1. I now absolutely love the forum. See, whenever my hotmail, facebook, etc changes all the sudden...at first I hate it. But then my eyes get used to it, and I grow to like it. The old 2002-2011 MC was starting to feel a bit rigid layout wise, didn't pop. So I really appreciate the new integration
2. Good to see you back Luke!
3. I think Phil has had pretty thick skin. Especially after the unfortunate late 2002 time period where everyone was taking shots at Phil(sadly I was not immune to the adding t the commentary and I apologize for that) I think Phil has done amazingly well about taking a neutral tone. He doesn't have to do this. He's long been busy with his own projects that Im sure are much more important than this site.
If Phil has his own management style, thats fine. It's a web democracy. Look how independently other sites have sprung up. I think Tough Pigs had some growing up to do(I'll leave it at that), and now they're doing a series of interviews on youtube with some of the top Muppet performers. Same with The Muppet Mindset. I credit MC with single handedly helping to foster and bring back a lot of our Muppet love; but as much as I still have a bad taste left from feuds with old Tough Pigs, I believe their Wiki site is one of the greatest Muppety things ever. And I absolutely love The Muppet Mindset's endless coverage, enthusiasm and democratic approach to daily content by whoever wants to.
Point being, if you dont like Phil's approach, it's not a be all end all website. That said, I think it's good for Phil to listen to some ideas/criticism which I think he's doing