The Sandman Cometh

"The Sandman Cometh" is a SpongeBob SquarePants episode from season 15. In this episode, when Patrick can't fall asleep, he seeks assistance from the Sandman.

Characters

• SpongeBob SquarePants
• Patrick Star
• Squidward Tentacles
• Sandman ^{(single appearance)}
• Hot dog ^{(single appearance)}
• Swordfish trucker
• Incidentals
  • Lou
  • Incidental 64
  • Incidental 68
• Unknown "Snail" 9
• Jellyfish

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

Synopsis

While jellyfishing with SpongeBob, Patrick suddenly falls asleep, taking a week before he wakes up again. When he goes to bed that night, he is unable to fall asleep, staying up for an entire day. Restless, he goes to hang out with SpongeBob, who is very tired. After a few activities, SpongeBob warns Patrick that he could start hallucinating if he does not get some sleep. Patrick then imagines SpongeBob tucking him into bed and helping him get to sleep.

File:The Sandman Cometh 101.png

Tentacles: Eight Legs - Eight Lives

Patrick then tries to knock himself out with various heavy objects, such as a pipe and an anchor, to fall asleep. When that does not work, he goes to Squidward, asking to hear his life story. Squidward takes out his memories and reads them, boring Patrick. However, Patrick just feels bored instead of sleepy, and knocks Squidward out with a pipe before leaving.

File:The Sandman Cometh 140.png

Patrick creates a sandman out of his house's sand.

Patrick tries to tire himself out by tying a hot dog to a string around his forehead, chasing it around his house for several days, ending up heavily sleep-deprived. SpongeBob says he needs a visit from the Sandman to sleep, causing Patrick to create one out of his house's sand. He starts hallucinating the Sandman and chases him around town, being sprayed with various sources of dust and sand. Patrick tackles the Sandman and yells at him, only to find he was chasing Squidward all along.

Realizing Patrick is going to stay awake forever, SpongeBob has him put it to good use by becoming an all-night trucker. Patrick suddenly falls asleep after backing up his truck, driving into traffic and causing a pile-up. The sandman laughs and blows magic sand at the screen, ending the episode.

Production

This episode was confirmed by Cartoonlounge.de on July 19, 2024.

On the United States Copyright Office catalog, this episode, alongside its sister, is listed as having a publication date of July 23, 2024, which may be its completion date.

Art

Background design

• Traditionally painted in gouache by Amy Lewis. Scanned in with lines drawn digitally on top.

• Tentacles: Eight Legs - Eight Lives book cover
  Tentacles: Eight Legs - Eight Lives book cover
• Multiple-boat collision
  Multiple-boat collision
• Process photo #1
  Process photo #1
• Process photo #2
  Process photo #2
• Process photo #3
  Process photo #3
• Process photo #4
  Process photo #4

Music

( ‣ ) Production music

( • ) Original music

( ◦ ) SpongeBob music

 • Aloha Bikini Bottom - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Title card.]
 • 12th Street Rag w_Bass - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Opening.]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr ["One nap later..."]
 • Slide Whistle Stooges 2 No Whistle - Nicolas Carr, Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Patrick wakes up.]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 37A - Jeremy Wakefield [Patrick falls asleep.]
 • Skipping to School - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Patrick gets into bed.]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr ["24 sleepless hours later..."]
 • Nothing Going On - Daniel Stimac [Patrick can't sleep.]
 ‣ House Of Horror [#10.1] - William Farran [Patrick visits SpongeBob.]
 • Nothing Going On - Daniel Stimac ["Oh, Patrick. It's you."]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr [Video game music.]
 • Sophisticated Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Daniel Stimac [Playing checkers.]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr ["You could start seeing things."]
 • Sophisticated Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Daniel Stimac ["Wait, I'm seeing things now!"]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr ["House! Ground! Sky!"]
 • Sophisticated Conversation - Nicolas Carr, Daniel Stimac [SpongeBob falls asleep.]
 • Solo Steel 4 - Jeremy Wakefield [SpongeBob tucks Patrick in.]
 ‣ Slow Box Waltz - Leo Nissim [Lullaby music.]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 18 - Jeremy Wakefield ["SpongeBob, I still can't sleep."]
 ‣ Slow Box Waltz - Leo Nissim [SpongeBob sleeping.]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr [Patrick leaves his house.]
 • Silly Bob Conversation 2 - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony [Patrick hitting himself.]
 ‣ Fashion On Parade - Ronald Hanmer [Squidward's life story.]
 ‣ Zoo Doings - Jack Shaindlin [Patrick tiring himself out.]
 • Lap Steel-spce_01 - Nicolas Carr ["Several days later..."]
 ‣ Hippos And A Stranger - Dennis Farnon [SpongeBob visits Patrick.]
 • ? - Nicolas Carr ["A sandman! Eyes, out like a light!"/Patrick builds a sandman.]
 ‣ Hippos And A Stranger - Dennis Farnon ["What's wrong? You need more sand?"]
 • Spongemonger - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Patrick chases the Sandman.]
 • Nude Sting - Nicolas Carr [Patrick hurting Squidward.]
 • Hot Steel and Slide Licks 7A - Jeremy Wakefield [Squidward groans.]
 • The Fruitcake Vendor 2 - Nicolas Carr, Barry Anthony ["Another misadventure for my memoir."]
 • Puka A - Sage Guyton, Jeremy Wakefield [Ending.]

Trivia

General

File:SB1432-309b OG title.jpeg

• This episode was originally called "Pat the Tired."
• SpongeBob has a similar issue in "InSPONGEiac," in which he cannot sleep and seeks assistance from Patrick.
• This episode marks the return of the #10.01 version of House of Horror since "A Cabin in the Kelp."

Cultural references

• This episode's title is a reference to the 1939 play by Eugene O'Neill, The Iceman Cometh.

File:The Sandman Cometh 038.png

The controllers that SpongeBob and Patrick use.

• The video game controllers that Patrick and SpongeBob use resemble the ones used for the original PlayStation by Sony.

Errors

• The transition from the title card to the opening has no bubbles. Instead, it is accompanied by a screen wipe, but the sounds are still heard.
  • This is the third overall episode of the main series to have a bubble transition sound effect, but without any bubbles, after "Boating School" and "Mid-Life Crustacean."

Video

File:Patrick Can't Sleep! 😩 - Full Scene - @SpongeBobOfficial

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Dutch	Op zoek naar Klaas Vaak	Looking for the Sandman
Italian	L'omino del sonno	The Sandman
Polish	Kometa Piaskowego Dziadka	Sandman's Cometh
Russian	Грядёт Песочный человек Gryadyot Pesochnyy chelovek	The Sandman Cometh
Slovenian	Prihaja Peščeni mož	Here Comes The Sandman
Spanish (Latin America)	El cometa Sandman	The Sandman Cometh
Spanish (Spain)	Llega el Hombre de Arena	The Sandman Arrives