Destination: Home

[TogetherAgain]

Giving Thanks for commentary

Scooter was waiting outside the boarding house when they got back.

commentary I think this is another one of those scenes that I rewrote a couple times. It's getting to be kind of a while ago now, I don't quite remember. end commentary​

"Alright, so what's this great news, Scooter?" Kermit said as he got off the bus.

"You're gonna love it, boss! We got a television network to air the show!"

"Really?" Kermit said. "Well, that's great!"

"What is?" Gonzo asked.

"We got a network!" Kermit said.

"Really?" Fozzie said.

"Oh! That means we can start the show soon!" Miss Piggy said.

"Like, wow!" Janice said

"Alright!" Floyd said.

"A network of what?" Gonzo asked.

commentary Another joke modelled on "Broadway of what city?" I love that line. end commentary​

"Gonzo!" they all said.

"I was just asking..."

"There's just one thing," Scooter said.

"What's that?" Kermit asked.

"Well, they want to start the show on Tuesday."

"TUESDAY!?!" Kermit shouted. "But that's just in a few days!"

"Well, it's either then or never," Scooter said.

commentary There's always a catch. end commentary​

And so the next few days were spent throwing together the first episode. Somehow, they managed to sell out the entire theater, get a guest star, and a few acts for the show. Before they knew it, Scooter was announcing fifteen seconds to curtain. It was all downhill from there.

commentary I would love to actually see what this show lookes like. It was so much fun to describe, though. I think my favorite part is... never mind, I love all of this little show. Not sure how all the "everything goes wrong" could be shown in a movie format, but I'm sure someone would find a way. end commentary​

Statler and Waldorf had an absolute field day. The opening number was scheduled to be "Oh How Lovely" done in a round, like they had once done with John Denver. But once the second group started to sing, the first group got muddled, and it got even worse when the third group joined in. Once Kermit herded them off the stage, it was time for Gonzo's act: walking half way across a tightrope, then jumping into a wheelbarrow, all while reciting the Gettysburg Address. He did fine until the jump, when he landed on Rowlf's piano in the band pit. Then Fozzie came on, but he completely forgot his monologue, so he stood on stage and tried to get the audience to guess what he was going to say. The Electric Mayhem went on to play "We Didn't Start the Fire," but as soon as they got to the chorus, Crazy Harry joined them on stage and, well, started the fire. Vet's Hospital didn't have a patient, and Link had been late for Pigs in Space. And worst of all, the guest star never even showed up.

It was great to be back.

commentary A lot of what I think people love about the muppets is that they try so hard and nothing ever goes quite right. And they still enjoy it, and they just keep coming back to it, because they love it. So yes, it really was great to be back. I love that line, too. end commentary​

And now, somehow, they had been home for a week, and it was Thanksgiving Day. So the entire cast of the show was having dinner at the theater. A long table crossed the full length of the stage, and extended into the wings on both sides. Everyone was bustling around, some setting the table, others destroying it.

commentary I think that's my favorite sentence of the entire story. end commentary​

With all the noise coming from the cafeteria where the Swedish Chef was cooking, Kermit wasn't quite sure he would want to eat any of the turkey. Or anything else. But eventually, they all found themselves sitting around the table with piles upon piles of food in front of them.

commentary Now this, I know I reworked several times. I was going to have Kermit just walking through the theater, singing "Together Again", and then maybe have him realize that EVERYBODY was singing something different because they were all just so happy to be back. But it just wasn't coming across right. And then I wanted all sorts of chaos going on with trying to set the table. I was going to have the table be so long that they had to cross under it, and then have Robin going under trying to set the table, and then suddenly they hear a crash because the hole in the stage came back. But it wasn't quite flowing. end commentary​

From his seat at the head of the table, Kermit looked around at the crazy family they had all become. Then he stood and proposed a toast.

"What are we drinking to, boss?" Scooter asked.

Kermit smiled. "Guess."

They all had ideas.

commentary Oh, I loved writing this part! It was kind of hard to get the order right, but it was so much fun! I really wanted to get as many people in as I could. I wanted to do Marvin Suggs and Lew Zealand and just everybody I could think of. But I couldn't quite figure out what every one would say. But I still think I should have had an "ow" at the end of the table... end commentary​

Sam started. "To this fine country of the United States of America, founded in 1774 by some of the most upstanding men in history..."

Floyd lifted his glass and cut off the history lesson. "To music!"

"Fer surely!" Janice said.

"I think we should drink to the ladies, hokay," Pepe said.

"DRUMS! DRUMS!" Animal shouted.

"Why bother? Let's just eat," Rizzo said.

commentary That's so Rizzo. I love that line. I'll be saying that a lot in this chapter, so bear with me... end commentary​

"To gettin' gigs again," Dr. Teeth said.

"Nu, ve-a shuoold dreenk tu cuukeeng!" the Swedish Chef said.

commentary Thank you once again to The Dialectizer. That thing is a life saver, I'm telling you. end commentary​

Zoot blasted a few notes from his saxaphone.

commentary I loved writing for Zoot. He's so easy. Just give him a saxaphone and he's happy. Other than that, just have him nod, or mumble something like "yeah" or "uh huh". so simple it's beautiful. end commentary​

"To the future of Science!" Dr. Bunsen Honeydew said.

Beaker meeped loudly.

"Wouldn't it be easier to drink until our glasses are empty?" Beauregard asked.

commentary I had to have Beauregard say something like that. I mean, it kind of makes sense, if you think about it. But I just love simple thinking. It makes for such great jokes. end commentary​

"To friends!" Sweetums said.

Crazy Harry blew something up.

"Let's drink to good insurance!" Gonzo said.

"I say we drink to the show being cancelled!" Statler said.

"I'll drink to that!" Waldorf agreed.

commentary There's our hecklers again. If this was a movie, we would have to find a way to put them in the middle somewhere. But they just got to be bookends this time around. Oh well. end commentary​

"How about we drink to the show not getting cancelled," Clifford said.

"Or, just to getting the show in the first place!" Scooter said.

"Hey, how about, to not doing Galt's movie," Fozzie said.

"Yes! And to never seeing a man dressed in grey for the rest of our lives!" Miss Piggy said.

commentary Our little fashion expert. She probably hated grey long before this story began. Oh, I don't think I ever mentioned her miraculously speedy recovery in this chapter. She's almost completely healed now. And what little cuts and bruises she does have left are easily covered with make-up. end commentary​

"To sleeping in our own beds," Rowlf said.

"To being home," Robin said.

Kermit was shaking his head.

"Well were we close?" a penguin asked.

commentary Yay for penguins! I had to throw in a random penguin. I mean how do you not have penguins? I love penguins. But anyway. end commentary​

Kermit didn't say anything, just lifted his glass. The others followed suit. He smiled.

"To Us."​

commentary And at this point, in movie form, I originally thought I would have it freeze on him holding his glass up. But then I thought, wouldn't it be fun to have the credits roll over a scene of them eating Thanksgiving dinner? So imagine it however you like, because I can't quite decide. end commentary​

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

commentary Now this funny little blurb was hard to write. This is actually the original version, but I kept thinking I could do better. But after I read this one a few dozen times, I decided I really liked it. So this is what you get. end commentary​

Here's to following your dreams, connecting your rainbows, finding your way home, and most importantly, to keeping a family of friends close to you, no matter where your life may lead you.​

 

[The Count]

Yaaaeeeeyyy!

Truly a vonderful ending Lisa. 25 Muppet friends spanning all 10 series of Palisades Toys figures.
Yeah, a great tale.

Now, whaz about some extras?
J/K, take it easy and post when ready.

 

[TogetherAgain]

well thank you, or if I was lisa I'd thank you, but since I'm not I won't , I suppose It'd help if I actually read the fan fic but you see I'm not nearly as obsessed with the muppets or puppets (hey that rhymed!) as some of you are, I'm in a cult that (well it's not REALLY a cult ) but anyways it follows the little mermaid, readhead, Ariel, and t's very strange, although I am partial to sebastian, I believe that any being , mermaid or not, so self centered and ignorant that she can't accept the life that she's living has no Idea that her conditions could be worse, then she gets her wish granted and winds up with a prince ! hello! do you kow the unlikely odds of that! well must go for now, Count I know you're extremely important , at least I think you are since you're a senior memeber, but hey, what do I know...
Ethine
____________________________________________________

hidey ho! Kermit the frog here

 

[TogetherAgain]

well thank you, or if I was lisa I'd thank you, but since I'm not I won't , I suppose It'd help if I actually read the fan fic but you see I'm not nearly as obsessed with the muppets or puppets (hey that rhymed!) as some of you are, I'm in a cult that (well it's not REALLY a cult ) but anyways it follows the little mermaid, readhead, Ariel, and t's very strange, although I am partial to sebastian, I believe that any being , mermaid or not, so self centered and ignorant that she can't accept the life that she's living has no Idea that her conditions could be worse, then she gets her wish granted and winds up with a prince ! hello! do you kow the unlikely odds of that! well must go for now, Count I know you're extremely important , at least I think you are since you're a senior memeber, but hey, what do I know...
Ethine
____________________________________________________

hidey ho! Kermit the frog here

That was my cousin posting, by the way. See, insanity runs in the family....

Anyway, it looks like I'll be posting the making of next. But be patient. Keep in mind that I have out of town family in town, and that automatically means a whole bunch of family activity that keeps me away from the computer. You may still vote if you haven't already, you never know, it could change. Oh, and I forgot to mention that "deleted scenes" are also available. So, the complete balot:

Making of
Gag Reel
Deleted Scenes
Preview of next story.

Vote away! (you can vote a second time if you change your mind.)

 

[redBoobergurl]

I think the order should be Making Of, Deleted Scenes, Gag Reel and then preview even though I'm dying to see what your next story is. But anyway, that's my vote, but just do what you can when you have time!

 

[TogetherAgain]

I'm dying to see your next story, too, Beth. I'm also dying to see Beau's next story, and prawncracker's next story. Gosh, all of a sudden we're all writing "next stories". Creepy. But anyways..... yes, next stories... um, looking forward to it... what was the point of this post again? Oh yes, to say that I'm looking forward to everyone's next story. Well, why didn't I just say so?

 

[The Count]

You did. And I still have some work to do besides the one story in progress. But as for a follow-up...
Well, that'll have to deffer to the lovely counting creatures I'm creating. Got a file with a Monster Roster of creatures and beings from myth and monster-dom I'm pulling one by one according to my desires and basing a new numbered notable on said being. For example, got a bat humanoid, the Queen of Hearts, the apparition, and so on and so on. All to fill up the coffures of the castle facade in my mind's eyes.

If I get it off to my friend who's an expert drawer then maybe I'd be able to share some sketches in the future. But suffice it to say I'm working on stuff fright now.
And hope you have a pleasant time with your family TogetherAgain... Though it seems like you're gonna need a lot of time and patience what with the crazies running around.

Oh, there goes one now.
*Spots crazy running around.

 

[Beauregard]

My thoughts: Making Of, with Gags tossed in like pips in a melon, or tomatoes in a tossed salad. i.e. A section of Making of, that breaks away to a gag, then back to the regularly schedueled programing.

Also, a preview might be nice, dearie. Oooh, in Trailer form like mine perhaps.

 

[TogetherAgain]

The Story of the Start of the Story

At the beginning of this thread, I refered to Destination: Home as something that had been "rolling around in my head for... oh, I'd say about a year now." So, what happened a year ago that put this story in motion? Here's the story of the start of the story.

I was at a friend's sweet sixteen party in May of 2004. I somehow managed to convince my friend that an appropriate way to celebrate would be to watch The Muppet Movie. I believe that part of my persuasive support was that I had never seen it before. But the point is, we watched The Muppet Movie. I think the scene that really affected me the most was the desert scene. I will explain why in a moment.

You see, this party magically turned itself into a sleepover party. Keep in mind that unless I am in my own bed, I tend to have an awful lot of trouble sleeping. So that night, I found myself lying on an unfamiliar floor, with an unfamiliar pillow, in an unfamiliar sleeping bag, with my contacts still in, surrounded by sleeping girls that were mostly strangers. It was the middle of the night, and I was exhausted, but there was no way I was going to be able to sleep. When I can't sleep at night, my creative mind peaks.

This particular night, The Muppet Movie was staying in my head. So, as I tend to do, I began to change things around to work myself into it. It's a very self-centered habit of mine. Somehow I ended up creating a whole new story, but all I had was the muppets in a desert with no hope and a script that said nothing but "cue music". Clearly, that meant I needed a song.

So a song began to creep into my head, slowly forming itself. I knew I wouldn't be able to remember it on my own, but I didn't have any pencil or paper. Thanks to random technology, however, I was able to type and save the lyrics in my cell phone.

I didn't tell anyone about the song.

I left for a month-long camping trip with my youth group in the beautiful state of Washington, where I met twenty-nine wonderful individuals. Towards the end of the trip was a week-long kayaking trip. It was evening, and I found myself standing on Turn Island, just a foot or two from the Pacific Ocean. We were gathering to watch the sunset. But first, I was taking in the gorgeous horizon in solitude, reflecting on the trip. There had been mountains and rivers, precarious bridges to cross, starry nights to gaze up at... and a vague memory trickled in my mind. A song. The song I had written just over a month before hand. I didn't have my cell phone on hand, but I thought hard and remembered most of the lyrics. What I didn't remember, I re-wrote. Somehow, the song I had meant for an imaginary movie fit the trip just right. I shared the song with my fellow campers, and they loved it. They encouraged me to share it with the world. They wondered how I had kept this song a secret from them when we had all been so insanely open with each other. As excited as I was to get home, I don't think I will ever forget how sad I was to think that the trip was over.

For the next year, that crazy movie I had been thinking of kept changing. I dreamed up all sorts of crazy things that could never have really worked with the muppets. With other characters, perhaps, but not with the muppets. And eventually, it came to be the story we now know as Destination: Home. It had a scene in a desert, with a script that said nothing but "cue music." I needed a song.

By this time, I had written several other songs. I was reluctant to use that first song- it was still the trip in my mind. That song belonged to the trip. It had even been given it's name, "Silver Dreams," on that trip. But nothing else would ever fit quite like that song. I remembered how it had been written in the first place, and I knew. I had to use it.

But I still had a problem with it. The song had lyrics, and it had a melody. But it had no instrumental accompanyment. It was missing that certain something. That careful fading into a song that is pulled off so well in the movies. It needed something, and I couldn't find that something locked up in my room in front of my computer. So I went to the swingset in my backyard. After a lot of swinging, I stopped pumping and let the swing slow to a stop. Of course it didn't stop completely. I found myself sitting in the dark night on my swing, and the only sound was excess chain clinking against itself with every stroke of the swing.

clink-clink.........clink-clink.........clink-clink.........

And I thought, why not use that? What could I get in the desert to make that sound, though... maybe if Robin was dropping a rock, and it bounced... do rocks bounce? Well, who cares...

The scene worked beautifully, and it worked like this:

bounce plop.

bounce plop.

bounce plop.

bounce plop.

dung.

bounce plop. dung-a-dung-a-dung
bounce plop. dung-a-dung-a-dung
bounce plop. dung-a-dung-a-dung
bounce plop dung-a-dung-a-dung

Somewhere in the distance is a mountain I must climb.
Between that peak and I a raging river will I find.
The obstacles are just as endless as my journey seems.
Beyond that Golden Sunset rest my Silver Dreams.

There's something in the air tonight that brought me to this place.
As quickly as I came I could be gone without a trace.
The thing that keeps me walking on life's crooked balance beam,
Beyond that Golden Sunset rest my Silver Dreams.

I don't know how to reach them,
Won't you come and help me reach them,
Together we can reach them, wait and see...

There may be times you doubt the person you have come to be,
With raging waters roaring for as far as you can see,
So if those times do come may you remember this one thing,
Beyond that Golden Sunset rest you Silver...Dreams...

 

[Beauregard]

Wow! That's an awesome insight into your writing process! This 'making of' is shaping up to be superb!