Today's Episode
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Today's Episode
The Muppet Show (Special)
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KERMIT is back! Though the Muppets have never truly disappeared, this special test pilot feels like a return to home base, just with Seth Rogen in the mix. With Sabrina Carpenter as guest host, this 30-minute ABC return brings familiar chaos, classic characters, musical numbers, and plenty of meta commentary from Statler and Waldorf.
We highlight the episode’s MVPs, biggest surprises, and best comparisons, along with the moments where it flailed. We also touch on trivia, early reception, and what we ultimately thought of the comeback. Tune in and welcome to Today’s Episode.
Welcome to today's episode, the podcast where we discuss the most recent installment of a different series every show. It is Friday, February 6th. This is our 11th review of the year, and it's a special one since essentially we're looking at a test pilot. The Muppets are back after the 2011 movie. They made a TV show. It was called The Muppets on ABC. You're not going to confuse that with this one. This is The Muppet Show, not a sitcom on ABC. Uh that one ran for like a season, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and then it was canceled.
SPEAKER_01:It was uneven. I remember Carson Daly showing up and me being like, well, this is this is interesting. Kermit's not a cameos. They updated Kermit's office, and it was just a lot more sheen and like, I don't know, 2010 sparkle. But this it brings it back to the 1970s show, the stuff that Jim Henson vibed with. Uh, like it honestly, the Muppets can fit into anywhere, but they're probably best in their home base. They're kind of like wishbone in a way, where like you've seen them in a Christmas story, you've seen them just plop them anywhere.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and this is supposed to be like celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Muppets. That's the reason why it came out on February 4th.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. And did you know that in like 1974 or whatever, whenever they did the test pilots, they actually did two test pilots. Yeah, 1974 and 1975. One of them came out uh it like on Valentine's Day. It was like a Valentine's Day special. Actually, I didn't. The other one was like sex and violence, which is the more famous of the two. But this being February 6th, it makes sense that it would be this time of year. It feels like there are differences. Obviously, Kermit's voice has is a little bit different. Seth Rogan. Guess what? Frog's age. That's all I'm gonna say. Seth Rogan probably like arm wrestled Jason Siegel for the rights to this thing.
SPEAKER_00:I I'm assuming it's just Yeah, I I wasn't, and you know what's so funny is that Jason Siegel, he created Walter, right? I was gonna say, where's Walter? He he's nowhere to be found. I know that uh Jason Siegel did not return for the 2014 sequel that they made to the 2011 film, but I know Walter is still in it. So he's just yeah, I guess he's just I don't even remember if I saw the 2014 sequel. I I never did, but I do remember I saw the 2011 one in theaters.
SPEAKER_01:As an adult, Ralph is my favorite character, but as a kid, it was Gonzo. Though Kermit is like by far the best out of all the characters. I think as I age, by by like the time I'm really old, it's gonna be Statler and Waldorf. It's gonna be the two hacklers, you know?
SPEAKER_00:You know, every single thing they said this pilot, whenever it went back to them, I always just laughed at what they were saying. Ralph was actually my favorite Muppet. I'm surprised to hear you say that. Probably a close second, I think, would be beaker for me.
SPEAKER_01:She is the very first Muppet. You know that, right? Yes. Ralph, Ralph predates Kermit. Also, are you like most people say, hey, so what's who's your favorite uh Muppet? That's that's how I start every conversation with anybody. But but my real question is like, are you more a fan of the grouchy Muppets or the Happy Muppets? The Happy Muppets. Because I do like some of the grouches, like Sam Eagle, the one who was in the Christmas Carol one, the one we even saw as the bartender sketch of the the man child uh song that that we saw play out in the one. Yeah, yeah. He has got a big eyebrow, like the big angry eyebrow. And then on the other end, you have Fozzie Bear. So it's it's really hard to hate.
SPEAKER_00:I think that when I was growing up, Fozzie was probably my favorite, but yeah, it's it's kind of consistently changed. And I think that's something that really helped is if you've seen the 2024 documentary, The Idea Man, like I get I got even more respect for the Muppets and was more excited to see it. Yeah. And and it went through his life and everything. And I think that that really helped me.
SPEAKER_01:I don't know, like I I mean you learned certain things, like obviously, I feel like most people are gonna realize how dumb I'm i I am, but like all Sesame Street characters are Muppets. Yes. Um obviously you have uh what was the other show, the Dark Crystal that he did? Um, or not the show. He did the movie and then they made the show afterwards.
SPEAKER_00:And then everyone knows that he was part of SNL even for a little bit.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it's just crazy the corresponding like lifespan of the Muppets with SNL, that they're intertwined despite being so different and yet like very similar. Like, for instance, did uh in Sesame Street, Kermit was in the first few seasons of Sesame Street, and then he became like kind of a side character. Not side, he became a guest star and then he left. Does that sound familiar to any SNL member? Big hit star in the first season. By the end of the first season, he wanted to go on to do bigger and better things, and so he became sort of a guest star, and then in the third season, he was just like gone.
SPEAKER_00:That's Chevy Chase. It was the oddest thing to see. Uh, because I I don't remember, I obviously watched Sesame Street as a kid, but I didn't remember ever seeing Elmo and Kermit the Frog side by side. But there's a lot of clips on the internet that have that. Right.
SPEAKER_01:So it's complicated. Disney bought it in like 2002, and then uh they didn't allow Kermit on for a lot of that. I think he has shown up like every once in a while, but like, yeah, he's not there as as a regular guy, and neither is most of the Muppets, right? Like, you don't see Miss Piggy running around uh one, two, three road or whatever they have there.
SPEAKER_00:I did have uh game here. It's just uh you have to pick which one Kermit has not shown up on. These are all game shows. I wanted to see if you knew.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, I don't think he's been on Hollywood Squares.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, well, no, he actually has. Oh, I think he's he's Oh, excuse me. But that's that's not one of the that's not one. I'll just bleep myself out. The first one I have is Dealer, No Deal, The Mask Singer, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, and Jeopardy. Those are actually the four. Say it again. Who dealer no deal, the masked singer, Who Wants to be a millionaire, or Jeopardy? Uh I'll just throw out Dealer No Deal. No, he was on Dealer No Deal. That's cool. He was helping a contestant make a case. The masked singer he was actually on, he was in a giant snail costume. I think he was the first.
SPEAKER_01:I thought he would be the costume.
SPEAKER_00:No, no, no. He like, I think popped out. And then he was on Who Wants to be a Millionaire. He was a guest of Jon Stuartz. The one that he didn't appear on was Jeopardy.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, well, yeah. I thought maybe in like a small, funnier diebit or something like that. Um, I don't know if that's canon, though. Uh, yeah, so so what did you think about this show?
SPEAKER_00:Overall, I thought that this is a extremely successful pilot.
SPEAKER_01:This is 25 minutes to 30 minutes, just like the original pilots.
SPEAKER_00:I very much hope that this gets picked up, and I can't imagine a world where it doesn't, just because I thought that it set out to do, I feel like Jim Henson would be proud, I guess is what I'm saying.
SPEAKER_01:It is still his production company, though.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, the Muppets Studios, it's Disney branded television 28.
SPEAKER_01:And these people, it reminds me kind of like Bob Ross. They are very specific about how they give their rights away. And I feel like the Muppets kind of are respectful to their characters.
SPEAKER_00:I agree. I think that's Seth Rogan. I know that he says it even in the special, but yes, he's an executive producer. I think he definitely is has like a huge hand in it because uh he uh uh uh always grew up watching the Muppets as well.
SPEAKER_01:He looked like he does in the studio, so I was just assuming that this is part of the next season of the studio.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, it did remind me of that when you have all the backstage people.
SPEAKER_01:He's literally saying he's an executive producer in the studio, he's like the lead of uh his own uh production company. Um, the thing about this show is that they released a two-minute trailer a week or two back. Yes. And it was great. Like it sold it. It made me think, okay, they are bringing it back to that. Like there's gonna be nostalgia, but there's also gonna be new stuff. And I thought Sabrina Carpenter would fit in really well given her size.
SPEAKER_00:Um I didn't have to laugh, Mo. The top comment was Sabrina Carpenter is finally gonna be the tallest person in the room.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, she fits in right well. Like that wasn't a joke when Kermit said later on, like, I'm happy you joined us, and blah, blah, blah. But but the problem with the trailer is that it's like two minutes for a 25 to 30 minute show, and it actually spoils a heck of a lot. So, like, have you had you seen that, a ton of the best jokes were just kind of taken while you were watching it, and uh, and that was a little disappointing. But at the same time, I do have like these awards to give. I feel like rather than going through beat by beat, because I know they had like six different segments here. Uh, it looks like Man Child, Gonzo Stunts, Pigs and Wigs, Blinding Lights, Muppet Labs, Muppet Labs, Muppet News Flash, Islands in the Stream, and Don't Stop Me Now. So, like, rather than going through every single one of those, we'll talk about them, but I just kind of want to give my awards for like the different things that were happening, right? If you were to give an MVP to one of the Muppets, who would it be for this episode?
SPEAKER_00:Probably Kermit. And I was glad that he was the main character in this one because you really do fall on the Who else would be the main character?
SPEAKER_01:Walter?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I didn't know what the actual Muppets was. Obviously, I knew that Kermit was the most famous. Elmo? But I didn't know, I didn't know that he was actually like the main character, like in back when they were doing 1976 to 1996.
SPEAKER_01:Well, that shows your age because it's it uh Kermit has always been the guy once he became the guy. It's not like he ever stepped down.
SPEAKER_00:I I think he was MVP for me, or it would be the two old people again. Uh Statler and Walder. Yes.
SPEAKER_01:Named after the hotels in New York.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Again, every single insult they had. I think I think you're wrong. Oh, really? I think that the MVP should be Rizzo the Rat. Because there was no one that carried this show, like when they decided to do their version of Blinding Lights by the weekend. And credit to the weekend. I'm not a huge fan, but like he must have, or at least his company, like gave the rights for them to do this.
SPEAKER_00:We'll do it, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:And it was hilarious. I Rizzo the Rat is a great character, just like they all are. But like he's he's funny with just his face. But this having him sing, I would never have predicted that by the end of the episode that that would be the part that had me cackling the most.
SPEAKER_00:Out of the five songs, it was definitely the funniest. Just the backgrounds of all that. All the rats. It reminded me so much of, and this is I know that this is almost blasphemy, but I'm connecting it to Niggahiga with the Teehee song with the sock puppets.
SPEAKER_01:The old YouTuber?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, the way that uh there was like one time I remember where he does sock puppets and he does a song like it, and the way that they were moving reminded me very much of this.
SPEAKER_01:I know you were raised on YouTube, but also maybe that what was that Harry Potter one where they had the song puzzle? Oh, the Potter Puppet Powell? You really liked the sock puppet stuff. So yeah, I can understand why you'd like but the blinding lights song, they changed the lyrics. It was it was really funny, even just as a clip going around the internet. I feel like that would alone will go viral. So um, and I will go back and listen to their version of it. I think I enjoy it more than the actual.
SPEAKER_00:You like it more than the actual blinding lights.
SPEAKER_01:The next award, surprising standout. Out of all the characters that we saw, and they they tried to fit in every Muppet possible. Who who's like the surprising standout?
SPEAKER_00:I will say with the the beautiful day monster, that's actually the one that was uh with Maya Rudolph. Yeah, and that's close second for me. Because he actually wasn't front. I don't think he started off on the Muppets. He's my uh he dates back to the 60s with the Ed Sullivan show. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So he's actually had like way more of a totally the Minecraft character played by uh what's his face? Matt Berry. Matt Berry in in Minecraft, like him flirting with Maya Rudolph, basically the same sort of uh thing because he doesn't speak English exactly, right? Um for me, I think it was uh a character that I up until now really haven't had one way or the other, like a thought process. I think I know who you're gonna say. Who is it gonna be? Is it Pepe? It is Pepe, it's Pepe the King Prawn. He takes a skit, which is probably their weakest skit, which is just pigs and wigs. Yeah, and he amps it up to a different level as soon as he pops in there. Again, I feel like maybe it's just that I'm I'm finding the small Muppets to be funnier here. But when they start like describing him as this buff guy with this huge chin and like head of hair, but instead he, yeah, hilarious. He he again changes a skit midway through, which is kind of clunking into becoming way better than it is. Um, worst return.
SPEAKER_00:Worst return.
SPEAKER_01:They can't all be good stuff.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I Gonzo Gonzo, obviously.
SPEAKER_01:100% naming off every best supporting actress. I feel like the show had a little bit of a problem where it tried to return to jokes too much within the 25 minutes.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, well, it was like really the biggest on-running gag that they had. And he's such an important character, it feels like yeah. I know, I know. If you remember, he was actually the person in the end credits who saved the Muppets in the end of uh 2011. He's a slapstick guy.
SPEAKER_01:I get why they tried to do something like that, but then it was kind of it was just old right when it started. He he he beefed up the uh or messed up the um jump that he was gonna do, and that was it.
SPEAKER_00:Just every single time, yeah, he's mentioning all the like best supporting actress people.
SPEAKER_01:All right, yeah. So best Kermit moment.
SPEAKER_00:Best Kermit moment probably when uh when Miss Piggy pulls the hi-ya straight out of Leela from Futurama. And he gets flattened by the door and he's talking, he's like moaning in pain throughout that whole skit.
SPEAKER_01:Door heavy is what you can hear him say underneath it. That is 100% the one I gave it to, too. So we're on the same page. The I see you moment. What would that award go to?
SPEAKER_00:Well, what would the I see you moment like define it a little bit?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I I kind of threw it in there just to extra say like they did a lot to make sure every character got it like the chickens were there, people they weren't even like at one point they even made a joke. They were like, Who's this guy? He was like, I've been burnt before or something like that. Um, most disturbing moment.
SPEAKER_00:Most disturbing moment, most disturbing moment. I don't know if I would say any part of this was necessarily disturbing.
SPEAKER_01:I disliked uh viscerally seeing Beaker without eyeballs. It just like I I really like the Beaker character, but he was so creepy seeing him with those two little holes as opposed to the big screaming in pain. Nah, the screaming is less it's more just like I guess seeing the Muppet deconstruct it a bit. Like that was just yeah, please don't do that again. But I understand that it was like pushing the plot forward. Um, and I'm assuming they've done that before, maybe I don't know. Uh biggest grievance. Biggest grievance, hmm.
SPEAKER_00:Probably again that for the whole show, not just Muppets. Okay, I I was gonna say that there wasn't enough Ralph in it, but I feel like you can say that about a lot of the characters. They really only I know I understand that it was only 30 minutes, but I feel like with so many of them, you really dilute uh like others. I'm gonna I'll push back on that because I think that like in they did the best with what they could.
SPEAKER_01:Right. I understand that. And it is just a pilot, but it is a pilot that they're trying to promote the however long they would go. And they decided to do like five songs that are already well known, and they are well known, the Muppets are, for doing original content. Yeah, and they didn't spend the time to make one new song, like they just needed one, it could be a short one, even on the like the boat. I was thinking maybe they they would do it there or at the very end. But like what happened to Brett and uh and whatever uh the guy from Flight of the Concords Concords, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:I don't think people I don't think he's connected with this, yeah. Okay, sadly, because I because I do like the songs a lot in in the Muppets uh film. And I I agree. However, I did think that the songs themselves we already mentioned blinding lights, but like I thought that Man Child and hearing the Muppet show theme, like at the very beginning. I thought both of those were really good. Like, you know, and and also you have um uh the Kermit song I forgot it's such a famous song. What's it that starts it off in the background? Oh, the rainbow song? Yeah, the rainbow connection song. Yeah. Hearing all that, I thought that worked. The the Don't Stop Me Now song, although I They've done it before. Uh right, they've done it before, but also I So why did they do it again? I felt like it was very odd for Kermit to come out there being I was like fully okay with him being like scared and everything, but then he And that's where you introduce a new song a new song then but then he busts down to Don't Stop Me Now and I was like, well, that doesn't really it was frustrating.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah like I was like you're putting together a really solid like show. I really like Sabrina Carpenter in this role more than I do when she's like hosting SNL.
SPEAKER_00:Well, it was funny with the Man Child thing because she literally performed that live like three days ago at the Grammys. She did that same exact song.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I mean just her as an actor, but she does the expressions pretty well with those characters. It I don't know how well that would actually translate to a sitcom with live action people, but it felt like her corresponding yeah, with it with the characters pretty well. I felt like this show was most reminiscent comparison-wise to the Saturday night movie from 2024. Oh, interesting. Because all of that is about a young Lauren Michaels running around, especially the part where he's like, I have too many skits in my first show. I have to cut down on and that was the continual one thread going through this entire Muppet episode was that Kermit had to cut dirt certain clips, and then at the end he won over his whole cast by doing something. And that is the entirety of the Saturday night movie, which has to be somewhat on purpose because the chaos. Okay, so like if I was to list the the bad parts of the show, I would say that like the chaos felt fake. Um, there were too many scenes of Kermit looking at his notes, the some of the one-liners didn't land, the lawsuit thing I felt like overstayed its value. At first, when she was when Miss Piggy was uh threatening to sue Sabrina Carpenter over her look and smile.
SPEAKER_00:Why was it in why was it in the show so much?
SPEAKER_01:Like I Again, it's like the Gonzo thing. They just threw it in there. I I felt like it was one too many Maya Rudolph jokes. I felt like up until the one where she was dead, I didn't think that they needed to, yeah. The news flash. Yeah, I think they just wanted to have a news flash, but but they could have made it funnier. Um but at this point, that's just like nitpicking, right? Uh overall, I I agree with you. I think anybody who likes the Muppets would be proud to see this, um, including Jim Hudson if he was still alive.
SPEAKER_00:I was glad. I was glad. I I was glad they they said it right away. They weren't even trying to hide it. They addressed it straight off the bat. They were like, we're attempting to bring this back. If this goes successful, this will be a TV show. And I think Kermit says that in his monologue. I think they say that in the trailer.
SPEAKER_01:I think they say that everywhere. Um, I don't know, I think it'll be more like a special situation where like we might get another special later on this year and then maybe slowly get a rollout until they finally get 10 episodes and then you don't hear from them for five years. Um, Sesame Street's still going though. And so if you want to see Muppets, just I think it's like targeted towards two-year-olds at this point on Netflix or something. Like they don't even do I don't even think they do the adult jokes anymore. Like you, you know, ones that are kind of there for the parents.
SPEAKER_00:I know, I know that watching the idea, man, that it was supposed to be for everyone, but I always see Sesame Street as being definitely for like the younger audience.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I mean they had SNL, which with the original Muppets, and uh that was supposed to be for adults only, and then they pitched the Muppet series, which was kind of like kids and adults, um, and then obviously Sesame Street was for the PBS crowd. And then they had Fraggle Rock, which I learned was the first HBO show ever like greenlit. Like we wouldn't have the Sopranos and all those other ones if it wasn't for Fraggle Rock, which I think came about in like 1983 or something.
SPEAKER_00:I know there was even like announcement, it was it was it Fraggle Rock that was like uh Muppets for Adults that ended up also getting canceled like a season in. That might just been the Muppet Show.
SPEAKER_01:I don't know. Um the but I mean that went several seasons. The lady from Fraggle Rock was the one who made him uh like breathe in deeply, I think, and then just walked away. I could be I no, I'm like 90% sure that's that's right. Anyway, so seven out of ten for me. What what for you?
SPEAKER_00:I would give it a seven and a half.
SPEAKER_01:All right, yeah, it's a good show. People should check it out.
SPEAKER_00:It has critical acclaim. That's a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, a 99% audience score. It's been out for 47 on IMDB. Well, even if you go to like all the publications, The Guardian, I think, gave it maybe its harshest review with like a three out of five, saying the half-hour anniversary special captures the spirit of the original, but they mentioned Kermit's voice kind of taking away from it.
SPEAKER_01:It's weird though, like I heard Kermit's voice being so off in the interview, and then I think by the time that I actually watched the thing, I was used to it. It's kind of like solar opposites, where you know how you're so used to the Rick and Morty guy doing his voice, and then now when you listen to it, it's kind of normal. But after but it happened really, really quickly. So I think that that, yeah, it was a distraction when I first noted it, but then after a while, it was like it's just Kermit.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and like really people were echoing what the Hollywood reporter was saying, which is that like it proves conclusively that what worked in the 70s and banned the 90s can absolutely still work today.
SPEAKER_01:I think people are just like craving a little bit of uh normalcy, which is funny because again, this show is about chaos and how crazy everything is, but at the same time, it does uh it bring it back down to the roots. There's they're not battling AI in this show, they're not um going doing time loopy into the past and stuff like that. It's a simple but funny comedy. Yeah. All right. Thanks for listening. We'll see you in the next one. Bye.
SPEAKER_00:Bye.