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Encyclopedia SpongeBobia
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 to steal the Krabby Patty formula.

Characters[]

This list is incomplete, but you can help Encyclopedia SpongeBobia by expanding it.

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 introducing 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 rednecks, and realizes that he has "been away from home longer than [he] thought." Once his cousin Clem reintroduces Plankton to all his relatives, Plankton calls them to a meeting and explains his plan, promising them all the root beer they can drink if they help.

Just as the Krusty Krab is about to close, Plankton and his relatives come charging in. After trapping Mr. Krabs, 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, "There are some things in this world that weren't meant for mortal eyes!" Plankton refuses to listen and reads out the formula anyway:

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

"...freshly ground plankton?"

Horrified, Mr. Krabs remarked that he warned Plankton about it before he 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 after reading the recipe (except for Clem, who is illiterate; Mr. Krabs sends him off). When Squidward and Mr. Krabs are safe, Squidward asks if plankton is really the secret ingredient but Krabs tells his employees that the formula Plankton read is just a fake and that Plankton with his family 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, yelling, "Curse you, Squidward!"

Production[]

Model sheets[]

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[]

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."[6][7][8]
  • When this episode first premiered with "Missing Identity," it aired before the latter episode due to its large advertising campaign. In subsequent reruns and production orders, the order of the episode segments is reversed.
  • Nickelodeon advertised this episode as "Plankton's Revenge."
  • 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 a meme:
    • 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.
    • The scene where Plankton says "Grass?" and then laughs.
    • Plankton screaming in fear after reading the Secret Formula.
  • 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.
  • In two scenes, Plankton yells "Curse you, Krabs!" and Mr. Krabs yells "Curse you, Squidward!," but in Latin Spanish, Plankton yells "¡¡Me las pagarás, Cangrejo!!," which translates "You'll pay it for me, Krabs!!" and Mr. Krabs yells "¡¡Me las pagarás, Calamardo!!," which translates "You'll pay it for me, Squidward!!"
  • 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.

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 Mr. 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.[11]
  • 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.[12]
  • 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 Plankton was licking the envelope, he should have been stuck to his saliva because that is how envelopes close.
  • 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.
  • Karen apparently did not know Plankton's first name until this episode, despite them being married.
  • 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.


References[]

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