SpongeBob SquarePants "Mystery With a Twistery"

     Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants is a beloved classic at this point. It has been on the air since 1999, and — though it doesn't run regular seasons — is into its eighth batch. This coming Thursday will see the eighth episode in this eighth season, entitled "Mystery With a Twistery." It is the first new episode in over a month, and should prove delightful.

     The main plot arc concerns Mr. Krabs (voiced by Clancy Brown), tired of fending off the scheming of arch-enemy, Plankton (Mr. Lawrence), sending his Krabby Patty recipe to a far-away safe deposit box for safekeeping. Of course, he needs a look at the ingredients almost as soon as it's gone, so he sends SpongeBob (Tom Kenny) and Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) to retrieve it. Plankton follows them, bent on stealing the key to the box, and the secret recipe.

     I wouldn't dream of spoiling the obvious ending, or most of the fun it takes getting there. I can, however, drop a few hints. The episode features two characters are aren't who they appear to be, a retirement home built strangely at the end of a train track, a not-so-fun way for Mr. Krabs to spend his life savings, and reveals that Patrick can repeatedly run faster than a locomotive speeding out of control.

     SpongeBob still teems with unexplainable going-ons, and I wonder how the rules of gravity and land physics can possibly apply under water. However, for a series whose ocean-dwelling sponge looks like the kitchen variety, the rest falls in as part of the charm. SpongeBob may be over a decade old, but he can still deliver the charm and humor of a much younger cleaning implement.

     Advertised as a very special mystery episode, "Mystery With a Twistery" premieres this Thursday at 8pm on Nickelodeon.


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Article first published as TV Preview: SpongeBob SquarePants - "Mystery With a Twistery" on Blogcritics.