Irving Bizarre said:
Piggy represents an image of women that women don't want to see. Women want to see themselves as slim and agile and fit and healthy not as some lard eating overbearing permanently pre-menstrual fat sow.
And as most Piggy merchandise is aimed at girls and women it's no wonder the stuff won't sell. Piggy needs to be marketed elsewhere, redirected mentally.
But her character sold well in the '70s and '80s, and people were just obsessed with looks then--women didn't want to see themselves as fat sows even at that time. I think because of the perfectionist mentality of Madison Avenue, women often see themselves as fat sows even when they're not, so they felt a kind of kinship with Miss Piggy. Here was this not very feminine, not very delicate character trying so hard to be everything she's not. The fact that she DID become a superstar anyway made her even more of a hero in the female audience's eyes.
I agree with you, actually, that the character has lost touch with audiences today--which I attribute to Piggy's long absence prior to Eric taking over the role. People basically just forgot about her, and the new writers haven't had enough experience with her to take her character in an interesting and yet consistent new direction (the way Gonzo matured so nicely in the '90s).
Anyway, I'm just trying to make a minor correction on one point: it sounds like you're saying Piggy merchandise would never sell well to women, and I'm just reminding you that at one point, it did.
Irving Bizarre said:
People will get a joke of the moment referencing a movie from five minutes ago but today's audience has the attention span of a gnat and the intelligence of a pebble.
I agree that this is the way Hollywood sees their audience and markets their products as such, but I think Hollywood sells its audience way short. Sure, there's not-very-smart stuff that becomes wildly popular every now and again. But the really smart stuff always sells well, because people are hungry for it, even if they don't realize it. (Otherwise, movies like "The Sixth Sense" wouldn't be so popular.)
Irving Bizarre said:
Considering that the Muppets are for adults too, and they're based in a theater where is the 'Muppet of alternate sexuality' or the drunken bum Muppet. Or the nose candy Muppet?
LOL! I doubt we'll see any of that. The Muppets are for the entire family, and putting that stuff in would leave the kids out. And we were all kids when we fell in love with the Muppets. The type of Muppet production you're describing would have to be directed by Martin Scorsese!
(And remember that Scorsese was making films in the '70s even before the Muppets were. So you can't say the Muppets should be more like him because he's more "contemporary." Jim and co. made a very specific stylistic choice with the Muppets.)
However, I will agree with you that the Muppets face a very distinct challenge these days. We're living in a post-"South Park" world, and it's going to be very hard for the Muppets to seem fresh and relevant to the older audience without simultaneously alienating the family audience that once made them popular.
I could see the Creature Shop doing a satirical production featuring subject matters along the lines you described. But I don't think the Muppets would be much better served if everyone was getting high and drunk and tested for STDs.
(And it should be noted that VMC made it clear that Howard is an "alternative" Muppet as you described, and there were a few subtle references to various substance abuse and experimentation in the film as well. Those moments didn't really work for a lot of people, though, myself included.)
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