Ten Favorite Episodes of The Muppet Show

Michael Wermuth - The Muppet Show has so many great episodes, and so many great songs and sketches from various episodes. But what are the best ones, exactly? This is a question that’s been on my mind for over a year. Many of the best episodes have some segments that aren’t that good, and many episodes that aren’t that good have at least a few really great sketches. With that in mind, it can be a challenge to determine which ones are truly the best.

But after thinking and thinking, I have determined my Top Ten Favorite Episodes, from start to finish. With these episodes, there’s barely a dull moment. They have great backstage plots, funny sketches, memorable songs, and more. No, I am not including episodes just because they include a certain character or recurring sketch that I like. No, I am not including certain episodes just because they have a few sketches that I really like. And no, I’m not including episodes just because I’m a huge fan of the guest star.

1.   Episode 123: Kaye Ballard
One of the strongest episodes from the first season (and the only one from Season 1 on this list), this is one of the few episodes where the Electric Mayhem is involved with the plot. It also features rare speaking appearances (at least by Muppet Show standards) for Nigel, Thog, and Trumpet Girl. Plus such great performances as "You Don’t Want My Love" with the Country Trio, "Life Gets Tedious" with Pa from The Gogolala Jubilee Jugband, and "Oh Babe, What Would You Say?" with Kaye Ballard and Thog. And Rowlf’s solo performance of the closing theme is great as well.

2.   Episode 209: Madeline Kahn
If there’s a Muppet retrospective, it’s always a safe bet that a clip from this episode will be included. And it’s such a great one, with highlights ranging from Kermit’s “Happy Feet,” Madeline Kahn’s encounter with Doglion in the park, Miss Piggy’s refusal to believe that Link Hogthrob used a control that he said he did, Floyd’s rendition of “New York State of Mind” (which also gets repeated in another episode... and that episode is on this list as well!), and of course a backstage plot where Gonzo falls in love with Madeline, leading to him singing “The Wishing Song.”

3.   Episode 212: Bernadette Peters
Another of the show's greatest episodes, this one involves Robin wanting to run away from home after not being noticed by the others. Additionally, there’s the running gag of Miss Piggy being jealous of Miss Mousey. Sketch highlights include Bernadette Peters singing “Take a Little One Step,” “Apple Jack,” and of course the classic “Just One Person." Plus, Sam the Eagle recites “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” a shoe is the patient in Vet's Hospital, and Beaker tries Bunsonium in Muppet Labs.

4.   Episode 223: John Cleese

One of the shows funniest episodes by far, this one involves Gonzo getting a long arm after catching a cannonball with his bare hand, getting teased by Fozzie and Floyd, and finally getting help from John Cleese (who only succeeds in being weirder than Gonzo). Cleese himself spends the episode not wanting to be on the show, complaining about having to work with pigs and monsters, and refusing to do the closing number. Plus Lubbock Lou and His Jughuggers sing “Somebody Stole My Gal,” Kermit and Piggy sing “Waiting at the Church,” Robin and Sweetums sing “Two Lost Souls,” Kermit interviews the Koozebanian Spooble, “At the Dance” couples tell “fly in my soup” jokes… Well, a list of what I don’t like about this episode would be shorter.

5.   Episode 301: Kris Kristofferson & Rita Coolidge
This was the first episode with two guest stars, and as the first episode of the third season, it’s a strong season premiere. The guest star numbers are great, but there’s also elevator shoes in Muppet Labs, Gonzo balancing a piano, a repeat of “New York State of Mind” (but in this episode it’s not the UK Spot), and we get the introduction of Gladys the cafeteria lady and the Canteen setting.

6.   Episode 318: Leslie Uggams
Sesame Street’s Big Bird joins Leslie Uggams in this show (sort of a second guest star) for the closing number, “Love Will Keep Us Together,” and also gets to meet Miss Piggy and Gonzo. Uggams herself sings with the big monsters for a rendition of “Hey There Good Times,” we get the first Bear on Patrol sketch, Vendawish makes a short Muppet taller, and Gonzo courts Camilla.

7.   Episode 424: Diana Ross
In this episode, Statler and Waldorf keep track of the show's acts like Olympic judges, based on what the audience likes. And for some reason in this episode the audience only likes the guest star, Diana Ross, who does such show-stopping numbers as “Last Time I Saw Him” and “Reach Out and Touch.” Her numbers are great, but the Muppet-only bits are also great, including the opening number “I Go to Rio” and Beaker’s rendition of “Feelings.”

8.   Episode 502: Loretta Swit
In this episode, Kermit actually fires Miss Piggy for planting items about them in the gossip papers, with guest star Loretta Switt replacing Piggy in Veterinarian’s Hospital and Pigs in Space. This episode has more focus on the plot than sketches, but there are some great sketches, such as Loretta’s performance of “I Feel the Earth Move.” Other great moments include Miss Piggy’s rendition of “One of These Days” and the rousing closing number “Side by Side by Side.”

9.   Episode 506: Brooke Shields
In this episode, the Muppets put on a production of Alice in Wonderland, with Brooke Shields as Alice. Things don’t exactly go as planned when Brooke shrinks and can’t get back to her normal height. Some of the highlights include the opening number “I’m Falling,” Scooter acting out the Jabborwocky poem, a courtroom scene with Marvin Suggs as the judge, and a mad tea party with a song from a famous movie based on a different fairy tale.

10.   Episode 523: Linda Ronstadt
In this episode, Miss Piggy locks Kermit in a trunk after realizing he has a crush on the guest star, Linda Ronstadt. Three of Linda’s four numbers have been on other lists I’ve made on The Muppet Mindset, so it goes without saying that they are great numbers, and she’s such a great guest in her scenes. Additional highlights include a gloomy rendition of “I’m So Happy,” a rare full-body appearance of The Swedish Chef, and Rowlf’s performance of “The Cat Came Back.”

Well, those are my top ten, but I know there’s a lot of great episodes I didn’t include on this list. What are some of yours?







The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

Ten Favorite Muppet Babies Episodes

Michael Wermuth, Jr. - The Muppet Mindset doesn't really have many Muppet Babies articles, does it? Well, here's a list of my top ten favorite episodes of Muppet Babies!

10. Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad Dark
This was the first Muppet Babies episode to feature Bunsen and Beaker, and to my knowledge the only one where either is the main character. In this episode, after watching a scary movie, Beaker is afraid of the dark, and the others have to help Beaker overcome his fear, including singing the great song "Good Things Happen in the Dark" and a trick-or-treating sequence.

9. The Daily Muppet
After Nanny's newspaper gets ruined before she can read it, the Muppet Babies decide to start their own newspaper. Gonzo imagines going to space to find alien life, which he finds but the others don't believe him. One of the best sequences include Fozzie and Animal making a comic strip (where Fozzie gets attacked by word and thought balloons). One of the best lines: After Kermit sees that Rowlf, who writes the music review, has turned in sheet music, Rowlf says "I couldn't write words, so I wrote it in music."

8. My Muppet Valentine
Nanny makes Valentines cookies for the babies, but Rowlf doesn't get a cookie. The others decide to make it up to Rowlf by making him a great surprise, but end up thinking they've made him sadder by leaving him out of what they were doing (to avoid spoiling the surprise), but it turns out Rowlf has a surprise for them: A great song called "You're Special to Me." And that song sure is a special song. It's a good one to watch around Valentines Day.

7. Comic Capers 
In this episode, the Muppet Babies make their own comics, while Gonzo has to clean up a mess he made in the hallway. The highlights include a Muppet version of Peanuts (including clips from the actual specials) and a Spider-Man sequence (with a live-action cameo by Stan Lee). Spider-Man returns after the credits, revealed to actually be "Spider-Animal." What's not to love about this episode?

6. Snow White and the Seven Muppets
After seeing a play, the Muppet Babies decide they want to become actors (as we know, all of them except for Skeeter grew up to accomplish this goal) and decide to put on a play, "Snow White" (which the babies had just saw before the start of this episode). Skeeter plays Snow White and Piggy ends up as the evil queen, which she is not happy with. There's a lot of silliness here, various characters play multiple roles (including Fozzie as the magic mirror as well as a dwarf), and after being out of apples, the queen scares Snow White to sleep. One of this episodes funniest lines, when Fozzie asks a mirror who the funniest one of all is: "Fozzie Bear, I cannot lie, when you tell jokes, I want to cry."

5. He's a Wonderful Frog
In this episode, Kermit is visiting Robin for the weekend, and Nanny had told the others to be okay with Kermit being gone, but their extra-encouragement makes them think he'll never want to come back, so they put on a "This is Your Life"-style show for Kermit, as Kermit keeps trying to tell them that he's not leaving for good. This episode includes a clip of the Macy's Kermit float (the first time I saw that float). One of this episode's best sequences is an old-style sitcom parody.

4. Good Clean Fun
After the Muppet Babies accidentally break Nanny's favorite lamp, they try to make it up to her by making lunch, only to make a big mess in the kitchen. Nanny then puts them in charge of giving Animal a bath (is it really a wise idea to let a bunch of babies give a younger baby a bath?), only for Animal to go down the drain. This episode's big highlight is a Ghostbusters parody. One of this episodes funniest lines: After Animal says "Go bye-bye" (before the credits), Piggy remarks, "This isn't 'go bye-bye' time." Interesting fact: This isn't the first episode I saw (I can't remember which episode that would be), but it is the first episode I saw on Nickelodeon.

3. I Want My Muppet TV!
After the TV breaks, the Muppet Babies turn a cardboard box into a TV set and make their own shows (a plot later ripped off--err, I mean borrowed by Rugrats and Baby Looney Tunes). Gonzo does a Star Trek parody, Bunsen and Beaker do a commercial, Animal does a commercial selling mud, and Rowlf has the babies do a music video, but the highlight is when Piggy appears on "The Johnny Carson Show," and Fozzie even gets a laugh from Mr. Carson with one of this episodes funniest lines, "I'm going to tell a joke, if you promise not to throw tomatoes at me."

2. It's Only Pretendo
In this episode, the babies play various video games, with Gonzo and Piggy heavily competing in a Legends of Zelda-type game. Among the game parodies includes a Frogger parody with Kermit, Scooter and Skeeter using a power pad-like system, and both Gonzo and Piggy participate in a Donkey Kong parody. This is probably the one episode that risked becoming dated, as video games had just been popular for a few years (after the video game crash of 1983). Who knew back then that video games would continue to be as big today?

1. Muppet Babies: The Next Generation
This episode combines elements of Star Trek, Star Wars, and The Jetsons very well, with Rowlf trying to avoid a bath but not being understood by the others (he's supposed to be Astro from The Jetsons). Skeeter gets mad at Scooter and let's Bean Bunny be her sidekick in various duos (including Judy and Elroy Jetson and C-3PO and R2-D2). This episode has many highlights and running gags, including a variation of "The Jetsons" theme annoying Kermit, the environmental song "The Future is Counting on You," all the parodies getting out-of-control (including appearances by four Kermits in different roles), and Bean deciding to be the princess. Two great lines from this episode: 1. When Piggy gets saved by Kermit as "Indiana Frog," she says "I don't know who's writing this, but give them a bonus." 2. At the end when Nanny's about to give Rowlf his bath, "But I'm not Rowlf. I'm his grandson from the future. We don't even have dirt in the future, Nanny, honest!"

 Well, that's the list. I hope some of your favorites were included. And as Baby Animal would say, "Goooooooo bye-bye!"

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

Ten Favorite Waiter Grover Segments

Michael Wermuth, Jr. - Today I'm going to write about my top ten favorite "Waiter Grover" segments. Hopefully your favorites will be on the menu -- err, I mean list. 

10.   Outdoor Restaurant 

Mr. Johnson goes to Charlie's outdoor restaurant on a very windy day, where the wind blows the customer's food away. Unfortunately, it doesn't blow the bill away (and apparently he has to pay even though he didn't get to eat his food).

9.   Picture Menu 

An early segment from before Mr. Johnson would be as grumpy as he would be known for.  Mr. Johnson orders a sandwich exactly like the one pictured on the menu, making Grover go back until it is exactly like the one pictured. And when it's finally as it should be, Mr. Johnson's lunch hour is over. Interestingly, he does not get mad that he missed lunch, and doesn't even get a to-go box. He just calmly gets up as if missing lunch wasn't a big deal. 

8.   Singing and Dancing Waiter

 Grover works at a Spanish restaurant, where he is required to sing and dance as he serves the food. However, whenever he sings and dances, he ends up spilling the food. One funny thing is when Mr. Johnson suggests he sit the food down before dancing, Grover sits the food onto the floor as opposed to the table. 

7.   Bawk-bawk Sandwich 

One of the few segments where Grover's restaurant customer is not Mr. Johnson, but the similar-looking Simon Soundman (who at one point implies that they are brothers). Simon asks for a chicken sandwich, but due to the way he talks, he makes the chicken sound instead of saying "Chicken sandwich," leading Grover to bring in different kidns of sandwiches, including an elephant sandwich (which is just a toy elephant), a guitar sandwich, and a telephone sandwich. The fact that the restaurant would actually serve guitar and telephone sandwiches is funny. 

6.   First, Next, and Last

Mr. Johnson orders coffee, soup, and pie, and wants them all in the same order. Grover keeps getting the order mixed up, until Mr. Johnson says he wants everything else before the pie, causing Grover to actually bring everything else on the menu to the table at once. Of course Grover could have just brought all of his customers orders at once and Johnson could have eaten in the order he wanted. 

5.   Waiter Memory

Mr. Johnson orders a cheeseburger and french fries, but instead of writing it down, Grover has his own method for remembering: Make a poem out of his customers orders. With the rhyme "Round and tasty on a bun/pickles, french fries/yum, yum, yum!" Grover brings his customer a grapefruit on bread. It is then time for the waiter's lunch break, and for some reason Grover gets the idea to order a hamburger and fries. 

4.   Spaghetti 

Grover works at an Italian restaurant, where Mr. Johnson orders spaghetti. Unfortunately, Grover only brings out one piece, then two, then one again, before bringing in too much, spilling it on his customer. This segment is really funny, I like the set used for this restaurant, and all that spaghetti looks so tasty. 

3.   CH Sounds

It's Charlie's birthday, and in honor of his birthday, the restaurant only serves items that begin with the "CH" sound. Mr. Johnson ends up ordering a cheeseburger with chocolate ice cream, and this time Grover gets his order right and brought in right away, but before Mr. Johnson can enjoy his meal, the table gets taken away, as table does not begin with "CH." One neat thing about this segment is it's perhaps the only one where the outside of the restaurant is shown. 

2.   Rival Waiter 

Mr. Johnson actually gets a different waiter, Pino, but then Grover shows up and they argue over who is supposed to serve at Mr. Johnson's table. Mr. Johnson actually doesn't care who his waiter is, and they cooperate to bring in food, bringing in nearly everything until Mr. Johnson has them listen to what he wants. Unfortunately, the restaurant happens to be out of what he wants. He probably should have just picked some of the many food items that had been brought to the table. 

1.   Big Burger

One of the all-time classic waiter Grover segments, Mr. Johnson orders a hamburger, and he gets two choices: The little hamburger and the big hamburger. Since the little hamburger is too small, he chooses the big one, refusing to listen to Grover's warning about the big one. And a giant hamburger crashes through the door and onto the table. The giant hamburger makes this one the most hilarious of the waiter Grover segments.

Well, that's my list. Now if you excuse me, I have to go out to eat (hopefully no blue monsters will be serving me).

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

Top Ten Favorite Dinosaurs Episodes

Michael Wermuth, Jr.'s Top Ten Dinosaurs Episodes

Michael Wermuth, Jr. - Dinosaurs was a great series, and it had many great episodes. For this article, I'm going to list, in my opinion, the top ten greatest Dinosaurs episodes, in chronological order. Every episode is worth watching, but if you haven't seen the series, I'd recommend watching these ten first.

1. "The Mighty Megalosaurus"
This was a good way to start the series, with Earl telling Baby the story of how he was born. I really like the Arthur Rizzic character, and considering he becomes Mr. Richfield’s assistant at the end, I wonder why we never saw him again (well, aside from the puppet being reused a handful of times). He would have made a good Smithers-type to Richfield’s Mr. Burns. And it seems like Richfield isn't as mean here as he would later become. One of my favorite scenes from this episode is where the Baby hatches from his egg, a very adorable scene. I also like Howard Handupme's line at the start of this episode:"A meteorite twice the size of earth is heading, to bring an end to plant and food life. This just in? No it's not."

2. "The Family Challenge"
A very memorable episode to me. Both TV sets in the Sinclair household break (one due to a meteor), and when insurance refuses to pay, the family has to talk to each other at dinner (which Fran is happy about while the others would rather watch television). Earl enters the family on a TV game show, The Family Challenge, after learning that the grand prize is a large television set–but without telling the rest of the family. After preparing for a month Earl learns the value of family–and all of the categories are TV-related. As a kid, I didn't realize that the shows the family watches at the beginning–"Pangea's Funniest Home Injuries" and "Pangea's 2nd Funniest Home Injuries"–were meant to be parodies of America's Funniest Home Videos.

3. "Refrigerator Day"
The closest thing the show had to a Christmas episode, the cast celebrates Refrigerator Day, celebrating the invention that made civilization possible for the dinosaurs, in addition to getting presents (and with no religious meaning the whole holiday is commercial). Unfortunately, Mr. Richfield refuses to give his employees their expected Fridge Day bonuses, and with bills to pay, the Sinclair's refrigerator gets repossessed. This episode has many funny scenes, including the paint commercial ("We wish you a Merry Fridge Day so come in and buy paint!"), Baby refusing to hit Earl when he lets him, and Earl's fantasy sequence where Richfield is a very nice guy. I also like Earl's line "Spent all our money on presents, which isn't hard considering what I make."

4. "And the Winner Is..."

When the Chief Elder dies (right before naming the Baby, causing a misunderstanding where the Baby's new name is "Ugh Ugh I'm Dying You Idiot"), B.P. Richfield runs for Chief Elder, and has Earl run against him (so he'll be sure to win). But eventually Earl becomes convinced he has to win and eventually wins over the voters, only to have second thoughts on whether he's right for the job. In the end, neither Sinclair or Richfield win, and the Baby gets a new name (which ends up being what they had already been calling him). I like the beginning, where Fran mentions various events from previous episodes, as well as the Sinclair children singing "The Name Game" and struggling to rhyme "Ugh Ugh I'm Dying You Idiot."

5. "What Sexual Harris Meant"
Monica gets a job at WESAYSO and on her first day gets fired for resisting the advances from foreman Al "Sexual" Harris, who uses double-meaning sexual innuendos when talking to women. This results in a hearing against the company, where Richfield and other employers constantly make her look bad. It's hard to tell if she actually wins, though. I really like the victory song sung by the male dinosaurs ("We are man, hear us roar. We are macho dinosaurs.").

6. "A New Leaf"
A very funny parody of "very special episodes," after a fight with Earl, Robbie decides to run away from home, where he and Spike find a plant that makes them happy. Robbie brings some of the plants home, making Earl and Charlene happy. Earl soon takes some to work, where he gets fired (but eventually his co-workers and even Mr. Richfield become hippies). After the happiness of the plant effects their lives in a bad way, Fran takes the Baby (the two having not used the plant) and leaves until they recover. This episode has some hilarious scenes, such as when Robbie thinks their lives are on TV, Earl wonders why our metric system is based on ten when they only have eight fingers, and of course the ending, where the characters are shown on the set of the series and Robbie gives a talk on the dangers of drugs, which lead to sitcoms having unfunny episodes for the sake of an anti-drug message. So take Robbie's advice: "Say no to drugs. Help put an end to preachy sitcom endings like this one."

7. "Network Genius"

The Antediluvian Broadcasting Corporation tests their new fall line-up on Earl, who is unimpressed with all of the shows he sees... except for the test pattern. The network executives think he's a nut, but when the highest-rated show of the fall season is the late-night test patterns, they appoint Earl as a network executive, who eventually gets tired of test patterns and puts on such shows as "Baby Cuddlebunny, MD" (a parody of the shows own Baby Sinclair, with the catch phrase "Not the pajamas!") and "Box Full of Puppies." Unfortunately, these shows cause viewers to lose their intelligence (with comical results). At Fran's insistence, Earl schedules brainier shows that he doesn't even understand, which succeed in making viewers smart again (in fact Robbie and Charlene start to become a lot smarter than they previously were) and become a ratings success–until Dinosaurs decide there are more fulfilling ways to spend their time than watching television.

8. "Baby Talk"

It's the classic "Smoo" episode! The Sinclair's hear the dirty word "smoo" on television and, after laughing at the fact that a dirty word was spoken on TV, the Baby constantly repeats the word. After the historical first use of "smoo" being said on television leads to a TV show all about the word, Earl starts a group to protest the networks about it, but when their efforts fail they go to the government. The government agrees, but then starts censoring more words, and then causes censorship not only on TV but in real life, which includes male dinosaurs having to wear pants. It's a funny episode with a lesson on censorship and free speech, and smoo sure is a funny word.

9. "The Son Also Rises"
In this episode, Robbie, tired of being bossed around by Earl, challenges his father for male supremacy of the house, and ends up winning. At first, Robbie enjoys being the head of the household, but eventually tires of the hard work he has to do, while Earl starts to act like a kid. In fact, when Robbie asks Earl to be the head of the house again, Earl initially refuses, only to change his mind for a somewhat childish reason: Thursday nights are "adults only" at the miniature golf course. I really like how at the beginning, when Earl goes to the miniature golf course to yell at Robbie for not cutting the grass, he brings a piece of the grass to the golf course (and Robbie does the same basic thing to Earl later).

10. "Earl, Don't Be a Hero"
In this episode, Earl gets promoted to toxic waste supervisor at WESAYSO, and after coming in contact with the toxic waste, he gains superpowers. He is happy that Baby has become a fan, but then Richfield happens to see him use his superpowers and informs him that the contract Earl signed with the company states that any employee who gets superpowers becomes property of the company, and Earl has to promote WESAYSO-sponsored events, putting it ahead of stopping crime. I really like the scene at the beginning when Baby watches another superhero, Captain Action Figure, who promotes an official Captain Action Figure signal ring, stating that "you're mommy will buy it for you... IF she loves you."






The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

Twelve Favorite Muppet Christmas Songs

Ryan Dosier - I know what you're thinking, "A list of things? That's Michael Wermuth, Jr.'s territory!" Well, that's true... but we've got nothing else to use for a post today, and it's almost Christmas, and I felt the need to list some of my personal favorite Muppet Christmas songs! These span from various Muppet Christmas productions (Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, A Muppet Family Christmas, The Muppet Christmas Carol, It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, Letters to Santa) to Muppet Christmas albums (John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together, Green and Red Christmas, Merry Christmas from Sesame Street), and other places! So get your music ready, and prepare to have a listen to these wonderful Muppet Christmas favorites!

12.   "My Best Christmas Yet," The Muppets, A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa
Say what you will about this 2008 special, but I just love this song. It's Paul Williams, it's Muppets, it's Christmas... it's hard to go wrong. The Muppet-filled finale gives us solo verses from the likes of Rowlf and Robin the Frog, the latter of which had not been heard since It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie. But aside from that, this song stands on its own as fun both lyrically and tunefully. Kermit and Gonzo leading the vocals works brilliantly and showcases the wonderful voices of Steve Whitmire and Dave Goelz. What I love is all the little side-plots going on during this song: Swedish Chef revealing to the turkey that he made a tofu turkey for dinner, Zoot lighting a menorah, Fozzie giving Clare and Clare's mom Christmas sweaters, rats in stockings, Bunsen dancing with Beaker... everywhere you look is fantastic Muppet mayhem. 

11.   "Everyone Matters," Kermit the Frog and Gonzo the Great, It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie
Another showcase for the beautiful vocals of Steve Whitmire and Dave Goelz, this song is the obvious emotional highlight of It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie for me. Yes, Kermit returning to the theater is fantastic, but nothing can top this beautifully sad, yet eventually uplifting song. The imagery of a down-trodden Gonzo singing with Kermit on a park bench is great. The message and lyrics and everything about this song is moving... "If only I could go back/and take another crack at/all the things I've left undone/I'd do them right" is such a great lyric, and speaks to us all in different ways. It's a crying shame that this song lost when it was nominated for an Emmy... I'll forgive, but only because it's Christmas.

10.   "Merry Christmas Baby," Pepe the King Prawn, The Muppets: A Green and Red Christmas Album
I believe this marks Pepe's first solo song ever, and it came on this great album released way back in 2006. Honestly, who knew Pepe could sing this well? I guess anyone that knows how unbelievably talented Bill Barretta is would realize that. This song is catchy, fun, and unbelievably well-performed and suited perfectly for Pepe, who joins the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Ray Charles, who also performed this song. I'm such a fan of this that I listen to it even when it's not Christmas, just for Pepe's fantastic vocals. Besides, how often do you get to hear Pepe call out to Zoot for a rockin' sax solo?

9.  "Little Saint Nick," Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem, John Denver and The Muppets: A Christmas Together Album
One of the Electric Mayhem's greatest performances is this Christmas classic from the Beach Boys. Dr. Teeth and Janice's leading vocals have never been better, and Floyd's repetitive back up singing is perfection. This song more than almost any other just sounds like Jim, Frank, Jerry, Richard, and Dave were having a ton of fun. I had a hard time choosing between this song and "Jingle Bell Rock" from A Muppet Family Christmas for my favorite Electric Mayhem Christmas song... but "Little Saint Nick" just barely wins out for having more Floyd. I love me some Floyd Pepper.

8.   "True Blue Miracle," The Sesame Street Cast, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street
There are so many great songs and performances in this near-perfect Sesame special (and this isn't the only one you'll find on this list), it's impossible not to include some of them on any list of the greatest Muppet Christmas moments. This song performed by Bob, Olivia, Gordon, Susan, Maria, Luis, Mr. Hooper, David, Bert, Ernie, The Count, and more classic Sesame Street favorites is absolutely beautiful. You would really be hard-pressed to find a song that sings the beauty of the Christmas season better than this. Lyrics like, "Once a year, the street I live on sparkles like the sky--all hung with lights for Christmas!" make this song stand out as one of the true greats. And if that isn't a true blue miracle, I don't know what one is.

7.   "It Feels Like Christmas," The Ghost of Christmas Present and The Muppets, The Muppet Christmas Carol
It is so unbelievably hard to pick out just a few great songs from The Muppet Christmas Carol. Let's face it, they're all good. "One More Sleep 'Til Christmas" is a great showcase for Kermit, "Bless Us All" is one of the most beautiful songs ever... but "It Feels Like Christmas" always takes the cake for me. It's the real show-stopper of the movie, plus it boasts great vocals from Jerry Nelson as the Ghost of Christmas Present. It's another example of a fun Muppet number that you can't help but smile during. Also... Michael Caine tries (and fails) to dance at one point. How do you beat that?

6.   "The Christmas Wish," Kermit the Frog, John Denver and The Muppets: A Christmas Together Album
This song is not only one of my favorite Christmas songs ever, but one of my favorite Kermit songs ever. Jim Henson is so perfect here (as he so often was) and Kermit really never sounded better. Everything about this song is beautiful. It's a song of acceptance, it's a song of love, it's a song of peace. When Kermit sings, "I don't know if you believe in Christmas/or if you have presents underneath the Christmas tree/but if you believe in love/that will be more than enough/for you to come and celebrate with me," he's telling you and me and all of us that no matter who we are, as long as we love, we're okay with him. It's a message on par with any other message Kermit delivers. I love it.

5.   "Carol Medley," The Muppets and the Sesame Street Cast, A Muppet Family Christmas
When choosing a song from A Muppet Family Christmas, it might seem incredibly difficult... but it's not. The nine minute medley that closes out the special features a million Muppets, a million songs, and shines the spotlight on nearly every main character. It's amazing how confident Jerry Juhl, Jim Henson, and the rest were in these characters by this point... so confident, that they knew the audience would sit and adore a nearly ten minute medley of songs. The Muppets were really at their peak at this point, and this medley exploits it brilliantly. Whether you have the slightly cut version released on most home video, or the full version from TV broadcast... it really is hard to top this.

4.   TIE: "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," Kermit the Frog, A Green and Red Christmas Album, and Bert and Ernie, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street
Yes... it's a tie on the same song, but anyone who has heard both of these will surely agree with me. It's impossible to declare either of these versions better than the other. Steve Whitmire's sweet, calming, and loving voice as Kermit gives me shivers every time I hear it, and Jim Henson and Frank Oz never had a better duet as Ernie and Bert than in the culmination of their "Gift of the Magi" story. It also helps that this song is so perfectly suited for the Muppets that they've done it over 15 times (according to Muppet Wiki)... but none of them top the beauty and perfection of Kermit or Bert and Ernie.

3.   "Keep Christmas With You (All Through the Year)," The Sesame Street Cast, Christmas Eve on Sesame Street
Music, lyrics, vocals... all of them come to the forefront in this tour de force of Christmas caroling. Sam Pottle and David Axlerod completely outdid themselves with this perfect piece first debuting on the album Merry Christmas From Sesame Street, and used beautifully--twice--in Christmas Eve on Sesame Street. I love the magic of Bob and the kids singing it while doing sign language with Linda, but then the finale version which brings the whole cast together to sing... perfect. Honestly, I think I would love any version of this song... and I'd really like for the Sesame gang to sing it again soon.

2.   "When the River Meets the Sea," Emmet Otter and Ma Otter, Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas
What is there to say about this Paul Williams song that hasn't been said before? It's perfect, it's beautiful, it's breath-taking, it's amazing. Numerous versions of this song have been done, including an exceptional rendition by John Denver and Robin, but none can ever beat the original. Jerry Nelson's Emmett and Marlyn Sokol's Alice Otter carry the tune like no one else. This song is also amazing for not pigeon-holing itself as an exclusively Christmas song. You can listen to "When the River Meets the Sea" anytime, anywhere, and still be moved by its beauty. Look for Kermit and Robin to sing the song on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on December 23rd!


1.   "The Twelve Days of Christmas," John Denver and the Muppets, John Denver and The Muppets: A Christmas Together Album
Is anyone surprised by this song being number one? I hope not, because it really doesn't get better than this. John, Fozzie, Gonzo, Robin, Piggy, Scooter, Lew Zealand, Rowlf, Bunsen, Beaker, Statler, Waldorf, Beauregard, and Kermit sing this song with such gusto and hilarity that it can't be beat. From Miss Piggy's hysterical "ba-dum-bum-bum" to Gonzo singing about three French hens, to Lew Zealand singing at all... this is a wonderful piece through and through. Every time this song comes on in the car, I attempt to sing it in the voice of each Muppet... and it ain't easy. I also love the performance of this that the Muppets did with Jimmy Fallon a few years ago, featuring Sam Eagle, Pepe, Rizzo, and Animal, along with all the others. Hysterical, wonderful, perfectly sung... there is no better Muppet Christmas song... and perhaps no better Christmas song period.

Did your favorite Muppet Christmas song make the list? Tell us yours in the comments below!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com