SB-129

Template:Episode/14a

Characters

• French Narrator
• Squidward Tentacles
• SpongeBob SquarePants
• Patrick Star
• SpongeTron ^(debut)
  • SpongeTrons X, Y, and Z ^(debut)
• Chrome spray painter ^(debut)
• PatTron ^(debut)
• Trilobites ^(debut)
• Ammonite ^(debut)
• Primitive tapeworm ^(debut)
• Primitive Sponge ^(debut)
• Primitive Star ^(debut)
• Primitive jellyfish ^(debut)
• "Loser" voice ^(debut)
• Pigs ^{(debut) (cameo in Time-Space Vortex)}
• The Alone Group ^(debut) 
• Eyes ^{(debut) (cameo in Time-Space Vortex)}

Synopsis

Early one Sunday morning, Squidward goes to his open window, prepared to play his clarinet. However, SpongeBob's alarm clock goes off at the same time, causing his clarinet to be jammed deep in his throat. SpongeBob awakes and asks Squidward if he'd like to go jellyfishing, taking Squidward's squeals of protest as a "yes." After finally dislodging the clarinet, Squidward answers the knocking of his door to find SpongeBob and Patrick waiting for him. When he refuses to come out, they believe it is because he is preparing to go jellyfishing with them and repeatedly ask him if he is ready.

Squidward asks SpongeBob why he is not at work, to which SpongeBob sadly replies that the Krusty Krab is closed on Sundays. Coming up with an idea, Squidward tells them to wait for him, closes the door, then sneaks out the back and heads for The Krusty Krab. It is indeed deserted, but as Squidward takes in a breath to play, SpongeBob and Patrick arrive calling for him. Squidward runs to the kitchen and hides in the storage freezer. When SpongeBob and Patrick cannot find him, they assume he already went to Jellyfish Fields and leave. Squidward makes to exit the freezer but finds that the door will not open. He feels slightly concerned, but also confident that someone will notice him missing and find him soon enough.

Squidward frozen

Squidward then goes 2,000 years into the future and the freezer is frozen solid. The door's rusted hinges give way and Squidward falls to the floor. SpongeBob with jet boosters hovers by and sees the frozen cephalopod, takes out a hammer, and proceeds to use the hammer's laser function to thaw Squidward out. Dazed and slightly burnt, Squidward asks if his rescuer is SpongeBob, who answers that he is actually SpongeTron. Squidward discovers that he is in the future, where the world is covered in chrome and SpongeTron is but one of 486 clones. Horrified at this prospect, Squidward begs for a way to get back to his own time. SpongeTron directs him to a time machine located next to a room-sized can opener. Squidward decides that if he cannot escape "SpongeBob" in the future, he will travel to a time before SpongeBob was born, simply referred to as the "past."

The time machine arrives in the primordial sea. Squidward walks among the ancient sea creatures, hopeful that he can finally play his clarinet in peace. However, a shadowy figure pursues him, soon revealing itself to be a Primitive Sponge. The Primitive Sponge tentatively examines Squidward, who tries to back away but is halted by the presence of a Primitive Star. The two remain curious about Squidward but are soon distracted by a jellyfish, which they are visibly frightened of. Taking his chance to get away, Squidward tries to play once more but is constantly interrupted by the screams of the primitives, who are zapping themselves with the jellyfish in their hands. Squidward has them hand over their loincloths, of which they have plenty, and proceeds to fashion jellyfish nets for them. Amazed by Squidward's demonstration of jellyfishing, the primitives take the nets in earnest.

Squidward all alone

With nothing left in his way, Squidward begins to play at last. However, the wailing of the clarinet drives the primitives mad with rage, and they chase after Squidward. Barely making it back to the time machine, Squidward frantically jams the lever up and down and accidentally snaps it off, sending the machine hurtling through dimensions before arriving at a world of emptiness.

Squidward is glad to have somewhere he can be alone, but the voices that repeat  "alone" prove too much for him to bear. He frantically tries to escape the empty void but keeps repeatedly winding up in the same place he started. Desperate, he stomps on the ground in frustration and crashes through the floor and back into the time machine. Squidward breaks down sobbing and bangs on the controls, begging the time machine to take back home, even if he has to see SpongeBob.

At his words, the time machine returns Squidward to his home with SpongeBob and Patrick awaiting him. Squidward quickly recounts his adventures and tells the two how much he has missed them. When they ask him if he is finally ready for jellyfishing, however, Squidward soundly refuses and demands to know who invented such a foolish game in the first place. They happily remind him that it was, in fact, he who invented it, and Squidward, realizing he inadvertently committed a temporal paradox, states going back to rectify his mistake.

Production

Art

Music

Promo art for the episode

( ‣ ) Production music

( • ) Original music

( ◦ ) SpongeBob music

 ‣ Sounds of Science 1 - Josef Mundigl [Title card]
 ‣ Lonely on the Beach - The Hawaiian Serenaders, Jan Rap [opening]
 • SpongeBob Closing Theme - Steve Belfer, Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob and Patrick at Squidward's door]
 ‣ The Rake Hornpipe - Robert Alexander White [Squidward hides in the Krusty Krab freezer]
 ‣ Death Trap [#25] - Gregor F. Narholz [the door is locked]
 ‣ Hawaiian Link (b) - Richard Myhill ["I'll be out of here in no time."]
 ‣ House of Horror - W. Merrick Farran [Squidward is frozen as the latch comes off]
 ‣ Sounds of Science 1 - Josef Mundigl [Squidward in the future]
 • SpongeBob Closing Theme - Steve Belfer, Nicolas Carr [SpongeTron appears]
 ‣ Sounds of Science 1 - Josef Mundigl [The future is chrome.]
 • SpongeBob Closing Theme - Steve Belfer, Nicolas Carr ["Of course I'm right, Squidward."]
 ‣ The Gypsy Violinist - Dick Stephen Walter ["I don't belong here."]
 ‣ Aloha Oe - Hans Haider, Queen Lili'uokalani ["I got to get home to my own time period."]
 ‣ Dorothy - Tony Tape [inside the time machine]
 ‣ ? - [various tracks blended together] [time machine disappears]
 ‣ ? [Squidward in the past]
 ‣ Lovely Scenery C - Mladen Franko [prehistoric SpongeBob revealed]
 ‣ ? [prehistoric Patrick revealed.]
 • SpongeBob Closing Theme - Steve Belfer, Nicolas Carr [Squidward invents jellyfishing]
 • ? - Brad Carow [Squidward playing clarinet]
 ‣ Dangerous B - Mladen Franko [prehistoric SpongeBob and Patrick chase Squidward]
 ‣ Dorothy - Tony Tape [inside time machine]
 ‣ ? - [various tracks blended together] [time machine disappears]
 ‣ ? [Squidward in a blank white void]
 ‣ Space Work 14 - Vladimir Kos Jr ["I gotta get out of here!"]
 ‣ Dorothy - Tony Tape [inside time machine]
 ‣ ? - [various tracks blended together] [time machine disappears]
 ‣ Hilo March - The Hawaiian Serenaders [ending]

Release

• This episode is available on the Nautical Nonsense and Sponge Buddies, Complete 1st Season, Karate Choppers, First 100 Episodes, From the Beginning, Pt.1, SpongeBob SquarePants Vol. 2, The SpongeBob SquarePants Collection, Let's go anywhere with a time machine!, The First & Second Seasons, Movies & TV Collection, and The Best 200 Episodes Ever DVDs.
• This episode is available on the Nautical Nonsense and Undersea Antics Volume 1 VHS tapes.
• This episode is also available on the It's a SpongeBob Christmas! Blu-ray.

Reception

• In fan-voted SpongeBob SquarePants marathons, "SB-129" was ranked #63 during the Best Day Ever event from November 9–10, 2006 and #5 during The Ultimate SpongeBob SpongeBash event from July 17–19, 2009.

Trivia

General

Animation cel marked with the "129" production code

• The episode's title, "SB-129," is its production code. "SB" stands for SpongeBob, and this was the 29th segment produced for season one, hence "129."
  • Model sheets, backgrounds, and animation cels for each episode are labeled with their production codes in the "SB-___" format. For example, "Squeaky Boots" was the second segment produced for season one and was marked "SB-102." This episode ("SB-129") is the only time the code was used in place of an actual title.
• This was the first episode that premiered on a Friday.
• This, along with its sister "Karate Choppers," is the only episode to premiere on New Year's Eve.
  • This episode premiered on New Year's Eve of 1999 along with several other Nicktoons episodes with futuristic themes in celebration of the new millennium.
• This is the first episode to use an animated title card.
• This is the first time a time card is read out.
• This is one of three episodes where the opening credits do not appear in an underwater background. The other episodes to do this are "Krusty Krab Training Video" and "SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout."
  • "Reef Blower" also applies technically, but it does not have any opening credits for that matter.
• To date, this is the only episode where the title card is backed up by voices.
  • However, in foreign dubs that don't translate title cards, the narrator reads the title card instead of it being silent.
    • The man who reads the episode title card is Doug Lawrence. However, he wasn't credited.
• The present-day before Squidward sees the world after two millennia is set on March 6, 2017, which was the future when the episode originally aired.
• This was Aaron Springer's first episode as a storyboard director instead of a storyboard artist.
• The Serbian name for this episode is "SB-192." This is a pun on the Serbian TV channel B92, which originally aired SpongeBob in Serbia.
• The German name for this episode is "Die Zeitmaschine," which means "The Time Machine."
• The French name for this episode is "Voyages Dans Le Temps," which means "Time Travel."
• This is the first time the title card letters float.
• The ending, which arises from Squidward time-traveling and inventing the game of jellyfishing, is a time paradox known as a causality loop.
  • This occurs when someone is inspired or driven by an event to time travel and, whether or not intentionally, causes the event which will facilitate their initial time-traveling trip.
• The background of this episode's title card is also seen in "Can You Spare a Dime?" when Squidward pictures himself as an astronaut.
• This is the first episode to involve time travel.
• The "2000 Years Later" time card uses a recolored version of the background for "Pickles."
• In Nickelodeon Southeast Asia, during the marathon of Squidward's big holiday contest, this episode was known as its original working title, "SpongeBob 3000."
• When Squidward is in the Nowhere dimension, his footsteps make different sounds than usual.
• SpongeTron mentions that he has 486 clones, one for each letter of the alphabet.
  • This means, that over the course of the two millennia, 460 more letters have been added to the alphabet.
  • However, in the Russian version SpongeTron says that he has 500 clones.
• In the future, the entirety of Bikini Bottom is covered in chrome, except for the hinges on the freezer door, the freezer's interior, the time machine's interior, and the Bikini Bottom civilians.

Surprised Primitive Sponge meme

• When Squidward says, "What are you simpletons doing?," Primitive Sponge makes a surprised face that has become a popular meme on the Internet.
• In the Polish dub, SpongeTron is called "SpongeBot" and PatTron is called "PatrickBot."
• The scene with the Primitive Jellyfish is shown before the play menu appears on the DVD main menu of SpongeBob Goes Prehistoric.
• According to Nick Jennings in the Nautical Nonsense and Sponge Buddies DVD special features, this episode originally had SpongeBob and Patrick time traveling.
• This is one of two season 1 episodes after "Jellyfish Jam" with a small scene that tests digital ink-and-paint animation. In this case, the short scene of Primitive Sponge and Primitive Star drooling was done digitally.
• A calendar in the future Krusty Krab lists the date Squidward was thawed as March 6, 4017. This means Squidward got stuck inside the freezer on March 6, 2017.
• This episode is alternatively titled "SpongeBob 129" on various sources, including Nickelodeon's YouTube channel and the PlayStation Store.
• This is the first episode where the Krusty Krab appears without Mr. Krabs.
• A clip from this episode was used in a Nickelodeon bumper aired on March 7, 2020, reminding the viewer to change forward their clocks for Daylight Savings Time.
• The working title was "SpongeBob 3000," but this was changed.
• This is the first time SpongeBob doesn't play a major role.

Cultural references

• The fact that Squidward's time machine is a small, phone booth, or elevator-like room is a reference to Doctor Who.

Errors

• At the start of the episode, SpongeBob's pineapple house only has one window, as opposed to two. This error also occurs in "Boating School."
• Before SpongeBob's alarm clock goes off, it is facing the bed. When it goes off, it is facing Squidward.
• Squidward wonders why SpongeBob is not at work. However, he should know the answer because they share the same work schedule.
• Squidward was unnoticed by everyone in town while he was frozen, even though his face is visible from the freezer window.

SpongeBob's black tie

• When Squidward is running to the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob's tie is black instead of red.
  • This error also occurs in "Plankton!" and "Rock-a-Bye Bivalve."
• Even though the Krusty Krab is closed, the doors remain unlocked.
• When Squidward closes the freezer door, the doorknob disappears.
• When Squidward exits the can opener room, there is a spot between his legs and his shirt flickers from blue to brown for a few frames.
• When Squidward enters the time machine in the future, there is one red and one green light above the door. When he next exits the time machine in the past, there are two red lights at the top.
  • The first time Squidward enters the time machine, the switch reads future on the top and past on the bottom. The next time he enters, the two are reversed.
  • When Squidward enters the time machine, the doorknob changes sides.
• When Squidward goes up to the bush where Primitive Sponge is, he puts one arm towards it, but in the close-up, he uses two arms.
  • Also, he would have needed to put his clarinet down. However, he does not put it down in the prior scene.
• When the machine malfunctions just before it brings Squidward to Nowhere, during the scene with the color change effect, if one were to observe Squidward's lip movement, he seems to be saying, "What's going on?" with no voice.
• When Squidward runs in Nowhere, his clarinet disappears, but when he falls back into the time machine, it reappears. It then disappears when he exits the time machine.

Videos

2,000 Years Later Mashup of the Future! ThrowbackThursdays SpongeBob

3 NEW SpongeBob Animatics! ft. SB-129 ✏️ Sketch to Screen!

Why 'SB-129' is the STRANGEST Episode of SpongeBob! 🤖