Encyclopedia SpongeBobia
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Encyclopedia SpongeBobia
If you were looking for the article about the machine, then see Reef blower (machine).
If you were looking for the article about the online game, then see Reef Rumble.

"Reef Blower" is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season 1. In this episode, SpongeBob attempts to move a shell off of his lawn with a reef blower.

Characters[]

Synopsis[]

Reef Blower 027

SpongeBob blowing the sand so hard, it comes out.

The episode begins with Squidward going outside, only to spot a shell on his lawn. He kicks the shell onto SpongeBob's yard to keep his own clean, but it turns out SpongeBob is also very protective of his lawn, and gets out a reef blower from his garage to get rid of it, the noise of the machinery making Squidward irritated. SpongeBob, struggling to blow away the shell, ends up blowing it so hard sand comes out and lands on Squidward. SpongeBob comes to Squidward and blows off the sand that landed on Squidward, as well as his face. Seeing that there is a huge pile of sand on his yard, SpongeBob sets the blower to REVERSE, sucking up the sand pile, but the reef blower starts to break apart and throws out sand.

Reef Blower 075

The shell lands on Squidward's nose.

SpongeBob opens up the zipper behind the reef blower and puts the excess sand that was thrown out in there. He tries to start it again, but it does not work. This prompts SpongeBob to pull the handle of the reef blower very far. Once he feels he is far enough, he lets go and quickly zips through the distance he went back onto the blower. SpongeBob starts sucking up the entire ocean, causing Squidward to almost suffocate to death, but the reef blower explodes due to over capacity and shoots all the water sucked up back out again. The episode ends with SpongeBob happy that his lawn is clean, while Squidward's lawn is filled with sand and the shell lands on his nose, much to his dismay.

Production[]

Storyboards[]

Sketches[]

Cels[]

Paintings[]

Model sheets[]

Music[]

 ) Production music
 ) Original music
 ) SpongeBob music

  Hawaii Bob (delayed strings) - The Blue Hawaiians [First half]
  War Blower - The Blue Hawaiians [Second half]

Release[]

Reception[]

  • "Reef Blower" was ranked #24 during the Best Day Ever event from November 9–10, 2006.

Trivia[]

General[]

  • This episode was originally titled "Pilot Extension."[4]
  • This is the first episode for several things:
    • The first episode not to play any production music tracks.
    • The first episode to play War Blower and Hawaii Bob.
    • The first episode where the title card does not have music. Instead, the title card music is replaced with seagulls.
    • The first episode to show SpongeBob and Squidward being neighbors; even though their houses are shown together in "Help Wanted," it is never stated in that episode that they live next to each other, even though it is strongly implied that Squidward recognizes SpongeBob when he comes running towards the Krusty Krab to apply for fry cook.
    • The first episode where Patrick Star and Mr. Krabs do not appear.
    • The first episode to use SpongeBob's and Squidward's standard season 1 designs, as opposed to their moderately different pilot designs.
    • The first episode where the characters go out of water.
      • This happens when SpongeBob manages to suck up all of the ocean water with his reef blower. However, it explodes shortly afterwards.
    • The first episode of the series produced in 1999, while the previous episode was produced two years prior as a pilot for the series in 1997.
    • The first episode where Tom Yasumi and Fred Miller are animation directors, although there are no opening credits in this episode.
    • The first episode where an incidental appears.
    • The first episode to feature a boatmobile.
    • The first episode to use original music.
    • The first episode to feature a near death experience. In this case, when SpongeBob sucks up all the ocean water with the reef blower, Squidward breathes in the air but is unable to let it sink into his lungs due to him being a sea creature, and his eyes turn into "x's" which he suffocates until he comes back alive when the reef blower explodes and lets out all the water.
    • SpongeBob's first non-speaking appearance. He does not have any lines in "Whale Watching" or "Lockdown for Love," but he laughs in the former and is heard panting in a crowd in the latter.
      • As such, this is the only episode to date where Tom Kenny does not play a voice role.
  • This is the only episode for a few things:
    • The only episode that does not feature any opening credits after the title card.
      • Although, this is one of the only two SpongeBob shorts not to have any opening credits; the other short was "The Endless Summer," but it was not aired as an episode segment.
    • The only episode that does not feature any spoken dialogue.
      • However, SpongeBob says, "You!," with a subtitle appearing at the bottom of the screen, but there is still no audio.
        • This line is voiced in the Latin American Spanish, French, Dutch, Polish, and Serbian dubs of the episode.
      • It was once rumored to be because the studio's audio equipment broke. However, on June 10, 2022, in tweets by former crew member Jay Lender on Twitter, it was confirmed that the episode did not feature any spoken dialogue because it was made to extend "Help Wanted" to a full half-show.[5] However, because the episodes were produced separately, Screen Actors Guild rules mandated paying the actors a second set of session fees.[6] This would have cost around $2,500 USD at the time of production, leading to the choice to forgo dialogue.[7]
    • The only episode in season 1 to not have any bubble transitions.
    • The only episode to be completely silent. "Dream Hoppers" is known by Nickelodeon to be silent, despite SpongeBob having lines in the beginning.
  • Squidward is purple above water in this episode, despite being his normal color above water in The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water.
  • This is the shortest episode to date, with a length of two minutes and fifty seconds.
    • The reasoning for its shortened length was to fill an 11-minute segment, since "Help Wanted" runs for eight minutes, and when followed by "Tea at the Treedome," a standard 11-minute episode, this equals a full 22 minutes.
  • Despite being the second segment of the series, this is the first episode on The Complete First Season box set, due to copyright. This happened on the "Help Wanted" song "Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight."
  • According to the Complete 1st Season Disc 1 and The First 100 Episodes Disc 1 descriptions of this episode, the reef blower in this episode is new.
  • This episode only contains two music tracks, the least of any episode in the series.
  • "Reef Blower" aired as part of the SpongeBob SquarePants pilot episode after the 1999 Kids' Choice Awards on May 1, 1999.
  • Sometimes, on TV guides, this episode is known as "Reef Blowers."
If_SpongeBob_was_a_Black_&_White_Cartoon_-_SpongeBob-_Reimagined

If SpongeBob was a Black & White Cartoon - SpongeBob- Reimagined

An official reimagined version of the episode as a 1920s style cartoon.

  • On June 4, 2021, a reanimated version of the entire episode was uploaded by the official SpongeBob YouTube channel. The reanimated version was done in a black-and-white rubber hose style from the 1920s.[8]
    • This reanimated version of the episode also made the reef blower more sentient; although it was sentient in the actual episode as it can be heard coughing, the reanimated version gave it facial features and more expressions.
  • Patrick was originally planned to appear in the episode, where he would have accompanied SpongeBob in using reef blowers.[9] He would later appear with a reef blower in "Squidville."
  • On the November 10, 2006 airing, this episode and "Help Wanted" were paired with "Your Shoe's Untied."[10]

Cultural references[]

  • A reef blower is a parody of a leaf blower which is used to drive abiotic factors off a person's property. In this episode, the reef blower is by SpongeBob to drive a shell off his lawn.

Errors[]

Reef Blower 049

The window on the first floor is missing.

  • When the sand is piled in SpongeBob's walkway, the window on the first floor of his house is missing.
Reef Blower 054

The plant disappears.

  • When Squidward is in his yard eating, the flower in the pot from the beginning disappears. It is not seen in the episode again after the first scene, including towards the end where he is seen sitting on his doorstep.
Reef Blower 062

Squidward's doorstep, which is not seen in any other part of the episode.

  • Squidward is shown sitting on a doorstep before SpongeBob drains the ocean, but Squidward's house never had one before that moment.
  • Squidward's hammock in the backyard is seen around the 45-second mark, yet in the next scene where he is seen eating, the two corals that held the hammock and the hammock itself are nowhere to be found.


Videos[]

References[]

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