The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie
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The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie is the first official movie in the franchise. It's well received, for the most part, but lately it has had some major criticisms against it. On evaluation the movie was added here for an understandable reason.
Why It's ScumBob
- It ruined Plankton's character. In the first three seasons of the show, Sheldon Plankton only tries to steal the secret Krabby Patty formula to get more popular than Eugene Krabs, but here he is derailed into a generic take-over-city villain that remorselessly enslaves people and tries to kill SpongeBob and Patrick via hiring Dennis. Plankton wasn't hinted to be that ruthless in the first three seasons, yet in this sorry excuse of a movie he acts like a manipulative tyrant even though he was just a rude competitor in the early show. The episode Friend or Foe tries to get us to believe that Plankton wanted to rule the world when he was young and still friends with Krabs, but that's just a bullshit afterthought that contradicts who Plankton was in the early seasons, and he was never written to be outright maliciously evil until this movie decided he wanted to enslave people.
- Patrick is somewhat funny, but still annoying at times. He causes King Neptune to reduce the journey length by four days, the original length was ten days, but then it was reduced to six days because Patrick argued with King Neptune. Patrick is punished though, as SpongeBob and Krabs stop him, and it leads to a funny scene of Krabs choking Patrick as he says "five" in a weak voice. This is a minor issue.
- Sandy and Squidward don't have big roles in this movie, despite being major characters in the first three seasons. Squidward does get a somewhat heroic scene where he tries to stop Plankton but gets enslaved. It is understandable though because Sandy would make the journey to Shel City too easy, and Squidward being included would also make their journey easier. The movie was designed to be about how SpongeBob feels down about being himself, a kid who finds joy in the little things in life, and so him going on the journey with just his best friend makes sense, and furthers character growth in SpongeBob realizing he can just be himself, which is shown in a pretty heartfelt scene when SpongeBob sings that he's a goofy goober while he dries under the heat lamp, and Patrick joins in. Given how well received that scene is, which wouldn't have happened if Sandy and Squidward sped up the journey, then this is a minor issue.
- King Neptune is different than how he is in the show. He looks different, he's grumpy, less presenting, and less fun. He does change his heart a bit at the end when he realizes he was wrong, but it can't save that the inclusion of a new King Neptune is sudden and confusing. Are they different people or the same?
- The animation is bright and smooth, but it's jarring because the first three seasons had a distinct and deliberate style, and given how the animation from season 4 and onward rapidly changed styles and feel, then we might have this movie to blame for the animation change in the show.
- The movie is funny in various points, but rarely does it get funny enough to warrant being a SpongeBob movie. A whole movie and the theater barely got a laugh out during this movie. The plot is good enough to warrant a movie, but the humor feels traded. The movie is allowed to be serious, but we came here to laugh as well.
Some Redeeming Aspects
- Dennis is a pretty intimidating villain and he's become a fan favorite. His serious nature in contrast to much of the movie helps elevate the threat he poses. He is also funny in many ways.
- The movie has made people feel better being "childlike", and people learning to accept themselves and just be who they are is beautiful and if this movie helped them then he have to thank the wonderful team for giving us hope and helping us realize we can be who we want to be.
- As stated earlier, the animation is good for the time. It's hard to fault the movie for its good animation, though it may not be on par for some people's standards.
- The humor is still there, and several scenes have become famous within the fanbase. The movie also spawned some memes. The movie has even made haters laugh. This is a minor remitment.
