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227a. Drive Happy


Jinjo

Episode Rating  

16 members have voted

  1. 1. How would you rate this episode?

    • 5/5 Boats: Relax Mr. SquarePants, I'm an expert driver!
      2
    • 4/5 Boats: I'm going to work.
      8
    • 3/5 Boats: We're all tired.
      5
    • 2/5 Boats: Settle down, Mr. SquarePants.
      1
    • 1/5 Boats: I don't like it out here. I want to be inside.
      0


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Premieres: 

Tuesday, February 13th @ 6:00pm ET/PT

Encores:

Saturday, February 17th @ 10:00am ET/PT

Saturday, February 17th @ 6:00pm ET/PT

Plot:

SpongeBob can't drive, but you don't need a license to operate a self-driving car.

Clips:

N/A

Edited by jjsthekid
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I feel like this episode was like "Gone 2.0". Instead of focusing on Spongebob being abandoned; it focused on Spongebob's relationship with a car. I feel like MORE could have been done with Mrs. Puff in this episode, but at least she didn't get hurt TOO badly in this episode, compared to PAST experiences! :D I feel like the talking car was kind of like an IMPROVED version of Le Spatula 3000. Not only is the talking car snooty and STUCK-UP like Le Spatula; he was actually BETTER at being an antagonist than Le Spatula; because he could actually PREVENT Spongebob from going to work! o.o I understand why Squidward may not LIKE Spongebob, but he SHOULD have HELPED Spongebob out of his predicament; I don't care HOW apathetic you are to somebody! :rolleyes: At least Spongebob was able to get his way OUT of his unusual situation, and the Talking Car even got his comeuppance by being FORCED to become a ride outside of the Krusty Krab! :cool: Only time will tell if this will become a permanent thing, or just a one time gag. A 99/100! (Squidward not helping keeps this episode from being perfect). Enough said! ;)

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Decent episode. My only real problem is there should have been more time for SpongeBob and Coupe to play out as friends driving around, because Coupe predictably turning out to be a jerk happened way too fast without that much buildup. Other than that, the rest was handled fine. Coupe being a cynical snob to everyone was pretty amusing, and there were other decent gags sprinkled in there, such as Squidward's "it's not an act". Coupe did kind of vaguely feel similar to Le Spatula from All That Glitters, but I don't think it was that similar to be a full rehash, so I didn't mind it. I'm glad to see the crew is able to keep making creative boating themed episodes lately.

Grade: B+

Edited by jjsthekid
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One of the recent good Kaz episodes for sure. My biggest problem with this episode was that Patrick was so annoying I even had to agree with Coupe. His scene at the end was really funny but his other scene was played out for too long and Mrs. Puff's cameo was same old her getting hurt. Rest of the episode was fine with some good humor and action. Squidward literally erasing his mind was a well done gag. Scope was a big jerk but unlike Le Spatula, SpongeBob slowly realized how horrible he is and Coupe got his fair punishment from him. This is definitely one of my favorite characterizations of SpongeBob in a while. The chase scene was pretty amusing to sit through as well as the whole scene in Car Wash. Definitely an enjoyable ride, pun intended, excluding Patrick and Mrs. Puff's cameos.

Grade: B

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A shark being a car dealer, how appropriate. If only Spongebob was paying attention to the monitor, he'd know what animals actually go "meow". Of the disturbing Spongebob related incidents Squidward has seen, that was a weird time for a brain erase. Trophy was right on Xat, Mrs. Puff wasn't in her damn lane, totally on her. Next time just install a makeshift garage. Coop has trash TV preferences and has an even worse snore. Poor frazzled Gary. Oh perfect, Patrick is here to slam his butt on the dashboard. Coop actually had the patience of a saint there. Motor oil wine. "I'm going to work". Spongebob badassery. Triple Krabby Patty with 5 scoops of ice cream? Finally something healthy on their menu. Coop could've avoided this sad fate of not being stripped for parts if he had just drove around on his own for the day and picked Spongebob up at the end of his shift. (smirk) 

Guess the nerdmobile and wimp wagon were Spongebob's real dream cars. I had a happy ride and that's not just an act. Grade: B

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I thought this episode was pretty good. But the beginning was kinda dull in some places, I kinda expected Coupe to act like Christine, but he was more of a pompous jerk like Le Spatula. I did like how near the end SpongeBob turned the tables on Coupe by threatening to pee in the car if he didn't let him out and used his lack of driving skills to gain control of him all by demanding that he's going to work. Pretty bold, SpongeBob. The ending was also pretty satisfying with Coupe getting turning into a kiddie ride and wishing for destruction.

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Originally written: March 7th, 2018

Going in to watch Drive Happy, I honestly wasn't quite sure what to expect. I didn't really have that general idea of what the plot was going to be, so I wasn't too sure whether or not this was going to be that good of an episode. In the end, I found myself fairly enjoying this episode. First, let's talk about the plot.

This episode's premise is surprisingly kind of original. A lot of Season 11 plotlines tend to recycle elements from older episodes, and in this one, I couldn't really think of any episode that this one is ripped off of. The most similar plotline to this episode is probably SpongeBob LongPants, given the self-driving boat's overall outlook on the tacky Krusty Krab. But even then, that episode greatly differs from this episode, heck, the closest thing this episode has to a different episode is probably SpongeBob's interaction with his boat in Gone. Essentially, this episode has the stereotypical self-driving car that eventually attempts to take over his owner's life. Well, metaphorically speaking in this episode's case, the boat's intention isn't necessarily to take over SpongeBob's life, it's to do whatever he wants, which results in roping SpongeBob in.

This episode's storyline isn't really that great, but it's definitely made for with the humor. I definitely found myself enjoying a lot of different gags in this episode. The boat gags at the beginning of the episode were visually, very funny, and there were a lot of great gags with the self-driving boat throughout the episode. There were even a few lines here and there that were funny, like Squidward's "I wasn't acting" line.

I don't really have much to say about this episode's plotline, nor it's humor. It seems to get the job done with presenting a solid story and a lot of funny jokes. It's not groundbreaking, but it's relatively harmless in that regard. However, I definitely have quite a lot of things to say about the characters in this episode.

SpongeBob is the perfect protagonist in this episode. He is, he really is. Even during Season 10 when characters began to flanderize once more, only this time with different personalities that the current team of writers have become accustomed to writing, SpongeBob has always managed to remain in character. One of the biggest problems with the flanderization during the Post-Movie era, was that SpongeBob was often severely mistreated (Particularly in episodes such as Boating Buddies, Squidwood, etc.), but now, I feel as though the writing team understands how SpongeBob should properly act in each episode, because I really haven't seen any major flaws with his character since Squid Baby.

Patrick, on the other hand has been regressed to the utmost stupidity in this episode, once again. Unlike The Clam Whisperer, where it was played up to no end just for the sake of comedy, Patrick is essentially a key character in the plot progression in this episode. I certainly don't enjoy his portrayal in this episode, there are definitely smarter and clever ways to have him mess around with the self-driving boat. The "Butt on button" line was especially obnoxious, delivering nothing more than goofy visuals. It's not even slapstick, it's just Patrick spazzing around while making goofy noises. He definitely is quite the nuisance in this episode.

Now before we move onto our main antagonist, I definitely want to get another character out of the way.

Squidward, oddly enough, is severely mistreated in this episode in one scene, yet seems to be perfectly in character his next scene. It's so odd, that "Erase from my memory" gag was terrible, completely out of his character, he would never to such stupidity. He would maybe smack his head against something, but that's the most he would probably do. This gag doesn't even come into play later on. Squidward says "Who's SpongeBob?" after erasing his memory, yet he's completely normal in his next scene. Why!? There was no point to this scene other than some kind of excuse to fill in time with a "funny" joke. The next scene he's in, he's perfectly normal. He even has a great one-liner, too. Okay, it's not that great, but by Post-Prequel standards, it's pretty good.

Now let's talk about our main antagonist. I found myself enjoying this character at first, but when he takes a complete turnaround in behavior once inside SpongeBob's house, he's nothing more than an arrogant scumbag. His personality is intended to be classy, and full of himself, but I didn't really enjoy how much of a jerk he essentially became so early on in the episode. I would've preferred if he had a slow progression, maybe have the interaction with Patrick be the essential breaking point of his character, with seeing the Krusty Krab being the final straw. But I simply don't feel any compassion for this guy when Patrick attacks him since he was already a big jerk to SpongeBob previously in the channel switching scene. I don't have a problem with him being a nuisance to SpongeBob (Parallel to Squidward being a nuisance to SpongeBob in Can You Spare a Dime?). In fact, a lot of this episode's gags stem from him in the earlier scenes, so I don't have a problem with him intruding SpongeBob's house. However, his personality in the channel switching scene feels too brass, his chipper personality the following morning doesn't even feel sincere. They definitely should've toned down his character early on, and have it snowball into the breaking straw. He wasn't that likable of an antagonist either.

Well McSponge, aren't antagonists supposed to be...you know, antagonists!?

Yes, but there is a way to make a completely evil character likable. Take Dennis for instance. I absolutely love watching him in the first movie, and he's out to murder our protagonists. I just don't care for the boat when he goes full antagonistic, he just comes across as a snobbish uptight control freak. There's nothing wrong with that type of character, but the execution how he acts certainly makes him an unlikable character (It IS possible to play off this type of character well, just look at Squilliam).

Overall, by the climax of this episode, I just wasn't that invested or interested in this episode. Still, I did find myself enjoying a good chunk of it, and there are still lots of funny jokes sprinkled throughout the episode. It's an Okay Episode. I give it a 6.5/10.

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I gave this a meh on my review thingy, but I'm having second thoughts. The episodes climax is really good, and even though they didn't set up Coup the best, he was still a pretty fun villain, even if he wasn't too memorable. It packs a few decent jokes, the wimp wagon and nerdmobile, the "it's not an act" line got a chuckle, and Coup drinking gasoline wine. The climax has some great action, and I like how they made Spongebob not a pushover. Patrick was pretty terrible though, but I guesshe was only there for 30 seconds, but they could have made him more clever or subtle here. Other than that though, the episode handles everything else fine. Maybe add in a few more jokes towards the middle, but other than that no complaints. Better than some of the other mediocre episodes of the season, this one is pretty good.

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