Explain to me again...

[BEAR]

This whole thing is kind of depressing.

Yeah, it kind of is. I'm sorry for even starting this thread. The whole reason behind it was only to ask why JHC sold to Disney. Oh well...a monster has been created!

 

[Ilikemuppets]

I'll say but But the monster is the situation with the Muppet's. Don't feel bad about starting the forum, all the stuff that is happening with the Muppet's is none of your fault. So don't be so hard on yourself bear, you didn't start this thread with the intention for things to git out of hand.

 

[JJandJanice]

Guys, you are being very harsh, unkind and unfair towards the Henson family and the Jim Henson Company with your statements, none of which are based upon any FACTS.

We all love what Jim Henson did with the Muppets when he was alive,a dn we all love the classic voices etc BUT you can't honestly tell me you expected things to stay the same forever after retirements/deaths do you? It's just not feasible or realistic; things change. Look at Scooby-Doo for example; most of us love the old Scooby-Doo cartoons of the 1970's as they used the "classic" voices that we all love and grew up. Today, only two of the original voices are still Scooby-Doo and while it's not the same for us "big kids", for the younger ones it's perfect for them.

I have a cousin who watched The Muppet Movie (she's aged 12) and she didn't quite understand it, whereas she did understand The Muppet Christmas Carol. Not surprising as TMM is directed at more of an Adult audience than TMCC is. The point is, that most Muppet projects are being aimed at a younger audience intentionally because the JHC don't want those kids to be alienated from all the fun.

The Henson family are under no obligation to follow their father in any respect. I doubt that even he would have wanted them to be exactly like him or to hold the exact same values that he held when he was alive.

Everyone needs to get a grip and put things in perspective. Some of those Muppet specials wouldn't sell as DVDs because they are rarely shown on TV and most people wouldn't even remember them anyway; they're better suited being part of other DVD sets.

Please stop all the name-calling, ******** and whining please as it's not going to do anyone any good and it's simply a case of bad-mouthing and making accusations against two companies without any real proof/evidence.

That's kind of what I was saying more or less, well about the Muppets never going to be the why they use to be.

 

[ReneeLouvier]

...I'm crushed. All of this talk. Recycling old facts, dreging up old things.

We may have no Jim Henson, Richard Hunt, or even Frank Oz with us. But they need One Leader. One person, who can help bring them up, back into the true limelight!

Not just shilling pizza, or doing some...prime-time movie. We need more.

I still can't believe their not doing "America's Next Muppet" either. When did this happen?

 

[Ilikemuppets]

I agree that what there missing is a lack of the right leadership, even then, It's still not going to happen over night though.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

David, where was there name calling?

I don't think anybody is being unfair to the JHC any more than they are to the Diz. The whole point is one doesn't want the Muppets, and the other wants to ride on the coat-tails of the whole "retro" thing and not do anything new. In the whole time that JHC was supposed to be advising DIZ how to best use the characters, we only got Muppets Wizard of Oz, which stunk on TV but is fun on DVD, and nothing else but guest appearances on TV shows.

They've had a few years to get their frogs in a row, but the big cheese is just sitting on it. The complaint falls on Diz for not pushing the characters in something NEW (other than guest appearances on other shows--snooze).

Now, the other thing that folks are complaining about is the "more adult" outlook by the JHC, but that's always been there. That isn't a problem for me. I do think it's funny that the JHC got rid of the Muppets and are back to basically the same kind of thing again. To retract what I said earlier after I thought about it more: JHC is being innovative with the live puppet improv or the live puppet talk show. Honestly, other than selling out to Diz, I have no complaints on JHC. I don't think the idea to sell out to Diz was a good one (right now), but everyone associated with JHC has always been kind and fan-friendly.

I guess more than anything my complaint is on MHC/DIZ because they aren't even making a go at anything other than licensing and products with The Muppets right now. There was a little while when I fretted the sell, then there was the time when I was thinking, "Hey, it's Disney-they don't let their money just sit there--they'll make it happen in a big way!" But now, I'm afraid Disney is just going to use the characters for marketing blitz and not do anything else.

One other thing, gang: Keep in mind that the complaints people have is because nothing is being done with the Muppets. It isn't that they don't like the Muppets, or JHC, or Diz. It's because we, as fans, take it upon ourselves to be critical of the things we are fanatics about (it's our job) and complain until we get something new, and then complain about the new stuff! Ha ha. That's what fans do. Ever watched Star Wars movies with die-hard fans? A million jokes for each movie! Don't be down-trodden or feel angry or upset about peoples opinions, because we're all on the OUTSIDE of the companies and want to see more done. Basically, we all have the same opinions about things--just different ways of saying it.

And as a disclaimer: this is opinion. That's what people do on message boards. That the long-term plan right now is only to have the Muppets guest on other shows: That's fact. That's from the discussions at the auditions.

 

[JJandJanice]

Well said.