The Jim Henson Hour Appreciation Thread

[Mo Frackle]

I thought it was a pretty good show. Although I wasn't around when it originally aired, I did buy some decent looking copies of the whole series a few years back (still before the somewhat better looking copies showed up on youtube).

I agree that the show wasn't always as strong on plot and humor as the original Muppet Show was, but at the same time, everybody was still experimenting with the show at that point. If it had been around longer, there's a good possibility everybody involved would have been more comfortable.

Sure, there were times where it seemed as though the show was trying a little too hard to be funny; for instance (and this is just my opinion), I thought Bean Bunny's story time segment in the "Monster Telethon" episode was just a little over-the-top.

However, I really did enjoy the concept of the show in general. It was very much ahead of its time.

And while Kermit, Gonzo, and Link (to some extent anyhow) were the only 'classic' Muppets to have featured parts on the show (this mainly being due to Frank's busy schedule and Richard's health), the newer characters really added a lot. The crazed Digit, the obnoxiously cute Bean Bunny, the conning Leon, the hardworking Vicki, the laid-back Clifford - the list goes on.

I really hope the JHH characters will show up again in the future, even if they're just in the background.

 

[minor muppetz]

I really like The Jim Henson Hour, espeically the MuppeTelevision segments, but also Dog City, Lighthouse Island, The Secrets of the Muppets, Miss Piggy's Hollywood (I like this special better than that other Miss Piggy special, The Fantastic Miss Piggy Show), and The StoryTeller (most of my favorite StoryTeller episodes are the ones that appeared on The Jim Henson Hour, though I have trouble payng attention to The Three Ravens).

I watched the show at least a few times during its original run. I wish Digit, Leon, Lindbergh, and Flash (as well as Clifford) would all return. I like the designs of all these characters, and like the look of Muppet Central. But then again, maybe these characters don't fit in with the Muppets as well as the Muppets Tonight characters do. I think it might be hard to really imagine Digit, Leon, and others in the original Muppet Show setting, though I don't think Bean or Lindbergh would seem out of place (same with Beard, who resembles Zeke).

I wonder if the "food" episode might have been the first episode shot. For a long time I wondered if they just changed Solid Foam by then to include Animal and Zoot, but then I saw scans from a winter 1989 issue of Muppet Magazine which promoted the show and referred to those two as being part of the band. And it seems like it would make more sense for thse two to be dropped as opposed to added to Solid Foam, since Frank Oz wasn't there often and Dave Goelz was already performing Digit in the band (though there's still some confusion... Zoot did sing a line in one song, but was performed/voiced by Kevin Clash, who performed Clifford). But also, that was the only episode to not have a guest star, when the opening performer credits are shown we hear the music that the band is playing as opposed to the theme, and there's no cold opening, nor does Jim Henson introduce Kermit before the commercial break like in other episodes.

The first two episodes seem to focus mostly on Kermit and Digit (though Lindbergh does get a bit of screentime in the first episode as well). The classic characters shown are limited to Kermit, Gonzo, Link, and Rowlf, most of whom are just there for one scene (in the first episode Gonzo and Link are only there during the closing number), but the new characters get limited screentime as well. It's not until the third episode that we get more of the cast involved. And it seems like Solid Foam isn't really used much until the seventh episode and then is used quite a bit. And it seems Lindbergh starts out as a main character but over the course of the series gets used less and less.

One of my favorite episodes is the one with Smokey Robinson. That seems to have a good mix of new and old characters, and I'd recommend it to anyone who prefers The Muppet Show. In additon to Kermit, Gonzo, and Link (who gets his own subplot here), it's got appearances by Rowlf, Statler and Waldorf, Bunsen and Beaker (in their only appearance on the show), The Swedish Chef, Sweetums, Doglion, Timmy, and Luncheon Counter Monster. Most of those characters didn't appear on the show very often.

 

[minor muppetz]

And while Kermit, Gonzo, and Link (to some extent anyhow) were the only 'classic' Muppets to have featured parts on the show (this mainly being due to Frank's busy schedule and Richard's health), the newer characters really added a lot.

Actually I think Richard was just busy with The Ghost of Faffner Hall at the time. That show was made in england while JHH was made in canada. And I think I read some gossip at tough pigs that Richard Hunt didn't really like working in canada (which could explain why he didn't perform any Fraggle Rock characters who were needed for every episode).

 

[Oscarfan]

One of the things I liked about the show was their big, full-cast finales, cutting from scene to scene with almost all the characters that appeared in the show. They did that in Muppets Go to the Movies and it's a really good way of getting some extra mileage from all the puppets they built.

 

[Drtooth]

Well watching the episodes now, I personally don't think the Muppet Central segments were as strong as The Muppet Show as far as plot or humor. They weren't bad, they just weren't quite good enough. But I agree that they matched Jim's sense of creativity and ambition.

Conceptually by which I mean the vast experimental video world vs Vaudeville variety show. I like the concept of JHH over The Muppet Show, but I like the Muppet Show substantially. Though, I really REALLY like what they did with JHH. It didn't try to imitate the Muppet Show at all, and just did something new. Plus, I loved how the newer characters blurred the line between Muppet and creature shop.

 

[CensoredAlso]

Conceptually by which I mean the vast experimental video world vs Vaudeville variety show. I like the concept of JHH over The Muppet Show, but I like the Muppet Show substantially. Though, I really REALLY like what they did with JHH. It didn't try to imitate the Muppet Show at all, and just did something new. Plus, I loved how the newer characters blurred the line between Muppet and creature shop.

Oh yeah I think the premise was great and worked really well at times. It would have been easy to try and repeat The Muppet Show but sometimes you have to take risks.

 

[minor muppetz]

One of the things I liked about the show was their big, full-cast finales, cutting from scene to scene with almost all the characters that appeared in the show. They did that in Muppets Go to the Movies and it's a really good way of getting some extra mileage from all the puppets they built.

It seems many Muppet productions since the 1980s have had finales like that. The 30th anniversary special, MFS, Muppets at Walt Disney World, Letters to Santa, The Muppets... It's a shame Muppet Classic Theater didn't have a closing montage like that.

 

[Borples]

And I think I read some gossip at tough pigs that Richard Hunt didn't really like working in canada (which could explain why he didn't perform any Fraggle Rock characters who were needed for every episode).

Oh, sure. Blame Canada.

 

[Drtooth]

Oh yeah I think the premise was great and worked really well at times. It would have been easy to try and repeat The Muppet Show but sometimes you have to take risks.

The problem with trying to repeat the same thing you had before is the huge risk of making it a retread of what once was without capturing the lightning in the bottle that made it so special the first time. It seems Jim didn't want to just copy the old show because he already set out to do it and did it. There's no fun in that for someone who was that much of a visionary. That's why there never was a direct sequel to a Muppet Movie, and the first 3 were all just self sustained stories. If he just made The Muppet Movie 3 times, it would just repeat the same thing over and over.

Seems Post-Henson there's more of an effort to bring back a Muppet Show feel to the other projects... VMX and The Muppets both had The Muppet Show elements in them (at least the theater)... it feels almost like nostalgic throwbacks (though with The Muppets, it was more of a tribute). And of course The Muppet Show Comics. If there's a new series, I don't think I want to see a direct clone of The Muppet Show. Roger, through his amazing talent, captured that in comic form, and I think he even improved on it (taking the action outside the theater quite often for one).

If somehow they were to combine the best conceptual elements of The Muppet Show, Jim Henson Hour, and even Muppets Tonight (that is, making it more like a TV show and taking the action outside as often as possible), they could be on to something.

 

[Scooterforever]

Yeah, I agree with the you, Drtooth, it rarely works to just try and do a repeat of the original. I really wish JHH would've last longer than 12 episodes. Like TMS, it seems to be written for both kids and adults to enjoy, while, in my opinion, Muppets Tonight felt like it was written more for children. I enjoyed "The Ratings Game" episode, especially the segment with Link where he's starring in a fluxing tv show that changes depending on immediate feedback from the audience. Also, the "Gorilla Television" segment had an appearance by puppeteer Mark Weiner, whose show I watched on Nickelodeon as a kid. Is it wrong that I thought Zondra, the goth chick Muppet from Gorilla Television, was kinda hot?