Favorite wave

[Luke]

Originally posted by WiGgY
Is this official that he won't be in the new show or is it just speculation? In fact, is the new show official or just speculation? Maybe I should ask this somewhere else.

You could try asking Henson i guess but you won't get a straight answer there yet. It's all speculation - although you could call it 'informed speculation' but i don't think anything is definite yet, everything depends on the sale, who buys and how the Henson's feel about them and vice versa. You have to remember that Brian Henson stepped down from his management position at JHC a while back for two reasons - firstly to concentrate on his other projects (which with Farscape being axed and indie producers being used for the Fox show is pretty much non existant other than Hallmark movies), and secondly unofficially it was likely to ease the transition for whoever takes over at JHC because it's going to be ten times harder for them to run the company how they want with Henson family members around. Rivkin will likely move down or out once the new owners move in and Henson family involvement is at an all time low right now - i think it would be incredibly embarrassing for Brian to be a mere puppeteer on the set of the new Muppet Show where the people in charge will not be longterm Henson people - he's used to being the boss and it's just not the done thing in the TV world. Maybe i'm wrong, maybe puppet show sets are different, maybe they'll all see it different and Brian has this new career planned as a puppeteer, maybe he'll just get paid to loop the voices. Who knows ?

I wouldn't actually assume that the Xmas movie is leading the way into the Fox show and the characters and style you saw will all be the same in the TV show - the Xmas movie was put together by the same people who've run and worked at Henson for ages - the sale and new production team for the TV show will mean things are completely different and strategy could change at any time, including what characters, writers and puppeteers they use ..... the TV show was officially announced but even there things can and will change, we just gotta wait and see.

 

[Luke]

Originally posted by beaker
...and weve all learned people care more about sculpt and cool wow factor than recognizability(hence why Dr Teeth sold wayyyyyyyy better than Piggy)

Yeah i'm actually coming round to that way of thinking, but i don't think it works for total obscures. Medium recognisable characters with really funky well done sculpts seem to boost a wave that also contains good versions of Main 5-10 characters.

Travis would disagree on the later waves being weak ? I don't neccasarily think it's a bad decision to go with generic characters in those waves, just we usually have a real strong main character or two included in the wave to boost things, but towards the end of the waves provisionally announced Muppets Tonight main characters are being put in those places instead. The point being that very few people actually watched 'Muppets Tonight', and only slightly more watched 'Muppets From Space' so the entire waves may seem full of obscure characters to some. IMHO when it's reaching the later waves it'd be better to do more recognisable characters way more than background ones to keep the line going.

 

[Zack the Dog]

I figured Brian might be like Frank Oz was with the muppets, but i don't think he would just leave them. I mean him stepping down and then just beging a puppeteer could maybe be possable? I don't feel it's incredibly embarrassing for Brian to puppeteer, he's experanced, this the company wouldn't have started without his family. I'm sure the new owners will know what's happend with the past right after Jim died, so they would want their new company to do well. maybe he could still direct muppet films? can he still do that?


Zack,

 

[matleo]

the wave I want most is Series 3!! No dount about it. Scooter, Lew Zoot (but I think I'm going ot hold out for naked Rowlf). As much as I like pepe and I know Janice would complete the band, Series 3 has a bunch of my fave characters.

After that, they're all pretty evenly tied. Every time I start thinking abotu a certin wave it always like "Oh wow in 4 we get Rizzo and the Pigs in SSpace guys and Sam and that...that's when the collection will really look like Yeah THIsis the Muppets!!!" and then it's like "Oh wow, pepe, AND Janice AND I'll finally buy a Gonzo AND the enwsman is there and that woill really make it feel liek the Muppets and complete the collection" and then oyu get to thnkign about 6 and it's like "Well ozzi just isn't Fozzie w/o Sta and Waldo, and the Clifford and Beau figs are just going to be SO cool. That will really make t feel like the Muppets." it's really fun to just kindo f collect thenm and see the fmaily grow. You know that feeling you goit when you forst set-up you're EM layset and you finally had Floyd AND teeth AND Animal all togther! or when you got the ML playset and you got to see bunsen and Beaker together. I think the really neat tihng about this line is how one character just seems incomplete w/o certain others. rememeber when Palisades was plaaning on putting Statler and waldorf in different waves? it just wouldn't have been right. Sure there was marketin plan there but let's face it, Statler wouldn't have been Starler w/o Waldorf. it would have taken away from the coolness factor of the fig. anyway, that's my 2 cents.

--Matt

 

[ResidentLilly]

Love the sound of that kind of enthusiasm. I share it in many ways. I have a shelf right now that has all the product on it through Series 3 on it and another shelf that has all the exclusives. It is awesome to have them all grouped together, and I am chomping at the bit to get certain characters added in to the set.

Speaking of which, guess what I am reviewing today in the office? Series 4 test shots, baby! They are really good. Rizzo will suprise people I think. He is packed with detail and articulation for such a small figure, and the scale looks really good. The top of his head actually only comes up to Kermit's neck. It's a scale cheat for sure, but it does look pretty good when you see them next to each other. The mass of it feels OK to me. Sam and Link are both beefy "Fozzie-esque" size figs and the Julius and MAMMA pack is cool as HECK.

 

[Luke]

Originally posted by Zack the Dog
I don't feel it's incredibly embarrassing for Brian to puppeteer, he's experanced, this the company wouldn't have started without his family

Yeah he could just do a Frank Oz - i think as the sale goes through the Henson's will move much further from the company though. In my opinion, it would be hard for a new management team to run the company with them around. I didn't mean it was embarrassing for Brian to puppeteer, i meant it's embarrassing and not really a 'showbiz' type thing for someone like Brian Henson who was the Muppets executive producer, to go and be produced by Team Todd who havent worked with them before. It'd be like having a job as a manager at a Pizza Parlor and then having to go out and clean the snot off the salad bar sneeze guard.

 

[frogboy4]

I get you, but I don't think he probably feels that way. I think he wants to make a name for himself in other projects and is probably pleased that thie directing/producing duties are on someone else. Just my opinion, but I wouldn't guess there's any bad blood - at least not enough to prevent him from stopping by to do his characters or provide the occasional dub.

 

[Luke]

Yeah - maybe, we'll see how it goes after the sale. I just think things will change a LOT once real U.S media execs move in rather than it just being Rivkin and the occasional person over from Germany .... but then most Henson's have little to do with the business side even now anyway.

 

[WiGgY]

Well I can see why Brian wouldn't want to work under new managment, but I doubt he would leave it all together. I mean, it's his family name. Even if he isn't executive producer anymore, he could do other things. Puppettering is something he's getting really good at and maybe he could do some writing. That wouldn't be demeaning. Even if he was used as a consultant it would be good.