10 Most Underrated SpongeBob SquarePants Episodes
These SpongeBob SquarePants episodes are required viewings for true fans.
SpongeBob SquarePants has become a cultural icon over the years with movies, memes, and episodes that an entire generation of fans can't get enough of.
Strangely enough however, most of those memories came from just the first three seasons of the show. The unforgettable closing song in 'Band Geeks' or the often used meme from 'Idiot Box' are just some examples of the great moments those initial seasons gave us.
At the same time, those moments don't include some great episodes and jokes from an entire library of later seasons that have gone largely untouched by the pop culture frenzy that's surrounded the series.
Although it's true that not every episode from the later seasons reached the same highs as those classics, there were plenty of memorable jokes and gags that have gone under-appreciated. Here are the best of the best from those later seasons that every SpongeBob fan has to check out.
10. 'Karate Island' (Season Four)
The best episodes of SpongeBob SquarePants find a way to combine smart parody with a real-life lesson, and 'Karate Island' is no different. It's an obvious parody of classic martial arts films like Enter The Dragon, but still closes with a good lesson about humility.
The episode starts with SpongeBob receiving a shady invitation to be crowned the "King of Karate" via a cheesy VHS tape. Of course, our spongy hero accepts, and quickly lets the new title go to his square head.
Luckily, Sandy sees through the ruse, and accompanies SpongeBob to Karate Island where she's forced to face off with a series of nefarious martial arts masters to save SpongeBob from the elaborate trap set by the villainous Master Udon. It turns out that Udon, voiced by the famous karate master of cinema Pat Morita, was only trying to entrap SpongeBob in a timeshare rather than coronate him king.
In other words, the whole plot is brilliantly absurd, with the classic Bruce Lee movie callbacks like Sandy's yellow and black suit just adding to the hilarity. The fact that it ultimately closes with SpongeBob learning a valuable lesson about humbleness is then just the icing on top of this oftentimes overlooked episode.