Your Thoughts: TMS Season 1 DVD

[BEAR]

*promo gag reel: I don't know why this is called a gag reel, but the promos are great. it is odd that only three of the guest stars are shown. I liked the one with Statler and waldorf, but think it is weird that Statler didn't talk. I wonder if Richard Hunt performed him there, or if he was performed by Frank Oz. four stars.

*pitch tape: it was great hearing what leo sounded like, and I think it is odd how many of the images are from Sesame Street, since that show made it tough for the networks to buy the show. I think the kermit illustration looked a bit weird. It is also interesting that images from the original Java and Mahna Mahna sketches are shown. four stars.

*sex and violence: I thought this was hilarious. I wonder what the show would have been like if this was the format used. It is a shame that (to my knowledge) none of the seven deadley sins were used again in any other production. I wonder if the houses were meant to be a replacement for the mt. rushmore presidents. five stars.

I like that Statler didn't talk because he was hilarious making weird faces while Waldorf was talking. Its like Waldorf is strangely helping to promote the show and Statler is making fun of him.

I am not shocked by the Sesame Street images used. It was an important part of Jim Henson and the Muppets' success prior to TMS. I love the Big Bird picture on the wall backstage.

I didn't care one bit for "Sex and Violence". I thought it was slow and boring. It surprises me that the show still went on after a clunker like that. The only thing I found funny in the whole episode was Bert's moment in the dance sketch.

 

[rumtar_10165]

Episodes in order

Does anyone know the actual listing in chronological order? It would be a lot of help, thanks.

if you seek like what is episode number 1. you can seek the episode guide.
but if you need to know the exact air dates check out the Muppet morcels on the DVD. It will show you what you need to know.

 

[minor muppetz]

more reviews

I am not shocked by the Sesame Street images used. It was an important part of Jim Henson and the Muppets' success prior to TMS. I love the Big Bird picture on the wall backstage.

I am not shocked either. I just thought it was a little weird that so many Sesame Street images were used.

anyway, I just watched a few more episodes and would like to comment on them.

*bruce Forsythe: I don't know why some people hate this. I thought it was really cool. I liked the snerfs and the gawky birds. The Lips action figure should have come with a snerf pack-in (since their noses are trumpets). The veterinarians Hospital skit could easily be done on Sesame Street. I am also glad that finally got to see (as opposed to just hear) "I'm My own grampaw" and "trees". I didn't watch the morsels on this one, but I give it five stars.

*peter ustinov: I liked his appearance in Muppet Labs (although it is weird that they said he got to be a muppet in that sketch, since all they did to him was attach some wires). I liked his speech with Fozzie (althouhg I think it is weird that Sam would introduce that). Cybthia Birdley was a good character. Observations about the morsels: During Being Green, the morsels mention various artists who performed Being green, but didn't mention leena Horne (who sang it on Sesame Street), Don heanley (who sang it on Kermit Unpigged), or Tony Bennet (who sang it on his Playgound album). five stars.

*vincent price: This is the first show I had already seen that I watched on the DVD. One thing I noticed for the first time when watching this DVD is that Uncle Deadley can briefly be seen backstage before the Muppet News skit. comments on the morsels: While it mentions that John Lovelady and Richard Hunt performed the big ghosts in the U.K. spot, there is no mention that the other ghost was performed by Eren Ozkar (and all other scenes with the ghosts only had the female ghost and one male ghost). it is also weird that there was no mention of who performed the three-headed monster (jerry nelson, dave goelz, and john lovelady). I also wish that the morsel would have mentioned how behemoth worked. four stars.

*Ben vereen: I had seen only the first half of this episode only once, and thought it was great. a good episode for crazy harry, and I liked the characters in the closing number. some minor nitpicks about the morsels: Although I am happy that the morsels acknowledged Timmy Monsters appearance in the closing number, I wish that there would have been mention of whether that was his firt appearance or if he had been previously created in an earlier production (maybe something that us hardcore fans don't even know about yet). I also wish that it would have mentioned who that dancing creature in the closing number is. four stars.

I would also like to make some comments on the muppet morsels. The morsels always explain an inside joke or who wrote each song featured. because of this, most of the wayne and Wanda sketches only leave room for info on the songwriter (although I guess there would be more time for more morsels for a wayne and wanda sketch in the ruth buzzi episode).

I will review more episodes later when I watch more.

 

[rumtar_10165]

Watched All four DVD's

Ok there is an up side and a down side to the dvd.
The UPSIDE:
whatching the classic episodes from season one brought back good magic and memories of when the show first aired. And when it came to the Sex and Vilonce show, I got a laugh from my wife. Quote "Alright Kids leave the room were going to see NAKED MUPPETS!"

I told her it is just a title (should have kept my mouth shut.) "Oh yeah then why is Sam Naked." she quoted. then she laughed.

When it came to the promotional film of the Muppet Show, she was wondering
why was that edited. I told her read the DVD review.

and now the Down Side
Can someone tell me when Season two will be released. I got kids asking me to buy Season two. Other than that ....I cant think of any thing It was still good.

 

[dwmckim]

d.w. weighs in

Okay ive watched almost all of the set (ive been watching a dvd a day and will watch the Muppet Show episodes on disc 4 tomorrow (though ive already watched the bonue features)

I know the Jim Henson retrospective was cut due to space but i wonder why the world premiere interstitials were left out...i figure this would have been pretty short and woulnd't have taken much space...also disappointed that a complete collection of the promos weren't included (something they will hopefully make up for in future sets)...nice to see some of them for the first time in ages though (and many for the first time period).

Also perplexed by some of the non-music cuts...I wonder if the cut Newsman sketch from Joel Gray was because they were working off a master that had it cut (the full version of the Joel Gray episode is slightly longer than most Muppet Shows so they may have cut the Newsman out of some versions for those stations/markets that NEEDED the show to be 25 and a half minutes and no more. The backstage scene in #6 where Scooter talks Kermit into hiring the Danceros still would have worked on its own even if the act itself was cut.

The Muppet Morsels are indeed the highlight...yes there are typos and grammatical errors - and the occasionanal bit of misinformation (though they are at least few and far between). But what's really fun is guessing what they're going to mention it before the dvd says it! When other seasons come out, i'll have to watch them for the first time with others and have a drinking game when i can guess all the stuff that comes up before it appears or do something where an amount of money is given to charity every time i guess something right. Too bad there aren't any major Muppet fans in my area since it would be fun for two or three people to do this together.

...though i highly suspect that quite a bit of the team working on the morsels largely cribbed from our episode guide...yes, they're working from the same source material but still i've watched enough to tell that too much stuff has obviously benefitted from what i had previously put together...it would have been nice if there had been a little acknowledgement or nod given there. (Probably why i've had such an easy time guessing what a lot of the trivia would be!!)

A couple of comments on other things that have come up in this thread...

Yes, one of the rare mistakes in the morsels was the one that said Gramps would be the only Season 1 jug band member to continue. The first one was not "Gramps" but "Pa" (not "Paul" this is a mistake that worked its way into Muppet fandom since someone misheard "Pa" as "Paul" and that worked its way into the Kermitage character guide. At least the dvd doesn't make the same mistake...even though it replaces it with another mistake.)

There are no Easter eggs. I would really love there to be some in future sets.

Many have speculated that the reason the end was cut from pitch real was because of the CBS logo. Not so...it would have been because of Kermit's "****"...the CBS logo would have been a nonissue...CBS is mentioned throughout the pitch and when they do show the logo...it's not the actual CBS logo but one done with Kermit's pupil in the middle...this would be considered parody and there would be no legal repercussions at all as a result. Some one just got nervous...and that someone should be more nervous about being fired than offending people...i guarantee more people are offended that it was cut.

For those wanting to watch the shows in the airing order rather than the production order, you can go by the New York air dates given in the Muppet Morsels, but also keep in mind the show was syndicated so the airing order was different all over the place! Not only would they have been different in various countries but in different markets within the same country! That's why the morsels specify "New York" airing order as opposed to "US airing order". One could also watch in the taping order...even though it largely follows the production order but there are some slight differences.

 

[minor muppetz]

more reviews

i would like to review two more episodes, both viewed with the muppet morsels on.

*Jim Nabors: I like how Scooter was introduced. I like the headless muppet dancing with a female head (with no body). I liked the closing number. I also liked the opening number, with Dr. Teeth singing "Money". four and a half stars (it would have five stars if it wasn't edited).

*Rita Moreno: This episode was great. I have already seen this episode when it was broadcast on Nickleodeon, which replaced the openign number with the closing number. The opening number was great. In fact, the whole episode is terriffic. No wonder it won an emmy. This episode has many classic moments: tomorrow, lady of spain, fever, and a great talk spot and at the dance. comments on the morsels: I am surprised that no writers credit is listed for Lady Of Spain, but it is no big deal, as it gives more information on marvin suggs and the muppaphones. five stars.

 

[Dr. Bombay]

I finished watching the whole set this evening...man, am I so PLEASED with the whole thing, even with the missing scenes!

I would have to say my favorite episode from the first season was Vincent Price's episode cause I just love him and I have to say it was TOTALLY noticeable that the finale was cut...which was a bummer, but I'm trying to be positive.

My least favorite, and probably one that I will NEVER watch again is the Mummenschanz episode...oh my goodness is it boring!! All though I do like the whole thing with Gonzo and Piggy...the rest of it, blah!

So.........bring on Season 2!!!!

 

[CarrieTheGreat]

Edits are no big.

If you're as big a Muppet Show fan as I am, then you shouldn't be too bothered about the minor edits on the Season One set. Securing rights for songs is a very tricky business. My sister made a small tape, 10 songs, a number of years ago, and she had to go through a ton of work just to get the right to record and release those. Imagine how many songs are on 11 hours of Muppet shows, and only six are missing?

That's no big.

Secondly, regarding the truncated ending on the pitch reel, I can see how many parents would be upset by Kermit the Frog saying, "What the h*** was that?" I am disappointed just knowing that happened, even if it sounds funny. It's easier to lose that one word and irk the "purists" than to have your child say, "But Kermit says it!"

This season set of the Muppet Show is near perfect, and it's wonderful to see all the Brit Bits as well. Disney deserves an A- for this, and I look forward to Season 2.

Carrie

 

[minor muppetz]

The backstage scene in #6 where Scooter talks Kermit into hiring the Danceros still would have worked on its own even if the act itself was cut.

I agree with that. There have been many acts that were mentioned, like chris rudolph and his invisible cheeseburger (from the Gene kelley episode) that were not actually show.

 

[Ernie101]

If you're as big a Muppet Show fan as I am, then you shouldn't be too bothered about the minor edits on the Season One set. Securing rights for songs is a very tricky business. My sister made a small tape, 10 songs, a number of years ago, and she had to go through a ton of work just to get the right to record and release those. Imagine how many songs are on 11 hours of Muppet shows, and only six are missing?

That's no big.

Secondly, regarding the truncated ending on the pitch reel, I can see how many parents would be upset by Kermit the Frog saying, "What the h*** was that?" I am disappointed just knowing that happened, even if it sounds funny. It's easier to lose that one word and irk the "purists" than to have your child say, "But Kermit says it!"


Carrie

HAHA, well too some people it is a biggie.