The name Jim Henson conjures the image of hundreds of different creatures that helped shepherd generations through their childhoods: little green frogs, a friendly Big Bird, even David Bowie sporting some wacky-looking eyebrows. Some of the most iconic, arguably, are the Fraggles, of the eponymous Fraggle Rock, which ran from 1983 to 1987 on CBC and HBO. A set of colorful creatures who live in a magical cave system, the Fraggles were beloved the world ‘round, earning a spot in puppetry history alongside The Muppets and the Sesame Street gang.
And now, more than thirty years after Henson’s passing, the Fraggles are back, in Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, a new production from the Jim Henson Company and Apple TV+. A family-friendly revival of a television staple, the series introduces familiar Fraggle faces (say that five times fast) in the form of Gobo (John Tartaglia), Red (Karen Prell), Mokey (Donna Kimball), Wembley (Jordan Lockhart), and Boober (Dave Goelz), as they navigate everyday life in their magical world, learning lessons about friendship, self-care, and loving the world around you.
Tartaglia takes the series’ reins as writer, executive producer, and voice of Gobo Fraggle, along with puppeteering a number of other Fraggles, including the adventurous Uncle Traveling Matt. Veteran Henson puppeteer Goelz also returns to the rock as executive producer and the voice of pessimistic Boober, accompanying a number of special guest stars, among them Cynthia Erivo, Patti LaBelle, Ed Helms, Kenan Thompson, and Daveed Diggs, in adventures that feel authentic and fresh, despite a clear attempt at playing on millennial nostalgia.
The series even goes so far as to recreate the original series’ opening credits, with suped-up instrumentals to accompany the much-beloved theme tune. It’s clear that the series is attempting to emulate the magic of Henson’s original vision, retaining much of the same structure of the original Fraggle Rock, but with a few spiffy new twists.
Henson puppets have never looked good with CGI (remember how goofy the Fire Gang looked in Labyrinth?), but Back to the Rock uses it sparingly, opting instead for a fully-constructed set that immerses audiences in the world of the Fraggles, Gorgs, and Doozers. What results from the Henson Company’s usual practical effects is a beautiful, lush world bathed in glitter and color that transports audiences to another realm — one that may lay just beyond our reach.
And the series is as impressive in its content as it is in its practical effects. While Back to the Rock is, as most Henson projects are, marketed towards children, it accomplishes what only the greatest of kids’ programming can: framing its stories around lessons useful for children and adults. While the overarching theme of the series focuses on caring for others and how kindness can positively affect an interconnected world, the show also focuses on unique themes of confidence, individuality, and self-forgiveness.
It’s one of few shows — aside from Ted Lasso, another Apple TV+ property — I’ve ever seen that deals directly with the idea of anxiety, and what happens when you let fear become debilitating. Episodes featuring Boober and Wembley focus on what happens when a negative self-image starts to affect their daily lives, teaching kids and adults alike that everyone feels fear, but that “when you love your specialness for what it is, it becomes the brightest treasure in the world.” And as someone who has grown up with both Henson puppetry and with anxiety from the time I was little, I’m unashamed to say that that sentiment reduced me to tears.
Lilli Cooper provides additional life lessons as Doc, a graduate student performing experiments out of her rented pool house with her (puppet) dog Sprocket. Only a hole in the wall away from the Fraggles, she teaches young viewers about the importance of preserving our Earth as well as perseverance, friendship, and believing in your own dreams, her life as a human running parallel (and sometimes intersecting with) the Fraggles living on the other side of her wall.
And if important life lessons aren’t your bag — or if you’re a parent who’s tired of watching what your children do — then you might find some enjoyment in the series’ songs, sprinkled throughout just often enough to avoid the “Baby Shark” treatment. With tunes by Harvey Mason Jr., Philip Balsam, and Dennis Lee, there’s a song for everyone, even if it’s just the classic theme tune, reworked for a new audience with a funky new backing track. And honestly, if you can watch a bunch of puppets flail about to music and not be at least a little bit entertained, I don’t think I can trust you.
There are bound to be those who malign Back to the Rock for imitating its predecessor — those who wonder why anyone would bother trying to catch lightning in a bottle twice. And they would be right: there is no replacing Jim Henson or the projects he had a direct hand in. They will always retain a special kind of magic, the original Fraggle Rock included, that no one can recreate. But Back to the Rock is a loving, worthy reminder that there is joy to be found in everyday life, even when things seem hard. Fraggles can’t live life in fear, and neither can humans, and the world benefits when we embrace ourselves and each other with open arms.
Rating: A-
Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock premieres on Apple TV+ on January 21.