SpongeBob SquarePants

SpongeBob is a redirect to this article. See SpongeBob (disambiguation) for more meanings .

Television series
German title	SpongeBob SquarePants
Original title	SpongeBob SquarePants
Country of production	United States
original language	English (AE)
Year (s)	since 1999
length	approx. 22 minutes, usually two stories each 11 minutes
Episodes	243+ (465+) in 12+ seasons ( list )
genre	Comedy , slapstick
Theme music	Original: SpongeBob SquarePants - sung by Patrick Pinney German: SpongeBob SquarePants - sung by Hans Teuscher
idea	Stephen Hillenburg
First broadcast	May 1, 1999 on Nickelodeon
German-language first broadcast	August 23, 2002 on Super RTL
synchronization

SpongeBob SquarePants (Original title: SpongeBob SquarePants ) is an American cartoon series , which was developed in 1998 by the American marine biologist and trick film producer Stephen Hillenburg . It is particularly popular in the USA, but also in German-speaking countries .

The series is about the adventures of a same sponge (English: sponge ) connected to other marine animals in the sea floor located on the city of Bikini Bottom lives.

content

Framework story

The series tells the everyday adventures of the eponymous protagonist , SpongeBob SquarePants. He works in a fast-food restaurant called Krosse Krabbe and experiences all kinds of adventures not only at work, but also in the city and its surroundings. The series is based on everyday situations as they can also occur in the real world (e.g. relationship crises or accidents at work). Most of these situations are deliberately exaggerated, and the way in which the conflict is resolved is often rather bizarre or ridiculous. In some situations, social issues (e.g. adoption ) and clichés (e.g. that of the epitome of alleged masculinity) are taken up and sometimes parodied .

Place of action

Almost all of the action in the series takes place on the ocean floor in the fictional town of Bikini Bottom, where the characters in the series lead their lives. The city consists of several districts and areas, the number of inhabitants varies from one row to the next between 500 and 50,000 residents. The city is said to be at the foot of the Bikini Atoll (which is where its name comes from) - but from the surface, only a small island can be seen, if at all, which is shown, for example, when the time of day changes.

Special places in Bikini Bottom

Below are special places in Bikini Bottom. Each building usually has a shape that reflects its purpose as well as typical flotsam . Simple houses are single or multi-story and made of lost exhausts that protrude from the ground.

• The Krusty Krab ( The Krusty Krab ) is a fast-food restaurant under the direction of Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob and Squidward's workplace. It offers Krabby Patties as its most famous dish, which is so tasty that the recipe must be closely guarded and is referred to as a secret formula. The Krusty Krab is shaped like a lobster trap and has a reputation for having very poor working conditions.
• The trash can ( The Chum Bucket ) is the restaurant, which is led by plankton and is located opposite the Krusty Krab. It has the shape of a trash can with a handle. It almost never has customers because the food is inedible.
• In the Jellyfish Fields , SpongeBob and Patrick pursue their hobby, jellyfish fishing.
• The algae market ( Barg'n-Mart ) is the supermarket where the residents go shopping, it is shaped like a suitcase.
• The Mrs. Puffs Boating School is the driving school where u. a. SpongeBob is a student. It consists of a fenced area including an obstacle course ; the main building is a lighthouse .
• The Goo Lagoon is a beach that borders Bikini Bottom. How the beach can exist is questionable, but it is explained that the apparent water on the beach is not water, but goo, a kind of blue mud. SpongeBob and Patrick often laze there, Larry is a lifeguard or lifeguard there and Sandy surfs there regularly.
• The Fancy is a luxury restaurant that is only reserved for the wealthy and cultured residents of Bikini Bottom. It consists of a ship in a bottle .
• Bikini Bottom Hospital is the municipal hospital in the shape of a lifeline. Well-known patients are very often Mr. Krabs and Mrs. Puff, but SpongeBob, Patrick, Mermaid Man and Blue Bass Boy, Squidward and Larry have also had to be admitted there.
• The glove world is an amusement park . SpongeBob and Patrick are having fun there. In season 8 it will be closed and replaced by the glove universe.
• Rock Bottom is a deeper place. There is total darkness down there, the streets are made of a neon green substance. The scripts are illegible, and the people of Rock Bottom speak with hard-to-understand accents, sticking their tongues out.
• Bikini Bottom Prison is on the outskirts and is surrounded by a tall barbed wire fence. Squidward and Mrs. Puff had to be in it.
• New Kelp City is a distant neighboring city, which is modeled after New York City . This city is big and extremely dirty, and there are many homeless and unemployed people living there. SpongeBob was the city's mayor for a short time .

Infrastructure and everyday life

The nature and the climate in Bikini Bottom are extremely paradoxical: although the city is underwater and the action also takes place on the seabed, there are beaches with what appears to be water (Goo Lagoon), flower-shaped clouds, fire, rain, wind, tornadoes and even snowfall .

The main characters belong to different species of animals, as they are typical for the underwater world, including sponges (SpongeBob), starfish (Patrick), octopus (Squidward), crabs (Mr. Krabs), lobsters (Larry von Lobster), puffer fish (Mrs. Puff ) and rays (e.g. manta rays ). But even land creatures like squirrels (Sandy) and humans (Mermaid Man and Blue Bass Jack) are represented. The remaining, simple inhabitants of Bikini Bottom are for the most part anthropomorphic , upright fish. Other sea creatures are displayed in the series like animals, they can even as pets serve and have them corresponding equivalent from the country world: For example, jellyfish the bees inspired and live in hives, snails provide domestic cats are, worms are dogs , clams have Similarities to birds and seahorses are represented and treated like horses .

In Bikini Bottom, payment is made with the shell dollar, which is visually based on the US dollar . The city seems to be part of a kingdom headed by the absolute ruler King Neptune, who is sometimes even worshiped like a deity and also has the corresponding powers. Instead of cars, in Bikini Bottom you drive boats with wheels, so-called boat mobiles. There are also buses and taxis, but also bicycles with paddle wheels .

characters

There are ten main characters.

main characters

SpongeBob as a hot air balloon in Mexico

Robert "SpongeBob" SquarePants

(in the English original Spongebob Squarepants ) is the main character of the series. It is a yellow, cuboid sponge with front teeth protruding from the mouth. He wears short brown trousers with a black belt, a white shirt and a red tie . He is artistically very gifted, has a vigorous imagination and tends to be naive . SpongeBob's exuberant cheerfulness and optimism as well as his almost intrusive willingness to help are often perceived as a burden by his fellow citizens. He lives with his pet, the meowing snail Gary, in a pineapple that is set up as a two-story house. SpongeBob's hobbies are jellyfish fishing , bubble blowing, and karate . He works in the fast food restaurant Krosse Krabbe as a highly motivated and talented burger roaster and is loyal to his boss despite sometimes unreasonable working conditions. He regularly fails the practical driving test for the boat license, a defining running gag of the series.

Patrick Star

is a mentally clumsy pink starfish and has been SpongeBob's best friend since childhood. He lives under a rock with a cane antenna on the same street as SpongeBob. He is wearing green and purple Bermuda shorts with a Hawaiian pattern . Patrick doesn't have a regular job; if he accepts a mini job at all, he usually loses it on the same day. Patrick mostly spends his time watching TV, eating, sleeping or with SpongeBob, with whom he primarily shares a love of jellyfish fishing. His clumsiness and indolence are often the trigger for uncomfortable situations that he regularly brings SpongeBob and bystanders into. In some episodes, however, the impression is given that Patrick is mean on purpose.

Squidward Quentin tentacles

(Originally Squidward Quentin Tentacles ) is a gray-green, upright octopus with a big nose that SpongeBob can't stand. He lives between SpongeBob and Patrick in an Easter Island figure . Squidward is grumpy, sarcastic, haughty, and self-indulgent. He works as a cashier in the Krusty Krabbe and hates his job, which is also expressed in clear disinterest (e.g. reading magazines while at work) and disparaging behavior towards customers. He also likes to avoid all unpleasant work and shifts it to SpongeBob. He finds his fulfillment in playing the clarinet , in painting still lifes and self-portraits as well as in expressive dance . Squidward wants to be rich and famous, with hair on his head, and live with neighbors other than SpongeBob and Patrick. His archenemy is Siegbert Schnösel, whom he envies for his success and wealth.

Eugene Herbert Krabs

usually just called Mr. Krabs, is a coral red crab and the owner and head of the Krusty Krab. He lives with his daughter Perla in a large, anchor-shaped house. He wears jeans and a shirt. Mr. Krabs' thoughts and desires are mostly about money, about his daughter and about his archenemy plankton. His most important possession is the secret recipe of the popular Krabby Burger. Mr. Krabs is unbearably stingy , his greed for money sometimes goes so far that he cheats his own employees out of their already measly wages or even steals from them. In return, his greed often becomes his undoing, for example the Flying Dutchman Eugene wants to lock him in Davy Jones' locker as a punishment . His greed also regularly falls back on him: his restaurant is repeatedly damaged or torn down, either because he either wants to do everything himself out of greed or because SpongeBob misunderstood his instructions.

Sheldon James Plankton

usually just called plankton, is the malicious and intelligent but unsuccessful owner of the trash can. The figure is based on the Copepoda , a tiny crab with two antennae and one eye. Plankton's goal is to steal the secret recipe for the Krabby Patty, with which he wants to make his own restaurant more popular, which so far has hardly been visited by paying guests. The plans that plankton use to steal the formula are often very complex. As a rule, however, they are thwarted at the last moment by Mr. Krabs or SpongeBob or fail because of his small height and overconfidence. Alternatively, they fail because of little things that were not considered in the plans. On the side, plankton strives for world domination. Plankton and Mr. Krabs were best friends as children, until the poor boy, in competition with Plankton, sold the Krabby Patty at school.

Karen

is the snippy but loyal computer woman from Plankton, she is named after Stephen Hillenburg's wife. Karen gives Plankton tips on how to come up with the Krabby Patty's formula, and Plankton pretends the ideas come from him. Karen Plankton's actions and failures with hateful and malicious comments are more or less a return coach.

Sandra "Sandy" Cheeks

is a female squirrel from Texas who lives on the ocean floor with support from NASA . It lives in an oak that grows in the middle under a watertight glass dome (similar to a biosphere ). Outside the dome, she wears a spacesuit that allows her to breathe. Sandy is a talented inventor and technology scientist. Every now and then she observes the townspeople and does something like behavioral studies. Sandy is a good friend of SpongeBob and a spirited and open-hearted person. She does karate , weightlifting , cycling and surfing . SpongeBob and Patrick can only enter Sandy's dome with a water-filled fishbowl above their heads.

Poppy Puff

usually just called Mrs. Puff, is a puffer fish lady and the owner of the boating school. She has straight, blonde hair and is wearing a small blue hat, a blue blouse and a short, red pleated skirt. In one episode we learn that her husband was fished and prepared as a lamp, so Mrs. Puff is a widow . SpongeBob is by far their most untalented student. He regularly drives her to despair because he causes accidents with catastrophic results in driving lessons. This is uncomfortable for Mrs. Puff because she gets upset very quickly and, as a result, inflates herself in puffer fish fashion. She has also been arrested and jailed several times through SpongeBob's fault.

Perla Krabs

is a sperm whale girl and the daughter of Mr. Krabs. She wears a cheerleader costume, uses lipstick and behaves like a puberty. She suffers from her father's stinginess and often feels like he is being shown to her friends.

Gary B. Schneckerich

is SpongeBob's domestic snail. He takes on the role of a house cat and makes cat noises that SpongeBob sometimes interprets as considered and intelligent utterances. Gary's intelligence shows, among other things, his ability to tie shoes as well as his interest in poetry and the political section of the daily newspaper. He enjoys eating biscuits, canned snail food, and popcorn. If SpongeBob doesn't react to Gary's meowing, Gary can draw attention to himself with a lion roar .

Minor characters

Patchy the pirate

played by Tom Kenny , appears in some episodes in real-life scenes with his talking parrot Potty, who is represented by a puppet. The real film scenes form the framework of the respective episode. Patchy is a huge SpongeBob fan and the chairman of the fan club. Patchy and Potty live in Encino .

Mermaid man and blue bass boy

are two retired superheroes who live in a retirement home. Mermaid man shows symptoms of dementia , the younger blue bass boy is pessimistic and choleric . In their secret base there is a weapon collection and an invisible boat mobile. Her biggest (and most dangerous) fans are SpongeBob and Patrick.

Atomic flounder

is one of the arch enemies of the mermaid male and blue bass boy, who is now retired. If he is irritated, he can still use his burning atomic breath.

Bastard bubble

is one of the archenemies of the mermaid male and blue bass boy. Its strength results from its enormous surface tension. However, it can be burst with a pointed object.

Mantara

is another archenemy of the mermaid male and blue bass boy. He's the most dangerous villain of all and occasionally works with the bastard bubble.

The Flying Dutchman

is the glowing green ghost of a pirate who sails across the seas on his ghost ship and scares people. He is a bit quick-tempered, but can also be cooperative and willing to compromise.

King Neptune

is the supreme ruler of the underwater world. The name is based on the Roman water god Neptune and is u. a. Often used by SpongeBob in phrases like "Oh, you holy Neptune!"

Larry from Lobster

is a muscular, self- loving lobster who works as a lifeguard in the Goo Lagoon . He is friends with Sandy and Don. His hobbies are weight lifting and volleyball. He likes going to the gym.

Fred

A regular, olive-colored fish with brown trousers that is always the victim of SpongeBobs and Patrick's misfortunes. Fred became known as a running gag because he said “My leg! My leg! ”(Less often:“ My eyes! My eyes! ”) Calls out in the background.

Painty

dubbed by Hans Teuscher , is the pirate portrait that is shown at the beginning of an episode.

Old Jenkins

is an old man well-known in the city who, despite his age, still drives and eats in the Krusty Krabbe.

Mrs. Betsy Krabs

is the mother of Mr. Krabs. She likes to spoil her son and doesn't really want to admit that he is already an adult. She lives in an anchor-shaped house that is pink in color in contrast to her son's blue house.

Grandma SquarePants and Grandpa SquarePants

are SpongeBob's grandparents. SpongeBob visits his grandma regularly. Grandpa SquarePants doesn't appear in the series, but SpongeBob occasionally quotes his wisdom in his mind.

Mother SquarePants and Father SquarePants

are SpongeBob's parents. They live outside of Bikini Bottom, so they rarely occur. In contrast to their son, neither mother nor father Squarepants have a square shape.

Siegbert Schnösel

is an acquaintance of Squidward's tentacles, who he has known since high school , and, like that one, an octopus. Siegbert is a millionaire and has achieved everything Thaddäus has ever dreamed of. When Siegbert shows up, Squidward always tries to impress him. Siegbert even has his own fan club.

Cable Yeah

is a cod and one of Bikini Bottom's best-known news anchors, so he's often featured on television.

Sneaker man

an old superhero colleague of mermaid man and blue perch boy. His superpower is running unnaturally fast. In one episode SpongeBob slips into his role and in another episode he is seen in an old mermaid-man-and-blue-bass-boy episode.

Captain Magma

An old superhero colleague of Mermaid Man and Blue Bass Boy. It consists entirely of magma . In one episode, Squidward slips into his role and in another episode he is seen in an old mermaid-man-and-blue-bass-boy episode.

Miss time-so-time-so

An old superhero colleague of Mermaid Man and Blue Bass Boy. Your superpower is to make yourself invisible. In one episode, Sandy Cheeks slips into her role and in another episode she is seen in an old mermaid-man-and-blue-bass-boy episode.

The elastic waistband

An old superhero colleague of Mermaid Man and Blue Bass Boy. Its superpower is its elasticity, as if it were made of rubber. In one episode Patrick slips into his role and in another episode you can see him in an old mermaid-man-and-blue-bass-boy episode.

The cast iron brooder

An old superhero colleague of Mermaid Man and Blue Bass Boy. His superpower is to think and philosophize about everything. In one episode you can see him in an old mermaid-man-and-blue-bass-boy episode.

synchronization

The German synchronization of the series is created at Deutsche Synchron in Berlin . The dialogue books were written by Matthias Müntefering from 2002 to 2010, and since then Mike Betz and Sabine Régé-Turo have been responsible for directing the dialogue together with Frank Schröder and Stefan Fredrich .

At the beginning of the auditions at that time, it was decided from the start to cast the cabaret artist Santiago Ziesmer for the role of SpongeBob SquarePants. But since one suspected a quick connection with the role of Steve Urkel from the US sitcom All Under One Roof , which was also dubbed by Ziesmer, the decision was first made for a nationwide casting, as a result of which all people from Berlin, Munich or Hamburg were cast were. After the test recordings were sent to America, however, the decision was quickly made in favor of Ziesmer.

On May 29, 2011 it was announced that MTV had dismissed Patrick Star's long-time regular spokesman, Marco Kröger , because he had demanded compensation from the broadcaster based on the amount of money earned by the series. His successor, Fritz Rott , was announced by SpongePedia on November 16, 2011 by name.

Over the years, other voice actors have been reassigned. In October 2014, Squidward's spokesman Eberhard Prüter died during the dubbing for the film SpongeBob SquarePants 3D . Mrs. Puff's spokeswoman, Rita Engelmann , retired in 2016, and her role has been spoken by Sonja Deutsch since then . In 2018, Plankton's long-time spokesman Thomas Petruo died after a short, serious illness. His successor was Sebastian Christoph Jacob .

main characters

Surname	Original speaker	German voice actor
Robert "SpongeBob" SquarePants	Tom Kenny	Santiago Ziesmer
Patrick Star	Bill Fagerbakke	Marco Kröger (seasons 1–7) Fritz Rott (from season 8)
Squidward tentacles	Rodger Bumpass	Eberhard Prüter (episode 1–189) Joachim Kaps (from episode 190)
Eugene Krabs	Clancy Brown	Jürgen Kluckert
Sheldon plankton	Doug Lawrence	Thomas Petruo (episode 1–230) Sebastian Jacob (from episode 232)
Karen plankton	Jill Talley	Susanne Geier
Sandy Cheeks	Carolyn Lawrence	Cathlen Gawlich
Poppy Puff	Mary Jo Catlett	Rita Engelmann (episode 4–182) Sonja Deutsch (from episode 190)
Perla Krabs	Lori Alan	Sabine Winterfeldt

Minor characters

Surname	Original speaker	German voice actor
Painty	Stephen Hillenburg	Hans Teuscher
Mermaid man	Ernest Borgnine	Karl Schulz
Blue bass boy	Tim Conway	Uwe Paulsen (episode 6–94) Hasso Zorn (episode 114–180)
Mantara	John Rhys-Davies	Hans-Werner Bussinger (season 2–6) Joachim Tennstedt (from season 7)
Younger mermaid man	Adam West	Gerald Paradise
Younger blue bass boy	Burt Ward	Konrad Bösherz
Flying Dutchman	Brian Doyle-Murray	Hans Teuscher (episode 13–162) Axel Lutter (from episode 220)
Larry the lobster	Doug Lawrence	Jörg Hengstler
Mama Krabs	Paul Tibbitt Sirena Irwin	Marianne Lutz
Siegbert Schnösel	Dee Bradley Baker	Eberhard Prüter (episode 35–135)
Mrs. SquarePants	Sirena Irwin	Margot Rothweiler
Mr. SquarePants	Tom Kenny	Frank-Otto Schenk
Grandma SquarePants	Marion Ross	Christel Merian Margot Rothweiler
Bubbling	Dee Bradley Baker	Engelbert von Nordhausen season 1 Sven Fechner from season 9
Old Jenkins		Karl-Heinz Grewe
Neptune	John O'Hurley Sergio Ristie	Hubertus Bengsch (episode 19) Eberhard Haar (episode 126) Hans-Werner Bussinger (1st film)
Patchy the pirate	Tom Kenny	Michael Pan
Potty the parrot	Stephen Hillenburg Paul Tibbitt	Hans-Jürgen Dittberner Gerald Schaale
Jacques Cousteau (narrator)	Tom Kenny	Michael Pan

Guest characters

Surname	Original speaker	German voice actor
ranger	Dee Bradley Baker	Stefan Staudinger
Reg	Thomas F. Wilson	Martin Keßler
Oops boy	Dee Bradley Baker
Kevin the sea cucumber	Dee Bradley Baker	Hans-Jürgen Dittberner
Gerd G. Money storage	Dee Bradley Baker	Tom Deininger
Fraudulent fish	Dee Bradley Baker	Bernd Schramm
Nonsense strangler	Thomas F. Wilson	Engelbert von Nordhausen
Professor Percy	Christopher Ryan	Norbert Gescher
Dr. jam	Nigel planner	Reinhard Scheunemann
Lord Reginald	Rik Mayall	Lothar Blumhagen
Carl	CH Greenblatt	Marcel Collé
Le spatula	Dee Bradley Baker	Georg Tryphon
Dr. Karl Gill	Rodger Bumpass	Uwe Büschken
Master Udon	Pat Morita	Rudiger Evers
Tickle fighters	Tom Kenny	Uli Krohm
Disgusting Ed	Rodger Bumpass	Tom Deininger
Mr. Fitz	Dee Bradley Baker	Bodo Wolf
Ned	Dee Bradley Baker	Tobias Müller
Miss Duttfish	Andrea Martin	Karin Buchholz
Leader of the bubble burst boys	Ray Liotta	Bernd Vollbrecht
Cousin BlackJack	John DiMaggio	Tilo Schmitz
Uncle Captain Blue	Garnett Sailor	Hasso Zorn
Jim	Patton Oswalt	Stefan Fredrich
general	R. Lee Ermey	Gerald Paradise
Stanley SquarePants	Christopher Guest	Rainer Fritzsche
Mr. What are you doing	Dee Bradley Baker	Frank Ciazynski
Werner M. Wahnsinnsfisch	Greg Baldwin	Tom Deininger
Grandpa Red Beard	Dennis Quaid	Uli Krohm
Nat	To Norris	Jesco Wirthgen
JKL	Johnny Depp	David Nathan
LKH	David Bowie	Lothar Blumhagen
Stefan	Dee Bradley Baker	Edwin Gellner
Angry Jack	Dee Snider	Lutz Schnell
Queen Amphitrite	Victoria Beckham	Christin Marquitan
Triton	Sebastian Bach	Nico Sablik
Zeus	Dee Bradley Baker	Wilhelm-Rafael Garth
Plankton's grandmother	Laraine Newman	Eva-Maria Werth
Madame Schleimaal	Kristen Wiig	Denise Gorzelanny
Ma angler	Amy Sedaris	Isabella Grothe
Warriors from the old days	Dee Bradley Baker	Klaus-Peter Grap
Samantha Star	Bill Fagerbakke	Marco Kroeger
Tony flott jr	Doug Lawrence	Julius Jellinek
Bill	Rodger Bumpass	Stefan Gossler
Frederick T. Tinnef	Dee Bradley Baker	Engelbert von Nordhausen
Fasi Acorns	Rich Fulcher	Lutz Schnell
Captain Stockfish	Rodger Bumpass	Axel Lutter
Mr. von Paragraph	Bill Faggerbake	Christoph Banks
Colonel Carper	Andy Samberg	Michael Iwannek
Johnny Krill	Johnny Knoxville	Bernhard Völger
Captain Frost Mug	Michael McKean	Frank Röth
Kenny the cat	Biz Markie	Julien Haggége
Boss of the company	Frank Ferrante	Erich Rauker
Siggi barnacles	Bob Barker	Sven Gerhardt
Oswald McNulty	Dee Bradley Baker	Julius Jellinek
Karl coral guardian	Jeff Bennett	Johannes Berenz
Bargelda	Sirena Irwin
Eugenie	Betty White	Luise Lunow
Marina	Jill Taley	Maria Hönig
Nocturna	Aubrey Plaza	Anne Helm
Nixie	Sirena Irwin	Laurine Betz
Sharkface	Henry Winkler	Fabian Oscar Vienna
Lonnie	Michael McKean	Nico Sablik
Ronnie	Clancy Brown
Donnie	David Lander	Julius Jellinek
Arno Notorious	James Arnold Taylor	Michael Pan
Steffen, the grim reaper	Bill Faggerbake	Rafael Albert
Don Grouper	Jon Hamm	Sascha Rotermund
Older cop	Ed Asner	Uli Krohm
Long fin whiting	Joe Pantoliano	Hans Hohlbein
Ice cream king	Peter Browngardt	Marco Kroeger
Knuddel K. Kuschel	Jeff Garlin	Detlef Bierstedt
Thaddina	Jill Taley	Betty Förster
Santa Claus	Lewis Black	Reinhard Scheunemann

Seasons

Charisma

The English premiere was on Nickelodeon . The German-language first broadcast took place in the first four seasons on Super RTL . Since the fifth season, the German-language first broadcast took place on the German station of Nickelodeon, Nick (2010-2017 Nickelodeon) or on its pay-TV branch Nicktoons (until 2010 Nick Premium).

Episode list

→ Main article : SpongeBob SquarePants / Episode List

Films / specials

Film / special	Original title	US premiere	German title	German First broadcast
1	Christmas Who?	December 6, 2000	Christmas underwater	December 6, 2002
2	Shanghaied	March 9, 2001	Wrong-way drivers	October 2, 2002
3	Party Pooper Pants	May 17, 2002	SpongeBob's house party	September 15, 2003
4th	Ugh	March 5, 2004	SpongeBob in the Stone Age	September 18, 2003
5	The Sponge Who Could Fly	March 21, 2003	The flying sponge	September 25, 2003
1. Movie	The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie	November 17, 2004	The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie	December 23, 2004
6th	Have You Seen This Snail?	November 11, 2005	Have you seen this snail?	January 22, 2006
7th	Dunces and Dragons	February 20, 2006	The noble knight	May 7, 2006
8th	Friend or Foe	April 13, 2007	Friend or traitor?	April 21, 2008
1. TV movie	Atlantis SquarePantis	November 12, 2007	SpongeBob's Atlantic Adventure	August 18, 2008
9	Pest of the West	April 11, 2008	The plague of the Wild West	February 15, 2008
10	WhoBob WhatPants - What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?	October 13, 2008	WhatBob WoHead? - Desperately wanted SpongeBob	July 19, 2009
11	SpongeBob vs. The Big One	April 17, 2009	The wave back	April 10, 2009
2. TV movie	Truth or Square	November 6, 2009	Escaped ice-cold	December 5, 2009
12	The Clash of Triton	5th July 2010	The 5000th birthday	November 13, 2010
13	SpongeBob's Last Stand	April 22, 2010	Save the jellyfish fields	April 22, 2010
14th	Back to the past	February 15, 2010	Earlier was earlier	March 13, 2010
15th	The Great Patty Caper	November 11, 2010	The great train adventure	May 1, 2011
16	Frozen Face Off	July 15, 2011	Sub zero under water	January 21, 2012
17th	A SquarePants Family Vacation	November 11, 2011	Once chaos and back	July 14, 2012
18th	Ghoul Fools	October 21, 2011	Ghost idiots	October 27, 2012
19th	It's a SpongeBob Christmas!	November 23, 2012	SpongeBob's Christmas	December 8, 2012
20th	Hello Bikini Bottom!	October 8, 2012	Hello bikini bottom	March 9, 2013
21st	It came from Goo Lagoon	17th February 2014	It came from the Goo lagoon	April 18, 2015
22nd	SpongeBob You're Fired	11th. November.2013	Chased off the grill	March 15, 2014
2. Movie	The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water	February 6, 2015	SpongeBob SquarePants 3D	19th February 2015
23	Goodbye, Krabby Patty?	20th February 2017	Goodbye Krabby Patties?	4th March 2017
24	Feral Friends	October 7, 2017	Feral friends	February 12, 2018 2
25th	The Legend of Boo-kini Bottom	October 13, 2017	HA-HA Halloween	5th June 2018
26th	Goons on the moon	November 25, 2018	Fool in space	December 24, 2018
27	Squirrel Jelly	18th November 2018	Jellyfish fishing stress	February 25, 2019
3. TV movie	SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout	12th July 2019	SpongeBob's big birthday party	13th July 2019
3. Movie	The SpongeBob Movie: It's a Wonderful Sponge	May 22, 2020	SpongeBob SquarePants: A sponge-like rescue	June 30, 2020

² The German-language premiere may already have taken place on January 23, 2018 on Nicktoons. However, it could not be confirmed whether the episode was in German or, as it was broadcast in December 2017, in English.

literature

• 2005: Marc Cerasini : The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie - The novel for a cinema hit! , Egmont Ehapa Verlag , ISBN 978-3-8025-3431-7 .

Home media publications

In addition to the (half) season publications, DVDs with individual selected episodes were also published under special titles. From April to October 2014, the eight complete seasons in Germany were released in chronological order of the episodes by Paramount Home Entertainment . In addition, an overall box containing the first eight seasons was released.

United States

• Season 1 was released on October 28, 2003
• Season 2 was released on October 19, 2004
• Season 3 was released on September 27, 2005
• Season 4.1 was released on September 12, 2006
• Season 4.2 was released on January 9, 2007
• Season 4 was released in full on November 13, 2012
• Season 5.1 was released on September 4, 2007
• Season 5.2 was released on November 18, 2008
• Season 5 was released in full on November 13, 2012
• Season 6.1 was released on December 8, 2009
• Season 6.2 was released on December 7, 2010
• Season 6 was released in full on November 13, 2012
• Season 7 was released on December 6, 2011
• Season 8 was released on March 12, 2013
• It's a SpongeBob Christmas (Eng. SpongeBob's Christmas ) was released on October 15, 2013 on Blu-ray
• Season 9 was released on October 10, 2017

Great Britain

• Season 1 was released on November 7, 2005
• Season 2 was released on October 23, 2006
• Season 3 was released on December 3, 2007
• Season 4 was released on November 3, 2008
• Season 5 was released on November 16, 2009
• Season 6 was released on November 29, 2010
• Season 7 was released on September 17, 2012
• Season 8 was released on October 28, 2013

Germany

• Season 1 was released on April 3, 2014
• Season 2 was released on April 3, 2014
• Season 3 was released on April 3, 2014
• Season 4 was released on July 3, 2014
• Season 5 was released on July 3, 2014
• Season 6 was released on July 3, 2014
• Season 7 was released on October 2, 2014
• Season 8 was released on October 2, 2014

Release history

SpongeBob SquarePants is produced by the US children's channel Nickelodeon . After a preview on May 1, 1999, the series has been running there since July 17, 1999.

In Germany , the series was shown on Super RTL from August 23, 2002 to June 29, 2009 . The broadcast included the first 73 episodes. The reason for the cessation of broadcasting was the loss of license rights. Since then, these have been exclusively owned by Viacom , Nick Deutschland's parent company , where the program has been broadcast since the channel began broadcasting on September 12, 2005. In addition, the series was shown on RTL on Sunday nights in 2003 and 2004 . In 2009 and 2010, individual issues were also shown on MTV and from September 14, 2009 to September 7, 2014 SpongeBob SquarePants was also shown on VIVA . The Pay TV transmitter Nicktoons Germany exudes the series out also. After a long break from broadcasting, SpongeBob has been shown on Nicktoons again since February 29, 2016 (MTV, VIVA and Nicktoons belong to the Viacom group like Nickelodeon). In Switzerland , the series was broadcast for a long time in the now discontinued Nickelodeon window on SRF Zwei and after a long break it was taken back into the program. It last ran there in June 2010, airing up to episode # 109. In Austria the series could be seen between 2004 and 2011 on ORF eins up to episode # 94. Comedy Central has been broadcasting the series from 7:15 on weekdays since April 2020.

The first feature film, The SpongeBob SquarePants Film , was released in US cinemas on November 19, 2004, and in Germany on December 23, 2004. In September 2008, SpongeBob's Atlantic Adventure followed , and in December 2009 the third film called Eiskalt Escape . With the ordered ninth season, the 200-episode hurdle should also be exceeded. In 2015, the second movie, SpongeBob SquarePants 3D (OT: The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water ) was released in cinemas for the first time in stereoscopic 3D. In 2020 the third film, currently known as The SpongeBob Movie: It's a Wonderful Sponge , will be released.

Nick also often ran an offshoot of SpongeBob SquarePants during the commercials : Your Horoscope with Squidward (in the original Astrology with Squidward ). There the different figures represent the zodiac signs and read the horoscope out loud . There are no records of some editions of Your Horoscope with Thaddäus , the offshoot is considered to be partially lost.

Reception and criticism

Modern social considerations

According to Robert Keser , author in the Bright Lights Film Journal , SpongeBob can be described as the Candide of the 21st century, who on the one hand masters all life situations with great optimism and has a zest for life that is sometimes already manic , but on the other hand also lapses into childlike helplessness can. He does not hide his emotions, but always shows them openly. It is not uncommon for them to reflect typical problems in our society in a very simple manner. SpongeBob often supports his views with striking slogans and, last but not least, enforces his attitude with them. In the episode Hard Shell, Soft Core , he is first exposed by the fact that he likes soap bubbles and jellyfish fish, until in the end it turns out that the other characters also have secrets that do not match their lived masculinity.

Controversy over SpongeBob's sexual orientation

US media reported in January 2005 about the fact that conservative - Christian alleged groups in the US, SpongeBob is gay . The background to this was that Dr. James C. Dobson , founder of the Christian organization Focus on the Family , publicly attacked a music video promoting tolerance towards minorities, people of different skin color and sexual orientation. The video was a remake of the hit We Are Family from 1979, in which SpongeBob and various characters from children's television appear. The video was from a nonprofit that Nile Rodgers , the songwriter, started after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Dobson took advantage of SpongeBob's popularity in his campaign to make the political goals of his organization known to families with children.

In the US gay culture, SpongeBob, like Tinky-Winky from the Teletubbies , has long been considered a gay figure. His exaggerated optimism, his emotional personality, often effeminate acting behavior and his penchant for colorful interiors match the Camp - culture , which applies in the United States as a lifestyle of urban intellectuals and gays.

Stephen Hillenburg , the inventor of SpongeBob, disliked such speculation. For him, SpongeBob and the other characters were "a bit strange", but " asexual " (so they have no real sexual interests / tendencies). In addition, it is often shown in the series that SpongeBob does not seem averse to the female gender: He always has a secret love for his best friend Sandy.

On June 13, 2020, an Instagram post from the Nickelodeon network sparked suspicions that Spongebob is gay. The caption of the post "Celebrating Pride with the LGBTQ + community and their allies this month and every month", translatable as "We are celebrating Pride with the LGBTQ + community and its allies this month and every other month", on the occasion of Pride Month left this speculation to. The post also features the bisexual main character Korra from The Legend of Korra and Michael D. Cohen from the Henry Danger series , who lives as a transgender .

franchise

SpongeBob also serves as the basis for other products. Figures and computer games , among other things, are popular .

From August 27th to 29th 2010 the first SpongeBob Camp started in Germany. The 150 places could be won on the SpongeBob summer tour.

In March 2011, a CD with 16  cover versions of well-known pop hits was released under the title BOB Music - The Yellow Album . The album made it into the German album charts of Media Control at number 17 as soon as it was released. The track Lecker Lecker (a cover version of the hit Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) by Shakira ) was also able to place due to digital download sales. He was listed at number 43 in the single charts.

Discography

Albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)			Remarks
		DE	AT	CH
2009	Spongebob	-	AT6th gold (30 weeks)AT	-	First published: March 13, 2009 Sales: + 10,000
	SpongeBob's Greatest Hits	-	AT63 (1 week) AT	-	First published: July 17, 2009
2011	BOBmusik - The yellow album	DE12 gold (29 weeks)DE	AT1 platinum (28 weeks)AT	CH42 (8 weeks) CH	First published: May 25, 2011 Sales: + 120,000
	BOBmusik - The yellow winter album	-	-	-	First published: November 25, 2011
2012	SpongeBob - The Blue Album	DE28 (9 weeks) DE	AT4 (12 weeks) AT	CH59 (2 weeks) CH	First published: March 9, 2012
2013	Bob Star - The totally wacky album	DE6 (13 weeks) DE	AT3 gold (13 weeks)AT	-	First published: March 15, 2013 Sales: + 7,500
	Bob Hits - The very best album	DE92 (1 week) DE	AT25 (3 weeks) AT	-	First published: October 4, 2013
2014	My tootling	DE15 (8 weeks) DE	AT5 (8 weeks) AT	-	First published: March 21, 2014
2015	The SuperBob album	DE18 (10 weeks) DE	AT10 (9 weeks) AT	CH100 (1 week) CH	First published: February 13, 2015
2016	SpongeBob - The spongy album	DE13 (5 weeks) DE	AT12 (5 weeks) AT	-	First published: February 26, 2016
2017	SpongeBob - The master is grilling	DE12 (4 weeks) DE	AT16 (4 weeks) AT	-	First published: March 24, 2017
2018	Deep in the ocean	DE16 (5 weeks) DE	AT28 (4 weeks) AT	-	First published: March 2nd, 2018
2019	The yellow of the sponge	DE16 (5 weeks) DE	AT21 (3 weeks) AT	-	First published: March 29, 2019
2020	Jellyfish disco	DE18 (... weeks) DE	AT62 (3 weeks) AT	-	First published: March 6, 2020

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)			Remarks
		DE	AT	CH
2011	Lecker Lecker BOBmusik - The yellow album	DE43 (6 weeks) DE	AT45 (2 weeks) AT	-	First published: May 25, 2011
	Hummer BOBmusik - The Yellow Album	-	-	-	First published: June 2011
2012	There comes a submarine SpongeBob - The Blue Album	-	-	-	First published: March 9, 2012

• In addition, the original radio drama for TV series with Episode 1 and Episode 2 , each with a gold record award in Germany.

Trivia

A species of mushroom that was scientifically described for the first time in 2011, the Spongiforma squarepantsii , was named after it because of its similarity to SpongeBob SquarePants.

Up to the eighth season the episodes were produced in 4: 3 and in SD (exceptions: Eiskalt Escape, SpongeBob's Christmas and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie ), from the ninth season in 16: 9 and in HD.

Awards

The series has won the following awards:

• Annie Awards
• Best Animated Television Production (2005)
• Best Writing in an Animated Television Production (2006)
• Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards

• Best Cartoon (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017)

• Golden Reel Award
• Best Sound Editing in Television Animation - Music (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003)
• Best Sound Editing in Television Animation - Music (2000, 2003, 2004)
• Nomination: Creative Arts Emmy Awards (2007) for the episode Forced Leave / Wigs Panic

Web links

Commons : SpongeBob SquarePants  - Collection of images, videos, and audio files

• SpongeBob SquarePants in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Official German website
• nick.de Information and new episodes as video stream ( Memento from August 21, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
• Episode guide
• SpongePedia , SpongeBob SquarePants Wiki

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The first number stands for the number of episodes according to the production code and the second number for the number of different stories
2. ↑ SpongeBob SquarePants Figures
3. ↑ Dialogue director on Mikebetz.de
4. ↑ Amazing Voice Show: Interview with Santiago Ziesmer. Retrieved on May 9, 2020 (German). 
5. ↑ ^{a b c} SpongeBob SquarePants in the German synchronous file
6. ↑ ^{a b c} List of voice actors on SpongePedia.de
7. ↑ SpongeBob leaves SuperRTL and goes back to Nick , Der Westen, July 1, 2009, Jürgen Overkott
8. ↑ fernsehserien.de: broadcast dates , accessed on December 23, 2014
9. ↑ Bernd Michael Krannich: Nickelodeon orders season 9 of SpongeBob Squarepants . Serial junkies . January 3, 2011. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
10. ↑ Tom Butler: SpongeBob SquarePants Movie: Sponge Out Of Water Trailer Reveals New Look Team . Yahoo.com . July 31, 2014. Accessed July 31, 2014.
11. ↑ Trailer for 'SpongeBob SquarePants 3D' washed ashore! . Moviejones.de . July 31, 2014. Accessed July 31, 2014.
12. ^ Lost Media Wiki - Astrology with Squidward . Retrieved September 3, 2018.
13. ↑ brightlightsfilm.com
14. ^ ^{A b c} Roger Chapman, James Ciment: Culture Wars: An Encyclopedia of Issues, Viewpoints and Voices . Routledge, London / New York 2015, ISBN 1317473515 , page 255.
15. ↑ ^{a b c} Pamela Demory, Christopher Pullen: Queer Love in Film and Television: Critical Essays . Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, ISBN 113727297X , page 177.
16. ↑ Nickelodeon on Instagram , accessed June 14, 2020.
17. ↑ Fans after Instagram post sure: Spongebob SquarePants is gay. Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND), June 14, 2020, accessed on June 14, 2020.
18. ↑ With SpongeBob and Nickelodeon to the first SpongeBob summer camp. In: presse.nick.de. VIMN Germany GmbH, archived from the original on June 9, 2012 ; Retrieved February 19, 2016 . 
19. ↑ Welcome to the SpongeBob Camp from Jugendtours-Jugendreisen. In: jugendtours.de. Retrieved February 19, 2016 . 
20. ↑ CD presentation on mix1.de
21. ↑ Rise Against with direct entry at number one. In: gfk-entertainment.com. GfK Entertainment, accessed on February 19, 2016 . 
22. ↑ ^{a b} Chart sources: Germany - Austria 1 - Austria 2 - Switzerland
23. ↑ Awards: Germany Austria
24. ↑ The mushroom species is named after SpongeBob ( memento of the original from May 24, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
25. ↑ emmys.tv