Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This four-disc set includes all 24 episodes of "The Muppet Show" from the 1977-1978 television season -- one of the show's funniest years -- digitally remastered like those on The Muppet Show - Season One and The Muppet Show - Season Three. Each show has all of its original content, includes segments originally seen only in the United Kingdom, and runs a full 25:30. As with those in the other years, the guest stars for this season are a mix of Hollywood legends and then-current celebrities, but this year had more than its share of major stars. Here's the complete line-up: EPISODE 1: Don Knotts EPISODE 2: Zero Mostel EPISODE 3: Milton Berle EPISODE 4: Rich Little EPISODE 5: Judy Collins EPISODE 6: Nancy Walker EPISODE 7: Edgar Bergen EPISODE 8: Steve Martin EPISODE 9: Madeline Kahn EPISODE 10: George Burns EPISODE 11: Dom DeLuise EPISODE 12: Bernadette Peters EPISODE 13: Rudolf Nureyev EPISODE 14: Elton John EPISODE 15: Lou Rawls EPISODE 16: Cleo Laine EPISODE 17: Julie Andrews EPISODE 18: Jaye P. Morgan EPISODE 19: Peter Sellers EPISODE 20: Petula Clark EPISODE 21: Bob Hope EPISODE 22: Teresa Brewer EPISODE 23: John Cleese EPISODE 24: Cloris Leachman Most of these shows have a lot to offer, but to me two really stand out. First, the John Cleese show is hilarious. In its Pigs in Space skit, the Monty Python star chews up the scenery as pirate Long John Silversteen. "A pirate don't use an intercom!" Cleese scarls when a Muppet suggests a modern way to communicate. "'Twould be sissy!" The Nureyev episode, on the other hand, is a real oddity. After the ballet star sings "Putting On My Top Hat," he shoots down his chorus line with a machine gun. Later, he dances to "Swan Lake" with a human-size pig. Bonus features include "The Muppets Valentine Day Special," a 1974 television pilot which aired more than two years before "The Muppet Show" debuted. Kermit the Frog and actress Mia Farrow star, but the host is Wally, a Henson character who would rarely be seen again. Also included is "The Muppets on The Muppets," (a 13-minute series of tongue-in-cheek interviews) and the 2002 music video "Keep Fishin'" by Weezer. Also worth mentioning is the packaging. The menus on each disc are hosted (Fozzie Bear and Kermit chat with you on Discs 1 and 3; Animal and Rizzo handle Discs 2 and 4) and the episodes themselves have (unidentified) chapter stops. In addition, the box itself is more than just cardboard, at least in this initial printing. On the front, Miss Piggy's face is fuzzy, and her blue eyes sparkle. Problems? Just one: the closed captioning doesn't include any song lyrics!