When the popular animated series Rocko’s Modern Life was canceled in 1996, director, animator, and marine science educator Stephen Hillenburg knew he had to do something to get back into the swing of things with Nickelodeon. Three years later, in 1999, the zany and childlike character of SpongeBob SquarePants was brought to the television screen. Originally premiering in a pilot episode called “Help Wanted,” where the titular orange sponge tries to get a job at the local Krusty Krab, he (along with all the other characters such as Patrick, Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Plankton, and Sandy, etc.) would end up turning all of Bikini Bottom into a global phenomenon.

25 years out, SpongeBob SquarePants is still going strong, being awarded and nominated countless times, becoming the most profitable entity for the Paramount retailing division, and holding the record for being the highest-rated show on Nickelodeon. Having produced 14 seasons and 267 episodes at this point, there will naturally be some cartoon-based competitors who come and go. Nobody expected one of them to be a hyperactive, anthropomorphic coconut, though. However, that’s exactly what audiences got with Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island.

WB Kids Wanted to Compete with Nickelodeon

Seven months into SpongeBob’s fourth season, WB Kids (a Saturday morning block aimed at younger audiences) decided that it was a good enough time as any to compete with Nickelodeon’s cartoon monolith. While that was based under the sea, the Warner Brothers creation, Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island, would be above — on a private, tropical island in the middle of nowhere — that was only inhabited by numerous fruit/human being hybrids.

Did it deliver — and more importantly, did it make a dent in SpongeBob’s longevity? These attempts are always fun to look at, especially because this show somehow not only parodied SpongeBob but also Final Fantasy. Created by music composers and animation producers Sammy Oriti and Don Oriolo, this new show would center around a hyperactive, anthropomorphic coconut named Fred. While he doesn’t have the ability to shapeshift like SpongeBob, this unique character somehow has the power to materialize anything he wants.

Comparing Coconut Fred to SpongeBob

Premiering on September 17, 2005, Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island only ran for two seasons and 13 episodes in total. As you can tell, this series left no mark on Nickelodeon’s leading franchise. But in all honesty, all the characters were charismatic and entertaining in their own right. Of course, there was Fred (voiced by Rob Paulsen). Then there was Slip and Slide, two banana brothers (voiced by Eric Bauza) who are as smart and intelligent as Patrick in Bikini Bottom — their voices sound similar as well.

Bingo (brought to life by Tracey Moore and Britt McKillip) is much smaller than anybody else on the island, just like Plankton, but in contrast, is shy and timid. That’s why he has the most sophisticated security system in his house. So, Patrick and Plankton are covered. Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island also boasts Mr. Mel Greenrind, Fred’s boss, who just so happens to be a watermelon. A serious personality who wants to keep the resort orderly and has a long list of rules on a squeaky board. There’s your Mr. Krabs, the boss of SpongeBob, who is always looking to make the Krusty Krab a decent establishment (as long as it doesn’t cost him any money).

These character matches, along with other “coincidental” analogies, created a lot of immediate hate from SpongeBob supporters. Hyperactive toddler and flat-out annoying are just some of the terms used on the loathsome character wiki (yes, such a website exists) when describing Fred. But there are undoubtedly parts to Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island that are redeemable. There is no question that it is an over-the-top weird animation that tries to constantly match the yellow pineapple under the sea, but it’s also ironically intimate, sticking to the same group of core characters. This same nuance also applies to the repeated setting of the island. There was always a certain nuanced coziness every time you tuned in.

Voice Actor Rob Paulsen Speaks Out

While some rumors state that Fred’s voice actor, Rob Paulsen, publicly criticized the show, calling it a shameless knockoff, the opposite can be confirmed. In a video posted to YouTube in October 2019, which shows Paulsen conducting a panel, he declares that while the producers claimed that this was indeed their version of SpongeBob, he found his experience with the show great and loved the job. In the same vein, he states that some shows are more fun than others and that not every show is a hit.

As a follow-up some months later, the voice actor posted on X that he could not believe Coconut Fred, of all shows, “had an extremely well put-together Final Fantasy parody episode”. To Coconut Fred’s credit, it parodied two of the best games of all time at once — Final Fantasy and Super Mario Brothers! Sadly, Coconut Fred’s Fruit Salad Island came and went, forever to be a TV series that became lost in the small-screen cartoon catalog. But if you want to see this unique character in all of his frenzied glory, don’t worry, you still can! The complete series is available to watch on YouTube as of this writing. SpongeBob SquarePants is streaming on Paramount+.