DefunctTV: The History of Muppet Babies
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In this episode of DefunctTV, part 5 of 6 in the Jim Henson miniseries, Kevin explores the history of the Muppets Take Manhattan, Muppet Babies, Labyrinth, The Storyteller, and much much more.
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@Hendodoesstuff
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
0:11 Codey: oh no- (screams) boss: oh no.
@teebee6102
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Could have just said cerial box
@JackalsIII
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Thanks for covering the Marvel involvement
@barbieboytimmy4414
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I was born in 1981 I honestly do not remember the first two Muppet movies, yes I had seen them but I did not love them the way that I loved the Muppets take Manhattan…. I remember when the first two movies would come on TV I would be disappointed when I realized it wasn't the Muppets take Manhattan….. I'm surprised to hear that that one was said to have lacked Muppet energy because for me that one define The Muppets and is second only to the Muppet Christmas special where they go to fozzie's grandma's house and it has sesame Street and fraggle Rock included!
@joningram5792
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Babies can talk especially when the adults are not around.
Rugrats: Am i a joke to you.
@IanCombs1337
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Is this why we got Rugrats?
@Algahiem
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
What I find rather unfortunate yet understandable is that the Muppet Babies is one of few TV show that never be repaired or repurposed for terrestrial TV and it has limed availability for streaming. This is because due to the footage from other movies being used. Even though Disney now owns the Muppets, Lucasfilm and 20th Century Fox, some of episodes of Muppet Babies also included clips from movies and TV shows from Warner Bros and Paramount. Since paying royalties dealing with all the "red tape" would be a massive, expensive headache for Disney, they decided it would be far simpler to pretend it never existed and just reboot it as a completely different CG cartoon in 2018. If it wasn't for the internet and YouTube, the original Muppet Babies would've been lost into the animation aether.
@MichaelN1994
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I remember this show on Nick Jr. back then!
@DonkeyEngine
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Do MirrorMask
@ErinReed23
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I totally forgot about the Christmas Toy!! Just unlocked a DEEP memory
@literallywhy6162
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
It’s interesting to me how the staying power and fan support for a piece of media has almost nothing to do with the critical reviews. The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth have their cult following but also are more well known in popular culture than The Storyteller. I’d personally never heard of it until the first time I saw this video.
@masonwheeler6536
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I was a little kid when Muppet Babies came out. To me, that was the Muppets; it wasn't until years and years later that I found out there was a whole bigger franchise of these characters as grown-ups who were puppets.
@Vince__
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
If you want 2D pokemon games just play the hundreds of quality rom hacks. I really don’t think we’re ever gonna get another one again aside from sloppy rush jobs in the vein of BDSP, and it’s been long enough to where I’ve made peace with that
@bluestrife28
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
This show has a solid place in my heart from back in the day. I always liked the small universes hidden beneath our regular world that the muppets and their buddies created. Like the whole Fraggle Rock world hidden in someone’s walls, I wanted to shrink down and hide in my walls too.
@chloebuggers
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
13:10 lagiterately the coolest mashup team up ever! The three cornerstones of my childhood in one thing!
@TrueFaith94
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Oh HE's Frank Oz?? I only ever knew him as the cop who booked Dan Akroyd at the police station in Trading Places 😂
@SayHelloToYourMotherForMe
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Animal PANTS
@gabe_s_videos
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
"This might sound familiar."
Now that you mention it, that DOES sound like the plot to a certain classic animated film.
Raggedy Ann and Andy: A Musical Adventure!
@GShumway132
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Muppet Babies was the beginning of the end for the Muppets.
@FoxxyMike1984
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
She stood with him after cheating and I guess karma was toxic shock.
@iambicpentakill971
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I would have loved labyrinth, but boy do I hate almost all of the music 🎶Dance magic dance🎶
@fiolettbjorn7461
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I will never understand the failure of Labyrinth. It is, in my mind, one of the few perfect feature length fantasy films ever made. Holding up and even getting better with age.
@j.theyounger187
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
🎶 When your room looks kinda weird and you wish that you weren't there 🎶
@lostintranslation1957
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Such a disaster was the Labyrinth that it is still watched regularly by me and millions of others since its release.
@montecristo1845
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Netflix, give us Season Two of The Dark Crystal—Age of Resistance NOW.
@theonionqueen3519
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
8:45 I really wish you had expanded on the examples of what some of these voice actors performed
@DamianSuicida610
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
You didn’t mention that The Christmas Toy, their is a new toy that doesn’t know it's a toy and thinks the rest of them are aliens
@b4mmer4ng90
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
if only he knew how much of a cult following those two movies now have
@WinnieTheCat24
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Loved watching muppet babies on Nick Jr
@sherrihaight2724
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
But who approved bowies' pants??
@BipolarBowler
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I saw Labyrinth at the theater when I was 7. I was blown away and not expecting to be so enthralled.
@christianausan8239
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
13:59 13:59 13:59 13:59 13:59
@AndyPagana
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Fun Fact – The first episode was written by Jeffrey Scott. (You showed the credit briefly) He's the grandson of Moe Howard of the The Three Stooges.
@WilhelmDrake
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Labyrinth was and is an amazing film!
@chrisnotyou
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I loved the Muppet babies. I knew it was time to eat my sigar coated corn puffs when Muppet babies came on.
@Goat0423
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Jim Henson: Gets uneasy about Sesame Street because he didn’t want the Muppets to seem like they’re for kids
Also Jim Henson: “Hmmm yes baby show”
@professor_paladin
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Special shout out to my two favorite villains: NOS-4A2 the robotic energy vampire and Wirewolf the cyborg lycanthrope. Such fantastic ideas!
@MarshalTennerWinter
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
i dont like the muppet babies cuz i dont like wondering who is changing miss piggy's diaper.
@noshynosh3249
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
How did they not know to get David Bowie a codpiece for Labyrinth?
@SpeedPoffin_rebirth
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Its funny to think that the guys who animated dragon ball also animated muppet babies 😂
@Bopig
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I recall seeing Labyrinth when I was young and it was definitely one of the most unique and memorable movies I have ever seen. It was really gross though I recall the fart bog. I wouldn't say it was a good movie but it sticks in your mind.
@brendenhinson8719
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
Today I learned about little muppet monsters. Never ever had that one cross my path
@donttalktomeyoureannoying
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
I would argue that Sesame Street characters are just memorizable as Disney characters.
Although I know Elmo wasn’t created by Jim Henson, he is an icon just like Mickey Mouse.
Jim Henson wanted to appeal to adults which is funny how later on in life he wanted the same longevity as Disney which was rooted in entertaining children.
@NelvanaFan1971
May 3, 2026 at 7:56 am
The special where Jim Henson entered the TV hall of fame in 1987 Aired on our New Friend (at the Time): Fox