Mopatop and Hoobs

[Luke]

I think we do agree for the most part actually. I do feel a lot of shows are like that, and actual content quality has been sacrificed for attractive design and brandability. Just my point is that todays kids are watching it and enjoying it, seeing as they want the merchandise and want to copy the dance moves, sing the songs etc. Yes that is partly down to "conditioning" that has happened and it would be great if there could be more of the critical thinking and exploration of yesteryear but if that isn't what todays channel hopping, short attention span kids of today are used to and don't want (because it's different and kids generally like to stick to what they are used to) there isn't much a TV producer can do. It's kinda like McDonalds - kids are used to fries and will eat little else, sure giving them mashed potato or an apple would be far healthier for them but take fries off the menu and you go bust!

Hopefully formats will emerge that slowly bridge the gap i guess and bring in a little substance but with so little money in TV at the moment the broadcasters aren't really willing to take chances on new things, which is a great shame.

 

[baby sinclair]

Ya luke has a really good point.We also have to remember that these shows are for children and adult very likely wont enjoy watching sesame street because its not even a kids show its a pre school show.SO thats who their targeting.By the way henson company cant stay the same way because people come of age and young blood has to come in and modernize the show's .I mean i'm suprised sesame street and bear in the big blue have done so well so more power to them.

 

[ravagefrackle]

Ya luke has a really good point.We also have to remember that these shows are for children and adult very likely wont enjoy watching sesame street because its not even a kids show its a pre school show.SO thats who their targeting.By the way henson company cant stay the same way because people come of age and young blood has to come in and modernize the show's .I mean i'm suprised sesame street and bear in the big blue have done so well so more power to them.

the point i am making is that fraggle rock is a kid show as well, yet it had a lot more as far a personality and warmth go, i think it is rather defeatist to say that there is nothing that can be done about this,

the real problem here is that along with the phsyco babble that the producers listen to, the real people in charge now adays are not the creative folks, ie. writers and designers and directors, its the number crunchers and penny pinchers, and merchadisers,

there was a great interveiw with jim on a special on pbs back when i was little, and basicly he was more concerned with creating a great program that people could enjoy than selling a lot of toys and gift items, i realize many here are collectors and as far as they are concerned the more the better i guess, but a toy line should not be the sole reason to do a show,

these cookie cutter shows also show a lack of independent thought, they are all almost interchangeable, they lack vison and imagination, they profess to be "educational" but for the most part offer little in the way of reall learning,

and yes sesame street is a pre school show, but the bits that they did in the late sixty's and seventies were far more entertaining than anything they are doing now, and that a d=== shame.

basicly these shows are setting back the muppets interms of accesibility, jim fought long and hard to get his creations to be accepted by the main stream, to shake off the stigma that puppets are for little kids, and i think that is something that the company has lost site of, sure having a big merchandising hit is great , but they shouldnt have to sacrifice substance

 

[beaker]

I do realize that Muppet things have to be somewhat regional when they are aimed at kids...whereas Muppet Show and for the most part Fraggle Rock was embraced and seen by many continents...certain shows like the aforementioned Hoobs and Mopatop might be akin to a non US Sesame.

Mopatop episodes run about 8 minutes I think...there are a few episodes you can stream off the official site(I forget the URL) Again, I Can see a lot of diehard TMS and other Henson production fans liking this for the sheer amount of cameos alone...as well as the fact Mopatop and Puppyduck are very likable.

Hoobs to me was kind of a tellytubby happy shining assault on the senses, but I don't doubt its popularity in the UK. I don't feel kids shows in the 90's thru today have much substance...I recently looked at a cross selection of FR episodes and was in awe of how timeless and magical that show was...but will probbaly never be seen by many people.

I seriously blame the lack of quality kids programming on the Barneying up of children's programs...which was an old throwback to 70's puppet/children's shows that lacked any backbone. On the I Love The Muppets BBC version they even show the difference between 70's kids programming, and what came to be post Henson. I think JHC, or I guess Disney now(or HIT?) has it in em for more quality programming. I am a huge fan of BITBBH and think it's one of the most wonderful JHC produced shows ever.

 

[Luke]

Oh sure Bear is a brilliant show. It's just the style in which Bear speaks to kids is a talk down style, it has to be because he's talking straight to camera and the age of the viewers. It is in a warmer way than most other kids shows that do that though. I was just using it as an example of a kids show that uses that style, but Bear uses his powers for good in that way while some don't.

 

[jetboy]

I'm going to go against the general consensus, and say that Hoobs is indeed a great kids' program. I too was a little doubtful when I first saw the show, but after now seeing many, many episodes I now 'get it'. The proof of the pudding comes when I see the unadulterated joy on my little boy's face when Hoobs is on.

To the doubters...........give it a go. If an old cynic like me can come around, you can too. It's actually got a lot more substance/educational value to it than it may look at first. Besides that, the interplay between the characters is most amusing for us adults once you get to know them.

Great forums here. I hope to visit here often.

 

[Lug]

Very interesting thread to read, especially for someone who played Mopatop for 135 episodes and was a creative consultant and OB director on The Hoobs.

There's been much discussion here about the comparisons between Fraggle Rock, BITBBH and Mopatop's Shop and The Hoobs. My first response would be that you can't compare them, for many reasons.

Getting a show like Fraggle commissioned today would be almost impossible because of the cost restrictions. We now have to make children's productions in less time and for less money, especially in the case of pre-school production where the licensing fee is tiny.

Because we have to sell to the US, pre-school production come under enormous regulations. There are guidelines posed by the US which sometimes make it impossible to do just want you want in the writing. It has almost become a case of 'prefect families' and we mustn't say anything negative. You won't believe the discussions and conference calls that go on and the amount of notes on this very subject we have to take in to consideration. This was especially true for Construction Site, which I co-produced, co-directed and performed in ...and which unfortunately came out just after Bob the Builder)!

Mopatop and The Hoobs were always aimed at the lower end of pre-school too, so they have to be approached in a very different way to other production. For this reason they may not appeal across the age range but it has been my experience in the UK that they have. They have both been critically acclaimed and Mopatop's Shop was twice nominated for a BAFTA and The Hoob's won one.

Jocelyn Stephenson (writer of Fraggle Rock, and producer and writer of Mopatop's Shop and The Hoobs) and myself have had many long discussion on this subject. If anyone out there thinks we sit and discuss ways of 'dumbing down' they are very much mistaken. We talk about ways of appealing to very young children and how to get the best production possible in a very short space of time.

I think there are cultural differences in there too, as mentioned elsewhere in this thread. We Brits have watched many US productions for years and become amerced in your culture far more than you have of ours. Whilst we always try to keep other cultures in mind - and I'm talking of other cultures beside the American one - they will always have a British 'flavour'. You might be surprised to hear that Mopatop is HUGE in China, I've seen it dubbed into Mandarin and they did a very good job of it.

Everything has moved on since Fraggle, for better or for worse, and we have to do far more for less money because there is more competition out there. (I won't even go in to the £/$ exchange rate). I hope one day that we're given the chance to do a nice, juicy, half hour family production. It certainly hasn't been for the lack of trying.

Mak

 

[ravagefrackle]

MAK, your bring up some great points here, and i hope you didnt take any of this personally, I know a lot of work went into both shows on both sides of the pond(by the way it was great to see you working Mop-a Top during the final fitting we did in NY just before we shipped him over ),

and it is a real shame that Bob the Builder beat you guys to the punch because Construction site had a lot more going for it in almost every way, personaly i wish thier had been a lot more of the british sense of humor in the shows, lol

anyway hope all is well in the UK


" I hope one day that we're given the chance to do a nice, juicy, half hour family production."

DON'T WE ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!