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A massive collection of that freaky little sponge that lives in a pineapple under the sea.

After ten years of longevity, the Nickelodeon show Spongebob Squarepants has become a very dominant part of pop culture, to the point that everyone on the planet is simultaneously enthralled by it yet sick of it. I never got the chance to get into it before, but when a monstrously huge boxed set entitled Spongebob Squarepants: The First 100 Episodes arrived, I decided to give it a shot. After all, I’m an animation fan and this is one of the biggest things to hit that genre in the last decade. My reaction after watching a few episodes?

Holy ****, this stuff is insane.

Now, it’s not as off-the-wall nuts as old Tex Avery cartoons, but in this day and age, it’s amazing that not only has something as zany as the adventures of a talking sponge and his aquatic friends become popular, but not just in a cult way. Along with his best friend Patrick (a starfish who is slow on the take), Spongebob does his best to…well, just have fun really. Whether it’s working at Mr. Krab’s or unwittingly foiling the machinations of Plankton or just annoying the hell out of Squidward, Spongebob is a unique and enjoyable character whose abrasiveness is offset by his childlike naivity.

This massive set includes, as stated by its title, the first hundred eps. That puts it, if I’m doing my math right, somewhere in the range of covering the first four seasons and a portion of the fifth. It’s definitely a great way to get caught up on the series if you haven’t already bought up the individual seasons.

Special features are interesting and really helped bring me up to speed on the series. A retrospective covered all of the essentials and the creator commentaries are a fun listen. There are some music videos and other lesser extras, but all of them keep in the spirit of the show and none are boring.

I send out a plea to my fellow classic animation fans: Avery and Clampett may not be around anymore, and most of what passes as cartoons these days suck toast, but give Spongebob a try. This is the perfect collection to get started too, and I don’t think you’ll be too disappointed.

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