
Many "Spongebob Squarepants" fans were thrilled when it was announced that "Sweet Victory" would be incorporated into the Super Bowl halftime show. Instead, fans were teased as the beginning of the popular Spongebob song led into "Sicko Mode" by rapper Travis Scott.
Considered to some as being a national holiday, families gather around to watch the extravaganza of Super Bowl commercials and halftime shows every year; this year’s took place on Feb. 3, 2019.
The New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams played in this year’s Super Bowl and even though there may have been tension building in the stadium and living rooms alike, the sweaty football players weren’t the only thing that over a million people were tuning in to see.
Accompanying a sneak peek of "Avengers: Endgame" and a performance by Maroon 5 was a snippet of what many thought would lead into an animated performance by "Spongebob Squarepants" and his Bikini Bottom friends honoring the show’s late creator, Stephen Hillenburg.
Hillenburg passed on Nov. 26, 2018 leading to a massive outcry from millions of "Spongebob" fanatics. One fan in particular, Israel Colunga, started a Change petition to persuade the National Football League (NFL) and Nickelodeon to pay homage to Hillenburg during the Super Bowl halftime show by playing the song “Sweet Victory” from the popular episode “Band Geeks.” The petition amassed over one million signatures from Spongebob fans everywhere.
Shortly before the Super Bowl aired, it was announced Maroon 5 would incorporate the song into their live performance and fans were looking forward to the tribute they had so desperately craved.
However, things didn’t go as those millions of fans had anticipated; in the middle of Maroon 5’s performance, many fans were disappointed and later outraged when they were teased with a short Spongebob animation that soon transitioned into the popular rap song “Sicko Mode” by Travis Scott.
Ultimately, “Sweet Victory” was never played.
Upset fans took to Twitter, voicing their disdain for the “tribute,” some even calling it the “biggest disappointment of [their] life.”
Spongebob introducing Sicko Mode instead of playing Sweet Victory has literally been the biggest disappointment of my life
— Nikki Blonsky (@HunterBow1) February 4, 2019
Seeing as the Spongebob appearance was supposed to pay tribute to Hillenburg, it’s understandable that many were let down. Instead of actually giving millions of people what they wanted and showing respect to the show’s late creator, the Super Bowl marketed off a popular song that could have been introduced all on its own.
It was a terrible move to interrupt what was supposed to be a tribute to someone who shaped so many Millenial's and Generation Z’s childhoods and who created a show that children and adults will remember for the rest of their lives.
Despite many fans being disappointed, the man who started it all kept a positive attitude towards the entire ordeal.
Colunga stated in an update, “Sweet Victory (sort of). We did it. Even though we got YEETED with that ‘Sicko Mode’/’Sweet Victory’ mashup, it’s still crazy to think that 1.2 MILLION people signed a petition to get Spongebob’s face on national television. I know Stephen Hillenburg would be extremely proud and honored. Let it be known that 2019 was the year Spongebob reigned supreme at the Super Bowl.”
While it wasn’t the performance everyone had hoped for, at least it showed we the people have a voice - even if that voice can be a little distorted sometimes.
In fact, a different superfan by the name of Tyler Lincheck has started another Change petition to get “Sweet Victory” played at the 2020 Super Bowl.
Maybe there could be a chance of “sweet victory” after all.