"I got an award!"
Big Pink Loser
Original air date: 2/3/2001 (produced in 2000)
Patrick wants to win an award like all the ones SpongeBob has, so SpongeBob helps him out by giving him a job at the Krusty Krab. But having his best friend work with him becomes a nightmare when Patrick starts imitating everything SpongeBob does.
"Big Pink Loser" contains examples of:
- Animation Bump: While the episode is animated in the Season 2-onwards style, the character designs are much closer to the ones they had in Season 1. Particularly Patrick's, who has the sideways M-shaped eyebrows rather than the Z ones he has nowadays.
- Arson, Murder, and Admiration: SpongeBob's reaction to seeing Patrick dressed identically to him.SpongeBob: Wow! It's amazing how a simple change of clothes can make a guy look... just like... me.
Patrick: Yup! If I'm gonna be an award winner, I've gotta dress like one!
SpongeBob: That's creepy. ...But, flattering! - Assumed Win: The episode starts with Patrick being mailed a trophy, only to find out it's really for SpongeBob.
- Bait-and-Switch: When Patrick applies for a job at the Krusty Krab, he tells SpongeBob that it was nice of Mr. Krabs to give him a job. SpongeBob then says "And at $50.00 an hour, too.", implying that's going to be Patrick's salary. SpongeBob then says "When I started working here, I had to pay Mr. Krabs $100.00 an hour."
- Big Eater: Patrick eats three Krusty combo meals (Krabby Patty and drink) in a row. Though this shouldn't be a surprise, since he's eaten vastly larger quantities of food in lots of episodes.
- Bookends: The episode starts with Patrick napping before being disturbed awake by an award which was meant for SpongeBob, and ends with him winning an award for real and going back to sleep to protect his title.
- Borrowed Catchphrase: When he starts copying SpongeBob, Patrick imitates SpongeBob's trademark "I'm ready" chant while running to the Krusty Krab.
- Brick Joke: The episode begins with Norton shoving a trophy meant for SpongeBob into Patrick's mouth, and when Patrick finally does get a trophy, it instead gets shoved into SpongeBob's mouth.
- Circling Birdies: Patrick sees circling trophies after hitting himself in the head one too many times.
- Consolation World Record: Patrick finally gets an award of his own at the end of the episode, a trophy "for doing absolutely nothing longer than anyone else".
- Coordinated Clothes: Patrick starts dressing up like SpongeBob as part of an attempt to be a winner just like him. SpongeBob finds it a little creepy, but flattering.
- Create Your Own Villain: SpongeBob for telling Patrick to do exactly as he does.
- Department of Redundancy Department: SpongeBob receives a trophy for "Outstanding Achievement in Achievement."
- The Ditz: Patrick, as best proven in this dialogue:SpongeBob: This time, I've got something I know you can do. We're gonna open a jar. [opens a jar himself] Easy! Now you try. First, get a jar.
Patrick: [produces a pickle from hammerspace]
SpongeBob: Patrick, that's a pickle.
Patrick: Yes.
SpongeBob: You need a jar.
Patrick: [produces a spatula]
SpongeBob: No...
Patrick: [produces his own shorts]
SpongeBob: No...
Patrick: [produces SpongeBob himself]
SpongeBob: No... try this. [hands Patrick a jar] Now, take the lid off the jar. [does so himself]
Patrick: [places the jar in his mouth] - Earn Your Happy Ending: Patrick ends up getting a well-deserved award at the end of the episode.
- Epic Fail:
- Patrick's choice of who to show off "his" trophy to: his rock home, Bikini Atoll, and a bunch of jellyfish who don't care about his award, they just sting him en masse.
- Patrick's first day on his shift at the Krusty Krab. His next day isn't glamorous either, but it did end much faster.
- Exact Words:
- When Patrick becomes waiter at the Krusty Krab, the first time SpongeBob rings an order he simply eats it. The second time, SpongeBob tells Patrick to take the tray to the customer, which he does... after eating all the food first. Next SpongeBob tells him to make sure the food reaches the table, which he does... and then he eats it.
- Patrick follows SpongeBob‘s advice to "Do exactly as I do" too literally — by dressing up as him and copying everything he says and does.
- Exploding Closet: Patrick opens SpongeBob's closet looking for ice cream and is covered by an avalanche of trophies.
- Eye Scream: After Patrick opens SpongeBob's award closet, SpongeBob is briefly shown with two first place ribbons stuck to his eyes.
- Fall of the House of Cards: SpongeBob builds a house of cards shaped like Gary, but it falls down just as Patrick bursts into SpongeBob's house.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: The trophy for SpongeBob that Patrick got by mistake says, "For outstanding achievement in achievement." This is a sign that, ten seconds later, Patrick will open up an Exploding Closet full of SpongeBob's hundreds of awards.
- Funny Phone Misunderstanding: Patrick is put in charge of answering the phone, but whenever someone asks "Is this the Krusty Krab?", he thinks they're asking about him and answers "No, this is Patrick." Eventually he gets angry at being called a "crusty crab", and that's when SpongeBob reminds him that's what the restaurant is called.Patrick: Oooh.... FISHPASTE!
- Go-to-Sleep Ending: The episode ends with Patrick going to sleep under his rock to protect his title.
- Green-Eyed Monster: The plot goes into motion because Patrick wants an award like the ones SpongeBob has.
- Had the Silly Thing in Reverse: Patrick sweeps the floor holding the broom handle side down.
- I Am Not Weasel: Patrick thinks all the people calling to ask "Is this the Krusty Krab?" are calling him a crusty crab.
- Incredible Shrinking Man: SpongeBob makes himself smaller as he tells Patrick to think of a smaller activity that will get him an award.
- Inner Monologue Conversation: Patrick is imitating everything SpongeBob says and does. SpongeBob thinks "At least I'm safe inside my mind", then hears Patrick thinking the same thing.
- Irritation Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery: Patrick starts doing everything SpongeBob does.
- Is It Something You Eat?: When Patrick has to give back the award, this exchange occurs.Patrick: But... it's shiny.
SpongeBob: Yeah, but you know what else is shiny?
Patrick: Ice cream! - Lazy Bum: Patrick was awarded with the prize "For Doing Absolutely Nothing Longer Than Anyone Else".
- A Lesson Learned Too Well: Patrick takes SpongeBob's advice to "do exactly as I do" too literally. Also doubles as Exact Words.
- Ludicrous Gibs: A non-lethal example: SpongeBob's "Slice And Dice" jump rope trick ends up slicing and dicing him into several pieces, but he's none the worse for wear. Patrick, who got tangled up in his jump rope trying to imitate the trick, promptly pulls his rope tighter until he too has been ripped into pieces, and he's equally unfazed by it.
- "The Reason I Suck" Speech: Near the end, SpongeBob tries doing what Patrick does, but Patrick only complains how SpongeBob is wasting his time copying someone as pathetic as him.SpongeBob: (imitating Patrick) Hi! I'm Patrick Star! I'm the laziest, pinkest starfish in Bikini Bottom, and I wish I were me and not SpongeBob!
Patrick: What's so great about being a big pink loser?! (SpongeBob's nose pokes out) Exactly! I was never closer to an award than the minute I started copying you.
SpongeBob: But Patrick—
Patrick: Patrick's not here! - Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Once Patrick gets a job at the Krusty Krab, Squidward quits and gives his hat to him, refusing to work with both his neighbors. He takes the hat back and returns once Patrick leaves and follows SpongeBob.
- Shout-Out: Patrick claims that his life's dream is to "defeat the giant Monkey-Man and save the 9th dimension." Amusingly enough, Clancy Brown (Mr. Krabs) starred in the movie being referenced.
- Stop Copying Me: Patrick does it to SpongeBob.
- That Man Is Dead: Downplayed. When SpongeBob tries to address Patrick by his name near the end, Patrick yells, "Patrick's not here!"
- Title Drop: "What's so great about being a big pink loser?"
- Wingding Eyes: SpongeBob‘s eyes turn into stars as he tries to convince Patrick he can do anything.
- Wins by Doing Absolutely Nothing: Patrick's award for "Doing Absolutely Nothing Longer Than Anyone Else."
Happy Leif Erikson Day!
Bubble Buddy
Original air date: 2/3/2001 (produced in 2000)
With his friends away, SpongeBob decides to make a new friend, literally, by blowing a bubble in the shape of a person. But soon, "Bubble Buddy" starts to get on everybody's nerves, and now SpongeBob has to save his new friend from being popped.
"Bubble Buddy" contains examples of:
- Alliterative Title: On the account of being titled after Bubble Buddy, which is an Alliterative Name.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Inverted when the townspeople rattle off the crimes Bubble Buddy has committed against them, which are all reasonably petty except the last one:Francis: He kept us waiting [two hours] for a bubble?!
Larry: That's nothing! He called us fat!
Pearl: He washed my flipper!
Mr. Krabs: He owes me money!
Squidward: He made me provide excellent service!
Scooter's Ghost: Dudes! He made me experience high tide! - Beach Bury: Scooter asks to be buried, but when the time comes to dig him out, SpongeBob leaves it to Bubble Buddy, who of course doesn't. And the tide is starting to come in...
- Big "NO!": SpongeBob gives a long, slow-motion one when Squidward attempts to pop Bubble Buddy. It goes on for so long that SpongeBob eventually starts throwing in random vowel noises for added ridiculousness.
- Black Comedy: "Dudes! He made me experience high tide!"
- Blunt "No": When trying to hang with his friends at the beginning of the episode, SpongeBob sees notes on the front of their houses explaining why they can't do so. In Squidward's case, it's one of these. And when SpongeBob tries to see if Squid means it...
- Blunt "Yes": he's met with this.
- Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick: The townspeople's complaints about Bubble Buddy are all relatively benign... until we get to Scooter's.
- Bullying a Dragon: Bubble Buddy (or in another perspective, SpongeBob) harasses and exploits the Bikini Bottom civilians (especially Squidward) who then retaliate by pulling out sharp needles.
- Cloudcuckoolander: "Every day is a holiday for SpongeBob, even if he has to make one up."
- Companion Cube:
- Bubble Buddy, who later turns out to be alive after all.
- The other characters' prized possessions: "Nickel Buddy", "Funny Muffler", "Jerky Pal", "Boo Boo Keys", and "Snake Eyes" (a pair of fuzzy dice).
- Curse Cut Short: Squidward is cut off before he can suggest to SpongeBob that he take the patties made for Bubble Buddy and shove them up his ass.
- Deadpan Snarker: Squidward to Mr. Krabs during the "bubble money" scene.
- Disproportionate Retribution:
- Mr. Krabs threatens to fill Squidward's life with misery and woe (even if he quits) for the crime of refusing to serve the obviously-inanimate Bubble Buddy.
- While the rest of the mob has somewhat understandable reasons for wanting to pop Bubble Bubby. Larry's reason is for thinking he (Bubble Buddy) called him and friends fat because SpongeBob told Bubble Buddy to "shake that bubble butt".
- Easily Forgiven: It turns out Bubble Buddy is alive after all; still, the people of Bikini Bottom are pretty quick to forgive the entire thing after SpongeBob has managed to inconvenience everybody in town, including causing Scooter to drown when he left Bubble Buddy to dig him up.
- Fictional Holiday: Averted; despite the French Narrator's claim that SpongeBob made it up, Leif Erikson Day is in fact a holiday in real life.
- Gross-Up Close-Up: Pearl's dirty flipper after she shakes hands with Grubby Grouper.
- Homage: Mr. Lawrence based Bubble Buddy on Hasbro's "My Buddy" dolls. Note how Bubble Buddy's arms are perpetually spread out, as if anticipating a hug, much like how the dolls were designed.
- Hope Spot: SpongeBob manages to convince the mob to spare Bubble Buddy since most of them have their own Companion Cubes to speak of... but they still want to pop him once he's finished.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Popping Bubble Buddy for skimping on a restaurant bill is a little harsh, but he does owe Mr. Krabs money and bubble money isn't legal currency.
- Kissed Keepsake: Pearl shakes hands with her celebrity crush Grubby Grouper and swears to never wash the hand. Then Bubble Buddy comes along, shakes it, and the soap on him causes it to be sparkly clean, and Pearl bursts out sobbing.
- Large Ham: (slo-mo) "NOOOOOOOOOOO" (slower) "OOOOOOOOOO" (even slower) "OOOOOOBLAGROBLORGRLBOABGLR-!!!!!"
- Misplaced Retribution: Mr. Krabs leads the angry mob tip something over, so they tip over the lifeguard tower with the lifeguard in it. They pause when wondering what to do next, then shout "GET THE LIFEGUARD!!", which Squidward stops them from doing, thankfully.
- Murder by Inaction: Bubble Buddy refuses to dig Scooter out of the ground, causing him to drown from high tide and reemerge as an ascending angel. It's at first believed to be because Bubble Buddy is an inanimate object, but the ending reveals that Bubble Buddy is alive, meaning he intentionally let Scooter die.
- Ocular Gushers: Pearl turns them on when Bubble Buddy washes her flipper.
- Overcomplicated Menu Order: Not only does Squidward have to make one of everything on the menu for Bubble Buddy, but SpongeBob repeated makes him take the order back and fix it in increasingly specific (and eventually inane) ways.Squidward: Here! One of everything! No cheese, no crust, pickles to the left, four squirts of ketchup, wheat buns, non-dairy lettuce, and farm-raised tomatoes carnival-style! And if there's anything else I can do, please hesitate to ask!
- The Pig-Pen: Grubby Grouper, professional beach bum. Some of his dirt sticks to Pearl's flipper when Grubby shakes it, which she vows to never wash again — only for Bubble Buddy to clean it off.
- Poor Communication Kills: Larry and a group of beachgoers were mad at SpongeBob supposedly calling them fat when he was simply saying "shake that bubble butt!" to Bubble Buddy (who has a literal bubble butt) while dancing.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Squidward keeps the angry mob from attacking a lifeguard, not out of the goodness of his heart, but because it's not worth it and it would only make an already bad situation even worse. As he points out, Bubble Buddy is the one causing trouble, so they should deal with him instead.
- Punctuated! For! Emphasis!: The Bikini Bottomites repeatedly chant "POP! THE! BUBBLE!"
- Pulled from Your Day Off: Inverted: Squidward tries to enjoy SpongeBob's day off, but SpongeBob comes into work anyway to show Squidward his new friend, Bubble Buddy. He also makes Squidward make Bubble Buddy one of everything on the menu, with various alterations to suit Bubble Buddy's needs.
- Rage Breaking Point: Harold, Nat, and the other fishes in the bathroom line aren't at first too concerned about Bubble Buddy taking a long time, but when it gets to the point where the line is long enough to require signs that tell how long the line is...Harold: TWO HOURS IS LONG ENOUGH! THAT'S IT!
- Rule of Funny: Bubble Buddy being Real After All. It's really just a silly way for the episode to avoid what would otherwise have been a really sad ending.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: After revealing to be alive after all, Bubble Buddy calmly and gently breaks the news to SpongeBob that he has to go because he angered the townspeople.
- Shaming the Mob: SpongeBob implores the mob trying to pop Bubble Buddy to spare him, reminding them of their own Companion Cubes. After a moment of consideration, they still want to pop Bubble Buddy afterward.
- Special Guest: Legendary surfer Corky Carroll as Grubby Grouper.
- Stupidest Thing I've Ever Heard: A nonverbal example. When SpongeBob tells Squidward that Bubble Buddy is lactose intolerant (and therefore can't eat the many, many Krabby Patties Squidward was forced to make for him, which contain cheese), Squidward makes a Thousand-Yard Stare of Tranquil Fury as he tries to comprehend how he's just heard something that stupid.
- Sudden Downer Ending: Inverted. The episode would've ended on a straight-up Downer Ending if Bubble Buddy wasn't revealed to be sentient and caught the needle in time.
- The Tape Knew You Would Say That: SpongeBob goes to Squidward's home asking him if he wants to play. A sign on the door reads "NO". SpongeBob asks "Are you sure?" and pulls off the sign, revealing another that reads "YES".
- They Killed Kenny Again: Scooter dies by the end of this episode, but continues to appear throughout the series afterwards.
- Too Much Information: Parodied. Since Bubble Buddy Really Was Born Yesterday, SpongeBob is just stating facts, but the beachgoers in line for the bathroom think he's being weird.SpongeBob: My friend's in there!
Harold: Congratulations.
SpongeBob: It's his first time on his own.
Harold: Once again... congratulations. - Torches and Pitchforks: The other fish start one to get rid of Bubble Buddy.
- Water Is Air: Scooter drowns in the high tide... despite already being underwater, since he's a fish.
- Wham Line: Bubble Buddy revealing himself to be alive.Bubble Buddy: Whoa! Hey, don't I get a say in this?
- Winged Soul Flies Off at Death: After experiencing high tide, Scooter appears as a translucent figure with wings and a halo before ascending to Heaven. He gets better the next episode.
- Worthless Currency: Bubble Buddy pays for his meal in bubble money, which pops in Mr. Krabs' claws.Squidward: (holding a handful of bubble coins) At least they left a tip.
(the bubble coins pop. Squidward and Krabs both growl with extreme fury) - Written-In Absence: To justify why SpongeBob has to create Bubble Buddy instead of just playing with Patrick or Sandy, the former is out getting more giant paper while the latter went south for the winter.
"So, you thought I was kidding, eh? No, in Bikini Bottom, excellence can be found, even under a rock."
