10 Hilariously Meta Moments From The Muppets Franchise

Running gags are pretty common in television comedy, as Kermit the Frog is intimately familiar with. In this episode of The Muppet Show, when the writers make use of one of these recurring jokes, Kermit can't help himself from pointing it out.

Throughout the episode, Fozzie continues to pick up the phone and have strange things come out of it based on who's calling. The first time, water shoots out because the water department was on the line, and then the fire department calls and smoke shoots out. Kermit looks directly at the camera and says, "I think this is what they call a running gag." He gets increasingly frustrated as it goes on, as if he's an annoyed audience member who's tired of this joke being repeated over and over again. "Is there no end to this running gag," he asks, flabbergasted by his own show. 

You can almost imagine that during the writers' room, there was a debate over how long this gag should go on for, and that debate is incorporated into the show itself. In a program that's kid friendly, it's also a fun way to introduce young viewers to the concept of a running gag, as it's probably the first time many of them have even heard that term. As is often true of the Muppets, it's a gateway drug into comedy.