What Disney+ Adding ‘The Muppet Show’ Means to Me

Disney+ announced this week that they are bringing the TV classic The Muppet Show to their lineup, something that hasn't made me this excited since they launched The Mandalorian.

The Muppet Show aired in syndication for five seasons from 1976 to 1981 and was a huge hit with kids and adults alike. I was five-years-old when it debuted and to this day, remember watching it every week with my parents. Of course I loved The Muppets because of Sesame Street, so this was don't miss TV for me.

The Muppet Show hasn't been available in its original form since it ended its run. Only the first 3 seasons have been released on DVD and they were heavily edited to remove musical performances that were too expensive to get the rights to. Seasons 4 and 5 have never been released on video because of this reason. Disney+ announced that they will have all five seasons streaming on February 19, so it sounds like they dropped the cash to make it happen.

As a kid In 1976, there was no such thing as home video, DVR's or streaming so when you wanted to watch a show, it was appointment TV. You had to be there when it aired or you missed it until it reran at some point. That meant that once a week my brother and I sat on the floor in front of the TV watching The Muppet Show with our parents in their recliners behind us. Every. Single. Week. That's pretty much unheard of in the days of on demand.

This was family time and even though we were just sitting watching a half hour TV show with puppets, we were all together, which is why this brings back so many great memories for me.

If you've never seen The Muppet Show, you'll be happy to know it stands the test of time. Sure, many of the celebrity guest stars have passed on or may not be known to younger generations, but the Muppets never age. Get the family together to watch. You won't be disappointed.