Do Hemsworths dream of Elephant Beavers?
By Matt Fowler
Warning: Full spoilers for the episode follow…
The Muppets continued to straddle the line between off-putting and amusing this week with “Bear Left Then Bear Write,” in which Kermit’s lie caused Fozzie to quit the show and seek a writer’s life of solitude in the woods. An endeavor that ended with Fozzie swallowing a bug, losing his tent, and then getting knocked out by a tranquilizer gun. Overall, it was standard sitcom stuff. The age old premise of best friends wrongly sparing each others’ feelings as it pertains to talent, or lack thereof. Though I will say that loopy, drugged Fozzie was pretty funny.
Where The Muppets continues to shine though (despite how much of it actually deals with human/Muppet off-screen coitus) is with its use of guest stars. This week had three stories and three guests, one for each thread. And the best celeb cameo this week went to Liam Hemsworth as he slyly and coldly swiped a gal named Debbie out from under Gonzo’s sizable schnoz. Or the “elephant beaver” as Hemsworth described the show’s head writer. It was definitely the best moment here.
Christina Applegate was also a blast to watch as Miss Piggy tasked Scooter with trying to dig up dirt on the star after she surprised Piggy with a video featuring the late night hostess falling into a cake. Actually, one of my favorite elements to this story was the idea that “Piggy hates surprises.”
Given how much the late night TV scene is now so meticulously micromanaged, from excessively pre-planned banter to a cavalcade of SNL-type skits designed for next morning viral purposes, I liked that Piggy was no different. Yes, please don’t do anything out there that wasn’t planned ahead of time.
Nick Offerman was the only one who felt out of place this week. His bits weren’t bad, per se, just not up to snuff with the other guests. He played a weird, greedy version of himself and it felt strange because Offerman’s been able to capitalize greatly off the alpha-maleness his Parks and Rec character was known for. He does comedy tours about America and wood-carving and bacon and whatnot where he gives off a quasi-Ron Swanson vibe. So to see that not used here felt off. To that end, no one really knows what Hemsworth’s like off-screen so it allowed the show to use him more freely.
The Muppets is still a rather middling comedy. Some of the showbiz aspects work when it comes to booking famous faces who are game for puppet antics (especially when those antics include dating said puppets), but a lot of this is very by-the-numbers comedy that wouldn’t be tolerated if anyone other than the Muppets were performing it.
