The Patrick Star Show
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 The Planet Sheen and Sam & Cat of SpongeBob SquarePants, though not as desperate.
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The Patrick Star Show is a SpongeBob SquarePants spin-off series that focuses on SpongeBob's best friend, Patrick. It was developed by Luke Brookshier, Marc Ceccarelli, Andrew Goodman, Kaz, Doug Lawrence, and Vincent Waller and first aired on July 9, 2021.
The series features Patrick Star hosting his late-night talk show, mainly including him and his family, but other SpongeBob SquarePants characters still make occasional appearances. It also introduces several new (sometimes one-times) characters.
Premise
Patrick Star hosts his very own talk show at his family home, with the support of his family.
Production
SpongeBob SquarePants creator Stephen Hillenburg was asked about the potentiality of spinoffs in a 2009 interview. In response, Hillenburg remarked, "The show is about SpongeBob, he's the core element, and it's about how he relates to the other characters. Patrick by himself might be a bit too much. So I don't see any spin-offs."
On August 10, 2020, it was announced that SpongeBob SquarePants would be receiving its second spinoff series, following at the summer camp, and that the focus of the series would be on Patrick Star. In March 2021, it was announced that Nickelodeon had ordered 13 episodes, with the series set to release in summer 2021. On May 31, 2021, it was announced that the series would premiere in July 2021, and the first teaser trailer for the series was released. On June 17, 2021, it was announced that the series would premiere on July 9, 2021.
According to showrunner Marc Ceccarelli, the writers of The Patrick Star Show bent the rules of the original SpongeBob universe to allow for more creative freedom. Ceccarelli explained:
"We really tried to just do anything we wanted... We mess with canon [the original series' continuity] a lot. I don't know if anybody knows this, but we don't really respect canon just for the sake of itself." The writers also aimed to "sideline" story structures, which "frees [them] up to be more surreal and randomly bizarre with the kinds of things [they] put out there."
Patprick Qualities
- The idea of making a show about Patrick Star (while not at all a terrible idea) can be seen as unoriginal, lazy, and not a good concept since Patrick was designed to be the comic relief and not a protagonist (granted SpongeBob SquarePants is normally a comedy show but still), not to mention by the fact that not only is SpongeBob SquarePants still airing new episodes by the time The Patrick Star Show was even created, but Patrick usually has protagonist moments (and yes, even the dark age (Seasons 6-9a)) in the original show to begin with, which makes this show even more redundant then previously.
- While it was canon to the SpongeBob SquarePants, there's an community errors such as:
- Conch Street along with SpongeBob's, Squidward's, and Patrick's houses can be seen in "Who's a Big Boy?".
- Mr. Krabs and Mrs. Puff look slightly older and wrinklier at the end of the episode, despite being previously seen in the series (and og series) in their normal, younger state.
- While it was canon to the SpongeBob SquarePants, there's an community errors such as:
- The overall concept of the show feels rather off, as it's a generic talk show that has been done in much better media (like "The Eric Andre Show"), which makes it feel out-of-place in a show such as SpongeBob SquarePants.
- Laughable, yet, forgettable theme song, despite being made by Ego Plum, the composer for the Making Fiends TV series, and Jellystone.
- A handful of badly made episodes such as:
- "Late for Breakfast" (which started the show on a slow note)
- "Mid-Season Finale"
- "The Drooling Fool"
- "A Root Galoot"
- "Family Plotz"
- "Big Baby Patrick" (a pointless yet fast sequel of "Squid Baby")
- "Who's the Dummy Now?"
- So many out-of-place moments that feel awkward in SpongeBob SquarePants, such as the He-Man-like face that Patrick makes when he says "So handsome!" in the Season 1 Episode "Just in Time for Christmas".
- Out-of-place slapstick comedy that does not fit well with a show such as SpongeBob SquarePants.
- Meta jokes starting to appear at late Season 1, while very interesting, can be hit-and-miss.
- The first half of Season 1 is a bit slow-pacing.
- Slappy Laszlo is still an unlikable character, just as he is in "SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout".
Wumbo Qualities
- The animation is still as great and beautiful as it was previously, thanks to being animated by Rough Draft Studios as well as the episodes that Michelle Bryan (the director of many episodes from The Fairly OddParents), Sean Dempsey and Juli Murphy (who finally return after their first three seasons in Spongebob SquarePants) animated.
- The episodes that Sean Dempsey animated are an improvement to his Season 1-3 episodes, as he got some very smooth moments.
- On that note, this show also uses different styles and creative backgrounds, which look beautiful and fit the show very well, especially for stop-motion (by Screen Novelties, who also animated the SpongeBob SquarePants specials "It's a SpongeBob Christmas!" "The Legend of Boo-Kini Bottom"), additionaly, the new background is more colorful than the original shows blue one.
- As mentioned in Mini Qualities #1, the show did have a decent execution. The reason is the same animation style as the original one.
- The soundtrack is still pretty nice with the use of Jean-Jacques Perrey tracks
- Patrick is still a likable character and isn't flanderized (thankfully)
- As mentioned in Mini Qualities #1, the show did have a decent execution. The reason is the same animation style as the original one.
- Good voice acting, given that all of the original voice actors from the original show return.
- There are a handful of great episodes (mainly during seasons 2 & 3) here and there such as:
- "Terror at 20,000 Leagues"
- "Home ECCH!"
- "Too Many Patricks"
- "The Lil' Patscals"
- "The Patrick Show Sells Out"
- "Chum Bucket List"
- "Pick Patrick's Path"
- "All Bot Myself"
- "Patrick's Prison Pals" (an okay way to end Season 1, despite the terrible ending)
- "The Patrick Show Cashes In" (which started Season 2 on a high note)
- "Bubble Bass Reviews" (a good take of how SpongeBoomers act during 2014 and nowadays)
- "Face/Off-Model"
- "Movie Stars"
- "Star Cruise"
- "5 Star Restaurant"
- "Cleanin' House" (a decent way to end Season 2)
- "The Fun Bucket" (which started Season 3 on a good note)
- "Patrick Show Land"
- "A Patty in Time"
- "Something Stupid This Way Comes" (not to be confused with "Something Narwhal This Way Comes" from SpongeBob SquarePants Season 13)
- Characters from SpongeBob SquarePants make a return, which adds some nice continuity unlike Planet Sheen.
- Most of the original characters are likable, especially the Star family.
- Redesigning Patrick's parents is arguably a good idea, as it gives them a more unique personality rather than being simply Patrick with different accessories.
- Additionally, Patrick's sister, Squidina Star from "Goons on the Moon" is more likable than the one from "Big Sister Sam". lookalikes (from "I'm With Stupid").
- GrandPat Star is a likable original character, being the grandpa of Patrick Star and the adopted grandpa of Squidina Star, especially the one fact that he is entertaining and hilarious.
- Most of the original characters are likable, especially the Star family.
- When Kenny Pittenger became the supervising producer (and later become an co-executive producer) for the show, it seemed to be improving with the writing in Season 1b (started at "The Patterfly Effect" as the show was switch to storyboard-driven) as the pacing started to go faster and wacky (especially for Seasons 2 and 3), and the plots are starting to get more creative but that's not saying much.
- It's also getting much better since the second half of season 1 when many people on a crew from Looney Tunes Cartoons like Gabe Del Valle, Mike Pelensky, and Jacob Fleisher appear in writing, as well as Bob Camp (Ren and Stimpy) and Brett Varon (Billy and Mandy) take over as the new supervising director in many episodes.
- There are a handful of hilarious moments here and there in this show (similar to the other shows from SpongeBob SquarePants), and the slapstick humor, despite feeling out-of-place for a SpongeBob SquarePants show.
- Patrick Star and GrandPat Star are also really entertaining and pretty hilarious, especially the latter.
- "PLEASE VOTE FOR THE LOLIPOPS!"
- "I ain't doing any [dolphin chirp] cleanin'."
Reception
The series received mixed reviews, with viewers praising the animation but criticizing the lack of coherent storytelling. The series currently holds a 3.6/10 on IMDb, which makes it review-bombed (this is because of the people who think the spin-offs "disrespect Stephen Hillenburg's legacy although Stephen Hillenburg said that he didn't see any spin-offs happening, but it is still not enough to save this show), although YouTubers are more favorable to it. HenryBean2019 gave the series his "GOOD" rating. PhantomStrider found the series is better than Breadwinners. NICKtendo put it as the best spin-off on his SpongeBob Spin-offs video.
Trivia
- Similarly to The Ren & Stimpy Show, which Vincent Waller also worked for, this show includes fake commercials in the episodes.
- Vincent was also a friend of the late Stephen Hillenburg.
- Squidina was first created for the original SpongeBob series. She appeared in Season 11's "Goons on the Moon" as a friend of Pearl, and later returned in Season 12's "The Goofy Newbie." After the latter episode, Vincent Waller stated, "You have not seen the last of Squidina. We have special plans for her. I can't say when you'll see her again, but you will!" Later, The Patrick Star Show was announced and eventually revealed to feature Squidina Star.
- In the original show, Patrick has parents named Margie and Herb. In the spin-off, they have different appearances and are named Bunny and Cecil.
- When asked why Patrick's parents look different in the spin-off, showrunner Vincent Waller responded: "We felt the original iterations of the characters, while they worked for that episode, they were boring as characters. They were NOT entertaining or fun. These two are so much more fun."
- Ian Vazquez (The Cuphead Show!) clarified: "As someone who's on the show I can say they're officially just a redesign of the old parents (his dad even still has the same voice) into...stars!"
- Character designer Chris DeRose has also referred to Margie and Herb as Bunny and Cecil's old designs.
- In an interview with Variety, Waller and Marc Ceccarelli said that they intentionally deviated from SpongeBob canon to allow for more creative freedom. "We see it like a jar sitting up on a shelf in the corner with a label that says canon on it, and we recognize that, but we also treat every episode like a standalone that can go anywhere in the universe," explained Waller. The pair also acknowledged that the move would not sit well with some of SpongeBob's ardent fans.