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Description
Season 5 of this series is really... interesting, to say the least. Compared to the seasons that came before this, this one was a lot more experimental in terms of its approach to plots and comedy. It's almost as if this season is its own entity, because nearly every single episode here has something wild and crazy to throw at you, and this alone makes this season such an enigma. I find it really hard to predict what people will even say about this season because it's unlike any other season in this series. Hell, I don't think this season even has a proper consensus since the opinions greatly vary, there's absolutely no middle-ground, and there's a reason for that, don't you worry.

Personally, I heavily appreciate what this season went for: being creative and thinking outside the box that was S1-4. Season 1 was a lot more relaxed and atmospheric and had characters drive the stories, while S2-3 were entirely comedy-driven, and 4 found a balance between the two. Season 5 mostly throws this away and says, "Let's throw shit at the wall and see what sticks." For a series that's as long running as this, I think this is what the series NEEDS to stay fresh and exciting, because I wouldn't want to see a series reuse the same formula over and over again and play it very safe. Sometimes, you need to dip your toe into the unknown, because you could come out with something great and I get it, this season isn't for everyone, but most of its experimentation in the end actually strengthened the season rather than weakened it, and there are certain aspects of it I feel are overlooked.

For starters, this season reintroduced the "short" format that was only present once in S1-4 (Reef Blower), and this is something I never knew I wanted to return, but it lead to some of the most visually impressive and innovative episodes of the series like SpongeBob vs. the Patty Gadget and The Donut of Shame. It allowed the crew to tell stories that they otherwise couldn't do in 11 minutes time, and these episodes have really cool gimmicks to them like how the former is entirely told through rhymes while the latter takes place from Patrick's point-of-view from start to finish. We even get another Krusty Krab Training Video-esque episode with Boat Smarts, and while I don't think it's anywhere near as great, it's like the only other episode besides KKTV to have a unique format to it.
I also love how this season actually has... lore? Is that what you call it? I'm just gonna go with that term since there's a lot more things we learn about characters in this season, particularly SpongeBob. We actually see a lot more of his family in episodes such as Pest of the West, Stanley S. SquarePants, and Blackjack, which is something that makes SpongeBob a lot more interesting as a character. Even the first episode of the season, Friend or Foe, gave us the story of how Krabs and Plankton became rivals in the first place, and the episode following it, The Original Fry Cook, tells us about the fry cook that came before SpongeBob. The fact that they're actually adding depth to things that a normal fan would usually question is a perfect way to not only make the characters more interesting, but it even makes Bikini Bottom as a whole even more of a majestic and fascinating place that could actually exist. Something as silly as The Battle of Bikini Bottom suggests that Bikini Bottom actually had a war at one point, which is just bizarre. It's super unexpected, but it can leave me on the edge of my seat throughout the run time of any episode like this. Even an episode like SpongeHenge, which doesn't even feel like it belongs in this series at all, is still an episode I find extremely fascinating and memorable just for that reason alone. It just proves that different doesn't always = bad.

However, that doesn't mean that this season isn't devoid of flaws, because as the season goes along, they do start to become more apparent. The biggest elephant in the room here has to be Atlantis SquarePantis, AKA the show's first TV movie. This is the one time where I think the experimentation was a complete and utter failure and part of this has to do with Nickelodeon. Atlantis SquarePantis literally KILLED the show, and that's completely disregarding the actual quality of the episode. After this TV movie, Nickelodeon hacked up SpongeBob's budget to pieces and... this is where the problems begin. I already discussed in my season 6 review how the season's animation was a complete downgrade from what came before and how Atlantis SquarePantis caused it, but it's just so frustrating and frightening how a lot of season 6's problems originated from the second half of this season. Don't get me wrong, the second half still really strong in terms of content, but in terms of visuals, it leaves a lot left to be desired. SpongeBob's golfball/Springer cheeks started to become more present in the second half, but they're thankfully easier to miss compared to S6. Sometimes, outlines will be downright unfinished, and likewise, animation could be reused from past episodes like the opening of20,000 Patties Under the Sea. This is stuff I discuss more in detail in my S6 review, so you should just check that out instead of having me repeat myself. Oh yeah, once in a while a really cool premise could go to waste like Whatever Happened to SpongeBob?, which on-paper sounds like the making of a great episode, but in the middle decides to become a cliched amnesia episode for some reason.

To sum up, season 5 of SpongeBob was a really interesting take on the show, and to be honest, I wish the series continued down the path this season established (up until 9A at most). Although I have a lot to discuss about S6 because of what it did wrong, S7-9A on the other hand are seasons that I just don't know what to say about them since they're the ultimate definition of "vanilla". Season 5 is the complete antithesis to them and it's far more interesting to both watch and talk about. I was overall really happy with how this season turned out. I think I may or may not prefer this season to S2 since it had more to offer in terms of what it had in store and was still a really funny and creative season that stands out in a way that most other seasons don't. I consider it a really GREAT season for that alone, and although I do welcome its attempts to spice things up, I 100% understand why some people turned away from the series at this point. I don't think I'd be recommending this season to anyone if I wanted to get them into this show, for what it is, it's still an fun and entertaining group of content.

Description
Season 5 of this series is really... interesting, to say the least. Compared to the seasons that came before this, this one was a lot more experimental in terms of its approach to plots and comedy. It's almost as if this season is its own entity, because nearly every single episode here has something wild and crazy to throw at you, and this alone makes this season such an enigma. I find it really hard to predict what people will even say about this season because it's unlike any other season in this series. Hell, I don't think this season even has a proper consensus since the opinions greatly vary, there's absolutely no middle-ground, and there's a reason for that, don't you worry.

Personally, I heavily appreciate what this season went for: being creative and thinking outside the box that was S1-4. Season 1 was a lot more relaxed and atmospheric and had characters drive the stories, while S2-3 were entirely comedy-driven, and 4 found a balance between the two. Season 5 mostly throws this away and says, "Let's throw shit at the wall and see what sticks." For a series that's as long running as this, I think this is what the series NEEDS to stay fresh and exciting, because I wouldn't want to see a series reuse the same formula over and over again and play it very safe. Sometimes, you need to dip your toe into the unknown, because you could come out with something great and I get it, this season isn't for everyone, but most of its experimentation in the end actually strengthened the season rather than weakened it, and there are certain aspects of it I feel are overlooked.

For starters, this season reintroduced the "short" format that was only present once in S1-4 (Reef Blower), and this is something I never knew I wanted to return, but it lead to some of the most visually impressive and innovative episodes of the series like SpongeBob vs. the Patty Gadget and The Donut of Shame. It allowed the crew to tell stories that they otherwise couldn't do in 11 minutes time, and these episodes have really cool gimmicks to them like how the former is entirely told through rhymes while the latter takes place from Patrick's point-of-view from start to finish. We even get another Krusty Krab Training Video-esque episode with Boat Smarts, and while I don't think it's anywhere near as great, it's like the only other episode besides KKTV to have a unique format to it.
I also love how this season actually has... lore? Is that what you call it? I'm just gonna go with that term since there's a lot more things we learn about characters in this season, particularly SpongeBob. We actually see a lot more of his family in episodes such as Pest of the West, Stanley S. SquarePants, and Blackjack, which is something that makes SpongeBob a lot more interesting as a character. Even the first episode of the season, Friend or Foe, gave us the story of how Krabs and Plankton became rivals in the first place, and the episode following it, The Original Fry Cook, tells us about the fry cook that came before SpongeBob. The fact that they're actually adding depth to things that a normal fan would usually question is a perfect way to not only make the characters more interesting, but it even makes Bikini Bottom as a whole even more of a majestic and fascinating place that could actually exist. Something as silly as The Battle of Bikini Bottom suggests that Bikini Bottom actually had a war at one point, which is just bizarre. It's super unexpected, but it can leave me on the edge of my seat throughout the run time of any episode like this. Even an episode like SpongeHenge, which doesn't even feel like it belongs in this series at all, is still an episode I find extremely fascinating and memorable just for that reason alone. It just proves that different doesn't always = bad.

However, that doesn't mean that this season isn't devoid of flaws, because as the season goes along, they do start to become more apparent. The biggest elephant in the room here has to be Atlantis SquarePantis, AKA the show's first TV movie. This is the one time where I think the experimentation was a complete and utter failure and part of this has to do with Nickelodeon. Atlantis SquarePantis literally KILLED the show, and that's completely disregarding the actual quality of the episode. After this TV movie, Nickelodeon hacked up SpongeBob's budget to pieces and... this is where the problems begin. I already discussed in my season 6 review how the season's animation was a complete downgrade from what came before and how Atlantis SquarePantis caused it, but it's just so frustrating and frightening how a lot of season 6's problems originated from the second half of this season. Don't get me wrong, the second half still really strong in terms of content, but in terms of visuals, it leaves a lot left to be desired. SpongeBob's golfball/Springer cheeks started to become more present in the second half, but they're thankfully easier to miss compared to S6. Sometimes, outlines will be downright unfinished, and likewise, animation could be reused from past episodes like the opening of20,000 Patties Under the Sea. This is stuff I discuss more in detail in my S6 review, so you should just check that out instead of having me repeat myself. Oh yeah, once in a while a really cool premise could go to waste like Whatever Happened to SpongeBob?, which on-paper sounds like the making of a great episode, but in the middle decides to become a cliched amnesia episode for some reason.

To sum up, season 5 of SpongeBob was a really interesting take on the show, and to be honest, I wish the series continued down the path this season established (up until 9A at most). Although I have a lot to discuss about S6 because of what it did wrong, S7-9A on the other hand are seasons that I just don't know what to say about them since they're the ultimate definition of "vanilla". Season 5 is the complete antithesis to them and it's far more interesting to both watch and talk about. I was overall really happy with how this season turned out. I think I may or may not prefer this season to S2 since it had more to offer in terms of what it had in store and was still a really funny and creative season that stands out in a way that most other seasons don't. I consider it a really GREAT season for that alone, and although I do welcome its attempts to spice things up, I 100% understand why some people turned away from the series at this point. I don't think I'd be recommending this season to anyone if I wanted to get them into this show, for what it is, it's still an fun and entertaining group of content.