We’re just about to wrap up another entire year of Muppet nonsense, and if you’ve been tuning in to ToughPigs this week, you’ll know we already shared a recap of all the biggest news stories and our favorite ToughPigs articles from the first half of the year. In case you’re wondering about the second half of the year, you’re in luck! That’s all coming up right now!
But first! Do you wonder about how many articles we actually published in 2022? News stories? The number of times we mentioned Kermit the Frog? These numbers may surprise you!
Wow, what a year! And now we hope you’ll enjoy this look back at July through December, including all our bizarre commentaries, thrilling interviews, new podcasts, and more!
July:
The Muppets Get a New Logo – How would you know they’re the Muppets unless they have a logo that says “The Muppets”??
Overthinking It: Sesame Street Muppets Learn About Trees – Would trees even exist without Sesame Street?
RIP Henson Attorney and Former Henson Legacy President Al Gottesman – We remember Jim Henson’s lawyer, who was more important to Muppet history than any of us realized.
The Muppet Musicians of Bremen: The Muppet Movie Prequel – Fact: The Muppet Movie wouldn’t have existed without this weird little Muppet special.
The Great Muppet AI Challenge – Joe and Jarrod try to fool each other with Muppet-related A.I. prompts.
RIP Actor and Muppet Co-Star Tony Sirico – The Sopranos actor crossed paths with the Muppets a few times.
VIDEO: Taste Testing Gonzo’s Talking Sandwich – ToughPigs teams with Muppets No Context to taste test a terrible sandwich.
Celebrating Rosita – Rosita deserves some love. Let’s share some with her.
Play ERNIE & BERTLE: The Daily Muppet Music Guessing Game! – We made our own version of Heardle, but with Muppet songs!
Review: Walkabout Mini Golf’s Labyrinth Course – I always said that Labyrinth would’ve been perfect if only it featured 18 holes and a caddy.
August:
Cool Muppet Things I DID Own: Kermit Candlestick Telephone – Who wouldn’t want to talk directly into Kermit’s mouth whenever you want to make a phone call?
On The Offensive: Muppet Treasure Island – Is Muppet Treasure Island any good? This writer seems to think so!
The Fraggle Foodie: Summer Treats – Yum yum, Fraggle-inspired summer snacks! Yes, with radishes!
Bert’s Nephew Brad: The History of a Cute Baby Muppet (and His Teeth) – Why does Brad have teeth? Why does Brad have teeth????
RIP Olivia Newton-John – The Grease star also appeared in Muppet Magazine!
Which Muppet Should Pete Davidson Date? – At some point, Pete Davidson will have dated every human celebrity, so he’ll definitely have to move on to Muppets.
Hubba-Wha?! Returns – Your favorite Muppet trivia game show podcast returns for a second season!
ToughPigs Turns 21 – That means we can do all sorts of things… legally now!
Puppetry Is Hard – Who knew that keeping your arm in the air was so difficult? Oh right, lots of people.
HBO Max Removes Over 200 Classic Sesame Episodes – Literally ruining our childhood.
The Return of the Lost Brian Henson Intros – “Hi, I’m Brian Henson. See if you can spot the return of this obscure ToughPigs joke in this episode of The Muppet Show.”
FAQ About the HBO Max/Sesame Workshop Situation – There’s lots of confusion and misinformation out there, and I guess we’re the experts now?
Dog Person: An Interview with Barkley Performer R. Bruce Connelly – A fascinating chat with a fascinating Muppet performer!
Sesame Street on TikTok: A Perfect Opportunity for Silliness – Maybe Sesame Street is at its best when viewed in 15-second increments?
September:
Why So Many Muppet Uncles? – Uncle Deadly, Uncle Travelling Matt, Uncle Kermit… where are all the aunts??
RIP Queen Elizabeth II – She never worked with the Muppets, but I bet she wanted to.
Muppet Christmas Carol with Restored “When Love Is Gone” Coming to Disney+ – The “lost” (but not really lost, but also sort of lost?) song returns to the classic Muppet film.
Siskel and Ebert and Kermit: Everyone Loved The Muppet Movie in 1979 – They’re sort of like the anti-Statler and Waldorf.
BOOK REVIEW: Sam & Friends – The Story of Jim Henson’s First Television Show – An entire book all about Sam & Friends, brought to you by Esskay.
Review – Sesame Street: The Musical – Sesame Street comes to Broadway, and we got two tickets… for the first bus out of town.
Why I’m Proudly Celebrating Jim Henson’s 86th Birthday – Jim Henson would’ve been 86 years young, which can only mean one thing: We’re at war!
Sesame Rewind: Snow Joking Matter – Sometimes it snows on Sesame Street, and no joke – that’s really neat.
RIP Coolio – We remember the rapper and Muppets Tonight guest star.
October:
Jim Lewis: An Exit Interview – We chat with the longtime Muppet writer as he departs after 35 years.
RIP Muppet Show Guest Star Loretta Lynn – Remembering the guest of one of our favorite Muppet Show episodes
QUIZ: Which Came First in Muppet History, VOLUME 2 – How come there isn’t a Muppet named Sporcle?
Henson Happenings from NYCC – 2022 – NYCC was a hive of Muppet activity, yet only one Honker.
ToughPAIgs – An AI wrote Muppet content. Poorly.
Cookie Monster Said His “Real Name” Is Sid, But Don’t Get Too Worked Up About It – It’s not like he’s changing his name to ‘Veggie Monster’.
One Fine Face – A Deeper Look at the Face of Jim Henson – But what does his chin do? I can’t tell.
Fozzie Bear: The Best Man – Fozzie looks good in a suit and tie, and so do I.
How “Our Flag Means Death” Can Save “Back to the Rock” – Both got a Season 2 after all.
The Great Muppet Fandom Panel – Fall, 2022 Edition – We launch a brand new podcast discussing the recent months in Muppet news.
ToughPigs Halloween Parade 2022! – It’s the most wonderful time of the year!
Dead Man Gambling: The Muppet Show’s Unsung Spooky Ghost – Why must they give Muppets human hands?
November:
The Muppets Need New Songs – We’re still rooting for ‘Kermambo’.
WATCH: Kermit Sings “Rainbow Connection” at Lincoln Center – Why didn’t he sing ‘Kermambo’?
VCR Alert: Kermit to Appear on Best In Snow – You can see him if you freeze frame! Ahh, get it!?
Forget Hogwarts Houses, Sort Yourself By Henson Houses – Tag yourself! I’m a Fraggle.
An Interview with Waffles and Mochi’s David Bizzaro – A chat with Mochi himself!
Uncle Travelling Matt Talks “Night of the Lights” and Fraggle Holiday Traditions! – Yeah, we know Fraggles, what of it?
NON-SPOILERY REVIEW: Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock – Night of the Lights – Telling you what happens without telling you what happens.
Saying Goodbye to Twitter – Also can we stop calling Elon ‘Elmo’? It’s messing with our algorithm.
I Can Assure You That He Does – An irrational article about an infuriating joke.
Jim Henson’s Brats of the Lost Nebula: What Is It? – We’re still not entirely sure.
Ugh, Henson Company to Sell Fraggle Rock NFTs – Ugh. UGH.
December:
QUIZ: Muppet Holiday Special Gift-Giving – Who gave who a diamond tipped cheese slicer?
RIP Bob McGrath – Saying goodbye to part of our childhood.
Me and Bob: My Unexpected Friendship with Bob McGrath – Joe remembers his friend Bob.
The Best of Bob McGrath – Looking back at some of Bob’s finest moments.
Keep Christmas With You: Happy Holidays with Bob McGrath – How Bob was a Christmas icon.
Bob: The Sweater King of Sesame Street – Bob McGrath – fashion guru.
Bob Was Uncool and That’s Why He Was Cool – Appreciating Bob’s dorkiness.
Fall Asleep to the Fraggle Rock Yule Log – Enjoy the holidays snoozing with Sprocket.
Why It Matters That “When Love Is Gone” Is Found – Is it a necessary song? You be the judge.
Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock Renewed for Season 2! – Dance your cares away again (in an undisclosed amount of time when it returns).
The Profound Weirdness of Everyone Liking The Muppet Christmas Carol – ‘Cause they all hated it in 1992.
The Life of Gonzo, as Told by Gonzo – It included a great way of forgetting about that early 2000’s stuff.
Why A Muppet Family Christmas is the Greatest Christmas Thing Ever – It has THREE Santa Clauses, for crying out loud!
A Berry Bear Christmas Review – Beary Christmas!
It’s STILL The Christmas Toy – And you should call your cat Weegie.
How John Denver Made the Muppets a Christmas Tradition – So we have him to thank for Scooter cage dancing in 2002.
2022 Year in Review – Hey, that’s this article! (And the first half from earlier this week.) META!
Wow, what a great year. We really did get a lot of new Muppet stuff, we launched a bunch of fun ToughPigs projects, and we dealt with some heavy issues. We’re very grateful that we got to share all of this with all of you, and here’s to another Muppet-filled year in 2023!
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by Joe Hennes and Jarrod Fairclough
