This Year's Toy Market Hit Is Actually This Ugly-Cute Supporting Character IP!

"Supporting characters can shine too" has once again been proven in the licensing market: the "passerby fish" from the classic IP SpongeBob SquarePants, who often serve as background extras, have seen a surge in popularity. They have not only earned the new title "Bikini Bottom Residents" (also referred to as "Bikini Bottom Resident" or "the residents of Bikini Bottom") but have also become a licensing hot topic, with many derivative products seeing explosive sales and becoming market hits.

The rise of "Bikini Bottom Residents" from background extras to the focus of public attention is inseparable from the push of the internet and self-media, but the deeper reason is that they have struck a chord with today's young people and triggered resonance. This once again confirms that an IP can only become a hit if it satisfies consumers' emotional needs and brings them emotional value.

Looking through the introductions to the SpongeBob SquarePants animated series and past licensed products, one finds that named characters such as "SpongeBob," "Patrick Star," "Squidward," "Mr. Krabs," and "Plankton" are the main licensing targets, while "Bikini Bottom Residents" are background extras and "passerby fish" in the works, most of whom do not even have names.

In the animated series, the main role of "Bikini Bottom Residents" is to fill the background of the work; most do not have complete storylines, and their appearance highlights the style's simplicity, exaggeration, and ugliness—such as large round eyes, thick lips, a wide variety of face shapes, colorful color schemes, and body types ranging from tall to short, fat to thin.

Although today's young people's fondness for "ugly-cute" is steadily rising, the core reason "Bikini Bottom Residents" can capture young people's hearts lies in their personalities and behaviors: their emotions are extremely rich and direct—they can be dazed and numb, world-weary and slacking off, or angry, laughing, terrified, and helpless; they are jacks-of-all-trades, as the same fish can be a customer, driver, doctor, worker, and so on, appearing wherever needed; they are very ordinary, unnoticed characters with no names, family stories, or character arcs.

These personalities and behaviors are highly similar to the current situation and mental state of today's office workers, triggering emotional resonance among consumers. As a result, they gradually received more attention, and their transformation from ordinary "passerby fish" to the hit IP "Bikini Bottom Residents" stems from the spread and promotion of the internet—their expressions were screenshotted and made into memes, becoming tools for young people to vividly express their emotions.

As "Bikini Bottom Residents" became popular on the internet, copyright holders/agents and trendy toy brands quickly sensed the business opportunity: these images could be memes or physical objects, becoming consumers' bag charms, travel companions, emotion transmitters, ornaments, and more.

In April 2025, POP MART's GONG launched the Bikini Bottom Residents - Funny Plush Series 1. The series has 7 products, including Cool Fish, Slouchy Fish, Dazed Fish, Lying Flat Fish, Dumb Fish, Working Fish, and Sardine Brothers (hidden figure); in April this year, Series 2 was released, covering Postman Fish, Lame Fish, Bully Fish, Explorer Fish, Costume Fish, Research Fish, and Clown (hidden figure), 7 products in total. Each one is suitable for office workers' emotional expression and also allows young people to DIY personalized funny scenes.

This year, one of the hit plush charms on the Douyin platform is the SpongeBob series passerby fish plush produced by Honey Jar. The series ranges in size from 8cm to 39cm and includes products with multiple themes and shapes, such as Ruthless Peace Sign, Please Please, So Bald, Inner Panic, Happy Just Thinking About It, I'm Angry, Pirate Passerby Fish, Twisting and Turning, Super Aggrieved, Inner Panic Passerby Fish, Happy Moment, Bad Idea Born, Huh? Me?, and more.

Because of the interesting designs, creative themes, and high cost-performance (retail price starting at 39.9 yuan), the SpongeBob series passerby fish plush saw sales climb quickly after launch. In particular, the Please Please, Happy Just Thinking About It, Twisting and Turning, Ruthless Peace Sign, and So Bald styles were huge hits, once selling out, with pre-sale periods as long as 40 days.

At the end of August, a "deeply unhappy" stamping passerby fish ornament attracted attention on social platforms: frowning, drooping eyes, pursed lips, with unhappiness written all over its face, yet the stamp in its hand keeps working nonstop. This strongly contrasting image struck a chord with countless workplace people who "say they won't do it, but their body is very honest."

This product is produced by Locke Star, a trendy toy brand under Shifeng Culture Development Co., Ltd., and is one of the SpongeBob Movie Watching Series products. Its name is "Very Unhappy to Serve You"; the same series also has 5 other products, gathering members of the main cast: SpongeBob - Holding a Happy Water, Squidward - Boring Moment, Patrick Star - A Little Taste, as well as Passerby Fish - Nibbling Fingers and Passerby Fish - Can't Hold It In.

The 6 products together recreate fun moments from ticket checking to taking a seat to watch a movie... as if every "you, me, and them" in the cinema were brought onto the desktop. The most eye-catching feature is that the series has a light-activated movement design: Passerby Fish - Very Unhappy to Serve You will keep stamping under light, while the other five will gently sway, full of dynamic feel.

In addition to this movie watching series and the previously launched Bikini Bottom Rocking Car series, new products will be launched in the future.

Chaosheng Animation combines protagonists and supporting characters to launch the SpongeBob Life Is Like a Play series, creating 8 named/occupational "Bikini Bottom Residents" ornaments: Norton, Thief, Police, Harold, Nader, Frank, Tom, and Jimmy; the Brave Big Stage Series 2 Reinforcements Are Coming series features SpongeBob as Marshal and Demon God as hidden figures, while the other 6—soldier, cavalry, tank, swordsman, chariot, and artillery—are played by "Bikini Bottom Residents."

In addition, there are Zhuowu's Bikini Bottom Stall Movable Plush, and Bozhiting - Bikini Bottom Residents Money-Making Squad Scented Plush Charms, all of which are highly creative derivative products developed based on young people's preferences.

Themed exhibitions and pop-up events, as highly popular offline activity formats in recent years, are important measures to increase an IP's exposure and influence. After "Bikini Bottom Residents" became increasingly popular, copyright holders/agents planned limited-time themed exhibition events, creating opportunities for consumers and fans to interact closely with their favorite characters.

From June 18 to August 31 this year, "Bikini Bottom Residents · Summer Slacking Town" and "Bikini Bottom Residents · Summer Fish Amusement Park" dual exhibitions landed in Shanghai simultaneously. 73 different "passerby fish" collectively appeared, including Slouchy Fish lounging on the street, Commuter Fish waiting for a bus by the roadside, Gardener Fish mowing the lawn expressionlessly, Office Worker Fish carrying a briefcase, as well as Bartender Fish, Photographer Fish, Foodie Fish, Headphone Fish, Gossip Fish, and more, vividly combining ordinary people's daily mental states with the IP, allowing everyone to find their own emotional resonance.

With so many "passerby fish" appearing at the same time, whether or not people originally knew the IP, they couldn't help but take photos and check in. Thus, on social platforms, netizens can be seen sharing photos with their favorite characters, or taking pictures with plush charms alongside the same "passerby fish" large installations.

Some fans even played a find-the-fish game, striving to find all the "passerby fish" on display; many netizens also posted "find-the-fish guides," numbering and naming each "passerby fish" to help everyone quickly find the one that suits them.

Shortly after the Shanghai exhibition closed, the "Bikini Bottom Residents · Gold Rush Holiday" themed exhibition came to South China, opening on September 9 at Shenzhen Excellence Center. As the first exhibition in South China, the themed exhibition features over 60 three-dimensional "passerby fish" appearing together, making it a must-visit spot for fans in the local and surrounding areas.

Generally speaking, protagonists are usually the characters the work focuses on portraying; they have complete growth arcs, clear family backgrounds, and distinct personality traits, so they are also the group more likely to capture fans. However, in recent years, more and more villains, supporting characters, and background extras have surpassed protagonists in popularity, becoming the objects of pursuit, such as "Lotso," "Zanmang Loopy," and "passerby fish."

The reason these images can move from non-main positions to main positions, with popularity approaching or even surpassing protagonists, is on one hand that certain traits of the characters happen to match the current situation and emotions of today's young people and office workers, or represent the state young people and office workers most want to achieve, such as a sense of relaxation and lying flat.

On the other hand, it stems from active commercialization. Taking "Bikini Bottom Residents" as an example, creative derivative products and themed exhibitions turn these characters from virtual to physical, enabling consumers who love them to hang plush toys on bags and phones, take plush toys traveling and to check in at scenic spots, and take photos with resonant characters to share on social media... These consumer shares all help further broaden the IP's audience, increase exposure, and sustain popularity.

Furthermore, in recent years, the process of supporting character IPs becoming popular is mostly: netizens screenshot and make memes/videos—share on social media platforms—trigger more people's resonance and further spread—officials launch derivative products/themed exhibitions/pop-ups/short videos to attract netizens to buy and share, sustaining IP popularity and driving breakout.

The comprehensive inspiration for the industry from the above is: creating an IP must fit consumers' needs, and one may appropriately consider "ugly-cute," "ordinary," and "flawed" characters, avoiding uniformity; the internet and social media platforms play a crucial role in driving IP popularity, and one can fully utilize memes, short videos, short dramas, and other forms to enhance IP exposure; a momentary burst of popularity can bring traffic and commercial value, but how to maintain long-term popularity and achieve long-term development is even more something copyright holders/agents need to consider—do not focus only on short-term popularity at the expense of long-term interests.