Journey to Ernie

Journey to Ernie is a recurring Sesame Street segment which focuses on Big Bird's hide-and-seek game with Ernie. It premiered in Season 33, and features the Muppet characters interacting with computer-animated backdrops.

The format for the segment would change after its first season on the show. In the original format, Ernie hid inside a box with a striped pattern similar to that of his shirt. Big Bird had to locate Ernie's box, a task he usually accomplished after finding two other, similar boxes which did not contain Ernie. Big Bird's discovery of an incorrect box triggered a non-Ernie sketch or film, while the revelation of the correct box launched a segment prominently featuring Ernie.

In Season 34, the format was changed. Now, the segments begin with Ernie interrupting Big Bird's normal routine with a challenge to play the game. The animated environments in the new format are more fully realized than in the previous incarnation of the segment, and Ernie no longer hides in a box. Big Bird now searches based on clues from Ernie, and the Two-Headed Monster appears regularly to offer some none-too-helpful advice. The new format also saw the introduction of a closing song sung by Big Bird and Ernie.

Beginning in Season 36, Journey to Ernie is no longer in every episode, but it does pop up occasionally. Matt Vogel performs Big Bird in all of these Journey to Ernie segments.

Sequences from The Original Format

 * Introduction


 * Big Bird asks a dinosaur for help


 * Big Bird talks to chickens


 * Big Bird follows a pattern from a snowy location


 * Big Bird walks the tight rope at a circus


 * Big Bird is on Mars, asking a Martian for help


 * Big Bird looks at a disco


 * Big Bird searches at a grocery store


 * Big Bird and Ernie close the segment

Individual Segments for The New Format
'''Note: The order is not official. The titles are based on either the location or if someone other than Ernie is being looked for.'''

Big Bird goes to a land filled with Rubber Duckies.
 * Rubber Duckie Land

Big Bird goes to the land of dinosaurs.
 * Dinosaur Age

Big Bird climbs a beanstalk.
 * Beanstalk

Big Bird meets characters from nursery rhymes.
 * Nursery Rhyme Land

Big Bird looks for Ernie in a land that is filled with musical instruments, many of which play "Rubber Duckie."
 * Musical Intrument Land

Big Bird looks for Ernie at the beach.
 * Beach

Ernie and Big Bird switch places, and Ernie looks for Big Bird at a circus.
 * Journey to Big Bird

Ernie hides in a haystack.
 * Barnyard

Bert replaces Ernie in the game, and Big Bird looks for Bert in a place where there is a lot of food.
 * Journey to Bert

Big Bird hunts for Ernie in a land full of floating geometric shapes.
 * Shape Land

Big Bird looks for Ernie in a land full of animated boards for the classic song/game (and learns that sometimes more than one answer is right).
 * One of These Things

Ernie hides in a museum where all the exhibits have names beginning with B. (Bob makes a cameo appearance in this one--not as an exhibit, but as a visitor on his way home.)
 * The Letter B Museum

Ernie hides in a land full of dancing creatures, plants, and other natural objects; even the sun dances in the sky there.
 * Dancing Land