How Many Muppets Are There? Thousands?

[The Count]

Because those aren't Henson company characters. They belong to their respective individual franchisal universes, which is why there's a completely separate Wiki for puppets altogether.

 

[Drtooth]

How many "Muppet" characters ARE there? If we were to include every single puppet character and background character from say...

The Muppet Show
All Muppet specials/tv appearances/talk show gigs
Online shows(From the Balcony, etc)
Sam and Friends
Sesame Street
ALL International Sesame Streets
Fraggle Rock
Fraggle Rock Animated
Bear in the Big Blue House
Jim Henson Hour
Dinosaurs
Sid the Science Kid
Mopatop
Hoobs
Puppet Up
Emmet Otter
Muppet Musicians of Bremman
Bunny Picnic
Dog City
Scary Scary Monsters
60's and 70's Muppet specials
Big Bag
Animal Jam
Skrumps
Animal Show w/ Stinky and Jake
Late Night Buffet/Dels Comedy Buffet
Tinseltown
Unstable Fairy Tale dvd series
Land of Gorch
City Kids

Notice you added Fraggle Rock animated.... would that include every animated muppet character as well? Characters who appear, let's say, on Muppet Babies, Little Muppet Monsters... and would that also include comic/illustraited characters as well?

 

[The Count]

Yeah... I'd say no and eliminate FR Animated from that. You could count illustrated/animated characters if you wanted since they can be said to be part of the varying Muppet realms, but for me, if there's no tangibility to them I leave them off of my list. That's why I wouldn't add the RTL cast, though my fondest hopes is that the manga's story gets turned into Labyrinth 2, then justifying all those additions. That's also the reason why I'm unsure about Sid and Unstable Fables... But I'll ask about those once I'm good and ready to move on to ML 20.

BTW: Scary, Scary Monsters? Is that meant to be Little Muppet Monsters?

 

[beaker]

Why not just every puppet? Greg the Bunny, Avenue Q, Puppet Up, MST3K,

Those are some great ones too, but I meant more of regarding characters from any Henson/Sesame Workshop/Muppet Holding Company offshoot, brand or related franchise.

Notice you added Fraggle Rock animated.... would that include every animated muppet character as well? Characters who appear, let's say, on Muppet Babies, Little Muppet Monsters... and would that also include comic/illustraited characters as well?

Absolutely. I would say EVERY Muppet character who has ever appeared in animated, comic book or children's illustrated book form.

 

[LamangoNumber2]

Well, isn't Puppet up Henson related?

 

[beaker]

Yeah... I'd say no and eliminate FR Animated from that. You could count illustrated/animated characters if you wanted since they can be said to be part of the varying Muppet realms, but for me, if there's no tangibility to them I leave them off of my list. That's why I wouldn't add the RTL cast, though my fondest hopes is that the manga's story gets turned into Labyrinth 2, then justifying all those additions. That's also the reason why I'm unsure about Sid and Unstable Fables... But I'll ask about those once I'm good and ready to move on to ML 20.

BTW: Scary, Scary Monsters? Is that meant to be Little Muppet Monsters?

Scary Scary Monsters is a 1998-1999 Jim Henson Company Muppet offshoot starring Splurge and other monsters in their own Fraggle Rock like world, mostly told through childrens books:
http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Scary_Scary_Monsters
Some plushes and merchandise was made, and word had it that
even an animated pilot had been made or was in the works. It has a *very* Fraggle Rock animated look and feel to it.

Anyways, to me Skeeter is a significant enough of a character that I would include her on a list...even though she's only existed thus so far in animated and book form.

I personally wouldn't include creatures from Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Mirrormask or Farscape as "Muppets" due to them being more or less Creature Shop characters...though, Jim Henson Hour's Muppet Television segments certainly did blur that line.

 

[beaker]

Well, isn't Puppet up Henson related?

Yep! *Loves the HA! Brand*

 

[dwmckim]

Ah - the eternal question: "How does one count the Muppets". I congratulate anyone who even attempts such a thing not only due to the large number but by the fact that to even do such a thing, you have to set a large number of parameters which are logistical nightmares, one of them being discussed here is what productions/families/casts do you include and leave out. Not simple since there are so many of those "exceptions" and grey areas. Take Skeeter (since she was recently mentioned) - she's not been made in Muppet form but she has been made in "Poser Muppet" form.

Muppets are continually recycled into different characters - Mopatop's being a good example - do you count those once or twice. Even when a puppet isn't really rebuilt but has a totally different identity, does it get counted once or twice (example: Cookie Monster vs. Arnold) You can decide to leave out Wubbulous World but then you have puppets used in that show that made crossovers into other productions.

And then there's the Whatnots/Anything Muppets - do you include everytime a new Muppet is made up from an AM even if it's just as a one-time background extra?

Good luck to anyone who ventures down such a path!

 

[beaker]

Ah - the eternal question: "How does one count the Muppets". I congratulate anyone who even attempts such a thing not only due to the large number but by the fact that to even do such a thing, you have to set a large number of parameters which are logistical nightmares, one of them being discussed here is what productions/families/casts do you include and leave out. Not simple since there are so many of those "exceptions" and grey areas. Take Skeeter (since she was recently mentioned) - she's not been made in Muppet form but she has been made in "Poser Muppet" form.

Muppets are continually recycled into different characters - Mopatop's being a good example - do you count those once or twice. Even when a puppet isn't really rebuilt but has a totally different identity, does it get counted once or twice (example: Cookie Monster vs. Arnold) You can decide to leave out Wubbulous World but then you have puppets used in that show that made crossovers into other productions.

And then there's the Whatnots/Anything Muppets - do you include everytime a new Muppet is made up from an AM even if it's just as a one-time background extra?

Good luck to anyone who ventures down such a path!

I say count it all. Everything. Including all Henson Alternative projects. Don't let legal technicalities preclude "Muppet"ness.

Maybe put the breaks on Sid the Science Kid and Dinosaur Train, given those are cgi. Heck at this point I'm going to now include Dinosaurs(tho I wouldnt count Storyteller, Labyrinth or Dark Crystal)

Recycled puppets I would say counts, including each incarnation.
Goodness knows Puppet Up/Stuffed Unstrung is recycling puppets from so many different kids shows and obscure one off productions. Wubbulous World is tough, as its part of the Dr Seuss canon. Yet, as you said, it definitely has recycled characters and is quite Muppety.

Some characters began as not being a Muppet(like Jerry Nelson's Puss n Boots) but later were acknowledged as Muppets.