“Was he in jail?” – Fans poke fun as Squilliam makes his first SpongeBob SquarePants appearance in over 15 years

Squilliam Fancyson is the ultimate rival of Squidward Tentacles, Spongebob's grumpy neighbor. Squidward, who is otherwise indifferent about most things in life, frowns at the mere mention of his archnemesis, and his eye-rollings have become meme sensation amongst the fans. Their relationship is rooted in jealousy and one-upmanship and brings the best out of the show.

Squilliam sports a single eyebrow and a red and black robe, flaunting his wealth and supposed superiority for all others to see. Squilliam is the epitome of over-the-top pretentiousness and is able to push just the right buttons of Squidward, which often leads to absurd competitions and comedic situations.

Fans have a field day as Squilliam makes his presence felt in SpongeBob SquarePants' latest episode

Squilliam has been a torch bearer of smugness for the Spongebob franchise since its inception, and his hilarious antics never fail to make us laugh. But perhaps his greatest achievement lies in making fans root for Squidward, who is usually at the receiving end of fans' ire.

He has not been seen in the show for long, but that is about to change. In the latest SpongeBob SquarePants episode titled "Pablum Plankton" that went viral on social media, Squilliam can be seen picking his veggies at Barg'N-Mart, and fans were able to spot him right away from his distinctive robe. This sent the fans into overdrive as they contemplated the possible reasons behind his absence:

"They ain’t use Squilliam in 15 years?? Was he in jail—-??", joked one fan (via X / @TheJakeneutron)

"He must’ve went broke cus why it take 15 years", said another. (via X / @baehelplou)

Knowing Squilliams, he was probably vacationing all across Bikini Bottom while trying to come up with ways to ruin Squidward's life. Things are about to get really interesting here.

Squilliam has been gone for more than 15 years, and this is his first televised appearance in SpongeBob SquarePants. Despite his pretentiousness and flaws, fans can't wait to see him back on the show. Perhaps absence does make the heart grow fonder! Who knows what the troubled soul has been going through? Either way, this didn't stop fans from coming up with all sorts of conspiracy theories:

"He was temporarily erased from the timeline when SpongeBob and Patrick were doing their thing in that "Blast to the Past" episode, is my headcanon lol.", commented one fan (via X / @darklink785)

"Money laundering scheme. He finally got out, that’s why he’s shopping at Bikini Bottom’s Meijrs", another fan quipped hilariously. (via X / @XMAsWulf)

We're now dealing with multiverses and money-laundering criminals. The closest thing we have to superheroes are Spongebob and Patrick. Too bad there are no Avengers in Bikini Bottom to save the day!

If pettiness was an Olympic sport, Squilliam would've been a World Champion. One of the highlights of SpongeBob SquarePants' episode "Band Geeks" is the moment when Squilliam faints, which half-looks like a heart attack. One fan had another explanation for his comeback:

It was probably the only moment in SpongeBob when Squilliam’s heart fluttered without a mirror nearby.

While some fans celebrated his return, one fan (@Madisonxheights) was a bit displeased that Squilliam wasn't successful in bending the world to his will in the time he was away. The makers really ought to have known better and at least let him acquire Krusty Krab, for Plankton's sake...

"15 years and they still haven't let him take over the Krusty Krab? Ridiculous"

Whatever the reason for his absence, fans agreed that he won't be encountering the same old Squidward now, one who was easily angered by his antics. They let the world know:

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While we don't know the reason for his decade-long absence from the show, Squilliam returning is certainly good news for the fans. Maybe there is a tinge of nostalgia attached to him, but we are certainly looking forward to him making more appearances soon in SpongeBob SquarePants and not vanishing like the last time. His pretentiousness is simply priceless.

So here's to Squilliam, for whom even a heart attack can't deflate his sense of self-importance!