Season 4: a lack of change

[minor muppetz]

Something just occurred to me recently: It seems like season four of The Muppet Show didn't really have very many changes. It's pretty much the only season with no new regular Muppet performers (depending on whether you'd count Karen Prell, Brian Meehl and Betsy Baytos as regular in season five), nobody was really dropped (Gladys was dropped before the previous season ended), no new recurring sketches were added or dropped (the same can be said for season five). It was the first season to not have any changes to the closing. I think the biggest change this season was the new shorter opening.

There also weren't many new recurrign characters. We got Foo-Foo early on, but I think Foo-Foo only made three appearances this season (I think Foo-Foo was used more in season five but am unsure off-hand). Rizzo and Gaffer were introduced later in the season, though both would be used more in the final season (though Rizzo made more season four appearances than Gaffer). This season also introduced Geri and the Atrics, who only appeared twice this season and once the next (I'm starting to wonder if they were intended to be one-shots who got brought back just to justify the building of so many new puppets as opposed to using whatnots, or if maybe they were intended to be used more and the writers just couldn't figure out how to use them). There's also a new minor dog character, Lyle.

Interestingly, while this season doesn't have many new characters, there are quite a few characters who are basically one-shot characters (though most were used again at least once, usually in background cameos) who weren't whatnot puppets. Characters like The Old Men, The Devil, Angus McGonacle, and Winny (though I beleive she was intended to be a regular character). Season five also had a number of non-whatnot characters who were pretty much one-shot, including Betsy Bird (who I believe was meant to be a recurring character), Mulch, the Gargoyle, Lonnie Lemon, and the tambourine player from Geri and the Atrics.

Season four seems more like an in-between season, in between seasons three and five.

 

[D'Snowth]

Season four seems more like an in-between season, in between seasons three and five.

Ya don't say.

Well, here's something to think about: when you have a show that struggles from the get-go (TMS was not without its own struggles, after all, all three networks turned it down, Jim and his team had to commute to England just to produce it, in the states in aired in syndication which never guarantees you an audience, etc), any show is going to have some minor difficulties finding it's voice, and that process (when networks actually give a show a chance anymore), can take a little while... sometimes over a couple of seasons even, it usually has to do with a combination of what the produces and writers want to experiment with, to see what direction the show can be taken in; and the network execs always trying to force their notes and such on them on what they want from this show that they're airing.

Now, with shows like these, quite often, after a couple of seasons or so of tweaking and experimenting, they usually find the way they like the show has progressed by Season Three, so by that time (unless a show ends up being a long-running saga like M*A*S*H or Cheers that ends up lasting 10+ years or so), you start to notice less and less changes throughout the show, as far as quality, writing, characters and such are concerned.

In other cases, with TMS, we know that Jim wanted to end it when he did, to make sure that it had a decent run, while at the same time, making sure it didn't overstay it's welcome to the point that it'd go off the air to people saying "Finally! It's over! That lasted way too long!", so I'm sure since he knew that Season Five would be the last, that he would want to try a few more different things he wouldn't have the chance to when it's finally over.

Not to mention, with just about everything he did, even up until his death, Jim was always trying something new and different, not just to improve his own work, and the Muppets, but to improve the combination of filmmaking and the art of puppetry as well.

 

[David French]

Considering the amount of upheaval that the cast and crew faced during the summer of 1979, we should be pleased that they managed to finish that year in the first place.

More to come later, I just want to have a longer think about my reply.

 

[Muppet Master]

Something just occurred to me recently: It seems like season four of The Muppet Show didn't really have very many changes. It's pretty much the only season with no new regular Muppet performers (depending on whether you'd count Karen Prell, Brian Meehl and Betsy Baytos as regular in season five), nobody was really dropped (Gladys was dropped before the previous season ended), no new recurring sketches were added or dropped (the same can be said for season five). It was the first season to not have any changes to the closing. I think the biggest change this season was the new shorter opening.

There also weren't many new recurrign characters. We got Foo-Foo early on, but I think Foo-Foo only made three appearances this season (I think Foo-Foo was used more in season five but am unsure off-hand). Rizzo and Gaffer were introduced later in the season, though both would be used more in the final season (though Rizzo made more season four appearances than Gaffer). This season also introduced Geri and the Atrics, who only appeared twice this season and once the next (I'm starting to wonder if they were intended to be one-shots who got brought back just to justify the building of so many new puppets as opposed to using whatnots, or if maybe they were intended to be used more and the writers just couldn't figure out how to use them). There's also a new minor dog character, Lyle.

Interestingly, while this season doesn't have many new characters, there are quite a few characters who are basically one-shot characters (though most were used again at least once, usually in background cameos) who weren't whatnot puppets. Characters like The Old Men, The Devil, Angus McGonacle, and Winny (though I beleive she was intended to be a regular character). Season five also had a number of non-whatnot characters who were pretty much one-shot, including Betsy Bird (who I believe was meant to be a recurring character), Mulch, the Gargoyle, Lonnie Lemon, and the tambourine player from Geri and the Atrics.

Season four seems more like an in-between season, in between seasons three and five.

Well, with all due respect, if the quality of the show is good then why change anything? Season 1 to 2 changed obviously for the better, because as we all know season 1 was deformed. Though, was there really much of a change from season 2 to 3? Besides Beauregard, Annie Sue, and Gladys as new characters it stayed with how season 2 went, and besides slightly changing some of the muppets' looks it was just like season 2 which obviously is not a bad thing. I do not think you need to change a show every season. TMS worked well, there was no reason to bring in a bunch of new characters or wipe out other characters or any other changes. Though they did make one change in season 4 and 5 which was use secondary characters less.