Ask Ken at Palisades

[Zack the Dog]

Now Im all for obscure characaters coming out, heck it is a darn dream come true to be able to finally have Koozebane and Lobster figures. But I draw the line at uber obscure characters like Pops, Wayne and Wanda, and Marvin Suggs...who are a bit boring and wouldnt have much sculpt appeal.

I just said pops, i think Ken said there was no posablity of Wayne and Wanda anyways, they would not work. marivn suggs and his muppaphones would work if he was in a srtong line.

I dont' think Pops or Marvin Suggs are all that obscure...people much less dedicated to muppets than I recognize them both...they're certainly no worse than crazy harry or beauregard....and way way better than digit...who most people wouldn't recognize as a muppet if he came with a t-shirt saying "I'm a Muppet" on it...

I don't coun't pops in the same catagory as Beau but close to it, after beau became more sceen on the muppet show, and he had great big sceens in TGMC, pops was in the movie too, but beau moved on and started to become more and more of a part of the muppet troup, like in the muppets at walt disney world, i think after MFC Emily Bear was headed in this direction too, to become more of a part of the muppets creating aother female muppet to tag along...never to become a main charater but would be part of whatever the muppets did, she was last seen in a small role in MCC. oh and Crazy harry's kinda popular but not that he's a part of the main gang,but he's always hanging aound.

Digit's got nothing but un aird re-runs, nothing for sale in stores like on video/dvd, nor is he memorlable to people, i thought ken said he didn't have the rights to make JHH muppets anyways? has that changed?

Digit would be a cool figure, i'm not saying this because i don't like digit, he just would not fit in, atleast not any time soon, i think we have to remember we can't always get what we want, but what needs to get out...does pops need to get out? no....he doesn't either, but he would fit in better with the gang, plus pops isn't something that is coming out anytime soon. uncle deady would be a better choice then the both of them.

I just mentioned pops because someone said it would be neat if some the the muppets came with puppets like maybe Beau with punch and judy,...pops and pinnoccio.

 

[frogboy4]

I see the waves going (something) like this:

1 MTI Kermit
2 Regular Rowlf
3 Johnny
4 Sal
(Johnny Repaint)

1 Sweater Vest Gonzo
2 Exploded Beaker
3 Bean Bunny
4 Marvin Suggs
(Gonzo Repaint)

1 Tux Fozzie with Chuckie
2 Sweetums with Robin
3 Bobo
4 Lips
(Lips Repaint)

1 Movie Usher Scooter
2 MTI Piggy
3 Patrol Link
4 Uncle Deadly
(Scooter Repaint)

Not really a wave order or personal preference. Just demonstrates how some of the characters could be released with good pacing.

 

[Zack the Dog]

Wave 7, although tentative looks really weak right now, because some people would regard Marvin Suggs on the same kinda level as Johnny & Sal, and others would maybe put Marvin slightly lower, but whatever way you look at it thats 3 fairly weak characters all in the same wave.

yep, i feel the same way Luke and Jamie, isn't there an figure that hasn't been said yet in that line too?

Jonny and sal are too new and unknown by many, and marivn is too old and unknown by many,

i think Jonny and Sal should be a two pack anyways, i don't think jonny would look all that apeeling by himself, he needs sal right next too him, that way it would cut out two figures that many not sell well...to one figure two pack that may not sell as well, but better chanced then them seprate in the same series or seprate in diffrent series.

i say put reg rowlf or sam in there, with maybe a jonny & SAL two pack then with afro kermit ( there you go luke;-) and like MTI miss Piggy,

that way well know kermit and piggy are in there, Sam is is pretty known and then fan favoirte jonny with sal.

 

[frogboy4]

A 2 pack is cost prohibitive. There are many reasons why that would be a bad idea. If Statler and Waldorf aren't coming together, I don't see any others (unless it's a Robin-like pack-in) happening.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

Lips over Marvin, but I want a Pops, too.

The Marvin could be made with moveable arms and neck and legs, and his upper body could spin around like in reality...whatever THAT is...

 

[ZootandDingo]

Originally posted by frogboy4
I think Marvin, Johnny and Sal should all be released, but not in the same wave. Johnny and Sal should be mixed in with some bigger guns.

I agree completely.

The problem with a Marvin/Johnny/Sal mix is that you'll get three different types of people who will pass on at least one figure......a nostalgic fan who may remember Marvin from the show but didn't keep up on any new Muppet stuff, a newer fan who may remember Johnny and Sal from MFS and "Muppets Tonight" but has no idea who Marvin is, or someone who has no idea who any of the three characters are.

So, there would have to be one heckuvan anchor character to support three others that may linger on the pegs.

As far as obscure characters go, everyone has a different school of thought on who is considered "obscure." I personally don't think of characters such as Pops and Uncle Deadly as nearly as oddball as, say, Lips or Marvin Suggs, but still I think a series comprising entirely of Pops, Lips, Marvin, and Deadly would be doomed.

One of the good things about the Palisades line is that it kind of redefined who is a "big gun" as far as Muppet marketability goes. I mean, five years ago, would a product assortment have been anchored by Rowlf and Scooter?

I remember when the figure line was first announced, and I was worried that the BAND would have been considered "too obscure."

I think I may have mentioned this on the old board, but back when I worked for Warner Bros. I saw a sort of licensing chart for all the Hanna-Barbera characters, and each character was classified as an "A character," a "B character," or a "C character" in terms of overall popularity and marketability. For example, Scooby-Doo was an A, Dick Dastardly was a B, Squiddly Diddly was a C, etc.

I think the same kind of principle can be applied to the Muppets. When it comes to each specific character, a casual passerby (provided they know what a "Muppet" is) is either going to know them exactly, may sorta remember them from the show, or have no idea who they are.

Using the same character examples mentioned already, Pops or Johnny would probably be B characters, where as Marvin or Lips would be Cs.

That's not to say that I wouldn't love to see a Marvin Suggs figure or a Sal figure (or some other guy that seems to have dominated my avatar), but for the sake of the future of the line I would feel a little better if they were paired with stronger characters.

I think so far that the Palisades line has mixed the characters nicely...so I'm going to trust their judgement on Series 7, with my fingers tightly crossed.

 

[Zack the Dog]

although Robin was said he may not come wth Sweetums, i wonder where he will be placed, How big would Sal be? he seems like he is pack in matteral, Robin would sell better on his own then sal, but robin is small plus he not as strong as a muppet like rizzo or pepe is. Statler and waldorf are way to big to come togther with those chairs anyways, plus they are more well known and classic.

 

[Gorgon Heap]

Originally posted by Zack the Dog
I just said pops, i think Ken said there was no posablity of Wayne and Wanda anyways, they would not work.

How about as part of PVC set, maybe? Perhaps a Season One PVC set, or maybe sprinkle first season characters throughout the PVCs much like is being done with the big monsters? Just a thought.

David "Gorgon Heap" Ebersole

 

[frogboy4]

Originally posted by Zack the Dog
although Robin was said he may not come wth Sweetums, i wonder where he will be placed, How big would Sal be? he seems like he is pack in matteral, Robin would sell better on his own then sal, but robin is small plus he not as strong as a muppet like rizzo or pepe is. Statler and waldorf are way to big to come togther with those chairs anyways, plus they are more well known and classic.

Sal is bigger than Rizzo or Pepe and they are not pack-ins. The robot rabbit was very expensive to make and articulate. Sal is definitely not a pack in. Well, unless you want to pay twice as much for a pegged box.

 

[Gorgon Heap]

What sort of accessories would you give Lips besides the trumpet? His character was never developed/established. I asked Henson.com for a bio of Lips but they said negatory, or at least that Steve Whitmire never kept any notes about the character (they seemed to get the answer to that question awfully fast. Hmm...) That's the only problem I see with Lips. If anyone else wants to try and ask for a Lips bio (because someone once asked for one of Astoria and one of the Muppet writers obliged, sort of) please be my guest.

David "Gorgon Heap" Ebersole