Spongebob

SpongeBob SquarePants (born July 14, 1986; age 29 ) is the main protagonist, and the eponymous character, of the Nickelodeon animated comedy series of the same name. He was designed by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, and is voiced by Tom Kenny. SpongeBob is a childish, joyful, eccentric sea sponge who lives in a pineapple in the underwater city of Bikini Bottom. He works as a fry cook at The Krusty Krab, a job that he is exceptionally skilled. SpongeBob lacks a lot of knowledge and is a constant annoyance to those around him (especially Squidward Tentacles), but he is very good-natured. He appears in all of the episodes in the series, and he was soon to be Nickelodeon's main mascot.

Description
SpongeBob SquarePants is a cute sea sponge, but he is drawn to resemble a kitchen sponge, being rectangular and bright yellow with a dark brown outline. In earlier episodes, he is wider near the top and gets skinnier going further down. However, in episodes that are more recent, he is more of a regular square shape. SpongeBob has large blue eyes, a long, slightly curved nose, a large mouth with two prominent front buck teeth, and dimples with three freckles on each cheek. He typically wears a white shirt with a red tie, black leather shoes with shoelaces, and brown rectangular pants with a black belt (the entire outfit is sometimes referred to as his "pants," hence his name). While working at the Krusty Krab, he wears a tall, white hat with a small blue anchor on it as a uniform. SpongeBob sometimes sleeps in his underwear, and at other times pajamas (beginning in Season 5). Though SpongeBob has always been voiced by Tom Kenny, his voice has changed over the course of the series; his voice is lower than normal in the pilot episode and after the movie, his voice gets slightly higher-pitched. In addition, SpongeBob never passed Boating School.

Personality
SpongeBob is a clueless, abnormal, immature, fun loving and hyperactive character with a happy-go-lucky personality. He is an extremely determined person, and will often stop at nothing to accomplish a task. He is also somewhat dramatic to the people who are kind to him, for example, to the mailfish. "Karate Island" He is also over-confident. Sometimes, though, he shows his devious side when trying to get Mr. Krabs and Plankton to work together. He sometimes tends to make mountains out of molehills, such as losing his nametag. "Missing Identity."

SpongeBob is very kind-hearted and innocent, and very rarely acts openly mean to anyone, even his enemies. He is a very selfless and loyal person, especially towards those close to him. His selfless nature is most notably shown in "Best Day Ever," where he sacrifices his "perfect day" to help his friends. Despite his well-meaning intentions, SpongeBob's actions often annoy and cause trouble for those around him, most notably his next-door neighbor, Squidward Tentacles.

SpongeBob can become scared easily and usually panics when frightened. He is afraid of the dark (or what is in the dark) "Night Light" and clowns "Rodeo Daze." He also hates hot sauce. "Karate Choppers." Occasionally, SpongeBob is too ignorant to notice impending danger and his unworldly thinking may put himself or others in peril. He also cannot detect lies or malice information as easy as the other characters, mainly due to his naive nature.

SpongeBob's innocence also makes him overly trusting and very gullible, and he is easily manipulated by people who intend to use and/or harm him, such as Squidward, Mr. Krabs and Plankton; most noticeably, he is always easily fooled by Plankton no matter how bizarre or obvious his disguises are. Even though he is generally good-natured and easygoing, when frustrated and angered, SpongeBob can be sarcastic, rude and 'foul-mouthed' to his friends, even Mr. Krabs, whom he treats as a father figure. Ironically, Squidward is the only character that SpongeBob never insults when he is angry; with the exception of the episodes "Can You Spare a Dime?" and "Breath of Fresh Squidward."

Although SpongeBob has several friends, and many of the citizens of Bikini Bottom often treat him quite friendly, most, if not all, citizens of Bikini Bottom have been shown to have some degree of dislike for him. In the episode "Gone," it is shown that a holiday called "National No SpongeBob Day" has been started by the citizens of Bikini Bottom. As its name suggests, it is an entire day dedicated to getting away from SpongeBob, where the people leave Bikini Bottom for the day. Even Patrick goes, stating that everyone needs at least one day away from SpongeBob's laughter. In the ceremony, they build a giant wooden effigy of SpongeBob, burn it down, dance on the ashes (though some, like Squidward, are actually shown kicking the ashes), and depart Bikini Bottom. SpongeBob is more honored than insulted by this, as he was the "inspiration" for the holiday.

Sometimes, SpongeBob is a nudist. In which he has a tendency to take off his clothes whenever he wants to. He was shown naked in "Ripped Pants," "Nature Pants," "The Paper," "Hooky," "Pranks a Lot," "All That Glitters," "Rise and Shine," "Overbooked," and "Model Sponge." SpongeBob got nude when he wanted to live with the jellyfish in Nature Pants. In addition, in "Model Sponge," SpongeBob got undressed when he is used in a sponge commercial. In Pranks a Lot, SpongeBob and Patrick had to strip in order to use the invisible spray. In "Overbooked," during the presentation, he is requested to undress and enter the machine.

Antagonistic side
SpongeBob is intelligent and his antagonism does not excuse him at all, including annoyance.
 * In "Nasty Patty," He helped Mr. Krabs create a tainted patty to "kill" the health inspector. They both thought the health inspector was a fake one and even put the nastiest things on the patty.
 * In "Squirrel Jokes," He made fun of Sandy by calling her stupid. Even though he promised Sandy that he would say no more squirrel jokes, he broke the promise. He also told Sandy that people would be laughing ”with" her, but they would actually laugh  at  her. However, this stopped once Sandy started being dumb and injured SpongeBob.
 * In "Pizza Delivery," he and Squidward get lost in the desert while delivering a pizza. They both are on the verge of starvation; however, SpongeBob repeatedly refuses to let Squidward eat the pizza even though they would both die of starvation without it.
 * In "Can You Spare a Dime?," He picked up Mr. Krabs tightly by the neck out of frustration and anger and yelled at him.
 * In "Pranks a Lot," He and Patrick trespassed and scared everyone, and attempted to burn Mr. Krabs' money.
 * In "Party Pooper Pants," Squidward went to his party when his cables were cut, obviously by SpongeBob.
 * In "Employee of the Month," he gets very worried that Squidward would win the Employee of the month award instead of him, hence he tries to sabotage Squidward (ironically making him try harder to get it, as he did not even care about it in the beginning). Finally, they both were exhausted and called a truce. However, once at work they destroyed the Krusty Krab from their "work." It then exploded from making too many Krabby patties thus customers picked them up and ate them free.
 * In "Christmas Who?," he cuts down Squidward's tree (which is actually illegal), and puts up decorations on Squidward's house even though Squidward said not to.
 * In "Squidward, the Unfriendly Ghost," He sent Squidward up in the sky even though Squidward said no more favors. However, this was because he thought that Squidward was still dead, due to his naive nature.
 * In "Rodeo Daze," He kidnapped people, who would not help him, to help him save Sandy from a rodeo. That is technically illegal because it counts as kidnapping.
 * In "Toy Store of Doom," He annoyed an employee by singing. He also hid in the store past open hours and someone could have thought he might have been robbing the store.
 * In "Just One Bite," He forced Squidward to eat a Krabby Patty by handcuffing himself to Squidward.
 * In "Ripped Pants," He tricked the lifeguard into thinking he was dying, but it was a prank just to say he ripped his pants.
 * In "Sailor Mouth,” He used foul language, along with Patrick. (Mostly sounding like aquatic animal noises)
 * In "Pressure," he, along with Patrick, Krabs, and Squidward made fun of Sandy when she could not do things they could because she was a land creature.
 * In "The Thing," He and Patrick antagonized Squidward by asking so many questions. They also broke into the zoo and broke out Squidward.
 * In "Walking Small," He ruthlessly took what he wanted and accidentally drove everyone from the beach, but he was tricked by Plankton the whole time.
 * In "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie," He ruthlessly scolded Mr. Krabs (though drunk) because Mr. Krabs did not make him the manager of The Krusty Krab 2.
 * In "Best Day Ever," He scolded everybody who made him fail in having the best day ever.
 * In "Driven to Tears," He tore up Patrick's license and threw it out.
 * In "Squidward in Clarinetland," Squidward must go through the torture that SpongeBob created to find his clarinet.
 * In "A Pal for Gary," he scolded Gary for "being mean" to Puffy Fluffy, when it is actually Puffy Fluffy who is being mean to Gary.
 * In "The Other Patty," he created a new restaurant called The Flabby Patty which proves to better than the Krabby Patty. He forces Mr. Krabs and Plankton to work together (much to their dismay) to get the recipe. When they finally do, they find out it was not a real recipe. SpongeBob reveals that he was the one who created the Flabby Patty just to get them to work together, which got him, chased by an angry Mr. Krabs and Plankton.
 * In "Stanley S. SquarePants," after taking the blame for most of Stanley's mistakes, he finally exploded at both Mr. Krabs and Stanley when he saw that his spatula was broken by Stanley.

Villainous role
In "Nasty Patty," he helps Mr. Krabs "poison" the health inspector and bury him when they thought he was dead.

Scapegoat side

 * In "Karate Choppers," Mr. Krabs tells SpongeBob to stop karate for good, however, when he tells Sandy she does not believe him, and does karate around him. Krabs then fires SpongeBob even though he was not doing the one doing karate. However, Sandy then explains that she did not listen when he told her.
 * In "The Bully," Flatts the Flounder repeatedly threatens to beat up SpongeBob. However, he finally did only to find out that due to his "Sponginess" he was immune. Flatts tried for days until finally (at Boating School) he collapsed from exhaustion. SpongeBob then gives a speech about it while making a fist gesture. Hence, Mrs. Puff thought he had beaten him up intentionally, thus screaming "I'M GOING TO KICK YOUR BUTT!"
 * In "New Student Starfish," Patrick came with SpongeBob to Boating school in which he wrote a letter calling Mrs. Puff a big fat Meany and handed it to SpongeBob. Mrs. Puff then took away one of SpongeBob's good noodle stars even though it was Patrick's fault. However, Mrs. Puff probably did find this out when Patrick said, "See you SpongeBob, see you Big Fat Meany."
 * In "Party Pooper Pants," SpongeBob is locked out of his house while throwing a party hence he tries to break in, but is caught by the police. He then explains that it is his house and that he was locked out while throwing a party. However, he is then arrested for not inviting the two cops even though it is legal not to invite the police to a party.
 * In "Stanley S. SquarePants," SpongeBob's cousin works with him at the Krusty Krab (as Squidward moved away); he broke many things, which SpongeBob claimed were his fault. However, eventually SpongeBob could not take it anymore, and explained it was Stanley's fault.
 * In "Keep Bikini Bottom Beautiful," a piece of garbage fell off a statue of Squidward (made of garbage) so a cop gave him and Squidward a ticket for it even though it fell off on its own.
 * In Stuck in the Wringer, SpongeBob gets stuck in the wringer, and then Patrick glues him so that he could be stuck forever, he couldn't work, eat ice cream or play the games at the carnival with the wringer on, and after yelling at Patrick for what the forever glue did, he gets scolded by the townspeople for it.

Skills
Like many other cartoon characters, SpongeBob has been shown to have numerous extraordinary abilities and attributes over the course of the series (even though physically weak).


 * Soft Pliable Body: Due to his soft, pliable frame, he is capable of shape shifting, has some degree of invulnerability, being able to absorb any type of physical impact, shown most notably in the episode, "The Bully."


 * Regeneration: It is shown that he can quickly regenerate parts of his body that are injured or removed.


 * Boneless: SpongeBob is usually shown to be boneless (sea sponges being invertebrates), however in some episodes such as "I Had an Accident," bones are shown on his X-rays. He also had bones when he ripped his skin off in "Atlantis SquarePantis," and "The Splinter."


 * Absorbent: Being a sponge, he is also absorbent, and can expand his body by absorbing liquids. When he cries, he often re-absorbs his tears. Like in "The Bully" when Flats the Flounder kept on hitting him, but SpongeBob just absorbed all of his blows. Also, in I Had An Accident, he filter fed through his holes as he was a sponge.


 * Singing and Nose Playing: SpongeBob is shown to possess a fantastic singing voice. He uses his nose as a flute, which he is very good. He was also the lead singer in "Band Geeks." Later he uses his nose flute in "Best Day Ever" to drive away the Nematodes from the Krusty Krab.
 * Fry Cooking: SpongeBob has a job cooking Krabby patties at the Krusty Krab.
 * Jellyfishing: SpongeBob and Patrick jellyfish in several episodes, in "Jellyfish Hunter"; he caught every single jellyfish in the fields.
 * Tongue Boarding: SpongeBob tongue-boarded in "Pre-Hibernation Week," he can also do it in the Battle for Bikini Bottom video game.
 * Survival Skills: In "To Save a Squirrel," SpongeBob and Patrick almost ate each other to survive.
 * Bubble Blowing: SpongeBob can perform extraordinary moves with bubbles.
 * Driving: He drives perfectly in various episodes, but he drives recklessly on the episodes, which are the appearances of Mrs. Puff.
 * Karate: He trains in Karate perfectly, but he rarely mixes them up.
 * Destruction: Although, he does not know it and thanks to his poor driving skills, SpongeBob is actually skilled at Demolition Derbies. This was shown in "Demolition Doofus" as SpongeBob (who was using the name Le Squish) managed to defeat five other competitors (also surviving against Mrs. Puff.

Near-death experiences
SpongeBob's life has most usually been in good luck at his Boating School driving tests, where he gets himself and others (usually Mrs. Puff) injured or almost injured from his reckless driving. He also gets injuries from extreme sports with Sandy and the Radicals, Patrick, or living like Larry. He also almost froze to death in "Frozen Face-Off." He also almost did not make it against the Big One in "SpongeBob SquarePants vs. The Big One." One time he was almost eaten and starved to death in "To Save a Squirrel." In "I Had an Accident," SpongeBob did not concentrate on sandboarding and cracked his butt; the doctor said he was one of the lucky ones to survive.

Creation and development
Stephen Hillenburg intended to create a series about an over-optimistic sponge that annoys other characters. Hillenburg compared the concept to and. As he drew the character, he decided that a "squeaky-clean square" (like a kitchen sponge) fit the concept.

The first concept sketch portrayed the character as wearing a red hat with a green base and a white business shirt with a tie. SpongeBob's look gradually progressed to brown pants that were used in the final design. SpongeBob was designed to be a kid-like character who was goofy and optimistic in a style similar to that made famous by.

Originally, the character was to be named SpongeBoy, but this name was already in use. This was discovered after voice acting for the original seven-minute pilot was recorded in 1997. The Nickelodeon legal department discovered that the name was already in use for a mop product. Upon finding this out, Hillenburg decided that the character's given name still had to contain "Sponge" so viewers would not mistake the character for a "Cheese Man." Hillenburg decided to use the name "SpongeBob." He chose "SquarePants" as a family name as it referred to the character's square shape and it had a "nice ring to it." The "Cheese Man" mistake was used 3 times, CheeseHead (or CheeseBoy by the citizens of New Kelp City) was used as SpongeBob's fake first name in WhoBob WhatPants?, Nancy said "Oh, so now the talking cheese is going to preach to us" in Band Geeks, and Timmy Turner mistakenly called SpongeBob "a giant block of cheese" in the video game Nicktoons Unite!

Although SpongeBob's driver's license says his birth date is July 14, 1986, which would make the character 12 (nearly 13) years old at the time of his debut appearance on May 1, 1999, Hillenburg joked that he is fifty in "sponge years." He explained that SpongeBob actually has no specific age, but that he is old enough to be on his own and still be going to boating school. The decision to have SpongeBob attend a boat driving school was made due to a request from Nickelodeon that the character attend a school.

SpongeBob is voiced by veteran voice actor Tom Kenny. Kenny previously worked with Hillenburg on Rocko's Modern Life, and when Hillenburg created SpongeBob SquarePants, he approached Kenny to voice the character. Hillenburg used Kenny's and other people's personalities to help create the personality of SpongeBob.

The voice of SpongeBob was originally used by Kenny for a background character present in a crowd scene in Rocko's Modern Life. Kenny forgot the voice initially as he created it only for that single use. Hillenburg, however, remembered it when he was coming up with SpongeBob and used a video clip of the episode to remind Kenny of the voice. Kenny says that SpongeBob's high-pitched laugh was specifically aimed at being unique, stating that they wanted an annoying laugh in the tradition of and.

In SpongeBob SquarePants' broadcast in non-English languages, the voice actors dubbing SpongeBob's voice use Tom Kenny's rendition of the character as a starting point, but also add unique elements. For example, the French version has SpongeBob with a slight style.

Biography
SpongeBob SquarePants was born on July 14, 1986 to Harold SquarePants and Margaret BubbleBottom.

He lives with his pet snail Gary in a large-shaped house on 124 Conch Street, Bikini Bottom. His next-door neighbor, Squidward Tentacles, who lives in an Easter Island head, hates SpongeBob and is constantly annoyed by his antics. SpongeBob is oblivious to this, and believes Squidward to be his friend. Beside Squidward's house is the home of SpongeBob's best friend, Patrick Star, who literally lives under a rock.

SpongeBob works at the Krusty Krab, Bikini Bottom's most popular restaurant, where he is a fry cook and prepares all food served at the Krusty Krab, most notably Krabby Patties. The first episode of the series depicts SpongeBob applying for and being hired to this job. He says that it has been his lifelong dream to join the Krusty Crew, and that only now is he "ready." When he applies for the job, Squidward and Mr. Krabs, wanting no part of him, send him on a fool's errand for a "hydrodynamic spatula with port and starboard attachments and turbo drive." While he is out searching for one, several hundred hungry anchovies arrive and overwhelm Squidward and Mr. Krabs. SpongeBob soon returns, having actually found a hydrodynamic spatula, and saves their lives by feeding the anchovies, showing off his amazing cooking skills in the process.

SpongeBob's house is an orange pineapple with fully furnished windows and doors and even a gas pipe. Apparently when he first moved to Bikini Bottom, he viewed many different houses, but none seem to his liking. Just as he was about to give up, a pineapple from a boat above the water, falls into the sea and land onto the space that was Squidward’s garden where Squidward was still gardening in. He loves the house and buys it, leaving Squidward in misery by losing his garden and having SpongeBob living next to him.

SpongeBob is not only extremely good at his job, being able to produce a Krabby Patty within seconds, but has a strong passion and an abnormal love for it; something of a workaholic, he enjoys his job more than any other activity, and is saddened whenever he cannot be at work. He is also obsessed by Krabby Patties themselves; on numerous occasions, he has proclaimed them the best food in the world and in "Just One Bite" and "Shuffleboarding," he is shocked and horrified to see one thrown away. SpongeBob is one of the few characters to have fingers and the only main character to wear shoes. He is apparently very good at his job because he is the Vice Assistant General Manager of Certain Things (Stanley S. SquarePants). He also has been shown making a perfect Krabby Patty on his first try when he was a baby.

SpongeBob's skills as a fry cook could accurately be described as superhuman; in episodes such as "Help Wanted" and "Employee of the Month," he is seen making them at rates of hundreds or even thousands per minute. He has won 374 consecutive Employee of the Month awards at the Krusty Krab. In "Friend or Foe," it is shown that SpongeBob, as an infant, made a perfect patty on his first attempt. In "Neptune's Spatula," he is able to pull the Golden Spatula from the grease, making him the "chosen one" of King Neptune. In that same episode, it is shown that the burgers made by Neptune himself are horrible compared to SpongeBob's.

Squidward, the restaurants only other employee, runs the cashier and takes orders. Squidward is the polar opposite of SpongeBob; he hates his job (as well as the Krusty Krab itself) and performs it poorly. The employer of SpongeBob and Squidward, Eugene H. Krabs, is extremely greedy, selfish and abusive of his employees. He pays them extremely poorly, far below legal minimum wage, and is unhealthily obsessed with money. Despite this, SpongeBob is unquestioning of Mr. Krabs and looks up to him as an authority figure.

While not working, SpongeBob spends much of his time playing with his best friend, Patrick Star. Like SpongeBob, Patrick is childish, moronic and fun loving. The two have known each other since early childhood, and are members of the "Best Friends Forever Club."

Their usual activities include Jellyfishing, bubble blowing, and various others.Their antics are of constant annoyance to their neighbor, Squidward, on numerous occasions, has been put in harm's way as a direct result of their actions. Despite Squidward openly hating SpongeBob and Patrick, they are completely oblivious to this and believe they are his best friends. SpongeBob and Patrick's favorite superheroes are Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, who they convinced to come out of retirement.

SpongeBob's other best friend is a squirrel from Texas named Sandy Cheeks, who wears a special suit and helmet to survive underwater. SpongeBob first met Sandy when he saw her wrestling a giant clam, which he helped her defeat. Sandy then invited SpongeBob to her home, an airtight terrarium known as the Treedome, and SpongeBob, not knowing what air is, accepts. When he comes to the Treedome and realizes that there is no water, he begins drying up and attempts to survive without water, telling himself that he does not need it and that "Water is for quitters!" Eventually, however, he gives in and starts panicking. Eventually, Sandy gives SpongeBob and Patrick bowls of water to wear over their heads, which they typically wear whenever they visit the Treedome.

Unlike Patrick, Sandy is very intelligent, both technologically and practically, but is tolerant of SpongeBob's stupidity and enjoys his company, and in some episodes, it is implied that Sandy has even raised SpongeBob's intelligence considerably. They enjoy doing extreme sports together, most notably Karate. SpongeBob's skill in karate is shown to vary considerably between episodes. At times, he equals and even outmatches Sandy in skill, while at other times he is incompetent to the point where Sandy can send him flying a considerable distance with a single punch; in "Karate Island," Sandy openly states that her karate skills are better than SpongeBob's by "a country mile." SpongeBob on various occasions, has been hinted to have a crush on Sandy, even though SpongeBob staff disproves this.



SpongeBob also attends Mrs. Puff's Boating School, where he is periodically tested for his driver's license. However, he becomes extremely nervous and reckless when behind the wheel of a boat, and has consistently failed his test countless times, often injuring Mrs. Puff and/or damaging the school and/or the entirety of Bikini Bottom in the process. According to the episode "Mrs. Puff, You're Fired," SpongeBob has failed the exam 1,258,056 times, and is the only creature in the history of the school to fail the test. In that same episode, Mrs. Puff describes SpongeBob as "unteachable." Despite his inability to drive a boat properly, SpongeBob has been shown to be able to drive/ride various other things capably, including a rock, a rocket ship, a sandwich car, and a submarine. SpongeBob claims that he does know how to drive, but simply panics behind the wheel and cannot concentrate. In "Mrs. Puff, You're Fired," SpongeBob receives extremely good training from Mrs. Puff's extremely tough military-esque replacement and learns how to drive capably, but can only do so while blindfolded due to the teacher's strict drills and very specific teaching methods.

Family
SpongeBob has many relatives, most notably his parents, who appear in several episodes. Unlike SpongeBob, who has the appearance of a kitchen sponge, most of SpongeBob's relatives, while still cartoony, resemble actual sea sponges, being round in shape and brownish in color.

In "SB-129," a robotic descendant of SpongeBob named "SpongeTron" is seen, as well as a primitive ancestor. "Ugh" features a caveman version of SpongeBob known as "SpongeGar." SpongeGar is distinctly different from the primitive sponge seen in "SB-129," being more evolved and closer to his modern counterpart. "Pest of the West" features SpongeBuck SquarePants; an ancestor who saved Dead Eye Gulch in what is now Bikini Bottom from Dead Eye Plankton in 1882.

Occupation
For the majority of the series, SpongeBob takes the job of fry cook in the Krusty Krab. Acting like a workaholic, he treats his job seriously and with dignity. Primarily, he works as the janitor and fry cook, but occasionally takes the role of the cashier and manager.

SpongeBob also has been shown to take other jobs such as Mayor of New Kelp City after saving the denizens from The Bubble Poppin' Boys. He created the Pretty Patties and opened his own store, which was highly successful. Later, the painted food poisoned the many consumers that admired the creation. In "Welcome to the Chum Bucket," he was briefly employed at the Chum Bucket, but failed to do any successful work. In "Model Sponge," SpongeBob seemingly hears he was to be let go, but he has mistaken himself as the person to vacate his current life. Throughout his unemployed life during the episode, he tries to apply for many jobs, but he was not qualified for them as he was meant for the fry cook role at the Krusty Krab. He has also worked at Fancy during the worker switch.

Reception
Throughout the run of SpongeBob SquarePants, the SpongeBob characters have become very popular with both children and adults. The character's popularity has spread from Nickelodeon's original demographic of two to eleven-year-olds, to teenagers and adults, including college campuses and celebrities such as Sigourney Weaver and Bruce Willis. indicates that the unadulterated innocence of SpongeBob is what makes the character so appealing. SpongeBob has also become popular with gay men, despite Stephen Hillenburg saying that none of the characters are homosexual. The character draws fans due to his flamboyant lifestyle and tolerant attitude.

The popularity of SpongeBob translated well into sales figures. In 2002, SpongeBob SquarePants dolls sold at a rate of 75,000 per week, which was faster than dolls were selling at the time. SpongeBob has gained popularity in Japan, specifically with Japanese women. Parent company Viacom purposefully targeted marketing at women in the country as a method of building the SpongeBob SquarePants brand. Skeptics initially doubted that SpongeBob could be popular in Japan as the character's design is very different from already popular designs.

However, not all reception for SpongeBob has been positive. Many viewers, particularly those older or some that consider them "above" the series, find his character to be very obnoxious and/or annoying. Such issues have been amplified since season four and onwards as hundreds of formerly loyal fans turned on SpongeBob due to a "quality loss," in which the character's antics and mannerisms are significantly up played. 's Top 10: Irritating '90s Cartoon Characters ranked SpongeBob at number four. The publication said that his well-meaning attitude is "extremely annoying."

Multiverse
An alternate SpongeBob exists in a world where Plankton was successful. Like his mainstream counterpart, he likes his career, likes promotions and gets sad when he makes an error in someone's order. The most significant difference is that he was made co-cashier by Plankton and is employed by him.

An alternate SpongeBob is mentioned in every short of the series, "What if SpongeBob was Gone," without SpongeBob, Gary threw a humongous party that ended in disaster; Patrick in this universe cannot hunt jellyfish properly; Sandy gets injured when playing karate and the Krusty Krab ends in ruins and all would say except Gary, everything's better with SpongeBob.

Other SpongeBobs exist throughout non-TV media (see SpongeBob SquarePants in popular culture).

SpongeBob also has friends from other universes as shown in the video game Nicktoons Unite and its other sequels, Nicktoons: Battle for Volcano Island, Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots and SpongeBob SquarePants featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom. In these games, he and Patrick befriend Timmy Turner (as well as his fairy godparents Cosmo and Wanda), Danny Phantom, Sam Manson, Tak, ZIM, XJ9/Jenny, Stimpy, Jimmy Neutron, Tucker Foley, Goddard, Rocko, and Gir.

Patrick Star
SpongeBob's best friend and neighbor.

Sandy Cheeks
SpongeBob's second best friend. In "Truth or Square," when SpongeBob was trapped in the air duct, he remembered a marriage between Sandy and himself; however, it was only a stage show and not an actual marriage and in "The Great Escape," book he kisses Sandy on the helmet.

Pearl Krabs
Mr. Krabs' daughter and a distant friend of SpongeBob. Technically, at some point Pearl is always embarrassed by SpongeBob.

Squidward Tentacles
SpongeBob's neighbor and friend (but only to his dismay).

Mr. Krabs
SpongeBob's employer/boss and friend.

Plankton
The arch-nemesis of SpongeBob's boss, Mr. Krabs.

Mrs. Puff
SpongeBob's driving teacher.

Gary the Snail
SpongeBob's pet snail and friend.

Quotes

 * "Today's the big day, Gary!" (First line, ‘‘Help Wanted")
 * "There it is. The finest eating establishment ever established for eating: The Krusty Krab, home of the Krabby Patty, with a Help Wanted sign on the window. I've waited years for this moment. I'm gonna go in there, march straight up to the manager, look at him straight in the eye, lay it on the line, and - I can't do this!" (Help Wanted)
 * "Bring it around town. Bring it around town!" (Bubblestand)
 * It's all about finger strength, baby!" (Pressure)
 * "I'm ready!" (Several episodes)
 * "Order up!" (Several episodes)
 * "Barnacles!" (Several episodes)
 * "Tartar sauce!" (Several episodes)
 * "Ah, shrimp!" (‘‘Several episodes)
 *  " MR. KRABS! I WANNA GO TO BED! "  ("Arrgh!")
 * "Good morning world and all who inhabit it!" (‘‘Missing Identity)
 * "The most important meal of the day, servin' it up, Gary's way, pop!" (‘‘Missing Identity)
 * "Kare-a-tay!" (‘‘Karate Choppers)
 * "Fish paste!" (‘‘Rock Bottom)
 * "I'm ugly and I'm proud! (‘‘Something Smells)
 * "Sandy, you may not have noticed, but I is 100% mam-male (‘‘Prehibernation Week)
 * "Life is as extreme as you wanna make it." (‘‘Pre-Hibernation Week)
 * "The Krabby Patty Secret Formula is the sole property of The Krusty Krab and is only to be discussed in part or in whole with its creator, Mr. Krabs. Duplication of this Formula is punishable by law. Restrictions apply. Results may vary." (‘‘Imitation Krabs)
 * "If we're discussing the Secret Formula on the third Wednesday in January and it's not raining outside, after we gargle vanilla pudding, what do we do?" (‘‘Imitation Krabs)
 * "What could be better than serving up smiles?" (‘‘Can You Spare a Dime?)
 * "The sign says "kitchen," but my heart says "jail." ("Welcome to the Chum Bucket")
 * "K-R-A-B-B-Y-P-A-T-T-Y says I!" (‘‘Fear of a Krabby Patty)
 * "I gotta pinch myself because I must be dreaming. OOOOWW!" (‘‘Fear of a Krabby Patty)
 * "I'M READY TO PARTY! ARE YOU READY TO PARTY!?" (‘‘Mid-Life Crustacean)
 * "Cleanliness is next to managerliness." (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "You don't need a license to drive a sandwich." (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "I'm ready, promotion!" (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "I'm ready, depression." (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "Another Triple Gooberberry Sunrise, sir." (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "Step aside and you won't have to feel the awesome wrath of our mustaches!" (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "Doesn't it seem a little harsh to kill someone over a crown?" ("The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "I'm a Goofy Goober, yeah!" (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "I'm a Goofy Goober, ROCK!" (‘‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie)
 * "GARY! YOU ARE GONNA FINISH YOUR DESSERT AND YOU ARE GONNA LIKE IT!" (Dying For Pie)
 * "Uh... uh... uh..." ("The Algae's Always Greener")
 * "SOILED IT!" ("The Algae's Always Greener")
 * "Well, it's no secret that the best thing about a secret is secretly telling someone your secret, thereby secretly adding another secret to their secret collection of secrets. Secretly." (‘‘The Secret Box).
 * "I'm wearing three pairs of underwear right now!" ( " ‘The Secret Box ")
 * "I have to skip town, start a new life, live under an assumed name! BobPants SpongeSquare! Yeah, that's good. Grow a beard and shave it off, and live happily ever after!" (‘‘The Bully)
 * "Hey, you know, life's like a bucket of wood shavings, except for when the shavings are in a pail, then it's like a pail of wood shavings!" (‘‘The Bully)
 * "Good afternoon, sir. Could we interest you in some chocolate?" (‘‘Chocolate With Nuts)
 * "So, how long have you two ladies known each other?" (‘‘Chocolate With Nuts)
 * "Let's change our names to 'Why' and 'Bother.'" (‘‘Chocolate with Nuts)
 * "No, let's save that for when we're selling real-estate" (‘‘Chocolate With Nuts)
 * "I like Squidward..." (‘‘20,000 Patties Under the Sea)
 * "Wanna see me run to that mountain and back? Wanna see me do it again?" (‘‘Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy V)
 * "We've been smackledorfed!" (‘‘The Nasty Patty)
 * "C-A-M-P-F-I-R-E-S-O-N-G SONG!" (‘‘The Camping Episode)
 * "The world is your litter box!" ( " Dumped " )
 * "And you don't even need to use a bowlwlwlwlwlwl!" ( " Dumped)
 * "Can I make a Krabby Patty now?" ( " Krusty Krab Training Video)
 * "Remember that time that me and Sandy got married?" (‘‘Truth or Square)
 * "Squidward, that wasn't the peace treaty, that was just a copy of the peace treaty." (‘‘Snowball Effect)
 * "It matters not whether one is dirty or clean... for can cleanliness exist without filthiness? And would filthiness exist without cleanliness? (‘‘The Battle of Bikini Bottom)
 * "If I have to memorize a single order I think I'm gonna explode!" (‘‘Squilliam Returns)
 * "Airline food. My gosh, what is up with that stuff? Thank you, good night!" (‘‘Walking Small)
 * "Wee-Snaw!" (‘‘My Pretty Seahorse)
 * "Krabby the Clown is in the building!" (‘‘Krabby Land)
 * "How could you, Mr. Krabs? You promised these children Krabby the Clown. But all I saw out there was *sniff* Cheapy the Cheapskate!" (‘‘Krabby Land)
 * "I am now going to assault your mind with subliminal messages!" ( " Gary Takes a Bath)
 * "It's the Best Day Ever!" (‘‘Best Day Ever)
 * "Who put you on the planet? UGH!" ( " I ♥ Dancing ")
 * "Hi, Patrick! TIME TO SHARE!" ("Yours, Mine and Mine")
 * "Pearl, I don't think this is the Tunnel of Glove... it's the Tunnel of Evil!" ("Tunnel of Glove")
 * "SEVEN YEARS AGO!?! " ("Licence to Milkshake")
 * "Look at me, I'm naked!" (Help Wanted)

Trivia

 * On some occasions, SpongeBob wears glasses, like for Jellyfishing (for protection) or for reading. These are similar to those worn by his portrayer, Tom Kenny. Spongebobwithglasses.jpeg
 * In seasons one and two, his eyes are larger compared to other seasons.
 * In "Help Wanted," it is revealed that his first words were, "May I take your order?” However, this is wrong, as in "Truth or Square" his first known words are "Krabby Patty." However, in "Truth or Square," he was still inside his mother's womb, so when he said, "May I take your order?” it may have been after he was born.
 * SpongeBob has displayed some forms of telepathy. This is usually displayed in form of jokes about how annoying he can be.
 * "Sleepy Time" - SpongeBob affects his friends' dreams.
 * "Dying for Pie" - SpongeBob says hi to Mr. Krabs in Squidward's thoughts.
 * "The Great Snail Race" - SpongeBob asks Gary "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?” Gary thinks about TV, and SpongeBob replies negatively.
 * "Big Pink Loser" - SpongeBob thinks, "At least I'm safe inside my mind." Patrick thinks the same, as a result SpongeBob screams.
 * "Gary Takes a Bath" - SpongeBob assaults Gary's mind with a creepy image.
 * "The Hot Shot" - SpongeBob appears to have read Mrs. Puff's mind asking her what "incorrigible" means and Mrs. Puff said, "incorrigible" in her mind.
 * During the talk screens of the DS version of Creature from the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob has green eyes instead of blue.
 * SpongeBob is shown to be weak, but in episodes like "Can You Spare a Dime?" he showed super strength.
 * SpongeBob has on various occasions, insulted any or everyone who insults him or rather enrages him, including his friends.
 * On the cover of the SpongeBob's Box of Books box, SpongeBob's throat is dark purple. In the books, it is maroon.
 * SpongeBob's voice changes by the fourth season; it is lighter and sounds a lot more childish. In addition, his personality changes somewhat to be more childish, this affected the episodes plots from the fourth season up until about season 8. It is unknown why this was done. Most likely to attract even younger viewers, this possibly lessened adult viewers though.
 * SpongeBob has appeared on a few pictures on iCarly.com.
 * SpongeBob wears green pajamas instead of his usual underwear whenever he has a visitor or is at a sleepover (usually with Patrick or Squidward), possibly to make the episode more appropriate.
 * SpongeBob is a shape shifter in some episodes shown.
 * SpongeBob is a mascot of Nickelodeon and Nickelodeon Movies.
 * SpongeBob's regular outfit has two shirt pockets, two back pockets, two front pockets, a pocket in his tie, and another pocket.
 * SpongeBob appeared in every episode of the series, even as a cameo. He is the only character to hold this distinction.
 * Most of the time, his pants refer to his entire outfit, including the shirt and tie.
 * In one episode, SpongeBob was given a ten-dollar paycheck on Monday. It was a raise from starting out being paid as nothing then receiving underwear.
 * In "I Was a Teenage Gary," he is left-handed, but in later episodes, he is ambidextrous. This could be he was born a dominant lefty, but an accident with his left arm might have happened sometime after "I Was a Teenage Gary," which made him learn with his right or he just learned to write with both hands.
 * SpongeBob is said to be right handed, but in "Neptune's Spatula" he approved that he had two left hands.
 * SpongeBob is considered the most popular character on Nickelodeon.
 * Beginning in "My Pretty Seahorse" and heavily used in post-season 5 episodes, SpongeBob's nose usually droops down when he is sad, much like Squidward's nose is normally.
 * SpongeBob's voice actor also voices the Ice King in "Adventure Time with Finn & Jake," another show that debuted on.
 * SpongeBob's head has gotten bigger in each season.
 * SpongeBob's pupil and cornea (the blue part of his eye) have gotten larger and more elliptical in each season (before that, they were just perfect circles).
 * SpongeBob's name was originally supposed to be SpongeBoy, but this name was already in use by a mop product. Mr. Krabs references this by saying, "SpongeBoy, me Bob!" in the episode "Squeaky Boots."
 * Even though Mr. Krabs is the creator of the Krabby Patty, in "Are You Happy Now?" the narrator said that SpongeBob was the creator.
 * When he goes to the beach, he often wears swimming wear; in earlier episodes, they are blue, but they change to red in later episodes. This is first seen as a cameo in "Clams," but is very noticeable in newer seasons.
 * It was revealed in "Love That Squid" that SpongeBob is allergic to tulips.
 * It's revealed in "You Don't Know Sponge" that SpongeBob's favorite ice cream is plain vanilla, has an outie bellybutton, and his favorite color is beige.
 * SpongeBob's middle name might be Reginald because in SpongeBob's Truth or Square, he said it was Reginald although it could have been fake like the voice he was using.
 * SpongeBob has about 40 holes.
 * 12 front holes
 * 9 back holes
 * 5 holes on his left
 * 5 holes on his right
 * 5 holes on top
 * 4 holes on bottom