Who's Afraid of Mr. Snippers?/A Fish called Sandy

I am an avid spongebob fan. As an aspiring animator, filmmaker and marine biology enthusiast, Spongebob has always opened my imagination through surreal, bizarre and unique episodes, which further explore the surprisingly fascinating world of Spongebob, and yet the show has always done it so simply, through organic and heartwarming chemistry with characters, and relaxed surf music. For years, the show has lost its formula, drowning in flanderisation of characters, concepts that feel too absurd to be grounded in any way, and virtually no episodic structure. THIS episode, however, regained the show's spirit and formula in 10 MINUTES. Spongebob and Sandy are returned to their natural state as characters. Spongebob, a clever, kind yet goofy protagonist, Sandy, a science nut who has an avid curiosity and sense of wonder for the alien world she exists in, the two characters exploring the vibrant, beautiful world of the show, of which has been restored to its former glory. The story is kinda crazy, but simple in execution, allowing genuine longevity, both in its storytelling and artistry. THIS is Spongebob. THIS is what it's all about.

Who's Afraid of Mr. Snippers?

The return of the two megalomaniacs. Squidward and Plankton are a fantastic duo we rarely see. Egos collide and it shows as well as how their creative minds work well together. Karen really worked as the director and peacekeeper between Plankton and Squidward and SpongeBob nails it as Mr. Snippers. It's a HUGE step-up from "The Play's the Thing" as there's no bad food, no infliction of pain, no psychological breakdown, and it's a great play worth watching. Only downside was that the bickering can get a little repetitive but that's it

9.5/10

A Fish Called Sandy

Flawless, smooth, intelligent, nostalgic! "A Fish Called Sandy" is everything from the Golden Era of SpongeBob and more. Sandy experiences the wonders of the ocean and is given gills thanks to her latest science experiment and we get callbacks in the style of season 1. From SpongeBob playing with a piece of paper to him warning Sandy to avoid the hooks in order to prevent another "NudityPants" incident. Speaking of season 1 gold, we get something that we've all missed from SpongeBob during the Dark Era: his intelligence. After Sandy's experiment goes awry and she turns into a Dunkleosteus-esq predator, SpongeBob displays his intelligence by figuring out that Sandy has the antidote at her treedome just by seeing Sandy raid Gary's pudding stash. They even remember that they have to turn Fred back to normal at the end of the episode. It's a must watch episode that would make Stephen Hillenberg proud. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to enjoy some pudding.

10/10.

This episode brought back fond memories of the golden era of seasons 1-3. While I wouldn't call it a perfect episode I gave it a 10 out of 10 simply because it brought hope to me again , not about having a flawless plot or story. What matters to me is that this episode finally revived the core elements that made classic SpongeBob so watchable. It feels refreshingly different from modern SpongeBob and, in many key ways, reminiscent of the classic series we all know and love , like :

Pacing Done Right

One of the standout improvements is the pacing. This episode returns to the natural, well-timed flow of actions, jokes, and dialogue that defined the early seasons. In contrast, modern SpongeBob often feels like a disjointed mix of short, over-the-top gags and rapid actions with little context. It's as if the modern show tries too hard to be funny, resulting in a rushed, clip-like structure that can feel soulless. This episode, however, gets the timing just right.

The return of the good old Art Style

The art style is another welcome change. Modern SpongeBob has become overly saturated, with exaggerated and unnecessary facial expressions popping up every few seconds, which I find distracting and annoying. This episode tones down those excesses, making the visuals more pleasant and aligned with the classic aesthetic we love

Characters and Sound That Feel Familiar

The characters' personalities also bring back the golden era vibe . In recent seasons, they've faded, but here, they feel authentic and true to their original selves. On top of that, the background sound is a highlight calm, relaxing, and infused with that iconic underwater ambiance in the intro especially , complete with iconic music like "Aloha" . Modern SpongeBob, by comparison, leans on excessive, noisy, and often random soundtracks that feel out of place , it has lost the charm and the identity of the underwater world , and started feeling more like a normal cartoon .

When you put these elements together : pacing, art style, character integrity, etc... it's easy to see why classic SpongeBob is so beloved, you don't even have to try too hard to make it work , it's inherently good . Modern SpongeBob, on the other hand, often feels like a soulless production, seemingly aimed at like 5 year olds , just like Patrick Star Show ( which I interpreted after watching a bit from it) . Sometimes the new seasons don't even feel like the same show anymore ...

This was a simple episode , with a simple plot , but felt so special compared to modern episodes for bringing back most of these core elements , which again makes the show enjoyable without even trying . I don't wanna praise the episode specifically , rather I want to praise the comeback to the old golden style .

Message to Nickelodeon

This is a message to Nickelodeon: despite the spinoffs and the changes to the series, please strive to bring back more episodes like this one, it doesn't have to be for a young audience only , I was like 10 years old when I enjoyed the old seasons , just like adults did , because that Spongebob was ageless . As Spongebob fans, that's what we truly want .

Who's Afraid of Mr. Snippers?: A Plankton and Squidward episode is a fun concept that hasn't been done much before, and I do sort of like their dynamic in this episode, but I their constant bickering takes up too much time. They hype up their play so much, but we only get to see the opening scene. It would've been fun to see at least a little bit more of it. It's not a bad episode, though, and I like how SpongeBob is an actual part of the plot instead of just showing up and adding nothing like he does in many non-SpongeBob-focused episodes before BassWard.

A Fish Called Sandy: This episode gets loads of praise, but after watching it myself, I think some fans are blinded by nostalgia. The episode is animated in a retro style mimicking the earlier seasons, but this mimicry's a little off. The colors are all wrong, and the animation feels stiff. As someone who actually likes the bright and fluid style of the recent seasons, I'd rather the show embrace the new than try and fail to mimic the old. The voice acting also feels super stilted - I think Tom Kenny was trying to use the older, lower SpongeBob voice, but it doesn't sound right, and Sandy just sounds phoned in. And while I normally like transformation plots, this episode spends too much time referencing other episodes to let its own plot shine - and referencing classics doesn't make it one. It's a below-average episode slathered in nostalgia-colored paint. It's dying plain tofu brown and calling it vegan steak. I grew up watching old SpongeBob reruns, but I like plenty of newer episodes too, and I don't want the showrunners to think that empty pandering beats genuine attempts at creativity. As Sandy learns, fish are great and all, but a squirrel is better off as a squirrel.

Spongebob's Modern episode a fish called sandy definitely brings back all of our childhood using season 1 designs and references. Including Nature Pants, and Hooky. This is definitely a great nostalgic and somewhat kinda emotional childhood a bit. But this is hyped for a comeback. Though the fisherman scene they've could've used an old vintage digital camera they've used in the 90s. But the rest is nostalgic and brilliantly epic and awesome. Which is why I love this episode, it brings back all the memories we've used to have back in our days. We've really need nostalgic episodes like this to make our childhood better again.