Season Review: The Muppets Mayhem Season One

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Junior A&R executive Nora (Lilly Singh) must deal with the madness caused by Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, who come face-to-face with the modern musical business as they try to record their first-ever platinum album.

Our Take:  

Ever since the Muppets made a big comeback with the 2011 film, Jim Henson’s iconic puppets have been slowly but surely making themselves relevant for the current generation. They’ve been experimental with the mockumentary-style sitcom back in 2015, which sadly didn’t last long. However, they managed to find their footing in 2020 due to Disney+’s popularity, starting with the six-episode segment series Muppets Now. Afterward, the streaming service gave us a Halloween special combining the Muppets with The Haunted Mansion, which I thought was a satisfyingly entertaining treat for fans of the two source materials.  

So now, the Muppets are keeping the music going with another limited series for the streaming service. Yes, I mean “music” because this latest show focuses on the coolest puppet band in town, The Electric Mayhem. While I don’t have a favorite Muppet at the time, I always enjoy the presence of Kermit, Fozzie, Gonzo, and even Miss Piggy whenever they’re onscreen. I also don’t mind Dr. Teeth and his band’s rock n roll music despite having less screen time than the main characters. So when I heard that there’s a series that mainly focuses on the band, I immediately became curious about how they will carry it without the assistance of the frog singing “Rainbow Connection”.

We’ve seen plenty of side characters get their chance to shine in their own spin-off materials, including the Minions. While some of them were enjoyable in my eyes, they often remind us that we’re better off seeing them as just comic relief. So how does The Muppets Mayhem fare compared to the other spin-off shows and movies? Well, to describe it with the power of music, the latest addition to the Muppet category rocks and rolls with ease. It maintains the heart and soul of what made the Muppets iconic and delivers a fun, hilarious, and rollicking journey to make the band’s first album.

Part of what makes the Muppets so special is their perspectives on specific topics and trends, such as social media, and putting their humorous spins on their approaches via fourth wall breaks and weirdly charming antics. They’re not only well-written for their dialogue and slapstick, but they also hit the right beats for the laughs. The Muppets Mayhem takes The Electric Mayhem into the world of the music industry and the process of creating an album. The result is pretty much what you expect from a Muppets project involving the kookiest and funniest dysfunctional band: hysterical and entertaining. One of the best examples of this is in its fourth episode. That episode has the band trying out different types of music for “Rockin Robin”, including techno and rap. This sequence offered the best out of the puppets’ curiosity about the current trends without taking them seriously.

But, of course, there’s also a matter of its seasonal plot. Unsurprisingly, the series follows the essential elements we’ve seen in other projects involving the music business and sitcom scenarios, especially in its sixth episode, “Fortunate Son”. Despite that, the series provided plenty of clever ideas to keep the music flowing and the mayhem crazy. I was initially concerned about The Electric Mayhem being front and center since they’re one of the comic reliefs whose job is to provide brief light-hearted chuckles whenever the main characters are absent. Having them accomplish their task as central characters could risk being over-stretched and tiring. After all, The Electric Mayhem may be the craziest, but they’re not exactly the brightest.  

Fortunately, that didn’t happen here, as the band we grew up with shines in almost every scene, not just regarding the humor but also the heart. In typical Muppet fashion, the series reflects the furry abnormal creatures as actual characters in the real world instead of tools for kid-friendly slapstick. One reason is that it further explores the band’s origin amid their rocking quest to make an album. For example, we see that Floyd has been raising Animal since he was left on Floyd’s doorstep as a baby, and “Fortunate Son” showcases flashbacks of Dr. Teeth’s first encounter with Floyd. The series portrays the band that’s been in our hearts for years, and with their histories being told, it makes me adore them even more.

Another element I enjoyed was the Muppet performers, including Bill Barretta, Peter Linz, and Leslie Carrara-Rudolph as Penny Waxman, Nora’s boss and Dr. Teeth’s former lover. They once again deliver charm, talent, and comedy in their puppetry and vocal performances. As for the human characters, they offer enough regarding their characteristics to hang with the band, including YouTuber Lilly Singh as Nora Singh. Tahj Mowry was also decent as Moog, the band’s super fan turned producer. By the way, I just discovered that Mowry is the brother of Tia and Tamera Mowry and also voiced Wade Load on Kim Possible. The latter part instantly blew my mind with Disney nostalgia. But, of course, it isn’t “The Muppets” without a bunch of celebrity cameos, including Danny Trejo, Cheech & Chong, Zedd, and Morgan Freeman. Unsurprisingly, the cameos were an absolute delight.

The series also includes two different animation styles for specific sequences that’ll likely impress many animation followers. One is stop-motion, which portrays Dr. Teeth’s hallucination after eating expired marshmallows in “Break on Through”. The other is the style representing the popular online game “Minecraft” in “Virtual Insanity”, where the band performs in a virtual concert. These animation styles displayed the Muppet mania in a refreshing light instead of being gimmicks for jokes.

Overall, The Muppets Mayhem rocks and rolls into people’s hearts with another humorous and charmingly entertaining addition to the Muppet catalog. Ten episodes can be a bit of a stretch regarding the characters’ brand of humor, and the plot’s elements were understandably traditional. Regardless, the series proves that it might be possible for Disney to give the different Muppet characters a shining moment in their own spin-off shows. Maybe we could get one involving Gonzo and Rizzo? Regarding its cast, humor, heart, positive messages, and musical vibe, this album further shows that Jim Henson’s classic puppets still haven’t lost their melodious touch.