The premiere episode of "The Muppets" opened to solid ratings as people tuned in to see the new show, which promised to give a more mature take on the childhood favorite. While many feared that the reboot's grown-up approach would ruin their childhood memories, the episode titled "Pig Girls Don't Cry" was a big surprise as it gave an insight on the Muppets' lives behind the cameras, "mockumentary" style.
In the episode, the Muppets were seen working on Miss Piggy's late night show, "Up Late with Miss Piggy," with Kermit running things as the executive producer. All of the other Muppets had their own jobs, with Gonzo serving as the show's writer, Fozzie as the warm-up comedic act, and Dr. Teeth and Electric Mayhem making up the band.
The episode revealed that Kermit and Miss Piggy had broken up outside a theater playing "Pitch Perfect 2," and when Kermit booked Elizabeth Banks to be a guest on Piggy's show, the diva got angry and demanded that Banks should be banned from the show.
Kermit's new love interest, Denise — a Muppet who works in the marketing department of the fictional talk show — was also featured, and it appeared that she is very different from Piggy in a lot of ways.
In the series premiere, many people noted that Kermit seemed almost cynical and joyless, but co-creator Bill Prady told The Hollywood Reporter that the much loved character is going to be alright.
"I think Kermit is quite put-upon," said Prady. "He has moments of genuine joy and happiness coming up."
And while fans bemoaned Miss Piggy and Kermit's breakup, Prady said that he and Muppets creator, the late Jim Henson, along with others at the Muppets Studio, initially talked about the pair's breakup in 1989 and were planning to use that in a campaign called "Pig of the '90s." Prady said that Henson would have approved of the breakup "because I was at meetings with him where we talked about doing it."
Next week, Miss Piggy is going to play the field as she goes on a date with a famous singer. In the episode titled "Hostile Makeover," Kermit sets Miss Piggy up on a date with Josh Groban, who fills her head with bizarre ideas on how to make the show better. Meanwhile, Fozzie is invited to a party at Jay Leno's house, and Bobo annoys everyone when he insists that they buy some cookies for his daughter's troop.
"The Muppets" airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on ABC.
