Noël en famille chez les Muppet

"A Muppet Family Christmas" is not only the greatest Muppet Christmas TV special ever made, but it is also the greatest Muppet TV special bar none. Some may even consider it the greatest Christmas TV special ever made.

"A Muppet Family Christmas" is so delightful to watch that you may not find yourself caring that the special really doesn't have a plot. Most of the adult Muppets (i.e. the ones from "The Muppet Show" (1976-1981)) accompany Fozzie Bear to his mother's country house, and they spend the rest of the special settling in and getting ready for Christmas.

That's pretty much the extent of the story. What makes this special . . . well . . . special is when more Muppets appear and crowd the house. First, there are most of the "Sesame Street" Muppets who come a-caroling, only to later make themselves at home.

Later, the Fraggles from "Fraggle Rock" appear below Ma Bear's house. Oh yeah, and those Muppet fans who are relatively unfamiliar with "Fraggle Rock" may not notice that the human who intended to rent Ma Bear's house for the holiday is none other than Doc (Gerard Parkes), who brought his dog Sprocket with him.

Muppet fans who are familiar with all three Muppet universes (or at least two) will find some surprising poignancy in these different characters interacting. I especially treasured scenes like Bert & Ernie engaging in "small talk" with Doc, or the Swedish Chef trying in vain to cook Big Bird only to reconsider after receiving a special gift. I also laughed when Rowlf and Sprocket speaking "dog".

To fully enjoy this special, it helps if you know most of the Muppet characters beforehand, which is a prerequisite almost all children of the 1970's and 1980's fulfilled effortlessly. I imagine children born after 1990 will know the "Sesame Street" characters, but not the others as much. Undoubtedly, they will wonder why Elmo didn't get more screen time.

"A Muppet Family Christmas" was actually one of Jim Henson's favorite specials on which he worked, and was even described by Henson biographer Brian Jay Jones as "one of (Henson's) finest, and most under-appreciated, productions". It's under-appreciated for a good reason: it has rarely been seen on TV in years, and is out of print on VHS and DVD.

Also because of music royalty issues, and because the "Muppet Show" Muppets are owned by Disney, the "Sesame Street" Muppets are owned by Sesame Workshop, and "Fraggle Rock" is owned by HIT Entertainment, the best chances of seeing this special are unfortunately by spending $50+ on a DVD copy on eBay or Amazon.

A special like this one, which Muppet fans love and some have even worn out their old VHS copy they taped from TV, deserves to be seen perennially, and obtaining a copy of it should not be difficult. In fact, there is a Facebook group dedicated to getting the special the DVD release it deserves, and the page is already "liked" by several cult followers (Campaign for Eventual "Muppet Family Christmas" DVD Release).

This special is very much like the holiday season: craziness and chaos abound, but it is nothing that good company, song, and the comfort of love and companionship can't make worthwhile. Just like the holiday season is one to which people look forward, they may have to wait longer to own a copy of this movie. However, if you find yourself lucky enough to get your hands on an uncut copy, consider yourself lucky.

I remember seeing this special when I was younger and I recently acquired the video. I've watched it a few times already. It's so cute and involves all the muppet characters (including fraggles and Sesame Street characters). My favourite parts are when the turkey tries to 'woo' Camilla and when the Swedish Chef tries to cook Big Bird. It's very amusing. And of course, Miss Piggy must make a grand entrance! I highly recommend this movie if you are in a giddy or childish mood. Every child I know enjoys this video.

I first saw this on Nickeleon(the old school one from the early 90s) during the holidays.

I really liked this one, because it has a lot of your favorite Muppets all gathered up for Christmas at Fozzie's mother's farmhouse, who didn't expected her own son to bring company over.

While Doc(from Fraggle Rock) was expected to have a quiet Christmas, but finds the farmhouse to be packed with Muppets. And to make it more interesting the entire Sesame Street Muppet gang came all the way from new york to celebrate with them.

And not to mention the 5 main Fraggles from Fraggle Rock, who know little about Christmas also decide to join the fun. With these many Muppets all under on roof, you'll be sure to expect one enjoyable Christmas TV movie.

With some Chirstmas Carols, and jokes. I'm sure any Muppet Fan will be pleased with this TV special. The cool thing is this was made when Jim was still around. He even made a cameo at the end just cause it's the holidays. I re watched this off of the recent DVD release which had a few minutes cut out of it. Cause I remember some extended scenes that were included in the TV version.

Hopefully one day there'll be an uncut DVD of this fine Christmas program. If Jim were still alive, he'd be sure that this TV movie will remain uncut for everyone to enjoy.

Having seen this for the first time as a child, and subsequently grown up watching it several more times, A Muppet Family Christmas has become my favorite Christmas TV special.

There is a lot of charm and joy to be found in this 40-odd minute show. Muppet fans will truly appreciate this, if for no other reason than the mass gathering of literally every single Muppet Show, Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock character, and a cameo appearance by the late Jim Henson himself, surveying his creations as they celebrate the season. Even for those who aren't Muppet fans but suffer from Christmas fever, this should prove enjoyable, with many heart-warming sequences and several Christmas songs performed.

A Muppet Family Christmas contains it's share of the usual Muppet moments of charm and wit, but it succeeds most by simply being a feel-good holiday special. It is the perfect show for the season.

This is probably my favorite Christmas special of all time, and I never even saw it as a kid. I have a weakness for the Muppets, and this special literally just hits you with all the muppety goodness you could ever ask for. The crossovers with Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock are so well done, and the little relationships they build with the characters (Oscar and Rizzo, Big Bird and Swedish Chef, Animal and Cookie Monster, Kermit and Doc) are just so sweet and funny and incredibly heartwarming. That's the best word to sum the whole thing up- heartwarming. The music is wonderful, the jokes are actually kind of hilarious (the scene with Fozzie and the Snowman is INCREDIBLE), and it's just a lot of fun. My favorite bit in the whole thing has got to be the scene with Ernie and Bert and Doc ("where we're from, this is small talk), and the whole plot line with Miss Piggy trying to get to the farmhouse and her big entrance at the end is so CLASSIC Piggy, and that cameo at the end has me in tears every single time. I can't ever not watch this special, as it's the biggest and best crossover the Jim Henson Company ever did, and it's just DRIPPING in Christmas magic. I absolutely love this special, and I highly recommend it. 9.5/10