“Dance your cares away, worries for another day” was the anthem of the ’80s and ’90s, as you’ll know if you were a fan of Jim Henson’s Fraggle Rock. The series came out a little before my time, but as a late ’80s/early ’90s kid, it was basically all I would ever watch, always humming the unforgettable theme song.
The last few years have been the time for reboots and revivals, so naturally the Jim Henson Company thought, ‘why not us not too?’ The beloved ’80s puppet program is making a comeback on Apple TV+, and we just got our first look at the official teaser. Behold Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock.
This reboot comes on the heels of a series of Fraggle Rock shorts, Rock On!, that debuted on Apple TV+ in 2020. And now, next year, we’re getting a full series!
Dance your cares away with Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock
Here’s Apple’s official synopsis for the reboot: “Jim Henson’s fun-loving, musical Fraggles are back! Join Gobo, Red, Wembley, Mokey, Boober, and new Fraggle friends on hilarious, epic adventures about the magic that happens when we celebrate and care for our interconnected world.”
I may be in my mid-’30s now, but I will most definitely be heading to Fraggle Rock come January 2022. It’s just one of those childhood things that you can’t let go!
During the COVID-19 lockdown last year, the Fraggle Rock shorts brought some joy and happiness into the lives of many, which is why the creative team decided to bring the proper show back. John Tartaglia, executive producer and the voice/puppeteer behind Gobo, talked about it to Collider in 2020. “The Fraggles’ whole message of interconnectedness, spending quality time with each other, appreciating each other and what everyone brings to the table, and how music is such a powerful uniter, all felt very much in tune with what we’re all discovering, being apart, but also still trying to find ways to be connected,” he said. “So, of course, when Apple called and was like, ‘Would you guys wanna do this?,’ we were all like, ‘Yes! Yes! Yes!’ So, it was really their idea to bring the characters back, and we were so happy to be asked.”
A Fraggle Rock movie is coming?
Since then, Apple TV+ has doubled down on the franchise. In fact, according to Tartaglia, there could be a possibility of a feature film sometime in the future, something Fraggle Rock never got during its original run.
“Obviously, there’s proof now that people want the Fraggles, so I think anything is possible now, which is exciting for me,” Tartaglia said. “Because of the way that we all communicate, with the internet and YouTube, there’s so much more awareness now for the show, than there was, even 10 years ago. And I will say that the movie is still in development. We knew that people were gonna be excited to have the Fraggles back, but I couldn’t have predicted the amazing reaction that these shorts have gotten. People are just so hyped up about it.”
From the series that ran from 1983-1987 to the Apple+ TV shorts to now the official reboot, the Fraggle Rock franchise is making a comeback in the biggest way. And on that note, it’s time to… “dance our cares away, worries for another day, let the music play, down at Fraggle Rock!”
Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock debuts on Apple TV+ on January 21, 2022!
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h/t SYFY Wire