Madame Oink IV - "The Tune Machine"

Released: March 1983
Review by: Zlataisawsome

Show Segment One
"Hickory Dickory Dock"
"What are Little Boys Made of?"
"Pop! Goes the Weasel"
"If We Could Talk to the Animals"
"Kids"

Show Segment Two
"(We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock"
"Hound Dog"
"Yakety Yak"
"Peggy Sue"
"Shake, Rattle and Roll"
"Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay"

Show Segment Three
"Sentimental Journey"
"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy"
"In the Mood"

Show Segment Four
"The Sheik of Araby"
"I Wanna be Loved by You"
"Hey Mister Banjo"
"Has Anybody Seen My Gal?"
"Ain't She Sweet?"
"Sweet Georgia Brown"
"Charleston"

Show Segment Five
"You Oughta be in Pictures"
"Singin' in the Rain"
"As Time Goes By"
"Zip A Dee Doo Dah"

Show Segment Six
"South Rampart Street Parade"
"Waiting for the Robert E. Lee"
"Basin Street Blues"
"When the Saints Come Marching In"

Show Segment Seven
"Lullaby of Broadway"
"Cabaret"
"Put on a Happy Face"
"Let Me Entertain You"
"Hello, Dolly"
"Give My Regards to Broadway"
Reprise

Show Segment Eight
"Foggy Mountain Breakdown"
"I Like Mountain Music"
"Feudin' and Fightin'"
"Tennesee Waltz"
"Mountain Dew"

Show Segment Nine
"Tumbling Tumbleweeds"
"Jingle, Jangle, Jingle"
"(Ghost) Riders in the Sky"
"Ragtime Cowboy Joe"
"Bad, Bad Leroy Brown"

Show Segment Ten
Outro Skit

Special Show Segments
"Happiness Is..."
"Somebody's Birthday Today"
"Happy - Happy Birthday"
"Cheer: Trumpets"
"Pasqually's Intro" (Updated for this showtape)
"Madame Oink Christmas Medley" (The Christmas Song, Jingle Bells, Silver Bells, We Need a Little Christmas, White Christmas)

This is Madame Oink's fourth and final appearance in Pizza Time Theatre. She was initially going to be the permanent guest star of the band, but Helen Henny reprised her role as a Broadway star, making her the permanent guest star instead. It should be noted that this showtape is also called 'Madame Oink's World of Music,' as it's mentioned throughout the tape; it also moves away from Oink's usual love songs and traveling and instead focuses on the Tune Machine: a device that is a half-jukebox-half-time machine, which, in my personal opinion, is a neat concept. I'm glad they introduced and expanded on its character, but this is by far the best appearance of the Tune Machine.

Since this show is about traveling to different eras, concepts, and destinations, the crew visits the following: Kid's Music, 50's Style Rock and Roll, Swing Music, Music From the 1920s, Hollywood Music, Dixieland Jazz, Broadway, Country Music, and Western Music.

Oink's Future Appearances - This is the final show surrounding the French pig, but because she was a popular character in the company, she's made a few appearances over the years since this tape was released. She's spotted in movie parody posters of the late '80s and cameos in a few modern shows such as "Halloween at the Pizza Time Theatre," which is a nice nod to the character.

The Tune Machine - In future appearances, it becomes the name of Fatz's keyboard in the late '80s show segments for the Rock Afire Explosion. It is featured in a 1988 show where it was invented by Chuck instead of Madame Oink.

Pasqually's Voice - It is worth mentioning that Pasqually is reprised by Joe Spano; however, since this showtape reuses some of Madame Oink III's special showtapes, Scott Wilson's voice can be heard.

Oink IV Stage - Yet again, the stage got a new backdrop for this show. It consists of a keyboard and (presumably) a cassette tape labeled 'Madam Oink's World of Music.' It's pretty bland compared to the previous setting for the character, but it's a nice touch to the theme.

If you know me, I am a sucker for Chuck E. having to accept his surroundings (and just being a jerk in general). This tape includes a lot of moments where Chuck opens up to Madame Oink and the Tune Machine, and their relationship drastically changes as the show progresses, and I love that. They should've done that with the previous tape (which is my least favorite of the four), so I'm glad they improved for this tape. The interactions between the band and the Tune Machine are hilarious, and some songs are callbacks to previous showtapes; I don't know if it's simply for budget cuts and they recycled them, but I'm glad said songs got to be performed again. Fortunately, they are recognizable for this show; they popped up quickly when I searched for them, which was a problem for the previous show. I audibly laughed at a few moments in the show, the best one being Chuck finding out he and the Tune Machine both have a profound love for Broadway, one of the best moments to come out of early PTT history. One small and petty thing I like as well is the fact that Chuck can sing in this tape, which does indeed prove that John Widelock *can* sing; he just needed more time to shine; we can see more of it in Helen 83.

However, there are a few flaws; no tape is perfect anyway. Speaking of recycling songs, it carries on to the next show. Once you look into it, you can see that PTT struggled even in 1983, the year before the infamous bankruptcy. I wish that the other characters had their spotlight in the show as well, specifically Pasqually and Munch. Sure, they had their solos in the tape, but they could've had their segments like Jasper, Chuck, and Madame Oink did. It's sad to see those two characters being brushed off for this show. Madam Oink's voice is also not the best. As much as I don't like Tunnel of Love, it's a lot better than this show, which is disappointing. The way they pitched her voice compared to the previous three tapes is strange.

All in all, I like Madam Oink's final tape. It's not as good as Crusty and Oink per se (though it might be because I'm biased whenever it comes to anything with Crusty), but it's still a great show with some of the best dynamics of the group. I wish PTT could've continued this type of relationship after the merger, even if it isn't "family-friendly," Chuck being a bully to everyone and eventually succumbing to their stupidity is something that CEC could've continued with if they wanted to. Of course, we see some of Chuck's bullying in the following tape (Helen 83), but it is drastically toned down compared to this show. As much as Madame Oink isn't liked by fans, this show served her justice and was a huge step toward her character and portrayal.