The Bully

SpongeBob is at boating school, and Mrs. Puff announces that there's a new student. His name is Flatts the Flounder, and he tells SpongeBob that he is going to "kick his butt". SpongeBob at first assumes him to be joking, but Flatts soon makes it clear that he really means to beat up SpongeBob. SpongeBob, who takes this extremely seriously, tries to seek help and to reason with Flatts, but to no avail. He eventually runs away into town, where Flatts attempts to run him over with a garbage truck, while he eventually drives over a banana peel, causing it to flip over. Flatts awakens in the hospital, where he learns that SpongeBob saved his life by performing CPR on him for five hours straight. Despite this, Flatts continues to pursue SpongeBob. When SpongeBob runs through town, some people kick an old man's butt. The old man was by a bus stop and a guy asks "How many times do we have to teach you this lesson, old man?" Eventually, he corners SpongeBob in his own home, where he proceeds to beat him up. However, SpongeBob's spongey body absorbs the blows, and he is unharmed. Flatts continues to hit SpongeBob nonstop throughout all of next week, until he finally faints from exhaustion. His classmates cheer for SpongeBob. However, pitying Flatts, SpongeBob starts a speech, which ends with him making a fist. Mrs. Puff enters and sees SpongeBob making a fist, and believes SpongeBob beat up Flatts to his death. Mrs.Puff then tells SpongeBob that she is going to "Kick his butt!"

MusicEdit

APM musicEdit

Marching to Honolulu - Title card
Hello Sailor (b) - Exterior shot of Mrs. Puff's Boating School.
Dangerous A - Mrs. Puff introduces Flatts.
Wooden Bear - Flatts first tells SpongeBob that he's gonna kick his butt.
Horror Chords (b) - Flats rips his chest hair to say "I Mean It."
Dramatic Cue B - SpongeBob runs into the bathroom.
Unease - SpongeBob hides in the toilet.
Dramatic Climax - Someone coming into the bathroom.
Steel Sting - "Oh, that's real nice."
Brutal C - Flatts enters the bathroom.
Epic Struggle - SpongeBob finds out that Flatts is at Patrick's house.
Dramatic Cue D - "YOU WHAT?!?"
Dramatic Cue E - Flatts makes a sand sculpture of SpongeBob and kicks its butt.
Unpreventable - "Dad, what are you doing."
Flight in Panic 1 - "OUT OF MY WAY! OUT OF MY WAY! CAN'T YOU SEE HE'S GONNA KICK MY BUTT!"
Dramatic Cue F - "Okay, I gotta skip town, start a new life, live under an assumed name: BobPants SpongeSquare."
Dramatic Encounter - SpongeBob gasps.
Dramatic Stabs - Flatts slips on a banana peel in the truck.
Hawaiian Flower - Flatts wakes up in a hospital.
Dramatic Encounter - Flatts prepares to kick SpongeBob's butt.
Whisper from the Past - SpongeBob makes a speech.
Tales From the Swamp (c) - Mrs. Puff gasps
Steel Licks - The ending.
Dramatic Encounter - Flats stands at SpongeBob's door, cracking his knuckles while SpongeBob puts on his blindfold.

TriviaEdit

This isn't Flatts' first appearance on the show. He has shown up twice before. The second time was in Texas, when Sandy isn't going to leave, Flatts is shown dancing with a purple gallon. The first time was in Sandy's Rocket, when SpongeBob and Patrick mistaking everyone as aliens, SpongeBob catch Flatts who opens the mirror where SpongeBob hides.
This episode, along with "Just One Bite" are the only episodes from season 3 to be aired in 2001.
When the uncut version of "Just One Bite" was aired, "The Bully" would be aired first, and "Just One Bite" second. However, when the scene was deleted, the order of the two episodes is reversed.
While SpongeBob and Flatts are talking, Mrs. Puff is saying "blah blah blah red light blah blah blah green light blah blah speed" in the background.
Despite his plans, Flatts never kicks SpongeBob's butt. Instead, he punches him in the face.
Flatts is seen driving a dump truck in the episode, which makes the fact that he is in boating school seem illogical. However, he could be in here for a very similar reason as Squidward in Boating Buddies.
When Patrick is talking to SpongeBob on the phone, Patrick says Flatts was his "Community College Buddy", implying that Patrick went to college.
The drawing Flatts makes of himself beating up SpongeBob can be seen on Squidward's chalkboard in "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie" video game for PC.
When SpongeBob runs to the bathrooms, there is a flyer saying, "Join the Glee Club'".
When Flatts first walks into the classroom, it shows that the school leads outside. Later, SpongeBob is standing in a hallway, where the door would lead to. The hallway also appears in "New Student Starfish".
Flatts apparently recovers from his injuries to chase SpongeBob out of the hospital within less than a minute.
24th time Squidward doesn't appear.
When SpongeBob asks to be excused for the rest of his life, Mrs. Puff denies his request, despite desperately wanting to be rid of SpongeBob.
Further more, she shows no dislike toward SpongeBob in this episode. She also does this in New Student Starfish.
(For unknown reasons, possibly time restraints.) A scene where SpongeBob and Patrick are playing leap-frog while Flatts is beating him up is replaced with SpongeBob Flipping Krabby Patties while Flatts is beating him up.
Charlie is purple instead of blue and wear a green pants instead of red in this episode.
(Running Gag) Twice during the episode, SpongeBob runs in fear from Flats, and inadvertently points to a old fish (Possibly Old Man Jenkins) when he says Flats is gonna kick his butt. The citizens of Bikini Bottom, led by Harold, are angry at this, and try to beat up the old man.
Flats seems to move another town after this incident due to being absent for a long time.
When SpongeBob tells Mrs. Puff that Flatts plans to kick his butt, she angrily says "there shall be no butt-kicking in any class of mine!". But earlier, when Flatts introduced himself to the class, he said "I like to kick people's butts" and Mrs. Puff responded with laughter.

GoofsEdit

When the students are clapping for Flatts when he first enters the class, SpongeBob can't be seen.
When SpongeBob smacks into Flatts's dad's boat, there is only 1 seat, later it shows Flatts in the car, too. Also the steering wheel is shown on the right side where-as in other episodes the steering wheel appears on the left.
When the Garbage truck is idling behind SpongeBob, it says "Bikini Bottom Garbage". Later, it is blank.
When Flatts was making a Sand Sculpture of SpongeBob and kicking it, you can see that Ms. Puff's mouth isn't moving while she is heard talking. Flatts was just trying to have fun with SpongeBob.
Earlier Mrs. Puff said there is no butt kicking allowed in her class as she stated to Spongebob, but close to the end when she misinterprets that Spongebob beat up Flats (the latter really got exhausted and fell unconscious), she yelled out that she was going to kick his butt for that.
When Mrs. Puff writes on the blackboard, you can see an octagon with the words "GO". The octagon shape is used for stop signs.
In reality bullying in school can lead to suspension or expulsion or even arrest.