SpongeBob SquarePants · Season 4

The season begins with Plankton still trying to get the Krabby Patty secret formula, and he even switches lives with Mr. Krabs to try and obtain it. Meanwhile, SpongeBob becomes obsessed with being a lifeguard after seeing Larry the Lobster's popularity at Goo Lagoon. As the season progresses, SpongeBob and Patrick go on various adventures, including getting lost in the Kelp Forest, adopting a baby scallop, and trying to sell chocolate bars door-to-door. Squidward's rival, Squilliam Fancyson, returns to torment him, and Squidward tries to impress him by pretending to own a fine dining restaurant. Mr. Krabs has a series of misadventures, including losing his millionth dollar to a giant clam, having a midlife crisis, and being hospitalized for food poisoning after eating a rotten Krabby Patty. The Flying Dutchman visits him and threatens to take his soul unless he changes his greedy ways, but Mr. Krabs eventually reverts to his old habits. SpongeBob also has his share of mishaps, including shattering his buttocks in a sandboarding injury, becoming paranoid and confining himself to his house, and trying to fly with the jellyfish using a hair dryer to inflate his trousers. In the latter part of the season, Plankton tries to steal the Krabby Patty formula again, this time with the help of his relatives, but discovers that the formula is a fake and that the real one is hidden under Mr. Krabs' mattress. The season ends with SpongeBob getting into more trouble, including catching the "Tattle-tale Strangler" and going on a pranking spree with Patrick using invisible spray.