The Muppets Episode 1 - Pig Girls Don't Cry (Pilot)

[beaker]

Wow, here we are! The Muppets back on tv in full force(surprised this isn't a 40 page thread already, heh) The advance reviews from news sites are right; this show is quite a technical achievement. The camera movement, editing, digital rod removal, busy background characters, nuanced movements, zippy pacing.
Still feels surreal seeing the Muppets in such a modern setting. My favorite scene ended up being the opening morning production meeting. Just watching the artistry at work there and dialogue interplay was amazing.
I didn't laugh too much, but then again it takes a lot to make me laugh. But I was thoroughly entertained.

Addressing some of the criticism:


- the mocumentary format: People are saying it's too ubiquitous and played out. But the studio sitcom was played out decades ago, and only Big Bang Theory and a couple other shows still use that. There's really only three tv comedy styles. The studio sitcom. The what I call "Malcolm in the Middle" style that The Goldbergs, Middle, Blackish, Fresh of the Boat, Bernie Mac, Pete and Pete, etc used or uses. And then the "mockumentary", which I definitely feel fits here. Remember, all three of the past Muppet shows was about putting on a show and the behind the scenes aspect of the show. Muppet Show, and then the two subsequent shows which were about a TV station...so it's kind of interesting to see a show where most of the show is about the behind the scenes.

- the adult direction: Seeing a lot of parents on facebook complaining...people who must be living in some bizarro world where the muppets simply exist as a slightly edgier extention of squeaky clean Sesame Street. This is a show about the lives of grownups(the Muppets) in the real world. Not exactly sure how one could expect it to not be riddled with adult humor, and moreover grown up problems.

- Denise: I originally was also jarred by her puppet design from pictures. Given she seems to forgo the Henson "magic triangle" recipe and has an almost more "Henson alternative/stuffed and unstrung" look. But from what I saw of her, I kind of get it now. She's the more quirky down to earth muse to piggy's over the top diva sensibility.

Really liked Piggy's vulnerability in the flashback scene.
Seeing Big Mean Carl, Behemoth and Jim Henson Hour's Chip in so many scenes was quite a treat. VERY excited to see which of the countless more obscure Muppets will be used...Im sure we'll be hitting up Muppets Wikia quite often! Hoping they can get both super A-list mega star actors as well as "where have they been all these years" forgotten actors.

The critics loved the first episode; just worried and curious what the average non Muppet fan or casual fan viewer thought

 

[Phillip]

If you missed the premiere of "The Muppets" or if you want to watch it again, the first episode is now on-line here: abc.tv/1V8Iys1.

 

[beaker]

I hope we get more goofy antics though. The thing with pepe and rizzo doing the dancing thing was the kind of weird random humor they're known for and I'd love to see more of it. It's always been my favorite thing about the muppets. The weird things they do. Or them doing a music number and it ends badly or weird things happen in the background of it.

The Pepe/Rizzo dynamic was completely missing from the recent two films, so I was quite excited to not only see it back in full force with this new tv series...but with Rizzo and Yolanda.

But....will Bean Bunny ever be back? I literally think I'd faint if they brought
in for a cameo Digit or other Jim Henson Hour characters besides Chip. Heck, I'D LOVE to even see some Muppets Tonight characters besides Pepe and Randy/Andy. (Heck, I kind of want to see Clifford back)

 

[beaker]

Thanks Phil! SPREAD THIS LINK AROUND FOLKS! On facebook, twitter, emails, everywhere ya can. I also recommend clicking the link even if you've seen it already, just to have an extra viewcount ABC can see.

Seriously cool of ABC to put the show online right after it airs. thanks again phil!
http://abc.go.com/shows/the-muppets...1/01-series-premiere-pig-girls-dont-cry-pilot

 

[Slackbot]

Hi! Remember me?

I watched the premiere yesterday, and overall I enjoyed it. It felt very much like a first episode, with the new situation being introduced and the viewers being brought up to speed on the situation. Hopefully we're past that and next week we can focus more on plot, because that's what I felt was lacking in this one: a plot for us to focus on, rather than a lot of exposition.

Most of the "adult" stuff pleased me. Fozzie dealing with having a personal life. Sam "Can't say h***" the BS&P representative. Fozzie's bear joke, which reminded me of the bear joke in Pixar's Inside Out. The breakup scene between Kermit and Piggy, with some great acting by both of them. (The way Piggy stood there with her lip quivering...wow.) Zoot's substance abuse anonymous joke. Piggy joking about plastic surgery. It all works for me.

There's only one part of the show that made me cringe, and that was the ride through the lot when Scooter was driving. I thought that it was too violent for the situation and made the guest star look nasty. But, most of all, I was distracted by the seam running up the back of Scooter's head. I wanted to fix it with a needle and toothbrush.

I have my hopes for Denise. I want her to become a viable character, not just the not-Miss-Piggy that Kermit is dating. Please don't let her get drawn into catfights with Miss Piggy. That would be so cliche. Call me a heretic, but I'm not a Kermit/Piggy shipper and I think that this time apart could be good for them, help them get a bit of perspective. (I'm not silly enough to think that they won't end up back together in the end!)

Where was Walter? I hope he'll be there too. Maybe they're waiting to introduce him into the show after all the core classic characters are established. If they can include that weird conehead who blinks his pupils, they better not leave Walter out.

 

[Drtooth]

I really think they set some great stuff up here. Kermit and Piggy subtly hinted at not being over each other, the mockumentary format seems to be lightly mocking itself, Gonzo being a terrible writer (his "Dancing with the Czars" bit seems to be a slight stab at some of the skits that fell flat on MT), the band just not being all there. There's a lot to build up on here, and once they're free of the establishment phase, the episodes will flow much better.

Of note:

Scooter has a minor role and Big Mean Carl is there, so, WOOHOO to that.

The sex jokes seem to be of the talking over the heads of 8 year olds variety, and very much not as obvious or heavy as a standard Simpsons episode (again, Simpsons kid's toys, there's a kid's meal promotion at BK right now). Loved the line about bears and Fozzie's knee-jerk apologetic "Eh...not wrong, just wrong for me." The cross promotion bit was a little awkward, but certainly not as cringeworthy as some of the thing the frog has said in the past ("Get down with your bad selves." still sounds like nails on a chalkboard to me).

Piggy as a late night talk show host works. They managed to get the subtle line between being totally into it and being fake to the guest celebrities. I really hope each episode shows a little more of the show.

Me Animal now talk like Grimlock. Don't know how to make of that.

It couldn't be more obvious that Denise is a rebound catch for Kermit. He seems to be happy with her, but not extremely. The stress eating bit gives it away. You can really get the hint that working with Piggy is deep down killing him, and at some points he seems to be lying to himself pretty badly. Hope to see more of the relationship like this.

While Walter wasn't in the episode, Peter Linz is in the opening credits. He'll probably focus eventually. Also loved seeing how they at least give Jim Henson credit in the opening. So that connection isn't completely lost. Almost makes me as happy as hearing Bill Finger getting recognized by Gotham.

They seem to have taken core bits from the pre-pilot here, but they play off a little differently. Gonzo making fun of the mockumentary format, Kermit saying his life became a bacon wrapped He[ck]. I really hope they use the "Uh, was I in Muppet Treasure Island" bit in another episode.

Rizzo, Pepe, and Gonzo make major contributions. See? The lack of focus on them as far as the last 2 movies go was temporary and only for those films.

Only thing that kinda fell flat was the Imagine Dragons bit at the end. Seems they could have done something better there. And I'm surprised they didn't even have Statler and Waldorf make use of the fact the song kept saying "Rock Bottom." As in:

Rock Bottom?
Yeah. As in their career hit rock bottom to have to appear on this show.

(or something similar).

I give the show so far 4 Wows.

 

[Erine81981]

The Pepe/Rizzo dynamic was completely missing from the recent two films, so I was quite excited to not only see it back in full force with this new tv series...but with Rizzo and Yolanda.

But....will Bean Bunny ever be back? I literally think I'd faint if they brought
in for a cameo Digit or other Jim Henson Hour characters besides Chip. Heck, I'D LOVE to even see some Muppets Tonight characters besides Pepe and Randy/Andy. (Heck, I kind of want to see Clifford back)

Yes the Rizzo and Pepe was what was missing from the other two movies and yes I understand they were more about getting the Muppets back together or should I say Classic Characters.

I too would love to see more cameos or other characters from JHH and MT. That would be great to see them working around the building. Why not bring back the elephant character that Pepe played so good off of. Seymore isn't It? I had thought how funny it would be to see a scene with Digit in a closet like he's been turned off or like an old props basement where a bunch of old Muppet props or whatever but get to see Digit and then for him to be turned on after all these years. How cool would that be?

And yes I want to see Andy and Randy pig too. How much fun those characters would be.

 

[Jedi Kitty]

but the way it happened felt very real which made it much sadder than I thought it'd be. Piggy didn't even yell or anything after it happened, just stood there stunned and hurt.

When Piggy just stood there and said "..Kermit..!" I felt my heart break. Really amazing scene.. I found myself touched and caring about the characters and their story the same way I do live-action characters in other shows and movies I enjoy.

I really very much enjoyed this first episode. I think anything that felt bumpy, forced, etc.. will smooth out in time. As long as the show is given the chance ! The adult stuff just doesn't bother me at all. Not yet, anyway ! Ever since information about the show started releasing, I've been really interested in the idea of the characters acting like real adults.

I really enjoyed Elizabeth Banks and Tom Bergeron and most of the jokes hit their marks with me ! "Can't say ***", "Crotchety, twiddle, gesticulate", "That is an offensive stereotype !!", "Oh god, we're gonna die of hypothermia !", "Animal think Frog plan dicey", "too many women too many towns..", "Skin, skin !", Uncle Deadly lurking in the background with his lint roller in general (that happened at least twice), Piggy wanting a generic layer of trash, "Talk to God about lilacs..", Piggy agreeing to be truthful and then slamming Denise and Kermit in the next beat - I loved it all !

Speaking of Denise - the accent doesn't seem to fit her, somehow, but I think she's a beautiful Muppet ! Pretty sure she's destined for heartbreak, though, because I'm in the camp that think one of the arcs of the show will be Kermit and Piggy reuniting.

 

[Erine81981]

I need some help if anyone can help me with it. I'm going to be doing a review on the first episode on my YouTuibe Channel and I need some screen grabs from the episode. Here is what I need.

Both shots of Fozzie's full body. The one on stage and the one where he's sitting on the couch.

Scooter getting thrown off the golf cart.

Animal ripping the drum at the end

That's pretty much it. I do need them before Friday cause that's when I'll be posting the video on my channel plus I need them today so I can start editing them into my video.

 

[LinkLady77]

I just want to say that seeing Andy and Randy pig put a smile on my face! I would LOVE to see Link and Dr. Strangepork hanging around in a future episode. Seeing minor Muppets in the background perks me up! I like Denise but the only thing that weirds me out is her eyebrows! Like Miss Piggy said to Joan Rivers in TMTM, "Pigs don't have eyebrows". Also, I will really miss hearing Jerry Nelson's voice as an announcer throughout this series...what an iconic voice and truly talented performer he was. Looking forward to the next episode of The Muppets!