Your Thoughts: Studio DC Hosted by Dylan and Cole Sprouse

[Oscarfan]

More projects like the Goofy cartoon that appeared before that National Treasure 2 film.

That cartoon was great! The only reason I wanted to see that movie. Though, lots of people were confused when it came on.

 

[Luke]

I don't have any problem with Disney's teens, its obvious its just easily put together stuff by characters they can make a buck on licensing. Something like Hannah Montanna is just really a more lucrative version of Saved By The Bell, Sabrina etc - its been going on for years. Ideally i don't particulary want to see the Muppets turned soley into pimps for albums, videos, t-shirts etc. We will always see a bit of that but i think maybe the classic characters deserve a bit more respect than that. I know Disney is just trying to get the kids interested but whether they are hot or not they don't look natural doing the whole "hard sell" thing. When Kermit was referencing HSM, and Piggy Tisdale it was just so painful to watch.

 

[RedPiggy]

I've seen a lot of the Youtube comments and also the different Disney kids fan site comments, in fact i was curious so searched out a lot of kid opinion on this - from what i've seen, almost 90% of the kids who've bothered to even have any opinion thought the special didn't make any sense, but was good because of their teen stars. The problem is that most didn't even notice the Muppets or just called them "puppets", majority didn't like them, and Miss Piggy seems to get a much more negative reaction that Kermit. I think they will have to do a lot more than put the Muppets into sketches with the Disney stars to actually get the kids into them (if ever) although if it gets the viewing figures they need to make a Muppet movie i'm not complaining.

Join me, ladies and gentlemen, in petitioning Congress to STOP, for the love of all that is holy STOP what is obviously child abuse! Parents allow and Disney markets a bunch of fluff, not for tweens, but for apparently someone with the IQs of their own merchandise, to be made. Disney owns ABC, right? The channel with LOST on it ... a show so detailed and nuanced that it drives me crazy ... in a good way? Go watch the episode of Dinosaurs where Earl makes everyone in Pangaea brain-dead because even the simplest plots were too complicated for him. This was a warning from 60 million years BC, folks! It wasn't just Sesame Street that was educational ... you don't have shove facts down throats to make a point. The problem with Disney is that it can't decide what age group it wants to suck off of. Why do shows for tweens have the same narrative content of a show for preschoolers? Haven't people griped about the dumbing down of America (c'mon, Sam the Eagle, join me on this!)? I understand ratings are higher for moronic stuff ... but look at the Dark Knight. Look at Iron Man before it. If all those network types are basing their programming decisions on focus groups ... are they using Muppet Vegetables as participants?

*is shot with tranquilizer gun*

Ahh ... okay, I'm better now.

 

[SSLFan]

I didn't mind the relentless self-referencing. It is one of Disney's hallmarks and I don't know anyone who doesn't feel smart, for example, for noticing that the Italian restaurant in "Enchanted" is the same restaurant from Lady in the Tramp.

Also, the Muppets are often self-referencing--except when they can't remember stuff (like the fact that Kermit and Piggy got married).

I don't think it's fair to snipe at Disney for being, well, Disney. They are where they are because they do it better than anyone--like it or not. I think the young stars here are to be specifcally commended for interactig so well with our team--good eye contact, sharing the mike, not afraid to get physical with them. Good job.

I second that!

 

[Sgt Floyd]

I just watched it... I understand why everyone feels so negativly asbout it, but all in all, it wasnt awful, but thats also not saying it was the best thing ever. It was exactly what I expected. Once again, as I said before, this will do nothing to get pepole interested in the muppets.

But you cant hate disney for trying. Afterall, they did use muppes that have not gotten much publicity lately. The electric mayhem (although...they only gave them like, one line each), the snowths.

But you cant say it was a total failure. If just one persin saw the muppets and got interested in them, then isnt that a good thing? Disnewy just doesnt know how to re-introduce the muppets. And I dont blame them. Just take a look around at the world today. People are being forced to grow up too fast, and losing their childhood innocence at an early age. Anything invovling puppets is instantly classified as the baby show unless its on an adult channel (Comedy central anyone?), and even then I think people would be hessitant to watch it.

 

[thekittybox]

The show itself was short. It had too many commercials, long commercials, to keep me at the television. I kept saying, "Where's the show?"

It was disjointed, confusing, and a bit jumpy. Where was the flow from scene to scene?

The Muppets' voices were a bit jarring. Sounded weird. The worst was the Swedish Chef who shouldn't speak full lines of English. Miss Piggy has lost that sweeter, softer voice she used on people right before she got angry. I was exceedingly pleased to see Electric Mayhem speaking, even if the voices sounded off.

Performances themselves... Miss Piggy seemed way too haughty even for Piggy! Kermit was too dry. He may be the glue keeping a bunch of other crazies together, but Kermit is still a little wacky too! Gonzo needs more craziness.

I had trouble seeing the arm rods. Did they edit them out? Sometimes that made them lose the puppet-ness of the Muppets.

As an old school Muppet (and Disney) fan, I watch the Muppets on a daily basis. I was shocked to find out that the elementary age children I work with had no idea who the Muppets were. There were some clips of Fozzie and Gonzo dancing (no words) that the kids did enjoy.

Do the Muppets need Disney? Yes. I wish the Muppets could stand alone and be a success again. They can't right now. Did Studio DC: Almost Live work for old and new fans? Maybe. Kids may need a better introduction to the Muppets. They're not "for babies" and the kids need to see that. Old fans need to see the commitment to the characters. We want to see the personalities, signature sayings or moves, and interactions between characters. Maybe we don't need 24/7 chickens, penguins flying, monsters eating stuff, and explosions... but controlled chaos for today. The special was a step, albeit not a huge step, in the right direction.

 

[Drtooth]

Disney sells fluff? Right. And Tickle Me Elmo isn't fluff at all.

Disney Channel has shows that feature clean-cut kids (Miley's dippy offscreen photo blunders notwithstanding) that espouse positive values, and parents appreciate that, and kids love the shows. What is so wrong with that?

2 things... you're a Disney stock holder... of COURSE you like these shows. A share of the companies profits from them pumps the stock price up.

The other thing... what's wrong with them? they're taking the bread out of the mouths of us cartoonists and animators, who have to struggle to get our feet in the door. Only profitable animation is late night druggy humor Adult Swim fodder.

Plus, I fail to see how you refer to the Muppets as relics, when these shows embrace and rehash the same tired cliches that were old by the time 1960's sitcoms ran them into the ground. Tell me, how is Hannah hiding the fact she's a rockstar any different than Major Nelson hiding Jeannie, or Samantha having to hide some weird glitch in her magic. Heck, the entire plotline of Zach and Cody is easily lifted out of the Hotel sequence from Home Alone 2.

If they were of some measurable quality, I'd say different. Even Stevens and even Lizzie MaGuire were higher quality. This is just the same old tired tweencoms we've been getting since Saved By The Bell. And even Saved by the Bell was funnier.

 

[goshposh]

So far my favorite line is
Gonzo: I got lost

Kermit: Where were you?

Gonzo: Vermont

 

[Luke]

Kids may need a better introduction to the Muppets.

You nailed it there. It was great that Disney tried, congrats to them - but if their mission here was to get kids aquainted with the Muppets, they could have done a bit better than cobbling a show around some footage they shot for interstitials a year ago and weren't even used then. It seemed more like a half hour advert for all the kids stuff, the kids dont need that - they all have their own shows to get that kinda promotion from. I appreciate the idea they have taken the kids out of their schedules to put them with what are effectively a group of old puppets they'd never heard of, and they are all clean cut and harmeless cheesy plot line shows that the kids do appreciate, but obviously Disney knows thats what gets viewers, what is gonna catch on, what sells the merchandise and what the parents approve of to - its a win win, they arent a charity. Overall if there is serious commitment to the Muppets (and Diz bought the by choice, they arent doin anyone favors) you've only gotta look to the Henson.com sketches to see they can be written and produced a lot better.

 

[frogboy4]

I may be wrong, but i think it might be Henson who woudn't release the molds and maybe even designs to them. Puppet Heap is one of the ex-creature shop guys who set up shop and employed other ex-henson builders and wranglers so its kinda like the creature shop staff without the most experienced veterans who used to be there. Started with Muppets TV (France) and they still build them today afaik. They seem to have got a handle on replicating most of the characters but are having problems with some - which is why they are changing so much (and to think Master Replicas may attempt a Piggy, the real guys cant even do it, lol). Sometimes you may see a really good Muppet likeness (maybe even Piggy) doing an interview or at Muppets.com - its probably just Steve or Erics master puppet (all puppeteers prefer using a single master where possible, as you know) still useable from back in the Henson built days. There definitely seems to be a rogue classic piggy about somewhere for sure, and i think they can build Kermit pretty well that we dont notice too much difference with him - thats my guess, maybe not so much swapping with Gonzo/Rizzo/Pepe.

Thanks for clearing that up a little. I wan't to see more of the rogue Piggy! The freaky wild-eyed Piggy and the wide-cheeked Piggy just don't do it for me. Their Statler and Waldorf are really beautiful. The Animal chin hair gets to me a little bit. Their Kermits seem to have different head sizes at times. That's the most I have observed.

Disney sells fluff? Right. And Tickle Me Elmo isn't fluff at all.

You appear to be lumping Sesame Street and the Muppets together and it demonstrates a misunderstanding of the Muppet Show characters that I am not comfortable with. That is why there always needs to be a clear distinction between the two that this special wasn't great about making.

Even on the TME vs. Disney toys front - most of the Sesame Workshop toys have an educational purpose. The TME helps to promote the other SW products out there. The profits go back into the company and the worldwide work SW does to educate the planet's children to give them an early start they might not already have. Disney toys are mostly mere shiny trendy objects that kids enjoy and toss into a landfill later when Hannah Montana ceases being cool while Sesame characters are evergreen and items can be passed down. The Disney proceeds get absorbed back into their corporate machine as in every other company. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that practice - every other company does it. I do take issue with comparing the products to ones licensed and released through Sesame Workshop!

Disney Channel has shows that feature clean-cut kids (Miley's dippy offscreen photo blunders notwithstanding) that espouse positive values, and parents appreciate that, and kids love the shows. What is so wrong with that? Honestly, the anti-Disney mania here is pretty weird, especially coming from people who are desperate to get the Muppets on TV again. And what did mean ol' Disney do? Why, it provided the Muppets with a plum timeslot, co-stars that guaranteed viewership even from those viewers who think Kermit is a just dumb old sock puppet their parents used to watch, and still you guys rail against the company that rescued your fixation. Amazing. Simply amazing.

I do agree that some of the Disney Channel comments have gone a little far, but the shows (not unlike studio DC) could be better written but aren't because they don't have to be. They aren't that quality-driven, but they're not Bratz either. It is fluff. I just think their fluff could be a little finer. That's all. It wouldn't hurt.

To say that Disney "saved" or "rescued" the Muppets is going too far. It took them a very long time to get to this point with them and they are doing a much better job with things now than the Henson Company's spotty efforts (mostly due to budget issues), but much of the footwork for the Muppets had been made before the Disney sale. The NBC Christmas special did remarkably well, the Oz special was already in the works and much of this had been helped by reorganizing efforts sparked by Muppet Fest and by the licensing pushes by Sideshow, Palisades and others that received much notice and acclaim in the industry, from fans and any layperson exposed to them.

The Muppets have been coming back into public consciousness for a while now. Disney has been helping that a great deal these days, but the Muppets had already begun their trek. The idea that fans like us should have a little gratitude is fair, but I'm not going to be kissing mouse butt. If not for one particular fan the Segel movie wouldn't be in the works. Finally Disney is understanding that and finding ways to facilitate the process. DC was their way of getting more kids interested in the Muppets so they can marry off some of their core demographic with the Muppet property. That will help increase film funding and future projects.

I just thought the special could have been a little better crafted. It was more like a bland and baggy Gap store fit when the Pig wears Prada. I would have settled for H&M or Banana Republic.