Your Thoughts: The Muppet Show Season 3

[Oscarfan]

• Nitpick:In the closing number, why is Mahna Mahna wearing what looks like furry antennaes on his head?

Those are eyebrows to make him look angry/annoyed.

 

[minor muppetz]

And now, here are my thoughts on the disc 3 epsiodes, but first, I'd like to talk about something. I had previously thought that The Muppet Movie was made after this season was completed, but before the DVD release I had read on the Tough Pigs forum that it was made between the Helen Reddy and Harry Belafonte episodes, and it does show a bit. At this point, Gladys is pretty much droped, the canteen is rarely seen (though it wasn't shown much in the first half of the season), and some of the puppets are rebuilt and improved. I guess it's this point when the company that made the material used for Kermit went out of buisness, and the new material makes Kermit's felt texture less noticable (though I think a noticibly felt textured Kermit is still used on Sesame Street and some other productions for awhile longer). Also, Kermit's arms and legs look a bit more plump.

But anyway, here ar emy opinions:

• Harry Belafonte - three stars
  This may have been Jim Henson's favorite episode, and Belafonte's numbers may be the most memorable to casual fans, but I find his numbers long and boring. But the rest of the show is great, with the backstage plot, Pigs in Space, Muppet Sports, and everything else. Still, I wodner why Steve Whitmire didn't perform in this episode.
• Leslie Ann Warren - five stars
  This is truly an underrated episode. It wasn't included on the time life releases, and fans don't usually cite it as one of the best, but I like everything about it. The Uk spot with Dr. Teeth and Sam is terriffic, Gonzo's motocycle act is a classic moment, the runnign gag invovling Lelsie Ann Warren's name is funny, Lelsie is really pretty, and all of her numbers just get better and better. And it has appearances by both Doglion and Marvin Suggs.
• Danny Kaye - four stars
  This was the first episode from this season that I saw. It's also the last episode of the season to show the canteen, though people like me who previously hadn't seen any canteen scenes wouldn't know what the area was. The lunchtime skecth is funny, as is Statler and Waldorf leaving the show.
• Spike Milligan - five stars
  This episode is a lot better than I'd expected. Many obscure characters (and not jsut whatnots) are used as the foreign characters. And hey, Wayne actually gets to complete a number!Nitpicks:The UK spot doesn't seem to reflect the international theme of the show. It takes palce in a park, which could be in either the US, the UK, Canada, or somewhere else. Also, due to the limited number of performers, when the people from different companeis invade the Electric Mayhem's number, various members disapear by the end of the number.
• Leslie Uggam - five stars
  Another winner episode, especially since Big Bird is in it. It's a shame that Big Bird didn't appear with the full-body monsters, and a shame that Fletcher Bird wasn't in it (considering Graham Fletcher performed in it). Interestingly, this is the only epsidoe of the season where other Royal Opera House dancers besides Graham Fletcher are credited. It's interesting how Camilla sneezes her way out of her dressing room and through a window in Muppet Labs (does that mean her dressing room was right behind the stage?). While this is Camilla's first appearance, she was refered to by name in the Liberace episode, and did appear in The Muppet Movie, produced before this episode.
• Elke Sommers - five stars
  Another highly underrated episode. At the very least, it should appeal to hardcore fans. I like both of the baby bands numbers, though they are too similar (if shown a still image from one of them I don't think I could guess which number it's from). The backstage plot with Beaker and Beauregar dis brilliant. The firs ttime Beauregard works as a stagehand, though in this epsiode it seems like they might have been freelance repairmen. The two-part Pigs in Space sketch is good.Nitpicks:We actually see Link Hoghtrobs legs in his Pigs in Space costume, and the shoes don't match the action figures shoes. And it seems odd that Beaker has to hide from Bo at the beginning, yet later he's around him without any fear or conflict.
• Sylvester Stallone - four stars
  This epsidoe is a lot better than I'd remembered, though it seems to have the quality of a chidlren's weekday afternoon show. The opening number, Beauregard in the william tell overture, both of Sylvester Stallone's numbers, and and the robot comedian are great, but I don't really like Sylvester Stallone's dressing room scenes, or the backstage plot involving the groupies (thankfully it ends before the UK spot).

 

[minor muppetz]

Okay... Finally... Here are my opinions on the remainign episodes, and the special features.

• Roger Miller - five stars
  Roger Miller worked so well with the Muppets. It's a shame he didn't do more with them. His numbers just keep getting better in the epsidoe. The Cluck-Itis runnign gag is hilarious, though it does start getting tiresome by the time of Pop Goes the Weasle (but does become funny again when Kermit turns into a chicken).Minor Nitpick:The UK spot, taking place at an obviously british bar, should have been the UK spot in the Spike Milligan episode.
• Roy Rogers and Dale Evans - 3 stars
  I don't care much for the cowboy theme. But I do like Deep in the Heart of Texas, Muppet Sports, and Bear on Patrol (how odd that only the third sketch in the series is experimental).
• Lynn Redgrave - five stars
  I hadn't seen this one in a long time, but it's a lot better than I'd remembered. Almost the entire season three cast is included (with main exceptions being Bunsen, Rowlf, Robin, and most of The Electric Mayhem). It's a wonder that this wasn't released in the Time-Life series, and that none of it was included in Children's Songs and Stories. After all, all of the songs in this epsiode were written especially for the episode, so there wouldn't be any music rights issues there.
• Cheryl Ladd - five stars
  Although this episode was recorded much earlier, it is a perfect end to the season. All of Cheryl's numbers are great, with the closing having such a beautiful sound and setting. The first few times I watched it was disturbing seeing Kermit get beat up in I Enjoy Being a Girl (and especially hard to watch the guets star hit Kermit with a pie), but now I enjoy it. Gonzo's act was great, but Fozzie's plot hardly goes anywhere.

And now for my thoughts on the bonus material:

• The Muppets on Puppets - four stars
  A great early Muppet production. The highlights are Rowlf reading a story and the closing puppet sketch. Most o it is good, but it usually gets boring when the focus is on regular non-Muppet-style puppets.
• Purina Commercials - five stars
  These quick bits are hilarious, and the best of the special features. Baskerville really should have continued as a main character.
• A Company of Players - five stars
  Also good, even if it doesn't have much I didn't know already. Nitpick: Jerry Juhl claism that Miss Piggy wa sunnamed in the Temptation number, but that's not true (though I guess faulty memory). Piggy was referred to by name in that scene, was already called Miss Piggy in the 1974 Herb Albert special, and it's said that she was originally going to be called Miss Piggy Lee.

 

[muppet baby]

Here are my thoughts on the episodes on disc 2:

• Alice Cooper - five stars
  The best part of this episode is the closing number, School's Out, which is also one of the few numbers with a group of full-body monsters where Thog is included.
• Loretta Lynn - five stars
  This episode feels more like a Muppet special than a regular episode, since it takes place at the railroad station. The one-time opening and closing numbers are good (I noticed that Louis Kazagger is in the special opening, even though he hadn't appeared yet). Loretta's opening and closing numbers are both perfect. I really like Kermit and Gonzo on the cart rail. But it seems like there must have been an uncredited performer in this episode. Loretta's first number includes all six jugband members and Sweetums, and Zeke is a live-hand puppet in this, with an extra performer obviously operating the hands. I wonder who the extra performer was.
• Liberace - three stars
  This episode is both boring and in teresting. It's one of the few to begin in a backstage area after the opening, one of the few where The Swedish Chef is shown without a hat (even if there is still something on top of his head), and it's the only tiem Fletcherbird talks. But the majority of the Liberace concert, taking up almost the entire second half, is mostly boring, especially when there aren;t any Muppet-style Muppets on-stage. But the closing number is awesome!
• Marissa Berensen - five stars
  The plotline of Miss Piggy staging a wedding sketch and attempting to trick Kermit into marriage is great, though I wonder if Kermit suspected Piggy of planning a trick all along. The onyl dull parts of this episode are the openign number, Marissa's first number, and the UK spot. But the best are "Do Rei Me" and "You're Always Welcome at Our House".
• Raquel Welch - four stars
  Raquel's opening number is one of the best part, thanks in part to her skimpy costume, but the music and lyrics are honestly better than her other two numbers. But the closing number is best as a closing number (even though if they were switched she'd probably wear that costume in the goodnights..). The backstage plot, At the Dance, the Marvin Suggs interview, and The Swedish Chef's classic "chicken in the baskett" sketch are also really terriffic in this episode.
• James Coco - three stars
  While James Coco states that this show has pace, I don't really see it in this epsidoe (maybe that was intentional?). Compared to other epsiodes, this one is a bit slow. We don't get multiple sketches in a row without a backstage scene (or commercial break) in-between, and the guest star's first number is a bit long. The best parts of this episode are the opening number, the UK spot, and the closing number. Nitpick:In the closing number, why is Mahna Mahna wearing what looks like furry antennaes on his head?
• Helen Reddy - four stars
  Beauregard gets a proper introduction, but I wonder, is this the only time he actually did janitorial work on the show? Helen Reddy's first and last nubmers are good, though I rarely pay much attention to her middle number (it seems to me that whenever a guest star has three numbers that the middle number is the least enjoyable, but that's sort of a good thing). Tie Me Kangaroo Down is a great short piece, but I wodner why they chose to use generic whatnot hillbillies as opposed to teh jugband (though I feel like that number would have been more appropriate for the first jugband).

I'll try to give my thoughts on dsic 3's epsidoes later tonight.

you know my faverite part of season 3 is requel welch and cheryal ladd .

They did such a good job on the show .

love them both so much in anything they are a part of my child hood . LOL i watched both ladies in TV movies with my mom and we still do watch them to this day .

 

[minor muppetz]

you know my faverite part of season 3 is requel welch and cheryal ladd .

So I guess you'd like The Kermit and Miss Piggy Story, since that video has scenes from their appearances on the show.

 

[peyjenk]

Kris Kristofferson & Rita Coolidge - five stars. . . Nothing in this episode is bad,

Well, except the guest stars.

 

[minor muppetz]

There are a few things I noticed about this season when watching the set.

One, it seems that many of the introductions for the opening numbers this year are a bit long, often with interruptions Think about it - Miss Piggy comes out from behind the curtain to tell Kermit what her number with Kris Kristofferson is, Leslie Ann Warren comes on-stage to settle some confusion, Raquel Welch's openign number is delayed by interruptions by both Miss Piggy and Scooter, Fozzie interrupts the intro to Roy Clark's opening number, Fozzie interrupts one introduction to make a joke regarding Jean Stapleton's name... A lot of long interruptions before the opening numbers.

Two, I noticed that scene transitions are less common this season. The previous seasosn had a lot of transitions, even during introductions (where it was not uncommon for Kermit or whoever to make an introduction and then, instead of raising the curtains, the frame slid to the side or somethign like that). This season still has the occassional transitions, usually just fading, but for the most cut scenes usually cut to the enxt scene and the curtaisn always raise during introductions.

Three, it seems like some characters appear less this year, even though they had somewhat major roles (in one case just being important enough to have his name in the credits) in The Muppet Movie. I am referring to Dr. Teeth, Sweetums, and Crazy Harry (the last one being the one I'm referring to whow as important enough to be credited). they all appeared a lot in the previous two seasons (Crazy Harry wasn't really there that much in the first two, but his number of appearances in both of the first two seasons were almost equal, while this season it's just two or three). And looking at their Muppet Wiki filmographies they continue to appear less throughout the series (though I think Dr. Teeth makes more appearances in the next two seasons). Dr. Teeth is hardly ever seen this year, and when he is, mit's usually a non-speaking background performance. He only has line sin three episodes, two of which are UK spots.

Four, and this is related to the last thing, is that The Electric Mayhem doesn't make many appearances as a group. Floyd, Animal, Janice, and Zoot are all seen alot, though often only one or two appear at a time. Janice is often seen in Veterinarian's Hospital, but rarely seen as a musician this season. The episode has quite a few numbers where te orhcestra performs, but Dr. Teeth and Jancie aren't part of the orchestra. The first two opening numbers feature the band providing back-up, but they arn't too noticiable in those numbers (unlike earlier numbers where they provided back-up, like Lou Rawls' "You're the One" and Elton John's numbers).

 

[dwayne1115]

Yea by far season 3 is the best, just for the varity of show that we get. A show done at a train station, One saluting the nations, and then the Robin Hood one. I realized i never watched disc 4 just the bonus featuers! I loved Spke Mullagen, with Sam the Eagle and the Newsman. He was also very funny in the parade of Nations. Thowing a pillow at Kermit, and just abusing poor sam to death. That was one of the rare times the the gust is just as crazy as the Muppets!

 

[muppet baby]

You know what i am about to say about season 3 that might get food though at me, that kind of did not like that skit with them LOL is the fact, that i love the duet that miss miss piggy sings with Kris krisstoferson( sorry i could not think how to spell his last name could only get it close ) I really love that song , i mean the song that they sing called help me make it though the night . I thought the duet was really cute .

 

[LamangoNumber2]

I want to take the time to find out who's voice, obviously Franks, was that stage-hand.
"Who want's ta know?"
"We're not ready."
"Who?"
I have a sneaking suspiction, it's Cookie Monster.