The Return of THE MUPPETS

Article originally published as THE MUPPETS Review on Seat42F.

THE MUPPETS are back! The franchise that has spawned more than half a dozen feature films and a number of television specials and TV shows in the past are once again on the small screen on a weekly basis. From Bill Prady (The Big Bang Theory) and Bob Kushell (Anger Management) comes a contemporary look at everyone’s favorite felt characters.

The premise for the new show is simple enough. Miss Piggy (herself; just kidding, though the show would like you to think so) has become the first female late night host on Up Late With Miss Piggy. Kermit, now her ex-boyfriend, is the producer, Fozzie serves as the sidekick, and The Electric Mayhem provide the house band. The rest of the Muppets work on the show, including Kermit’s new girlfriend, Denise (who is also a pig, by the way). So the group has a natural reason to come together, and the late night show is a good way to bring on lots of celebrity guest stars easily.

The format is a bit different from past efforts in that it’s basically The Office. It’s a documentary-style piece, and the politics behind-the-scenes call to mind a certain paper company, though with the Muppets’ trademark humor. Basically, it is made to feel like many other sitcoms currently on the air, which is where its ‘modern’ sensibility claim comes in.

Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to preview the ten minute presentation that sold this show to ABC. In that version, the Muppets come back together to remake The Muppet Show, and Miss Piggy, who was starring in films, has to be coaxed to join in. I am disappointed at the changes made in the official first episode because it makes the story more pedestrian to remove the crazy antics of The Muppet Show from the set up. However, it does make more sense for Piggy to have success and it’s nice she isn’t coming back to work over a man. The new pilot emphasizes her independent spirit, a key component of the character that can’t be overlooked in this age. Plus, a lot of the good jokes from that presentation are retained.

Overall, I like, don’t love, THE MUPPETS (though I loved the ten minute video). So far, that is. The first episode focuses on Piggy’s feud with Elizabeth Banks (herself) and Fozzie trying to impress his girlfriend’s (Riki Linhome) father (Jere Burns), while the second sees Kermit trying to help Piggy find love with Josh Groban (himself). The second is superior because of funnier bits, but both point to where the show might go.

Both of these stories are relatively tame and typical of modern sitcoms, and can be found on any other show. That’s OK; The Muppets have never been entirely original in their plots. However, what makes them so special is the personalities of the individual characters, and when the story mostly focuses on Kermit and Piggy trying to work together after a break up, it drags things down. If future installments instead commit to playing up the zany aspects of all of the other characters, which the second episode does better, it will improve and get back to what fans of the franchise want.

We also want Kermit and Piggy together, of course. It’s fine to keep them apart from a time to force drama and forward momentum, but this can’t be a series-long arc. They both clearly still care deeply for one another, and Kermit replacing Piggy with a skinner pig (never mind that she’s nicer) won’t sit well with many. Hopefully, this story gets gone through quickly and THE MUPPETS gets back to the essential heart of The Muppets.

THE MUPPETS premieres Tuesday, September 22^nd at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Community Practices "Felt Surrogacy"

Article first published as Community Practices "Felt Surrogacy" on TheTVKing.

NBC's Community does a puppet-themed musical episode with this week's "Intro to Felt Surrogacy." The study group returns from an adventure oddly, regarding each other with awkward silence. Dean Pelton (Jim Rash) decides that the best way to help them work through their issues is to give them puppet versions of themselves, whom they can speak through to reveal uncomfortable things. It works.

Community has done many outlandish episodes before, such as working with claymation or 8-bit animation. The puppet premise seems a logical way for them to continue that trend. As such, the idea of this installment is within the tone and tradition of the series.

I really like that they have two puppet versions of each character - one that is realistic for the Dean to have made, and the others are the ones we see in the flashback story, which look much more professionally done. Having the good puppet Chang (Ken Jeong) wearing and interacting with the crappy puppet Chang is a genius touch.

While "Intro to Felt Surrogacy" is not a parody of anything in particular, I do feel it has a strong kinship to Jim Henson's Muppets. The hot air balloon could be a reference to one of those films, the puppet cast interacts with humans, and the songs have a similar tone. Considering that among the themes of Community is accepting others for who they are, even when they are weird, and supporting one another, added to the fact that Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown) has always spoken in a Miss Piggy-esue manner, this seems a fitting tribute to that creation. Even if they look more like the puppets from Angel's puppet episode, and the Dean's costume references another famous puppet, Pinocchio.

There is a lot to like about "Intro to Felt Surrogacy." The songs are fun, and the entire cast have pleasant singing voices. The story is solid. Jason Alexander and Sara Bareilles are perfect in their guest spots. We get wonderful references to other Community plot points, such as Pierce's (Chevy Chase) hatred of Vicki (Danielle Kaplowitz), and the unfortunate long-standing absence of Professor Duncan (John Oliver), who has been mentioned, but not seen since season two. And Troy's (Donald Glover) line about "If Jeff said we had to live out here..." is hilarious.

There is also wonderful character development. Once more, we find out another layer about Jeff's (Joel McHale) father issues, when he talks about breaking up with the perfect girl because of her kid, after allowing the child to get attached to him. He also makes sure that the entire gang supports one of their own who is suffering. Shirley's stress as a mother is explored, Troy has a surprisingly dark past, and Annie (Alison Brie) has allowed a creepy professor access to her feet when her grade in his class slipped. These are important and interesting sides to the characters, well worked into the story.

Abed (Danny Pudi) seems even more broken. He references Lost and Ferris Bueller just fine, but doesn't have a secret to reveal? And why he is totally uncaring when Shirley is upset, thus throwing off the dynamic of the group, which Abed once considered sacred? It doesn't make sense. When will Abed get fixed? Or is his character forever ruined?

A bit that might almost be missed is that the Dean has actually come to the group to make his own confession, something about not being traditional. He doesn't get the chance because, not officially being a member of their group, they blow him off. At this point, it's not fair, and it's heartbreaking to see how hurt he is. It's no wonder he turns to puppet versions of the group, as lonely as he is. I really hope Jeff, at least, comes around to helping him out soon.

A theme explored in "Intro to Felt Surrogacy" is the want to escape Greendale. The group blames their college for their problems, and are happy to see the guy in the woods. This could be foreshadowing to their likely coming graduation in a few episodes (I assume, since this is season four), happy to leave the school behind, or it could be an attempt to preemptively cut themselves off from a thing that they love and are going to miss. It's hard to tell exactly what their feelings on the subject are, but their relationship to the institution is sort of a mixed bag, though I think it will end up being looked at with fondness when their days are done.

Which is not to say that the episode isn't funny. The method by which they get around to revealing secrets, drugged by a hobo in the woods (Alexander), is amusing and makes sense. Troy and Abed come up with a Bingo game based on common catchphrases of the characters, to everyone's frustration. Britta's (Gillian Jacobs) secret involves not being an actual activist like she says she is, and Jeff has to deftly sidestep to spare her feelings. Pierce's (Chevy Chase) woods confession is yet another of his frequent humble brags. All of these things get laughs.

Yet, despite all of the wonderful things I've just mentioned (Abed's breakdown aside), there is still something a little off. Community's fourth season has not lived up to the first three, and the spirit of the show is just a bit hollow now. This should be memorable as one of the best episodes of Community, but it only will be considered so for the season, not the series. That's disappointing.

I think "Intro to Felt Surrogacy" also contains Pierce's send-off. Many have wondered about how the character will be written off the series, as the actor quit around the time this episode was being filmed. It seems pretty clear that Pierce has just been left in the woods, and we likely won't see him again. It's a little sad, and a bit of a shame, as there had been some better ideas circulated that could have been done. But I guess it works.

It's just a bit strange how, in the behind-the-scenes stuff that served as the episode's ending tag, it looks like every effort is made to include Chevy Chase, even when he's glaring absent from several parts. At times, it seems unclear if he's there, such as when the top of a bald head peeks out from a group shot when the rest of the cast is shown prominently posing with their puppets, or when a Pierce line reading doesn't really sound like Chevy's voice. I wonder why his leaving isn't really committed to? Is this out of respect for the screen legend, or are they trying to ineptly hide a falling out that was very public news?

Community, assumedly now sans Pierce, airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

Jason Segel hosts Saturday Night Live

     The (currently) elusive funny episode of NBC's Saturday Night Live comes somewhat close this week, at least at times. This week's show opens with a look at Mitt Romney "Raw & Unleashed." Then it moves on to a monologue with guest appearances by several Muppets, a rerun of the Red Flag perfume commercial, and auditions to replace Regis Philbin. After that, there is another parody commercial, the return of the kissing family, Weekend Update with Seth Meyers, Kermit the Frog, and Jon Huntsman, and a retirement party sketch. Finally, a commercial for New Jack Swing, a digital short, Andre the Giant, and a local band.

     Any fault within the hour is surely not to be blamed on Jason Segel. He is versatile enough to handle the handful of characters he is given, and musical guest Florence, of Florence + the Machine, even participates in a couple of bits. Both are charming, and deserve praise for their appearance.

     Segel kicks off his monologue with a song, and is joined by a number of his Muppet movie co-stars. Their interaction is playful, but not too childish, getting back to the root of Muppets with attitude, a key element in the early, great Muppet films. They also remind viewers that Muppets are in the earliest episodes of Saturday Night Live, so it is fitting that they return.

     Segel is very clever with his "Andre the Giant Chooses an Ice-cream Flavor," bringing back a man many have not seen in quite some time. Odd, nostalgic bits like this are usually quite good, and without having to be timely, are more likely to be funny. Plus, who doesn't enjoy a giant with a tiny ice-cream cone? Who?

     Jason Sudeikis has really honed his Mitt Romeny. It still feels a bit too colored by Sudeikis himself, but the material is getting better. The opening, featuring Mitt "Raw & Unleashed" is quite good, playing up the blandness of the expected Republican presidential candidate. SNL is frequently best around election times, and this act is a positive indication it may be so again in next year's cycle.

     The final sketch of the night, featuring a Massachusetts bar band that references many local things in their music, is only OK. But the joy in that bit comes from cameos of a couple of Muppets, Florence, and Paul Rudd enjoying the tunes. They save the sketch from being a complete waste of time.

     Even in the worst Saturday Night Live episode, Weekend Update delivers, and this week is no different. Seth Meyers gets some great zingers in, including a particularly unexpected one with a Lego that is sure to crack up. Jon Huntsman's actual guest spot is kind of lame, but only because the man isn't very funny in his delivery, and his appearance reeks of desperation to stay in the race. That is not a comment on his politics, just his presence in a sketch comedy series. However, then Kermit shows up to do the wonderful "Really!?!"  recurring segment with Seth, and all is put back right in the world. Perhaps Kermit should be more of a regular co-host.

     Digital Shorts tend to only be really good when there's a song involved. This week's is just not up to par. Except for a cool cameo by Olivia Wilde (House, Cowboys & Aliens), there is absolutely nothing memorable about the short. One longs for another hit like "Lazy Sunday," "D*** in a Box," or "I'm On a Boat."

     The major problem this week is recycled material, bringing back recurring sketches that are not funny the first time, and milking them for yet another laugh that isn't there. The kissing family is only novel in the first place because of the originality and gross factor. But upon reusing it, it loses much of its luster. Even Paul Rudd's return cameo as a member of the clan doesn't help it to live up to expectations.

     On a similar note, the Red Flag commercial is amusing at first viewing, but does not bear repeating. This isn't even a recurrence of a former sketch, but actually airing the exact same, pre-filmed spot. Saturday Night Live does tend to reuse its commercials from time to time, but that's a little sad, given that new sketches are cut to make room for them. Does that mean there just isn't any more funny material waiting for airtime?

     The "Time Life New Jack Swing" commercial may not be exactly a repeat, but it sure feels like one. In recent years, SNL just trots out a bunch of fake musical acts in a certain genre and proclaims it funny. It's not. It's tired and has been done far too often. Time to ditch the conceit.

     A segment about a retirement party falls completely flat. Segel's character is interesting, but Kristen Wiig, the cast's go-to girl, just comes across as annoying in this go round. Her parts need to be better considered, as she really is brilliantly funny, but often used in the wrong way.

     Finally, the Regis replacement auditions could have been really great, but instead, seem like a flimsy excuse to trot out the best impressions the cast has to offer. There is nothing wrong with that, as there are some spot-on parodies of Ricky Gervais, Garrison Keillor, and the return of Wiig's brilliant Kathy Lee. However, because so many others are squeezed in, it just doesn't flow. For a segment like this, there needs to be fewer, and longer, impersonations for it to really soar.
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     Ah, well. There are still plenty more chances to get things right, and with the election just around the corner, it seems more likely. Watch Saturday Night Live Saturday nights at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

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Article first published as TV Review: Saturday Night Live - "Jason Segel; Florence + the Machine" on Blogcritics.