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Plankton's Army

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This is the page about the season 3 episode. For other uses, see Plankton (disambiguation).

"Plankton's Army" is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season 3. In this episode, Plankton enlists the help of his hillbilly cousins as his army to steal the Krabby Patty formula.

Characters[]

Note: All of the names of the "Plankton" incidentals were originated in this episode.

Synopsis[]

Mr. Krabs announces to his employees that it is the twenty-fifth anniversary of silver of Plankton's first attempt to steal the Krabby Patty formula. A robot suddenly enters the restaurant and orders chili coral bits. After Mr. Krabs takes the robot's money, Plankton jumps out of the dollar bill and demands the formula, only to reveal he hadn't thought that far after he fails to make a threat. With this, Mr. Krabs proceeds to flush him down the toilet.

Plankton's Army 103

Clem reintroducing Plankton to his cousins.

Plankton sadly returns to the Chum Bucket and Karen suggests hiring some henchmen to help him. After trying and failing to recruit some thugs at a nightclub, Plankton remembers that he has thousands of relatives across the sea and invites them all over to the Chum Bucket, imagining them all to be evil geniuses like he is. However, when they arrive, he sees that they are all dimwitted hillbillies, and realizes that he has "been away from home longer than [he] thought." Once his cousin Clem reintroduces all the relatives, and, in term, they meet Karen, Plankton holds a meeting and explains his plan of stealing the formula, promising them all the root beer they can drink if they help.

Just as the Krusty Krab is about to close, Plankton comes forth and shows his army to Mr. Krabs and Squidward before they come charging in. After trapping Mr. Krabs and Squidward in a toilet, they open the safe containing the Krabby Patty secret formula. Plankton takes it out of the safe and Mr. Krabs begs him not to read it, telling him that "there are some things in this world that weren't meant for mortal eyes." Plankton didn’t matter to listen and reads out the formula with 4 ingredients:

  1. A pinch of salt
  2. 3 tsp. of chopped onions
  3. A cup of love
  4. 4 heaping lbs. of freshly ground plankton
Plankton's Army 184

"...freshly ground... plankton?!"

Mr. Krabs remarks "I warned you," to a horrified Plankton, who runs out of the Krusty Krab and back home to the Chum Bucket, screaming at the top of his lungs, and his relatives follow suit when they see the secret ingredient themselves. When Squidward and Mr. Krabs are safe (and SpongeBob returns from cleaning the men's restroom from before), Squidward asks if Plankton is really the secret ingredient, but Mr. Krabs tells his employees that the formula Plankton read is just a fake and that Plankton will most likely figure this out and come back for the real one. He gloats that the real formula is hidden somewhere where nobody, not even Plankton, will be able to find it. Squidward then correctly guesses where it is; at Mr. Krabs' house under his mattress, and Mr. Krabs runs home horrified, and yelling, "Curse you, Squidward!"

Production[]

This episode was in production in 2001 and 2002.

Model sheets[]

Paintings[]

The "OUT" Storyboards[]

Music[]

( ‣ ) Production music
( • ) Original music
( ◦ ) SpongeBob music

 ‣ Zelle 506 - Gerhard Trede [Title card]
 ‣ Keel Row - Brian Peters [Opening]
 ‣ Premonition of Disaster - Arthur Harold Wilkinson [Robot customer enters]
 ‣ Tomfoolery - David Snell [Robot orders chili coral bits]
 ‣ Six Powerful Cues A - Wilfred William Burns [Plankton jumps out of dollar bill]
 ‣ Drunken Sailor (B) - Robin Jeffrey, Tim Laycock [Plankton flushed down toilet]
 ‣ Al Capone Blues - Eric Gemsa [Plankton goes home]
 • Idea Sting - Nicolas Carr ["Henchmen?"]
 ‣ Zelle 501 - Gerhard Trede ["I'll canvass all the seediest lowbrow dives in town to find my minions!"]
 ‣ Rocking Monster A - Wolfgang Killian, Hermann Langschwert [Tough guys playing pool]
 • Drowsey Reef - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Plankton in a wheelchair]
 • Thats It ! - Nicolas Carr ["Wait... that's it!"]
 ‣ Jerry Cotton - Gerhard Trede [Plankton gathering family members]
 ‣ Let's Dance Susanna - Roy Henley [They're all hillbillies]
 ‣ Harmonica Shorts [#22] - Robert Appleton, Rick Fenn [ Overlays "Let's Dance Susanna"]
 • Washboard & Spoons - Nicolas Carr [Overlays "Let's Dance Susanna"]
 ‣ Wooden Bear - Gil Flat, Tony Tape, Florian Voelxen [Plankton introduces them to Karen]
 ‣ Buffalo Girls - Martyn Laight ["What's in it for us?"]
 ‣ Zelle 503 - Gerhard Trede ["Root beer?!"]
 ‣ Zelle 506 - Gerhard Trede ["I have the restaurant surrounded."]
 ‣ Hog Fever (A) - Graham D.H. Preskett [Plankton invade The Krusty Krab]
 ‣ Kommissar X - Gerhard Trede [Krabs in toilet]
 ‣ The Oracle - David Farnon [Safe opened]
 ‣ Journey to the Magic Island - Gregor F. Narholz [Plankton removes formula from bottle]
 ‣ Appalachian Banjo Duel - Larry Hochman ["And of course I had a little help from the family."]
 ‣ Dramatic Climax - Mike Sunderland [Krabs warns Plankton not to look at the formula]
 • Snare Drum Please - Nicolas Carr ["Drumroll, please!"]
 ‣ Against the Law (E) - Wilfred William Burns [Plankton reading the formula]
 • Hawaiian Adventures aka SpongeBob Theme - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Plankton runs away]
 ‣ Let's Dance Susanna - Roy Henley ["Get outta here!"]
 ‣ The Tip Top Polka/The Cliff Polka - Chelmsford Folk Band [Krabs says it wasn't the real formula]
 • Hawaiian Adventures aka SpongeBob Theme - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Ending]

Release[]

Broadcast[]

Distribution[]

Reception[]

  • "Plankton's Army" was ranked #66 during the Best Day Ever event from November 9–10, 2006.
  • "Plankton's Army" was ranked #91 during the SpongeBob's Top 100 event in the UK and Ireland from June 4-8, 2012.

Trivia[]

General[]

  • This episode was originally titled "Plankton's Last Stand" during production (see model sheets above).[7][8][9]
  • This is the last episode for a few things:
  • When Plankton ran to the Chum Bucket it has hills. The same scene is used when Mr. Krabs runs home except it is replaced by Mr. Krabs' home.
  • Four moments from this episode became internet memes:
    • When Plankton yells "Alright, I get it!", while Clem is saying the names of Plankton's family.
    • The scene where Karen makes fun of Plankton's first name.
    • Mr. Krabs' line "You planted grass?" after seeing Plankton's army, thinking it's grass.
    • Plankton screaming in fear after reading the secret formula.
  • Due to the heavy focus on Plankton, this episode features one of SpongeBob's smallest roles as he only appears in two scenes (one at the beginning and one at the end) and only speaks four lines.
  • Plankton's past attempts at stealing the formula and results shown in this episode include:
    • Asking nicely; Mr. Krabs says no.
    • Wearing a cockroach costume; Mr. Krabs steps on him.
    • Drinking a potion that turns him into a cockroach; Mr. Krabs steps on him.
    • Protesting to Mr. Krabs that he is not a cockroach on a picket sign; Mr. Krabs steps on him again.
  • Things Plankton's family wanted in return for helping Plankton:
    • A new banjo string
    • A boot
    • More laptop memory
    • Root beer
  • According to the phone book:
    • There are five "S. Planktons."
    • At maximum, there is one "M. Plankton."
    • There are fifteen "N. Plankton"s.
    • There are fifteen "O. Plankton"s and "P. Plankton"s each.
    • There are at least four "W. Plankton"s.
  • It is revealed that Plankton's full name is "Sheldon J. Plankton."
  • This is Karen's first major role.
  • Plankton's dialogue when he goes to the pool hall and speaks to the thugs was used in "Krusty Krab Training Video," only sped up.
  • Normally the Krabby Patty secret formula is a slip of paper in a bottle, but in this episode, it is a hardcover book.
    • This could give a hint that the recipe in it is fake.
  • Mr. Krabs hides the formula under his mattress. It is later established in "The Lost Mattress" that he also hides his money there.
  • This episode was paired with different episodes in different airings:
  • The rare production art book Behind Closed Doors contains a storyboard for a deleted scene in which Mr. Krabs defecates after saying, "And now, for the chaser!" Despite the scene being removed, the line was still retained in the final episode - after Krabs flushes Plankton away.

Dub facts[]

  • In both Latin and European Spanish dubs, the phrase "Curse you!" has been switch to ¡Me las pagarás! which means "You will pay for it!" or "I'll get you for...!."
    • Also in the same dubs, this is the first episode to use the word "Plankton" by his original name, since his name has been used in the start of season 3.
  • In the Hebrew dub, SpongeBob narrates the beginning.

Cultural references[]

  • The background of the title card is camouflage, the pattern of clothing worn by soldiers in the army.
  • Plankton's robot looks similar to the Cylons from the 1978 TV show Battlestar Galactica.
Plankton's Army 074

Plankton with broken limbs like Mr. Potato Head.

  • When Karen accidentally crushes Plankton, his limbs break and he attaches them back on in a similar fashion to the Mr./Mrs. Potato Head.
Plankton's Army 118

The big "Sheldon" text appears to be a resemblance of 1956 Four Star logo.

  • When the last form of the "Sheldon" text appears, it appears to be a resemblance of the 1956 Four Star logo.[12]
  • The name of Plankton's cousin Billy Billy Bo-Illy Banana Fanna Fo-Filly is a reference to the song "The Name Game."


Errors[]

  • In early airings, the episode had an incorrect copyright date of 2001 in the credits. Later airings (and the original print of this episode) have the correct date of 2002.[13]
    • This mistake may be attributed to the fact that this episode was mostly in production in 2001, but wasn't actually finished until the early part of 2002.
  • When Mr. Krabs says, "Today is the 25th anniversary of the first time my arch-rival, Plankton, ever tried to steal me secret Krabby Patty formula," the door to his office is shown; but when the robot shows up, the door is gone, then when Mr. Krabs and Squidward walk outside, the door is back.
Plankton's Army 021

The Chum Bucket is missing.

  • When the robot shows up at the Krusty Krab, the Chum Bucket across the street is missing.
  • When Plankton says, "Who will join me!", his mouth is out of sync.
Plankton's Army 084

There are no phone numbers in the phone book.

  • When SpongeBob arrives at Mr. Krabs' office in the end, he does not have his hat on, but the next time he is seen, he has the hat on.
  • When Plankton screams and runs back to the Chum Bucket, the road is long and wavy, and the restaurant is far away when it should be straight across the street from the Krusty Krab.
  • When Plankton contacts his family members, there are no phone numbers in the phone book.
  • When Mr. Krabs reveals the formula Plankton found was a decoy, he looks out his office window to the Chum Bucket, when the Chum Bucket should be directly across the street from the Krusty Krab.


Names in other languages[]

Language Name Meaning
French Plankton et son armée Plankton and His Army
German Planktons Verwandtschaft Plankton's Relatives
Italian La formula segreta The Secret Formula
Russian Армия Планктона
Armiya Planktona		 Plankton's Army
Spanish El ejército de Plankton Plankton's Army

References[]

  1. ^ Nick UK - New Spongebob episodes in January - Nickdisk - December 24, 2002
  2. ^ Mon nom est personne ; Plankton et son armée - Ina
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l SpongeBob Plankton Art of Evil Guide - d. krassner
  4. ^ a b File:SpongeBob Smelly Cards Game 6.jpg
  5. ^ File:SpongeBob Smelly Cards Game 3.jpg
  6. ^ File:SpongeBob Smelly Cards Game 5.jpg
  7. ^ Episode Guides - SpongeBob.net
  8. ^ https://www.bcdb.com/cartoon/50575-Planktons-Army
  9. ^ Unaired..... - SpongeBuddy Mania Forums
    Sam Henderson Interview - SpongeBuddy Mania Forums
  10. ^ October 11, 2004 - Nickstory
  11. ^ February 14, 2016 - Nickstory
  12. ^ Logos in Popular Culture - Avid
  13. ^ Nickelodeon Commercials (01/19/2004)
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