Over the weekend, MuppetVision 3D ran for the final time at Walt Disney World. The show will be scrapped, in favor of a new Monsters Inc. land coming to Hollywood Studios. I had a planned a glorious 3 hour finale for the closing date but have been visiting family and never got around to it. Now Kermit is running through the door, telling me I have a minute and a half to pay tribute to one of my favorite theme park shows ever.

The Muppets have always had a special place in my heart. From childhood to adulthood, their style of comedy has always made me laugh. The heartfelt characters are easy to connect to and I’ve gobbled up as much Muppets content, for better or worse, as I can get. MuppetVision was a must-see entry, connecting my love of the franchise to theme parks. One of the first major posts I wrote on this site was about the long history of the Muppets and Disney. The post isn’t well written, I had no idea what I was doing back then (I barely know now) but it was one of the few pieces I remember from the early years of Wandering in Disney.

As you can guess, I’m disappointed by MuppetVision closing. I don’t want to just rehash what I’ve written in this post. What’s done is done and I do think the new Monsters Inc. land will be a nice addition. MuppetVision didn’t need to close this early, even if this is where they’ve chosen to add the new land. The theater could have existed for a while longer and closing it this early is simply a cost-cutting measure. I find that frustrating but, again, what’s done is done.

I will miss MuppetVision in Hollywood Studios. Just from a park perspective, attractions like that where guests can rest a bit without much of a line are necessary. Hollywood Studios has very few areas like that at this point. Closing an indoor attraction right before the heat of the summer kicks in is a tough beat for anyone visiting soon. Thankfully, a few new shows were added for this summer that provide some respite from the humidity.

More importantly, I’ll miss the show itself. MuppetVision was among the funniest attractions in Walt Disney World. While parts of the theater and show had aged, many of the jokes still worked. The pre-show was one of the best ever created, breaking every 4th wall possible and featuring memorable lines. I will quote Sam Eagle’s “Will you stop this foolishness!” for the rest of my days.

Inside of the show continues the meta jokes about 3D movies. Fozzie’s tricks that he tests out for the audience leading into Bunsen and Beaker creating Waldo C. Graphic always made me laugh. The show balances the usual frenetic Muppets with a functional 15 minute plot. Kermit and Sam Eagle try to keep things together, Fozzie’s in it for the laughs, Miss Piggy is a star and Gonzo just wants Bean to make him a sandwich. Sure, Waldo might be annoying but that’s the point. The 3D show works exceptionally well.

That’s all before mentioning the practical part of MuppetVision 3D. The penguin orchestra was detailed and hilarious to watch, in only a way that the Muppets and a Disney theme park attraction could be. Sweetums coming out to save the day is another great touch. Finally, Swedish Chef moves from his seat running the projector to firing a cannon. Somehow, it all makes sense within the story.

I adore MuppetVision and also enjoy the zany theme park show genre that it falls under. These shows are fewer and far between now and I think theme parks are worse for it. I love roller coasters and am impressed by the linear storytelling in groundbreaking attractions like Rise of the Resistance. We need those! But I hope that weirdness, and a little bit of foolishness, isn’t forgotten.

While I’m trying to stray from this post having an “I’m old, get off my lawn!” vibe, I have to admit that there’s some of this. I love dry humor, sarcasm and puns but theme parks have less of that now. The loss of the original Country Bears still stings. You could point to some questionable jokes in that show but the biggest problem was the Country Bears being niche. Only so many people are interested in animatronic bears singing old country songs that have nothing to do with the Disney company. I just happen to be one of those people.

I can note that I’m in the minority while not wanting the weirdness to totally disappear. Since we’re on the topic of Disney, think of Pixar movies for a moment. The best of them seem to have at least one offbeat, strange scene in them. The original Toy Story has the mutant toys, Inside Out has the abstract thoughts scene, Ratatouille and Wall-E are both full of these moments. None of those scenes are the most important part of the movie but they do add depth and whimsy. Pixar movies are far from the first to do that, stories are full of them!

I’ve written about theme parks being a weird storytelling medium before but they often use the same ideas as movies, shows and books. Just having roller coasters would leave a park unbalanced. A whole park based on the old west or the future may get redundant. There should be a mix of linear stories, like Rise and creative ideas like Pirates or Haunted Mansion to help balance out the straight forward approach. And then, in my ideal world, there are some weird moments like Sweetums putting out the fire on a symphony of penguins right before the Swedish Chef blows up the whole theater. There’s room for all of it.

I worry about theme parks losing that sense of humor and weirdness. Maybe that comes over time as the current iteration of attractions age. Maybe people didn’t find the country bears strange at all back in the 70’s! But each time a show or attraction that features an off-beat sense of humor closes, I feel like theme park fans are losing something that we’ll never get back.

This isn’t me advocating for a #KeepThemeParksWeird campaign or even me saying that Hollywood Studios will be worse in the long run. Before someone drops in to quote Walt Disney, I know parks evolve and change. New projects are generally good news and my rambling thoughts aren’t here to fight that.

My point is that I’m sad to see another show that has made me laugh for hours and hours go from Walt Disney World. The Tiki Room holds a lot of weight now, as there aren’t many other attractions like it. The Muppets will be back around, and I’m sure I’ll enjoy whatever they’re in regardless of how well made it actually is. Along those lines, I hope MuppetVision will get a spot somewhere outside of Disney World, whether that’s a museum, specialty theater or something else. For now though, thanks to Kermit and the gang for the laughs and for keeping things weird.

What are your MuppetVision memories? Let us know, along with any other questions you might have, in the comments below. Planning a trip to Disney World? Check out our Planning Guide here. If you enjoy what you are reading here on Wandering in Disney please share this post with your friends, as well as like our social media pages. You can also subscribe to the blog via WordPress or email. All of those links are on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!