It's a Great Day to Be a Muppet Fan!

[MelissaY1]

Like Jerry Juhl.

BINGO! Im not saying there aren't other talented writers out there who would be appropriate for the Muppets but let's be realistic: Jerry wrote for them as CHARACTERS. As PERSONALITIES. He knew what Kermit would do, etc. That's one of the huge things that I think is missing these days.

 

[wwfpooh]

but the lousy projects have outweighed the good ones in my opinion

She has a point. MFS, MWoO, & Studio DC were mediocre at best and were obviously not up to the standards lots of fans set for The Muppets. Some however, are just glad The Muppets are around at all, considering that--until recently--they were reduced to simply online stuff & commercials, good or bad.

 

[MelissaY1]

Sigh. I don’t see why you choose to misinterpret most of my posts to some other extreme, but hopefully this will help.

My reply was in response to MelissaY1's erroneous claim that the classic Muppetyness was missing in Muppet media today when it is very apparent in the recent web clips. Fans of old should recognize the Muppets' heart is still very much alive in those clips, but I never stated they had to be "loved" in order to be considered a real fan. The only thing really missing is a narrative, but that's what makes them web clips and not project media.

I don't think it's "erroneous". I think it's a matter of opinion. This is just how I feel towards current projects these days

 

[CensoredAlso]

Some however, are just glad The Muppets are around at all, considering that--until recently--they were reduced to simply online stuff & commercials, good or bad.

Well you know, it's not like new people have tried coming out with new Marx Brothers movies in order to make them more "modern", or to keep them in the public eye. That wouldn't make sense. The original movies are classic and well respected don't need to be recreated. That's how I feel about the Muppets.

 

[wwfpooh]

The original movies are classic and well respected don't need to be recreated

The same could be said for many of Disney's films (especially The Modern Classics of the 80's & 90's), but yet, the corporation still feels that shoddy sequels and even preposterous prequels need to be shelled out. Disney needs to get its priorities straight, because if the company focuses too much on the Tweens, then all the other franchises wrapped up within the company could lose out on maketing deals and various other opportunities, thusly becoming nothing more than precious--and to some, sadly forgotten--memories.

 

[MelissaY1]

Well you know, it's not like new people have tried coming out with new Marx Brothers movies in order to make them more "modern", or to keep them in the public eye. That wouldn't make sense. The original movies are classic and well respected don't need to be recreated. That's how I feel about the Muppets.

Exactly. That's how I feel about all these dumb remakes of classic movies too. Did we REALLY need another "War of the Worlds", etc. The classic stuff still holds up whether it's movies, Muppets, comedy, etc. The jokes and most of the songs they used on the Muppet Show was material harking back to the vaudeville days from YEARS before and it held up well in the late 70's for that audience, so why can't they use that same kind of train of thought and apply it to new Muppet stuff today?

Why did the Muppet characters have to mingle with Disney Channel "stars" in this recent T.V. special? Why not just do a flat out Muppet special? Or use those people in cameos. I mean I didn't find ANY of those skits funny at all NOR the interactions between the characters and these actors appealing/believable. On the Muppet Show, you believed Gonzo had a crush on Madeline Kahn, Linda Ronstadt on Kermit, etc. That's what made it funny!

 

[CensoredAlso]

The jokes and most of the songs they used on the Muppet Show was material harking back to the vaudeville days from YEARS before and it held up well in the late 70's for that audience, so why can't they use that same kind of train of thought and apply it to new Muppet stuff today?

Absolutely that stuff does not get old, even Hannah Montana uses a few old "tricks of the trade" when it comes to humor.

 

[wwfpooh]

Why not just do a flat out Muppet special?

The current demographic of Disney cares for the Tweens, plain and simple. We old fans of Disney's original approach--favored by Walt Disney himself, Roy Disney, and even Mike Eisner for a limited time--aren't the ones Disney are trying to aim towards (even if they are bringing The Muppets back), because we're not the demographic Disney thinks it need to market towards.

 

[MelissaY1]

The current demographic of Disney cares for the Tweens, plain and simple. We old fans of Disney's original approach--favored by Walt Disney himself, Roy Disney, and even Mike Eisner for a limited time--aren't the ones Disney are trying to aim towards (even if they are bringing The Muppets back), because we're not the demographic Disney thinks it need to market towards.

I don't know, I just think there's other ways they can make the Muppets appeal to the younger set without having to pair them up with the Jonas Brothers who nobody's going to care about in another year or so.

 

[bazooka_beak]

I dunno, I don't think that having more love for the classics than every new thing that comes along really makes one any less of a fan..I don't think being a true fan really means we have to accept every change that's thrown at us just because 'that's the way it is'. For example, if, say, the new muppet movie or FR movie is good at keeping the characters 'alive' but I don't like them, does that really mean I am not a fan with love for the characters? Would overlooking that movie I don't like be turning my back on them? I don't think so...

I agree with this. I don't think I need to blindly embrace anything that comes out because it's my obligation somehow, that I should feel grateful because it's "better than nothing." I shouldn't be less of a fan because I prefer the Muppets from days gone past (not to say I don't like the modern Muppets). To blindly accept everything, to never question it or critique it, I don't think that's good

Now, I truely want the Muppets to survive and do well. I love and adore them, as anyone should if they're members of this forum. But some of the recent stuff they've been doing have left a disappointed, bad taste in my mouth (I haven't seen the Youtube or Muppets.com stuff yet, but I will). It's hard to be optimistic about their future projects :/ It's like serving people cake with salt in it instead of sugar, and after two or three tries you say, "Next time I won't mess up, and will use sugar." The people you've been feeding will naturally feel cautious about it, even if they love cake or that particular recipe OK, that was a really bad analogy, I'm sorry!