What Is This Big-Eyed 'Sad SpongeBob' Meme? The Tale Of 'Spunchbop' Explained

Look at this SpongeBob. We've seen many SpongeBob SquarePants frames turned into memes over the years, but few are as outright pathetic as "Sad SpongeBob," dubbed "Spunchbop," with massive eyes on the verge of tears and a small droopy nose.

The image has become a highly recognizable reaction image, exploitable meme and template in the 2020s, and here's how it all started.

Where Does 'Spunchbop' Come From?

The "Spunchbop" snapshot comes from the 2000 Christmas episode of SpongeBob SquarePants called "Christmas Who." The picture is taken by Squidward, who forces a sad SpongeBob to pose in front of his coral Christmas tree, leading to the exaggerated, tearful photo.

It entered memedom in early 2020 on iFunny, as the exaggerated photo of SpongeBob blended it with the many other exaggerated SpongeBob memes from the late 2020s, such as SpongeGar and Mocking SpongeBob.

How Did Spunchbop Develop?

The image has spread in a variety of ways since appearing in memes online. One popular trend involved sprinkling it into ironic videos where it would appear with the Vine Thud sound effect.

Additionally, it spawned a popular fan art trend in which people drew various characters with the same expression.

Of note, the meme is different from a separate template involving a picture of nematodes that referred to SpongeBob as "Spunch Bop" that sprung up in 2020.

For the full history of Sad SpongeBob, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.