Nickelodeon pulled out all the stops this year at San Diego Comic Con for the SpongeBob SquarePants 25th Anniversary, and it's not hard to understand why. SpongbeBob has arguably become Nickelodeon's mascot, similar to Disney's Mickey Mouse. Over the years, fans have followed the exuberant fry cook and his misadventures through various avenues, including the original long-running television series, movies, theme park rides, comic books, one hit Broadway show, a SuperBowl telecast, and some surprisingly hard video games. Fans at SDCC this year were also able to see a recreation of the first episode "Help Wanted", autograph signings, and, of course, new merchandise including limited edition pins.
While there has been some buzz over the announcement that Mark Hamill will be joining the fourth SpongeBob film, The SpongeBob Movie: The Search for SquarePants, as The Flying Dutchman, it is not just the titular sponge that is getting all the attention. SpongeBob's best friend, Patrick, has taken center stage in the spin-off series The Patrick Star Show, which is now going into its third season. Fan favorites such as Sandy, a karate-loving squirrel and one of the strongest animated sitcom animals of all time, and Plankton, the miniature evil rival of SpongeBob's boss, are both slated to star in their own spin-off movies, Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie and The Plankton Movie, respectively. After all these years, SpongeBob SquarePants shows no signs of slowing down, so what exactly is the secret to this franchise's success?
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SpongeBob's "Inner Child" is Something Children and Adults Can Relate To
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie hits this right on the head in one of its opening scenes. SpongeBob is crushed after being passed over for a managerial position, for the Krusty Krab 2, despite his sterling streak of Employee of the Month placards. He asks Mr. Krabs why Squidward was chosen over him. The answer? Despite SpongeBob’s passion and skill for his job, he’s viewed as “just a kid”. Children can relate to this struggle as they grow up, wanting to take on more in life while not being seen as ready for responsibility.
Another episode, "Grandma's Kisses", Season 2, Episode 26a, centers on SpongeBob trying to act more mature around his grandma so he will be taken seriously. Ultimately though, he regresses near the end of the episode, hoping to get her love. His grandma explains that he does not need to act like a baby to get her love.
That is the core of SpongeBob SquarePants, the series and the character. SpongeBob has a fun and playful soul, he can make an entire afternoon fun with just a cardboard box, as seen in "Idiot Box", Season 3, Episode 4b. Still, he struggles with maturity and makes mistakes, sometimes even behaving badly before learning his lesson.
Millennials and Gen Z, many of whom had their education and careers rocked the hardest by COVID-19, can relate to this feeling of not being “real adults”. For instance, throughout the series, SpongeBob wants to learn how to drive, but can never quite get his boating license. Even in the episodes where he does obtain it, the license is revoked by the end of the episode. The boating license is the series' ultimate symbol of unattainable adulthood, the way a house might seem to Millennials and Gen Z. It is no wonder, then, that fans continue to relate to SpongeBob, creating homages of the Krusty Krab in Minecraft and generating many memorable memes.
Bikini Bottom is Disconnected from Time
Another factor that has helped SpongeBob SquarePants stand the test of time is that its setting, Bikini Bottom, is not distinctly connected to any time period. That is not to say SpongeBob SquarePants is immune to references. Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy are clearly meant to parody the 1960s Batman show and episodes like "SpongeBob LongPants", Season 9, Episode 17a, have plot points mirroring the current superhero movie remake phenomenon. A fan also spotted Animal Crossing's famous Froggy Chair in an episode.
However, Bikini Bottom is an underwater town where talking fish drive boats, sponges live in pineapples, and, inexplicably, fires can be started. Because it is not tied to a place or current era explicitly, Bikini Bottom does not have to be updated or change with the times. "SB-129", Season 1, Episode 14a, explores ancient and future Bikini Bottom, but in the lens of the show, viewers are always in the "now", whether that be 1999 or 2024 or beyond.
It would have been impossible to predict SpongeBob SquarePants' success when it first premiered on July 17, 1999. Back then, it was one of many great NickToons, but now it stands apart as being the longest running for Nickelodeon. The Loud House has enjoyed similar success, having eight seasons, multiple films, shorts, and a trailer for Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl featuring Lucy Loud. Few Nicktoons get the same kind of attention from the network. Most are canceled after two seasons. Aside from The Loud House, Rock, Paper, Scissors is the only currently airing Nicktoon not based on a long-running IP.
When SpongeBob SquarePants first hit the scene, it was a risk with a unique voice. On this franchise's 25th anniversary, it is important not just to celebrate the past, but also to embrace the future, not just for the familiar sponge, but other, undiscovered voices. The next great cartoon is out there, it just needs to be afforded the same risk SpongeBob SquarePants was granted 25 years ago.
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