A Muppet Family Christmas

There’s nothing like getting the family together for Christmas. I watched the December 16, 1987 family musical television special A Muppet Family Christmas. Directed by Peter Harris and Eric Till, it takes place at a farmhouse around Christmas. Starring Jim Henson, Frank Oz, and Jerry Nelson, it is rated TV-PG.

The Muppets surprise Fozzie Bear’s mother Emily at her home by staying for Christmas. While she had plans to stay in Malibu, California, renting the house to Doc and his dog Sprocket, she does end up changing her plans to accommodate them. More characters seem to keep popping up. Except for Miss Piggy, who needed to take care of things before she got there. When a blizzard starts, Kermit worries about her. Can they all come together for Christmas?

The Muppets is one of the most charming franchises there is. They offer other Christmas specials too. Many watch The Muppet Christmas Carol around this time. For good reason, as it really is one of the best adaptations of A Christmas Carol out there. While not as powerful as that, this is also an effective Christmas special. To start off explaining why, I wanted to bring up the crossover nature of this special. This is not just a Muppets Christmas special. They also bring in the characters from Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, and even through a home movie have a scene with Muppet Babies, shown in puppet form as opposed to their original animated form. All the major Jim Henson shows are given representation here. The audience is given the charm each series had, blended together well. I really do admire Jim Henson’s puppetry. I am not even a puppetry fan in general, but Jim Henson’s is really amazing. He allowed them to be made in a way that looked endearing and allowed for plenty of movement. Jim Henson also made two movies where he was able to implement this style, The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. And aside from these examples, there have been many movies and shows made over the years to use this style. Years after the man’s death, Jim Henson’s Creature Shop is still operating and used for many projects you might not even have been aware it was used for. The Muppets wiki covers all usages of the puppetry, not just the title franchise, if anyone is interested. Said puppetry works for this crossover to stand out among crossovers.

As for the special itself, I like that it is a low stakes special. Apart from the worry with Miss Piggy, it is just meant to be a story where only comedy and heartfelt moments happen. And they are done very well. With all the characters true to their established personalities, nothing is forced. Everything happens naturally for how these things would go. It is also a treat to see the characters singing beloved Christmas songs. Even an ending consisting of the characters singing multiple Christmas songs for several minutes, which is a good way to wrap up. Unfortunately, from what I’ve heard, copyright issues made it so the special that people are watching today does not have all of the original scenes. I still love watching what I do have on my DVD of it, but I feel like I would love the original uncut version. From what I have heard, there is a petition to get the original version released again. I am not one to join petitions and I do not know if anything will come of this, but if anyone is interested, that information is right here in this review. Finally, despite voicing several puppet characters himself, Jim Henson does make a cameo in this special near the end. It is brief, but his presence does help add some warmth. It is more meaningful when you consider this came out in 1987 and he would die only a few years later in 1990. This really is a funny yet touching special.

Overall, I really like this Christmas special. It does not go too big. It is memorable from beginning to end, with enough characters for any devoted Jim Henson fan to check it out. If you have not seen it, do yourself a favor and check it out. It will help you get into the togetherness mood every Christmas should have.

Christmas is my favorite holiday and my favorite time of year. For many, it is a wonderful time of year that represents the best of human kindness. Unfortunately, many people feel truly alone around Christmastime. This is sad that not everyone feels the togetherness Christmas is supposed to bring. I hope to change that for at least some people by bringing up things you can do to combat Christmas loneliness. You can do things you want to do over the holidays even if you or someone else is saying you should not. You can catch up with those you have not talked to in a while. You can try to make new friends. You can volunteer to help those in need. You can partake in early giving before Christmas. If none of these work, you can consider getting professional help for your loneliness, which there’s no shame in doing. Even if it’s not your loneliness, you can also meet up with someone going through loneliness to try to help them through it. Christmastime really is a beautiful thing and the less loneliness, the better.