12 Reviews of Christmas - It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002)

        Hey guys, Chuck here, and welcome back to 12 Reviews of Christmas. Last year, we took a look at The Muppet Christmas Carol, which is beloved and enjoyed by many even to this day. This year, I want to take a look at a 2002 television movie that the Muppets starred in called It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie. Alongside the Muppets, this movie stars David Arquette, Joan Cusack, William H. Macy, and Whoopi Goldberg, with special guest appearances by Matthew Lillard, Carson Daly, Joe Rogan, and the cast of Scrubs, with a vocal cameo by Mel Brooks. 

           Now, the movie takes its story cues from It's a Wonderful Life, where Kermit the Frog is having a not so Merry Christmas. His plight is observed by Daniel, an accounting angel who goes to his supervisor, Glenn, to help Kermit. However, after Glenn refuses, Daniel decides to go straight to "the Boss." The Boss agrees to look at Kermit's case, but if she can't be convinced that Kermit needs help, Daniel will have to convert her entire music collection from records to MP3s. It's here where we get our story. 

         So, Kermit and the Muppets are getting ready for a big Christmas spectacular at the Muppet Theatre. Unfortunately, the producer they hired, a French dude named Luc Fromage, puts together a show that just isn't working. On top of that, the nee bank manager, Rachel Bitterman, demands that the Muppets pay off the debt they owe against the Muppet Theatre by midnight Christmas Eve. Pepe the King Prawn, obviously attracted to Bitterman, leaves the Muppets and joins her instead. Miss Piggy, simultaneously, decides to find acting opportunities elsewhere. 

         Ultimately, the Muppets Christmas spectacular is quickly becoming a fundraiser to get the money together for Bitterman. Meanwhile, Bitterman gets her hands on the original contract between the Muppets and the bank, and she manipulates the deadline from midnight to 6 pm Christmas Eve, and she reveals that she wants to foreclose on the Muppet Theatre, tear it down, and replace it with a nightclub called Club Dot. Pepe, whose attraction to Bitterman was clearly physical, goes to warn Kermit of what Bitterman did. Kermit, meanwhile, has been unable to secure a celebrity guest for the show, and goes to get Miss Piggy back. Piggy agrees to return after she is fired from the set of the comedy series Scrubs. Kermit and Piggy ultimately put together a holiday show themed to the movie Moulin Rouge , called Moulin Scrooge. Fozzie is sent to get the money to Bitterman before the deadline, but runs afoul of a Steve Irwin impersonator, a charity Santa, and a group of people who look like the Whos of Whoville (obviously a not to the movie The Grinch with Jim Carrey). Unfortunately, Fozzie gets the bag of money mixed up with a bag of laundry, and returns to Kermit regarding his failure. 

         Now having seen the horrible events that have happened, the Boss decides to intervene, sending Daniel to help Kermit. She ultimately gives Daniel a copy of the book Performing Miracles for Dummies (obviously not actually a book in that series, but nice gag anyway). Daniel goes to Kermit to help, and Kermit says the words "I wish I'd never been born," prompting Daniel to show Kermit a world in which he'd never been born. In this world, the local park is a shopping mall, the Muppet Theatre is Club Dot, both Fozzie and Gonzo are homeless, Miss Piggy is a call-in psychic (obviously a nod to the late Miss Cleo), the Electric Mayhem are a troupe of river dancers (a la Michael Flatley), Rizzo is on the television series Fear Factor, and Doc Hopper's French Fries Frog Legs is a successful chain (nice throwback to the original Muppet Movie). 

          Realizing how much of an impact he really had on the world, Kermit seeks to take back his wish to have never being born, and Daniel sends him back, with his only request being for Kermit to fill out a comment card. Kermit rejoins the Muppets, and Pepe reveals that he managed to file for the Muppet Theatre to forever be a historical landmark, and thus unable to be torn down. As for the money? It ended up in the hands of the charity Santa, and he and his assistant celebrate the massive earnings for their charity. 

         Observing the results of the evening, Daniel asks the Boss as to the reason for everything turning out okay despite the fact that he didn't get justice for Kermit, she notes that Kermit didn't need justice, but to be reminded of what really matters, even adding "Danny L, I work in mysterious ways." 

       Honestly, I think that this is one Muppet Christmas special that deserves more love than it gets. The acting from David Arquette, Joan Cusack, and Whoopi Goldberg is phenomenal. Heck, even William H. Macy does pretty good in this movie. The main song from the special, "Everyone Matters," is a really nice song that does drive home and important point: even in the most trying of circumstances, everyone matters. 

         Now, obviously the references to Moulin Rouge, Scrubs, and Fear Factor kinda date the movie a bit, as do cameos by Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, Carson Daly, and Matthew Lillard. However, I still think that the overall story and the message at the end are very timeless and still hold up today. Now, is this special still available for viewing? Yes. In fact, Universal still sells the special on Blu-ray every year at Christmastime, and it's available at Best Buy every year at Christmastime. I enjoyed watching it when it aired back in 2002 on NBC, and I still watch it to this day on Blu-ray. I give It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie a rating of 4.05/5. 

          Alrighty guys, this is Chuck signing off, and I'll be back tomorrow with my review of the new Disney+ series The Santa Clauses as we continue to reach the end of 12 Reviews of Christmas.