Rise And Shine:
How does Patrick get up in the morning? The answer to that question is just as convoluted as you'd expect.
This is the shortest segment of the episode, and quite a good one. When he wakes up we see Patrick being so dimwitted he doesn't understand where the alarm clock sound is coming from. He even asks the clock itself at one point where it's ringing.
The best joke is when he opens up the pantry looking for food. He gets mad that all he has are cans with pictures of food on them, until he realizes that's... actually what it is. The thought of him storing all these cans for that time, even worse, buying them when he doesn't think they contain anything anyway is really funny to think about.
Then when he grabs a can of food he waits for the can to open on its own. There's an amusing subversion where we think he's gonna find a can opener or at least something to crack it open with. But he just takes out a plate, under the assumption that it simply needed something to serve it on.
After eating his breakfast in front of the TV for a while he realizes he's late and has to "put on his teeth and brush his pants". The sequence of him doing his last-minute preparations such as brushing his teeth and getting dressed is brief, but fun and energetic. Overall, this was a nice and simple idea executed just right.
Waiting:
After going through dozens of cereal boxes, SpongeBob has the winning ticket for a toy. But while he's waiting for it, he becomes so impatient he quickly goes insane.
It starts off great with SpongeBob buying a cereal box that says "Free Prize", naively assuming he can get one just like that. But after finishing the box he reads the description more carefully and realizes it says "Free prize *offer", plus that he has to send in 99 box tips. So out of pure desperation he eats up all of them. Only to then figure out he could have collected all the box tips without eating the cereal! Seriously, is this guy the worst reader ever? It just makes me laugh how he went through all this trouble in vain just because he's so bad at following instructions.
When he's finally sent in all his box tips, all that's left is the wait. The long, terrible wait. Patrick joins him by the side, and they start chanting "I'm waiting". I like the visual of their stomachs barking and growling at each other like dogs when they get hungry. Patrick is forced to leave since it starts to bite his arm, but SpongeBob stays.
I love that his impatience grows so powerful that he's able to tackle Sandy when she comes by to ask if he wants to go for a karate lesson. She doesn't even seem shocked, just annoyed.
Patrick eventually returns, but arrives at a bad moment where SpongeBob's fuse is now short. This entire scene is pure comedic gold. He missed his surprise birthday party, so Pat brought him cake and a present. But he can't find the fork, so after he can't find it he eats the cake himself. SpongeBob's understandably sad that there now is no cake, but at least there still is the gift. What does he find in there? The fork! It's incredible how such a mix-up could even have happened in the first place.
But lo and behold, the mailman comes to the rescue and has the package for Sponge ready. Eager to see what the toy looks like, he enthusiastically rips it open. It's really nothing special, but to him it's the greatest thing ever. But his anger strikes again when Patrick seemingly breaks it only seconds after. SpongeBob's deadpan tone in his voice while falsely smiling right before lashing out again makes me grin already, since it gives off such an unnerving vibe.
Squidward tries to stay out of it, but has to intervene anyway when his yellow menace and Patrick won't stop crying. He shows them it's a spring toy, so it didn't actually break at all, and is easy as pie to put back together. Brimming with joy at help they ask how they can repay him. Squidward's reply "Move to another neighborhood." is a good final chuckle.
Fungus Among Us:
Gary is hungry, but doesn't want to eat the usual crap his owner serves him. When he starts eating the green stuff on the floor, SpongeBob reprimands him and tries to clean it off. Alas though, he gets some on himself and gets infected with fungus!
Yeah... Undoubtably this is my least favorite of the three. The biggest issue I have is that watching disgusting green fungus infest every area and SpongeBob scratch himself furiously doesn't make for the most pleasant or entertaining viewing experience. And since the plot focuses on how icky this infestation is, there's not much room for other kinds of gags.
That's not to say nothing made me chuckle whatsoever. The complaining customer with the posh accent was a fun character and Squidward calling the SWAT team was actually a case of overreaction that worked.
Patrick being a moron and breaking the bubble was a little frustrating, but he did at least blow another one for him to live in. A rare case of Patrick managing to right something wrong. However, SpongeBob returning to The Krusty Krab and the customers getting angry and attacking him pissed me off. I know Bikini Bottom citizens are dumb, but ignoring his warnings when he says that the fungus will leak out and infect the entire place just got on my nerves.
Unsurprisingly, the whole joint gets sprayed with green fungus, which leaves Mr. Krabs in despair. But Gary comes to the rescue and starts eating all the fungus off the floor and the employees. Mr. Krabs' money brain gets the idea to charge 5 dollars for every clean-up. Maybe if Gary likes fungus so much I should give it a try some time? Nah, just kidding.
However, while I do think this is the first bad episode of the show, I've seen far worse ones from later on, even if this probably gave inspiration to the infamous The Splinter. At least it still kinda has the SpongeBob atmosphere intact instead of feeling like an alien of its former self. I definitely can't recommend it however since it's pretty low on humor as a whole.
So with two good segments and one mediocre, we end up with a decent SpongeBob outing. It may not be a season highlight, but it's mostly worth a watch.
How does Patrick get up in the morning? The answer to that question is just as convoluted as you'd expect.
This is the shortest segment of the episode, and quite a good one. When he wakes up we see Patrick being so dimwitted he doesn't understand where the alarm clock sound is coming from. He even asks the clock itself at one point where it's ringing.
The best joke is when he opens up the pantry looking for food. He gets mad that all he has are cans with pictures of food on them, until he realizes that's... actually what it is. The thought of him storing all these cans for that time, even worse, buying them when he doesn't think they contain anything anyway is really funny to think about.
Then when he grabs a can of food he waits for the can to open on its own. There's an amusing subversion where we think he's gonna find a can opener or at least something to crack it open with. But he just takes out a plate, under the assumption that it simply needed something to serve it on.
After eating his breakfast in front of the TV for a while he realizes he's late and has to "put on his teeth and brush his pants". The sequence of him doing his last-minute preparations such as brushing his teeth and getting dressed is brief, but fun and energetic. Overall, this was a nice and simple idea executed just right.
Waiting:
After going through dozens of cereal boxes, SpongeBob has the winning ticket for a toy. But while he's waiting for it, he becomes so impatient he quickly goes insane.
It starts off great with SpongeBob buying a cereal box that says "Free Prize", naively assuming he can get one just like that. But after finishing the box he reads the description more carefully and realizes it says "Free prize *offer", plus that he has to send in 99 box tips. So out of pure desperation he eats up all of them. Only to then figure out he could have collected all the box tips without eating the cereal! Seriously, is this guy the worst reader ever? It just makes me laugh how he went through all this trouble in vain just because he's so bad at following instructions.
When he's finally sent in all his box tips, all that's left is the wait. The long, terrible wait. Patrick joins him by the side, and they start chanting "I'm waiting". I like the visual of their stomachs barking and growling at each other like dogs when they get hungry. Patrick is forced to leave since it starts to bite his arm, but SpongeBob stays.
I love that his impatience grows so powerful that he's able to tackle Sandy when she comes by to ask if he wants to go for a karate lesson. She doesn't even seem shocked, just annoyed.
Patrick eventually returns, but arrives at a bad moment where SpongeBob's fuse is now short. This entire scene is pure comedic gold. He missed his surprise birthday party, so Pat brought him cake and a present. But he can't find the fork, so after he can't find it he eats the cake himself. SpongeBob's understandably sad that there now is no cake, but at least there still is the gift. What does he find in there? The fork! It's incredible how such a mix-up could even have happened in the first place.
But lo and behold, the mailman comes to the rescue and has the package for Sponge ready. Eager to see what the toy looks like, he enthusiastically rips it open. It's really nothing special, but to him it's the greatest thing ever. But his anger strikes again when Patrick seemingly breaks it only seconds after. SpongeBob's deadpan tone in his voice while falsely smiling right before lashing out again makes me grin already, since it gives off such an unnerving vibe.
Squidward tries to stay out of it, but has to intervene anyway when his yellow menace and Patrick won't stop crying. He shows them it's a spring toy, so it didn't actually break at all, and is easy as pie to put back together. Brimming with joy at help they ask how they can repay him. Squidward's reply "Move to another neighborhood." is a good final chuckle.
Fungus Among Us:
Gary is hungry, but doesn't want to eat the usual crap his owner serves him. When he starts eating the green stuff on the floor, SpongeBob reprimands him and tries to clean it off. Alas though, he gets some on himself and gets infected with fungus!
Yeah... Undoubtably this is my least favorite of the three. The biggest issue I have is that watching disgusting green fungus infest every area and SpongeBob scratch himself furiously doesn't make for the most pleasant or entertaining viewing experience. And since the plot focuses on how icky this infestation is, there's not much room for other kinds of gags.
That's not to say nothing made me chuckle whatsoever. The complaining customer with the posh accent was a fun character and Squidward calling the SWAT team was actually a case of overreaction that worked.
Patrick being a moron and breaking the bubble was a little frustrating, but he did at least blow another one for him to live in. A rare case of Patrick managing to right something wrong. However, SpongeBob returning to The Krusty Krab and the customers getting angry and attacking him pissed me off. I know Bikini Bottom citizens are dumb, but ignoring his warnings when he says that the fungus will leak out and infect the entire place just got on my nerves.
Unsurprisingly, the whole joint gets sprayed with green fungus, which leaves Mr. Krabs in despair. But Gary comes to the rescue and starts eating all the fungus off the floor and the employees. Mr. Krabs' money brain gets the idea to charge 5 dollars for every clean-up. Maybe if Gary likes fungus so much I should give it a try some time? Nah, just kidding.
However, while I do think this is the first bad episode of the show, I've seen far worse ones from later on, even if this probably gave inspiration to the infamous The Splinter. At least it still kinda has the SpongeBob atmosphere intact instead of feeling like an alien of its former self. I definitely can't recommend it however since it's pretty low on humor as a whole.
So with two good segments and one mediocre, we end up with a decent SpongeBob outing. It may not be a season highlight, but it's mostly worth a watch.
