Back to Bikini Bottom
For SpongeBob SquarePants, the more things change, the more things stay weird.
By ALICE FEIGEL
Published May 2, 2005
Although he has had a hit movie and his show has been the No. 1 kids program for three years, success hasn't changed SpongeBob SquarePants. The Emmy-nominated show on Nickelodeon is back for its fourth season and things are still the same in Bikini Bottom.
In the premiere episodes, "Fear of a Krabby Patty" and "Shell of a Man," the formula still works. SpongeBob still loves fishing for jellyfish. Squidward still finds SpongeBob annoying. And Plankton is still trying to steal the secret formula for the Krabby Patty from penny-pincher Mr. Krabs.
When SpongeBob first aired in 1999, I wasn't expecting to like the show. However, it quickly grew on me and, three seasons later, it has kept my attention as well as the attentions of 56-million other viewers who tune in every month.
In "Fear of a Krabby Patty," the Krusty Krab is now open 24 hours a day. For SpongeBob this is great news because he gets to do what he loves: make Krabby Patties around the clock. But eventually the long hours get to SpongeBob and he develops a fear of his beloved Patties. Plankton seizes the opportunity to steal the Krabby Patty formula by disguising himself as SpongeBob's psychiatrist.
In "Shell of a Man," Mr. Krabs can't wait to see all of his old shipmates at a reunion. But when his shell molts because of his ever expanding waistline, he decides that he would be too embarrassed to show up without his shell. Instead, he sends SpongeBob, disguised in his old shell, in his place.
These new adventures are just about the same as any other episode over the past three seasons. But it seems things have gotten just a little bit weirder, even for a show about a yellow sponge who wears square pants and lives in a pineapple. For example, in "Fear of a Krabby Patty," Plankton gets hit twice with a large object that has nothing to with the episode. It just catches you off-guard.
Only four main characters show up in the premiere: SpongeBob, Mr. Krabs, Squidward and Plankton. One character I definitely missed was SpongeBob's best friend, Patrick, the pink starfish. I am sure that he will be in upcoming episodes so that he and SpongeBob can continue to get into some kind of ridiculous trouble.
While this fourth season does not start out with the best episodes, they won't leave you disappointed either, as SpongeBob continues to be his usual crazy, yellow self.
- Alice Feigel, 16, is in 10th grade at Countryside High School in Clearwater.
PREVIEWSpongeBob SquarePants kicks off its fourth season at 8:30 p.m. Friday on Nickelodeon.