The Misadventures of Flapjack vs. Spongebob Squarepants

Today I will be reviewing The Misadventures of Flapjack (2008) and Spongebob Squarepants (1999). The Misadventures of Flapjack is an animated series about a young adventure loving boy named Flapjack along with his best friend Captain K’nuckles, his adoptive whale-mother Bubbie. The show centers around their adventures in the port city called Stormalong Harbor and their quest to look for the legendary Candied Island. Spongebob Squarepants is about the underwater life of a yellow sea sponge named Spongebob; which includes his job as a Fry Cook, Jellyfishing for jellyfish and having fun with his friends. His best friend is his neighbor, Patrick Star (a starfish). His other neighbor and “friend” Squidward (a squid), and Sandy Cheeks (a squirrel in a diving suit). 

The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack Critique

It is difficult to say who the general audience is for this series. It is appealing enough that children can watch and easily get a laugh out of it, but some of the older viewers will be able to fully understand some of the jokes, such as Maple Syrup and candy being used as alcohol. The shows humor is somewhat bizarre and based off of false assumptions. For example, the doctor appears to have eaten a patient, because of the blood all over his face. The show later reveals that the blood was actually jelly from eating jelly sandwiches off the patient. 

Flapjack is shown to be the most animated character. His arms tend to fling around like noodles and has many different running cycles for nearly every time he runs. K’nuckles animation is stiff at best. Well, with him being old and having most of his body replaced with wooden limbs, this actually suits the character. The show constantly uses stop-motion puppets for one-time characters or short segments for the regular characters.

The colors used for Stromalong tend to be pretty dark and give a grungy appearance. The filth can be spotted around the town, which communicates the economy's depression that is present in Stormalong. Even the characters have dark colors to either signify their alignment, enhance their disfiguration or to show that they're suffering from the plague. Characters such as Flapjack and Peppermint Larry tend to have lighter colors due to both of them being happy and care free most of the time.The series is nothing short of amazing; it contains laughs, adventure, some moral lessons for kids and can be enjoyed by the whole family. [1]

Spongebob Squarepants Critique

This shows general audience is intended for young viewers, but some of the humor and hidden innuendos will appeal to older viewers. The humor of the show is a bit dull; there are times when the show is funny and times when it tries to be funny. Spongebob appears to be the only character that is well animated, while the other characters are mildly simple animation. Since he is a sponge, he is able to stretch and split himself apart; thus utilizing the squash and stretch principle. Squidward, who is one of the least animated characters in the show, expresses his emotions primarily through his body language; his main expressions are anger, annoyance, depression, and happiness. 

The colors shown throughout the show are calm and simple. The episodes usually start out as a peaceful relaxing day in Bikini Bottom; the use of bright colors and flower shaped clouds in the background help bring that feeling of peace and tranquility. The same could be said for the background characters in the show. Though they may not be too important, you get the feeling that they are living a normal life.

When the show first started it seemed to be one of the greatest cartoons on television, but as time went by fans began to believe that the series has lost its luster. Never the less, it still provides good entertainment for fans both old and new. [2]

My Opinion

Both shows are amazing, but if I had to choose one over the other I would side with Flapjack. The show pokes fun at adult jokes, yet still stays kid friendly and provides many random misunderstood moments that viewers will laugh at either way. I found the early episodes of Spongebob to be more enjoyable than the new ones; so if you’re new to the series I recommend looking for clips from the first two seasons of the show to get a good laugh.

Author: Ramsey Parks


[1] The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5,2012, from 
         http://flapjack.wikia.com/wiki/The_Marvelous_Misadventures_of_Flapjack

[2] Spongebob Squarepants. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5,2012 from 
         http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0206512/