Dear Internet,
Am I
running out of things to say about a show that is formulaic to the point of
either being enjoyable or maddening?
Maybe, but let me continue to try my luck. Today I should mention a few things about the
running skits that repeat most weeks.
"The
Muppet Show" knows how to rely on a bag of tricks. This is not something that is horribly
bad. No, that only occurs when the bag
of tricks runs out or the tricks themselves fail to amuse. There are a number of skits that the show can
fall back on and is also a representation of the show as a whole. The All Knowing Wiki has a list of these sketches,
but beyond what they are as a setup is not what is up for question. What is up for debate is if these regular
bits are worth the time and are funny.
The
best one to start off is Veterinarian's Hospital. The skit is an obvious parody of hospital
dramas but with animal patients being the norm.
The scene revolves usually around the strange patient that is being
operated on by Rowlf the Dog. This can
range from a duck, to a chicken, to even a loaf of bread. The comedy of the scene is drawn less upon
the apparent weirdness of a dog performing surgery on a doughy concoction and
more on the plethora of puns that the doctor and nurses bounce back to one another. There is a pun on average about every ten to fifteen
seconds, and for the most part are rather funny. The benefit of the sketch is that it at least
identifies the really bad puns, the kind that makes an audience moan. This of course brings up the question of,
"Is there such things as a good pun at all?" Japanese comedy is predominantly pun based because
the language causes repeat word usage a lot more than English, not to mention
the written word of Japanese makes even more puns possible. However in English, puns are often difficult
to not be repeated and are just as often a bad joke altogether. This is most likely because of the level of
buildup. The more buildup that the pun
has, the greater chance it is a dud.
There is even a point where the buildup guarantees a dud of a joke. Veterinarian's Hospital goes around this by
making the puns come at the audience so fast that there is no buildup at
all. When a pun is made every other
pine, the pace ensures that the joke is light and prevents excess buildup.
One of
my favorite skits that was in the first season but failed to last into the second
was the Wayne and Wanda bits. The two
Muppets would begin to sing some sort of big musical number from a famous
musical. After a few lines, some poetic or
pun based joke would befall the two to prevent them from continuing. If the two sung about the leaves in the
autumn, they would then have a large pile of leaves dumped on top of them. These skits would be introduced by American
bald eagle, Sam, who wishes to bring some culture into the show. The reason for the fallout if the skit is
probably less due to the joke of the skit falling through than the hoops needed
to be jumped to make it. What I mean by
that is that the Wayne and Wanda skits were probably too expensive to warrant
them being done. The skits were some of
the shortest ones in the show. They
might last a total of thirty seconds at most it seems. On top of that, the scenes they were in were
some of the biggest and most elaborate on the show. Making a large elaborate scene that only
lasts a few seconds would eat up any show's budget and that is most likely the
reason that so many skits are repeated.
If one set can be used over and over again, the cost of the show can be
reduced. While Wayne and Wanda appear to
have dropped off the stage, at least Sam made it out alive to deliver his naive
wit.
 |
| I am not sure why he is my favorite character. |
Then
there is Pigs in Space, a sci-fi parody sketch that points itself at shows like
"Flash Gordon" but more specifically at "Star Trek." The skit is smart enough not to be making fun
of the sci-fi aspects of these shows but more aim itself at the sexist
qualities of the male characters that dominate such shows. One only needs to look at Captain Kirk and
how he has become synonymous with being a space Casanova, or at least fancies
himself as such. The show is smart
enough to put the one female character that would never stoop herself to his
requests, professional or otherwise.
Miss Piggy is perhaps one of the strangest female roles out there, even
if her ego makes up for her positive qualities.
I do not say that she is strong for her physical abilities. She has already given enough Karate chops to have
cut herself enough planks to make a house.
No, she is strong because of that stubbornness, and somewhat because of
that ego. Miss Piggy does not take
nonsense from anybody and knows how to handle most situations. The Pigs in Space skits are clever because
they approach the topic of gender relations not only with its usual comedic
flare but also by seeing through dim witted male stereotypes.
That
will be it for today, Internet. I need
to make sure I still have something to talk about tomorrow.
Yours in digital,
BeepBoop
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