The Muppet Mindset: Sesame Street Saturdays: Season 40

Today, we welcome back our good friend Shane Keating, who brings us two weeks of Sesame Street Season 40 episode reviews and overviews!

EPISODE 4200 – THE RAINBOW

STREET STORY

As Elmo draws, he spies a rainbow in the sky. He calls Rosita over, who has never seen a rainbow. However, the rainbow vanishes before she can see it. Leela makes them a rainbow using crayons, even making up a way to remember the colors (using the name “Roy G. Biv”). Rosita still wishes she had a rainbow, so Elmo fetches some colored monsters to make a monster rainbow.

Hidden Gem: Jon Stone’s face is seen on an advertisement for “Jon’s Pencil Emporium”. (One of the things they list selling is “Writer’s Blocks”, Ha!)

HIGHLIGHTS

Jake Gyllenhall explains “separate” by separating an octopus from his head.
Another Sesame Street English cartoon with Cookie Monster and the letter O.
Abby’s Flying Fairy School: Blögg bites an enchanted apple Abby brings in for show-and-tell and falls into a deep sleep.
Adam Sandler writes and performs “A Song About Elmo”, using clever rhymes such as “bell-mo” and “kevel-mo”.
Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures: Ernie and Bert are now farmers of a barren farm. A rain cloud proved them with some, but gets carried away.
The Bloom Network presents an episode of “Desperate Houseplants”. (from season 36)
Elmo’s World: Water (a rare appearance of an Elmo’s World episode from Season 30)

EPISODE 4201 – FIND THE AMPHIBIAN

STREET SCENE

Abby and Elmo are lounging in the garden when they become contestants on “Find the Amphibian”, hosted by Anne Phibean (the most obvious pun ever). She has them look for an amphibian before the tadpole grows up into a frog. Their first clue is to find something that lives in water. They find a fish (Wanda Cousteau, but with a different performer), but she doesn’t live on land. Their next clue is that the animal breathes air. They find an exercising robin, who doesn’t live in water. Next, the amphibian is described to have four legs. They spy Buster the Horse getting his horseshoes shined, but he claims to be a mammal. They find an alligator, who claims he’s a reptile. They then realize Anne is a frog, thus, she is an amphibean!

Hidden Gem: Marty Robinson makes a cameo getting his shoes shined.

HIGHLIGHTS

An animation about N words in the wilderness
Elmo can’t sleep at night. Ricky Gervais, armed with a guitar, prepares to sing him a lullaby. After some hilarious, over-the-children’s-heads banter, Ricky begins a lullaby about the letter N, which is less than soothing for Elmo.

EPISODE 4202 – ELMO AND CHRIS GO CAMPING

STREET SCENE

Elmo and Chris are camping out in the woods. Chris takes this as a chance to get away from preparing food at Hooper’s. However, various animals (including a beaver, some turtles, two raccoons and some ducks) arrive, who too are hungry. After finding what each animal eats, they all dig in. As Elmo and Chris begin to sleep, Chris is seen sheltering the animals in his sleeping bag as well.

HIGHLIGHTS

An animated Cookie Monster sings about the letter T.
Jason Mraz sings a parody of his hit, “I’m Yours”, singing about the beauty of being “Outdoors” with Elmo, Abby, Baby Bear, Rosita, Big Bird and the kids.
A cartoon about 16 acorns
A cartoon about in and out inside a painting.
Ernie sings “Shake Your Head One Time” with Grover, Bert, a Honker and Elmo. (from season 37)

EPISODE 4203 – SQUIRMADEGA CAR RACE

STREET SCENE
Today is the Squirmadega Car Race and Slimey is competing. Elmo, Slimey’s biggest fan, wants him to win badly. Jeff Gordon, the race announcer, kicks of the festivities by introducing worm superstar, Carrie Underworm, who sings the “Worm Anthem”. The race course consists of them going over a laundry basket, under a table, around the fire hydrant and through Big Bird’s legs. As the race commences, all the cars except for Slimey and Shawna Wiggleson make it to Big Bird, but Slimey misses going through and looses. Elmo is distraught, but Gordon and Oscar convince him Slimey isn’t sad and he shouldn’t be either.

Hidden Gem: Bip Bipadotta makes a cameo watching the race (even saying “Mahna Mahna”)

HIGHLIGHTS

Brendan Fraiser and Grover show “speedy”
Animated Elmo sings about the letter L.
Abby’s Flying Fairy School: Gonnigan uses magic to make his plant grow and creates a beanstalk that carries Peck up to a giant’s lair in the sky.
Jill Scott sings “We Are All Earthlings” (from season 33)
Salty and Pierre look for the number 5
Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures: Now car mechanics, Ernie discovers that one of their customer’s cars is powered by song.
Abby makes a camel appear instead of a pizza for Zoe and Rosita. They then try to “Find That Habitat” and send him home.

EPISODE 4204 – JACK’S BIG JUMP

STREET SCENE

Telly and Baby Bear are announcing “Jack’s Big Jump”. When Jack Be Nimble arrives to jump over the 8 prepared candlesticks, he crashes into them. He then runs off into the garden to hide. Baby Bear and Telly try to console him, but he claims he’s lost his jump. They bring him a kangaroo, who sings him a jumping song to get him back in a jumping mood. He tries jumping over the candlesticks again, but finds that he can’t jump over. They call in the Cow who jumped over the moon (from “Hey Diddle Diddle”) who helps him learn to jump over a flower pot and Baby Bear. With renewed confidence, Jack jumps over the candlesticks. Afterward, he tries jumping over a bigger prize – the moon, with the cow following close behind to keep her territory.

Hidden Gem: Biff and Sully appear in the crowd for Jack’s jump.

HIGHLIGHTS

Grover arrives just in time to help Ricky Gervais show “stumble” (by stumbling of course).
A film montage of kids and people jumping to show the letter J.
Ernie sings “Wake Up!” to Bert. (from season 34)
Eight dancers perform in the park

EPISODE 4205 – INSPECTOR 4

STREET SCENE

Elmo and Telly are helping Leela in the Laundromat when Inspector Four (played by Judah Friedlander) appears. He inspects places, making sure they have exactly four of something. He can’t find four of anything in the Laundromat and is about the close it down, when they point out the four bottles of fabric softener. He heads fro Hooper’s, where he finds Chris has made several sandwiches. Elmo and Telly save the store from closer by eating the sandwiches until there are four. Next, he heads for a letter R, who has a rake (only one R word). Telly retrieves three more and the R is safe. Suddenly, the Inspector gets a call from his superior, who promotes him to Inspector 5. Here we go again!

Hidden Gem: Chris sings the Joe Raposo classic “Peanut Butter” as he prepares some peanut butter sandwiches.

HIGHLIGHTS

Jimmy Fallon and Elmo show “inspect”.
Abby’s Flying Fairy School: The school takes a field trip to Colonial Trolliamsberg, a town populated by trolls. Blogg, a half-troll-half-fairy, tries to hide his fairy roots from the natives.
Keb’ Mo’ sings “Everybody be Yo’ Self” with the Sesame gang (including Kermit, from season 32)
Bert and Ernie’s Great Adventures: While out at see, Ernie meets a mermaid (Ethyl Mermaid) and goes diving with her. A surly rat drops his trash in the ocean, which Ethyl gets caught in.

Tune in next time for more rundowns!