Review: The Patrick Star Show “I Smell a Pat”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Patrick’s show is interrupted by a most peculiar stench. So Patrick and Squidina set out to investigate the source of the smell.

Our Take: 

If you smell something funky, don’t worry, it’s not your armpits. That smell is coming from the latest episode of Patrick Star’s show. This is also the final episode of the series’s short first season before our gullible pink friend goes on a hiatus. So why not honor this occasion with a stench hunt?

The episode started with Patrick hosting a “Patsterpiece Theatre” before he’s interrupted by a mysterious stench. Seeing that he can’t continue the show under these conditions, Patrick and Squidina set out on a stench safari to find the source of this smell. They later discover that the smell came from Grandma Tentacles’s (Cree Summer) cabbage head dinner, which admittedly could’ve been worse. The episode’s ending showcased that Grandma’s cabbage head was part of her monstrous vegetable-like creation, which she sends out to wreak havoc across Bikini Bottom.

After starting the show reasonably well with a couple of enjoyable episodes, “I Smell a Pat” surprisingly concluded its short season on a sour note, or should I say “foul” note? The episode started nicely with some solid book gags in the “Patsterpiece Theatre” segment. However, as soon as Patrick and Squidina start their stench safari, things began to get pretty gross.  

When there’s an episode with the word “smell” in the title, you can surely bet that there will be some gross-out gags involved. Unsurprisingly, it did not disappoint, for better or worse. While there is some charm to be had in its randomness and disgusting moments, the humor in its smelly jokes surprisingly fell flat compared to the other jokes in the previous episodes. Instead of being funny in the grossest way, the comedy turned out to be chuckle-inducing and pretty disgusting, especially Cecil’s stew (if I could even call it a stew). The SpongeBob SquarePants franchise is usually known for delivering some gross-out gags, especially in the original show’s recent seasons, and sometimes they don’t work out as well as the writers hoped. “I Smell a Pat” happens to be that case.

Overall, the “I Smell a Pat” episode was a stinky way to end the show’s small weekly run. Despite its charm and the “Patsterpiece Theatre” gags, it was overrun by the foul stench of its constant grossness. It looks like it’s time for me to take a long shower to get that smell off of my skin.