WhoBob WhatPants?

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"WhoBob WhatPants?"
SpongeBob SquarePants episode

DVD cover
Episode no. Season 5
Episode 18 (98)
Directed by Alan Smart
Written by Casey Alexander
Zeus Cervas
Steven Banks
Produced by Paul Tibbitt
Original air date October 13, 2008 (2008-10-13) (Nickelodeon)
April 22, 2009 (2009-04-22) (CBS)
Guest actors

Ray Liotta as Trevor

Episode chronology
← Previous
"The Battle of Bikini Bottom"		 Next →
"The Two Faces of Squidward"
SpongeBob SquarePants (season 5)
List of SpongeBob SquarePants episodes

"WhoBob WhatPants?", also known as "What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?", is the 18th episode of the fifth season and the 98th overall episode of the American animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants. The episode originally aired on Nickelodeon in the United States on October 13, 2008, and on Earth Day on CBS on April 22, 2009, with a special extended version.

The series follows the adventures of SpongeBob SquarePants in the underwater city of Bikini Bottom. In the episode, SpongeBob loses his memory and wanders away into a new town. The episode was written by Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Steven Banks, and was directed by Alan Smart. The episode features the guest appearance of Ray Liotta as the voice of Trevor. Upon release, the episode pulled an average of 7.7 million viewers,[1] and was met with mostly negative reviews.

Plot summary

SpongeBob wakes up on a normal day as usual and wants to spend time with his friends; however, he ends up angering them. SpongeBob decides to leave Bikini Bottom, believing his friends now hate him after each of them calls him "idiot boy". As he leaves, he falls off a cliff and bumps his head, knocking himself unconscious. Back in Bikini Bottom, everybody feels sorry for making SpongeBob leave, with the exception of Squidward, who is delighted. Even worse, without SpongeBob making Krabby Patties to calm people, the city breaks out into massive chaos.

Meanwhile, SpongeBob wakes up with amnesia. He saw a couple of fish; however, they run in fear when they find out SpongeBob has a bottle of bubble soap. He wanders around until he ends up in New Kelp City where he attempts to get a job. Each time he gets a job he uses his bubble blowing ability, but this strikes fear into all the residents of the city. His activity brings up a confrontation with "the Bubble Poppin' Boys", who have scared the city into never blowing bubbles because they keep being blinded by the bubbles. SpongeBob uses his ability to get rid of the gang in a giant bubble that he blew out of town. He is rewarded by getting the position of mayor of New Kelp City.

Back in Bikini Bottom, Sandy, Patrick, and Squidward learn SpongeBob became the new mayor, but when they go to New Kelp City to retrieve him, SpongeBob cannot remember who they are. They manage to take SpongeBob and return him to the Krusty Krab, but he wants to return to New Kelp City. Meanwhile, Squidward slips and accidentally throws his Fabergé egg onto SpongeBob's head, which causes his memory to come back. But even so, SpongeBob still wants to return to New Kelp City. At that moment, a breaking news report comes on, saying that the bubbles in New Kelp City are blinding the citizens, and SpongeBob is being threatened by a thug. This makes SpongeBob change his mind and he says that he will stay in Bikini Bottom.

Production

Ray Liotta guest starred in the episode as Trevor.

"WhoBob WhatPants", also known as "What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?", was written by Casey Alexander, Zeus Cervas, and Steven Banks. Directed by Alan Smart,[2][3] the episode was first announced by Nickelodeon on September 24, 2008 on a press release.[4] According to the network, SpongeBob "wanders the ocean, a stranger in his own pants," and finds himself in a rough part of New Kelp City, where he faces off against the Boys' gangleader, Liotta's character.[5][6]

The episode originally aired in the United States on October 13, 2008.[7][4] From October 3, 2008, TurboNick featured a special playlist of content dedicated to the episode, including a sneak-peek of the special, themed episodes, short-form content, song clips and an instant replay of the special following the television premiere.[7][4] Nick.com, in 2008, presented a new game called "SpongeBob SquarePants: WhoBob WhatPants?" to celebrate the episode's television airing.[7][4][8] The episode also features SpongeBob's signature sea chanty altered to "WhoBob WhatPants?" during the chorus answers in the title sequence.[9]

In addition to the regular cast, American Emmy Award Winning actor Ray Liotta guest starred in the episode as the voice of Trevor, the leader of New Kelp City's Bubble Poppin Boys gang, and the main villain in the episode.[7][10][11]

On October 14, 2008, "WhoBob WhatPants?" became available in the DVD compilation of the same name, along with six other episodes including "Goo Goo Gas", "The Two Faces of Squidward", "SpongeHenge", "Banned in Bikini Bottom", and "Stanley S. SquarePants".[12][4][7]

Reception

"WhoBob WhatPants?" was viewed by 7.7 million audiences.[1] This ranked the program the number one most viewed entertainment show of the night, and the number two most viewed show in all categories after ESPN Monday Night Football.[13][14][15] Despite the high ratings, the episode received mixed to negative reviews from critics. Maddy Pumila said that the episode was "extremely fun and entertaining." He added "I hadn't watched Spongebob in a while, but the laughs in this episode provided more laughs than I would get in an entire day."[16]

Maxie Zeus of Toon Zone cited the episode as an example of the series' decline.[17] Lesley Aeschliman of Yahoo! Voices wrote "I have to look at this special like the 'Friend or Foe?' special. While 'WhoBob WhatPants?' works well as a regular story for SpongeBob SquarePants, I'm not entirely convinced that it deserved to be hyped up as a special. While this story had the potential to be 'special material,' it just didn't materialize in the final produced product."[18] Roy Hrab of DVD Verdict said, "It makes me sad to think about how something so pleasurable has declined into something so tedious."[19] Paul Mavis of DVD Talk said, "With a laugh-skimpy script, 'What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?' may be confirming a trend I noticed back with the last original SpongeBob toon to get its own disc release, Pest of the West: SpongeBob shorts are starting to get tired. And 'What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?' is even less funny than 'Pest of the West'," adding the episode was "Not a good sign."[9]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Nordyke, Kimberly (October 15, 2008). "Monday's 'SpongeBob' draws 7.7 mil viewers". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  2. ↑ "SpongeBob SquarePants - WhoBob WhatPants?". Film Club. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  3. ↑ "WhoBob WhatPants?". SpongeBob SquarePants. Season 6. October 13, 2008. Nickelodeon.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Liu, Ed (September 25, 2008). ""WhoBob WhatPants?" to Air on Oct 13, 2008, Guest-Starring Ray Liotta". Toonzone. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  5. ↑ "Ray Liotta Plays SpongeBob Villain". People. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  6. ↑ "Ray Liotta to voice criminal on Spongebob Squarepants". 3 News. October 2, 2008. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Moody, Annemary (September 25, 2008). "Ray Liotta To Guest Star In SpongeBob Special Oct. 13". Animation World Network. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  8. ↑ Maclntyre, April (October 8, 2008). "Ray Liotta squares off with SpongeBob Monday, Oct. 13". Monsters and Critics. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Mavis, Paul (October 13, 2008). "SpongeBob SquarePants - WhoBob WhatPants?". DVD Talk. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  10. ↑ "Ray Liotta guesting on Nickelodeon's 'SpongeBob SquarePants'". Media Life Magazine. September 26, 2008. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  11. ↑ "Ray Liotta Voices Criminal on Spongebob Squarepants". Babble. October 4, 2008. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 
  12. ↑ "SpongeBob SquarePants Stars In 'WhoBob What Pants?'". Starpulse.com. October 5, 2008. Retrieved October 18, 2008. 
  13. ↑ "7.7 million watched SpongeBob special". UPI. October 15, 2008. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  14. ↑ Gorman, Bill (October 15, 2008). "Monday's 'SpongeBob' draws 7.7 mil total viewers". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  15. ↑ Moody, Annemarie (October 16, 2008). "WhoBob WhatPants Finds 8 Million Viewers". Animation World Network. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  16. ↑ Pumilia, Maddy (October 16, 2008). "DVD Review: SpongeBob SquarePants - Who Bob What Pants". Blog Critics. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  17. ↑ Zeus, Maxie (October 12, 2008). ""Whatever Happened to SpongeBob?": Good Question!". Toon Zone. Archived from the original on December 9, 2009. Retrieved October 14, 2008. 
  18. ↑ Aeschliman, Lesley (October 14, 2008). "SpongeBob SquarePants: WhoBob WhatPants?". Yahoo!. Retrieved May 4, 2013. 
  19. ↑ Hrab, Roy (November 13, 2008). "Spongebob Squarepants: Who Bob What Pants?". DVD Verdict. Retrieved May 30, 2013. 

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