SpongeBob SquarePants Fans Petition To Have Controversial Episode Restored

We recently learned that a couple of SpongeBob SquarePants episodes have been canned by Nickelodeon, with the offending cartoons being removed from the series boxset on streaming, video on demand and from network airings. The outings in question are season 3’s “Mid-Life Crustacean” and “Kwarantined Krab,” which was due to release as part of the ongoing run. While folks don’t mind too much about the latter one, SpongeBob fans are up in arms over the cancellation of the classic season 3 episode.

A petition has even been started on Change.org demanding that Nickelodeon reverse the decision and make “Mid-Life Crustacean” available again. It’s a new petition, though, so it’s only received 48 signatures at the time of writing, which means it’s unlikely the studio is going to take notice until it gets a whole lot more clout. However, the points that the creator, Joshua O, raises in their description are probably onto something.

Nickelodeon has yet to confirm the reason why “Mid-Life Crustacean” was removed, but it’s pretty easy to guess. The episode sees Mr. Krabs suffering a mid-life crisis so SpongeBob and Patrick teach him how to act young and carefree again. In one scene, the trio break into a woman’s house to rifle through her underwear. Things then get embarrassing for Mr. Krabs when it turns out to be his mother’s home.

The petition author blasts Nickelodeon for being “hypocritical” by giving this outing the boot but sticking by other installments that they claim have content that’s perhaps even less suitable for younger audiences. They reference “Are You Happy Now?” which contains jokes about suicide and Joshua O argues that mature humor is part of SpongeBob so the creators should accept that the show is for adults and children. They also recommend putting a content warning prior to controversial episodes instead of banning them outright.

As for “Kwarantined Crab,” that features a storyline in which the Krusty Krab goes into lockdown after an outbreak of “Crab Flu.” Nickelodeon has confirmed that this one has been pulled due to the current worldwide crisis, but every other episode of SpongeBob SquarePants apart from these two can be found on Paramount Plus.