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Encyclopedia SpongeBobia
Encyclopedia SpongeBobia
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in: Episodes, Season 13 episodes, Incomplete lists
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Upturn Girls

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"Upturn Girls" is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season 13. In this episode, Pearl and Narlene have a whales' day out in the big city.

Characters[]

This list is incomplete, but you can help Encyclopedia SpongeBobia by expanding it.

Synopsis[]

The episode begins at the Krusty Krab, where Pearl is cooking due to it being "Put Your Daughter to Work Day," as Mr. Krabs puts it. As she serves a customer, Narlene and Nobby pop out of some barrels and remind SpongeBob of his promise to show her around the big city. SpongeBob bemoans that he can't leave the Krusty Krab, so Pearl volunteers while Nobby takes her place. Pearl then takes Mr. Krabs' credit card so they can start their trip.

Pearl and Narlene soon arrive in the big city, where Narlene collects all the gum that's been left on the pavement. The two wander around and take in the sights, like the skyscrapers and public transport. Back at the Krusty Krab, SpongeBob stresses over the fact he can't reach the fryer from the grill, so Nobby starts moving all the various machines closer to SpongeBob.

Upturn Girls 080

Eventually, Pearl and Narlene end up at the heart of the big city; Upturn's, a large skyscraper-like department store. Narlene is fascinated by the automatic sliding door and accidentally rips it off, drawing the ire of Upturn's owner, Lady Upturn. Narlene flattens Upturn with the door, and Pearl apologizes for Narlene's behavior, before showing her their credit card. Lady Upturn forgives them, but warns them that at Upturn's, they take shopping seriously.

The two soon arrive at the perfume department, where Narlene is put off by the fancy smells. After the manager sprays perfume in her face, she uses her own toadstool tang perfume, which causes a huge stink that drives everyone out. Pearl and Narlene then try some clothes, before going to a sale at the shoe department. Narlene's dislike of shoes makes her destroy a stiletto, causing the manager to realize the two are the wanted ruffians, before calling security.

Upturn Girls 137

Pearl and Narlene try to escape, but the security guards surround them as Lady Upturn arrives. Pearl tries to apologize, but Lady Upturn ignores her, stating that the two will never shop at Upturn's again. They escape to the store's roof, where Lady Upturn comments that country visitors like Narlene is especially unwelcome. This makes Pearl stick up for Narlene, calling Lady Upturn a snob, before trying to use Narlene's gum to let them escape. The guards stop them, but Pearl throws their credit card off the building, causing the guards and Lady Upturn to jump after it.

The two make it back to the Krusty Krab, where Nobby is causing chaos. Narlene whistles for him to stop, before thanking Pearl for the day out, and hopes to take her to the countryside as thanks. Mr. Krabs then complains about the credit card bill from their day out, causing Pearl to decide to go to the country right then. As Pearl and Narlene ride away on Nobby, Mr. Krabs gives chase, and the episode ends in the cluttered kitchen with SpongeBob calling for help beneath all the machines.

Production[]

Keegan Tsetta's section of rough storyboards were completed sometime in April 2021.[9]

Ryan Jouas did his section a few months later than Tsetta's, as he said he was busy doing storyboard work for the show on July 2, 2021. He posted the above piece of art to help him "unwind."[10]

This episode was confirmed by Cartoonlounge.de on April 11, 2022.[11]

On its premiere day, Vincent Waller revealed this episode's title card.[12]

Promotional art[]

  • Drawn by Ian Vazquez.[13]

Art[]

Character design[]

  • Designed by Ian Vazquez,[1] Stephanie Gladden, Joann Chang,[15] and other unknown crew members.[16]

Background design[]

  • Designed by Sterling Richter[2] and Jessica Shih.[17]

Storyboards[]

  • Rough boarded by Ryan Jouas[8] and Keegan Tsetta, plussed by Ian Vazquez[18] and April "Pinkie" Davis,[3][4][5][19] revised by Kyle Morrison.[6]

Narlene and Pearl make their way around the city.

Pan shot of Upturn's.

Pearl and Narlene make their way through Upturn's.

Features the same boards as above, and compares those to the final product.

Narlene feeds Nobby, and the latter neighs like a horse.


Edited scenes[]

  • Originally, the boat salesman shark was not in this episode, and his place was taken up by two entirely new fish characters:[8] the perfume manager and the shoe department manager.

Production notes[]

Ian Vazquez:

  • The security captain shark's initial design was drawn by Ian Vazquez, but his final design with the "U" on shirt in toe was designed by Stephanie Gladden.[16]

Kyle Morrison:

  • Kyle Morrison, who helped plus the storyboards for this segment, made various comments about the production of this episode.[6]
    • During the scene where Pearl and Narlene strut around the city, Morrison mostly cleaned up the rough boards, but they got to have fun with the incidentals.[9]
      • Despite the scrolling background being tricky to handle, they were really pleased with how the sidewalk walk translated to animation.[9]
    • The most time-consuming job for Morrison was adding the well-to-do incidentals in the Upturn's lobby. Despite Pearl & Narlene covering up a lot of the side fish, they still tried to give them all some personality, and Morrison was happy to include a cameo by Monty P. Moneybags.[20]
    • Despite not every drawing being Morrison's, they still had a ton of fun with Narlene, as her design was up their alley. Lady Upturn was also a fun character to work with for them (snooty characters usually were) - and they were extremely glad that the gag with Narlene makeup on the glass made it to the final cut.[21]

Ryan Jouas:

  • Jouas apologized for going "a little Tarantino with the shoe store scene" in the rough storyboards.[8]

Music[]

( ‣ ) Production music
( • ) Original music
( ◦ ) SpongeBob music

 ‣ Morning Commute - Ronald Hanmer [Title card.]
 • Jovial Pirate's Jig - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr [Opening.]
 • Whats This Sting - Nicolas Carr ["Huh?"]
 • Melodramatic Moments - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr [Mr. Krabs watching Pearl make the Krabby Patties.]
 • Pirate's Opus - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr [Pearl making Krabby Patties.]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 38A - Jeremy Wakefield ["Do you mind?"]
 • Pirate's Opus - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr ["No, not at all!"]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 7F - Jeremy Wakefield ["Isn't this just the best job ever?"]
 • Missing Frycook - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob gets pulled by his hand in the barrel.]
 • Light Suspense Segueway - Nicolas Carr [SpongeBob puts his hand back in the barrel.]
 • Truck Driving Hillbilly - Nicolas Carr [Narlene arrives.]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 16A - Jeremy Wakefield ["No, I can't abandon these lovely people."]
 • Nude Sting - Nicolas Carr [Shot of the customers at the Krusty Krab.]
 • Hgliss & Bell - Nicolas Carr ["Ooh..."]
 • Shop O Rama - Nicolas Carr, Fabian Fernandez ["...then why don't I show you around the big city?"]
 • Blue Acres 2 - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield ["Anything to get out of this place!"]
 ‣ Apples And Pears - Bruce Campbell [Pearl attempts to get an advance on her allowance.]
 • Heavenly Sanatized Choir - Nicolas Carr [Shot of the diamond unlimited card.]
 • Lap Steel - Nicolas Carr [Transition to the next scene.]
 ‣ Fashion on Parade - Ronald Hanmer [Pearl and Narlene walking through the city.]
 • Another Krusty Krab Day 2 - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr [Nobby moving things around in the Krusty Krab kitchen.]
 • Lap Steel - Nicolas Carr [Transition to the next scene.]
 ‣ Market Day - Kurt Rehfeld [Pearl and Narlene see the mall.]
 ‣ Shopping Trip - Bruce Campbell [Pearl helps Lady Upturn get up.]
 ‣ Fully Fashioned - George French [Pearl and Narlene enter the perfume section.]
 ‣ Glamour Foxtrot - Lillian Munsie [Salesperson sprays perfume into Narlene's mouth.]
 • Hillbilly Tension Build - Nicolas Carr [Narlene uses her Toadstool Tang perfume.]
 ‣ Trap Door - David Lindup [Narlene stenches the mall.]
 ‣ Terror - Alan Braden [The hideous stench spreads across the mall.]
 • Lap Steel - Nicolas Carr [Transition to the next scene.]
 ‣ Twilight Stroll - Len Stevens [Pearl shows off her new dress.]
 ‣ Five More Comical Cuts - Ronald Hanmer [Narlene and Pearl go up the elevator.]
 ‣ Spring in New York - Sam Fonteyn [Pearl and Narlene arrive at the shoe department.]
 ‣ Charlie's Bike C - Peter Balding, Otto Sieben ["Well, if the shoe fits..."]
 ‣ Incidental Pieces 17 - Dennis Wilson ["Wait a minute, I know you two!"]
 ‣ Eight Dramatic Bridges - Ronald Hanmer ["It's those whiney whales!"]
 ‣ Breakout - Syd Dale [Mall security chases after Narlene and Pearl.]
 ‣ Alone And Lost - Norman Dane ["Narlene and I were just having some fun!"]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 6B - Jeremy Wakefield [Pearl cries.]
 ‣ Eight Dramatic Bridges - Ronald Hanmer [Narlene grabs Pearl and runs.]
 ‣ Elevator Music - Heinz Hoetter [Elevator music.]
 ‣ Desperate Escape - Kenneth Essex [Pearl and Narlene reach the edge of the roof.]
 ‣ Eccentric March - Peter Hope [Pearl stands up for Narlene.]
 • Earls Revenge - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Pearl and Narlene fly away from Lady Upturn.]
 • Cheap and Frozen Short - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr [Pearl and Narlene arrive back at the Krusty Krab.]
 • Blue Acres 3 Full Mix - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Narlene whistles as she sees Nobby again.]
 • Melodramatic Moments - Michael Bolger, Nicolas Carr ["Pearl, what's the deal with all these charges at Upturn's?"]
 • Hillbilly Chase - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton and Jeremy Wakefield [Pearl and Narlene ride Nobby out of the Krusty Krab.]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 25A - Jeremy Wakefield ["Hello? Anybody there?"]

Release[]

Trivia[]

General[]

  • Pearl is off-model for a majority of the episode. She’s most noticeably smaller and her eyes are slightly bigger and more child-like in this episode.
  • This episode was originally titled "City Cetaceans."[22]
  • This is the first episode to have two storyboard directors since "SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout."
  • Despite Keegan Tsetta doing the first half of this episode's storyboards, and Ryan Jouas doing the second half, they are credited in the opposite order. This is due to the fact that the credits are organized by last name alphabetically.
  • This is the second episode of the main SpongeBob SquarePants series to feature a character from a spin-off series. The first was "Something Narwhal This Way Comes."
  • This is the second episode which was written by Danny Giovannini and directed by Ian Vazquez. The first was "Potato Puff."
  • This is the last episode to credit Marc Ceccarelli and Vincent Waller as co-executive producers.
  • This episode reveals that Lady Upturn is the owner of a large department store named Upturn's.
  • Roh and Rea, Lady Upturn's cabin roommates from Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years, make cameos in various posters at Upturn's revealing what happened to them after Kamp Koral; Roh is a clothing model, and Rea is the face of a perfume company.
  • This episode marks the return of many characters that haven't appeared for many years in the series.
    • This episode marks the second appearance of Coupe from "Drive Happy" after a 4 year absence.
    • This episode marks the second appearance of the female collector from "One Krabs Trash" after a 20 year absence.
    • This is Incidental 61's first appearance in 22 years after "Walking Small."
    • The Atomic Flounder's civilian form appears after a 20-and-a-half year gap since "Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy II."
    • Incidental 124 and Incidental 128 make their second appearance in the show, 22 years after "Sleepy Time."
  • Although Pearl says that she has never cooked a Krabby Patty before, she is seen cooking them in "Welcome to the Bikini Bottom Triangle."
  • After Lady Upturn is crushed by the glass door, her makeup can be seen smeared on it while Pearl flips it over, revealing that she wears makeup.
  • The elevator has the text "UP-TURN elevation co." written above it.
  • Narlene breaks the fourth wall by saying, "Well, it's like walking through a TV show."
  • Ian Vazquez created an entire set of anchovy incidentals for this episode, labeled as the "Upturn's employee" anchovies. According to Vazquez, the reason why they were created under the same species was because "Lady Upturn felt like she'd demand complete conformity in style...forbid she have to learn a new face of an employee. Lord knows she doesn't know a single one of their names."[1]
    • Jody Ann Chovy (an Upturn's incidental with a name) was a co-creation of both Ian Vazquez and Kyle Morrison.[23]
    • According to their model sheet, "Upturn's employee" incidental 3 can be classified as either male or female.[1]
    • According to Vazquez, Upturn's incidentals seven through nine are Black fish, making them the first non-human SpongeBob characters with a confirmed human race.[24][25]
      • Certain fish were also designed to have hairstyles akin to Vazquez and his family.[25]

Episode references[]

  • Narlene's last line in the episode, "Sooner than ya think!", is also what she tells SpongeBob in "Something Narwhal This Way Comes" when he asks if she'll see her again.
Whale of Birthday 129

Mr. Krabs' wood balsa card from "Whale of a Birthday."

Upturn Girls 047

Mr. Krabs' wood balsa card in this episode.

Man Ray Returns 183

The Scuber with a red color from "Man Ray Returns."

Upturn Girls 050

The Scuber with a green color in this episode.

  • The Scuber from "Man Ray Returns" reappears with a different color, where Pearl and Narlene take it to get to the city.

Cultural references[]

  • This episode's title is a reference to the 2003 film Uptown Girls and the 1983 hit "Uptown Girl" by Billy Joel.
  • Mr. Krabs' Master-Carp card is a reference to Mastercard.
  • When Pearl and Narlene enter the 10th floor of Upturn's and Narlene tries on a stiletto, it is a reference to the 1950 Walt Disney film, Cinderella.
  • The brand of shoes featured on the poster with Roh is called Beckett Salmonson, a reference to the Beckett Simonon brand of leather shoes.
  • The boat salesman shark's presence in every single department at Upturn's is a reference to how Frank Nelson was the clerk/customer at every business in The Jack Benny Show.[7]
    • Ian Vazquez said that the only thing certain about their kind is that they all come from a place of nepotism.[7]
    • The sharks found everywhere in the store were initially individual department managers.[7]
  • Jody's name and appearance may or may not be inspired by a certain time-traveler.[23]

Errors[]

  • In the "Wanted" sketch of Pearl and Narlene, the "P" on Pearl's shirt is missing.
  • Incidental 31's blue stripes on his back disappears after Pearl wipes her flipper on his back.

Videos[]

Names in other languages[]

Language Name Meaning
German Kaufhaus Hochnas Upturn's Department Store
Russian Подружки в городе
Podruzhki v gorode		 Friends in the City

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "There was a whole slew of..."
  2. ^ a b Sterling Richter on Twitter - "Some of my BG designs..."
  3. ^ a b April "Pinkie" Davis on Twitter - "Plussing boards on "Upturn Girls"
  4. ^ a b April "Pinkie" Davis on Twitter - "Some side by side from..."
  5. ^ a b April "Pinkie" Davis on Twitter - "Side-by-side from..."
  6. ^ a b c Kyle Morrison on Twitter - "Some of my contributions..."
  7. ^ a b c d Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "The department managers all became the Salesman Shark..."
  8. ^ a b c d e Ryan Jouas on Instagram - "Some panels from the most..."
  9. ^ a b c Kyle Morrison on Twitter - "For the city scene..."
  10. ^ Ryan Jouas on Instagram - "I've been busy doing some..."
  11. ^ Upturn Girls - Episode 275b - SpongeBob SquarePants | Cartoonlounge.de
  12. ^ Vincent Waller on Twitter - "Step in Sponge Fans, Y'all have..."
  13. ^ Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "Tonight! New SpongeBob hit single..."
  14. ^ a b Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "Oops. Danny GIOVANNINI!..."
  15. ^ Character Design | Joann Chang
  16. ^ a b Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "Of course the first two sharks..."
  17. ^ SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS - Jessica Shih
  18. ^ Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "These Lovely People"
  19. ^ April "Pinkie" Davis on Twitter - "Upturn Girls" is one of my favorites..."
  20. ^ Kyle Morrison on Twitter - "My most time-consuming job..."
  21. ^ Kyle Morrison on Twitter - "Not every drawing is mine..."
  22. ^ Cartoonlounge.de - Nickelodeon South Africa 2021.11.23
  23. ^ a b Kyle Morrison on Twitter - "And though all the employees..."
  24. ^ Jason on Twitter - "Is employee #9 a "Black" fish?..."
  25. ^ a b Ian Vazquez on Twitter - "HAha, I do know..."
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