Some Things Never Change is a dark deconstruction fic of Squidward's miserable life and the path he took to reach this point, as well as showing how bleak Bikini Bottom has become. Sadness and depressing elements are to be expected, especially in the first two stories.
- In general, there's just an aura of sadness looming over the first two stories, as the once vibrant and colorful world and characters of SpongeBob SquarePants has been corrupted and reduced to hollow shells of their former selves respectively, with the new generation of Bikini Bottomites making the once fun town a much worse place, the main characters either growing old, tired and disillusioned or refusing to grow and mature and remaining wrapped up in their personal bubble of delusion (like Spongebob himself), while the world around them seems to grow grayer and bleaker while also remaining strangely stagnant with no genuine excitement or stimulation in the characters’ lives.
- The author made it no secret that all of this is a metaphor for the show’s own Seasonal Rot and his feelings on the matter.
- What we learn about Squidward's backstory is pretty depressing, as is his current lot in life and his final conversation with Squilliam. Even his own mother never supported his dreams and constantly compared him unfavorably to his arch-rival, with her even becoming an avid fan of the latter. His entire life has been nothing but one long string of failures and broken dreams, while his hated arch-rival has achieved everything he ever wanted and will go down in history as a beloved genius and Renaissance Man. Meanwhile, Squidward realizes that he ended up in this situation due to a combination of his own bad choices and inability to let go of his impossible dreams, recognizing that it's too late to make any significant changes and that he will likely die as a loser and a nobody. The only consolation prize is that he at least did finally realize the error of his ways, has gained a mutual respect and sympathy with Sandy, and endeavors to make the best of the time he has left.
- Plankton's brief rant highlights how his life was just as depressing as Squidward's, for much the same reasons. And to rub salt into the wound, the Krabby Patty formula that he was so desperately trying to steal for decades never existed in the first place!
- Spongebob's facade is utterly shattered in Nothing Lasts Forever when he finds out that Mr. Krabs is going to die, and there's nothing he can do about it. He outright makes it clear that not only was he aware of all of the deaths and pain all along, but his inability to face this reality had resulted in him rejecting this as a coping mechanism. Fortunately, he does come to terms with it after Squidward and Krabs give him a long overdue talk.
