and get him to the recital, managing to play the clarinet beautifully. Squidward wakes up and regains control of his body, failing the recital with his awful playing. Guest appearance: J. K. Simmons as Maestro Mackerel.
208b	4b	"Krusty Katering"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	March 4, 2017 (2017-03-04)	2.12
Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward cater at a kids' birthday party. When it goes wrong, they pretend to be high-class caterers and attend a fancy party. Patrick becomes obsessive over the food, Mr. Krabs is followed around by a boy from the birthday party, Squidward tries to join a musical quartet, and SpongeBob makes the Krabby Patties more fancy.
209a	5a	"SpongeBob's Place"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	March 11, 2017 (2017-03-11)	2.27
Squidward insists that SpongeBob is the only reason why the Krusty Krab is popular. Out of jealousy, Mr. Krabs kicks SpongeBob out of the restaurant, where he starts his own restaurant at home. The Krusty Krab fails as Mr. Krabs tries to re-attract customers, while SpongeBob's restaurant becomes a success.
209b	5b	"Plankton Gets the Boot"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	March 11, 2017 (2017-03-11)	2.27
Karen is angry at Plankton's uncaring and unappreciative nature, kicking him out of the restaurant until he can improve himself. SpongeBob and Patrick try to teach Plankton how to be a nicer person.
210a	6a	"Life Insurance"	Bob Jaques	TBA	March 18, 2017 (2017-03-18)	2.13
SpongeBob and Patrick buy life insurance, and believe that it means they cannot get injured. A series of lucky coincidences convinces Squidward as well. When Mr. Krabs explains what life insurance really means, SpongeBob and Patrick try to tell Squidward as he attempts a dangerous obstacle course.
210b	6b	"Burst Your Bubble"	Alan Smart	TBA	March 18, 2017 (2017-03-18)	2.13
Unable to earn a license for a real boat, SpongeBob creates his own boat out of bubbles. These become popular around town, and Mrs. Puff is forced to attend SpongeBob's "Bubble Boating School."
211a	7a	"Plankton Retires"	Bob Jaques	TBA	March 25, 2017 (2017-03-25)	2.07
After many failures, Plankton closes the Chum Bucket and starts a new life in a faraway town. SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs, who does not believe that Plankton has truly changed, follow him.
211b	7b	"Trident Trouble"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	March 25, 2017 (2017-03-25)	2.07
SpongeBob and King Neptune swap their spatula and trident. Neptune is unable to fight a kraken using SpongeBob's spatula and tries to find his trident, while SpongeBob uses the trident to grant wishes that end up backfiring. Guest appearance: John O'Hurley as King Neptune.
212a	8a	"The Incredible Shrinking Sponge"	Alan Smart	TBA	December 2, 2017 (2017-12-02)	1.83
SpongeBob turns up the temperature on the grill, but shrinks from the heat. At his tiny size, he confronts an urchin, is mistaken for an action figure by a group of kids, and is hired as a personal hygienist.
212b	8b	"Sportz?"	Bob Jaques	TBA	July 16, 2017 (2017-07-16)	1.99
SpongeBob and Patrick find Sandy's box of sports equipment, but do not know how to play the sports. As revenge, Squidward teaches them incorrect and painful ways to play. Sandy eventually finds out, and beats Squidward at his own game.
213a	9a	"The Getaway"	Alan Smart	TBA	June 10, 2017 (2017-06-10)	1.66
An escaped criminal convinces SpongeBob that he is his driving instructor. Mrs. Puff, the police, and another getaway driver chase after them. Guest appearances: Steve Buscemi as Dorsal Dan and Joe Pantoliano as Stickyfins.
213b	9b	"Lost and Found"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 10, 2017 (2017-06-10)	1.66
Mr. Krabs sends SpongeBob into the Krusty Krab's underground lost-and-found to find a child's missing toy. There, he meets a group of old people who have gotten lost years ago.
214a	10a	"Patrick's Coupon"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 17, 2017 (2017-06-17)	1.77
Patrick finds a coupon for a free ice cream cone, and wants to redeem it for SpongeBob. When he arrives at the ice cream store, Patrick learns that the coupon is expired, and must negotiate with the Ice Cream King -- who both looks and acts very similar to him -- to get the ice cream. Guest appearance: Peter Browngardt as the Ice Cream King.
214b	10b	"Out of the Picture"	Alan Smart	TBA	June 17, 2017 (2017-06-17)	1.77
Mr. Krabs buys Squidward's paintings, and learns from an appraiser that art is worth more after the artist has died. Mr. Krabs makes Squidward go on increasingly dangerous delivers to get rid of him.
215a	11a	"Feral Friends"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 7, 2017 (2017-10-07)	1.81
Sandy's birthday party is interrupted by Neptune's Moon, a rare phenomenon that causes underwater animals to revert to a primal, realistic state. As a land creature, Sandy is the only one not affected, and must keep her friends safe from the now monstrously-large Squidward and Pearl.
215b	11b	"Don't Wake Patrick"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	October 7, 2017 (2017-10-07)	1.81
Patrick sleepwalks into SpongeBob's house. Unable to wake Patrick up, SpongeBob has to guide him out of danger as he goes around town.

Season 11 (2017–18)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 11)

The eleventh season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 26 episodes (50 segments), which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
216a	1a	"Cave Dwelling Sponge"	Alan Smart	TBA	September 23, 2017 (2017-09-23)	1.92
SpongeBob and Patrick go on a nature hike, and Patrick's tongue gets stuck to ice in a cave. SpongeBob melts the ice with hot chocolate, unknowingly releasing a prehistoric cave sponge. The cave sponge follows SpongeBob through his morning routine and to the Krusty Krab, making a mess and destroying property. SpongeBob is framed for the destruction caused by the cave sponge, and is sent to jail. The two are cleared of charges after they destroy the city hall, which was scheduled for demolition.
216b	1b	"The Clam Whisperer"	Bob Jaques	TBA	September 23, 2017 (2017-09-23)	1.92
SpongeBob is followed by migrating clams, who disrupt people around town. He agrees to lead the clams away after complaints by the citizens, and after acting like a clam for a season, returns home.
217a	2a	"Spot Returns"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 24, 2017 (2017-06-24)	1.96
Plankton's pet amoeba Spot has puppies, and Plankton gets them adopted with SpongeBob's help. When the amoeba puppies return to Plankton with their owners' items, he trains the puppies to steal the Krabby Patty secret formula. The plan is foiled by SpongeBob, who feeds the amoebas treats that cause them to grow and destroy the Chum Bucket.
217b	2b	"The Check-Up"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 24, 2017 (2017-06-24)	1.96
Mr. Krabs sneaks away from the Krusty Krab's annual health check-up, fearing that it will be painful. SpongeBob and Squidward try to give him the check-up without him knowing, and when their attempts do not work, they make Larry the Lobster dress as Mr. Krabs and pass the check-up.
218a	3a	"Spin the Bottle"	Bob Jaques	TBA	July 16, 2017 (2017-07-16)	1.99
Plankton acts as a wish-granting genie to get the secret formula. The genie bottle ends up with SpongeBob, who shares his wishes with his friends. Wanting more wishes, Patrick, Squidward, and Mr. Krabs fight over the genie bottle. A real genie appears, upset at Plankton for mishandling his bottle, and traps Mr. Krabs, Squidward, and Patrick in a ketchup bottle.
218b	3b	"There's a Sponge in My Soup"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 7, 2017 (2017-11-07)	1.46
Mr. Krabs starts selling soup at the Krusty Krab, which attracts hippies. After multiple attempts to get the hippies out, Mr. Krabs sends SpongeBob down into the soup, and he becomes a hippie himself. Finally, Mr. Krabs gets the hippies out by moving them to Squidward's bathtub.
219a	4a	"Man Ray Returns"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	September 30, 2017 (2017-09-30)	2.07
Man Ray rents Squidward's house for the weekend. Despite Man Ray's peaceful intentions, SpongeBob and Patrick provoke him and start a fight using objects in Squidward's house. When Squidward returns from vacation, his house crumbles from the damage caused to it in the fight.
219b	4b	"Larry the Floor Manager"	Bob Jaques	TBA	September 30, 2017 (2017-09-30)	2.07
Stressed out from work, Mr. Krabs takes a break from managing the Krusty Krab and hires Larry. Larry proceeds to turn the Krusty Krab into a gym, upsetting SpongeBob, who teams up with other customers to remind Larry how good Krabby Patties taste.
220	5	"The Legend of Boo-Kini Bottom"	Mark Caballero and Seamus Walsh Tom Yasumi (timing)	TBA	October 13, 2017 (2017-10-13)	2.21
In this special stop-motion episode, SpongeBob insists that "scary equals funny" on Halloween. This bothers the Flying Dutchman, who tries to scare him for good by capturing his friends. Guest appearance: Brian Doyle-Murray as The Flying Dutchman.
221a	6a	"No Pictures Please"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 6, 2017 (2017-11-06)	1.84
Patrick pretends to be a tour guide, leading a tourist around Bikini Bottom. When the two get in trouble and are cornered by an angry mob, the tourist reveals that he is an illusion and disappears.
221b	6b	"Stuck on the Roof"	Bob Jaques	TBA	November 6, 2017 (2017-11-06)	1.84
SpongeBob climbs onto the roof of the Krusty Krab to get a Krabby Patty out of the chimney. He is unable to get down due to his fear of heights, and ends up building another Krusty Krab on top of the roof. This begins to attract customers, who enjoy dining on the roof, although a storm ruins the experience. SpongeBob quickly constructs a replica Krusty Krab as shelter from the rain. When he plays music, the customers' dancing causes the original Krusty Krab to sink underground, trapping Squidward.
222a	7a	"Krabby Patty Creature Feature"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 21, 2017 (2017-10-21)	1.99
When two hipsters want a new kind of Krabby Patty, Mr. Krabs starts serving a porotype patty that turns those who eat it into zombies. SpongeBob is the only one to not get infected, and cures the zombies by feeding them Plankton's chum.
222b	7b	"Teacher's Pests"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	October 21, 2017 (2017-10-21)	1.99
After a boating accident, Mr. Krabs and Plankton have to attend boating school. The two's rivalry makes them unable to focus, and they fight during their driving test, causing them to crash. Plankton and Krabs, along with SpongeBob, end up stitched together in the hospital.
223a	8a	"Sanitation Insanity"	Alan Smart	TBA	May 7, 2018 (2018-05-07)	1.35
When Mr. Krabs is too cheap to buy more garbage bags and creates a mess, he makes SpongeBob and Squidward clean up trash around Bikini Bottom. However, Patrick is insistent on keeping his garbage, and the fight causes trash to splatter all over the Krusty Krab.
223b	8b	"Bunny Hunt"	Bob Jaques	TBA	March 30, 2018 (2018-03-30)	1.44
A wild sea bunny ruins Squidward's garden. SpongeBob finds it cute and adopts it, getting Patrick to help him take care of it. The bunny meets a female and reproduces, and the bunnies invade Squidward's house.
224a	9a	"Squid Noir"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 10, 2017 (2017-11-10)	1.86
Squidward's clarinet disappears, so he, SpongeBob, and Patrick investigate suspects. The clarinet is revealed to have been stolen by jellyfish, who enjoy Squidward's music and let him play in their club. Note: A large portion of this episode is presented in black and white.
224b	9b	"Scavenger Pants"	Bob Jaques	TBA	November 9, 2017 (2017-11-09)	1.65
Squidward sends SpongeBob and Patrick on an increasingly difficult scavenger hunt to distract them. When they manage to find every object Squidward requests, he makes them search for his nonexistent long-lost brother. SpongeBob and Patrick find Squidward's mother, who reveals she only had Squidward; thus they ask her to adopt them and thus completes the scavenger hunt.
225a	10a	"Cuddle E. Hugs"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 8, 2017 (2017-11-08)	1.65
When SpongeBob eats a rotten Krabby Patty, he begins to hallucinate a giant, fluffy hamster named Cuddle E. Hugs. Nobody else can see Cuddle, so he is encouraged to serve the rotten patty to other customers, leading them to share his hallucination. However, Cuddle begins to devour everyone in the Krusty Krab. After he reveals that the "E" in his name stands for "eat", SpongeBob feeds Cuddle the last of the rotten Krabby Patty, causing him to go into his own hallucination. Guest appearance: Jeff Garlin as Cuddle E. Hugs.
225b	10b	"Pat the Horse"	Bob Jaques	TBA	December 2, 2017 (2017-12-02)	1.83
SpongeBob reads Patrick a storybook saying that he can be anything he wants, inspiring Patrick to act like a horse. However, Mr. Krabs takes this opportunity to use Patrick as a pony ride outside the Krusty Krab. Patrick runs away and Mr. Krabs makes Squidward act as a horse, leading to a race between SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs.
226a	11a	"Chatterbox Gary"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	February 12, 2018 (2018-02-12)	1.70
SpongeBob orders Gary a pet translation collar, allowing others to understand his speech. However, Squidward feels offended by Gary's critique of his art, and swaps out Gary's collar for his own microphone, allowing him to boss around SpongeBob under the guise of Gary. Guest appearance: Keith David as Gary's collar.
226b	11b	"Don't Feed the Clowns"	Alan Smart	TBA	February 12, 2018 (2018-02-12)	1.70
A little clown is left behind by the circus, and SpongeBob tries to help him find new work. The clown fails as a hot dog vendor, an office worker, a firefighter, and a baker, but is happily returned to the wild with other clowns.
227a	12a	"Drive Happy"	Alan Smart	TBA	February 13, 2018 (2018-02-13)	1.63
SpongeBob buys a self-driving car named Coupe, who turns out to act snobby and entitled. When Coupe insists that the Krusty Krab is too "low-class" and refuses to take him there for work, SpongeBob takes out his own steering while and forcibly drives Coupe to the Krusty Krab. SpongeBob then makes him work as a kiddy ride in front of the Krusty Krab, to his displeasure. Guest appearance: Brian George as Coupe.
227b	12b	"Old Man Patrick"	Bob Jaques	TBA	February 14, 2018 (2018-02-14)	1.63
Patrick goes to the Shady Shoals rest home for ice cream, but ends up spending so much time there that he turns into an old man. SpongeBob takes Patrick and his elderly friends to an arcade to encourage them to have fun.
228a	13a	"Fun-Sized Friends"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	February 15, 2018 (2018-02-15)	1.97
SpongeBob and Patrick create sentient, smaller versions of themselves. However, the smaller SpongeBob and Patrick begin to feel mistreated and take revenge on their larger counterparts.
228b	13b	"Grandmum's the Word"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	February 16, 2018 (2018-02-16)	1.45
To impress Plankton's grandma on her birthday, Plankton claims that he is the owner of the Krusty Krab. Mr. Krabs, SpongeBob, and Squidward prepare for the visit, although Plankton's grandma turns out to have visited to betray Plankton and steal the secret formula. Guest appearance: Laraine Newman as Grandma Plankton.
229a	14a	"Doodle Dimension"	Bob Jaques	TBA	March 9, 2018 (2018-03-09)	1.30
After messing with one of Sandy's inventions, SpongeBob and Patrick are brought to a blank white dimension. Everything they draw comes to life, and they accidentally bring back DoodleBob, who begins to battle them.
229b	14b	"Moving Bubble Bass"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	March 16, 2018 (2018-03-16)	1.35
Bubble Bass is forced to move from his mother's basement to his grandmother's house. He tricks SpongeBob and Patrick into moving his belongings.
230a	15a	"High Sea Diving"	Bob Jaques	TBA	April 6, 2018 (2018-04-06)	1.21
SpongeBob attempts to dive to the surface of the ocean, but is stopped by a wall of garbage. There, he meets a delusional man who believes he is King Neptune. The trash that SpongeBob and the man throw during their fight sinks to the bottom, which the citizens of Bikini Bottom find practical uses for. Guest appearances: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins and John O'Hurley as King Neptune.
230b	15b	"Bottle Burglars"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	April 13, 2018 (2018-04-13)	1.23
Squidward accidentally throws the Krabby Patty secret formula away while cleaning, so he and SpongeBob have to sneak into the Chum Bucket to get it back.
231a	16a	"My Leg!"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	May 8, 2018 (2018-05-08)	1.24
A fish named Fred continually hurts his legs, and SpongeBob and Patrick try to keep him from danger. However, Fred confesses that he does it on purpose because he likes a nurse at the hospital, leading SpongeBob to help injure him. Guest appearance: Kevin Michael Richardson as Nurse Bazooka.
231b	16b	"Ink Lemonade"	Bob Jaques	TBA	May 9, 2018 (2018-05-09)	1.31
Patrick uses Squidward's ink in his lemonade. When SpongeBob and Patrick begin to sell out of "ink lemonade," Patrick scares more ink out of Squidward. Guest appearance: Laraine Newman as the Crab Lady.
232a	17a	"Mustard O' Mine"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	May 10, 2018 (2018-05-10)	1.30
Mr. Krabs sends SpongeBob, Patrick and Squidward to dig up mustard at the Mustard Mines. The three eventually find mustard, but are confronted by an old prospector. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Walter Haddock.
232b	17b	"Shopping List"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	September 24, 2018 (2018-09-24)	1.08
Mr. Krabs sends SpongeBob and Sandy to get exotic ingredients for Krabby Patties. Plankton follows them, but fails to get the ingredients successfully, leading him to steal them from Sandy and SpongeBob. Mr. Krabs confesses that the list was fake and only used to distract Plankton, leading Sandy to beat up him and Plankton. Guest appearance: Brian Doyle-Murray as The Flying Dutchman.
233a	18a	"Whale Watching"	Bob Jaques	TBA	August 6, 2018 (2018-08-06)	1.59
Mr. Krabs hires Squidward to babysit Pearl, promising a work shift without SpongeBob if nothing goes wrong. However, Pearl sneaks out to go to a party, while Squidward follows. Pearl is dared to jump out of the water, leaving her stranded on an island until Squidward rescues her.
233b	18b	"Krusty Kleaners"	Alan Smart	TBA	August 7, 2018 (2018-08-07)	1.40
SpongeBob delivers food to an office building, but accidentally spills a milkshake. That night, he returns with Patrick to clean the entire building, but are chased by a cleaning robot and other sentient office supplies.
234a	19a	"Patnocchio"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	August 8, 2018 (2018-08-08)	1.22
In a parody of Walt Disney's Pinocchio, Plankton pretends to be Patrick's conscience to get a Krabby Patty.
234b	19b	"ChefBob"	Alan Smart	TBA	August 9, 2018 (2018-08-09)	1.04
When the customers like watching SpongeBob cook, Mr. Krabs creates an open kitchen. SpongeBob develops stage fright until he creates a puppet named ChefBob that cooks the food, although it soon turns against him and insults the customers.
235a	20a	"Plankton Paranoia"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	September 26, 2018 (2018-09-26)	1.18
Mr. Krabs becomes paranoid that Plankton will steal the formula, going insane and trying to convince Plankton to go after it. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins.
235b	20b	"Library Cards"	Bob Jaques	TBA	September 25, 2018 (2018-09-25)	1.25
Patrick gets addicted to reading after spending time in SpongeBob's library; however, he gets so smart that his brain gets stuck in the library's doorway. Guest appearance: Kevin Michael Richardson as Sir Urchin.
236a	21a	"Call the Cops"	Bob Jaques	TBA	September 27, 2018 (2018-09-27)	1.19
Plankton is arrested, and the Krabby Patty formula is taken as evidence. SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs impersonate police officers to get it back, catching a real criminal along the way, while Plankton is put in a cell with Patrick and tries to escape. After a long fight in the evidence room, SpongeBob (who told the truth out of fear) and Mr. Krabs are arrested and locked up in the same cell with Plankton, Patrick, and the criminal.
236b	21b	"Surf N' Turf"	Alan Smart	TBA	November 11, 2018 (2018-11-11)	1.40
Sandy participates in a ship-in-the-bottle contest. SpongeBob calls Mr. Krabs to help her, and he turns her entire treedome into a ship.
237	22	"Goons on the Moon" "SpaceBob MerryPants"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 25, 2018 (2018-11-25)	1.34
Sandy takes SpongeBob, Pearl, and a nerdy squid named Squidina on a trip to the moon. While delivering food, Squidward arrives right as their rocket takes off, and is taken to the moon as well. The group meets Santa Claus while searching for intelligent life. Guest appearance: Lewis Black as Santa Claus. Note: This is the final episode aired before Stephen Hillenburg's death one day later.
238a	23a	"Appointment TV"	Bob Jaques	TBA	October 28, 2018 (2018-10-28)	1.25
SpongeBob is excited to watch a never-before-seen episode of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy and is prepared for it after his shift at the Krusty Krab. However, as he is going home, SpongeBob is constantly delayed by his friends, and misses the airing. To cheer him up, SpongeBob's friends re-enact the episode on stage as their apology for taking advantage of him. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins.
238b	23b	"Karen's Virus"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 4, 2018 (2018-11-04)	1.20
Karen gets a virus due to hanging out with a sick computer friend, so Plankton enlists SpongeBob's help to defeat the virus. Meanwhile, as SpongeBob is hunting for the virus, Karen is delirious and goes around town. Guest designer: Jordan Speer
239a	24a	"The Grill is Gone"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 21, 2018 (2018-10-21)	1.37
SpongeBob is tasked to clean the Krusty Krab when he notices that the grill is missing. He follows the trail to the home of a group of kids, who have stolen the grill to use it as a race car. Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob enter a race against the kids to recover the grill.
239b	24b	"The Night Patty"	Bob Jaques	TBA	October 21, 2018 (2018-10-21)	1.37
Patrick introduces SpongeBob to the Krusty Krab's night shift crew. He goes to help them out, although they disapprove of his Krabby Patties. When he finds a solution, burning the patties and serving their "ghosts," a villainous fisherman invades the restaurant. SpongeBob defeats him, only to learn that he is actually the night shift crew's boss. That morning, Mr. Krabs enters and tells SpongeBob that he had hallucinated the entire experience.
240a	25a	"Bubbletown"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	October 28, 2018 (2018-10-28)	1.25
SpongeBob visits Bubble Buddy in Bubbletown, a city made of and inhabited by bubbles. He accidentally slips on some soap, popping the entire town, and is sentenced to jail. Mr. Krabs receives a message from SpongeBob that he cannot come to work, and goes to Bubbletown to free SpongeBob from prison. When Mr. Krabs pops the town, SpongeBob is devastated until Bubble Buddy arrives to restore it. Guest appearance: Brad Abrell as Bubble Buddy.
240b	25b	"Girls' Night Out"	Bob Jaques	TBA	November 4, 2018 (2018-11-04)	1.20
Sandy, Mrs. Puff, and Karen hang out at a cafe. When Mrs. Puff and Karen talk about how SpongeBob and Plankton, respectively, are annoying to them, the trio decides to prank both of them. However, their prank to SpongeBob ends up backfiring at them when a sleepwalking SpongeBob (wearing a VR headset) puts them in a dangerous situation.
241a	26a	"Squirrel Jelly"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 18, 2018 (2018-11-18)	1.38
SpongeBob and Patrick go jellyfishing, while Sandy accompanies them. Her competitive nature leads to the destruction of Jellyfish Fields.
241b	26b	"The String"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 18, 2018 (2018-11-18)	1.38
SpongeBob spots a loose thread on Squidward's shirt. While unraveling it, he winds up destroying the Krusty Krab, Bikini Bottom, and eventually reality itself.

Season 12 (2018–21)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 12)

The twelfth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 26 episodes, which are ordered according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order. This was the last season that series creator, Stephen Hillenburg was involved in before his death from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis on November 26, 2018 at age 57.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
242a	1a	"FarmerBob"	Alan Smart	TBA	November 11, 2018 (2018-11-11)	1.40
Mr. Krabs is in debt to Old Man Jenkins, so he makes SpongeBob and Patrick work on Jenkins' farm to pay off the debt. While operating the tractor for a chore, they accidentally create crop circles, attracting a group of friendly aliens. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins.
242b	1b	"Gary & Spot"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	July 27, 2019 (2019-07-27)	1.21
Gary and Spot go exploring at night, pursued by an animal control officer. When he captures them, they learn that he is very lonely. To help him feel better, Gary creates him a wife out of his slime, and he and Spot return to their owners.
243a	2a	"The Nitwitting"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	January 13, 2019 (2019-01-13)	1.05
Patrick recruits SpongeBob into his club, the Empty Head Society. Before entering, SpongeBob is made to remove his brain and hand it in to check-out; however, while doing destructive "community service" with the group, his brainstem shorts out and severely lowers his intelligence. Patrick helps SpongeBob find his brain again. Guest appearance: Peter Browngardt as the Ice Cream King.
243b	2b	"The Ballad of Filthy Muck"	Alan Smart	TBA	January 20, 2019 (2019-01-20)	0.95
Patrick tries to become as dirty as possible, eventually being covered in slime and garbage. While the smell drives other people away, SpongeBob continues to hang around with Patrick, getting covered in trash as well. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins and Fred Tatasciore as Singing Tennessee Ernie Flounder
244a	3a	"The Krusty Slammer"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	January 27, 2019 (2019-01-27)	1.24
Plankton is arrested for vandalism, but the Bikini Bottom Prison is overcrowded. Being paid by the prison, Mr. Krabs offers to turn the Krusty Krab into a jailhouse. However, when SpongeBob begins treating the prisoners with expensive luxuries, Mr. Krabs lets them all go to save money. He is arrested for having released the prisoners, and is imprisoned at the Chum Bucket.
244b	3b	"Pineapple RV"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	July 17, 2020 (2020-07-17)	0.73
Squidward aims to take a vacation in order to see a famous flower. However, SpongeBob and Patrick destroy his RV by mistake. Feeling guilty, they turn SpongeBob's house into a vehicle, taking Squidward to see the flower. While there, Patrick accidentally destroys it, getting Squidward in trouble with the other tourists.
245a	4a	"Gary's Got Legs"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	July 27, 2019 (2019-07-27)	1.21
SpongeBob realizes that Gary cannot exercise well because he does not have legs, so he cuts off his own legs and implants them on Gary. Soon, SpongeBob also gives Gary his arms, leading to Gary taking over his job as the Krusty Krab while SpongeBob stays home as a pet.
245b	4b	"King Plankton"	Alan Smart	TBA	June 22, 2019 (2019-06-22)	0.97
SpongeBob leaves his aquarium of sea chimps to Plankton and Karen for a while. Plankton uses a shrinking belt to go into the tank, declaring himself ruler of the sea chimps. However, the sea chimps tire of Plankton's rule and sacrifice him to Patrick's tongue.
246a	5a	"Plankton's Old Chum"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	November 30, 2019 (2019-11-30)	1.10
Plankton cooks a batch of chum that goes bad, and he has to find a place to hide it. He runs into SpongeBob and gets him to hide the chum, convincing him that he is actually hiding presents for a Christmas-like holiday known as "Chum Day". When the rotten chum fails to hold and explodes all over the city, coming down like snow, SpongeBob shows Bikini Bottom of the true meaning of Chum Day.
246b	5b	"Stormy Weather"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 22, 2019 (2019-06-22)	0.97
A storm cloud named Drizzle is left behind by its parents, and adopted by SpongeBob. A weatherman becomes obsessed with trying to capture Drizzle.
247a	6a	"Swamp Mates"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	April 11, 2020 (2020-04-11)	0.89
Bubble Bass is forced to have a playdate with Patrick, who opens a bag of swamp water that sends them into a swamp. There, Bubble Bass and Patrick encounter a group of alligators who cook spicy food, and later a Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy supervillain who has stolen one of Bubble Bass's action figures.
247b	6b	"One Trick Sponge"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	April 11, 2020 (2020-04-11)	0.89
SpongeBob learns a card trick, but his friends are too busy to see it.
248a	7a	"The Krusty Bucket"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	August 10, 2019 (2019-08-10)	1.09
Plankton uses his and Mr. Krabs's DNA to create a combined clone of them, known as PlanKrab. PlanKrab quickly kicks Mr. Krabs out of the Krusty Krab and gets SpongeBob and Squidward on his side, but then betrays Plankton by overtaking the Chum Bucket and combining it with the Krusty Krab. Plankton and Mr. Krabs team up to defeat PlanKrab and recover their restaurants.
248b	7b	"Squid's on a Bus"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	September 28, 2019 (2019-09-28)	1.28
Annoyed by the bus driver's imperfect driving, Squidward switches jobs with him. While Squidward is initially happy with his new job, SpongeBob and Patrick begin riding the bus and distracting him. Guest appearance: Maurice LaMarche as a bus driver and an unnamed customer.
249a	8a	"Sandy's Nutty Nieces"	Michelle Bryan and Alan Smart	TBA	June 29, 2019 (2019-06-29)	0.94
SpongeBob babysits Sandy's nieces, Macadamia, Hazelnut, and Pistachio, and takes them around Bikini Bottom. Guest appearance: Maria Bamford as Macadamia, Hazelnut, and Pistachio.
249b	8b	"Insecurity Guards"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	June 29, 2019 (2019-06-29)	0.94
Patrick gets a job as a security guard at the Bikini Bottom Museum of Everything and recruits SpongeBob as his assistant. Meanwhile, Squidward attempts to sneak in and hang his painting.
250a	9a	"Broken Alarm"	Alan Smart	TBA	July 6, 2019 (2019-07-06)	1.36
When SpongeBob's alarm clock is broken and he is late for work, he buys various replacement clocks, all of which fail to wake him up. Finally, SpongeBob combines parts of all his alarms into a Rube Goldberg machine to take him to work while he sleeps.
250b	9b	"Karen's Baby"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	August 10, 2019 (2019-08-10)	1.09
Karen receives a baby computer in the mail, while Plankton protests. While Karen enjoys raising her child, Plankton gives him bad advice and convinces him to run away.
251a	10a	"Shell Games"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	March 7, 2020 (2020-03-07)	0.80
Patrick realizes that his rock house is actually the shell of a sea turtle named Tony. Patrick firmly refuses to leave and continues to sit on his shell, earning popularity with Tony's friends. Guest appearance: Bobby Cannavale as Tony.
251b	10b	"Senior Discount"	Michelle Bryan, Alan Smart, and Tom Yasumi	TBA	July 6, 2019 (2019-07-06)	1.36
When Old Man Jenkins begins disrupting the Krusty Krab customers, Mr. Krabs tries to kick him out. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins and his ancestors.
252a	11a	"Mind the Gap"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	September 14, 2019 (2019-09-14)	1.14
Annoyed by SpongeBob's whistling, Squidward closes the gap in his teeth. SpongeBob then becomes "cool", with a great singing voice, and Squidward pretends to be his friend to get into a jazz club. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Drummer, Patron, and Cool Skeptic
252b	11b	"Dirty Bubble Returns"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 23, 2019 (2019-11-23)	1.07
After spending six months in jail, the Dirty Bubble is reformed as the "Clean Bubble", and takes a job cleaning at the Krusty Krab. However, when he gets too dirty, he turns back into the Dirty Bubble, so SpongeBob helps keep him clean.
253a	12a	"Jolly Lodgers"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	March 7, 2020 (2020-03-07)	0.80
When Squidward's house is infested by sea urchins, he has to stay at a hotel. However, SpongeBob and Patrick are also staying at the hotel, attending its jellyfishing convention. Guest appearance: Charlie Adler as Manager, Jelly Fisher Gal, and Fan Boy
253b	12b	"Biddy Sitting"	Michelle Bryan, Alan Smart	TBA	February 8, 2020 (2020-02-08)	0.94
SpongeBob and Patrick are hired to babysit a very old lady, who attempts to escape from them.
256a	15a	"SpongeBob in RandomLand"	Michelle Bryan and Alan Smart	TBA	September 21, 2019 (2019-09-21)	1.43
SpongeBob and Squidward deliver food to a bizarre realm where logic does not apply.
256b	15b	"SpongeBob's Bad Habit"	Andrew Overtoom	TBA	September 21, 2019 (2019-09-21)	1.43
SpongeBob tries to stop his nail-biting habit, with help from Patrick and Sandy.
257a	16a	"Handemonium"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 23, 2019 (2019-11-23)	1.07
In order to beat Mr. Krabs at arm-wrestling, Plankton brings the glove on top of the Chum Bucket to life. It begins running rampant around town, so Plankton teams up with SpongeBob and Hans, a live-action hand seen during the show's theme song, to stop the glove.
257b	16b	"Breakin'"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	September 14, 2019 (2019-09-14)	1.14
SpongeBob is forced to take a five-minute break from work due to labor laws.
258a	17a	"Boss for a Day"	Alan Smart	TBA	July 17, 2020 (2020-07-17)	0.73
When Mr. Krabs is heavily injured and put in a full-body cast, SpongeBob is put in charge of the Krusty Krab and attempts to follow Mr. Krabs's methods. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as worker fish and customer.
258b	17b	"The Goofy Newbie"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	September 28, 2019 (2019-09-28)	1.28
Patrick learns that the employees at Goofy Goober's get free ice cream on their break. He applies for a job, but fails every task he is given, so SpongeBob hides in his uniform and does the work for him. Guest appearance: Gary Anthony Williams as Goofy Manager and customer.
259a	18a	"The Ghost of Plankton"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 12, 2019 (2019-10-12)	1.00
After watching a horror movie, Plankton is inspired to become a ghost and get the secret formula. However, he is unable to physically grab the bottle. The Flying Dutchman offers to teach him how to be a ghost, with topics such as haunting houses and making scary faces. When Plankton is finally able to pick up the formula, he realizes that he cannot take it out of the safe; he returns to the Chum Bucket to find that a funeral is being held for him, and tries to get his ghost back into his body. Guest appearance: John Gegenhuber as Old Man Jenkins and thief.
259b	18b	"My Two Krabses"	Michelle Bryan	TBA	January 18, 2021 (2021-01-18)	0.68
Mr. Krabs steals Squidward's ice cream sandwich and puts it on his shell while he goes into a sauna, in preparation for a date with Mrs. Puff. The ice cream melts, causing SpongeBob and Patrick to enter and see Krabs's shell with a pile of liquid around it, believing he has melted. They take the shell back home and fill it with chum, turning it into a living being. Krabs exits the sauna and tries to get to his date, unaware that SpongeBob and Patrick have already made it there with the chum being.
260a	19a	"Knock Knock, Who's There?"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	April 23, 2021 (2021-04-23)	0.34
Mr. Krabs leaves SpongeBob in charge of his house while he is away at a convention. However, when Mr. Krabs returns, SpongeBob believes he is a burglar, so he calls Patrick to help keep him out.
260b	19b	"Pat Hearts Squid"	Michelle Bryan	TBA	July 9, 2021 (2021-07-09)	N/A
When Squidward's house gets destroyed, he reluctantly decides to take residence inside Patrick's house. Soon, Squidward's personality rubs onto Patrick, so Squidward takes on Patrick's personality to make things even.
261a	20a	"Lighthouse Louie"	Alan Smart	TBA	January 18, 2021 (2021-01-18)	0.68
SpongeBob is instructed to clean up Mrs. Puff's lighthouse, and finds a snail he names Louie. Louie attacks SpongeBob and sends the lighthouse rolling across town. When it comes to a stop, SpongeBob finds that Louie is a mother living in the lighthouse with her babies.
261b	20b	"Hiccup Plague"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	TBA (TBA)	TBD
Two kids release a hiccup bubble that is passed between citizens of Bikini Bottom, starting with SpongeBob.
262a	21a	"A Cabin in the Kelp"	Michelle Bryan	TBA	October 12, 2019 (2019-10-12)	1.00
Sandy, Karen, and Mrs. Puff invite Pearl to go camping. Pearl brings SpongeBob along to prank them, but he gets lost in the woods. Meanwhile, the girls tell Pearl a scary story that turns out to be true.
262b	21b	"The Hankering"	Alan Smart	TBA	November 30, 2019 (2019-11-30)	1.10
Mr. Krabs gets a craving for chum, and when the only other place in town that sells chum shuts down, he is forced to sell the secret formula to Plankton to get more. Guest appearance: Gilbert Gottfried as Sal.
263a	22a	"Who R Zoo?"	Michelle Bryan and Tom Yasumi	TBA	February 8, 2020 (2020-02-08)	0.94
After SpongeBob is banned from the local zoo for going into the animal enclosures, he and Patrick make a zoo out of bubbles around their houses.
263b	22b	"Kwarantined Krab"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	TBA (TBA)	TBD
When the health inspector puts the Krusty Krab under quarantine, SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Pearl, and Mrs. Puff go crazy trying to figure out who has the illness.
264a	23a	"Plankton's Intern"	Alan Smart	TBA	April 30, 2021 (2021-04-30)	0.54
While Karen is away, Plankton hires Pearl as an intern. When Mr. Krabs tells Pearl she should always listen to her boss, Pearl agrees to help Plankton steal the Krabby Patty secret formula.
264b	23b	"Patrick's Tantrum"	Tom Yasumi	TBA	TBA (TBA)	TBD
Patrick goes into an uncontrollable rage whenever he hears a bell ringing. Mr. Krabs realizes this after the installation of a new dinner bell, and enters Patrick in a wrestling match.
265a	24a	"Bubble Bass's Tab"	Alan Smart	TBA	April 9, 2021 (2021-04-09)	0.48
Bubble Bass refuses to pay his bill at the Krusty Krab. Mr. Krabs sends SpongeBob and Squidward to his house, where they engage in a fantasy battle against Bubble Bass.
265b	24b	"Kooky Cooks"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	April 9, 2021 (2021-04-09)	0.48
After ruining another date with Mrs. Puff with his cheapness, Mr. Krabs promises to give her a special dinner at his house. He hires SpongeBob and Squidward as cooks, but every meal they make does not satisfy Mr. Krabs, while Mrs. Puff slowly begins to grow mad from hunger.
266	25	"Escape from Beneath Glove World" "Escape from Glove World"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	January 18, 2020 (2020-01-18)	1.25
After a stage show at Glove World, SpongeBob and Patrick go backstage and accidentally break a robot. They are sentenced to Glove World jail, and put in a cell with various children. One toddler manages to escape his cell, so SpongeBob and Patrick chase him through the underground tunnels of Glove World, pursued by the robot after it is repaired. Guest appearance: Nyasha Hatendi as Hieronymus Glove, Rob Paulsen as Glove World officer, Maurice LaMarche as Paul Frees
267a	26a	"Krusty Koncessionaires"	Michelle Bryan	TBA	November 7, 2020 (2020-11-07)	0.66
The Krusty Krab runs concessions at a big concert for The Low Tides. SpongeBob serves Krabby Patties to the audience, Mr. Krabs tries to advertise the Krusty Krab during the show, and Squidward sneaks backstage to meet one of the band's members.
267b	26b	"Dream Hoppers"	Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	November 7, 2020 (2020-11-07)	0.66
SpongeBob arrives home, tired after the concert. He has a musical dream involving him chasing a sentient Krabby Patty through the dreams of Patrick and Squidward.

Title	Animation directors	Written by	Original air date	Prod. code	U.S. viewers (millions)
"SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout"	Michelle Bryan, Alan Smart and Tom Yasumi	TBA	July 12, 2019 (2019-07-12)	893	1.83
SpongeBob and Patrick take a tour of the surface to celebrate his birthday. Meanwhile, Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Sandy, and the rest of Bikini Bottom help set up a surprise party for SpongeBob, and Patchy tries to find SpongeBob to give him a present. Note 1: This episode celebrates the 20th anniversary of the series. Note 2: This episode is dedicated in memory of Stephen Hillenburg, who died seven months prior to the episode's release. Guest appearances: Jack Griffo, Daniella Perkins, Kel Mitchell as Beany McBean/Himself, and David Hasselhoff, JoJo Siwa, Tiffany Haddish as herself, Thomas F. Wilson as Dog walker/Himself, Jason Sudeikis, Sigourney Weaver, Gilbert Gottfried, Rob Gronkowski, Vernon Davis as themselves.
"Patchy's Playlist"	TBA	Michael Esposito	November 30, 2019 (2019-11-30)	891	1.06
Patchy hosts a musical clip show, featuring songs from previous episodes.
"SpongeBob Appreciation Day: Patchy's Beach Bash!"	TBA	Tom Stern, Doug Lawrence, Andrew Goodman, and Luke Brookshier	January 4, 2020 (2020-01-04)	892	0.96
Being trapped on a deserted island doesn't stop Patchy from celebrating SpongeBob, and other castaways join the party. Guest appearances: Jon Heder, Anthony Davis, Meghan Trainor, and Rob Riggle as Abraham Lincoln.
"The Stars of SpongeBob Fan Favorites Special"	TBA	Michael Esposito	June 5, 2020 (2020-06-05)	890	0.79
David Dobrik joins the voice cast of SpongeBob in reading some of the show's most iconic scenes.
"SpongeBob's Spookiest Scenes Countdown Special"	TBA	Eugenia Azevedo	October 2, 2020 (2020-10-02)	889	0.72
"The SpongeBob SportsPants Countdown Special"	TBA	TBA	January 10, 2021 (2021-01-10)	888	1.05
Former National Football League player Nate Burleson presents highlights of SpongeBob and friends partaking in sporting activities over the course of the show's run. Note: This episode served as a lead-in to the Chicago Bears vs. New Orleans Saints playoff game that aired on Nickelodeon.

Season 13 (2020–21)

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (season 13)

The thirteenth season of SpongeBob SquarePants consists of 13 episodes, which are ordered below according to Nickelodeon's packaging order, and not their original production or broadcast order.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Animation director	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
268a	1a	"A Place for Pets"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 22, 2020 (2020-10-22)	0.85
Mr. Krabs allows pets in the Krusty Krab, although a health violation forces him to choose between restricting the restaurant to either people or pets. When he favors pets, much to SpongeBob's delight and Squidward's dismay, the other customers collectively refuse to eat at the Chum Bucket and begin disguising themselves as pets to get back in. After they have settled their differences and start to eat together, a fire marshal notifies Mr. Krabs that the Krusty Krab is past the allowed capacity, so he bans pets again.
268b	1b	"Lockdown for Love"	Alan Smart	TBA	October 22, 2020 (2020-10-22)	0.85
Karen insists on having a romantic date with Plankton, locking down the Chum Bucket until he can prove he loves her. However, Plankton is focused on getting the Krabby Patty secret formula, which Mr. Krabs has unknowingly dropped in front of the Krusty Krab. Plankton disguises Patrick as himself and attempts to escape without Karen knowing, although he is later caught.
269a	2a	"Under the Small Top"	Alan Smart	TBA	April 16, 2021 (2021-04-16)	0.59
SpongeBob orders a package with circus sea fleas, but a mishap occurs, with the package being delivered to Squidward instead. After he throws the sea fleas away and brutally stomps on them, they get out of the package and torment Squidward as revenge.
269b	2b	"Squidward's Sick Daze"	Alan Smart	TBA	April 16, 2021 (2021-04-16)	0.59
Squidward decides not to go to the Krusty Krab and enjoy the day for himself, pretending to be sick. However, Mr. Krabs, not believing him, hires SpongeBob to take care of Squidward.
270a	3a	"Goofy Scoopers"	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBD
270b	3b	"Pat the Dog"	TBA	TBA	July 9, 2021 (2021-07-09)	N/A

Films

Main article: SpongeBob SquarePants (film series)

Title	Directed by	Written and storyboarded by	Release date
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie	Stephen Hillenburg	Derek Drymon, Tim Hill, Stephen Hillenburg, Kent Osborne, Aaron Springer, and Paul Tibbitt	November 19, 2004 (2004-11-19) (U.S.) November 14, 2004 (international)
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water	Paul Tibbitt	Story by: Stephen Hillenburg and Paul Tibbitt Teleplay by: Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger	February 6, 2015 (2015-02-06) (U.S.) January 28, 2015 (international)
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run	Tim Hill	Story by: Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger, and Tim Hill Teleplay by: Tim Hill	August 14, 2020 (2020-08-14) (Canada) November 5, 2020 (international) March 4, 2021 (U.S.)

External links

• SpongeBob SquarePants at IMDb
• SpongeBob SquarePants at Curlie
• SpongeBob SquarePants at the Big Cartoon DataBase