My Thoughts: Disney's Muppets

Which kinda sucks, since I think the very same artist brought a fun stylization to the ALF comics that came out at the same time. But I will say this. I loved Marie Severin's artwork in the Muppet babies comics, and whoever drew the Fraggle ones did a pretty good job there as well. But then again, I tend to think comic book movie adaptions are dreadful and redundant anyway (thouh the Mirage published TMNT comic from 1989 was really something sepcial, holding to the style of the original comics, and adding in what I can only assume were scenes deleted from the final script).

I wonder if it will be anything like The Comic Muppet Book.

But again, it seems like a great idea, and a nice easy way to set a foot down, but I think a television or DTV project would really hammer down a place for them.

I still have a copy of that somewhere. The drawings weren't perfect but it was very interesting and it showed the outside of the theater before the NBC Christmas movie. I hope it's closer to that. I remember the ALF comics you're talking about and agree. I liked those too.

Well i really think that the comics would really be a good way to bring back some of the older Muppets we havnt seen in some time, like Rolf Dr. Theeth Janice Sweetums all the full body Muppets really. so i think it will be a good place to start.

Well I think a lot of people have tried that and miserably failed! So the only option is to complain in the hope that someone will seduce the entire Disney marketing management team and will show them all of the complaints on muppecentral. And then we will see a muppet revolution thats never been seen before! And I will be in the new movie and you won't bee lol

ok well just check out the brand new Muppet web site and then tell me that Disney is not tring to Re-launch the Muppets. Complaining just leads to people geting mad and people geting mad leads to fights and I for one do not want to fight about something that i know im right about. I know im right because i have proff that disney wants the Muppets to do well, if they didn't they would not have taken the time money and space to make such a cool new site for the Muppets.

Of course Disney wants the Muppets to do well. They paid gazillions of dollars for them. Who wouldn't? It's more of whether they CAN do well, and how far Diz are prepared to go to make that happen (especially when they have other, much more in fashion brands and Pixar movies). The Muppets are evergreen, they will always plod along somewhat and we will hopefully always have some great stuff (like this) to enjoy - as to if anyone can make them a hit again, they are making a good start, but waaaayyy more of an uphill battle.

I completely agree with that statement right there. Disney would want them to do well, but they just don't know how. The DVD sets seem to have sold really well (especially the first one, dispite the cuts). But other than that, they're expecting whatever they do to be an instant sucess (and in this day and age, everything has to be an instant success to even last a week, which I'll rant about another time). Oz wasn't a tremendous hit (due in part to them airing it opposite the daytime Emmys on a weekend when a Star Wars film opened up), and because of that they've been too afraid that whatever they'll do won't make nothing but money. And that also seems to be the reason why they all but cancelled "The Wonderful World of Disney" as well.

The website redesign is a grand step, considering they've made baby steps forward, and giant leaps backward ever since they got the Muppets (2 unfinished, unsold pilots for example).

the only way that Disney would have had any runaway success with the Muppets would have been if they got the rights to the Sesame Street characters as well (which, indeed Eisner was pushing for when Jim first inked the deal). But then we'd see even more Elmo than we're seeing now.

Sigh. At least Elmo is still in the public eye.

I would be prepared to stretch that point to maybe nobody knows how, or maybe it hasn't even been possible over the last few years. The last time there was any major public love for the Muppets was when Henson started shopping the company around in the eary 2000's, so they didn't keep the momentum up. I would say Disney maybe don't know how to sort the Muppets out, but they are beginning to learn what works, and are starting to push things harder again to try achieve something more - what with the DVD's, the America's Got Talent finale appearance and Miss Piggy's tour of the UK (where she got booked on about 20 shows) they maybe feel that the public may be ready to love the Muppets again and i gotta say, ive been getting that feeling as well lately. There's even that blog where a Disney Store product guy is looking for opinion on Muppet product - people are coming around again. As to whether they can build it to the point where they have hit shows again or whether it'll just be a steady stream of appearances and merchandise probably depends on how much the public embrace them and how much Disney will risk giving them priority. It's a public company so they can hardly go all out on them with a big summer theatrical when the shareholders know its less risk with some Pixar film - especially with the Wizard Of Oz disaster. They are obviously going to try a new show or TV movie, that seems to be the "special" project, and if they time it right and mix it with promotions and widely available merch, give it a decent budget and quality writers, then it could work. If it doesn't we'll probably be back to them doing nothing much again.

I think the key to it is for them to do some kind of (maybe live) special on TV thats a bit gimmicky (Like "Next Muppet"), something that would get people talking, and then bring back a weekly remake of TMS on ABC - nothing different like Muppets Tonight or Muppets TV. Just do it like how TMS was in the Theatre (same as VMX) but written a bit sharper/tighter for todays audience. At the same time get the products stocked in all the stores, put out some more DVD's, keep up the web stuff, have them appear on as many TV shows as they can - and then try a TV movie (or possibly a theatrical), possibly one that has them playing themselves but maybe a themed one if a good theme could be found.

I actually thought after seeing Muppets.com that possibly a Muppets spoof work out DVD might get a lot of attention.

Is there anything else to be noted on this list?

Noted Disney Muppet projects
Muppets.com XD (new content, more approachable, engages all ages)
Muppet replicas & statues (from Master Replicas)
Muppet Show DVD (season 3)
Muppet Comics (this spring)
Muppet merchandise (think green, calendar, etc)
Undisclosed project (held-up by strike, in the works)

Notable non-Disney projects
"Henson" (upcoming biographic theatrical motion picture)
Fraggle Rock (DVD, CD, book, lingering plush & t-shirts, calendar, movie in works)
Sesame Workshop (Old School, web clips, new character Abby)
itunes (Henson downloads)
Henson Alternative (Puppet Up! Tinseltown, SUDS)
Dark Crystal (movie in works, manga, pricey figures, CD & DVD release last year)
Labyrinth (DVD release last year, affordable figures, plush, manga)
3 Pigs (DVD animated release)
Sid (TV show)

To me, Sesame Street will always be in the public eye. Even if it's only through the little furry red double edged sword, Elmo. Though the addition of Abby is pretty much the most high profile thing they did in years.*



*Of course, that doesn;t count phoney or out of context news stories they planted about Cookie Monster becoming a vegan, or how Old School Sesame stes can brainwahs kids into becoming Communists (or at the very least, kids that don't wear bike Helmets) or whatever the heck nonsense they're creating to try to raise awareness.

Well we're standing at the cusp of something interesting...

We now have a push before Four Muppet canon/universes/properties/etc, all with hope:

The Muppet Show: While Muppets.com relaunch, the upcoming comics, etc is enough to wet the whistle of diehards, all indications are that by this summer we'll get a huge bombshell or two of news that we've been waiting for for years...I's gots a feeling about this. Most likely by San Diego Comic Con. Could be a new show, film, etc. Who knows, but the iron seems ready to strike

Fraggle Rock: Aside from the Fraggle Rock big book, action figures and final season dvd boxset coming soon...given the Fraggle movie seems to still be in the works and there's a push to bring FR back into the public mind moreso than 2003's attempt...it looks like that for the first time in 20 years(1988, when FR was last huge) we truly could have a glorious Fraggly return

HA!(Henson Alternative): Im really liking how JHC has been developing their own stuff. They've given old and new Muppets from Muppet kids shows and misc. specials their own new edgy show with Puppet Up! they have the Del Kastle property(Late Night Buffet, Del's Comedy Binge), SUDS, Tinseltown, and others to come. If this attracks even a portion of the adult comedy audience out there, its a win win situation

Sesame Street: While the recent Elmo Christmas special was embarassingly awful, there's no doubt Sesame Street is as in the forefront in the mainstream as ever. All we need is a new film and other exciting stuff and we're set

So folks, thats four Muppet worlds marching forward.

AND, if Disney decides to revive Bear in the Big Blue House in any capacity, that would be 5 freaking Muppet worlds out there(not including the cancelled UK Mopatop or Hoobs series...and Animal Jam now lives on through Puppet Up)

That is something to be excited about. I can only imagine what the future brings.

It's funny I hated Muppet Wizard of Oz but loved Muppets in Space (although it was'nt as good as any of the older movies) .

Oddly, I really dislike Muppets in Space, but was surprised to see Muppets Wizard of Oz had its high points (though The Muppet Movie it was not hehe).

Well, to each their own My favorite muppet movie is still Muppet Caper

Yeah exactly!

My favorite has always been Muppets Take Manhattan, even though I know a lot of fans put it dead last, lol.

I think my least favorite is the Very Merry X-Mas movie, what they did to Miss Piggy just seems so wrong to me

Yeah MFS is my least, but I'll put VMC next, too much cruel and jaded (and non adult) humor.

I'm all for the Muppets suriving, but I won't just accept anything.

Truth be told I saw "Muppets From Space" in the theater with a friend. First I felt nostalgic, then I felt irritated as the plot went nowhere, then I felt bad for my friend who'd come to see this turkey of a film with me, then I actually kinda cried because I felt it was such a terrible blunder that it could likely be the last nail in the Muppets' coffin...at least for a while. Then I got angry. I didn't know how the film could have turned out as it did.

There were many ways the story could have gone (Pigs in Space involvement, chicken planets, the actual ending of the film about the aliens being fans, actually going in space) but they seemed to pick none of them. The characters just kind of wandered around. I'm sure there would be more entertainment value watching them on a Costco security camera! Actually that could be fun, but I digress. There are some good scenes in the film and it still has the Muppety spirit and theme, but no real glue story wise and that's what it comes down to. The story is everything.

I admit to watching the film on home video and it plays a lot better in an atmosphere where I can pause, skip chapters etc. I always heard rumors of the difficulties of the Henson Company working with Disney on "Treasure Island" and "Christmas Carol" but those films turned out much better. I wonder if it was more of a power struggle between director Brian Henson and Disney execs? Who knows? I do know that "Muppets From Space" just seemed empty to me. The characters looked good and were in top form but given nothing to do.

That film is a reminder to me that maybe the Muppets are right where they belong with a company that is trying to figure them out and nurture the characters in the way that fans would like them to be treated. Just my thoughts.

I think doing nothing is a step up from the darkness of Very Merry but that is just me I babble, don't mind me :3

I always been more in favor of giving the older pieces more exposure than they're getting, than feeling the need to have more when it's just not delivering. I'm not saying it never will, but I'm happy with what's come before.