We Have a Picture of Walter AND MORE NEWS!

[beaker]

I like the heavier Piggy, but does anyone know why they replaced the amazing 2008-2010 Gonzo as seen in Letters to Santa, youtube vrmup and Muppets.com stuff to...well this current shrimpy weird eyed Gonzo imposter?

 

[Beauregard]

Well, that's just great...Step aside Angelo, there's an even more dull Puppet-looking whatnot guy here to take your place as the least interesting Muppet design of the century.

Also, I wonder how Walter managed to not meet any of those frogs/bears/chickens and things that the Muppets met while travelling the world in MTM? Or do they all really just live in Leeland and Hollywood?

EDIT: That first rant aside...ohmygoshandgoodnessandthisisactuallyhappeningandmuppets!

 

[AndyWan Kenobi]

Definitely excited to see this picture. Just the sense of fun in it is encouraging!

I like the idea of Walter being a human character's pal and roommate. I always wanted to see Muppets guest star on traditional sitcoms (like Friends) in the same way that humans guest starred on the Muppet Show. Now if only Jason Segel could get the rest of his current show's stars involved, we could have a movie called "How I Met Your Muppet."

 

[dwayne1115]

Looks to me like they used the poser Fozzie from Season one of the Muppet Show. You can see the round thing that made him able to frown which was taken away later on.

 

[Luke]

Well, that's just great...Step aside Angelo, there's an even more dull Puppet-looking whatnot guy here to take your place as the least interesting Muppet design of the century.

Also, I wonder how Walter managed to not meet any of those frogs/bears/chickens and things that the Muppets met while travelling the world in MTM? Or do they all really just live in Leeland and Hollywood?

EDIT: That first rant aside...ohmygoshandgoodnessandthisisactuallyhappeningandmuppets!

I agree, i get that he is supposed to be "human" but all of these new puppets coming out of the "Heap" are just so bland looking. There's just no detail to them, Muppets are meant to be beautiful detailed classic characters, you put something very plain with them and it sticks out like a sore thumb. Obviously thats the point with this, but i'd like to see some actual Muppety new characters.

I'm excited this movie is happening, but i think people want to see the classic Muppets back at their best, and it seems like they are being made the background players in this film. People will just get bored with it. Already the media are looking at this as a Segal movie, not a Muppet one.

 

[Mupp]

I agree, i get that he is supposed to be "human" but all of these new puppets coming out of the "Heap" are just so bland looking. There's just no detail to them, Muppets are meant to be beautiful detailed classic characters, you put something very plain with them and it sticks out like a sore thumb. Obviously thats the point with this, but i'd like to see some actual Muppety new characters.

I don't agree with that at all.

Let's be honest;

Kermit is not detailed at all.

Neither is Dr. Honeydew, or Scooter, or Beaker

Most of the classic Muppets are NOT "detailed" at all. They are very simple, yet they DO have a charm.

It is NOT their appearances that are complex, but their personalities.

In fact, new Muppets didn't start to look more complex and detailed until the Jim Henson Hour.

I really wish that folks would stop trying so hard to find something wrong.

 

[RedPiggy]

Well, I guess I'm probably the only one who was kinda hoping it'd be another Walter, a cranky old coot who'd be a great gag with S&W. LOL.

I get kind of a Princeton vibe from this Walter. Apparently meeting the Muppets is his "purpose".

I think the Muppets can be puppets and real at the same time in their universe. It's kind of like the finale of FR -- it's magic if you see it that way. They can be puppets who take on a reality if you believe in them.

 

[frogboy4]

Disclaimer:
We're fans, not publicists, so of course we're going to voice our critical perspective. That's what fan forums are all about so please let's remember that. So far everything here has been fairly constructive from people I know are very knowledgeable fans who loooove the Muppets.

That said, I like Walter. For some reason I thought he'd look less humanoid and more like a brown woodland creature. Did I read that somewhere or is that just jumbled in my head?

Unlike Angelo, Walter's face is open and inviting. Just looking at him makes me want to meet this little guy. He's colorful enough to grab your attention, but not too distinct as not to distract from the actual Muppets. He's supposed to be a rung lower than them so this fits. Sure, they could have done better, but this'll do IMHO. Let's just hope he doesn't take too much screen time away from Kermit and the gang.

No Pepe is kind of strange. There is no Rizzo either so maybe they're off on some sort of latte-fetching mission.

I sure hope they rebuilt the Miss Piggy puppet since the Muppets Kitchen version. She's had a blank, stale stare, stiff neck and mushy shaped head for over a decade now. If anyone deserves a star makeover it's the pig. I think the problem with her construction is that they're copying from a copy of a copy rather than going back to the iconic Caper Piggy as a starting point. I have high hopes.

This picture excites me about the Muppets!

 

[matleo]

I'd need to see the character being performed before i could really pass judgment on him. While he's not as cool looking as other muppet characters like Gonzo, Clifford, Floyd, Beau, etc. He certainly looks like he has personality.

my only 'criticism' of the character is that I think he looks an awful lot like Princeton from Avenue Q.

--Matt

 

[Barry Lee]

This is exciting, some personal thoughts,

• I won't judge on Walter until I see him in action, with a voice, etc. But I love the idea, I really do, since he is a humanoid, he is sort of bland yes, but look at Nigel or Wayne, or George the Janitor, those designs are very simple.
• This spread makes my heart just simply explode
• I think that Pepe' could sit out on this, this is sort of a reintroduction to the 'Classic' muppets from what i've been reading, which is what we want, this is a new adaption on a franchise, and the fact that the movie is simply being called "The Muppets," i think works for what they are trying to achieve.