‘SpongeBob’ Fans React to Maroon 5 Not Playing “Sweet Victory”: “It Should Be a Felony Offense”

On Sunday night, Maroon 5 took to the stage for a very tame and non-objectionable Super Bowl halftime performance. Adam Levine and the other dudes behind him performed a few of their most popular hits, including “Sugar,” “Moves Like Jagger,” and “This Love,” and dedicated the show to their late manager, Jordan Feldstein. But not everyone enjoyed Maroon 5’s vanilla performance: SpongeBob SquarePants fans waiting for the band to sing “Sweet Victory” by David Glen Eisley were left disappointed after the cartoon sponge did nothing more than introduce Travis Scott. The perceived slight has left many SpongeBobbers angry, and honestly, they need to chill out.

The SpongeBob hoopla first started two months ago, when fans created a petition on Change.org to have “Sweet Victory” performed at the Super Bowl in honor of the late Stephen Hillenburg, the show’s creator. Over 1.2 million people signed the petition, and in the weeks leading up to the game, both Maroon 5 and Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta posted SpongeBob teasers, prompting many to think that their efforts had actually paid off. The actor who voices Squidward, Rodger Bumpass, also posted on Facebook that he would be introducing “the halftime entertainment” as his character, stirring further speculation about a “Sweet Victory” performance among fans.

About three minutes into Maroon 5’s performance, SpongeBob‘s “Sweet Victory” introduction began playing, and a digitized comet slowly approached the stadium. But when the comet finally made it inside the stadium, “Sweet Victory” wasn’t playing; it was Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode.” Cue the outrage.

At least SpongeBob was happy?

It’s worth noting that “Sweet Victory” isn’t even a Maroon 5 song; it’s originally by David Glen Eisley and appeared in an episode of SpongeBob that was set at the “Bubble Bowl.” Why would Maroon 5 want to cover someone else’s song, tribute or not? At the Super Bowl — the world’s biggest stage — where they’ve been hired to perform their own songs?

At the risk of angering the SpongeBob fandom, I’m going to keep my mouth shut about how stupid this whole uproar is (whoops). Get over it. You still got 10 seconds of SpongeBob during a sporting event that has absolutely nothing to do with cartoons. If that’s enough for SpongeBob himself, it should be enough for you, too.

Where to stream SpongeBob Squarepants

Watch the Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show on YouTube