"Kwarantined Krab" is the second segment of the 263rd episode of ''

SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character a ...

'', airing as part of the show's twelfth season. It was originally scheduled to air in the United States in 2020, but the events of the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

pandemic caused it to be withheld from airing on

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

until April 29, 2022 (making it the final episode of the twelfth season to air), due to the episode's plot revolving around a pandemic.

Plot

A health inspector walks into the Krusty Krab, where he declares that there is a disease called the "Clam Flu" spreading around, causing most of the characters to run around and panic. The health inspector orders the restaurant to be put under

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

, much to the dismay of Squidward and

Pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

. The Krusty Krab is locked down with

SpongeBob ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American Animated series, animated Television comedy, comedy Television show, television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It ...

Patrick Patrick may refer to: * Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name * Patrick (surname), list of people with this name People * Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint *Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick ...

, Squidward,

Mr. Krabs Eugene Harold Krabs, better known as simply Mr. Krabs, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy tel ...

, Pearl, and

Mrs. Puff Mrs. Puff is a fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated series, animated television series ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and List of SpongeBob SquarePants films, all three films based on the franchise. Voiced by Mary Jo Catlett, Mrs. Puff debu ...

stuck inside. Krabs suggests locking the diseased person inside the freezer once they are found. Some pepper is accidentally launched into the air, causing SpongeBob to sneeze, making everyone else assume he has caught the disease. SpongeBob willingly walks into the freezer after being asked. Patrick notices SpongeBob having fun in the freezer, so he pretends that he has caught the Clam Flu too, causing him to be thrown inside. After Squidward itches his arm, Pearl assumes that he has caught the disease; Mr. Krabs then throws him into the freezer. Mr. Krabs notices that Mrs. Puff has yawned, making him think that she has caught the Clam Flu too; she is also locked in the freezer. After Pearl remembers that she has some money left over from last time she was in the mall, Mr. Krabs believes her mind is poisoned from the disease, locking her up as well. Mrs. Puff states that Mr. Krabs himself is the one that has caught the disease; she and the rest of the characters break out of the freezer. The characters chase Mr. Krabs around the restaurant, but all end up incapacitated in doing so. When the health inspector returns, he says that he made a mistake, and that no one is actually sick, before assuming that everyone has caught a different disease, with Mr. Krabs catching all of them. He orders the Krusty Krab in an even stronger lockdown. The restaurant is transported onto the Chum Bucket, where

Plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) that are unable to propel themselves against a Ocean current, current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankt ...

begs everyone to stay away from him to avoid catching the disease, before realizing that he may have already caught it.

Reception and controversy

David King at Bubbleblabber.com gave the episode a positive review, and notes that the humor comes from the paranoia between the characters; King states "as they're quarantined from disease yet the synopsis itself slowly, makes it obvious near the end with a very ironic ending." "Kwarantined Krab" was initially meant to air during 2020, but was pulled until April 29, 2022, due to the plot revolving around a pandemic, as the real-world

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

was first detected near the end of 2019. Due to this, it was not available to watch on Paramount+ (until 2023) with the other episodes, nor included in the show's Season 12 DVD set. However, it is available to purchase on

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

and

Amazon Prime Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service from Amazon which is available in various countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services include same, one- ...

. Regarding the pulling of the episode, as well as the third season episode, "

Mid-Life Crustacean "Mid-Life Crustacean" is the second half of the 15th episode of the SpongeBob SquarePants (season 3), third season and the 55th overall episode of the American animated television series ''SpongeBob SquarePants''. The episode premiered on Nickelod ...

," Michelle Mehrtens at ''

Screen Rant ''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and film theories. ''Screen Rant'' was launched by Vic Holtreman in 2003, and originally had its primary office in Ogden, Utah. ''Scr ...

'' commented "Considering the fact that ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' is specifically geared toward children, it is understandable that Nickelodeon would be hesitant to keep these episodes in their digital rotation. At the same time, the show exists in a compelling televisual spectrum, one that balances between the consumption of children and adults."

References

External links

* {{SpongeBob SquarePants episodes 2020 controversies 2021 controversies 2022 controversies 2020 controversies in the United States 2021 controversies in the United States 2022 controversies in the United States 2020 American television episodes 2022 American television episodes Animation controversies in television SpongeBob SquarePants episodes Self-censorship Television controversies in the United States Television episodes about influenza outbreaks Television productions postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Television episodes pulled from general rotation Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on television