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Would the early viewers who laughed through the first SpongeBob escapades have predicted the franchise enduring for a 25 years, following experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? This staying power is in part due to its broad charm, tickling the sense of humor of adults – possibly even those former students – as well as the youngest viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as unexpected as the legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 movie, this fourth feature has no qualms about making Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while dispensing royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems anything can still in the zany world of Bikini Bottom.

An Established Goofy Groove

Kicking off with a holiday short starring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the latest SpongeBob movie quickly settles into a comfortably silly rhythm. Its storyline acts as a family-friendly treatise on the pros and cons of maturity. This version of SpongeBob (again brought to life by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it at last qualifies him to experience his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic gag: our enthusiastic hero's fantasized loop-the-loops.) Yet, as in the best modern American animation, the true rollercoaster is the corkscrew narrative.

The Adventure for Swashbuckling Proof

SpongeBob's quest to secure the fabled pirate license that will declare him a “big guy” leads him into conflict with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, voiced by the currently ever-present Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship adds a larger scale, the movie's aesthetic remains a charming bricolage of digimation and hand-crafted components, forever showcasing pleasing, properly cartoonish effects.

If its freewheeling humor will resonate when the lights come up is debatable, but it's a strong SpongeBob movie.

Notable scenes feature SpongeBob wedging himself into an AC unit and emerging somehow more rectangular than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a penalty guaranteed to resonate with the six-year-old audience: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.

The Verdict

In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid entry to the series – and arguably the funniest pirate-themed movie recently, including a hearty Davy Jones joke and a saltily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those early fans will probably be snickering all over again.

Coming to Theaters: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants debuts on 19 December in the US, 20 December in Ireland, and December 26th in Australia and the UK.