Spongebob Squarepants is undoubtedly one of the most iconic children's shows of all time. Unlike many kids' shows, it had an unusual appeal to adults as well, and is so popular featured a handful of legendary actors/actress. It wasn't just all humor for children, even though it is much closer to that than any form of adult humor.
The show's strange locations, wacky and zany characters, and themes, while lighthearted on the surface, had something more resounding to them, even if it was sprinkled in the background. While there is a litany of fan theories as to some of the more deep meanings in many Spongebob episodes, a good chunk of Spongebob Squarepants is pretty dark. In much of the show, mature themes can be found, some relatively profound and some downright unsettling.
So without further ado, here are some of the darkest episode of Spongebob Squarepants.
10 "One Coarse Meal"
"One Coarse Meal" was pretty dark. The episode revolves around Plankton trying to bomb the Krusty Krab to get the secret recipe as usual, but when Mr. Krabs discovers that Plankton is afraid of whales, he receives the twisted idea to dress up as his own daughter Pearl and torments Plankton as an act of revenge. Well, this turns into a free-for of two adults using each other phobias to torment one another when Plankton finds out Mr. Krabs has a phobia of Mimes and uses this to get revenge.
9 "I Was A Teenage Gary"
Cronenberg would be proud of this episode. Spongebob writers decided to take on the body horror genre with the bizarre episode "I Was a Teenage Gary." Gary, the snail, SpongeBob's pet, needed looking after, so of course, the grumpiest, most unsympathetic character in the show, Squidward, is asked to do it. Well, Squidward forgets to take care of Gary, and due to lack of nourishment and maintenance, Gary gets sick, so Squidward gets snail plasma in a syringe to make Gary better.
Unfortunately, Squidward accidentally injects Spongebob turning him into a disturbing-looking sponge snail. As Squidward watches, Spongebob gradually transforms, he is creeped out, and when Spongebob (the snail) chases him for help, Squidward winds up acceptedly injecting himself and meeting the same fate. Nothing is resolved, and they just all end up snails. It is dark, but not as much as it is outright unsettling.
Related: The SpongeBob Cinematic Universe Explained: Is it the Right Time for a Franchise?
8 "Rock Bottom"
In "Rock Bottom," SpongeBob and Patrick hop on a bus and head home from a beloved glove-themed amusem*nt park called Glove World. However, They accidentally board the wrong bus that takes them to a deep and creepy part of the sea called Rock Bottom. Various strange deep-sea animals inhabit this town, and the two find themselves virtually in a foreign land where communicating with the inhabitance to get home is next to impossible. While being stranded in a strange place is an unpleasant and scary experience for anyone at any age, children, in particular, are horrified by this concept, making this episode partially dark and creepy for young kids.
7 "Spongehenge"
There's nothing scarier than being alone, and "Spongehenge" hits the mark in depicting that fear. One day it comes to light that Spongebob's holes in his body play strange music when a strong wind blows through them. Even stranger, these tunes attract Jellyfish, and when the wind stops blowing, and the songs stop playing, the Jelly get mad and sting poor Spongebob. Eventually, he becomes an outcast from society and is chased into a cave by the Jellyfish.
Spongebob retreats to the middle of nowhere and creates giant statues made of rock of himself that replicate the same sound to keep the Jellyfish away from him. Unfortunately, he doesn't realize he spent decades building these Jellyfish distractions, and once they are in place and work, he heads back to society to find everyone is gone and the Krusty crab is buried in the sand. He cries out in anguish that his life has passed him by, and he is now alone all because he had to isolate himself in a cave.
6 "Earworm"
"Earworm" is about Spongebob getting a "musical doodle: he heard off the radio stuck in his head. He is so obsessed with it that he sings it everywhere he goes. It is eventually learned that a worm inside his head is causing this, and it can't be removed without possibly hurting him. The allegory in this episode may be a bit above children's heads, but it is speculated that it refers to drug addiction.
For example, after a day at work, SpongeBob floats out the door to a Record Shop where he hears the song "Musical Doodle" playing. He buys the record, goes home, and plays the song until bedtime. He finally heads to bed but returns downstairs to listen to the music more. The next day he is shown at work looking extraordinarily exhausted. This all gives a rather on-the-nose look at what addiction is like. While on the surface, the episode isn't that dark and disturbing, the message is.
5 "SquidBob TentaclePants"
Squidward takes the misery cake when it comes to sad, irritable, and grumpy characters in almost any animated show. In "SquidBob TentaclePants," Squidward is caught up in an experiment that sees him and SpongeBob fused into one body. While Spongebob loves this and sees it as the perfect way for them to stay friends together, it is a living hell for poor Squidward. On top of everything, he has to get unstuck so he can get to his clarinet recital. Eventually, they get separated; he plays his Clarinet for everyone, but no one is keen on it. Squidward loses it. He meddles with the machine and winds up fused in a giant grotesque flesh ball with other main characters in the show.
4 "SB-129"
As a little kid, this episode is just trippy and weird. Still, this episode has some deep and scary themes for everyone edging close to double-digit age ranges that are finally grasping existential concepts about life. "SB-129" is about Squidward's innocuous time travel trip to the distant future and past, but everything goes wrong when his time machine breaks. He gets stuck 2,000 years in the future in what could be considered limbo, a void of nothingness. This surreal and out-there look at the profound was pretty deep and dark for kids.
Related: Netflix Unveils First Look at Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie
3 "Doing Time"
"Doing Time" deals with the classic childlike and innocent theme of one being locked up in jail and slowly delving into psychosis. Spongebob and Patrick are responsible for Mrs. Puff being in jail, and then they gradually drive her toward a complete mental breakdown in their feeble and obnoxious attempts to get her out of jail. The catch is she's so far gone she doesn't even want to leave prison. She becomes so incredibly insane she gets the straitjacket and is locked up in a padded room where she starts hallucinating. While this is a hilarious and classic episode, for kids, it's pretty dark.
2 "Are You Happy Now?"
"Are You Happy Now?" explores the all-to-adult theme of mental health and sadness. Squidward has continually been a downer, but no one understood his deep misery until this episode. When Spongebob realizes that Squidward has no happy memories, he tries to do anything and everything to put a smile on Squidward's face, but inevitably nothing works. Spongebob finally puts together a surprise party for him, but no one shows up, so Spongebob decides to populate the party with models of himself. Squidward finally gets a smirk when he takes immense pleasure in destroying the Spongebob Models.
1 "Nasty Patty"
"Nasty Patty" tops the list with its very adult subject matter. The topic of this episode; what to do with a dead body if you accidentally killed someone! This one is not exactly kid-friendly, but they handle it hilariously enough that it is easy for all ages to swallow. In the Nast Patty episode, a health inspector comes to grade the Krusty Krab. However, when Mr. Krabs sees on TV there is an imposter health inspector going around getting free food, he loses it, and he and SpongeBob create a horrendously disgusting Kraby Patty for him.
Still, just before he takes a bite, a fly goes in his mouth, choking him and causing him to hit his head. Mr. Krabs and Spongebob think the patty killed him, and on top of that, it turns out the actual imposter was arrested, so now that they believe they've murdered an innocent man, what to do with the body? They don't take the high road and try to set a moral example for the youngsters watching at home. Krabs and Spongebob set out to bury the corpse and pretend the whole thing never happened. Fortunately, it turns out in the end, he wasn't dead, but regardless... dark stuff for a kid's show.
