Why The Muppets new show was worth the wait

Miss Piggy, Kermit the frog and the muppet gang reunite for a new TV series, The Muppets. Photo / Supplied TVNZ

The wait for this brand new Muppet show has dragged on. The official announcement for The Muppets came back in May and since then we've only had teasers, trailers and the odd YouTube link to watch, rewatch and get excited about.

It has felt like a lifetime, when in reality it's only been the entirety of a long, dark winter. What can I say? It ain't easy being keen.

The show has already started in the States, with critics weighing in and review scores aggregating. Buzz has been mostly positive, which as a long-time fan is very encouraging to see.

There have been a few voices of discontent, of course, but these seem to be firmly in the minority.

They also seem to have fixated on some bizarro issues; Miss Piggy somehow selling out her feminist ideals and Fozzie Bear having a relationship with a human female instead of, I guess, a felt puppet.

Both of these seem like crazy talk. Firstly, the talk show the Muppets are all now working on is Miss Piggy's.

From what I've seen, she seems the same self-absorbed, judo-chopping force of nature she's always been. And secondly, the Muppets have a long history of inter-fabric relations.

Just think back to crazed drummer Animal and any of the female guests who shared a stage with him. There's a good reason he was chained to his drum kit...

Though I haven't seen much from this new series, what I have seen has served to build my anticipation levels to what I can only describe as full-on Muppet mania. It looks hugely funny and hugely fun and to have perfectly captured the joyously chaotic spirit of the original classic show.

I unashamedly love the Muppets and have done ever since I was a kid. Watching the bits and pieces of the new show now as an adult (supposedly), what has really blown me away is just how real it feels.

There's no suspension of disbelief because there's no disbelief there in the first place. No, it felt like I was reuniting with old dear friends who were still out there, doing their best to put on an entertaining show as everything around them threatened to fall apart.

Now, after that interminably long wait, it's finally time to get things started. I couldn't be happier.