You know, the first time I heard of “Spongebob Squarepants” I was completely turned off. My son was the one that told me about it, and having seen his other favorite show, “Ed, Ed & Eddie”, I cringed at the thought of watching the misadventures of a little square sponge. But then something odd happened. I sat down one night (no that’s not the odd part, I sit down a lot of nights) and just happened to turn on the TV right when an episode of “Spongebob Squarepants” was starting. My son plopped down on the couch with me, and together we watched. I ended up laughing my darn fool head off. Luckily this was also a night where the station was running a block of “Spongebob Squarepants”, so I got to watch several episodes.

I was completely ‘hooked.’ I was totally into the style of animation, which seemed to be a combination of Tex Avery and John Kricfalusi, but more so it was the humor.

Created by Stephen Hillenburg, the jokes in the Spongebob cartoons are fast and fresh. There are an enormous amount of cultural references, many of which are undoubtedly lost on its younger audience, but help to make the show more than enjoyable for parents willing to take the time to sit with their kids.

Paramount started releasing DVDs of some of the episodes last year, and I enjoyed watching some of the ones I had missed. But then they followed these up with full season sets, which is my preferred method of collecting. I watched that first full season set with only a slight hesitation. As I was so hooked on the show, I was worried that I would be glued to the set for a one-time sitting through all 3 discs. But I was smart. I paced myself and spread them out over a few days.

The set featured all 40 episodes from the first season and introduced us to Spongebob and all the denizens who lived in the township of Bikini Bottom. Among them were his best friends, the lovable - but dim - sea star named Patrick; the ill-tempered perfectionist Squidward; an athletic squirrel named Sandy who lives in an undersea treedome and a penny-pinching old crustacean named Mr. Krabs, owner of The Krusty Krab.

For what I originally thought was just some little cartoon, I surprised to find out who some of the voice talent was behind the characters. Patrick the sea star is voiced by none other than Bill Fagerbakke. He is best known for his role on the hit TV series “Coach”, but I remember from his terrific turn as Tom Cullin in “Stephen King’s The Stand.” The funny thing is, his voice is so recognizable that I should have known it was him. Then, the bigger surprise came when I saw that the voice behind Mr. Krabs is the great character actor Clancy Brown. I first saw him as the evil Kurgen in the original “Highlander” movie, and have seen him in numerous roles since. You may not recognize the name, but I guarantee you’d recognize the face. There’s even been couple of episodes where you can find Ernest Borgnine and Tim Conway as Mermaidman and Barnacle Boy. (Trust me, they’re funny.)

Almost a year later, Paramount is finally releasing the second full season set, this time with 39 episodes, all of which are as funny as the first. They are again spread out over 3 discs, and though there aren’t as many features as the first set, the ones that are included are pretty good. There are commentary tracks for 8 of the episodes by members of the animation crew, and these guys are as funny as the cartoon the draw. You’ll also find some storyboards as well as a DVD-Rom script feature. The only other extra is a look at the opening song, where they switch back and forth to the different languages the show has been translated into.

As it stands, there should be one more full season release, but there is talk that Hillenburg is leaving Nickleodeon (the show’s parent company) and it’s still up in the air of there will be anymore episodes past what has already been produced. On the bright side, before the year is out there will actually be a “Spongebob Squarepants” movie, which (believe it or not) I plan to see. I think I’ll even use my ‘free’ ticket that came with the second season set.

If you’ve never seen “Spongebob Squarepants” I recommend giving it a try. I guarantee it will appeal to anyone with a sense of humor and imagination, or that has at least one creative bone in their body.

In the meantime sing with me:

Captain: Are ya ready kids?

Kids: (Aye aye, captain!)

Captain: I can't hear you!

Kids: (AYE AYE, CAPTAIN!)

Captain: Ohhhh......Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?

Kids: (Spongebob Squarepants!)

Captain: Absorbent and yellow and porous is he!

Kids: (Spongebob Squarepants!)

Captain: If nautical nonsense be something you wish,

Kids: (Spongebob Squarepants!)

Captain: Then drop on the deck, and flop like a fish!

Kids: (Spongebob Squarepants!)

Captain: Ready?

Everyone: (SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS, SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS, SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS)

Captain: Spongebob.................Squarepants!

Episodes:
You Shoe’s Untied
Squid’s Day Off
Something Smells
Bossy Boots
Big Pink Loser
Bubble Buddy
Dying For Pie
Imitation Krabs
Wormy
Patty Hype
Grandma’s Kisses
Squidsville
Pre-Hibernation Week
Life of Crime
Christmas Who?
Survival of the Idiots
Dumped
No Free Rides
I’m Your Biggest Fanatic
Mermaidman and Barnacleboy II
Squirrel Jokes
Pressure
The Smoking Peanut
You Wish / Shanghaied
Gary Takes a Bath
Welcome to the Chum Bucket
Frankendoodle
The Secret Box
Band Geeks
The Graveyard Shift
Krusty Love
Procrastination
I’m With Stupid
Sailor Mouth
Artist Unknown
Jellyfish Hunter
The Fry Cook Games
Sandy, SpongeBob and the Worm
Squid on Strike

Extras: Audio Commentaries by the Animation Crew, Storyboards, Script Viewer (Rom Feature), Around the World with SpongeBob SquarePants - Featurette, Nick DVD Game Demo
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby Digital Stereo
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 10/19//2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Spongebob Squarepants: Season 2 an A.