tsmith417 I'm sorry, but the sight of an almost-6o-year-old man prancing around in a playhouse with talking chairs and characters in cowboy costumes is just sad.I was a huge fan of Pee Wee Herman 30 years ago, but so much has happened since then that it's painful to watch now. With his somewhat checkered history, being a grown man playing with children's toys takes on a whole different meaning now.The Pee Wee of 2011 has jowls and his hair is either obviously dyed too dark or a very bad wig and the pale face and pink cheeks just make him look like an old man who is trying to make himself look younger after going thru chemotherapy.I had to turn off the show because I was feeling too embarrassed for him .. and for me too.

suzn_k 25 years ago, every single Saturday morning at my sorority house meant watching Pee-Wee's Playhouse without fail. We all loved it; we all had our favorite characters. Mine was always Chairry. When CBS cancelled the show, I was heartsick. The show meant so much to us! And I have missed everything about it.Seeing this Broadway comeback on HBO couldn't have been more thrilling for a Pee-Wee's playhouse fan like me. I only wish I were lucky enough to be in the audience. It was great seeing so many of the original characters. Sadly, we missed Phil Hartman. How great to see the original Miss Yvonne!The staging and production was AMAZING. The puppeteers and voice-over artists were outstanding. And what can I say about Pee-Wee except I am so, so happy to see him again. There were so many moments that made me laugh so hard, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone. Let's just say, Pee-Wee is EXACTLY the same. He never misses a beat. The songs are exceptional. If you loved Pee-Wee's playhouse in the 1984 movie or in the late 80s on TV there is no way you won't enjoy this. And keep in mind, this was a live show...and everything came out perfectly. I hope this is just the beginning of Pee-Wee's comeback. You are our real Peter Pan! Thank you so much for this show!Much love, your fan and friend, Susan in Chicago

Andariel Halo I saw the "The Pee-wee Herman Show" from 1981, and was shocked at how people laughed wildly at every little thing, when the show itself had very little funny bits to it. It was a huge disappointment, and it seemed as though the people in the crowd were largely high or drunk.Here, a large portion of the material is the same, from Pee-wee's wish to fly, to his using it on Miss Yvonne and Cowboy Curtis (previously Kaptain Karl but his role is replaced by Cowboy Curtis, as Phil Hartman died. Phil LaMarr fills in place of Laurence Fishburne), and yet somehow it comes off much better, with some of the lame bits being funnier this time around, if not due to slight changes in content, then the method of delivery.There's lots of surprisingly witty or absurdly brilliant bits, matched with Reubens' expert timing and delivery, makes this a great show, made more fantastic by how old and seemingly dated the characters and setting is, and with the ability of Paul Reubens to update it ever so slightly, while remaining true to its base.Odd note; IMDb listing has John Moody credited as Mailman Mike. I don't remember if he was in the 1981 version, but... IMDb has John Moody as a black man, and the Mailman Mike here is a white man.New character Sergio nearly stole the show.

mpoconnor7 Overall, the Pee Wee Herman Show on Broadway was a disappointment. It was 30 years since the original PWH Show which really put him on the comedy map, but with the exception of the Captain Karl character (played by the late Phil Hartman in the original special) being eliminated, this show was pretty much a replay of the original 1981 show. You would think after 30 years they would have written more material to make it completely fresh, but they simply recycled the same jokes and gags. They even replayed the Mr. Bungle film, although this time it had sound effects added which was an improvement. About the only segment in the original show that was not a part of this show was the hypnosis segment.It did include a lot of the characters from the Pee Wee's Playhouse show, including The King of Cartoons. It also had Cowboy Curtis, who took over the position Captain Karl filled in the original as the love interest of Miss Yvonne. And there was the secret word, which was another skit from his TV show.Pee Wee doesn't look like he aged a day over the past 30 years.