Review of Best Of The Muppet Show

Introduction

Saturday night when I was a child followed a hallowed ritual. My mum would make fish fingers and chips for tea, and I would have them with lashings of tomato ketchup while watching the Muppet Show. It`s memories like that one that engender opinions like `things used to be better when I was kid, summers were brighter, and the TV was better`. In this case it comes pretty close to the truth. The Muppet Show was the last gasp of the variety tradition, the combination of song, dance and comedy that was the mainstay of entertainment pre-television and pre-cinema. Traditional variety by this time was relegated to the odd talent show, and the interminable annual Royal Variety Performance, but having the whole thing performed by Muppets breathed life into the ailing genre. During its run, the Muppet Show was one of the greatest ratings winners on television. From 1976 to 1980, 120 episodes were created, attracting some of the biggest names in showbiz, a feat that would have chat show hosts green with envy, and certainly impossible given today overblown cult of celebrity. I have a hard time imagining the likes of Tom Cruise or Angelina Jolie allowing themselves to be a victim of some gentle foam ribbing. Yet at its height, the Muppet Show hosted luminaries like James Coburn, Tony Randall, Diana Ross, Spike Milligan, and Liberace. Not even Parkinson could boast the pulling power of Jim Henson`s creations.

Muppets fans have had a protracted wait for the show to come to DVD, and for many years all that were available on disc were a set of compilations, highlights of the many shows. That is except for a certain HMV exclusive that gathered 28 of the best shows in their entirety into a boxset. While hardcore fans will opt for the complete series sets that are now slowly becoming available, if you want a Best Of collection that does exactly what it says on the tin, then it`s well worth looking up this set, although it appears to have been deleted (It should still be available second hand). The reason being that while The Muppet Show had the top celebrity guests of the period, time hasn`t been kind to many of the names, even I have a hard time placing them, and I watched them originally. I haven`t the slightest idea who Wally Boag, Hal Linden, Melissa Manchester, Lola Falana or Leslie Uggams are, and while I do know of Doug Henning, Cleo Laine and Victor Borge, my desire to re-experience their brand of entertainment diminishes with each passing year. The HMV boxset avoids this by concentrating on those guest stars that still sparkle today, and when you see the names listed on the four volumes below, you`ll certainly be tantalised.

Volume 1: Roger Moore, Lynda Carter, Christopher Reeve, Mark Hamill, Sylvester Stallone, Peter Sellers, and Debbie Harry

Volume 2: Shirley Bassey, Andy Williams, Steve Martin, Bob Hope, John Cleese, Bruce Forsyth, and Danny Kaye

Volume 3: Brooke Shields, Dudley Moore, Raquel Welch, Peter Ustinov, Vincent Price, Gene Kelly, and Elton John

Volume 4: John Denver, Kenny Rogers, Alice Cooper, Twiggy, Liza Minelli, Julie Andrews, and Glenda Jackson.

Video

Just as the original broadcasts, the Muppets come to DVD in a 4:3 regular transfer. Reflecting the original tape source, the image betrays its NTSC background, appearing soft and with low resolution. You can also see signs of the screen burn apparent with old shows recorded on videotape, and there is some ghosting of the image. But the shows have stood up to the test of time well, with few signs of age apparent. Oddly, I recall watching them in the better resolution appropriate to UK television broadcasts, but since I watched them on a TV made of wood, with actual buttons to press, knobs to turn and a long stick doubling for a remote control, my memories are probably faulty in this case.

Audio

The Muppets get a DD 2.0 Stereo track, although reflecting the original mono broadcasts, there`s little separation. The dialogue all comes across clearly, as do all the musical numbers. In its day, The Muppets were like Pinky and Perky, serving as many children`s introduction to pop music through the Muppet re-imaginings of contemporary tunes. Viking Pigs singing In The Navy is an unforgettable experience. There are no subtitles for this release.

Features

Four discs mean four Amaray cases, carried inside a cardboard slipcase. As for actual extras on the discs… None.

Conclusion

I loved the Muppet Show when I was a child. Its mix of madcap characters, off the wall humour and colourful sketches delighted me. I also admit that long before I was a Star Trek fan, I used to tune in regularly to the sci-fi extravaganza that is Pigs In Space. Watching the shows as an adult reveals a whole other level of entertainment that explains why mum and dad used to watch the show with me. It wasn`t just the Raquel Welch episode that proved to be a draw to dads either, although that is certainly one reason. The writing and characterisations are surprisingly adult, displaying a degree of irony and subversion that I totally missed when I was a child. I must admit that I am enjoying these shows more now than I did twenty-five years ago.

Just take the central relationship of Kermit and Miss Piggy. If ever there was an argument for diversity and acceptance, there is that. But the fractious bond between the two is entertainment in itself, with the hapless frog suffering from the jealous attentions of Miss Piggy, usually suffering in silence. But on occasion he does summon up the chutzpah to give as good as he gets, at which point it`s Miss Piggy who lays the argument (and the frog) to rest. Then there are the rare occasions such as the Christopher Reeve episode, where Kermit is sidelined in favour of the hunky guest star, and there is the extremely rare sight of a jealous frog (it`s hard to tell under all that green). This was also the period that Mary Whitehouse had great influence over the airwaves, and in a neat touch the Muppets introduced their own censor, Sam the Eagle. Sam was always on the lookout for depravity in the show, and upholding his own quest for good, decent family entertainment. It`s a none too subtle dig at establishment Middle England, in what is the quintessential family show. Meanwhile there are the constant hecklers Statler and Waldorf, who make poor Fozzie`s life a misery, a comic with a lack of self-confidence. The jokes are terrible, the sort of puns that delight children, but for adults turn out to be entertaining just through sheer cheese factor. I`m still a fan of the excessive mayhem brought by characters like Gonzo the Great, the Swedish Chef (a.k.a. The German Chef in Sweden), and of course the inimitable Animal. I could go on for pages expressing my love for the characters, but there is also the guest list to look at.

Indeed a big draw for the older demographic would have been the guests. I`ve already mentioned the exquisite charms of Raquel Welch, but this is also a collection that should find a welcome place in the collection of any Star Wars fan, featuring as it does the episode where Luke Skywalker, R2D2 and C3P0 crash into the theatre looking for Chewbacca. Peter Sellers brings a host of characters to the show, and there`s even a rather poignant moment when he is interviewed by Kermit about his predilection for character and disguise and he replies, "There is no me, there used to be a me, but I had it surgically removed." There is also the human muppet Steve Martin, who turns up the day that the show is cancelled. One of my favourite guests is Danny Kaye, who brings some old Hollywood glamour to the show, and Brooke Shields appearance is curiously prophetic, as she stars as Alice who falls into a Muppet Wonderland. A few years later Jim Henson would be responsible for the amazing Labyrinth movie, which is a glorious and typically Henson take on the story.

If like me, you have fond memories of the Muppets, but aren`t quite a hardcore fan, then this boxset is ideal. Out of a series of 120 episodes, this has 28 of them in their entirety, which is almost a quarter of the entire run. More importantly, looking back over the Muppet Show roster of guests, many of them have faded into obscurity, names that barely register 25 years on. This set collects the most famous of those guests together, ensuring that there are no head scratching moments where you wonder, just who was Ruth Buzzi or Jim Nabors, and why was Avery Schreiber famous. These are names that have stood the test of time, and in some cases like Elton John and Liza Minelli, it`s a revelation seeing them in their prime. Perhaps it`s because the Season boxsets are finally being released (although only Season 1 is available at time of writing), that this boxset has been deleted. But if you want the Best Of The Muppets, it`s well worth checking in HMV`s nooks and crannies for a stray copy, or failing that, head on to the Devil`s own auction site, e-Bay. It`s well worth selling a piece of your soul for 12 hours of pure gold nostalgia.