Master Replicas Gonzo Photo Puppet

[ElecMayhem]

Okay seriously, this is my last post for the weekend. I need to get away from this for a bit. But I feel there are a number of things wrong with your comments Ignohippo

I agree with you Jamie 100%. The thing that has bothered me the most about Animal and Gonzo is that they're just so darned close – just a little more tweaking would have made them almost as good as Terry's protos. While Gonzo may look WAY off, Jamie's PS fixes show how close he really could have been.

The nose problem is even more frustrating because the reaction to it was unanimously negative when it was shown at ToyFair. The idea that MR never listened to the people who actually were buying their product is completely beyond me. Never in a million years did I think they would actually proceed with something that was that far off.

Firstly, you mention the negative reaction from the fans at toy Fair, which I concede is true. But if there's one thing I've learned in this industry, it's the difference between listening to your consumers, and to listening to a die-hard vocal minority online. Case in point, with Star Wars "everybody" online was dying for a Qui-Gon Jinn lightsaber. We thought it was a slam dunk. So we put it out, and sold like, 7.

Not that I am defending the sock nose... I am not. In this instance, I agree with the online community at large. But that's my other point is that you say you cannot believe that we would proceed with something so far off. Well, I have explained (like five times) -- it was this route, or nothing. Believe me, we tried many, many other options. We failed. Sorry.

I'm very thankful to Travis for posting pics and I hope the reaction here on the boards don't dampen his enthusiasm for showing us these products before they hit the streets. This stinks! It's terrible knocking a company who is working to get us something as fantastic as a Muppet replica. Sadly, Animal and Gonzo just aren't close enough IMO to be considered "replicas" and sell to anyone besides the die-hards. I sincerely hope they hit Fozzie dead-on and that they post pics and get the pre-order started IMMEDIATELY. Otherwise, I'm afraid Gonzo is going to kill this line (let's face it, Animal really doesn't look enough like Animal out of the box to fly off shelves either). Unfortunately, I can't imagine more than a handful of people are going to buy Gonzo considering how much he costs and how (sorry, honestly) bad he looks.

Couple things wrong here. Fozzie is not ready to go up for pre-order. If he did, it COULD be Gonzo all over again, with people complaining that the pics we post don't look like the product.

While I appreciate your praise personally, and your defense of the company, weren't you yourself knocking us in the previous paragraph? Not trying to be smart about it, but your post seems to contradict itself. Seriously though, I appreciate that you appreciate my being here.

My sincerest hope is that the good folks at MR can see the deficiencies in Gonzo and won't allow his poor sales numbers to affect the future of the line. It was a shame that Palisades saw the numbers of the terrible original Piggy figure and then made the conclusion that Missy Piggy doesn't sell (while PIS Piggy was awesome, they packaged it with a $30 playset so they never had any idea how well she would have sold separately).

Even if Gonzo sells poorly, I will be pushing for Fozzie, and I've already explained why to the big whigs at MR. (Why Gonzo might not sell, I mean...)

But you're wrong on Miss Piggy. She does not sell well. Ask Any Muppet licensor from the past ten years, or even the Henson company. It's this weird societal thing where women don't like being associated with pigs (which, apparently was not such a big deal in the 70s?) and since she is a lady pig, she is not as appealing to either men or women. (I am probably not explaining this well... I am tired... but we had a huge discussion about it with the Henson people back at Palisades... Miss Piggy = peg warmer, and not just for action figures... I know the apparel licensees had a **** of a time moving anything with the Divine Swine...)

Anyway, everyone have a great weekend.

T

 

[goodrastus]

Hmmm, I'm a little confused by some statements made. As I see it, you either like the Gonzo prototype or not. If you are unsure in the middle, then you need to balance cost with whether you want a Gonzo who doesn't look exactly like Gonzo.

It's as simple as that. Why should I feel the need to support a company as some people suggest on a chance that it may have some impact on further replicas? I work extremely hard for my money and I really don't think I need to factor in whether MR needs my cash! Fozzie's on the go and I will get him if he is as great as he is. As for Gonzo, I'm in the middle again, but with the eyes/nose I'm probably going to say no for now until I see further pics from others. Love the suit though.

 

[ElecMayhem]

OKay, I lied... Still here.

I understand the vote with your wallets statement and (while it's absolutely true) I hate it. I dislike it because we WANT to support MR. We WANT to give you our money. It's terrible because, while it hurts MR, it also hurts us because without purchasing your product we jeopordise the chances more Muppet replicas will be made. You can't just say "if you don't like Gonzo, don't buy him" because (a) if we're true Muppet fans, we want a GOOD Gonzo replica, and (b) if enough of us don't buy Gonzo, we won't even get the opportunity to buy Fozzie (or Piggy, or Rowlf, etc.)

Believe me, I don't want it to be that way either. Not a fan of the statement myself (speaking of Ken, the wallet speech is a Ken-ism, btw) but given the situation, that's where we are. I don't want the product to be less than 100% perfect. But it is, and I've explained why it is, and so now we (and I include myself in this) either buy it or we don't. And I am buying it. So, nyeh! But fundamentally, I agree with you. Because I want more too. And as I said in my last reply, I am going to push to move forward, even if we only sell 12 Gonzos, because of the circumstances.

I agree that the statement about Ken is a little rough, but it's also fair. I expect that after all is said and done we will be able to say the same thing about Travis. While there may have been a few misses in Muppets line (I must be a minority because SO fozzie was one of my favs) they were very few and far between, action figures are $10 as opposed to $300+, and Palisades listened to their customers before putting out something their customers may not be happy with.

Yeah, rough. But I know Ken better than anyone here, and he would agree with me. Not saying anything I wouldn't say to his face. Plus, I did call him a genius. And I meant it!

Truth be told, Master Replicas has far better customer service than Palisades ever had. The difference is that (a) as you point out, it's an "apples and oranges" situation with the types of products, and (b) Palisades products were a more simple form factor, and most were better out of the gate. But believe me, for every Muppet product that we made at Palisades, we made SOMEONE unhappy, and got complaints about it. But MRs customer service is 100x better than Palisades was. And, as I said earlier, it's not like we IGNORED the fans -- I will not type these words again but WE DID EVERYTHING WE COULD!

OKay gang, for real, I am sleep deprived. Time to go have sock nose Gonzo nightmares...

 

[Ignohippo]

Hey Travis, you'll probably never see this post (I imagine it will be burried a hundred posts back by the time you get back on) but the statement about MR not listening to people complaining about the nose really wasn't a knock on the company (parenthasize again! and no, I'm not just trying to kiss rear – I stick by what I say). Let me explain:

There are times when internal company politics get in the way of good decision making. My only point is that it would have been my hope that Gonzo would not have been allowed to proceed given the criticism. That's where the politics of business come into play: obviously you folks have a release schedule you need to keep so I'm sure bumping Gonzo wasn't an option. It's just really too bad we've ended up here.

As for Piggy, it's also understandable because, let's face it, most of the folks buying Muppet collectables (and vintage collectables in general – especially the action figures and replicas) are male. Working with hospitals on a daily basis (I do the advertising for 15 hospitals) I still would've liked to have seen how well a Nurse Piggy and the Hospital could have done, especially if it could have found it's way into hospital gift shops. Those nurses would've eaten her up (no pun intended). I would expect Piggy has just as many fanatics out there as any of the other major 5, I just don't think she's found the product that would appeal to her more selective, female fan base yet.

This is it! I'm done! You have much better things to do with your time than stay up late listening to whiners complain about your products because we have no life. Kiss the kid. Smile knowing things will be better and that you are appreciated for coming on here and "talking" with us. Just know those of us that complain the loudest only do so because we care and because we want only the best (not only for the replicas but for MR also).

 

[Ignohippo]

After playing around in Photoshop, it really does look like the bones are here for a good Gonzo. Moving the pupils, trimming the fur around his eyes and coloring the eyelid shell make a world of difference. If we can just figure a way to cover the nose with a different application, this little guy would be fantastic!

 

[antonydavanzo]

After playing around in Photoshop, it really does look like the bones are here for a good Gonzo. Moving the pupils, trimming the fur around his eyes and coloring the eyelid shell make a world of difference. If we can just figure a way to cover the nose with a different application, this little guy would be fantastic!

Would you really do that to the nose?

 

[Ignohippo]

In a heartbeat.

 

[MuppetCaper]

I think we should just all wait and see whats to come of Gonzo. i am not going to make any judgments till I get him in my hands then I will decide what I should do. We are all getting the cart ahead of the horse just by a few pictures that where shown. I believe everything Travis is saying. He is on our side. The poor guy is getting beat up cause what everyone wants. Give the poor man some slack. I know from here on out that he is going to make sure that the next poser will be at his best so have faith in him. I am just happy to know that we are finally getting him on here to listen to us after all this time.


Travis....I want to thank you very much for all your efforts! You totally rock!

 

[theprawncracker]

Travis....I want to thank you very much for all your efforts! You totally rock!

Agreed completely. And I think that's all that needs to be said.

 

[frogboy4]

Have a good weekend Travis! And thanks again for all you do. I know the Muppets are in safe hands with you and that you know Gonzo (hence the all too lengthy explanations you have gracefully taken in stride). Thanks for excusing some of that passion. He he.

I am still looking forward to meeting my Gonzo. (One way or another he and I will see "eye to eye".)

I am wondering about the Michael's craft supply letter dots that can stand in as pre-cut Muppet pupils.