About

He's Just Standing There… Menacingly is a line said by Patrick Star in an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants that since went on to be used in various memes, both as an exploitable template and catchphrase.

Origin

On August 28th, 1999, season one, episode 7a of SpongeBob SquarePants, titled "Hall Monitor," premiered in the US.^[1] In the episode, Patrick and SpongeBob begin looking for a "maniac" (who is actually SpongeBob). Patrick sees SpongeBob and believes him to be the maniac, and tells SpongeBob through a walkie-talkie that he sees "the maniac." SpongeBob asks what he's doing, and Patrick replies, "He's just standing there… menacingly!" On August 8th, 2013, YouTube^[2] user Bysentenial uploaded the scene and received more than 1 million views in eight years (shown below).

Spread

Over the 2010s, the scene saw popular use in various edits and memes. For example, on August 23rd, 2016, YouTube^[3] user Han Ellen uploaded a JoJo's Bizarre Adventure edit by adding Dio Brando to the scene. The video received more than 98,000 views in six years (shown below, left). On June 25th, 2019, YouTube^[4] user Lachlan Kell uploaded a Star Wars edit and received more than 162,000 views in three years (shown below, right).

On May 5th, 2017, Reddit^[5] user xBR0SKIx uploaded a reanimated Pokémon scene using the line to the /r/pokemon subreddit and received more than 6,200 points in six years (shown below, left). On March 25th, 2019, Reddit^[6] user ZombieHuggerr uploaded a screenshot from the horror video game Dead by Daylight that referenced the scene to /r/deadbydaylight subreddit. The post received more than 2,800 points in four years (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Template

Search Interest

External References