I love 33 1/3 as much for the perversity of it all as the content. It's the most unMonkee-like moment in their career - they're totally fried, they know it's over, and they don't even pretend to care - it's like watching a band hold their own funeral. Look at these guys compared to two years, or even a year, prior: Dead band walking. And they end it with my favorite moment in their entire career - the "Listen To The Band" that goes from eulogy to celebration. Even though they did some great stuff without Peter, 33 1/3 was, for all intents and purposes, the end of the Monkees as a viable entity, and they went full scorched Earth. Bob and Bert tried their best to kill them but it took the band to finish the job and they went out playing live, as a quartet. on their own terms. That might be my favorite live performance by any band, ever. There was still some great stuff later but it was never the same after this. 5/5
Didn't members of the band (at least Peter, on a series DVD commentary) claim that the Monkees TV show could have continued as a variety show with guests and sketches? I think this special proves that wouldn't have worked.
I think the only thing that you can say for certain is that this particular script was terrible, and if a Monkees variety show was anything like this, then no, it would not have worked. I wouldn't really call this special a "variety show" by any stretch, though. It's too conceptual and not actually rooted in comedy at all. I wouldn't think this variety show scenario would actually have been like 33 1/3 at all.
I recall Micky saying something along the lines of they wanted something more 'free form', something along the lines of "Laugh In"...
I can’t remember if I shared this or not, but for fans of Micky’s version of I’m a Believer from 33 1/3rd Revolutions, here’s a mashup with the song Lynn Harper. This is how the Monkees might have performed it live later in 1969.
This is wildly uneven, but then so is the series itself. Mike's two musical numbers are the highlights, but there are one or two other entertaining moments. 2.5/5.
Our final episode is The Monkees Reunion Special (or whatever name you choose to call it): Once again, I need to re-watch it before posting my thoughts.
Lizard Sunning Itself on a Rock This is an interesting concept - a full reunion special with the cast still living in the Monkees pad. The episode being written and directed by Mike extends the 'Justus' concept of the Monkees doing it for themselves. Plenty of meta-humour and fourth wall breaking with the scripts that have been done before. This otherwise repeats the original formula with some good jokes including the tour group in the fridge, the car hopping up and down like one of those colourful South American birds. Many of the setups to start plots in the original series were rather flimsy, and people just turning up or barging into their pad with drama - I wonder if this is a reference to the same happening in the original show. Similar to the broken laugh track. Having original songs from Justus is a good concept, but unfortunately that album is not one that I really enjoy. But, I appreciate that they did their own songs written and recorded by themselves. I note that they feature Circle Sky, one of the better songs (and arrangements) on that album. Though Regional Girl works better here in context with the unexpected harder rock sound and funny video with The Monkees acting emo. Great to hear the instrumental version of For Pete's Sake in the beach scene. Lots of Monkees musical touches in the show, such as the doorbell. The episode continues as it starts without many surprises later on. Good to hear their 'hits' with the flashbacks, and as they say the songs on the CD may not be recognised. Pleasant Valley Sunday in particular sounds good in this version. Overall a fun episode which brings back the style of the original series while not just aping it. This is where The Monkees end on television (I have no interest at all in 'The New Monkees'), and it's a fitting way to do so. The ending shows that The Monkees knew this was it. 3.8/5
Hey Hey, It’s The Monkees Special - An interesting concept that the series continued after its initial run. Lots of fourth wall breaking and in-jokes. Fun cameo by John Brockman at the start of the episode. And in case you don’t know who he is,… Written and directed by Michael Nesmith, there are a lot of interesting ideas in this special, giving the Elephant Parts treatment to the Monkees. And perhaps, that’s part of the problem with the special. Nez in 1996 had his own view of what the Monkees were all about, and there’s a strange disconnect in the show. His view doesn’t particularly jive with what fans saw and liked about the Monkees, and it comes off as a bit more cynical than the 1969 special. There are good bits spread throughout and the music videos are fun, Regional Girl works very well as a satire of certain scent commercials, but for me the special comes off as a little detached and cold. What I think would have worked better was a combination of the Justus Home Video mixed with part of the ‘continuing episodes’ concept of the TV special. The Home Video was more attuned to what fans liked about the Monkees and the little vignettes sprinkled throughout pairing two Monkees, Davy with Peter and Micky with Mike, interacting with each other works much better and is very revealing of the relationships within the Monkees circles. The 1997 Monkees TV special has it’s moments, but it could have been so much better. 3/5.
Hey Hey, It's The Monkees -- 1.5/5 Maybe the biggest disappointment I've ever had in a new Monkees project, this special misses the mark at every turn. On paper, it seemed like a home run -- a TV special with all four middle-aged Monkees, still living in the beach pad in 1997? Written and directed by Michael Nesmith??? That's a slam dunk, it would seem. But (at least at this point) Nez really didn't seem to "get" what made The Monkees series work, and what made those characters so endearing. He wrote it with the same absurdist slant as many Television Parts sketches, and he seemed to rely heavily on cheap, visual special effects that seemed outdated at the time (and it starts right out of the gate with the throw-up drink, and Mike's Tasmanian Kabuki Metal thing -- neither of which strike me as being funny, with or without the visual aids). The new, slick version of the theme song really sucks, and really adds to the feeling that these four aging dads are way out of their element in the '90s. One point for the "Lizard Sunning Itself on a Rock" gag, and another half point just to see the guys together on that set, being The Monkees, and playing some of their new music.
The Monkees Reunion Special is 2/5 It’s a big letdown unfortunately. I remember watching it when it aired and was so disappointed. The only highlights are the music sections, especially the video for Regional Girl, which is Monkee satire at its best! At least they got a chance to make it, but too bad they didn’t land it for a larger audience. Wonder if they had a deal to make 2 more specials but the deal fell thru after this first one again
97 Special - 2/5 This definitely made many turns in the wrong direction. It had some potential but it's just not there. It's weak, awkward, and not funny. Clearly someone else besides Nesmith should have written and directed it. I'm glad the guys got together but not for something like this. I do like the Antarctica bit and the lizard, those are a few funny bits, but the rest. I just don't care for.
It’s flawed. Still going to give it a 4/5. I like certain bits (merman, laugh track, micky’s museum, you and I, regional girl, and more). A couple of professional comedy writers may have been able to punch up the script a bit. We could spend a month going over the “what ifs”… But I’ll just throw out that if they had to go with an outside director, Christopher Guest would’ve been interesting. He skillfully incorporates heart into absurdity (mighty wind, for example.)
This is terrible. It's an embarrassment. It's pandering, forced, gimmicky, the guys lack any sort of spontaneity or chemistry... it's been pointed out already but yeah - Mike's doing his total control thing and forces the whole thing into his own viewpoint and sense of humor - and his sensibility largely seemed stuck in kitchy-retro boomer '80s mode which was inherently dated even back then. I've gotta say that my expectations weren't that high after Justus gave me a crash course in "be careful what you wish for" a few months prior but even then, I was shocked at just how off this was. Yet strangely, auteur Mike is the most boring character here. Micky's way too over the top and cartoonish and Peter doesn't really look like he knows what to do with himself. Davy kind of holds it all together, for better or worse. But ultimately it just feels like a live action cartoon done on the cheap. Some of the videos are better than others but ultimately I appreciate them the most for giving us a breather from the plot itself. It's amazing how much more natural they seemed around each other on stage over the last decade than here, too. There's no warmth or joy or heart or, really, anything human here at all - it's just empty. I think it's the worst thing they ever did but I suppose I appreciate it because, while (along with the album and tour) it was a hard lesson in "you can't go home again", no stone was left unturned and, for better or worse, we finally got what we wanted. 1/5 Also... is this it? Is this really the final day of the thread?
I'll post my thoughts on A Lizard Sunning Itself on a Rock shortly. In the meantime, I want to thank you all for having welcomed me these last several weeks, and especially I want to thank Bobby with a Dollar and FredV for inviting me in. It's been a blast. If you like discussing the Monkees' TV show, please consider paying a visit to my Facebook Group Log into Facebook , where we focus on a new episode every month. The episode for the month of October is I Was a Teenage Monster. And if you've enjoyed the excerpts I have posted here, consider buying my book Monkee Magic: a Book about a TV Show about a Band. There's so much more than what I have posted here; the entries about each episode are much longer, and there are also essays about romps, female characters, the use of magic, and more. $17.95 for paperback, $4.99 for e-book.
Way back near the beginning of the book, I awarded The Christmas Show ten points for free, just for the thankless job of being a Christmas episode. If ten points is the extra credit due to a Christmas episode, then how many automatic points should be awarded for something brave enough to be called a 30th anniversary reunion special? Let’s face it, the best thing about A Lizard Sunning Itself of a Rock is that it actually got made. That’s no small miracle: all four Monkees together again on the small screen, taking up their fictional roles and facing down their ghosts with a wry grin and a ready quip. There are so many different directions this one-off program could have gone! They’d already done cynical (Head) and meaningful (33 and 1/3) and they learned all the lessons. Turning back to the formula that won America’s heart in the first place, the aging Monkees are content to run right up to the edge of the surf and yet stay safe and dry on the beach. Taking a cue from such delightfully self-referential episodes as Monkees on the Wheel, The Monkees in Paris and Mijacogeo, Nesmith crafted a story that cheerfully pokes fun at the show’s history while respecting and restoring its premise. The Monkees are still living together, in a large, bright, tastefully decorated version of the 60’s pad, where the refrigerator is well stocked and the rent is all paid up. Their banter is witty and their arguments are gentle and their mutual affection is palpable. They hang out in the pad and relax on the beach and rehearse just a little—and steadfastly refuse to get drawn into anything resembling a plot. Sadly, sentimentality makes a poor substitute for substance. By sacrificing tangible plot in favor of high concept, Nesmith ends up with an episode noticeably lacking in forward momentum. The story floats and meanders its way through an hour in which the characters spend far too much time talking about the plot they supposedly don’t need; it ends with the band coming to the aid of a wealthy guy who manages the very sort of private, exclusive club that used to toss long-haired weirdoes out on their keisters. They don’t even rescue the pig. Scattered in among the plot-avoidance debates are a handful of delightfully surreal moments. Davy admits to occasionally having a stars-in-the-eyes relapse, while resignedly swatting at a rogue sparkle that has just escaped from his right ear. Micky lectures a pair of amorous teens about the dangers of kissing. Davy distracts a security guard with an alarmingly sexy Ethel Merman impersonation. Peter hosts an infomercial to hawk the band’s new CD. Best of all, Mike demonstrates the newest features of the Monkeemobile: he’s turned the GTO into an inter-dimensional low rider. Double-Barreled Second Runner-Up Breaking the Fourth Wall Mike: A lizard sunning itself on a rock. Micky: What? Mike: Stock footage. I think the show may be a little short of film and they’re having to put in this stock shot that they’re getting from a film library. Davy: Well, it’s really annoying. Micky: Aw, let’s get out of here. Go to the beach or something. Peter: Suits me. I’m starting to get thought balloons. Thought Balloon: I Think, Therefore I Thwim. Runner-Up Breaking the Fourth Wall Mike: That confetti’s a special effect, isn’t it? Micky: Yeah— Mike: It’s not throw-up. Micky: Nope. Mike: That’s why we keep running out of production money, and having to cut to a lizard sunning itself on a rock. Doubly Self-Referential Breaking the Fourth Wall Chuck: I get my lease renewed for 99 years, and there’s absolutely no dialogue about it. No stupid chases, and no silly scenes of exposition. Super-Duper, Once and for All Final Demolition of the Fourth Wall Micky: I wonder if the general public knows that TV shows like ours never die, that they just go on and on even though they’re not being broadcast. Grading Monkee See, Monkee Die Another Day. B- Don’t Look a Gift Pig in the… Blechhhh! B Monkees Marooned in Search of the Rent Money. A- This Pilot is Coming in for a Landing at the World’s Most Prestigious Country Club. C Overall Grade : a generous 3 out of 5, just for the miracle that it was made.
Most everything has been said. I, like most, was disappointed in the original broadcast. The show has grown on me a bit as i have seen it a few more times. That said, the last part with the ending pics of the Monkees from 67 and 97 with You and I playing may literally be the best part of the show. I do like the song Regional Girl, the Monkeemobile being featured, the mash up of 60's Monkees and then current day Monkees was good and PVS was very well done. I think Peter was the best actor. Micky and Davy overdid it just a bit. Still viewed by many fans as a missed opportunity and I would agree.
I'd never seen the reunion episode in full before. It's OK for what it is - the four Monkees back together just hanging out. I wasn't keen on Justus anyway, so the music wasn't likely to be the best feature for me. Of the four of them, I think Davy comes out of it the best. 3/5.
I actually think there are some amusing ideas in the script, but the direction is really stilted and it all comes across as cheap. Did any of the actors used have careers before or since? Very few of them and presumably they had to get the lowest paid people they could find. The lack of money is apparent with the special effects and with almost everything as well. I like the overall subversive nature of it and one or two of the songs, but not enough to really enjoy it. 2.5/5.
