"Mind the Gap" is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season 12. In this episode, Squidward closes the gap between SpongeBob's teeth, which causes a dramatic and unexpected change in his demeanor.

Characters[]

• SpongeBob SquarePants
  • CoolBob SmoothPants ^{(single appearance)}
• Squidward Tentacles
• Incidentals
  • Incidental 67
  • Incidental 36
  • Incidental 41
  • Incidental 3
  • Incidental 48
  • Incidental 8
  • Incidental 7
  • "CM" incidentals ^(debut)
    • Incidental CM1
    • Incidental CM2
    • Incidental CM3
    • Incidental CM4
    • Incidental CM5
    • Incidental CM6
    • Incidental CM7
    • Incidental CM8
    • Incidental CM9
    • Incidental CM10
    • Incidental CM11
    • Incidental CM12
    • Incidental CM13
    • Incidental CM14
    • DJ
    • Incidental CM16
    • Incidental CM17
    • Incidental CM19
    • Incidental CM20
    • Incidental CM21
    • Incidental CM22
    • Incidental CM23
    • Incidental CM24
    • Incidental CM25
    • Unknown "CM" 1
    • Unknown "CM" 2
    • Unknown "CM" 3
    • Unknown "CM" 4 ^(cut)
• Bouncer ^{(single appearance)}
• Waitress ^{(single appearance)}
• Maitre D ^{(single appearance)}
• Skeptic fish ^{(single appearance)}
• Patrick Star ^(cameo)

Synopsis[]

At the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob is whistling while working, and Squidward gets increasingly annoyed until he finally snaps back at SpongeBob. He then tells SpongeBob he is concerned about his health. SpongeBob freaks out and wants to know what is wrong with his health. Squidward says there is something wrong with the gap in his teeth, and that something can get caught in there and obstruct his breathing. So SpongeBob demands a doctor, but Squidward offers to be his dentist.

He takes SpongeBob to the kitchen and forces his two teeth together, but this causes SpongeBob's voice to become deeper and more smooth sounding along with no more whistling sound. SpongeBob notices his new change in voice as a jazz singer and starts to sing. Squidward and the customers in the Krusty Krab take notice of the singing. They crowd around to listen to his music. Squidward notices this as a chance to be cool as well. So, he asks SpongeBob to join him in going to his favorite Jazz club, Blow Your Top Lounge. SpongeBob accepts the offer.

That night, Squidward barges into the club and attempts to act cool, but everyone else is not impressed. Then SpongeBob comes in and everyone is impressed at how cool he is. So, they are surprised Squidward is his friend and guess if he is a friend of SpongeBob, he is cool. The only person skeptical of Squidward is kicked away by him. Squidward encourages SpongeBob to start singing, and so he goes on stage. Also, Squidward follows along with his clarinet, only to be tricked into putting a cork in his clarinet.

SpongeBob once again wows them with his music. But his teeth separate while singing, changing his voice back to normal, forcing Squidward to take teeth from another fish and put them in SpongeBob's mouth. The teeth fall out and shatter at the end of the performance. Squidward wants to leave the club and says to everyone that they will return again tomorrow. He takes him back to the Krusty Krab and cements his teeth back together. Then they return to the club to play. Once again, his teeth separate. So Squidward once again cements his teeth together. Then SpongeBob allows Squidward to do a solo with his clarinet. Squidward eventually blows so hard he launches the cork out, turning back to the music the club hates.

A bodyguard then grabs him and throws him outside. Oblivious to his lack of talent but angry at being overlooked, Squidward goes back to make the gap again. He charges with a hammer, only to be blown away by SpongeBob's music bubbles. He crashes into the lights and sandbags, which fall to the ground, all missing SpongeBob. That is, until he runs into a sandbag still hanging and crashes to the ground. SpongeBob then realizes his gap is back. So Squidward comes out and calls him a fraud, but SpongeBob does not seem to mind now that he has his whistle back, and so he whistles.

Everyone else in the club is impressed, and they slam their heads to make gaps in their teeth. Squidward attempts to leave, only to be stopped by the bodyguard and the manager tells him to pay for the damages done to the building when SpongeBob blew the roof off with his singing.

Production[]

The episode was confirmed by Vincent Waller on March 23, 2019.^[1]

Storyboards[]

Character designs[]

Music[]

( ‣ ) Production music

( • ) Original music

( ◦ ) SpongeBob music

 • Hawaiian Misadventures B - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Title card]
 • The Whistling Frycooks Tune 1 - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [SpongeBob whistling]
 • Goofy Conversation Continued - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony ["Don't you know how to keep quiet?!"]
 ‣ Asiatic Unrest - Fredric Bayco ["What?! My health?!"]
 ‣ Clumsy A - Bernd Gesell ["It's probably nothing, forget I brought it up."]
 ‣ Dramatic Cue (A) - Ronald Hanmer ["What's wrong with my gap?"]
 ‣ Clumsy A - Bernd Gesell [Squidward tells SpongeBob his gap between his teeth can be extremely dangerous]
 ‣ Clumsy C - Bernd Gesell [Squidward drills SpongeBob's front teeth together]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 26 - Jeremy Wakefield ["And kill the whistling."]
 • New Vibe Hits - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob notices his voice sounds different without the gap between his teeth]
 • Big Band Bumber 1-5 - Nicolas Carr ["Testing, testing, 1, 2, 3."]
 ◦ Flippin' Out - Tom Kenny, Andy Paley [SpongeBob singing with his new voice while cooking patties]
 • A Fishy Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony ["Hmm... How would you like to accompany me to my favorite jazz club tonight?"]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 5E - Jeremy Wakefield [Customers sighing]
 ◦ Flippin' Out - Tom Kenny, Andy Paley [Transition to Blow Your Top Lounge]
 • Bongoman - Nicolas Carr [Fish playing conga drums]
 • Jazz at the Jellyfish Club - Nicolas Carr [Audience snapping fingers at Blow Your Top Lounge]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 7A - Jeremy Wakefield ["Lame."]
 • Blue Dolphin Street NC Full Mix - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob enters at Blow Your Top Lounge]
 • Chime Gliss Overdub - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob enters at Blow Your Top Lounge]
 • Crash Cymbal - Nicolas Carr ["I guess he's... cool?"]
 • Pow Brass Hit - Nicolas Carr ["I guess he's... cool?"]
 • Tympani Boink Remastered - Nicolas Carr [Squidward kicks the fish]
 • Bongoman 2 - Nicolas Carr [Fish playing conga drums again]
 • A Fishy Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony ["And I will accompany you on my licorice stick."]
 • New Student Solo Clarinet - Brad Carow [Squidward starts playing the clarinet]
 • A Fishy Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony [Maitre D. puts a cork on Squidward's clarinet]
 ◦ Flippin' Out - Tom Kenny, Andy Paley [SpongeBob singing at Blow Your Top Lounge]
 • So Cool - Nicolas Carr ["That was so cool, it caused structural damage!"]
 �� Flippin' Out - Tom Kenny, Andy Paley ["But we'll be back tomorrow night to blow the road back on!"]
 • A Fishy Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony [Squidward fills SpongeBob's gap between his teeth with cement]
 ◦ Flip, Flop and Fry - Tom Kenny, Andy Paley [SpongeBob singing again at Blow Your Top Lounge]
 • Whats This Sting - Nicolas Carr [Customers murmuring]
 • Tension Bits - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield ["You see? He's not cool! He's square! He's a food-flipping fraud!"]
 • Lap Steel-spce_01 - Nicolas Carr ["Did you hear that? My whistle is back too."]
 • The Whistling Frycooks Tune - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [SpongeBob and the people in the jazz club start whistling]
 • Claps - Nicolas Carr [Overlays "The Whistling Frycooks Tune"]
 ◦ Flippin' Out - Tom Kenny, Andy Paley [Ending]

Release[]

• This episode is available on the SpongeBob SquarePants Vol. 20 digital collection and The Complete Twelfth Season DVD.

Trivia[]

General[]

• During the episode's original American airing, it was paired up with "Breakin'," but since it has re-airing with "Dirty Bubble Returns."
  • Both this episode and "Breakin'" are party themed and use "Hawaiian Misadventures B" as the title card music.
  • The shorts "What Else Can a Krabby Patty Do?" and "Frozen Krabby Patty" also aired during the original airing.
• This episode was paired with "Senior Discount" on the September 21, 2019 airing.^[2]
• Along with "Breakin'," this episode preceded the original American premiere of the Nickelodeon animated series Lego Jurassic World: Legend of Isla Nublar.
• The title card background is similar to those of "Culture Shock," "SpongeBob SquarePants vs. The Big One," "A Pal for Gary," and "Mimic Madness," as most of them are recolored; however, this one has the tikis' teeth being gapped.
• This is the last episode that was pitched to Stephen Hillenburg during his lifetime.^[3]
• The song SpongeBob sings to the ladies in the club after his gap opens is a song he and Patrick sung in "Scavenger Pants."
• A clip was used for a commercial from "SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout."^[4]
• A clip was used for a 2021 Paramount+ commercial.^[5]
• Frames from this episode was later used in "Friendiversary" when SpongeBob remembers Squidward.

Cultural references[]

• The title of this episode is a phrase among rapid transit systems outside North America, most notably the London Underground.
• SpongeBob shouting "Ladies!" when his gap breaks is an allusion to late actor Jerry Lewis.^[3]
  • Additionally, the episode has some references to the Jerry Lewis film The Nutty Professor.^[3]
• The episode's plot is similar to The Ren & Stimpy Show episode "Ol' Blue Nose": Both episodes have their main characters' body part changed in some way, making them popular jazz singers.

Errors[]

• When Squidward is trying his second attempt to close SpongeBob's gap, he uses a drill to screw in between SpongeBob's teeth. However, in the zoomed-out shot, the screw disappears.
• Just after Squidward screws SpongeBob's buck teeth together, the latter can be heard sighing in his normal voice.
• When SpongeBob is saying "Flick, flick, flick," his mouth doesn't move.

Videos[]

References[]

1. ^ https://twitter.com/VincentWaller72/status/1109514030987665409
2. ^ https://nickstory.fandom.com/wiki/September_21,_2019
3. ^ ^{a b c} https://twitter.com/BrianMorante/status/1437893485999243264
4. ^ https://youtu.be/uhv7vhCU1sU
5. ^ https://youtu.be/w_9ZVM-NW8U