Synopsis: The Fraggles celebrate the Festival of the Bells, while Gobo’s doubt leads him on a quest to find the Great Bell at the heart of Fraggle Rock.
Original air date: December 24, 1984
I don’t think it’s terribly controversial among Muppet fans to say “The Bells of Fraggle Rock” is a great holiday production. For what essentially boils down to a series created with children in mind, Fraggle Rock dealt with some pretty deep subjects, and the starter to season three is a great example. It’s a parable that explores faith and doubt and just why we have holidays and traditions anyhow. Children often have a lot of questions about the world, and I think that the earnest way this episode manages to deal with a big topic is exactly what makes it so enduring.
In case you haven’t seen the episode, here’s the basics on the Festival of the Bells: on the coldest day of the year (which coincidentally aligns with the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere), Fraggle Rock gradually slows down. To keep it from stopping forever, freezing everybody, Fraggles ring bells to awaken the Great Bell at the heart of the rock. While nearly everyone in Fraggle Rock enjoys the holiday, Gobo has his doubts. Since no Fraggle has seen the Great Bell in generations, he feels the whole thing is silly without proof. And yeah, I can understand where he’s coming from. It’s hard to say “we have to do this thing or else we’ll freeze” without having a whole lot of evidence to back it up. For all they know, it could be tradition just for tradition’s sake. It’s healthy to be inquisitive about things, though I’m not sure I appreciate him calling the whole thing silly. It’s one thing to question your own beliefs, but it’s another to insult the beliefs of others.
However! His perspective changes when he shows Wembley a map that outlines all of Fraggle Rock, and his best friend notices a bell-shaped cave at the center. Convinced the holiday will mean more to everyone if they can see the Great Bell with their own eyes (and that they’ll consider him a hero), Gobo sets out to find it and bring it back, asking everyone to wait to ring their bells until he returns. So he’s gone from raining on everybody’s parade to wanting to be the Grand Marshall. Sounds about right. And to his astonishment, after all his journeying, it turns out the cave is empty, and he returns to his friends to find they’ve all frozen. See what being inquisitive will get you? Meanwhile, the ever-patient Cantus reminds him that the center of the Rock doesn’t necessarily mean the heart of the Rock, and Gobo figures out for himself that the Great Bell is really the sound that comes from everyone ringing their bells. Thus, knowing the truth about the holiday, Gobo enthusiastically rings his bell, thawing everyone out to join in the celebration. Sometimes metaphors make the best holiday gifts.
My japes aside, this really does delve into some deep stuff. So what does this teach us about why we have holidays? For me at least, the answer lies somewhere in the lyrics of “There’s a Promise,” which is sung as Cantus arrives: “There’s a rhythm / there’s a rising / There’s a dream of green that needs to wake / A password / and a promise / That the Earth will never ever break.” At least for us in the northern half of the world, the holidays mark the start of winter, the coldest time of year. And when it gets cold, a lot of folks stay inside, and that can lead to isolation. And speaking as someone who’s sort of a shut-in, that can play with your mind. This year has been rough in more ways than one, and for a while, it sort of made me lose my faith in humanity. I didn’t even want to go outside for fear I’d run into the people I had grown to resent. But somehow, the holiday season has pulled me out of that pit of cynicism. There are wonderful people out there, even if we don’t see them all the time. And if we all ring our own bells once in a while, it can make a great noise. We have holidays to express joy and connect with others. As long as we can celebrate, the world keeps turning. Our traditions help us collectively thumb our noses at the dustbin of history. As long as we keep the things we love going, we can slow down the march of time. We make the magic, and the magic makes us. What better gift could there be? Maybe a new pair of mittens.
Strongest Moment: It’s a tie between the incredible sound of all the bells chiming together and Wembley grunt-singing “Weeba Weeba” as he heads to the festival, then shouting it maniacally. One serene, one silly. A perfect combo.
Weakest Moment: I think it has to be the postcard from Uncle Traveling Matt, where he encounters children hanging up stockings and leaving out milk and cookies for Santa. The punchline is that he eats a cookie. How do you set up Santa like that and not have old Saint Nick show up?
MVF (Most Valuable Fraggle): While Gobo’s the obvious choice, I’m handing the honor to Cantus for his patience and willingness to let Gobo discover the truth for himself. He’s a good teacher, even when he doesn’t try to be.
Most Classic Moment: Weeba Weeba, baby! (Plus, it’s a chance to see Fraggles perform the art of puppetry. Puppets puppeteering puppets!)
Musical Highlight: I know I’ve already gushed about “There’s a Promise,” but it’s just so darn good. The harmonies are fantastic, and it’s just a great song to sing this time of year, even if you’re not into the whole holiday thing.
Darkest Moment: The Fraggles are downright terrifying when they’re frozen, especially Wembley. The glossy eyes really give the impression that it’s about to be the Festival of the Funerals.
Fraggle Lore: If you happen to be in Fraggle Rock during the winter solstice, be sure to visit the Festival of the Bells!
One More Thing…: If I’m calling out Gobo for calling the festival silly, I’ve got to call out Red as well for trying to force Gobo into the traditions even when he isn’t feeling it. Just as you shouldn’t insult the faith of others, you also shouldn’t try to force your faith onto them.
Okay, One More Thing: In the B-story, Doc and Sprocket explore holiday traditions from around the world, including banging pots and pans and church bells tolling, which delight Doc to no end. I have to know what happened after that that made him want a nice, quiet Christmas so bad.
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by Matthew Soberman – Matthew@ToughPigs.com
