"Yellow Pavement" is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season 13. In this episode, SpongeBob and Squidward star in Mrs. Puff's educational driving film.
Characters[]
- SpongeBob SquarePants
- Mrs. Puff (first name revealed)
- Squidward Tentacles
- Patrick Star (cameo)
- Trucker (single appearance)
- Billy
- One of the twin sisters
- Incidentals
- Fred
- Incidental 2
- Incidental 3
- Steven
- John
- Incidental 6
- Incidental 8
- Incidental 13
- Incidental 14
- Incidental 16
- Charlie
- Incidental 27
- Incidental 30
- Harold
- Incidental 37A
- Scooter
- Incidental 40
- Incidental 41
- Incidental 45
- Incidental 46
- Incidental 48
- Incidental 49
- Incidental 63
- Incidental 64
- Billy
- Incidental 68
- Incidental 82
- Old Man Walker
- Incidental 92A
- Incidental 96
- Incidental 106
- Dale
- Incidental 110
- Incidental 115
- Incidental 141
- Incidental 152
- Incidental 163
- Incidental 168
- Incidental 179
- Incidental 186
- Teen 7
- Incidental K3
- Incidental K4
- Incidental K5 (brown)
- BunnyBunnsKids 3
- Unknown "BunnyBunnsKids" 2
- Blue kid fish
- Klopnodian fruit seller
- Cardboard old lady (single appearance)
- Cardboard robber (single appearance)
Synopsis[]
The episode starts off with a boating film named Safety At Sea: "An Educational Boating Film." Mrs. Puff comes out and tells the audience that she will help student drivers learn the rules to earn their license.
Lesson #1: "The Five-Point Pre-Check." Squidward demonstrates checking his boat before driving: checking the tire buoyancy, ensures the propeller is oiled, confirms the horn works, tests his signals, and fastens his seatbelt. SpongeBob is used to demonstrate improper driving: he over-inflates his tires, dumps too much oil on the propeller and splashes it on Squidward, honks the horn too hard, and spins his signals fast enough that the boat takes flight. While putting his seatbelt on, he wraps it around the entire boat. Its tires pop and it falls onto Squidward's boat. SpongeBob asks if he can get his license now, and Mrs. Puff says no.
Lesson #2: "Entering Traffic." Squidward, still injured, inches forward and waits for traffic to clear up. When the roads are clear, he looks both ways and moves forward slightly. SpongeBob comes from the side and rams into him, sending Squidward's boat flying into a billboard. SpongeBob asks for his license again, and Mrs. Puff says no.
Lesson #3: "Spotting Pedestrians." Squidward watches out for pedestrians: he swerves around an old lady and a baby. When he is about to run into a fruit cart, he lifts his boat up to evade it. He then spots two workers carrying a pane of glass, but runs off two boards and a truck as a ramp to go over them. SpongeBob suddenly jumps into his way, bouncing on a pogo stick. Squidward almost runs into the old lady again, but she reveals her muscles and destroys his car, throwing it into a garbage truck. SpongeBob bounces into the camera, asking for his license.
Due to a missing reel, the video skips ahead to Lesson #29: "Navigation." Squidward, now heavily bandaged and with his boat damaged, first runs over some speed bumps. Next, he sees children crossing, but they are so slow that he drives around them. Overwhelmed by directions, Squidward checks his map and goes into the freeway -- only for Mrs. Puff to narrate that reading a map while driving is bad driving etiquette, to his embarrassment. SpongeBob shows up driving the wrong way, skidding against Squidward's boat and sending him out of control. Squidward's boat goes off an unfinished bridge and explodes.
Squidward and SpongeBob driving.
The reel skips ahead to Lesson #53: "Proper Passenger Etiquette." An even more injured Squidward is driving with SpongeBob as his passenger. SpongeBob tells Squidward that he will earn his license, jumping on the dashboard and blocking his vision. Squidward pushes him away. When Mrs. Puff tells him not to be a "backseat driver," he grabs hold of Squidward's brace and makes him drive out-of-control. Next, SpongeBob turns up the music too loud, then sets the AC too cold and too hot. He sets the car in reverse, almost crashing into the children until Squidward takes control again. Squidward shoves SpongeBob in the glove compartment.
Lesson #54: "Road Rage." Patrick passes Squidward, making him angry and leading him to speed up. Mrs. Puff narrates an acronym, "RAGE: Relax And Go Elsewhere." SpongeBob comes out of the glove compartment and helps Squidward relax through deep breathing, drinking tea, and raking a small Zen garden. Just after Squidward is finally relaxed, it turns out that the car is completely stopped and there is a long line of traffic behind them. Squidward tries to start the car, but it sputters instead. A large trucker steps out and grabs Squidward. Before he can punch him, the film itself burns up and disintegrates.
The episode switches format, with only the character's silhouettes being seen against the projector. SpongeBob tries to fix it, but gets caught in it himself. Mrs. Puff tells him to get out, and says that they cannot finish the film, walking off as the class cheers. SpongeBob still wants to finish class and get his license, so he tries to make the video himself.
SpongeBob's own movie.
SpongeBob's "film" opens with a crudely-drawn prop of his driver's license. SpongeBob narrates that he was such a good driver that he got a ceremony in his honor. He then brings peace to the world by delivering Krabby Patties, catching criminals, and preventing the ice caps from melting. In the final shot, cutouts of Mrs. Puff and Squidward start kissing him.
Mrs. Puff snaps and turns the lights on, revealing SpongeBob making the video himself using paper cut-outs in front of the projector screen. She dismisses the students, then throws SpongeBob's cut-outs into the fireplace. The students drive their desks out of class, but Mrs. Puff grabs SpongeBob and takes him back in. She confiscates his paper license, tears it up, then kicks him out of class and slams the door.
Production[]
Amy Lewis did background painting for this episode between July 16[2] and July 31, 2022.[3]
This episode was confirmed by Cartoonlounge.de on December 20, 2022.[4]
Model sheets[]
- Designed by Zach Heffelfinger, "based off the incredible rough boards of Eddie Trigueros."[1]
Art[]
Background design[]
- Art direction by Peter Bennett,[5] layouts by George Nachev, traditionally painted by Amy Lewis[6] in gouache,[7] with line and editing drawn digitally on top.[8]
Storyboards[]
- Directed by Sherm Cohen, rough boarded by Eddie Trigueros, plussed by Zach Heffelfinger.[1]
Workprint[]
Production notes[]
Zach Heffelfinger:
- Heffelfinger said that Squidward's beat up designs were "super fun,"[1] and "[he] had a blast cleaning up sections of [Eddie Trigueros'] board, and learned a lot from [his] stuff."[9]
Music[]
| ( ‣ ) Production music |
| ( • ) Original music |
| ( ◦ ) SpongeBob music |
‣ Horlepiep - Jan Rap [Title card.]
‣ Marching On - Wilfred Burns [Mrs. Puff introduces her educational driving film.]
• Hot Steel and Slide Licks 7A - Jeremy Wakefield [Mrs. Puff sighs.]
‣ Honey Blonde - Stuart Crombie, Dennis Berry ["First lesson: The Five Point Pre-Check."]
‣ On the Slide - Richard Toeman [SpongeBob checks his vehicle.]
‣ Cinnamon Stick - Frank Sterling ["Now to our second lesson: Entering Traffic."]
‣ Polka Vivace - Paul Fenoulhet ["Lesson #3: Spotting Pedestrians."]
‣ Long Legged Beasties - Fredric Bayco ["But there's still one pedestrian waiting to strike."]
• Hawaiian Misadventures B - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [SpongeBob bouncing on his pogo stick.]
‣ A Cheerful Song (a) - Peter Balding, Otto Sieben ["Lesson #29: Navigation."]
‣ In a Busy Mood - Cedric Palmer ["Sometimes, even Mr. Good Driver may be overwhelmed with directions."]
‣ Frantic Pursuit - Roger Roger [SpongeBob driving erratically on the freeway.]
‣ Flying Saucer - Donald Thorne ["Lesson #53: Proper Passenger Etiquette."]
‣ Long Legged Beasties - Fredric Bayco [SpongeBob plays with the boat's control console.]
• Breakdance Bust-a-Move - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob plays music on the radio, making the boat - and the houses around them - bounce.]
‣ Long Legged Beasties - Fredric Bayco [SpongeBob messes with the air conditioner.]
• Hot Rod to Hell - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob accelerates the boat into reverse.]
‣ Bubbling Over - Ernest Tomlinson [Slow children crossing.]
• Hot Rod to Hell - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob and Squidward reversing towards the kids.]
‣ Long Legged Beasties - Fredric Bayco [Squidward stuffs SpongeBob in the glove box.]
‣ Broadway Bustle - Leslie Manson ["Lesson #54: Road Rage."]
• Bathroom Nirvana - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob tries to help Squidward relax.]
• ? - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob and Squidward raking sand.]
• Squidwards Hair - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob and Squidward hear drivers yelling from behind them.]
‣ Broadway Bustle - Leslie Manson [SpongeBob and Squidward try to drive away.]
‣ Zoo Doings - Jack Shaindlin ["This darn projector! Just when we were getting to the good part!"]
• Inside SpongeBob's Brain - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [SpongeBob tells a story about getting his boating license.]
‣ Bad Slide - [ProjectSAM Symphobia Colours: Animator] ["That is quite enough!"]
‣ Ensemble Gliss - [ProjectSAM Symphobia Colours: Animator] [Light switch falls off the wall.]
• Quick Zip - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob holding paper cut-outs.]
‣ Horlepiep - Jan Rap ["We'll resume the correct lesson next week."]
• Ripped Hide - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Ending.]
Release[]
- This episode is available on the SpongeBob SquarePants Vol. 23 digital collection and The Complete Thirteenth Season DVD.
Trivia[]
General[]
- This episode premiered as part of the 2023 event "Friday Nights on Nick."
- This episode's premiere preceded a new episode of the Nickelodeon animated series Monster High.
- The title card background is the same as "Driven to Tears," but with the tire marks being removed and in widescreen.
- This episode reveals that Mrs. Puff's first name is Penelope.
- This episode contains two fourth wall breaks:
- Mrs. Puff talks to the audience in the beginning.
- Squidward looks at the viewer with binoculars.
- The fruit seller from The Patrick Star Show episode "Klopnodian Heritage Festival" makes an appearance.
- The speed bump sign looks similar to signs used by many European countries such as Italy and Germany.
- This is the first episode where Eddie Trigueros serves as a storyboard director instead of a storyboard artist. He also served as a storyboard director for The Patrick Star Show episode "The Drooling Fool."
- This is the third episode to be based as a training video. The first was "Krusty Krab Training Video," and the second was "Boat Smarts."
- This is the third episode to premiere on Saint Patrick's Day. The first was "Survival of the Idiots," and the second was "Toy Store of Doom."
- Fittingly, a 5-hour marathon of The Patrick Star Show was aired to serve as a lead-in to this segment's premiere.[10]
Episode references[]
- This episode is very similar to "Boat Smarts" from season 5, as they are both educational films about driving, hosted by Mrs. Puff, and star SpongeBob and Squidward.
- The first half of this episode replicates a lot of central plot beats from the episode: Squidward is used to demonstrate good "boat smarts," while SpongeBob is used to demonstrate bad ones. Also, Squidward continuously suffers injuries because of SpongeBob's naive and careless ethics.
- Coincidentally, "Boat Smarts" encored on the morning of the day that this episode premiered.[10]
- SpongeBob asking if he could get his license is similar to when he constantly asked if he could make a Krabby Patty in "Krusty Krab Training Video."
- SpongeBob said the phrase 'the moment you've all been waiting for!' just as the documentary narrator did.
- RAGE abbreviation from this episode is similar to POOP from its season 3 counterpart.
- When Squidward uses binoculars to check the road, his realistic eyes resemble those of Patrick in "Idiot Box."
- Patrick drives a boatmobile similar in appearance to the Bass Blaster 3000 from "Driven to Tears," although with a few modifications.
- SpongeBob's snow-covered design is similar to the snow sponge's from "Out of the Picture."
The model from "Who's a Big Boy?"
- During SpongeBob's ending of the video, the puppet model used when he gets his driver's license is from "Who's a Big Boy?"
- The cardboard drawing of Mrs. Puff resembles Patrick’s "Big Fat Meanie" drawing from "New Student Starfish".
The model in this episode.
Cultural references[]
- This episode's title references the 1964 series Red Asphalt, which is a series of driver's education videos.
- When Squidward is disrupted by a pogo-stick-hopping SpongeBob, the screen freezes and text pops up labeling him under a fake scientific name ("Poriferous Aggravatus.") This gag is a reference to how Looney Tunes' Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner cartoons would often do the same thing in the beginning of each short, noting both characters under a fake title.
- The ending background of SpongeBob's cardboard puppetry "film" is similar to the one that would be used to end out every episode of the 1998 Cartoon Network series, Powerpuff Girls.
- Coincidently, Tom Kenny also co-starred in The Powerpuff Girls as the Mayor of Townsville, the Narrator and various secondary and incidental characters from the series.
- The shadow of the enormous trucker bears resemblance to Angus Shackleton, one of the main characters from John Trabbic's Middlemost Post.
Errors[]
- When Squidward turns over to the granny, there's something up with his face for a frame.
- When Squidward jumps over the glass, the right builder vest is brown instead of blue.
Videos[]
Names in other languages[]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| German | Augen auf im Straßenverkehr | Keep an Eye Out for Traffic |
| Spanish (American) | Pavimento Amarillo | Yellow Pavement |
| Spanish (European) | Acera amarilla | Yellow Pavement |
References[]
- ^ a b c d Zach Heffelfinger on Instagram - "Here are some super fun..."
- ^ Amy Lewis on Instagram - "Something crazy happened recently..."
- ^ a b Amy Lewis on Instagram - "Here are a small handful..."
- ^ SPONGEBOB SCHWAMMKOPF - EPISODE GUIDE
- ^ Amy Lewis on Twitter - "Also Art Direction..."
- ^ Amy Lewis on Twitter - "Here are a small handful..."
- ^ Amy Lewis Art - Backgrounds/Concept Art
- ^ Amy Lewis Art - SpongeBob SquarePants
- ^ Zach Heffelfinger on Instagram - "Here are some super fun..." (Comments)
- ^ a b Nickstory - March 17, 2023