Even though SpongeBob SquarePants is aimed at children, it hasn’t been safe from all types of theories, of which many don’t make much sense, such as one that says the reason why Squidward is always sad is that he misses his wife. Nickelodeon has been home to a variety of cartoons that have become very popular with viewers, but the most successful Nicktoon to date is SpongeBob SquarePants, created by Stephen Hillenburg. The show made its debut in 1999 and has since become one of the longest-running animated series, allowing it to branch out to other media as well.

SpongeBob SquarePants takes viewers to the bottom of the ocean to visit the underwater city of Bikini Bottom, where the title character and his friends (and a couple of enemies) live and get involved in all types of trouble. Throughout his different adventures, SpongeBob is often accompanied by his best friends Patrick Star and Sandy Cheeks, his neighbor and coworker Squidward Tentacles, and his greedy boss Mr. Krabs, as well as his pet snail Gary, who joins the fun from time to time. Every character has their own personality and quirks, and one who has become popular with viewers is Squidward, as he’s the opposite of SpongeBob, and this has made way for some strange theories.

As mentioned above, Squidward is SpongeBob’s neighbor and coworker at the Krusty Krab, so he has to spend a lot of time with the always cheerful sponge, much to his annoyance. While SpongeBob is optimistic, childish, and clueless, Squidward is bad-tempered, stubborn, and rude, and nothing seems to work out in his favor. This has made fans come up with all types of theories on why Squidward is like this, and one suggested that Squidward was once married, but his wife left him and his life hasn’t been the same ever since – and, of course, SpongeBob had something to do in this, though not as you might think.

The theory went viral on TikTok and has now been deleted, but descriptions of it can be found online. The author of the video explained that Squidward wasn’t always mean, but the failures in his love life have driven him to be a pessimistic character. They also added that during those hard times nobody listened to him except for SpongeBob, so the famous sponge is the only one who’s fully aware of what Squidward has gone through, and that he “looked after Squidward more than you think”. The reason why the show has never addressed this is because it was “too dark”, and so Squidward is always sad and grumpy because he wants his wife back in his life. Squidward did have a love interest in one episode of SpongeBob SquarePants: Squilvia, a woman who looks like him but with short black hair, long eyelashes, and dark pink lips. Squidward and Squilvia met at the Krusty Krab, and SpongeBob actually helped Squidward ask her out, and while at the end of the episode they were shown together, she hasn’t shown up again.

There’s no truth to the “Squidward’s wife” theory that was once a hit on TikTok, and he has never mentioned being married and Squilvia was only a date, though the status of their relationship remains unknown. Not every “mystery” or strange thing found in SpongeBob SquarePants needs an explanation, as it’s ultimately a cartoon, and it doesn’t always have to make sense. Squidward surely has other reasons to be bitter and grumpy, but a lost love definitely isn’t one of them.

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