Kermit the Frog's freakouts

Kermit the Frog is generally perceived as a rational leader, capable of juggling multiple tasks with calm and fervor. This is not, however, without its exceptions, as Kermit has often found himself in situations where he loses composure to the point of considerable exasperation. He's capable of holding his own in a heated argument and is not immune to flying off the handle as well as completely freaking out over conditions of considerable absurdity.

The Muppets

• The Panel Discussions during the first season of The Muppet Show were often the source of high tension, especially for Kermit who served as moderator.

• During Fozzie's Comedy Act in The Muppet Show episode 110, Kermit assists Fozzie Bear in a bit in which Kermit is supposed to deliver a line on cue. The directions are unclear, however, leading to a frenzied exchange between the two. When the punchline finally lands, "Good grief, the comedian's a bear," Kermit's fatigue from their squabble is evident from his lackluster enthusiasm.

• To get everyone organized in The Muppet Show episode 107, Kermit asks someone backstage to get the Bouncing Borcellino Brothers to knock it off. This turns into a round of everyone shouting at each other which ends with Kermit screaming to everyone, "Knock it off!!" Moments later, Piggy bombards Kermit with passionate exclamations and says she sees in him "a seething volcano, ready to erupt like Vesuvius and explode..." at which point Kermit does just that.

• Embarrassed that everyone in the theatre has heard of "the banana sketch" except him, Kermit is made fun of throughout The Muppet Show episode 114. In several segments, he's laughed at by Gonzo, Hilda, Fozzie Bear, even guest star Sandy Duncan in the Talk Spot. Responding to Miss Piggy, who, despite her usual proud ignorance of low-brow humor, also knows of the banana sketch, Kermit says, "Piggy, said the frog trying to refrain from losing his cool and looking like a bad sport... [shouting] There is no banana sketch! There never was a banana sketch and there never will be a banana sketch!" Piggy leaves a touchy Kermit who's approached by a banana looking for his dressing room.

• Fozzie Bear thinks The Muppet Show is going out to the country in episode 303 because Roy Clark is their guest. Kermit becomes miffed when he finds the stage hands have left for the country, so he charges Fozzie with moving the scenery around. Fozzie struggles to do the job, especially under the weight of Kermit's threat to fire him if anything goes wrong. Kermit's fuse remains so short throughout the episode that when Fozzie finally confesses that the theater had been on fire, he's afraid that Kermit will hit him.

• Introducing Harry Belafonte in The Muppet Show episode 314 from a script written by Fozzie, Kermit stumbles all over his excessive typos. Fozzie chastises him for poor timing and not getting big laughs with the material, so Kermit chases him off stage, screaming at him.

• Miss Piggy has everyone on The Muppet Show convinced that Kermit is Foo-Foo's "da-da" in episode 404. Kermit's initial annoyance at having this role bestowed upon him turns into a sharp protest when he screams at Gonzo, "I am not the dog's da-da!" Although he cools off a bit, he still objects to the notion when he closes out the show.

• Following a performance of "Six String Orchestra" in episode 417, Kermit manages the night's set list from his desk backstage when his nephew Robin runs up to him excitedly. After Kermit explains to him that he needs to take one thing at a time as a means of running the show without "falling into a panic", Robin calmly tells him that "the Star Wars people have hijacked The Swinetrek." Stuttering and flailing, Kermit spirals into a frenzy, stumbling out of frame and breaking glass. Robin observes to the audience, "well, at least he didn't panic."

• When Kermit discovers in The Muppet Show episode 502 that Piggy has been planting rumors about them getting secretly married, he immediately breaks into a furor over her continued penchant for spreading lies about them in the gossip papers. Shouting that he won't stand for it any longer, he fires Piggy and promises to replace her on the show. Later, while Piggy is saying goodbyes, Kermit's anger hasn't diminished any, continuing to shout, "I hate long goodbyes!" and shouts insults. Eventually, guest star Loretta Swit intervenes in an attempt to calm the situation, but Kermit offers her Piggy's part in Veterinarian's Hospital, and she quickly drops her plea for civility. Loretta also takes over Piggy's role during Pigs in Space, but Piggy shows up anyway. Halting the sketch, Kermit demands that she get off the stage or he'll throw her off. Kermit finally cools down when Loretta leads them in a "nice, warm, lovely, together song" (since the alternative was kissing and making up).

• The Muppet Theatre is hijacked by pirates under the command of Black Jackson in The Muppet Show episode 507. Over the course of the episode, Kermit's nerves are increasingly on the rise, beginning with Jackson's initial takeover, shouting at her ridiculous proposition that the theater be cast off to sea. As the show continues, Kermit is forced to tolerate the ebb and flow of the ship at sea, and all the problems that come with it including one of Shakey Sanchez's bombs going off on stage. Unable to take any more, he addresses the audience, "Ladies and gentlemen, they say the show must go on, but they never say why. Well, right now, the show must NOT go on because I quit! I give up! Our guest star's a pirate, the theater is sailing out to sea, and I'm losing my mind!!" During the closing number, which includes an epic battle between two pirate ships, Kermit has finally had enough and takes up sword to duel Jackson.

• The day after Kermit learns that he wasn't on a date with Lady Holiday in The Great Muppet Caper, but rather her secretary Miss Piggy, he bumps into her in the park, feelings still fresh from having been run out on. He's blunt in his responses to Piggy's behavior, and the confrontation turns into a shouting match. Kermit accuses Piggy of over-acting, further fueling the fight, which sharply turns into hurt feelings and guilt.

• Unable to get the details of a joke right in an appearance on The Funniest Joke I Ever Heard, Piggy has to keep re-starting the story each time Kermit corrects her. After several attempts, they end up yelling at each other, arguing over the details, finally leaving in exasperation.

• Following a chase sequence in Central Park seen in The Muppets Take Manhattan, Kermit discovers that Piggy hasn't left the city, but she's been spying on him for weeks. Piggy expresses deep jealousy at how close Kermit's become with Jenny, and, while Gregory Hines attempts to reacquire his borrowed roller skates, the situation culminates in a heated exchange of accusations and justifying actions. The situation resolves itself with a horse-drawn carriage ride through the park.

• Kermit displays some annoyance with a pre-recorded Gonzo in The Jim Henson Hour episode "Videotape", but finally loses his cool when Digit rewinds him to play back his interactions again and Gonzo points out he's watched that part of their conversation twice now.

• Following the antics surrounding the whereabouts of Arsenio Hall's dead body all throughout Muppets Tonight episode 208, Kermit enters the KMUP control room flying off the handle and demanding to know what happened to their guest star. He quickly calms down when Hall drops through the roof from a height of 5,000 feet. Kermit gets slightly upset again when Hall's body is blown to smithereens but calmly accepts Gonzo's rationale that keeping explosives in a drum is better than storing them in a tuba where spit can get all over them.

• When Samuel Arrow takes roll call of the Crew of the Hispaniola, it's unquestionably evident that the crew is made up of pirates. In an effort to maintain order on board, Captain Abraham Smollett calls a meeting with his trusted advisers, demanding to know, "Who hired this crew?!"

• After losing The Muppet Theatre to Rachel Bitterman in It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, Kermit isolates himself from his friends and freezes in the park where he's found by his guardian angel Daniel. Already in a bad mood, Kermit's attempt at explaining his hopeless situation devolves into a tirade about how his friends would be better off had he never been born. After getting a glimpse of just what such a world would look like, Kermit believes he has no way of returning to his life and freaks out again. It doesn't take long, however, for Daniel to get the deed done by spitting in Kermit's eye.

• Performing at the Hollywood Bowl in 2006, Kermit becomes increasingly irritated with Piggy who keeps leaving the stage to change costumes. In her final form, she's dressed as Cher, wearing an elaborate headdress, and Kermit finally loses it. He admonishes her unprofessional behavior, shouting that he's left alone on stage while she's gone swapping wardrobes. He's still annoyed when Piggy fits him with a Sonny Bono wig, but concedes, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em."

• Kermit struggles to record a normal commentary track to their "Bohemian Rhapsody" viral video, especially when Piggy waivers in and out of their recording (phone) booth waiting for her part to come on. Mixed with the chaos of everyone flooding into the booth, Kermit finally lets loose when Piggy misses her part and demands to rewind. Their equal frustrations end up tipping the entire booth over.

• Having given up on trying to save The Muppet Theatre in The Muppets, the Muppets take it upon themselves to kidnap Jack Black to use as a ratings draw for their telethon to raise money. When Kermit discovers what they've done, he not-so-coolly admonishes them for their actions, but eventually goes along with their illegal plan anyway.

Acts of violence

Most of Kermit's freakouts involve shouting or losing his temper, but he can become violent from time to time. Alternatively, he has been known to engage in acts of violence sans freaking out, depending on the situation.

• When Fozzie Bear almost tips off noise inspector LaBrea that their guest is Dizzy Gillespie in The Muppet Show episode 413, Kermit kicks him in the leg to shut him up.

• Under the influence of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew's Jekyll-and-Hyde potion in The Muppet Show episode 420, Kermit turns into a mindless, raging monster with large fangs and threatening eyebrows. The ruckus caused by his transformation wakes guest star Alan Arkin, who emerges from his dressing room asking if Kermit can keep the noise down. Unresponsive to his guest's concerns, Kermit violently bites into Arkin's arm, dragging him to the floor. His symptoms subside when he buries his face in the stage curtain.

• Unable to stand for Piggy telling everyone that they're engaged in The Muppet Show episode 422, Kermit musters a "hi-ya" when he hits her. She replies, "Kermit? Dear? Sweetheart, it's not like that. It's like this..." hitting him across the room.

• Unlike his duel with Glenda Jackson on The Muppet Show, which built over the course of an episode, Captain Abraham Smollett faces Long John Silver at the blade in Muppet Treasure Island, but his demeanor is more playful.

• In a 2003 sketch on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Kermit picks up Christina Cindrich in a bar, beating up her boyfriend in the process.

• Overwhelmed with Josh Groban's influence on Miss Piggy in The Muppets episode "Hostile Makeover", Kermit attacks the baritone, leaping into his chest, but he's unable to budge Groban who keeps Kermit out of Piggy's dressing room.

Sesame Street

• In a Sesame Street News Flash segment, Kermit tries to interview people on the street about what makes them angry, but they refuse to talk to him, which angers him to the point where he yells at the camera.

• Nearly every sketch on Sesame Street in which Grover attempted to sell something to Kermit he did not need, tested Kermit's patience to the limits. Most of them found Kermit erupting in fits of frustration followed by reluctant concession. Usually this meant shouting and flailing arms, but also included biting Grover with a new set of teeth, chasing Grover around shouting "I'll get you for this!", and running out of his own apartment.

• Kermit becoming exasperated in his own home continues as a theme in a sketch in which Oscar the Grouch and his Grouch companions erect a bus stop sign in his living room. Excitedly, Kermit explains to Oscar all the reasons why it shouldn't be there, his temper increasing each time someone invades his space to wait for a bus. The situation culminates in the arrival of a grouch bus that ruins his carpet, and the promise of another one following right behind it.

• In an attempt to pick up his "Kermit the Frog" t-shirt at The Wonderful World of T-Shirts, Kermit finds that several customers with similar sounding names have ordered shirts for themselves. After each customer leaves with their merchandise, the clerk turns back to Kermit as if it's the first time he's seeing him. After three t-shirts have been incorrectly presented to him, and the jarring experience of meeting several other Kermits, Kermit (the Frog) unloads on the store clerk, denies that he's getting emotional, and demands to have his shirt. Learning that his t-shirt won't be ready until Thursday, Kermit faints from fatigue.

• Attempting the simple task of riding the elevator to his desired floor, Kermit has the misfortune of being assisted by The Count working as an elevator operator. Kermit's frustration stems from the fact that The Count can't simply stop at his floor, but has to count each of the floors that light up in the display from the bottom to the top, and back down again. After a physical alteration with The Count, Kermit attempts to explain to The Count how to do his job, "I wanted to go to the seventh floor!!"

• With Forgetful Jones as his assistant, Kermit intends to demonstrate how a telephone works. The phone rings several times, but Forgetful can't remember how to answer it, and then, how to hang it up. Throughout the process, Kermit has trouble keeping calm amidst Forgetful's insistence to forget.

• Directing an adaptation of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, Kermit spends an inordinate amount of time coaching Forgetful Jones on the proper pronunciation of Oklahoma. Following utterances such as Ache-lahoma, Eeklahoma, and Ike-lahoma, Kermit screams through his megaphone in Forgetful's face. Forgetful finally gets it right, but the production has to halt for lunch.

• Playing a mystery box guessing game with Cookie Monster, Kermit promises to award the prize of a cookie if he can correctly guess the contents of the box. Overcome with excitement, Cookie Monster begins shouting out answers before hearing any clues. Kermit patiently tries to walk him through the rules, but Cookie Monster's persistence and inability to guess from obvious clues, results in Kermit losing his cool.

• With Elmo unable to contain his excitement at helping Kermit demonstrate quiet and loud, Kermit flails around and shouts at the 3½ year old monster, making him cry. They get around to "soft" and finish the demonstration which gets Elmo excited again to the point where Kermit can't handle it anymore and runs away, with Elmo right behind him.

• While explaining feeling happy Cookie Monster eats Kermit's happy face, making Kermit feel mad, he yells at the monster threatening to tell his mommy, making the monster feel sad. Kermit forgives him because he just helped him show everyone what sad looks like. Kermit tells him he doesn't need the sad face he made, then Cookie eats it, making Kermit feel mad again.

See also

• Miss Piggy's karate chops

External links

• Commentary: ToughPigs.com applies a scale to Kermit's freakouts [1] [2]