Recap / SpongeBob SquarePants S 2 E 5 "Wormy" / "Patty Hype"

The scariest monster known to seakind.

Wormy

Original air date: 2/25/2001 (produced in 2000)

While petsitting for Sandy, SpongeBob and Patrick fall in love with one of her pets, a caterpillar named Wormy. But when Wormy transforms into a butterfly overnight, they mistake it for a monster that ate their new friend. Things only get worse when Wormy (trapped in a bubble) escapes the treedome, which eventually sends all of Bikini Bottom into a state of panic.

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"Wormy" contains examples of:

• Adaptation Expansion: The LeapPad adaptation of this episode has an extended ending where Sandy explains to SpongeBob and Patrick that the "monster" was Wormy the entire time.
• Art Evolution: "Wormy" is the first episode of the series where Patrick's design permanently changes from having eyebrows shaped like sideways W's to having Z-shaped eyebrows.
• Artistic License – Biology:
  • A caterpillar like Wormy obviously doesn't turn into a butterfly overnight. The process usually takes at least two weeks. Lampshaded by Sandy, who says to Wormy (now a Butterfly) "You weren't supposed to change till I got back".
  • The close-ups of Wormy that suddenly pop up out of nowhere thrice are actually those of a horse fly, which even emits the usual buzzing sound of a fly, something which real-life butterflies do not.
• Artistic License – Physics: SpongeBob is somehow able to blow a bubble to trap Wormy in while he still has his helmet on.
• Comically Missing the Point: After putting Wormy back in his jar, SpongeBob and the town cheer Sandy on for catching the "monster"; this completely blows past Sandy, who thinks everyone simply missed her while she was away.
  Sandy: Maybe I should go out of town more often.
• "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: The French Narrator points out at the very start of the episode how everything could have been avoided if Sandy picked someone better to petsit for her.
  French Narrator: Perhaps she should have asked someone else?
• Department of Redundancy Department:
  SpongeBob: We can't let that horrible monster in Sandy's house! It might eat Sandy's other pets!
  Patrick: Or worse, it might eat Sandy's pets!
• Dinner Deformation: One of Sandy's pets is a snake with a mouse-shaped lump. "That's his dinner."
• Dramatic Irony: The audience knows the "monster" is really Wormy, but SpongeBob and the others (except Sandy) don't. The LeapPad adaptation fixes this by adding an extra scene where Sandy explains to SpongeBob and Patrick that the "monster" was Wormy all along.
• Eat the Camera: Done by SpongeBob as he and the townsfolk are being chased by the "monster".
• Eye Scream: When one guy sees the "horrific" footage of a butterfly (Wormy) on television "attacking" Bikini Bottom, his eyes fall into his mouth as he screams! Special mention to Squidward and Mr. Krabs, whose eyes also retract into their heads as they gaze upon Wormy's face.
• Faux Horrific: Having never seen a butterfly before, SpongeBob and Patrick assume it's a monster. Squidward and Mr. Krabs laugh it off, but then they see it close-up and run away screaming. Later, the sight of it sends all of Bikini Bottom into a panic, but only because SpongeBob and Patrick convinced them that it was going to eat them.
• Fire Means Chaos: When everybody thinks Sandy's pet butterfly is a monster, they go crazy and at one point several buildings are seen on fire (yes, underwater). One even explodes.
• Floating in a Bubble: SpongeBob traps the butterfly in a bubble and send it outside the Treedome. It floats there until Sandy puts it in a jar, by which time it had destroyed the town simply by scaring the population into a frenzy.
• Friendship Song: "That's What Friends Do", which accompanies the Good-Times Montage of SpongeBob and Patrick playing with Wormy.
• Gross-Up Close-Up: The close-up of the butterfly is enough to convince SpongeBob and the other sea creatures that it's a monster. For extra grossness, they use a horsefly instead of a real butterfly.
• Impact Silhouette: After one guy sees a live-action butterfly (Wormy) on TV, he panics and crashes through the wall of his house.
• It Seemed Trivial: Sandy didn't tell SpongeBob and Patrick about Wormy's upcoming metamorphosis because it wasn't supposed to happen until she returned home.
• Jump Scare: The sudden appearances of a close-up live-action Wormy, complete with a loud buzzing noise.
• Keep It Foreign: Patrick claims his whistling is Italian. In the Italian dub, he claims it is Spanish.
• Last-Second Photo Failure: SpongeBob and Patrick have followed a "monster" (actually a butterfly) to the Krusty Krab, where Squidward is taking a picture of Mr. Krabs with a dollar bill. The picture catches SpongeBob tackling down Krabs to save him from the butterfly.
• Lethal Joke Character: The butterfly is harmless on its own, but it inadvertently destroys Bikini Bottom by causing a panic.
• Literal-Minded: Patrick at the beginning:
  Patrick: Petsitting? Won't that hurt them?
• Lured into a Trap: SpongeBob and Patrick try doing this through a ringing telephone in a jar and Patrick acting as bait with an apple in his mouth while SpongeBob readies a giant jellyfishing net. Both traps fail, as in the first, Wormy simply flies past the jar, and in the second, after Patrick gets scared by Wormy again, he soars through the net and rips it open.
• Medium Blending: Live-action footage is used for Wormy's metamorphosis, for the scary close-up, and for a news report about the "scary monster" (which sends a viewer into a Wild Take).
• Mistaken for Own Murderer: When Wormy transforms into a butterfly, SpongeBob and Patrick assume it's a monster that ate Wormy.
• Moth Menace: An interesting case: Wormy himself isn't dangerous, but he still caused the destruction of Bikini Bottom with his presence alone. How is that possible? Gaze at the reaction everyone has when facing this butterfly fluttering aimlessly...
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: SpongeBob and Patrick warning people about the "monster" causes a panic which destroys the town.
  SpongeBob: Just think what might've happened if we didn't tell everyone about the monster!
  Patrick: About the what?
• No Ending: The episode ends with Sandy coming back and being welcomed home by SpongeBob and the others, with no explanation behind the misunderstanding and how the town got back to normal by the next episode. The LeapPad adaptation fixes this by adding an extra scene where Sandy explains to SpongeBob and Patrick that the "monster" was Wormy all along.
• Non-Indicative Name: While Birdy and Snakey have names that represent their species, Wormy is a monarch caterpillar that evolves into a monarch butterfly; not a worm.
• Only Sane Man:
  • Sandy was the only one who knew the butterfly was Wormy and not a monster that had eaten him.
  • Mr. Krabs and Squidward also serve as this, recognizing the butterfly as a harmless creature instead of the terrifying monster SpongeBob and Patrick make it out to be. Until they take a close look at its face and run out of the Krusty Krab screaming.
• Poor Communication Kills: The conflict that drives the episode wouldn't have happened if only Sandy told SpongeBob and Patrick about Wormy's transformation.
• Pretty Butterfly: Subverted in that the other characters think it's a monster, not to mention its constant jumpscares.
• Pupating Peril: The titular caterpillar confuses SpongeBob and Patrick by undergoing metamorphosis. After the duo leaves, we see live-action footage of Wormy's cocoon set to ominous music, eventually emerging into a live-action butterfly. Normally this wouldn't be too scary, but the episode portrays Wormy as a monster from SpongeBob and Patrick's point of view, with some horrifying buzzing close-ups of the live-action butterfly's face.
• Roundabout Shot: SpongeBob and Patrick have one during the Good-Times Montage of them playing with Wormy.
• Rule of Three: Wormy's Gross-Up Close-Up Jump Scare happens three times in the episode (once when he lands on SpongeBob's helmet, another when he crawls on Patrick's helmet, and a final time when Squidward and Mr. Krabs take a close look at Wormy).
• Stock Footage: All of the live-action footage used in this episode (as mentioned above) is royalty-free. Some of it was even used earlier in an episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy.
• Stylized for the Viewer: Wormy the butterfly only has legs when he lands on something.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Sandy. She picked the wrong two people to petsit, as lampshaded by the French Narrator.
  French Narrator: Perhaps she should have asked someone else?
• You Won't Like How I Taste: SpongeBob and Patrick both use this excuse when they're individually cornered by Wormy.

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"Who's Number 46,853?!"

Patty Hype

Original air date: 2/25/2001 (produced in 2000)

Business is dead slow at the Krusty Krab, and any attempts by Mr. Krabs to drum up business have failed. SpongeBob, wanting to contribute, suggests serving colored patties. Mr. Krabs laughs off the idea with Squidward, but has a change of heart when he sees that SpongeBob's "Pretty Patties" have become an overnight sensation.

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"Patty Hype" contains examples of:

• Always Need What You Gave Up: While running from the angry mob of Pretty Patty customers, Mr. Krabs tries to duck into the Krusty Krab for shelter, but can't get in because he can't find his key...before remembering he had given it to SpongeBob.
• Angry Mob: At the end of the episode, victims of the Pretty Patty side affects form up as one and go after Mr. Krabs.
• Answer Cut: When Mr. Krabs watches a news report on SpongeBob's Pretty Patties.
  Mr. Krabs: How can ya' make money with such a stupid idea?
  Reporter: And how can you not make money with such a brilliant idea?
• Borrowed Catchphrase: Mr. Krabs borrows SpongeBob's, "I'm ready," catchphrase when taking over the Pretty Patty stand, before adding, "For me money!", at the end.
• Brick Joke:
  • The fish that ate a plaid patty appears in the angry mob, as his skin under his kilt is now plaid.
  • Mr. Krabs gives SpongeBob the key to the Krusty Krab and starts running the Pretty Patties stand instead of SpongeBob. The next day, trying to hide from the angry mob, Mr. Krabs reaches into his pocket for his key to the Krusty Krab, but then realizes he gave it to SpongeBob the previous day.
  • SpongeBob mentions one of the things of the Krusty Krab he misses is a tiny squeaking sound from rubbing pickles. Later near the end as Mr. Krabs is being chased, SpongeBob is rubbing those pickles and making them squeak, thus ignoring Mr. Krabs.
• Broke Episode: 36 days without a customer!
• Buried Alive: Mr. Krabs did this to himself to draw in customers, but it didn't work.
• By the Lights of Their Eyes: When the customers complain about the Pretty Patties' side effects, Mr. Krabs asks one guy what's wrong with his tongue, because it just looks normal...until the guy turns the lights off, and we can only see his eyes and his glow-in-the-dark tongue.
• Cobweb of Disuse: The Krusty Krab is covered in cobwebs when business gets slow. SpongeBob dusts one off, but a spider makes another one. In the next shot Mr. Krabs himself is seen covered in cobwebs and dust.
• Crowd Surfing: The crowd carries SpongeBob over to the Krusty Krab after Krabs gives it to him.
• Cursed with Awesome: The side effects of the Pretty Patties don't seem to be all that harmful, nor is it said that the effects are permanent (a fish's tongue even becomes glow-in-the-dark), but they're still treated as hazardous and worth a refund.
• Daytime Drama Queen: Mr. Krabs passes the time waiting for customers by watching a soap opera.
• Elderly Future Fantasy: SpongeBob waits for customers while saying "I'm ready", and he imagines getting older and older (along with his pineapple), until he's just a gravestone reading "I'm Ready".
• Even Beggars Won't Choose It: A guy who hasn't eaten for 3 days crawls into the Krusty Krab begging for food, but when he was offered some he rejects it because the Krusty Krab lacks "pizzazz". He then crawls away still begging for food... water... atmosphere!
• Eye Scream: Mr. Krabs' eyes inflate when he hears SpongeBob and Patrick have tried burying and then shredding the money they've earned. They fly away and deflate like balloons when he hears they've also tried burning their profits, making him scream.
• Foreshadowing: SpongeBob refers to the pretty patties as "painted meat" when he presents them to Mr. Krabs. If SpongeBob literally meant paint was an ingredient in the pretty patties, that could explain the side effects as paint is poisonous if consumed.
• Four Is Death: When SpongeBob falls asleep at his Pretty Patty stand, he dreams that he and his pineapple house are shown aging waiting for customers to come until eventually he dies and the house disappears:
  SpongeBob: I'm ready!
  (cut to a few years later; SpongeBob is now middle-aged with a receding hairline, a mustache, and glasses and his house is slightly withered)
  Middle-Aged SpongeBob: I'm ready.
  (cut to a few more years later; SpongeBob is now an old man with a long beard and his now visibly rotten house collapses)
  Old SpongeBob: I'm ready!
  (SpongeBob is now dead, in his place is a tombstone reading "R.I.P. I'm Ready" and his house is completely gone)
• The Ghost: The Shell Shack is a restaurant that's taking all the business away from the Krusty Krab in this episode, mostly due to a talking dog they have. However, nothing else is fully elaborated on with that restaurant, and it's never brought up again after SpongeBob introduces his Pretty Patties.
• Hazmat Suit: When SpongeBob first introduces the idea of Pretty Patties with a green patty, Mr. Krabs' first reaction is to set it on fire, due to assuming it's spoiled. However, SpongeBob saves the patty by putting on a Hazmat suit and standing where Krabs directs the fire, then showing him other colors of Pretty Patties.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Things quickly turn sour for Mr. Krabs after he buys the stand, and he's unable to escape the angry mob that the patties caused, as he had given SpongeBob the key to the Krusty Krab.
• Hype Backlash: In-Universe example. All 46,853 customers who excitedly bought the Pretty Patties come back to rip into Mr. Krabs when the colored patties lead to some unwanted side effects. And since he bought out SpongeBob's booth just for the money, especially after he ridiculed his idea, he is forced to pay everyone back (he runs away instead).
• Incredibly Lame Fun: What SpongeBob misses most about working at the Krusty Krab? "That tiny squeaky sound you get when you rub two pickles together." At the end, he's seen engrossed rubbing pickle slices, oblivious to Mr. Krabs being chased by an angry mob.
• Instant Wristwatch: Parodied. When SpongeBob asks Patrick what time it is, Patrick has a watch drawn on his wrist with crayon.
  Patrick: Aww! I gotta draw a new battery for this.
• Ironic Echo: SpongeBob happily calls out to the hungry mob for order 46,853 which highlights how successful his Pretty Patties have become. Near the end, the mob demands that Mr. Krabs give a refund for all 46,853 customers.
• It's the Best Whatever, Ever!: When Harold eats the purple Pretty Patty, he declares Pretty Patties "the best idea ever!".
• It Will Never Catch On: Mr. Krabs and Squidward initially mock SpongeBob's Pretty Patties idea and think it would never work, and eventually even SpongeBob thinks so, but they're all proven wrong when the patties become a massive sleeper hit.
• I've Heard of That — What Is It?: When Fred tells Tom about the talking dog at the Shell Shack, Tom says, "Great! Say, what's a dog?"
• Karma Houdini:
  • A non-malicious example, but Mr. Krabs ends up taking the fall for SpongeBob for the Pretty Patty fiasco, who is busy with his usual nonsense in the Krusty Krab while the crowd instead pursues Mr. Krabs.
  • Squidward disappears from the story after mocking Pretty Patties, and unlike his boss, never gets any comeuppance.
• Karmic Misfire: Somewhat. Mr. Krabs takes over the Pretty Patties stand, and he gets ALL of the blame for the side effects of the pretty patties. Nobody blamed SpongeBob for the side effects even though he started the stand.
• Laser-Guided Karma: Mr. Krabs isn't entirely blameless. While neither SpongeBob nor Krabs were aware of the Pretty Patties' side effects, said side effects can be considered karma for Krabs because he ridiculed the Pretty Patties and only took over SpongeBob's stand because he greedily wanted to take over the business and gain the promised profits himself.
• Man in a Kilt: A Scotsfish buys plaid Pretty Patties because "They remind me of home." Later he lifts his kilt to show that his legs have also turned plaid. (Thankfully, he's wearing underwear.)
• Medium Blending: The soap opera Mr. Krabs is watching is live-action footage of an amoeba dividing. ("I'm splitting us up!")
• Misplaced Retribution: In-Universe example. After the Pretty Patties prove to have adverse effects, everyone comes back to get Mr. Krabs even though it was SpongeBob who had created and sold the patties in the first place. However, they initially just want refunds; they only turn outright hostile on Krabs because he makes a break for it. Demanding a refund from who's in charge now wasn't very misplaced. Though they don't seem to make any distinction that Krabs is a different person from SpongeBob.
• Money to Throw Away: Not knowing what to do with the money they earned from selling Pretty Patties, SpongeBob and Patrick try burying, shredding and burning it before deciding to simply give it away, much to Mr. Krabs' horror.
  Customer: I'm getting back in line!
• Mutagenic Food: Turns out eating Pretty Patties causes people to change color. One poor soul even got a glow-in-the-dark tongue from it.
• No Ending:
  • SpongeBob is still the owner of the Krusty Krab at the end of the episode.
  • The angry mob chases Mr. Krabs to get their money back. It is unknown how the chase scene ends, as it continues after the episode ends.
• Only the Leads Get a Happy Ending: Only SpongeBob is happy at the ending, gleefully rubbing two pickles together. And even though he's the new owner of the Krusty Krab, customers aren't coming in so he's not making any money.
• Pass the Popcorn: Mr. Krabs stuffs his face with popcorn while watching a soap opera (possibly to lament his restaurant's lack of business). Afterwards, a spider steals his popcorn (Distracted by the news of Pretty Patties, Krabs doesn't notice this happening in front of his eyes).
• Restaurant-Owning Episode: Played with; when business at the Krusty Krab is slow, SpongeBob tries to sell Mr. Krabs on the idea of Pretty Patties, colored Krabby Patties which Krabs rejects as being too silly. SpongeBob then sells them on his own and becomes successful, making Krabs change his tune. Krabs convinces SpongeBob to sell him the stand in exchange for getting the Krusty Krab. Unfortunately, Krabs now has to face hundreds of angry customers who have been turned bright colors by the patties.
• The Rival: The Shell Shack restaurant is this to the Krusty Krab.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
  • SpongeBob storms out of the Krusty Krab and opens up his own restaurant after Squidward and Mr. Krabs make fun of his pretty patties.
  • Mr. Krabs flees the Pretty Patties stand after the customers demand refunds due to the side effects of the pretty patties.
• Skewed Priorities: A customer, who hasn't had any food or a drink in 3 days, crawls into the Krusty Krab but refuses food, saying that there's no atmosphere in the joint. It's also mentioned he DID have money to buy food, he's just too picky about where to eat.
  Mr. Krabs: Nobody goes to a restaurant for atmosphere. They go for food!
• Start My Own: After Mr. Krabs and Squidward cruelly mock SpongeBob's Pretty Patties, SpongeBob decides to sell them himself and prove to them that they are a good idea.
• Stolen Credit Backfire: Mr. Krabs takes over the Pretty Patties stand from SpongeBob. Right when customers discovered the side effects from eating them and demand refunds.
• Stupidest Thing I've Ever Heard: Mr. Krabs and Squidward's reaction to SpongeBob's Pretty Patties. His first customer (and Patrick) laughed at a Green Patty, until he saw a Purple Patty, which is his favorite color.
• Talking Animal: Offscreen example; the Shell Shack somehow brought on a talking dog to draw in new customers, costing the Krusty Krab nearly all of its business, turning the Krusty Krab into another Chum Bucket.
  Tom: Say, what's a dog?
• Time-Passes Montage: While SpongeBob and Patrick are waiting for customers, SpongeBob somehow ages into a middle-aged man, then a senior citizen, before finally passing away and replaced with a gravestone. Said montage then turns out to be a weird dream SpongeBob had when he fell asleep while waiting.
• Torches and Pitchforks: Mr. Krabs is chased by the customers in the end because Pretty Patties causes them to change color.
• Truth in Television: Especially in the food industry, standing out among the competition is just as important as good food. The Krusty Krab wasn't failing because its food was bad, it was failing because customers were more enticed by restaurants with equally good food and prices, but had a gimmick or offered a better experience for the same price. Mr. Krabs, being the cheapskate he is, didn't want to spend any money to say update the decor or offer live entertainment (despite trying that in Culture Shock to mixed success) causing his competition to steal his customers.
• Under New Management: Mr. Krabs buys the Pretty Patty stand from SpongeBob so he can go back to working at the Krusty Krab. Unfortunately, now Krabs has to deal with angry customers wanting refunds.
• Ungrateful Bastard: The starving customer from the beginning of the episode. He cared more about the interior design and theme of the Krusty Krab rather than the food it serves.
• What Happened to the Mouse?:
  • Patrick completely vanishes from the scene even before Mr. Krabs has tricked SpongeBob into giving him control of their stand. Though it could be Krabs booted him out just to get the entirety of the profits. Or he could have just forgotten about or lost interest in the business, given that this is Patrick we're talking about.
  • One can't help but wonder how Squidward reacted when Pretty Patties became a big hit, especially considering it was being done a few feet from his house. And unlike Mr. Krabs, Squidward receives no punishment for cruelly mocking SpongeBob's notion.
• Writers Cannot Do Math: Clearly done as a joke; somehow Mr. Krabs is only met by the 46,853 customers SpongeBob had already served by the time Mr. Krabs bought the stand, a full day before the time the episode ends.

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