"I DEFY YOU, HEART MAN!"
Valentine's Day
Original air date: 2/14/2000 (produced in 1999)
SpongeBob and Sandy have prepared a special Valentine's Day present for Patrick. But there's a bit of a delay in getting it to arrive. Will SpongeBob be able to hold out on an increasingly impatient best friend?
"Valentine's Day" contains examples of:
- 1-Dimensional Thinking: When cornered against the end of a dock, SpongeBob and the carnival patrons have no excuse to not run around Patrick or jump into the goo below the dock to escape his furious wrath.
- Accidental Ventriloquism: Patrick makes a stone heart to give to SpongeBob on Valentine's Day. When SpongeBob speaks to him from behind, Patrick thinks his friend is trapped in the stone and smashes it to let him out.
- Adaptation Expansion: In the novelization, some scenes were added in and expanded on, such as Plankton suggesting his valentine from SpongeBob was a trap set up by Mr. Krabs, Patrick guessing his present is a hot dog an octopus was eating, and the crowd saying "Aww!" at Patrick as he hugs the chocolate balloon. Patrick's rampage in the book was also more violent and detailed compare to minor petty acts in the episode.
- Artistic License – Law: Patrick attacks innocent people and nearly destroys the carnival, but gets off scot-free. In reality, he would get more than just a chocolate balloon, but also some serious jailtime due to charges of wanton destruction and attempted murder.
- Ax-Crazy: Patrick eventually becomes this until he sees the chocolate air balloon. He was going to beat up a whole group of people, including his best friend, after he had cornered them on a short pier.
- Backing Away Slowly: The crowd of fish behind SpongeBob on the dock take a step back as Patrick closes in on them, leaving the frightened sponge alone to face a potential wallop.
- Balloon-Bursting Bird: Scallops (who are the equivalent of birds in Bikini Bottom) try to eat the chocolate balloon as Sandy gets it to the fair.
- Big Damn Heroes: Sandy shows up just in time to save SpongeBob and the innocent bystanders from Patrick's wrath.
- Big "NO!": SpongeBob screams one when he hears Sandy won't arrive on time and has to go to Plan B.SpongeBob: No! No B, Sandy! NO B!!! NOOO!!!
- Blunt "Yes": The crowd when they see that Patrick's gift has arrived despite his angry denials.SpongeBob: Patrick, just turn around!!
Crowd: Turn around! Come on! Hey, nincompoop! Behind you!
Patrick: You must think I'm pretty dumb, huh?!
Crowd: YES! TURN AROUND!!!!! - Body Wipe: When Patrick starts to go berserk, his face fills up the camera as he runs toward it.
- Brutal Honesty: See Blunt "Yes".
- Buffy Speak: "Heart on stick must die!"
- Crowd Chant: The carnival patrons chant "TURN-A-ROUND!" when trying to get Patrick to see the chocolate balloon.
- Dirty Coward: Two standouts from the group of carnivalgoers that Patrick corners:
- When a feral Patrick demands that they give him SpongeBob, they immediately and wordlessly kick him out of the crowd.
- When Patrick says that they deserve punishment for not getting him anything either, they instantly produce a bunch of gifts. Patrick says it's too late for that, and they promptly step back to leave SpongeBob getting attacked first just before Sandy arrives with his real gift.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Patrick goes on a rampage and nearly beats up a group of people, starting with his best friend, all because he seemingly didn't get anything but a mere handshake for Valentine's Day. What’s more is that it’s not even the various people thanking SpongeBob for the gifts he got them that sets him off; it’s someone asking for the time.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: After noticing what sorts of gifts SpongeBob got everybody for Valentine's Day, even someone he had just met, Patrick, left with nothing, angrily declares that, "Patrick needs love, too!"
- Entitled Bastard: Patrick states that he's angry at the townspeople for not getting him anything either, even though they don't even know him.
- Faux Horrific: While Patrick's rampage is frightening, it only takes an announcement that "there's a chubby, pink starfish on the loose" to get the people in a panic.
- Fluffy Tamer: Sandy harnesses the scallops to get the balloon back on course.
- Foreshadowing: Patrick smashing a heart rock to pieces (thinking SpongeBob's inside) is the first sign of how dangerous he can get when he wants something.
- The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You: The close-up of Patrick's Nightmare Face as he closes in on the terrified SpongeBob almost makes it seem like he's looking at the audience.
- Friendly Enemy: Plankton is among the people who gets a valentine from Spongebob.
- Funny Background Event: When Patrick is bouncing the ferris wheel up and down in anticipation, the fish in the lower seats can be seen being flung out of their seats and onto the pier.
- Goofy Suit: A guy in a heart costume becomes a victim of Patrick's wrath, as he tears the costume in half, exposing his heart-print boxers.Patrick: I DEFY YOU, HEART-MAN!
- Hypocritical Humor: At the end after getting his real gift, Patrick tells SpongeBob that he didn't have to get him anything, despite going on a rampage moments earlier for not getting anything other than a handshake. Of course, knowing Patrick, he just forgot about it entirely.
- Idiot Ball: SpongeBob has no excuse to not turn Patrick around himself to see the chocolate balloon when he won't budge.
- Immediate Self-Contradiction:Patrick: I am NOT, I repeat, NOT going to turn around for ANY reason, EVER!
Sandy: Howdy, Patrick.
Patrick: (turns around) Hi, Sandy! - It's the Best Whatever, Ever!: SpongeBob tells Patrick he's going to give him "the greatest, the best-est, the most fantabulous present EVER!"
- Jerkass Ball: Patrick holds this big time when he nearly tackles SpongeBob and the others for not getting a Valentine's Day present.
- Karma Houdini: Patrick gets absolutely no punishments for his destructive rampage.
- Kick the Dog: Patrick doesn't just stop at breaking things around the carnival; he grabs an innocent young girl's lollipop and snaps it in half before gobbling it all up. Even SpongeBob is briefly disgusted by this before Patrick rounds on him and the people behind him.
- Leg Cling: Patrick does it to SpongeBob all the way to the carnival.
- Medium-Shift Gag: One of the things Patrick thinks is his gift is a live-action paramecium he sees under a microscope.
- Misplaced Retribution: Lampshaded when SpongeBob points out to Patrick that he shouldn't be attacking the bystanders since it was SpongeBob himself who failed to make good on his promise. Patrick states that they didn't give him anything either.
- Mood Whiplash: Patrick goes on a rampage when he doesn't get his valentine; the moment he sees Sandy with the giant chocolate balloon, he reverts right back to his original happy self.
- My New Gift Is Lame: What triggers Patrick to go on his rampage: the chocolate balloon didn't come out on time, and since SpongeBob can't tell him what the surprise is, he simply lied to him the gift would be a handshake instead because he didn't want to stay on the Ferris wheel that Patrick kept rocking violently. When Patrick notices other people thank SpongeBob for the gifts he gave them, he snaps and starts tearing down the theme park.
- Nightmare Face: When Patrick goes ballistic, he shows one of these as he goes, "Heart on stick must die!". He gives another really horrifying one when he is looming over the frightened SpongeBob, just before Sandy arrives to save the day.
- Oh, Crap!:
- SpongeBob gets this reaction when Sandy tells him she's off-course and has to switch to Plan B, and he has an even bigger one when the furious Patrick closes in on him as he braces for the inevitable, just before Sandy arrives.
- An earlier one done by Sandy when she sees the chocolate-eating scallops coming for her.
- Poke the Poodle: One of Patrick's first actions in his rampage is to cut the strings of balloons... and then destroy the cart it was attached to.
- Primal Chest-Pound: Patrick does one before going on his rampage.
- Psychopathic Manchild: Patrick throws a violent temper tantrum and trashes the carnival when he didn't receive his Valentine's Day present.
- Punctuated! For! Emphasis!:
- "HEART... ON... STICK... MUST... DIE!"
- "TURN-A-ROUND! TURN-A-ROUND!"
- "Shaggy Dog" Story: Inverted. SpongeBob and Sandy manage to bring Patrick's chocolate balloon to him, and he pops it. Despite this, he’s happy with his gift.
- Shout-Out: Patrick's "I defy you, heart-man!" is a paraphrase of "I defy you, stars!" from Romeo and Juliet, Act 5, Scene 1.
- Silence Is Golden: The brief 30-second montage of SpongeBob delivering valentines at the beginning, all without any dialogue.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Patrick tries to destroy a giant steel tower with a heart on it. He inevitably fails because it's too heavy for him to lift, and even if it wasn’t it is also bolted to the pier, so he destroys a heart-shaped lollipop instead.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: Plankton is seen walking alone and dejected, only to run into SpongeBob, who proceeds to give him a valentine. Plankton himself is taken aback by such an act of kindness.
- Time for Plan B: Sandy says this to SpongeBob when the scallops bite at the balloon and lead her off-course.
- The Unfettered: Not even bouncing, inertia from a rollercoaster, or wind from a funhouse stops Patrick from maintaining a scowl with his hand out.
- Unstoppable Rage: Subverted in that the first Heart-On-Stick is a huge steel tower which Patrick fails to destroy. He then sees a little girl with a heart-shaped lollipop, and breaks that.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: The other people thanking SpongeBob for the gifts he gave them were only trying to show their appreciation, but didn't realize how Patrick was feeling and indirectly contributed to the rant-inducing slight.
- Valentine's Day Episode: SpongeBob spends Valentine's Day at the carnival with Patrick in this episode.
- Valentine's Day Violence: Patrick becomes enraged when he thinks Spongebob has forgotten his Valentine's Day gift, and causes mayhem at a local carnival, taking it out on random passersby. When his gift, a massive heart-shaped chocolate balloon, finally does arrive, he bites into it, covering the entire carnival in melted chocolate.
- Visual Pun: Sandy gives SpongeBob a heart-shaped acorn and says, "I'm nuts for you!"
- Yandere: Platonically, Patrick towards SpongeBob at the height of his Unstoppable Rage.Patrick: You broke my heart! Now, I'm gonna break something of yours!
You can do all sorts of things with a piece of paper.
The Paper
Original air date: 2/14/2000 (produced in 1999)
Squidward carelessly throws a piece of chewing gum paper onto SpongeBob's lawn and insists he keep it. But he begins to get jealous once he finds out what SpongeBob is able to do with it.
"The Paper" contains examples of:
- Agitated Item Stomping: Squidward does this to the titular piece of paper after being unable to do anything fun with it and having traded everything he owns for it.Squidward: Wait! More impressions! A guy... throwing a piece of paper on the ground! A guy stomping on the piece of paper!
- All for Nothing: Squidward trades in everything he had for a piece of paper which it turns out he's not creative enough to enjoy like SpongeBob and in the end he's left with literally nothing — not even his clothes.
- Artistic License – Music:
- SpongeBob claims to play "Mary Had a Little Lamb" in A minor, but when he plays it, it's in the key of C major. Since A minor is parallel to C major, he's not too far off.
- Gary somehow manages to play different notes on Squidward's clarinet without having any fingers to press down on the board.
- Bottle Episode: The entire episode is set at and around Conch Street, and most of the dialogue is only between two characters.
- Creepy Changing Painting: Squidward's self-portrait of him playing with the paper changes faces when Squidward breaks it in half out of frustration.
- Deadpan Door Shut: When SpongeBob asks for Squidward's final opinion on not wanting the paper back, Squidward slowly closes the door on him with a stern look on his face.
- Didn't Think This Through: Squidward could've easily just gotten another piece of candy to have his own paper like SpongeBob's, or really from plenty of other places. Instead, he acts as if SpongeBob is holding the only tiny paper left in the whole world and that one special paper is where all the magic is. Then again, Squidward realizes too late he cannot do any of those talents because he's not creative like SpongeBob.
- Downer Ending: Not for SpongeBob but for Squidward, who ended up selling everything he had for the paper, only to not be able to have fun with it like SpongeBob did because he isn't creative like him, and then losing it to Patrick, who uses it to throw away his gum. Also, you can hear winds which means winter's coming, so Squidward is going to freeze in the nude.
- Driven by Envy: The entire conflict of the episode is set into motion because Squidward gets green eyed at the idea of Spongebob having fun with a simple piece of paper in spite of Squidward having many different ways of entertaining himself, and tries to one up SpongeBob in having fun (only to be quickly one-upped each time by SpongeBob's creativity with the paper) and then tries to get the paper back to show up SpongeBob and thus gratify his ego.
- Incredibly Lame Fun: SpongeBob can't believe Squidward would throw away a small scrap of paper when he could use it for so many things. It gets subverted when SpongeBob actually does find fun ways of using the paper. So many, in fact, that Squidward gets jealous and tries to trade the paper back.
- Karmic Twist Ending: It wasn't the paper itself that let SpongeBob do all those things, it was his creativity and optimism, which the narcissistic and dour Squidward, who was only trying to get the paper to show up SpongeBob and gratify his ego, completely lacks, thus meaning he gave away all of his belongings for a worthless piece of paper.
- Magic Feather: The titular paper. Squidward sees all of the fun SpongeBob is having with it and immediately wants to back to play with, but doesn't realize that it's SpongeBob's creativity that made it fun and is only a worthless piece of paper in the hands of anyone else.
- Minimalist Cast: Only SpongeBob, Gary and Squidward appear, with a brief cameo by Patrick at the end and a crowd of fish that laugh at the paper’s joke.
- Multipurpose Tongue: SpongeBob is able to make origami figures with his mouth (he calls it "oral-gami"). Squidward tries the same, but he just makes a spitball.
- Mundane Made Awesome: SpongeBob finds multiple uses for that one piece of paper, from wearing it as a superhero cape, to playing music, to using it as a helicopter rotor.
- No Matter How Much I Beg: Trope Namer. Tired of SpongeBob trying to return the paper, he tells him that, "no matter how much I may beg, and plead, and cry, don't give that paper back to me, ever!" Naturally, when Squidward wants the paper, SpongeBob holds him to his word.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: As soon as he hears SpongeBob calling him, Squidward already knows things are about to go wrong.SpongeBob: (gasp) Squidward!
Squidward: (spits out his gum) Well... time to go. - Studio Audience: Kids are heard cheering SpongeBob's "oral-gami". The same kids boo Squidward's failed attempt at doing the same.
- Wanting Is Better Than Having: Squidward learns this the hard way in the end when his jealously leads him to foolishly giving away all of his possessions and home for the paper, which turns out to be useless due to Squidward's lack of creativity.
