SBC's Top 50 Worst Episodes Ever 2018 Edition

[Honest Slug]

Time of the Month > Ink Lemonade

[Less_SpongeBob]

Quick question: Does anybody care about A Pal for Gary anymore?

[So Sejima]

Time of the Month is the inking we deserved.

[WhoBibbles]

15 minutes ago, More said:

Quick question: Does anybody care about A Pal for Gary anymore?

It's on top 2, so...

[So Sejima]

20 minutes ago, Master WhoBruh said:

It's on top 2, so...

Unfortunately

[Jjs Goodman]

Welp...here we go. This crazy ride finally comes to an end. Thanks to everyone who participated in not just list submissions, but in discussion too. I am happy with how this turned out, this was honestly my favorite edition of the four thus far. But don't go anywhere just yet, as I will also reveal the dishonorable mentions (aka our runner-ups) after #1.

Now...we start off our bottom two with a plot twist.

...

...

...

2. A Pal for Gary

314 points. 16 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: 4 #1's - @RDSP, @Patty Sponge, @The last carotte & @4EverGreen

Summary:

Spoiler

The episode opens on SpongeBob's house. The scene cuts to the inside, where SpongeBob is about to feed Gary. The food drops from the can into Gary's food bowl then Gary starts to eat it. SpongeBob throws the can into the trash, but it is overfilled with cans of snail food, so the can he throws causes other cans to fly out of the pile on top of the can. The can then hits the stove, where it knocks two cans off the stove. It then goes to the overfilled sink and makes dirty dishes fall. Finally, it cuts a rope and causes a shelf to go down and a barrel, which was on top of a box on the shelf, to start rolling. The barrel hits SpongeBob, knocking him out of the kitchen. SpongeBob lands in the living room and the barrel rolls away. The can then lands on SpongeBob's nose. Gary enters the living room and "meows."

SpongeBob gets up and throws the can behind him. SpongeBob tells Gary, "I'll get out of your hair," and pets him. SpongeBob pushes his nose and his Krusty Krab employee hat moves from inside him to the top of his head. SpongeBob opens the door and tells Gary, "See you later, Gare." He looks down and sees Gary with his leash. SpongeBob thinks Gary wants to go on a walk but says that he does not have time for a walk because he has to get to work. He also tells Gary that he will have to stay home. He then promises that as soon as he gets home, they will have fun. While leaving, SpongeBob tells Gary that he loves him and says, "Bye."

Once SpongeBob is gone, Gary uses the leashes like a lasso and opens a cupboard and gets a can of chips. He then moves the chips to the chair. He grabs a cowboy hat with drinks attached to it from the fish lure on the wall. He moves that to the chair and then, holding the remote, sits down in the chair. He manages to get to the chair before the hat lands, so it lands on his shell. Gary turns on the TV, which is on a cowboy movie or show. Outside, SpongeBob, still at his house, thinks that Gary is lonely and says, while walking away, "I can only imagine the tortured loneliness that he must be feeling right now." The scene cuts to Gary laughing at the cowboy movie or show.

Later, at the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob is sweeping next to Fred, who is about to eat his Krabby Patty. Fred gives SpongeBob an angry look because SpongeBob is kicking up so much dust. SpongeBob stops when he hears the doors open. He starts to greet the new customer but stops when he notices that the customer has a worm. SpongeBob tells the customer that they have a "no pets" policy and that the worm will have to wait outside. Frankie Billy (the customer) says that he could not do that because his worm gets far too lonely and upset when he is left alone. Frankie Billy tells his worm that he cannot buy the Krabby Patty that the worm wanted. Frankie Billy tells his worm that they are going home. The two walk to the exit, but are stopped by Mr. Krabs who tells Frankie Billy that the two can get two Krabby Patties at regular price. He then walks the two to SpongeBob, who is sweeping. Mr. Krabs tells SpongeBob to give the responsible pet owner two Krabby Patties. SpongeBob gets sad because of the word, "responsible" and remembers Gary, who he thinks is suffering. He explains that he leaves Gary home by himself every day. He says that he better call to make sure that he is okay. At the pineapple, Gary is still watching the cowboy movie and clearly having a good time and is in no way lonely or sad at all. The phone rings, but Gary is too distracted to pick up.

Back at The Krusty Krab, SpongeBob thinks that Gary is too distraught to pick up the phone. SpongeBob then hears his voicemail message, which features SpongeBob saying, "Hello. You've reached SpongeBob and... come on, Gary..." and Gary meowing. Voicemail SpongeBob continues saying, "...and Gary. The two of us are having too much fun together to answer the phone right now, so leave a message and we call you right back if we ever take a break from having so much fun... together." SpongeBob and Gary then laugh. As the message goes on, SpongeBob gets sadder and sadder. He says that his message is a lie. He then leaves a message asking Gary if he is there and that he is just checking on Gary. Gary is laughing at the movie or show again. At the end of the message, SpongeBob says that he will be home soon. At night, SpongeBob turns the "open" sign to "closed." He takes off his hat and sneaks out the front door. He gets caught by Mr. Krabs. Mr. Krabs is starring the parking lot and wants SpongeBob's help. SpongeBob says that he cannot because he has a lonely pet snail to get back to. Mr. Krabs tells SpongeBob that he can go as long as he comes in five hours early to finish the parking lot the next day.

Later, while running home, SpongeBob wonders how he can balance being a pet owner and having a job. SpongeBob passes a cart that is selling nudibranchs. At the cart, Fred and Monroe Timmy are buying one. Monroe Timmy asks Fred if it is his. Fred says that it is. He also says that now Monroe Timmy has a furry friend to keep him from feeling lonely. SpongeBob overhears this and stops. Fred continues saying that he can go on his business trips without feeling guilty. SpongeBob thinks that if he gives Gary a friend, he will not be lonely. Fred and Monroe Timmy walk away and SpongeBob runs up to the window of the cart. He sees the nudibranchs and calls them, "precious." He chooses a green one. The seller says, "You wish to obtain my rare and extremely dangerous..." She is cut off by the fact that SpongeBob has entered the cart and picked out the one he wants. She turns to SpongeBob and warns him that the nudibranchs don't like other pets. She shows a picture of a cat to one of the nudibranchs and it starts to get angry. SpongeBob leaves the cart with the nudibranch, thanking the seller. She wonders why she even bothers to warn people when they never listen.

Later, at the pineapple, on the TV, the cowboy movie or show is still showing. The Cowboy fish tells the sheriff that he has met the bank robber. He throws the hat on the table and says that the hat is the bank robber, so the sheriff should cuff him. SpongeBob interrupts the scene. Gary is surprised, which makes the hat fly off his head. Gary is then disappointed. SpongeBob says that he has bought a new playmate for Gary. SpongeBob sets the nudibranch next to Gary and says that he is named, "Puffy Fluffy" and that he will be keeping Gary company while SpongeBob is at work. SpongeBob says that he will leave Gary and Puffy Fluffy alone to get to know each other while he gets something. Gary meows and Puffy Fluffy roars revealing giant, sharp teeth. SpongeBob returns with food for Gary and Puffy Fluffy. Gary goes to his bowl and is about to eat when SpongeBob stops him. SpongeBob then scolds Gary about not having manners in regards to not sharing while he adds, "/Puffy Fluffy" to Gary's bowl. SpongeBob moves Puffy Fluffy from the chair to the bowl. SpongeBob tells them to eat up while he makes some enchiladas. Puffy Fluffy roars, scaring Gary away. He then proceeds to eat the entire bowl with the food. Puffy Fluffy scoots over to Gary, who is hiding behind the TV. He hears SpongeBob say, "I'm back," so he stops what he is doing.

While walking to his chair, SpongeBob comments how the enchiladas are hot. SpongeBob thinks that Gary's cowering is that he is ignoring Puffy Fluffy, so he takes the two and puts them next to toys so that they can play together to bond. When SpongeBob gets back, he comments on how his enchiladas are cold. Gary chews on the carrot chew toy. Puffy Fluffy roars, which makes the chew toy fall out of Gary's mouth. Puffy Fluffy shreds the toy while SpongeBob begins to eat his enchiladas. Puffy Fluffy tries to bite Gary, but he runs out of the way. He lands on SpongeBob, making him drop his enchiladas. SpongeBob comments on this fact. He also says that because of this and he will not cooperate with Puffy Fluffy, he is putting Gary to bed early. Later, still in the living room, SpongeBob puts Gary and Puffy Fluffy in a bed together. He puts a blanket on the two and notices how cute they are together. Gary apologizes and SpongeBob accepts his apology and tells the two, "good night." When SpongeBob leaves, Puffy Fluffy roars again.

In SpongeBob's room, he is also going to bed. SpongeBob says that he is going to sleep well knowing that Gary has a playmate to spend time with. He then starts sleeping. Gary runs into the room, waking SpongeBob. SpongeBob takes Gary back downstairs and shows Gary that Puffy Fluffy is harmless by showing Gary that he is fast asleep. SpongeBob puts Gary back in the bed, turns off the light, and goes back upstairs. "Puffy Fluffy" deflates revealing that it was not him. Gary is surprised and hears a noise coming from the kitchen. There he sees a Puffy Fluffy as a monster, digging through the refrigerator. He roars at Gary and he is scared. Meanwhile, SpongeBob, fast asleep, turns to his side. Back in the kitchen, Gary gets onto the stove and takes one of the pans that is hanging up to use a weapon. Meanwhile, SpongeBob, still fast asleep, turns to his other side. He also mumbles in his sleep.

Back downstairs, Gary begins running from the beast, who chases after him. Gary enters the library. Puffy Fluffy has Gary up against a bookcase, but Gary manages to escape, making Puffy Fluffy lunge into the bookcase, which causes books to fall down. A stack piles on top of Gary. He pops his eyes out and Puffy Fluffy then chases him around the book pile, accidentally hit the fire log into the pile of books, creating a fire that begins to spread to the surrounding books. This causes a fire border between Gary and Puffy Fluffy. Meanwhile, back with SpongeBob, smoke begins to seep through the cracks in his door to the library. Still sleeping, SpongeBob smells the fire and thinks that his grandma is making meatballs. In the bathroom, Gary is trying to put out the fire by using water from the bathtub. He manages to do so. He sees that Puffy Fluffy is digging through SpongeBob's library closet. He leaves with a pair of SpongeBob's pants and rips them up. Gary then begins to bite Puffy Fluffy. Puffy Fluffy hits Gary off his back, making him hit a bookcase, making a few more books fall. Gary makes Puffy Fluffy hit the bookcase again.

Back in SpongeBob's room, the ceiling starts to fall apart, while SpongeBob remains sleeping. Meanwhile, Gary has managed to make it to the garage, where he ends up at a wall. Puffy Fluffy lunges at Gary. A loud rumble is heard in SpongeBob's room. He wakes up a bit but manages to get back to sleep. Gary leaves to the living room, through a hole in the wall. Puffy Fluffy follows and chases Gary through the house until morning. SpongeBob's alarm goes off while more of the ceiling falls. He wakes up. He says that he better check up on Gary and Puffy Fluffy. SpongeBob notices the fallen parts of the ceiling and thinks that there was a seaquake. He then opens the door to the library. The door falls off. He then sees the ruined library. He slides down the slide and then notices that his Memories of T.S. Halibut book is ruined. He then notices that his clothes are ruined. He realizes that it was not a seaquake and wonders who could have done so much damage. He then thinks that Gary did this out of jealousy. He then heads down the stairs, angrily. He tries to open a door, but it is locked he angrily asks Gary to open it.

Meanwhile, in the exercise room, Gary is about to be eaten by Puffy Fluffy. SpongeBob then opens the door by force. He then sees that Gary is being eaten by Puffy Fluffy. However, instead of rushing to Gary's rescue, SpongeBob scolds him, telling him to put Puffy Fluffy down—even when Puffy Fluffy is clearly trying to eat the snail, and Gary is yelling in agony. Puffy Fluffy then puts Gary down and takes SpongeBob instead. Gary then sees that SpongeBob is in trouble and grabs his cowboy hat and lasso. He then whips Puffy Fluffy with the lasso. He then lassoes Puffy Fluffy's monster tongues and this makes Puffy Fluffy run out of the house and into the distance. SpongeBob runs out of the house, begging for Puffy Fluffy to come back, to no avail. SpongeBob then looks at Gary and ungratefully scolds him again, demanding to know what he has to say for himself.

Later, at the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob enters the kitchen, holding Gary, saying that he will take Gary where ever he goes and that Gary will no longer be alone. Mr. Krabs asks what Gary is doing in the kitchen. SpongeBob says that he is bringing Gary into work and then gives Gary a Krusty Krab employee hat. Mr. Krabs likes the idea of free labor. He then asks Gary to serve up some Krabby Patties, handing him a spatula. Gary meows in a disappointed tone.

Jjs: Welp...yeah. I lost the bet. This will possibly shock you. Yes, there is no mistake, for the first time ever, our king A Pal for Gary has been dethroned. And my bet didn't influence it, either. This was #1 at some points, then it wasn't, then it was, and now in the end it isn't. It was a very close race. Of course, if you are upset this didn't make it to #1 again, don't be sad. It still made it all the way to #2, which is an accomplishment. Personally, much like One Coarse Meal, I've grown apathetic and tired of this episode due to everyone and their grandmother hating it, which is why it didn't make my bottom 25 this year. Also, as I said before, for an episode to make my list it has to be horrible the entire 11 minutes. In my opinion, I find the first half of A Pal for Gary mediocre at worst. The second half is total garbage, I won't deny that by any means, but the first half was enough to kind of keep it off my list. Also, I think the episode does one thing right, in that it actually has Gary win in the end. They could've copped out and had a lazy "both Gary and Puffy lost" thing, but nope. It's not enough to make up for the shit he goes through, but the fact he drove Puffy off like a king made me feel...happy for Gary. He goes through so much bullshit, and it does pay off with a victory. Granted it is made bittersweet by SpongeBob still being an oblivious fool, but at least Gary is content he sent that bastard Puffy away. What a true cowboy hero. You go, little guy. And gosh darnit, I'll admit I still find some amusement in the "enchiladas" gag. Not trying to defend it, it's still a horrid episode, and you have every right to hate it, but the fact I only disliked half of it is why it didn't make my list, along with two other minor things I somewhat liked. But really, more than anything, I'm tired of this one. Much like One Coarse Meal, everyone has said everything about why it sucks by now.

That all being said, "Gary, you put Fluffy down!" is an absolutely awful line, like how did anyone think that was a good idea. Sometimes I wonder what goes on behind the scenes.

More: The dreaded "A Pal for Gary". So fascinating, so horrible, so uh... wet? Of course this episode made #1 again this year. Why wouldn't it? This is the pinnacle of how bad SpongeBob can possibly get, it's angering and no episode has shown a deeper misunderstanding about how the characters work up to this point. This is going to be just like the Kid's Choice Awards where it just wins every single year until we eventually get tired of the inevitable. Why? Because it's awful. I'm here to explain why we still hate this so much to consider it the Worst Episode–*sees this is #2* Wait? Really? How did that happen? Either too many people got caught up in the face reveal bet, or we got so tired of hearing about how it stinks that people dropped it from their Top 5's this year, if not from their lists entirely like jjsthekid did.

Look, it's not like this episode doesn't have any redeeming qualities. As some people have pointed out, the climax actually offers some solid action with how detailed Puffy Fluffy's been designed and how cleverly Gary saves the day with his lasso from the beginning of the episode. The introduction was also reasonably decent, as it builds up that SpongeBob actually cares for Gary and is concerned that he's been alone for so long... but that may be the root of the problem.

The introduction makes the part where SpongeBob stabs Gary in the back for the remainder of the runtime ever more jarring to the viewer and more clearly out-of-character. We all know this line "You put Puffy Fluffy down right now!" as the straw that broke the camel's back after SpongeBob repeatedly ignored Gary, blamed Gary for everything, and was completely oblivious to the fact he was nearly eaten alive by a monster. He never even tries to phone in an apology, let alone do anything to redeem himself for being such a terrible pet owner. He seems to represent one of the worst personalities a person can have: self-confident but incredibly stupid.

And what about the comedy? As in, where on earth is the comedy!? Given that SpongeBob's actions never hurt himself to actually lead to a satisfying punchline, crossing the line between being exaggerated to being annoying, the rest of it is made up of... basically nothing as that was the shaky, broken axis the episode revolved around. The rest is repeating the same joke of Puffy Fluffy scaring Gary for a second while manipulating SpongeBob, and... that's it unless you got a chuckle out of "Enchiladas".

The worst part about it is that SpongeBob's oblivious act was easily avoidable. At least in Stuck in the Wringer, Patrick's risky decision to use glue introduced the main idea of the story, as Patrick tried to cheer SpongeBob up the way he knows how before realizing it's only hurting SpongeBob more and he needs to make a genuine effort at the end. It's an idea that could've been done better but at least makes sense. SpongeBob here is a leech that completely distracts from the episode. If he only acknowledged the pet is a monster, the episode would have improved immediately.

Perhaps it's hard to tell how good or bad an episode can be based on the synopsis. After all, the one for Band Geeks was "Squidward creates a band" and its easy to see how flexible that story is when you watch the episode. It's sad the show's writers and crew picked the worst story idea possible for this one.

 

Now here comes our new king...

 

1. Stuck in the Wringer

330 points. 18 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: 2 #1's - @Steel Sponge & @Turd Ferguson

Summary:

Spoiler

The episode begins with SpongeBob taking a morning shower. When he gets out, he dries himself off in his wringer. As he starts to walk out of his bathroom, he nearly slips on a bar of soap. He is so proud of himself for avoiding a potential injury, that he doesn't notice that a Rubber Duck has flown into his bathroom through his window. He trips over the duck, then slips back onto the bar of soap, and finally and unfortunately gets stuck in his wringer.

At this point, Patrick enters the bathroom and asks SpongeBob if he has seen his rubber duck. SpongeBob points out the duck that he tripped over, which is still on his floor. Patrick runs over to it, exclaiming "Ducky! I found you!" SpongeBob regretfully interrupts the reunion after a bit, telling Patrick that he needs help. He begins to explain that he is stuck in his wringer, but Patrick interrupts before he can finish, saying he knows how to help SpongeBob. However, the problem only gets worse when Patrick, misunderstands the situation and uses Forever Glue to permanently trap SpongeBob inside it.

SpongeBob is a bit upset, but tries to go about his usual day, but, being stuck in the wringer causes some unforeseen problems. SpongeBob causes chaos at the Krusty Krab and gets kicked out of work because he put Mr. Krabs' money in danger. Patrick meets him outside and asks how his day is going. SpongeBob admits that he's having some trouble, so Patrick decides to take SpongeBob to Super Weenie Hut Juniors for some ice cream to cheer him up. SpongeBob becomes even sadder when he discovers that the wringer prevents his body from consuming the ice cream.

Patrick suggests that they go to the carnival, the "funnest spot in the ocean." Carnival games prove impossible for SpongeBob, but Patrick has lots of fun. Patrick's good luck annoys SpongeBob, which finally causes him to lose his temper and scream at Patrick for ruining his life, stating that he wouldn't be stuck in the wringer had it not been for the Forever Glue. Patrick admits he was only trying to help, but SpongeBob furiously lashes out by saying that he's helped quite enough today. Patrick runs off crying as a result. The other fish at the carnival are disgusted by SpongeBob's outburst (they seem to know that while Patrick had not helped him one bit, he had at least tried, despite his stupidity) and tell him that he deserved what he got, sending him into depression.

The next morning, Patrick tries to ignore the fact that all of the things he usually does involve SpongeBob, and keeps telling himself that he's not supposed to care about him anymore. Patrick finds that forgetting about his best friend is impossible and enters SpongeBob's house by breaking down the door while yelling, "I'm coming buddy!" Inside, he finds a depressed and slightly crazed SpongeBob watching TV static. Horrified by this, and blaming himself for 

SpongeBob's problem, Patrick cries. His tears splash on the glue and melt some of it. Upon realizing this, SpongeBob suggests that they both cry so he might be able to slip out of the wringer.

Both of them proceed to do so, which melts the glue and allows SpongeBob to be free of the wringer. SpongeBob and Patrick hug when the former tosses the wringer into the air. When it comes back down, it lands around the two, leaving them stuck in the wringer together. This causes another conflict, but SpongeBob doesn't worry because he is at least stuck with his best friend. The episode ends with Patrick asking if he should use the Forever Glue again.

Jjs: Yup. After an intense match between our former king, Stuck in the Wringer is now our new #1. I'm perfectly okay with this, mostly because it's #4 on my personal list and it's something different. While I am a bit surprised Wringer did manage to beat A Pal for Gary, it's not undeserved by any means. Many S6-S8 episodes were rightfully hated due to Patrick's characterization, and this is one of the most infamous of 'em all. Every character in this one, except SpongeBob as I do feel bad for the lil' guy, is horrible from start to finish. There's no good payoff, I can't even name any jokes, and it's a depressing slog to get through. I genuinely felt like SpongeBob was being crapped on for no good reason the entire thing, making it not only depressing, but obnoxious and boring too. Not even the Weenie Hut Jr's cameo could save this train-wreck for me. I will forever hate how the townsfolk come out of nowhere only to paint SpongeBob as a horrible monster, despite having good reasons to get mad at Patrick. It was such a shoehorned way add dumb Bottomites in. The premise isn't even good either. If SpongeBob "getting stuck in a wringer" was the extent of their creative ability, then it's no wonder this era had so many bad episodes. I know the moral at the end was a joke, but it wasn't funny. I could write a Nuggets essay on why everything in this shit ep doesn't work, but I'll let Steel and Homie close out our countdown with their own speeches.

Steel: Remember when I said last year that I've decided that there was an episode that I hated more than "I Was a Teenage Gary?" And no, it's not Pranks a Lot. The episode that would just so happen to be my new, personal worst episode crowner is also SBC's new, proper worst episode crowner, and I can't be any happier, especially considering that I partially helped dethrone the big, fat menace known as "A Pal for Gary." In so many ways, "Stuck in the Wringer" is the face of a true enemy. If I was a different kind of SpongeBob fan, this episode would've been my breaking point. So, long after I decided that "I Was a Teenage Gary" was my most despised episode, what made me change my mind in 2017?

Well, obviously, I've grown out of how I used to determine what episodes I liked and disliked. You can tell by how I formed both of my lists this year that my opinions on several episodes changed quite a lot. If there's any blunt reason why "Stuck in the Wringer" has now stuck with me as the episode I despised the most, well...my idea of the worst episode for this show is that there would be nothing worth defending. In other words, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING is redeemable about this episode, looking back at it. I could write an essay just to express all my details that describe why I loathe "Stuck in the Wringer..." but I couldn't since I wasted a lot of my energy defending "Truth or Square" to death when it appeared high up on this year's list. I'm saving up all my inner thoughts towards "Stuck in the Wringer" for a thread of my very own (which I will shamelessly promote when I unveil my bottom 25) so I don't have to just copy/paste all that I could've said here.

So anyways, what can I at least say here that proves my stance against the episode? Like I said, there's little to nothing I find to be salvageable from this dreadful segment. The characterization (except Squidward's, lel), the writing, the plot, the humor, they're all awful. Not even a joke about SpongeBob being a sad bike rack gets a kick out of me. This is an episode that entirely forgot how to make SpongeBob charming and funny. Within time, my thoughts on the episode have only worsened. Back when I first saw this, my feelings of the episode was pretty tame, and now here it is as my most despised episode of SpongeBob. What a sad, sad, little bike rack of an episode.

Homie: I must say that when I was given the opportunity to cover Stuck in the Wringer, I had honestly forgotten half of the episode-- sure, I knew that SpongeBob got through his turmoils by way of crying, I knew that most everything revolved around abusing the titular Sponge through a matter of contrivances, and I knew that it's reputation preceded it-- but of the episodes with that big of a reputation, the episodes that most everyone can point to and say "yeah, that was a bad move," Stuck in the Wringer is the one that has most warranted that reception. It has not aged out of its bad repute as had One Coarse Meal or even this lists own penultimate episode A Pal For Gary, and it has remained one of the few episodes I've yet to see a positive defense for. There is never a time people gather on the Xat to discuss Wringer's merits or why it was unnecessarily hated in ears past, and that is simply because it does not have those merits. It does not have those saving graces, those small things one might point to if they were justifying mediocrity. I've ordered my complaints about Stuck in the Wringer Jenny Nicholson style for your reading pleasure/comprehension of my extremely scattered ideas on why this is the worst thing ever (or number eight on my list:) 

#1 - All of the characters are terrible: Playing on many tropes of the worst the series has to offer, character assassination is in abundance as stupidity proves a pivotal point on the part of both the writers and the characters. It might be redundant to rage at Patrick for using Forever Glue on his friend when he knew he was desperate to break free, hell I'm pretty sure all of this is redundant-- you know as well as I know that Patrick is an idiot but he was never an idiot to this extent and the writers blatantly intensifying that aspect of his character to fulfill this barebones plot line just accentuates what little structure that Wringer had to begin with-- yet, I still find it important to address these points because these are the issues that make the episode as awful as it is. Bringing back the subject of finding something to praise in order to cancel out the negatives, it's notable that Patrick himself is not purposefully antagonizing SpongeBob in any of the scenes-- in fact, he does want to help his friend, the true problem is just the heinous nature of his decision-making, which if played right could've been much better than it is-- but this, of course, does not make better the fact that what we're subjected to is SpongeBob being ill-treated in increasingly heavy-handed ways that lack creativity where they have inanity. The man can't even eat his ice cream.

There is another terrible characterization that I'm unsure how to describe other than 'Bikini Bottomites being assholes to our main characters in order to make the plot progress further," so that's how I will be describing it here. Wringer has a particularly annoying case of this with everyone turning against SpongeBob for basically no reason other than... they can? It honestly makes even less sense than Someone's in the Kitchen with Sandy where you could at least blame it on Sandy being naked (or just blatant racism,) but throughout there is legitimately no given reason for everyone to turn on SpongeBob and make his life more miserable than it already is, other than the writers feeling the need to pile onto him more suffering than he's already been granted. Of all the scenes, this one is what frustrated me the most as it shows disregard for basic comprehension for something that isn't even played for laughs. Is there meant to be humor in everyone being cruel to SpongeBob? It certainly isn't played that way, which is what makes everything much more confusing than it already was, and confirms the already obvious fact that the writers had no idea what they were doing going in. 

#2 - The plot is bad if it even exists, the jokes are bad if they even exist: There's a surprising lack of things to discuss when it comes to plot, substance, and characterization in the episode in question because for the majority of the time the things going on can only be described as 'annoying' with no adjectives needed further, and while I'm aware that this description fits most of the top five here, there are at least deeper reasons why one might hate One Coarse Meal or even Ink Lemonade. For this reason, Wringer feels like another highly-ranked episode of mine: Sportz?. While these episodes are extremely different in their plot, they are not so different in the fact that they both rely on physical comedy, physical comedy of which does not rely on any actual creativity or merit from the writers themselves. It is the lowest common denominator of humor. There is no punchline (sans literal punching,) there is no creativity, there is nothing that doesn't stick out like an over-grown splinter as the writers try desperately to force humor where it is not. As I re-watched Wringer, I did not have the feelings of vitriol I thought I might. I did not feel as though I wanted to write long angry paragraphs about why the writers are incompetent or about why the humor doesn't extend far beyond "physical comedy is hilarious right?" or why none of it actually makes any sense from the get-go. There is absolutely no inspiration that one can obtain from an episode like this, which I found to be yet another parallel to Sportz?, an episode which I would've been interested in guest commentating for had it not been for the fact that the only word I could find for that episode was "lazy." Stuck in the Wringer certainly is that. But, as everyone who has ever seen this episode knows, none of what I've said so far gave this episode the reputation it has, and certainly not one that would've pushed it above A Pal For Gary on this list. You already know what it is, so let's talk about it. 

#3 You already know the moral sucks, but so does the ending: "Sometimes crying does solve your problems after all!" is easily one of the worst one-liners in the entire show, or at the very least it's certainly up there. I do not genuinely believe that the writers think this, nor do I believe that anyone watching the episode was supposed to take this away as an actual moral-- the moral, maybe, but not something to actually take with you into life. While the moral really is terrible, this is not what offends me the most about Stuck in the Wringer. The true problem I have with the ending is the fact that it is likely the worst thirty seconds of any episode in existence ever. Let's examine all of the things that occur in the last thirty seconds of Stuck in the Wringer:

-SpongeBob and Patrick crying irritatingly 

-SpongeBob horrifyingly pulling the wringer itself off of his person

-SpongeBob delivering the infamous line

-The ending being completely nulled  

-Patrick delivering a potentially worse line than SpongeBob's

The entire ending takes only one minute after approximately six of filler, showing how little care the writers actually put into resolving anything, and how the resolution truly only came so that all of those annoying things could happen within the allotted thirty seconds. In all honesty I find it surprising that this scene is not more discussed as it truly is awful and among the worst things that have happened. I understand it's not "Squidward vomiting baby spiders and ink" levels of horrifying but if that scene had taken place for thirty seconds on loop, I feel it would be a greater contender with Stuck in the Wringer for worst overall ending. The culmination of the above ends simply pushed this one over the edge for me. 

That's not everything yet though! Disappointed an episode didn't make it on the Bottom 50? Well here's nine runner-ups that were close to making it on the countdown, if it's any consolation. If you'd like to comment on these to keep the discussion going, go ahead!

DISHONORABLE MENTIONS 

Sponge-Cano! - 48 points. 3 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #5 - @Cha♡

The Googly Artiste - 47 points. 4 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #4 - @President Squidward

Squid Wood - 46 points. 6 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #12 - @BeachBob95

Sentimental Sponge - 46 points. 4 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #5 - @Wendy the Witch

SpongeHenge - 44 points. 6 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #8 - @CyanideFishbone

Rule of Dumb - 44 points. 3 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #6 - @Clappy

inSPONGEiac - 43 points. 2 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #3 - @CyanideFishbone

The Card - 40 points. 4 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #13 - @The last carotte

New Fish in Town - 40 points. 4 out of 25 lists. Highest Ranking: #4 - @BeachBob95

It's been fun everyone. See you next time we do the countdown, whenever that may be...

Also, be sure to participate in Wumbo's Top 50 Best Episodes Ever countdown!

(And yes I will be posting my face soon since I lost the bet lol.)

Edited June 3, 2018 by jjsthekid

[CyanideFishbone]

SpongeHenge is just such a mess. It's one of those episodes where I have no idea what exactly the writers' intent was, and it just ends up being so unfocused. 

Edited June 3, 2018 by CyanideFishbone

[kylie]

i’m just glad we have all stopped giving a pal for gary The Worst Reputation Of All Time just for one scene we all bandwagoned on instead of actually watching the episode and noticing that it was just kind of boring 

stuck in the wringer meanwhile IS that bad 

[So Sejima]

On 6/2/2018 at 11:50 AM, More said:

And now to reveal my list in its entirety because we all know what #1 will be.

 

 

7. A Pal for Gary (#1)

 

Oops

[WinterArcanine]

Dang, Pranks a Lot is so bad that it made it to #0

[Honest Slug]

Wow. I didn't expect A Pal for Gary to be overthrown. It's completely deserved though, Stuck on the Wringer is #5 on my list, and I considered putting it higher. Easily one of the most toxic and completely obnoxious episodes ever. A Pal for Gary is awful too and we all know why.

My List:

Spoiler

1. Truth or Square (#17)

2. Sportz? (#30)

3. SpongeBob, You're Fired (#5)

4. Atlantis SquarePantis (#36)

5. Stuck in the Wringer (#1)

6. Boating Buddies (#21)

7. Squid Baby (#6)

8. Smoothe Jazz at Bikini Bottom (#8)

9. Pet or Pests (#11)

10. Squidward's School for Grown Ups (#39)

11. Choir Boys (#12)

12. Slide Whistle Stooges (#13)

13. Are You Happy Now? (#32)

14. Once Coarse Meal (#3)

15. A Pal for Gary (#2)

16. Ink Lemonade, would be my #1 now (#4)

17. Squid's Visit (#18)

18. The Main Drain (Absent)

19. The Card (Honorable Mention)

20. The Clash of Triton (#7)

21. Gone (#45)

22. SpongeBob's Last Stand (Absent)

23. House Sittin' for Sandy (Absent)

24. Toy Store of Doom (Absent)

25. Rodeo Daze (#20)

Sad The Main Drain is nowhere to be seen but at least The Card was an honorable mention, I hope it can make it next time.

[So Sejima]

Ngl I'd rather have half the honorable mentions be number one over APFG, APFG has the dumbest scene but a nice setup, good foreshadowing with Gary's tv show being relevant, and he still did drive Puffy away. People always overreacted to the one scene but Gone's was worse due to it being the literal ending while APFG had more to go off of, so APFG never deserved to be bottom 15, let alone bottom 2 every single time. Come on guys, it's not that bad. Barely worse than Pet Sitter and look how that dropped!

Wringer is that one popular ep I always want on my list but always forget about, nice to see ut as the new one and it's infinitely more deserved.

Googly and Squid Wood should've made it and The Card and Main Drain aren't bad, you guys are just mean to mediocre episodes.

[WhoBibbles]

we finally break the circle folks.

I still hate APFG but I have to admit, i just dont find it as horrendous as everyone thought itd be. still made it higher on my list but yeah.

SITW never had a chance to be good in the first place. the set up was so idiotic. Patrick was such an insulting plot device. Glueing SpongeBob, are you fucking serious? And no, despite what Patrick really tries to be good for SpongeBob, he shouldnt have done it. he should have just feel shitty about it and try to fix the mistake. Instead he was obvlious to SpongeBob's pain, while he's having fun. And I wonder how many times do we have to see another jerkass stupid character thrown in our faces because I'm just done with them. Bikini Bottomies were worse than ever before. Lets all blame SpongeBob for something HE WAS RIGHT ABOUT. Fuck them to death. For a famous show like SpongeBob, it sure has a shitty town. The ending solved nothing, yeya Patrick realized his mistakes but it doesn't excuse that what he did to SpongeBob was unforgiveable. God, Patrick is even worse than Mr. Krabs and Mr. Krabs did shit things as well. Idk if it's really top 1 worthy ep but it sure was one of the worst eps of animation ever What a lazy written, cruel and unfunny episode that had one of the worst premises ever.

I'm so happy to contribute to this list, as well as others. Now we can move on to best, we deserved it.

3 minutes ago, Something the So and So said:

Ngl I'd rather have half tge honorable mentions be number cone over APFG, APFG has the dumbest scene but a nice setup, good foreshadowing with Gary's tv show being relevant, and he still did drive Puffy away. People always overreacted to the one scene but Gone's was worse due to it being the literal ending, so APFG never deserved to be bottom 15, let alone bottom 2 every single time.

Wringer is that one popular ep I always want on my list but always forget about, nice to see ut as the new one and it's infinitely more deserved.

Googly and Squid Wood should've made it and The Card and Majn Drain aren't bad, you guys are just mean to mediocre episodes.

The Main Drain isn't even in honorable mentions smh.

The Card and Sentimental Sponge however, yea...

 

[RD Rockruff]

...yeah, I probably should have put A Pal for Gary a bit lower. There's worse out there and while it does get the hate it deserves (seeing as how it has perhaps the most infuriating line spoken in the whole show), I'm unsure if I'd really place it at #1 right now; for example, Smoothe Jazz was more infuriating as a whole and a few other episodes were also more infuriating to sit through, while this one was mainly bad in the second half.

As for Stuck in the Wringer, this one mainly turned sour during that infamous scene with Spongebob yelling at Patrick (rightfully, I shall add) and then being turned away by the rest of the town (a scene that I hated even when I was younger), the whole episode had problems throughout. Patrick was much more stupid here than perhaps any other appearance, only being there to ruin Spongebob's life in one way or another. This one made my list at #4, though it probably should've been higher than a few other episodes, making AT LEAST #3.

As for the (dis)honourable mentions...
Sponge-Cano is just sort of alright for me; it's not horrible in my opinion but it is in the weaker half of the already-weak Legends of Bikini Bottom miniseries. 4.5/10
The Googly Artiste is an episode that I haven't watched in a long time, though I remember it being dull. For now, I'll give it a 4/10, though it may be around a 3/10.
Squid Wood is pretty bad. It has little to no merit and the only thing that I can say I enjoyed was how the animation looked par for the course in Season 4. That's it. It made my list.
Sentimental Sponge is more boring to me than anything else. 4/10
I moderately dislike Spongehenge. It made my list and I placed it rather high, though maybe I'd need to reconsider. It's still pretty bad though. 1/10 (for now)
Rule of Dumb is another episode where Patrick was sort of annoying, though I'd have to say this was one of the less bad times where this trait was shown. I don't know, Patrick discovering that he made more than a few mistakes felt more genuine here than in another episode which put Patrick into power, one episode that was really sucky (The Fish Bowl). 6/10
InSPONGEiac is also more... meh to me than anything else. It doesn't deserve to be near this list. 6/10
The Card is a rather infuriating episode. Patrick is just an asshole throughout the episode. 2/10
New Fish in Town was REALLY boring. Painfully boring, in fact. There's nothing really that interesting here. 2/10

And now, for my (painfully lazily thrown together) list:

 

25. New Fish in Town
24. The Cent of Money
23. Pet Sitter Pat
22. Pineapple Fever
21. A Day Without Tears
20. The Monster Who Came to Bikini Bottom
19. Waiting
18. Tranchbillies
17. The Card
16. The Thing
15. Ink Lemonade
14. Atlantis SquarePantis
13. Truth or Square
12. The Play's the Thing
11. Rodeo Daze
10. Spongehenge
9. Yours, Mine and Mine
8. Pet or Pests
7. Big Sister Sam
6. Choir Boys
5. Stuck in the Wringer
4. Smoothe Jazz at Bikini Bottom
3. Someone's in the Kitchen with Sandy
2. One Coarse Meal
1. A Pal for Gary 

Edited June 3, 2018 by RDSP

[Wumbo]

Okay, I feel like y'all are taking the complaints for APFG out of context. As someone who still placed it in his Top 10 (albeit not at #1), that scene is moreso a very large straw to break the camel's back coming off of SpongeBob treating Gary like garbage because it's apparently "funny". No, the whole episode isn't horrendous. But it's a lot more than just one scene, geez. When the episode is bad, it's painfully bad. It's The Cent of Money with Mr. Krabs and SpongeBob smashed into one character, as far as SpongeBob's portrayal goes.

I am surprised at the new #1, though it's definitely a deserving contender. Just a completely infuriating, laughless, painful episode to sit through. I haven't a clue what the writers were going for with this one. Great job as always jjs, and all of y'all make sure to send in a list for the Best Episodes countdown!

[Steel Sponge]

Squid Baby: An episode that didn't appear on my list nor my dishonorable mentions since I've felt apathetic towards it. However, the concept and the humor was just really, really dumb, so I have a feeling that it'll sour on me more.

SpongeBob, You're Fired!: This special really soured on me. It was killed by Nickelodeon's hype, but for the most part, it was a dreary episode that brought nothing new to the table since it mostly just brought back elements from past episodes. It was at least interesting to see SpongeBob having a secondhand talent in making snail food and doesn't turn it into a Krabby Patty, a plot element that ended up getting wasted, and it was also interesting to see other restaurants in the food business. Everything else just fell flat.

Ink Lemonade: Already said what I needed to say about the episode in its respective topic. It's #9 on my personal list. It was a genuinely, badly written episode, but it was too new and after seeing how the episode got so much backlash, I have a feeling that I might grow apathetic towards the episode later on. So, #9 is a respectable enough ranking from me.

One Coarse Meal: However, I grew very apathetic towards this episode since the last time I talked about it, I tried to convince some members that the "suicide joke" shouldn't be taken too seriously. I know that this episode affected some people from a personal standpoint, so I do understand why "One Coarse Meal" tends to get so much hate. My apathy towards the episode was because I've seen so much backlash for it, I felt like I was required to hate the episode. Like Wumbo, the best way I can describe my thoughts towards "One Coarse Meal" is that I'm just over it.

A Pal for Gary: I don't need to justify so much about why I dislike the episode. The scene that most people tend to talk about is undeniably one of the show's worst scenes while the episode's attempts to make Gary's torture and SpongeBob's obliviousness funny both fail so hard. The episode is still on my bottom 5 and rightfully so, this is the obligatory worst episode of SpongeBob.

 

As for the honorable mentions, I'm glad that "Penny Foolish" is no longer as hated to even make the honorable mentions list, but I'm also disappointed to see that episodes like "Krusty Katering" and "Driven to Tears," didn't have enough points. I'm satisfied enough to see "SpongeHenge" barely made it, but I don't think "New Fish in Town" is a bad episode at all.

 

Next time, on this thread, I will talk about why I didn't like these episodes (except "Ink Lemonade" because the cut-off is at the 401st episode aired).:

Spoiler

25. The Blackened Sponge
24. Can You Spare a Dime?
23. Gullible Pants
22. Choir Boys (#12)
21. Pat No Pay
20. Whatever Happened to SpongeBob? (#42)
19. Slide Whistle Stooges (#13)
18. Yours, Mine, and Mine (#19)
17. Home Sweet (WAIT FOR IT) Rubble
16. Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy IV
15. Sleepy Time
14. Driven to Tears
13. SpongeBob, You're Fired! (#13)
12. Krusty Katering
11. Waiting (#24)
10. Breath of Fresh Squidward
9. Ink Lemonade (#4)
8. Sun Bleached (#43)
7. Goo Goo Gas
6. Sponge Who Could Fly
5. All That Glitters (#22)
4. A Pal for Gary (#2)
3. SquidBob TentaclePants
2. I Was a Teenage Gary
1. Stuck in the Wringer (#1)

Yes, there are still some pre-movie episodes on my list. If you want to fight about a particular episode on my personal bottom 25 that is your favorite, I could care less.

Edited June 3, 2018 by Steel Sponge

[Wumbo]

at least as seen on tv is finally off

[WhoBibbles]

time for my honorable mention thoughts.

sponge-cano- the dolphin basically saved the ep for me. other than that, it was so mediocre. squidward at his one of the worst and that ending was so idiotic.

the goggly artist - this one is more forgettable than just bad but I remember having some laughs here and here. It wasn't bad.

squid wood - a guilty pleasure of mine. I just don't know why I enjoy watching it. It was so mean-spirited, yet really fun just why.

sentimental sponge - WHY? What's wrong with this one? I always liked it and I kind of found it to be a compelling ep for SpongeBob. sure not the best but I liked it.

Rule of Dumb - I can understand somewhat hatred for this but unlike other patrick contestants, Patrick actually realized his wrong and I liked the ep told a classic story of how power will corrupt you.

inSPONGEiac - aww man, y'all hate this one? Ok, the ending did suck ass but I thought rest was fun. Even Patrick was sort of dumb funny in it, despite him making the situation worse.

The Card - I'm sure Mrs. Exit s the reason for this but eh, I always found this to be okay/meh. SpongeBob's sturggles was too relatable for me to hate it. Plus the situation is solved, go home people.

New Fish in Town - ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh but can't blame anyone for this.

here's my dumb dumb list.

Spoiler

25 - Sportz?

24 - Summer Job

23 - Penny Foolish

22 - The Main Drain

21 - Good Ol' Whatshisname

20 - Smoothe Jazz in Bikini Bottom

19 - Hide and Then What Happens?

18 - Squid Baby

17 - The Clash of Triton

16 - Yours, Mine and Mine

15 - Plankton's Regular

14 - All That Glitters

13 - To Love a Patty

12 - Fungus Among Us

11 - Stuck in the Wringer

10 - Whatever Happened to SpongeBob?

9 - Shuffleboarding

8 - Pet Sitter Pat

7 - Squid's Visit

6 - Choir Boys

5 - Pets or Pests

4 - A Pal for Gary

3 - SpongeBob, You're Fired

2- One Coarse Meal

1 - Gone

almost all made it but oh well.

[OWM]

Sentimental Sponge got a dishonorable mention? I love that episode.

[WhoBibbles]

I forgot to talk about spongehenge, I always liked that one. I just like bizzarre eps, don't judge me.