Censorship
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SpongeBob SquarePants is an American cartoon that was made by Nickelodeon, May 1, 1999, and it is still ongoing. The show has been censored around the world, including their original runs in the United States.

Censorship

Post-Production Censorship

Season One

  • Episode 3b
  1. The scene that shows Squidward naked was cut. (due to concerns over nudity.) however, SpongeBob was naked in both Ripped/Nature Pants, both in Season 1.

Season Two

  • Episode 18a
  1. All swear words were replaced with sound effects, most notably the dolphin noises that censor "bad word #11".

Season Three

  • Episode 3a
  1. The scene involving Squidward trying to break into the Krusty Krab, and he later ends up getting set on fire due to tripping a bucket full of gas. He later makes his way to the Patty Vault but not before another bucket of gas drops on him, reigniting the flames. However, this scene was removed from being aired worldwide (except for the Canadian and the South Korean airings, although it wasn't actually censored in recent U.S. airings for some reason). Initially, explanations for the removal were thought to be either for sensitivity reasons after the September 11 attacks, which occurred less than a month before the episode first aired in October 2001, or to prevent children from attempting to use and/or ignite gas.[1] Current showrunner Vincent Waller has confirmed in a statement on Twitter on June 4, 2018 that the removal of the scene was ultimately due to Nickelodeon being against the idea of a gag involving a match and gasoline.[2]
  • Episode 9a
  1. The scene where SpongeBob says "I dedicate this crush to my best friend Squidward!" was cut.
  • Episode 14a
  1. The scene that shows Sandy kicking SpongeBob's bottom and as a result, gets arrested was cut.
  • Episode 15b
  1. The episode was pulled from airing and digital release since sometime between 2018 and 2021 due to the panty raid scene.

Season Four

  • Episode 3
  1. Originally granny was going to be holding an axe, the axe was changed to a cookie tray. 

Season Nine

  • Episode 17b
  1. The scene where Larry says "The only thing worse than donuts is ground glass." was cut.
  2. The scene that shows Larry forcing a glass cup into a fishes' mouth before hitting the guy's head which causes the glass cup to break in the fish's mouth was cut.

USA Censorship

Season Three

  • Episode 55b
  1. Mid-Life Crustacean was removed from reruns in 2018 and from Paramount+ and Amazon Prime Video in 2021 due to being considered not kid-appropriate for the panty raid scene.

Season Twelve

  • Episode 15a
  1. The original airing of "Spongebob in Randomland" is known for a recreation of the "Red Mist Squidward" image, which shows Squidward with bloodshot eyes and bloodlike dark mascara. It originates from the Creepypasta fanfic often referred to as "Red Mist", where after Squidward's clarinet concert ends up in disastrous failure, his depression and isolation eventually causes him to graphically shoot himself to death. The redrawn image of "Red Mist Squidward" appears when Spongebob opens a door in the wall of doors. However, the scene was cut in US reruns two months after its initial airing, being replaced by Baby Squidward from "Goo Goo Gas". Initially, explanations for the removal were thought to be either the creepy nature of the image or because of the fanfic where the image originated from. According to Vincent Waller on Twitter, it was due to a Broadcast Standards and Practices issue.[3]
  • Episode 22b
  1. Kwarantined Krab is banned from the United States due to the plot of the Clam Flu accidentally relating to COVID-19.

UK Censorship

Nickelodeon UK

Season 1
  • Episode 5a
  1. The scene where Squidward says  "Oh, my aching tentacles!" was cut. 
  • Episode 13a
  1. The scene that shows Patrick shaving off parts of SpongeBob's head was cut. 
  • Episode 20a
  1. The scene where Patrick has a bunch of fish hooks in his mouth was cut. It instead jumps to Patrick saying "Lighten up, will ya?"
Season 2
  • Episode 13a
  1. The Perfume Department Scene Was Cut (Shaved Time: 28 seconds)
  • Episode 19a
  1. The scene that shows No Name cut the power to SpongeBob's house was modified for the Nickelodeon UK broadcast. In the Nickelodeon UK broadcast, it was replaced with a shot of the door outside of SpongeBob's house.
Season 7
  • Episode 23a
  1. The scene that shows Patrick turning the blender SpongeBob is in on was cut.
Season 8
  • Episode 8b
  1. The scene that shows the fat fish scooping up Plankton was cut.
Season 10
  • Episode 10b
  1. The scene that shows the art appraiser mimes hanging himself to demonstrate to Mr. Krabs what "out of the picture" means was cut.
Season 11
  • Episode 21b
  1. Any scene containing Mr. Krabs breaking glass bottles was removed.
Season 12
  • Episode 7a
  1. The scene where Plankton charges at Mr. Krabs and throws him inside the toilet was cut.
  • Episode 11a
  1. Squidward failing to close SpongeBob's teeth gap with his strength, and using a drill was modified. Instead, Squidward does successfully close it without the drill.
  2. SpongeBob drinking soap was cut.
  3. The part where the nail in SpongeBob teeth falls out was modified. Instead, there is no nail.
  • Episode 14a
  1. The scene cuts out the Red Mist Squidward. He only opens 2 doors instead of 3.
  • Episode 20
  1. SpongeBob chewing balloons briefly, then blowing them was cut. Instead, only blows them.

India Censorship

Nickelodeon India

Season One
  • Episode 2b
  1. All the scenes showing SpongeBob ripping his pants with SpongeBob's underwear was blurred.
  2. Episode 19b When Neptune opens the cloud tom Kenny showering was cut.


Season Two
  • Episode 1b
  1. The scene that shows Patrick checking his tan, but instead sees his butt was modified for the Nickelodeon India broadcast. In the Nickelodeon India broadcast, it was replaced with a shot of SpongeBob. Episode 11b The song That's What Friends Do was cut.

Poland Censorship

Nickelodeon Poland

Season One
  • Episode 3a
  1. The scene that shows Patrick jamming the net through Squidward's bandaged hand was cut. (As of 2018, this scene is no longer censored.)
  • Episode 4a
  1. The scene that shows Squidward choking on the fork was cut. (As of 2018, this scene is no longer censored.)
  • Episode 5a
  1. The scene where Squidward says  "Oh, my aching tentacles!" was cut. (As of 2018, this scene is no longer censored.)
  • Episode 7b
  1. The scene that shows the Jellyfish dance was cut. (As of 2018, this scene is no longer censored.)
  • Episode 20a
  1. The scene that shows Patrick eating the cheese off the hook was cut. (As of 2018 this scene is no longer censored.)

Greece Censorship

Nickelodeon Greece

Season One
  • Episode 5a
  1. The scene where Squidward says  "Oh, my aching tentacles!" was cut.

Indonesia Censorship

Global TV

  • All episodes
  1. Sandy's bikini is blurred. Basically all program that contain nudity or breast open is blurred.
  2. The scene is considered violence is cut.

Nickelodeon Indonesia

Season One
  • Episode 15b
  1. All live-action scenes were cut, and this considered violence or torture scene.

Netherlands Censorship

Nickelodeon

Season One
  • Episode 16a
  1. The scene where Patrick says "Patrick needs love too!" was changed to "3:15"

Canada Censorship

Nick Canada

Season Three
  • Episode 18a
  1. Nick Canada banned the episode due to its deception of animal abuse.
  • Episode 18b
  1. Nick Canada banned the episode due to the panty raid scene

Southeast Asia Censorship

Nick Southeast Asia

  • Any scene with the David statue in "Artist Unknown" was cut.
  • In "SpongeGuard on Duty", the scene when Patrick accidentally looks at his own butt was cut.

Egypt/Arabic Censorship

MBC3

  • Truth or Square
  1. The wedding scene was cut 
  • Seasons 5-7
  1. The episodes "It's a SpongeBob Christmas", "Gary's in Love", and "Love that Squid" are banned.
  • Season 8
  1. Butt Jokes are cut or censored.
  • Frozen Face Off
  1. A line where Squidward is insulting the other snow racers was muted. The redub of this episode does not censor it.
  2. Mr. Krabs mentioning Santa Claus was replaced. The redub of this episode does not censor it.
  3. The Abominable Snow Mollusk hugging and purring Patrick was cut. The redub of this episode does not censor it.
  • All
  1. The Krusty Krab's front side is cut due to the Romeo flags looking like crosses. Some episodes have the flag all red.

Persian Censorship

  1. All the bikinis are drawn over with dresses, especially Sandy's bikini.
Season 1
  • Tea At The Treedome
  1. At the part where Sandy has her bikini, the screen awkwardly stretches out to prevent showing it.
Season 5
  • Pat No Pay
  1. At the part where a lady has her bikini, the screen slightly stretches so she is offscreen.
Season 9
  • Squirrel Record
  1. This episode turned into a clip because Sandy was in her bikini the majority of the episode.

Italian Censorship

Nick Italy

Season 1
  • Episode 1a
  1. Tiny Tim's song "Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight" was shortened, so only a few seconds play before it cuts to Mister Krabs hiring SpongeBob.
  • Episode 2b
  1. The ripped pants song was cut.
  • Episode 15b
  1. The live-action scenes for SpongeBob and Patrick were cut, it has happen in Indonesia, where this scene consider violence or torture scenes.
  • Episode 19b
  1. The scene when Tom Kenny was taking a shower was cut.
Season 2
  • Episode 5a
  1. The wormy song was cut.
  • Episode 15b
  1. The Sweet Victory song was cut.

Chinese Censorship

CCTV

  • The show was banned from airing on primetime television in 2008.

Nick China

Season One
  • Episode 5a
  1. The scene where Squidward says  "Oh, my aching tentacles!" was cut.

Ukrainian Censorship

  • The show was banned due to a video that was considered "Gay Propaganda".

Where to find it uncensored

There is a completely uncensored version in Canada (YTV only) and South Korea but the DVDs and the American/Australian/New Zealand airings are nearly completely uncensored.

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