Muppet Babies (1984 TV series)

Did You Know?

• The show's post-credits scenes typically end with Animal crashing the scene and calling 'Go bye-bye!'
• As of 2000, approximately 300,000 animation cels of the show were stored by the Jim Henson Company Archives off-site.
• The show is unable to stream on Disney+ due to copyright and licensing fees regarding the film and television footage used in episodes.

Production

The concept for the show originated in Jim Henson's art department. During work on Sue Venning's Muppet Show Bill, Henson suggested depicting the Muppets as babies; the book was not changed, but the idea was considered charming. Staff including Michael K. Frith created character designs of the Muppets as toddlers. After Frith showed a sketch of Baby Piggy to Henson, Henson decided to develop a merchandise line. Throughout 1983, prototype versions of the Muppet Babies appeared on infant and toddler clothing, nursery decor, and diapers. During production of The Muppets Take Manhattan, Henson convinced Frank Oz to include the Muppet Babies in the film, replacing an original fantasy sequence. The scene was shot on August 28, 1983, and was considered one of the most difficult to film because puppeteers had to perform the baby characters using their stubby limbs. The film was released on July 13, 1984. A music video of Henson's self-directed song "I'm Gonna Always Love You" was created for MTV, combining film scenes with new footage.

Release

Muppet Babies first aired on CBS on September 15, 1984, at 9:00 am Eastern Time as part of the Saturday morning block. That season, it went up against NBC's The Smurfs. A first-season episode, "Gonzo's Video Show," was broadcast as a primetime special on December 18, 1984. For its second season, CBS paired the show with a new program called Little Muppet Monsters under the umbrella title Muppets, Babies, and Monsters, which launched on September 14, 1985. This companion show, featuring live-action puppets and cartoons with adult Muppets, faced competition from ABC's Ewoks & Star Wars Droids Adventure Hour and was canceled after three episodes, with over nine more in production. CBS replaced it with fresh Muppet Babies episodes, then reruns from the first season. In the 1987–1988 season, the show expanded to three episodes after CBS pulled Garbage Pail Kids before it aired. Broadcasting Magazine reported on July 11, 1988, that the series would enter syndication on Claster Television for the 1989–1990 season, starting September 18, 1989. Reruns ran on Claster until 1992, then on Nickelodeon from October 5, 1992, to December 31, 1998, and on Odyssey Network from April 4, 1999, to March 2000. In Canada, it aired on YTV and later Treehouse TV.

Reception

The show received universal acclaim from critics. David Bianculli of Knight-Ridder Newspapers called it one of two promising Saturday-morning cartoons and praised it as a wonderful addition to the lineup. Mike Hughes of Garnett News Service ranked it among the two best Saturday-morning shows of 1984, describing the Muppet Babies as cute and the script as fresh and funny, and later noted the writing ranked with The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends and Danger Mouse. Steve McKerrow of The Evening Sun called the show a standout among cheaply executed Saturday-morning cartoons, describing it as clever and honestly funny, with a child's-eye view of the world and well and colorfully animated. He later called the program Muppets, Babies & Monsters a welcome addition to the Saturday-morning lineup.

Other media

The first album, Rocket to the Stars, was released in July 1985 by Parker Brothers Music on LP and cassette, featuring an outer space adventure with eleven original songs. It was reissued on July 20, 1987, by Columbia Records, and re-released as Rock It to the Stars in September 1993 by Jim Henson Records on CD and cassette. Sandra Tompkins of The Fresno Bee called the album an exciting Oz-like journey with catchy sing-alongs. Peter Fawthrop of AllMusic gave it four out of five stars, praising the songs and voices but criticizing the storybook format. The second album, Music is Everywhere, was released on July 20, 1987, by Columbia Records on LP and cassette; Doug Hoagland of The Fresno Bee praised the music as catchy. In 1985, Marvel Comics produced a monthly Muppet Babies comic under its Star Comics imprint, drawn by Marie Severin, lasting 26 issues. The last two issues were drawn by Nate Butler. In 1992, Harvey Comics acquired the rights and produced three issues. The Muppet Babies also appeared in Star Comics Digest, a digest-size format reprinting short stories, lasting thirteen issues from 1986 to 1988. Three live performances were produced between 1986 and 1990 by Bob Shipstad and VEE Corporation: Muppet Babies Live! premiered August 28, 1986, at Ohio Center in Columbus, Ohio; Muppet Babies' Magic Box followed in 1987; and Muppet Babies' Where's Animal? in 1988, ending in May 1990 after 40 cities. Production values cost $1 million.