Sep 03, 2010
The SpongeBob SquarePants show is one of the most popular animated TV series broadcast not only in the United States but around the world as well. The man who invented the cartoon characters and started producing the series through his own company, The United Plankton Pictures, was Stephen Hillenburn, a former marine biologist with a vivid imagination. You can watch the show on Nicktoons Network, and it has been often reviewed as one of the greatest television shows in history, on several occasions. The first episode of the SpongeBob SquarePants show was broadcast on May 1, 1999, followed by other episodes that gained the show further popularity from the year 2000 onwards.

There is no continuity between the episodes in the SpongeBob SquarePants show, which is a great advantage for anyone to be able to watch it without having to refer back to previous events or contexts.  It means everyone can dip into it from time to time and fully enjoy the story.  Although many characters can suffer apparently irreparable accidents, they always return to normal in the next episode. Eugene Krabs' restaurant in Bikini bottom gets destroyed several times, and every time it seems like it's the end. Lots of these so-called horrific happenings are blamed on SpongeBob's misadventures. The great part of this cartoon series is that adults, teens and children can all watch it alike and appreciate it: the episodes often contain references and subtleties that reflect the absurdity of life for instance, which may often escape the understanding of young watchers.

One of the features that differentiates the SpongeBob SquarePants show from lots of Nickelodeon productions is the participation of lots of independent musicians to the series soundtrack. Flaming Lips, Wilco or Twisted Sister are just a few famous names here, but David Bowie for instance played as a special guest in the Atlantis SquarePantis episode in November 2007. This episode had the largest level of audience in the entire history of the SpongeBob SquarePants show. Then, one further reflection of the series into the music scene was at the initiative of the band Metallica to release t-shirts showing the group members playing live with the characters of SpongeBob and Patrick.

With the increased popularity of the show in the United States and in other parts of the world, MTV started showing it, this time reaching out to the teenage audience-group demographic. Some famous quotes from the cartoon series also entered common speech, and this is the case with the now famous line from Mid-Life Crustacean: It's gonna rock! Rock radio stations took over the quote and soon lots of teenagers would use the catch-phrase. The SpongeBob SquarePants show has certainly made tv history, and it can definitely make you laugh readily at any episode.

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Filed under: SpongeBob Cartoon Series

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