The Muppets 1.06: “The Ex-Factor”
Piggy and Kermit on set.
Just last week, I was a bit worried that Piggy, in trying to over-assert how much she didn’t need Kermit, might have tipped over into being so monstrous, he might never fall back in love with her anyway, but this effortlessly restored my faith in their ability to eventually find their way back to each other. Because here, Piggy acts more open-heartedly and kindly towards Kermit than she has in the entire series to date and then immediately afterwards, again (seemingly unintentionally), thrusts him back to the good times they shared together but also in a thoroughly Piggy way that even Kermit would have to concede is beautifully played. She kills him with kindness and without a hint of phoniness, trading in her usual diva histrionics for actual generosity, with a firm message snuck in underneath.
And not only does the episode subvert our expectations of Piggy in regards to Denise but in regards to blonde female guest stars, because as soon as I heard Kristin Chenoweth would be on, I–along with many other viewers, I’m sure–was positive that we were in for yet another Piggy diva-off, and yet that also doesn’t happen here. Piggy snipes at her for a moment, because of course she does, but overall they’re actually depicted as being friends. Kristin asks her about how she’s doing after the break-up and seems to genuinely care, and even though Kristin ends up showing her up at the end of their duet of “I Could Have Danced All Night,” ending on an operatic high note Piggy could never pull off, Piggy actually laughs it off! And whether or not this is the most likely thing, it’s just such a relief to see the writers not simply returning to the same well that I have no problem accepting it.
What’s really clever is that Kristin does get involved in a squabble with Muppets here but it isn’t with Piggy and it actually isn’t her fault at all, really. After the show ends, the Electric Mayhem all approach her about possibly singing with them at Floyd’s parents’ 40th anniversary, and she happily agrees. Incidentally, she is one of the best guests the show has featured so far, blending in so naturally with the Muppets that you never for once question her 100% commitment to treating them as real people, whether it’s gossipping with Piggy or chatting with Denise (more on that later) or the band.
Road trip with the Electric Mayhem and Cheno.
Speaking of which, she has great give-and-take with them in their RV the next day on the way to the anniversary party–I particularly love the bit where she tries to freshen Animal’s breath by tossing Tic-Tacs at his mouth–but then accidentally causes trouble when she innocently asks Janice and Floyd about their relationship, which sets off an argument between them about Janice’s refusal to commit, which in turn leads to the revelation that Dr. Teeth used to date her, which in turn leads to the revelation that Dr. Teeth is the only band member who actually gets paid for his work, which all culminates in them turning on Kristin and kicking her out of the car, leaving her alone in the desert, as tumbleweeds fly by! It’s a terrific subplot because all of the band members get great lines and moments of characterization–even Lips, who is usually just an afterthought!–and it all goes to such a Muppety place of exaggerated emotions which leads to misplaced blame and a completely well-intentioned Broadway star being left alone on the side of the road.
Additionally, it’s also great to spend a little more time with Denise, who finally starts to display her own sort of Muppety traits this week. In the first episode, she seemed nice. Not particularly interesting but nice. Here, however, she starts to finally be fun too, her best moment naturally being when Kermit suggests that the fact that Piggy is standing right there means she probably shouldn’t approach Kristin, of whom she claims to be the biggest fan in the world (although Uncle Deadly begs to differ), but a moment after sedately, maturely turning around, she changes her mind, screams “YOLO!” and rushes to Kristin for one of the most adorably rambling and geeky fan-meets-a-celebrity moments imaginable. She did more to win me over in those few lines than any of her previous scenes, because having met Kristin Chenoweth in person myself, I can totally relate.
And just a few more things:
–Uncle Deadly was as chockful of great lines tonight as ever, my personal favorite being, “I don’t present solutions, just dramatic problems!”
–While I understand that the time constraints mean that there generally isn’t time for many full-length musical numbers, I do wish that we’d been able to hear a bit more of Piggy and Cheno’s song. Either way, I’m liking this more-music-in-the-episodes trend.
Scooter in his happy place.
–I’m loving how distinctly weird Scooter is on this show, each week seeming to add another layer of strangeness to his chipper nerdiness. The intensity with which he delivers the name of his mother’s boyfriend, Ken, is one of the best examples of this. He packs so much meaning into that one syllable.
–Piggy’s line to Kermit about getting plastic surgery to remove his neck wattle is also terrific, especially how she follows it up with, “Your pointy jester collar isn’t hiding anything!” I’m not sure whether or not that’s an intentional nod to the fact that Kermit’s collar actually did begin as a jester collar, but I’d like so.
–I can’t remember the last time Kermit’s anxiety-ridden reactions were as funny as they were when he began to worry over what gift Piggy could possibly choose, and I love even more how Piggy directly acknowledges his face going all curvy and squeezed as it does when he’s most upset, telling him “No squishy face, relax it, relax it,” caressing his face until he finally does relax it into its regular position, which is a great exchange because it feels like such a natural moment between two people who probably know one other better than anyone else knows either of them. They truly feel like a real former couple here who still feel affection for one another, which beautifully sets up the episode’s final moments.
In short, a truly wonderful episode that really groks its characters, and I hope there are many more like this to come!
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