Fraggle Rock is one of my favorite shows from my childhood. I was actually a little sad to have to watch this DVD, as I assumed it would not be anywhere near as awesome as I remembered it. Surprisingly, Fraggle Rock is not nearly as lame as most of the other shows I watched when I was a kid, upon further reflection. Fraggle Rock: Wembley's Egg Surprise is actually quite entertaining.
“Wembley’s Egg”
Wembley is the youngest Fraggle and the only Fraggle he knows that doesn’t have a purpose to his life. He doesn’t teach swimming, or write poetry, or cook delicious food. He’s not really sure what he does, until one day Junior Gorg drops an egg into Fraggle Pond. Wembley is the only Fraggle who recognizes the egg for what it is, a house for baby animals. While the other Fraggles tease him, he decides that he will sit on the egg, as he has seen the Tree Creatures do for their baby animal houses. The egg hatches, and soon Wembley is the momma of a baby Tree Creature. But when Wembley can’t figure out what the baby needs to eat or how to make it happy, he must find a way to take it back to its true parents without getting caught by the Gorgs.
Aside from being focused on the most adorable Fraggle there is, Wembley, this episode is awesome because all of the Fraggles team up to teach the baby Tree Creature (or what we would call a bird) how to fly. The song, dance and mayhem that ensue are hilarious, and definitely worth checking out.
“The Great Radish Famine”
Although this episode takes place well before "Wembley’s Egg" does, it appears next on the DVD. Marjory the Trash Heap gets fed up with the way the Fraggles, Gorgs and Doozers get along, and she decides to take things into her own hands. Casting a spell to make all of the radishes disappear, she hopes that the 3 types of creatures will realize that they are more alike than they previously thought. After all, they all need their radishes; the Doozers need them to build, the Fraggles need them to eat, and the Gorgs need them for an anti-vanishing cream. Instead, the creatures all blame one another for the missing radishes, until Mokey, the Fraggle responsible for collecting radishes, goes to Marjory to ask for help. Marjory provides a solution to the problem, but it’s not one that any of the creatures will like.
This episode focuses on getting past our differences and seeing the commonalities between all people. Unlike most children’s television shows, it does this in a way that isn’t too over the top and too frustrating for anyone over the age of 6 to sit through. Plus, it’s just plain funny to watch the Doozers try to knit.
“The Finger of Light”
If Jim Henson weren’t dead, he would be getting many phone calls right about now, asking him what the hell is going on in this episode. The World’s oldest Fraggle comes out to announce that it is time to play Ruler of the Rock. Interested Fraggles must travel to Echo Hole, where the Finger of Light will choose the Ruler. Mokey goes along with the expedition as research for some writing project she is working on, and ends up being the chosen one. She is allowed to make 3 decrees for the betterment of all. After her first two commands, Mokey struggles to come up with a final rule that will better all the Fraggles, and instead decides to sing about it.
Let me begin my analysis by saying that Marlon Fraggle is the biggest freak of nature I have seen in a children’s TV show. All his presence proves is that ugly people are also generally crazy, which is not really a valid lesson we should be teaching our children. Also, I found this episode to be very much in favor of anarchy, suggesting that all the Fraggles know what’s best for themselves and that what’s good for one Fraggle might not better the next. Both of these things are fine, as long as you don’t mind programs designed to brainwash your kids at a young age. But it just seemed a little too subliminal message-y for my taste.
DVD Bonus Features
There is an animated Fraggle Rock episode entitled “The Great Radish Round-Up,” which ever so slightly reminded me of “The Great Radish Famine.” And by ever so slightly, I mean it is practically the same thing. There are two Fraggle sing-alongs, neither of which appeared in the episodes on the disc. Also, a clip of “Jim Henson’s Animal Show with Stinky and Jake” is available for your viewing (dis)pleasure. The special features were not bad, but definitely not worth the time if you don’t have children/time/a purposeless life.
"Fraggle Rock: Wembley's Egg Surprise" is on sale February 9, 2010 and is rated NR. Children & Family, Fantasy. Directed by Eric Till, George Bloomfield, Jim Henson, Terry Maskell. Written by Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, Jocelyn Stevenson. Starring Dave Goelz, Jerry Nelson, Karen Prell.
