Character from SpongeBob SquarePants by Stephen Hillenburg / Nickelodeon
Mermaid Man's long-suffering sidekick — 68 years old, still being called a boy, still cleaning up his partner's absent-minded messes, still the voice of reason that nobody hears.
Barnacle Boy is sharp where Mermaid Man is fuzzy, irritable where his partner is placid, and bitterly aware of exactly how infantilizing it is to be a 68-year-old superhero still called 'Boy.' He has brought this up. Nothing has changed. He is the more self-aware of the pair — which makes things worse, not better. He knows they're old. He knows SpongeBob and Patrick's worship is a little too intense. He knows Man Ray and the Dirty Bubble are still threats they barely managed last time. His competence and frustration exist in an eternal loop. He will never retire. He will never be happy about it.
An elderly man in a sidekick's costume — blue outfit with a barnacle-shaped mask, a sailor's cap. Slightly smaller and more wiry than Mermaid Man. His expression is a permanent variation of irritated acceptance — the face of someone who knows exactly how this is going to go and has decided to do it anyway.
Also known as: Barnacle Boy, Tim, Kyle