Nickelodeon Makes Major Change to Its “NickToons” Line

No one can deny that Nickelodeon’s success was assisted by the creation of the Nicktoons. Classified as Nickelodeon original animated programming, the moniker first began in 1991 with the likes of Ren & Stimpy, Doug, and Rugrats. Since that point, the NickToons line has continued for decades with various stories and series arriving thanks to the banner. At this point in time, it is hard to argue that Spongebob Squarepants has become the most popular entry in this ever-expanding category and Nickelodeon is making good use of this fact by rebranding the classic title for this summer to honor Bikini Bottom.

This summer, “NickToons” will be dubbed “NickSpongebob” as the cable network has promised to dedicate the summer to Spongebob Squarepants. This doesn’t mean that the entirety of Nickelodeon’s line-up will only focus on the employees of the Krusty Krab but it once again goes to show just how big the franchise has become. With the release of the recent announcement, this change appears to be temporary as the Paramount-owned children’s network stated that “NickSpongebob” will only be around for the summer. Currently in its fifteenth season, Spongebob Squarepants isn’t slowing down any time soon, especially when you take its feature-length films and spin-off shows into account.

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A Spongebob Summer

As of the writing of this article, Spongebob Squarepants is the longest-running animated series for kids, first airing on Nickelodeon in 1999. For over twenty-five years, the titular character and his friends have been slinging Krabby Patties whenever they can. On top of the main series, the franchise has had two big spin-off series, The Patrick Star Show and Kamp Koral: Spongebob’s Under Years.

Not only was Patrick given his own surreal series but other Bikini Bottom residents received stories of their own via feature-length films. Both Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie and Plankton: The Movie explored new parts of the undersea area while focusing on a big ally and enemy of the Krusty Krab fry cook. With the show showing no signs of ending even with decades under its belt, perhaps Mr. Krabs, Squidward, or Pearl will be next on the list to get the movie treatment.

The Voice of Spongebob Speaks

Last year, we here at ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Tom Kenny, the voice actor who has bringing the yellow sponge to life ever since the series’ inception. During our discussion, Kenny mentioned creator Stephen Hillenburg’s influence on the series, even years following his tragic passing, “I kind of see that with Patrick and you too now that you mention it. So much of Spongebob’s DNA is Steve and then there’s a little bit of mustard that we can slap on the characters, what we bring to it. We just trust what’s on the page and be them. The roadmap is so good and so clear, it’s like Waze telling you where to go.” 

Want to see what the future holds for this wild new rebrand? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook.com for the latest updates on Bikini Bottom and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime.