Things the Muppets can't do anymore

[D'Snowth]

I dunno...I kind of disagree that the muppets wouldnt be able to do anything. Have you actually seen some of the things tv shows get away with?

Yeah, but, here's the thing:

It’s just the parents that ruin it for everyone cause herp derp, da muppets r for kidz!!!111!!!

This.

Primetime shows - whether on network, cable, or streaming, are kind of expected to test boundaries, push envelopes, and shock people with the content they can get away with. The Muppets, on the other hand, being a more family-oriented (notice, I didn't say kid-oriented) franchise, they're constantly under watchful eyes of these morality and parental groups, such as One Million Moms and such, who monitor these kinds of things, because . . . DEAR GOD!!! THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!!

But, in all seriousness, this wasn't a problem back when the Muppets were in their prime, mainly because way back when, there was such as thing called Standards & Practices - it was basically a censorship guideline of what you could and couldn't say or do on network television. By the early 1970s, with more socially conscious shows taking to the air, like ALL IN THE FAMILY, SANFORD AND SON, THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW, etc., S&P gradually became more and more relaxed, to the point that it's virtually non-existent - except for, perhaps, in situations where something may be deemed politically incorrect/insensitive, or whatever.

Back then, everything was monitored by network censors and such, so there was no need for anybody to get upset over anything, because if it was inappropriate on any level, it would never make it to air . . . remember, once upon a time, you couldn't show things on TV like toilets, married couples in the same bed, or belly buttons; you couldn't say four-lettered words like "crap" or "crud"; and things like characters being ladies' men were considered risque.

As TV has progressed, and censorship has gotten more and more relaxed, certain people and groups out there have taken it upon themselves to try to put a stop to this, which, again, is why we have so many groups like One Million Moms monitoring what they perceive to be kiddy fare with a fine-toothed comb, and since the Muppets have, unfortunately, always had a stigma of being considered kids entertainment, of course they're going to be under watchful eyes. And, with that in mind, I'm surprised they are still getting away with a few little things myself . . . that "Counting Flowers on the Wall" video implying that Beaker has romantic feelings for Bunsen? I'm surprised these groups haven't exploded over that. And again, as much as these people obsess over Ernie and Bert being gay, they haven't ever batted an eye at Horatio being an obviously effeminiate male elephant with a high, screechy voice and dancing around in tutus for putting out gay vibes?

 

[MWoO]

Horatio is safe for two reasons. One, no one knows who that is. Go up to any almost anyone and ask them to name 50 Sesame Street characters. I bet Horatio the elephant never comes up.

Two, gay stereotyoes that you can laugh at is just fine by anti-gay groups. But Bert and Ernie are just regular characters. Heaven forbid a normal person be gay. How would they know who to hate?

Personally I have an issue with Bert and Ernie being gay or straight. They are written to have the mind of a child. Gay and straight are sexualities and I dont think they should be assigned to children. As far as I am concerned children are asexual until they start going through puberty, Ernie and Bert never will.

 

[LittleJerry92]

I mean, even as a kid, I never found myself attracted to guys. Always women. I can’t tell you how many childhood crushes i’ve had at young ages (real life people and fictional characters).

But I do get your point on the asexual note, though.

 

[Sgt Floyd]

Personally I have an issue with Bert and Ernie being gay or straight. They are written to have the mind of a child. Gay and straight are sexualities and I dont think they should be assigned to children. As far as I am concerned children are asexual until they start going through puberty, Ernie and Bert never will.

People want to find representation in everything. Two characters of the same gender breathing in the same room? Always gay. Gotta be gay. You're homophobic if you think otherwise.

it's...actually kind of alarming how many people have this mentality

 

[D'Snowth]

Personally I have an issue with Bert and Ernie being gay or straight. They are written to have the mind of a child. Gay and straight are sexualities and I dont think they should be assigned to children. As far as I am concerned children are asexual until they start going through puberty, Ernie and Bert never will.

I mean, even as a kid, I never found myself attracted to guys. Always women.

I kind of see it both ways, to be honest.

This is why I, personally, don't believe in either being LGBT is a "choice," but I also don't necessarily believe that you're "born that way," either. I can't really explain it, but as @MWoO points out, I don't think really little kids (like, preschool age) really have a concept of romantic love anyway, let alone sexual orientations . . . but, like @LittleJerry92, I too never found myself attracted to guys as a kid either. Now, I'm sure that contributing factors and experiences can probably shape or influence our sexualities as we grow up, and perhaps they can be taken into consideration (but I'm not talking about the stigmas, like growing up with a lot of brothers means your gay, or being molested as a child means your gay, or any of that stuff), but this isn't the thread for that discussion.

But, I also don't see Ernie and Bert as being kids either. Not even Ernie - I see him more as an extremely eccentric man child. Bert occasionally shows childlike tendancies himself, but he comes across as a far more reasonable adult figure at times, and in fact, he was originally intended to be a father-figure to Ernie, but that was changed to avoid making it seem like they were encouraging kids to be disrespectful and rebel against their parents.

 

[MWoO]

I kind of see it both ways, to be honest.

This is why I, personally, don't believe in either being LGBT is a "choice," but I also don't necessarily believe that you're "born that way," either. I can't really explain it, but as @MWoO points out, I don't think really little kids (like, preschool age) really have a concept of romantic love anyway, let alone sexual orientations . . . but, like @LittleJerry92, I too never found myself attracted to guys as a kid either. Now, I'm sure that contributing factors and experiences can probably shape or influence our sexualities as we grow up, and perhaps they can be taken into consideration (but I'm not talking about the stigmas, like growing up with a lot of brothers means your gay, or being molested as a child means your gay, or any of that stuff), but this isn't the thread for that discussion.

But, I also don't see Ernie and Bert as being kids either. Not even Ernie - I see him more as an extremely eccentric man child. Bert occasionally shows childlike tendancies himself, but he comes across as a far more reasonable adult figure at times, and in fact, he was originally intended to be a father-figure to Ernie, but that was changed to avoid making it seem like they were encouraging kids to be disrespectful and rebel against their parents.

My understanding is that Sesame Street characters fall into 3 categories. You have those that are literal children like Elmo, Big Bird, Zoey, etc. You have those that are adults like Oscar, The Count, and Kermit. They live on their own, hold jobs, and understand that world as an adult would. Then you have the ones that live an almost adult life, but have the mentality of children. That is Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster, Grover, etc. They can have jobs and live on their own, but they have the mind of a child. They view the world like a child would in many ways. I suppose the line for Bert and Ernie's mentality has blurred over the years though.