Well, it's me me watchin' you you lookin' at me
Everybody watchin' everywhere
Everybody, you're on the air!"
The show is about a cable TV network called Inner Tube, which was run in the back of an electronics shop by a pair of mechanics named Jake and Henry. The network had over 1,000 channels, and anything could happen in them. The plan for the series was that every episode would feature a human guest star being sucked into the Inner Tube network, and they would navigate the vast collection of programs while trying to find a way out. Among the cast of characters included a rock band from the future, an anti-technology video pirate played by a man who would later host a chaotic science show for kids, a delinquent who constantly crashed into things, and a glitchy creature who liked to cause mischief for the mechanics to deal with.
There was a 10-minute pitch reel that was created for the show, with no guest star, and a brief showcase of what the series would've been all about. The show was later redubbed Lead-Free TV, and was planned to be part of a new series called The Jim Henson Hour. It would've been the second show to air as part of a series of 4-show cycles every month. Unfortunately, no one saw any interest in the show, and The Jim Henson Hour was reformatted with a more hectic format, with Lead-Free TV being retooled into 'Muppetelevision'.
Information about the pilot can be viewed here
, and if you want to see the pilot itself, click here.
You can always find a trope to match your mood, your IQ, your income bracket, and your clothes.
- All Part of the Show: Played for Laughs when Crasher jumps out of a TV being watched by an elderly couple who think it's all special effects, even when he gets in bed with them, and climbs back into the TV. The couple doesn't even see anything suspicious about Jake and Henry talking to him from their TV set.
- The Cameo: Kermit the Frog appears in the pilot as a spokesman for Inner Tube, while Miss Piggy is seen hosting a show on the Aerobics Channel.
- Darker and Edgier: Compared to Muppetelevision, this show doesn't have a lot of bright colors, and was called "consistently dark, victimized, and pessimistic" by the show's creative consultant.
- Do Not Adjust Your Set: Zaloom hijacks a broadcast to give out an anti-technology message before he is gotten rid of by Jake and Henry.
- Double Meaning: Crasher's name symbolizes his tendency to crash into places, and his decision to crash television programs so he can get attention.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Digit appears as the keyboardist of the band. He has a more robotic voice and doesn't seem to have a lot of personality. He was the only Inner Tube character to be brought over to Muppetelevision as a major character, where he was given a new personality and a new voice.
- Expository Theme Tune: The theme tune appears to be about everyone being able to be seen on TV. It might've been a reference to how the show's guest stars would've been on Inner Tube's programs had the show been picked up.
- Green Aesop: Zaloom views his anti-technology message as one, as during his broadcast, he uses several models to demonstrate how technology (smoke pouring out of smokestacks) causes pollution.
- Glitch Entity: The Glitch is one.
- Hostile Show Takeover: Crasher tends to jump across random shows, and smash into them, too. According to Jake, he wants to be the star of every show and is frustrated that he can't.
- It's All About Me: Crasher wants to be the star of every show, but can't, so he prefers to crash into random shows just so he can have some screen time.
- The Leader: Defied in regards to most of the futuristic band. Duke sees himself as the perfect leader material, but his bandmates believe that they don't need a leader, much to his chagrin.
- Literal-Minded: Zaloom is a TV pirate who dresses like an actual pirate.
- Meaningful Name: Crasher enjoys crashing into random shows just for the sake of some screen time.
- Random Events Plot: The test show doesn't seem to have any coherent storyline, and the only conflict is Jake and Henry trying to deal with Crasher and the Glitch.
- Show Within a Show: Obviously, there are several of these that the show's sketches would take place in. We don't see a lot of them here, though, as the only completed episode was the test show.
- Title Theme Tune: If you listen closely to the theme tune, you can make out what sounds like the words Inner Tube TV.
- Trapped in TV Land: The show was supposed to feature a human guest star getting sucked into the Inner Tube network and hopping between shows while trying to escape. John Candy would've been the first one this would happen to if the show had been made the way it was going to.
