| Restraining SpongeBob | |
|---|---|
| Season 8, Episode 168a | |
| |
| Air date | April 2, 2012 |
| Written by | Paul Tibbitt Vincent Waller Sean Charmatz |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous Bubble Buddy Returns |
Next Fiasco! |
Restraining SpongeBob is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season eight. In this episode, Squidward resorts to legal action to keep SpongeBob away.
Time Cards Shown[]
- One Shift Later
Characters[]
- SpongeBob SquarePants
- Squidward Tentacles
- Patrick Star
- Eugene H. Krabs
- Harold (cameo)
- Squidward's lawyers (debut)
- Frank (cameo)
- Fred
Synopsis[]
At home, Squidward becomes increasingly annoyed by SpongeBob. As he walks to the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob annoys him by repeatedly asking if he can walk with him. SpongeBob continues to be annoying, especially when he can't seem to figure out the mustard dispenser is empty, its sound effects causing a patron to think Squidward has a flatulence problem. An irritated Squidward enters the kitchen to get it through to SpongeBob. Eventually, he leans on the grill, and accidentally burns his right tentacle. When SpongeBob tries to put the fire out with a bucket of water, he accidentally spills it onto the floor, causing Squidward to slip. As Squidward flies through the air, SpongeBob tries to catch him in a jellyfishing net, but it breaks, and accidentally dropping Squidward into the deep fryer. The more SpongeBob tries to help him by running over to the deep fryer, by pulling out a fried Squidward, the more he accidentally bungles things, and further injures Squidward by tripping over a mop. After accidentally tripping over the mop, SpongeBob now lands into the order window, causing Squidward to flip right out of the basket, and knocking out a customer's krabby patty. The customer now accidentally bites into Squidward's own flesh, results in causing a scream, and now freaks out. The customer now throws Squidward back to SpongeBob, and lands into the mouth by bouncing right off. When Squidward crashes into a soda machine, breaking it, Mr. Krabs now comes out of the office crying, and SpongeBob goes over to him and asks if he's all right. Squidward screams and runs from him, hiding behind a table. When SpongeBob gets closer, Squidward resorts to climbing the walls and ceiling of the Krusty Krab to get away from him.
The next day, Squidward gives SpongeBob a "gift": a restraining order, which his three lawyers from the law offices of Harry, Combover, and Bald, explain to him. SpongeBob is not to come within 15 feet of Squidward or he'll go to jail. SpongeBob is confused at first, but when he realizes that he can't prepare Krabby Patties if he's in jail, he is struck with fear and does everything he can to avoid coming within 15 feet of Squidward. Unfortunately, the window from which SpongeBob gives orders to Squidward is within the 15 feet range, so the cash register and the counter are moved to the right, by the restroom door. SpongeBob tries to give the orders to Squidward by means of a pole, but Squidward ignores it. Mr. Krabs sees the restraining order is hindering business, so he tells SpongeBob he has to think of another way. Patrick is tiptoeing to Squidward. Squidward tries to ignore him, but it doesn't work. Patrick tries to tell Squidward he now has a hat. Mr. Krabs reveals that he hired Patrick as a middle man: SpongeBob prepares the food, then Patrick gives the order to Squidward.
Unfortunately, Patrick asks Squidward if he can watch him work. Squidward says no, but he continues to watch. He soon follows Squidward everywhere, and his stupidity soon gets on Squidward's nerves. Squidward's break arrives and he decides to play his clarinet. He soon finds out that Patrick used it as a toilet plunger. Squidward's break is over and he returns to working. He turns around and his nose gets stuck in Patrick's mouth. Squidward gets flung across the room, which causes him to suffer an allergic reaction when his face is smashed into a seaberry pie. When Squidward enters the kitchen, Patrick mistakes him for a monster and attacks him, thinking he's going to hurt SpongeBob. Seeing his two friends fighting, SpongeBob wants to help, but is afraid of violating the restraining order. His desire to help his friends wins out, and he steps in between them, explaining to Patrick that Squidward is not a monster. Squidward angrily takes the restraining order from SpongeBob, who begs him for mercy. Instead of sending SpongeBob to jail, Squidward crosses out "SpongeBob SquarePants" on the restraining order and replaces it with "Patrick Star". The episode ends with Patrick laughing hysterically.
Trivia/Goofs
- This is the third straight episode with a time card.
- This is the second time a lawyer is seen, first was in "Krabs vs. Plankton."
- It is revealed that Squidward is allergic to seaberries (when he crashed headfirst into a seaberry pie), which causes his whole body to swell up.
- Squidward climbing on the ceiling may be a reference to the 1973 horror film "The Exorcist" or possibly Spiderman.
- This is the seventh time Patrick is wearing a Krusty Krab hat. The first was in "Arrgh!", second in "Fools in April", third in "Big Pink Loser", fourth in "Bummer Vacation", fifth in "No Hat for Pat", and sixth in "Planet of the Jellyfish."
- It is proven that Patrick is more irritating to Squidward than SpongeBob (because Patrick literally has no brain nor a thinking process).
- Mr Krabs used the restraining order to get mustard off him, but the next time it was seen, there was no mustard.
- Running Gag: Squidward saying "Patrick!" and Patrick annoying Squidward.
- When Squidward drew the circle on the ground to indicate 15 feet, it encompassed the restroom, so there'd be no way for SpongeBob to go to the bathroom while Squidward's at his post. However in the episode Breath of Fresh Squidward, it's revealed that SpongeBob has an "employees only" bathroom in the kitchen.
- This is the first time we see Squidward's lawyers, that were mentioned in previous episodes such as Giant Squidward.
- This is the 3rd time we see SpongeBob on a title card. The first was "What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?" and the second was "Oral Report", and the fourth was "InSPONGEiac".
- Hairy, Combover, and Bald (Squidward's lawyers, respectively) are kinds of hairstyles.
- When Patrick shows Squidward his clarinet and tells him that the toilet is backed up, this is a reference to "Graveyard Shift" when SpongeBob tells Squidward "I use your clarinet to unclog my toilet!"
- Mr. Krabs removes a star from SpongeBob's conduct report, just like Mrs. Puff did to the Good Noodle board in New Student Starfish. Both times, SpongeBob did nothing to deserve losing his star.
- Spongebob's been to jail before, so he should have known that he'd be unable to prepare Krabby Patties while incarcerated.
- The scene of SpongeBob asking Squidward to walk to work with him and him saying "no" until he gets there is reused from Squid's Visit.
- This is the only time SpongeBob has done exercises with his spatula.
- Squidward could have put a restraining order on both SpongeBob and Patrick.
- Pretty odd that Patrick is working in the Krusty Krab again because at the end of the episode No Hat for Pat, Mr. Krabs told Patrick that he will never make him work at the Krusty Krab ever again. However, Krabs may have allowed it since he needs some way to get the Krabby Patties handed out to the customers due to SpongeBob not allowing to be within 15 feet of Squidward.
- Squidward is reading the newspaper in this episode, but in the episode Can You Spare a Dime?, he says he's allergic to newspaper print, although he might've made this up so that he wouldn't read the want ads that SpongeBob showed him.
- Error: When Squidward drew the circle, it started on the right side of the kitchen door frame and ended on the right side of the bathroom door frame. However, in some scenes, the circle stated on the left side of the kitchen door frame and ended on the right side of the bathroom door frame (usually on the wide angles).