Muppet Babies: Puppets vs. Cartoon

[dwayne1115]

I was watching muppet take manhatan and i think that the puppet types of the MB's are really better then the cartoon.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

I prefer the puppet versions because it is in Miss Piggy's fantasy. It holds better for story continuity that the Muppet Babies are in her fantasy since, in TMM, Kermit tells Robin, "It's sort of approximately how it happened." when asked if it's how the Muppets really met.

However, the cartoon could fit continuity if it is considered an extension of Piggy's fantasy. Still, that is dispelled when, in Muppet Family Christmas, Scooter announces, "Hey, I found old footage of us as babies!" (Paraphrased, of course).

 

[frogboy4]

I think the puppets are just plain cuter. There's also a nuance of performance that comes across with puppetry that can't be compared with low frame rate animation. I just never liked the quality and inconsistent proportions in the Muppet Babies animation (not to mention the voices). I do think the Babies could be done well and I admire the attempts of the production with its juxtaposition of stock film footage and animation, but it just didn't seem Muppety enough in the right ways for this fan. I lost interest after the first couple of seasons. I also am happy it kept the Muppet brand alive after Jim's passing.

So puppets for me! I also did see some of them up close in a Central Park exhibit after the Muppets Take Manhattan. The exhibition also included behind the scenes footage of how that puppetry was accomplished. Additionally there was a rumored Brian-helmed project for motion capture Babies cartoon/puppetry project (like what they’re doing with the Skrumps) that I am sad never came to fruition. That would have been something!

 

[Drtooth]

I'm going to say this... While I once decried the idea of Sesame Beginnings, I feel they really had Henson beat by using real puppets. And the puppeteers in most cases.

That said, I like the MB cartoon for what it was. We'll never see that sort of quality in writing in a preschool show for some time. I think Toei did a pretty good job with their animation. it wasn't the best things, but they really added a lot of small details into the show. The first season wasn't too great, and the Japanese animators confused some voices from time to time (due in part the fact that Japanese animators aren't accoustomed to animating a vocal track- all voice over work is done after wards). I wish they would have gone with TMS instead, looking at the absolutely beautiful job they did with Ducktales and Rescue Rangers.

I think the animation suffered in the last few seasons, where the animation was sloppy, the coloring varied, and it just looked stilted. After watching Fraggle Rock animated, I really wish they went with Akom productions. I'm not a fan of how half the characters looked (the Gorgs especially), but the animation was pretty fluid and well done. This is the studio that would one day do the Simpsons, among other things.

A Puppet MB would have been amazing... but the budget for the show would have been pretty amazing too. And not amazing in a good way.

It's almost too bad that Jefferey Scott didn't get on board and work with the Waldo/motion capture series so it would have got off the ground, though. That had potential.

 

[muppetperson]

I voted for the puppets because I enjoy watching puppets over animation.I suppose because it has a more real feel to it visually.The same goes for why I want the Adult muppets to stay as Puppetry.

 

[Boppity]

I've gotta say that I prefer the animated version simply because it was one of my first muppety things I saw. I loved the stories and the imagination involved.

 

[Baby Gonzo]

I grew up with the cartoon and think it held a very nice message for small children. There are moments of the show that are genuinely funny and other moments are touching. I for one am glad that I grew up with it, because I consider the imagination to be one of the most important things in my life. I don't think I would have discovered art without it.

But I get off track. For design and general cuteness, the puppets win hands down. However, the animated series has it's charm.

They were really off model in Cartoon All Stars to the Rescue... that was almost scary.

 

[dwayne1115]

I grew up with the cartoon and think it held a very nice message for small children. There are moments of the show that are genuinely funny and other moments are touching. I for one am glad that I grew up with it, because I consider the imagination to be one of the most important things in my life. I don't think I would have discovered art without it.

But I get off track. For design and general cuteness, the puppets win hands down. However, the animated series has it's charm.

They were really off model in Cartoon All Stars to the Rescue... that was almost scary.

Oh yes I'm not trying to say that the Muppet Babies show was bad by any means. I wish they would put it out on DVD, and soon. I think all the cartoon Muppet Babies had a bit of cuteness to them, but i think the Baby Piggy puppet was just the cutest out of all of them. I'v not always been a big Piggy fan untill here lattly when i have seen that she really does have a lot of heart. That said i think Baby Piggy really helps set her true self, or at least in my eye.
I would love to see a Skeeter puppet, baby or grown up. I think that would be wild to see.

 

[wiley207]

They were really off model in Cartoon All Stars to the Rescue... that was almost scary.

Well that's because Marvel didn't produce the special. It was mainly done by Southern Star Productions, and the overseas animation studio was Wang Film Productions in Taiwan. The regular Muppet Babies series' overseas studios were Toei (1984-1987) and Akom (1987-1991). I DID notice that the earliest episodes, and the first ones done by Akom, the babies look kind of odd. I guess the studios had to get used to their characters a bit. It wasn't until the middle of the second season when Toei began drawing the babies perfectly. Then near the end of the fourth season, the babies looked like their normal selves once again after looking weird again for several episodes.

 

[dwayne1115]

I don't know I never really looked to close at the Animation. i think mostly because I was a kid, and didnt really pay that close attention. I do however rember that the voices sometimes didnt match the mouth movement, I always thought it made it funyier to me.