Changes that you actually liked

[Drtooth]

Honestly, I never meant for that to become an anti- Elmo type thread. In fact I was only expressing how much I missed, well, you've seen the rest...

Anyways, my apologies.

No need for appologies. I'm just trying to keep this thread a possitive one, since there is quite a bit of negativity in this subject.

Since the curriculum is always in a state of flux, kudos to them for expanding kids minds and basically saying "Hi, and welcome to the world. Now, there's a LOT here, I know, but we're going to try to teach you as much as we possibly can about it. C'mon!"

Indeed, that's what Sesame Street does best (though some times are more successful than others). Expanding the curriculum is always important to a show that wants to be a living breathing contribution to American educational TV. Heck, only thing Barney did was shove in lyrics to pre-existing public domain songs.

Another thing I like to see with each passing season is new cast members. Not saying Maria, Luis, Bob, and Gordon aren't still amazing after all these years (quite the opposite), but it's always great to see some new faces, new actors, and just plain new blood in the series. Last year's addition, Chris, really jumped into the series, and I can tell he's gonna fit in great for years to come. And I can't wait for the new Indian woman named Leela. I love to see a diverse Sesame Street. that way you can learn more about other cultures.

 

[Convincing John]

Yeah, new cast members...

I was thinking about that a while ago. I haven't seen much new SS, so I might've seen Chris. Not sure. He's a teenager, right?

I hope he sticks around. I look at Miles and Gabi and I remember when they were on the show as babies. (Man, I feel old). I feel like Herry in the 20th anniversary special with John-John. "Miles! Gabi! Is that you all grown-up?"

Teenage roles on SS sometimes work, sometimes they don't. I remember (vaguely) Mike. All he did was eat...and had a carnival booth once.

One cast member addition I liked was the addition of Olivia. I really liked her and the positive role model she was for siblings. It was cool to see that Gordon not only had a sister, but showed that siblings can get along (and squabble sometimes) as adults, just like kids do. She also has a good singing voice and fit in with the cast very well. Yet another example of Sesame's "Welcome! Here is the world" message is put forth beautifully in two songs Olivia sang:

Who Am I?
Everything Grows

I wonder...and this might be putting the thread off topic here, but why doesn't Olivia return? 227 has been off the air for years. She could move to the street, be introduced as Gordon's sister, and today's viewers would never be the wiser. Olivia rocked, and I bet kids could benefit from her being on the street with the rest of the gang.

Convincing John

 

[Ilikemuppets]

Yeah! It would be cool if Olivia were to come back one day.

I remember Mike! He had so much energy!

 

[ISNorden]

I admit that Olivia is one of the best "late addition" characters on the show, but doubt that Alaina Reed would want to come back; from what I've read online, she seems mostly interested in her singing career with older audiences. The only chance Olivia might have is being played by another actress with a similar singing voice; though that's a pretty tall order to fill, Gordon's been recast three times himself!

 

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

A few changes I enjoyed: Telly's design change in season 32. I'm not much of a fan of his previous two designs, but think the current one looks nicer.

Also, Roscoe Orman taking over as Gordon. I know this has been mentioned before on the thread but, I really don't like Hal Miller's portrayal of the character. He really just wasn't right for the character. He didn't really seem to have as much chemistry with the Muppets or even his wife. That's one of the great things about Matt Robinson's performance, he really made you believe he was the character and he really made you believe he was married to Susan. His charm and chemistry just worked no matter which character he was paired with. Hal, on the other hand, not so much. Now, I don't really dislike Miller, I think he could've been a great cast member, just not a great Gordon. Who knows, had Roscoe not taken over the character, maybe Gordon wouldn't have been on the show for so long.

Obviously, another welcome change was Eric Jacobson and David Rudman taking over Frank's characters. Throughout the 90s, , and hardly appeared at all. But than Eric showed up and truly made the characters his own almost immediately. And now he's taken over Guy Smiley and Oscar, and he's almost flawless. The man definitely has a gift, and I can't imagine anyone doing a better job than him.

Also, special mention to Ryan Dillon. He's a magnificent Elmo.

 

[wiley207]

The only Frank Oz character I recall David Rudman taking over is Cookie Monster. Though initially, Eric Jacobson performed Cookie Monster for a bit before passing the role to Rudman.
However, David Rudman DOES have a knack for taking over Richard Hunt's characters, such as Sully, the right head of the Two-Headed Monster, Dip the Cat (in the Inside-Outside Story), Sonny Friendly, even Scooter and Janice!
I'd like to hear David Rudman's take on Forgetful Jones, and while I'm at it, I'd like to see Eric Jacobson perform Harvey Kneeslapper, and Matt Vogel as Herry Monster! (I think Matt would do a great job with Herry.)

 

[D'Snowth]

I really don't even mind the block format they introduced in Season 33: I know a lot of people rip the block format a new one because they grew up with and loved the older magazine format so much, but I kind of feel like the block format gave the show a bit more consistency and structure that it otherwise didn't really have beforehand.

As for Telly, I really miss his Season 30-32 design, with the slightly larger, more bulbous nose - I always felt like he had a nose job afterwards, lol.

 

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

As for Telly, I really miss his Season 30-32 design, with the slightly larger, more bulbous nose - I always felt like he had a nose job afterwards, lol.

Well, I guess he has always been a bit insecure,

Though initially, Eric Jacobson performed Cookie Monster for a bit before passing the role to Rudman.

Did Eric ever perform Cookie on screen? I'd love to see his take on the character at some point.

However, David Rudman DOES have a knack for taking over Richard Hunt's characters, such as Sully, the right head of the Two-Headed Monster, Dip the Cat (in the Inside-Outside Story), Sonny Friendly, even Scooter and Janice!
I'd like to hear David Rudman's take on Forgetful Jones, and while I'm at it, I'd like to see Eric Jacobson perform Harvey Kneeslapper, and Matt Vogel as Herry Monster! (I think Matt would do a great job with Herry.)

David's Sonny Friendly is so good that most of the time I have a hard time distinguishing between the two performers. I think he'd do a pretty good job as Forgetful.

 

[Drtooth]

I really don't even mind the block format they introduced in Season 33: I know a lot of people rip the block format a new one because they grew up with and loved the older magazine format so much, but I kind of feel like the block format gave the show a bit more consistency and structure that it otherwise didn't really have beforehand.

I'm ambivalent towards the various attempts at a block format since that season. It seems that they tried going into a compromised direction of somewhat block, somewhat magazine format only to go heavily into a slightly different block format.

And I'm technically cool with the concept of a bunch of smaller shows in one big show that they had up until recently. Just the way they handled it was sloppy. Certain segments rotated, others were daily. It's pretty much pointless to complain about Sesame reusing the heck out of footage, but no matter how forgiving you can be, it was brutal. If there's one change about the new seasons I like, it's tweaking the block of smaller shows format. Still, I dislike the fact that the show really has no room for certain segments, and they all should alternate with each other this time. There's no need for giving the last 8 minutes to Elmo, especially when certain Elmo segments had to be edited so roundly.

 

[Oscarfan]

The thing I don't get about the whole "block format" thing is that they keep saying kids don't pay attention for very long; things gotta move quick! So, why do all these long form pieces then? Use a bunch of small segments and one long one. If a child starts losing interest in one thing, boom, it's over in a minute or so.