In 2002 assertions were made that SpongeBob was gay. The drawing and Caillou groups showed little difference, but the group subjected to SpongeBob showed marked impairment in their various tests.“ possibility is that children identify with unfocused and frenetic characters, and then adopt their characteristics,” said lead investigator Angeline Lillard, a psychology professor at UVA. The study was carried out by giving 4-year-old children attention, problem-solving, and behavior tests immediately after they spent 9 minutes either watching SpongeBob, Caillou, or drawing.
SpondeBob was no stranger to conservative parents calling foul by 2011, but who can argue with cold, hard science? According to a 2011 study from the University of Virginia, SpongeBob is messing with the memory retention of children, impairing their “readiness for learning.” Findings show that allowing preschoolers to watch the series causes short-term disruptions in mental function and attention span due to frequent camera cut scenes. 11 Bikini Bottom is the site of nuclear testing
Which, you know, isn’t quite cannibalism. Why would poor destitute (at the time) Eugene Krabs have something as rare and precious as King Neptune’s Powder? He wouldn’t, but he might actually have imitation crab. In “Friend or Foe” the secret recipe is discovered after a whole shelf of ingredients crashes into a bowl. The first episode that the secret formula featured in heavily was called “Imitation Krab”, and provided an image of the official recipe for Krabby Patties. While theories are in abudnance, the answer might have been in front of us the whole time. This may seem like no big deal, except when it comes to the mysterious secret ingredient - the very one that Plankton from the Chum Bucket is always after. only a few inches tall, so they re-appropriated a forgotten trap to use as a family-style fast-food restaurant.
SpongeBob and co are the size of actual sea creatures, i.e. Have you ever seen a lobster trap? Well, it looks exactly like the Krusty Krab- the restaurant is shaped exactly like a lobster trap.
13 The show faced international censorship The report came out in 2005, several years after the episode originally aired in the 2001-2002 season - the same television season that the PTC named as one of the best children’s television programs on air. Not knowing that there were “bad” words that they shouldn' t use, the friends proceeded to use it all over Bikini Bottom to much outrage from the aquatic townsfolk.Ī watchdog media group called the Parents Television Council (PTC) spoke out about the episode as promoting and satirizing vulgar language, one of the first public denouncements of SpongeBob by a conservative parental group.Īccording to the PTC’s report, this episode was an attempt to promote and satirize profanity usage among children. Krabs using a curse word (bleeped out with dolphin sounds in the episode). The episode in question, called “Sailor Mouth”, featured SpongeBob and Patrick overhearing Mr. In fact, there’s been controversy since way back after the 15th episode of season 2 (Hillenburg stayed on until the end of season 3 and the first movie). SpongeBob was deemed by many parents as an unsuitable show for children far before Hillenburg and his team left. A lot of secret controversies can accumulate in 18 years of broadcast… let’s unearth the darkest secrets from the bottom of the sea.Īre you ready, kids?! Here are the 15 Dark Secrets You Never Knew About SpongeBob SquarePants.
Irreverent and brilliant, SpongeBob had a solid three seasons on Nickelodeon and a theatrically released movie before the quality began to wane. The series may not be what it once was, but ten seasons and counting of a kids' show is not a feat to be taken lightly. The show was created by Stephen Hillenburg, a marine biologist and former creative director of Rocko’s Modern Life.
The creativity, hilarity, artistic integrity, and nuance of a show about a sponge with square-shaped pants changed the landscape of cartoon history forever. They ask us this every time the theme song plays, but how well do we really know the sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea? SpongeBob SquarePants hit the airwaves in 1999 and took the world by storm.