There’s good news and even more good news for SpongeBob fans: Nickelodeon is ready to roll out Legends of Bikini Bottom, an anthology of five all-new SpongeBob SquarePants tales guest starring the voices of Ginnifer Goodwin and Amy Sedaris. And in a first for Nick, the first episode in the batch will premiere first on Facebook.com, followed by the broadcast debut on Nickelodeon.
The episode “Trenchbillies,” which features Sedaris, will go live on Facebook.com/spongebob Jan. 27 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) The next four episodes will premiere in a one-hour special Jan. 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT, with all five episodes airing together Jan. 29 from 10 to 11:15 a.m. ET/PT on Nickelodeon.
“The anthology format of Legends of Bikini Bottom provides a great opportunity to try something new where we can give SpongeBob’s 16 million fans on Facebook a first look, in addition to new content on-air,” said Brown Johnson, president of animation for Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group. “Ginnifer Goodwin and Amy Sedaris have done a fantastic job voicing their characters, which enriches the entire collection of stories.”
The episodes are described by Nick as follows:
- “Trenchbillies”: While jellyfishing one day, SpongeBob and Patrick fall into a deep sea trench and are held captive by a clan of trenchbillies. The leader of the clan, Ma Angler (Amy Sedaris), takes a liking to these colorful intruders and offers them a chance to prove their worth in a series of tests. The boys finally win their freedom, but have a hard time actually leaving their new family.
- “Sponge-Cano”: The undersea volcano outside of town has gone active, and everyone is in a panic and desperate to find a way to appease the volcano. Just then, an ancient warrior appears, proclaiming that the only way to stop the volcano is to sacrifice the most miserable person in Bikini Bottom: Squidward.
- “The Main Drain”: Legend has it that long ago, two young boys stumbled across a drain in the middle of the ocean floor. Curiosity got the best of them and the boys pulled out the plug, washing everything and everyone in Bikini Bottom into the gaping drain, never to be seen again. When SpongeBob and Patrick hear the story of the main drain, they decide it’s up to them to uncover the truth behind the myth. The two friends embark on a journey to find the main drain and prevent anyone from ever making the mistake of pulling the plug again.
- “The Monster Who Came to Bikini Bottom”: Patrick befriends a giant sea monster that has wandered into Bikini Bottom. The two unlikely pals develop a means of communication and discover they have many things in common. But the large monster becomes destructive and the citizens of Bikini Bottom want him out of their town. They almost succeed, until SpongeBob finds a solution that makes everyone happy.
- “Welcome to the Bikini Bottom Triangle”: Things begin to disappear from Bikini Bottom, and when Mr. Krabs also goes missing, SpongeBob and Squidward go out to look for him. Suddenly, they hear the distant singing of mermaids and they are sucked into the mysterious Bikini Bottom Triangle. There they find a treasure trove of things that have gone missing over the years, as well as the keepers of the Triangle, a vain teenage mermaid (Ginnifer Goodwin) and her friends who wreak havoc on the inhabitants of the ocean, stealing all their stuff.
And just to whet everyone’s appetite, here’s a look at a musical number from “Sponge-Cano”:
