It’s time to play the music… it’s time to light the lights… our coverage of The Muppets franchise begins TONIGHT!

While he had earned huge success with the creation of Sesame Street, Jim Henson wanted to break out of children’s entertainment and create something for a more well-rounded demographic leading to the creation of The Muppet Show. Almost instantly, the variety sketch series became a pop culture juggernaut, but Henson has another medium he wanted to conquer next: Movies!

With lofty ambitions for his puppet stars, Henson pursued a musical road trip origin film for the Muppet gang featuring unforgettable original songs written by Paul Williams and Kenneth Ascher. After shooting experimental footage to prove that the Muppets could still work outside of the Muppet Show sets, the film was greenlit, and THE MUPPET MOVIE became an iconic part of Muppet history.

Join Nick and Scott as they reminisce about their Muppet fandom, discuss the arduous process of making the film, dive deep into the meaning behind “Rainbow Connection”, and ponder the question: are the Muppets queer culture? (Of course they are)

No guests! Just vibes!

Become a Premier Tier PATREON supporter to hear our “Franchise Potential” companion podcast, plus bonus podcasts each week including Dueling Genre Tonight hosted by Nick!

Join the Dueling Genre Discord Server: https://discord.gg/rngwTkz8yw

Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra