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The third season of the American animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants, created by former marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, aired on Nickelodeon from October 5, 2001 to October 11, 2004, and consists of 20 episodes. The series chronicles the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom. The season was executive-produced by series creator Hillenburg, who also acted as the showrunner. Season 3 was announced on September 20, 2000. It began on October 5, 2001 with the episode "Just One Bite" and ended on October 11, 2004 with the episode "Pranks a Lot."
The season was well received by media critics and fans. During its run, SpongeBob SquarePants became the highest rated children's show on cable, with over 50 million viewers a month. The show received several recognitions, including its nomination at the Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Children's Program. The episodes "New Student Starfish" and "Clams" were nominated for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) category, while the entry "SpongeBob B.C. (Ugh)" won the same category. The season was also the first time the show received a nomination at the Kids' Choice Awards and won. It won the 2003 Kids' Choice Awards for Favorite Cartoon, and also won the following year's Kids' Choice Award for the same category. Celebrities—including Justin Timberlake, Kelly Osbourne, Britney Spears, Bruce Willis, Noel Gallagher, rapper Dr. Dre, and Mike Myers—have been reported to be fans of the show.
Several compilation DVDs that contain episodes from the season were released. The SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete 3rd Season DVD was released in Region 1 on September 27, 2005, Region 2 on December 3, 2007, and Region 4 on November 8, 2007.
Episodes[]
| # | Title card | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 41 |  |
"The Algae's Always Greener" | March 22, 2002 |
| Plankton uses a machine to switch places with Mr. Krabs in an attempt to see how better Mr. Krabs' life is, but he soon finds that it isn't as good as he thought it would be. | |||
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"SpongeGuard on Duty" | March 22, 2002 | |
| SpongeBob becomes a lifeguard. | |||
| 42 |  |
"Club SpongeBob" | March 12, 2002 (DVD) July 12, 2002 (Nickelodeon) |
| SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward are flung into the Kelp Forest. | |||
|
"My Pretty Seahorse" | July 12, 2002 | |
| SpongeBob adopts a stray seahorse. | |||
| 43 |  |
"The Bully" | October 5, 2001 |
| Flatts the Flounder joins SpongeBob's boating class and threatens to beat up SpongeBob. | |||
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"Just One Bite" | October 5, 2001 | |
| When Squidward says he hates Krabby Patties, SpongeBob tries to convince him to try one. | |||
| 44 |  |
"Nasty Patty" | March 1, 2002 |
| SpongeBob and Mr. Krabs make a tainted Krabby Patty when they think a fake health inspector is conning them. | |||
|
"Idiot Box" | March 1, 2002 | |
| SpongeBob and Patrick buy a giant flatscreen TV just so they can play with the box, and Squidward becomes confused as to how they're using it. | |||
| 45 |  |
"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy IV" | January 21, 2002 |
| When Mermaid Man leaves behind his secret utility belt at the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob plays with it and ends up shrinking everyone in Bikini Bottom. | |||
|
"Doing Time" | January 21, 2002 | |
| Mrs. Puff goes to jail but SpongeBob and Patrick try to break her out. | |||
| 46 |  |
"Snowball Effect" | February 22, 2002 |
| SpongeBob and Patrick have a snowball fight. | |||
|
"One Krabs Trash" | February 22, 2002 | |
| Mr. Krabs sells SpongeBob a soda drink hat, but then tries to get it back when he finds it's worth a fortune. | |||
| 47 |  |
"As Seen on TV" | March 8, 2002 |
| The Krusty Krab airs its first commercial, and despite only having a cameo in it, SpongeBob lets fame go to his head. | |||
|
"Can You Spare a Dime?" | March 8, 2002 | |
| Squidward quits his job after being falsely accused of stealing Mr. Krabs' first dime. | |||
| 48 |  |
"No Weenies Allowed" | March 15, 2002 |
| SpongeBob tries to get into the Salty Spittoon. | |||
|
"Squilliam Returns" | March 15, 2002 | |
| Squidward tricks Squilliam Fancyson into thinking he owns a five-star restaurant. | |||
| 49 |  |
"Krab Borg" | March 29, 2002 |
| SpongeBob and Squidward think Mr. Krabs is a robot. | |||
|
"Rock-a-Bye Bivalve" | March 29, 2002 | |
| SpongeBob and Patrick care for a baby scallop. | |||
| 50 |  |
"Wet Painters" | May 10, 2002 |
| SpongeBob and Patrick paint the inside of Mr. Krabs' house. | |||
|
"Krusty Krab Training Video" | May 10, 2002 | |
| This episode is presented as a training video for future employees of the Krusty Krab. | |||
| 51 |  |
"Party Pooper Pants" | May 17, 2002 |
| SpongeBob attempts to throw a party at his house. | |||
| 52 |  |
"Chocolate With Nuts" | June 1, 2002 |
| Patrick and SpongeBob sell chocolate bars around town. | |||
|
"Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy V" | June 1, 2002 | |
| Barnacle Boy joins the dark side. | |||
| 53 |  |
"New Student Starfish" | September 20, 2002 |
| Patrick joins SpongeBob's boating school. | |||
|
"Clams" | September 20, 2002 | |
| After earning his millionth dollar, Mr. Krabs takes SpongeBob and Squidward on a clam-fishing trip, only for a giant clam to eats his millionth dollar. | |||
| 54 |  |
"Ugh" | March 5, 2004 |
| A day in the life of SpongeBob's, Patrick's, and Squidward's prehistoric ancestors is shown. | |||
| 55 |  |
"The Great Snail Race" | January 24, 2003 |
| SpongeBob enters Gary in a race against Squidward's new pet snail. | |||
|
"Mid-Life Crustacean" | January 24, 2003 | |
| Mr. Krabs thinks he's old.
Note: ViacomCBS made this episode unavailable for further distribution as of March 2021 over what it called inappropriate content. While the offensive material was not specified, it is presumed to be the ending in which SpongeBob, Patrick, and Mr. Krabs partake in a panty raid. | |||
| 56 |  |
"Born Again Krabs" | January 28, 2003 (DVD) October 4, 2003 (Nickelodeon) |
| Mr. Krabs encounters the Flying Dutchman. | |||
|
"I Had an Accident" | January 28, 2003 (DVD) October 4, 2003 (Nickelodeon) | |
| SpongeBob breaks his butt while sand-sledding. | |||
| 57 |  |
"Krabby Land" | April 3, 2004 |
| Mr. Krabs builds a junky playground. | |||
|
"The Camping Episode" | April 3, 2004 | |
| SpongeBob and Patrick go camping on SpongeBob's front lawn, to Squidward's dismay. | |||
| 58 |  |
"Missing Identity" | January 19, 2004 |
| SpongeBob loses his name tag. | |||
|
"Plankton's Army" | January 19, 2004 | |
| Plankton gathers his relatives to help him steal the Krabby Patty formula. | |||
| 59 |  |
"The Sponge Who Could Fly" | March 4, 2003 (DVD) March 21, 2003 (Nickelodeon) |
| SpongeBob wishes to fly with the jellyfish. | |||
| 60 |  |
"SpongeBob Meets the Strangler" | January 6, 2004 (DVD) October 11, 2004 (Nickelodeon) |
| A criminal called the Tattletale Strangler attempts to get revenge on SpongeBob for getting him arrested. | |||
|
"Pranks a Lot" | January 6, 2004 (DVD) October 11, 2004 (Nickelodeon) | |
| SpongeBob and Patrick accidentally turn themselves invisible with invisibility spray and start pranking everyone by pretending they're ghosts. | |||
Trivia[]
- This is the first season for several things:
- The first season not to have a holiday episode.
- The first season where Grubby Grouper, Kevin C. Cucumber, Monty P. Moneybags, and Dougie Williams do not appear since their debuts.
- The first full season to have all of its episodes released in the 21st century.
- The first season where the track "Hawaiian Train" does not play.
- This was the last season of several things:
- The last season where the tracks “Dramatic Climax” and “War Blowers” are used to date.
- The last season to have Sérgio Moreno as part of the Brazilian Portuguese voice cast.
- The last season to be animated with digital ink-and-paint.
- The last season to have Hiroyuki Tsuru as part of the Japanese voice cast.
- The last season to have Paul Gillman as part of the Latin American Spanish voice cast
- The last season to feature Stephen Hillenburg as the showrunner.
- The last season to use the makerbob art style.
- The last season of the series to be produced before the release of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.
- This is the only season for several things:
- The only season in which the music tracks "Gator" and "Hello Blues" do not play.
- The only season until the sixth season to feature Officer Nancy O'Malley.
- The only season in which Sandy's Treedome appears in only one episode in the finale.
- The only season until the tenth season not to have an episode featuring Pearl plays a major role.
- The only season to have Sam Henderson worked on the show.