Nine Years Later: Disney buys Muppets and Bear

[BobThePizzaBoy]

Yeah, I'll reiterate what Duke said. Sure, things aren't completely perfect but we are on our way there. Think of those final years Henson owned the Muppets: What did we get? A severely misguided direct-to-video movie and a tampered-with-to-death made-for-TV movie and Pizza Hut commercials. That's it. Sure, there was MuppetFest, the Palisades Toys line, a few great video games, but those were co-productions that Henson just signed off to let them use the characters on. Compare that to Disney, we are getting more productions on a more consistent basis and even if they aren't great, they keep the characters in the eyes of the public. Even if the original primary team behind the characters is long gone and those who are left don't get too much creative say (Dave, Steve, etc.) the characters are least in good hands who care about the franchise. There are obviously things you can complain about but at least the characters are somewhere! If they were still at Henson, there's the chance we might have gotten a theatrical movie but it seems like after the Sony deal crashed and burned no one wants to work with Henson and they are really on their own. At the end of the day, I'd much rather have studio-produced theatrical movies than have Pizza Hut commercials. But that's just me.

 

[Drtooth]

I get the guy's opinion is his own and he's welcome to it. After all, he hates one of the greatest things to happen to the Muppets before the movie that everyone else loves (the Bohemian Rhapsody viral video), and he expresses concern that two of the Muppets Tonight characters that are almost universally hated on this board (Andy and Randy) aren't in future projects. He's in a slim minority, and he's welcome to that.

The only thing Henson has over Disney is that they were able to release Fraggle Rock completely twice now while we're still waiting on season 4 of TMS. Of course, Fraggle Rock doesn't have to worry about any music rights issues. And yes, we got 6 issues of a Fraggle Rock comic, and some other small comic licenses for their movies... but that's about it. The Fraggle Rock nostalgic merchandise, say whatever you will about the Muppet merchandise, is high end, unaffordable crap. High end collectors' shoes? Overpriced not really that great plush toys that only that independently run toy store Yuppies frequent stock? Henson wants Fraggle Rock to be a thing. They can't get a movie, they have some vague Doozer based CGI show coming up in Europe only at this point... this is going to be their staple franchise?

If they were still at Henson, there's the chance we might have gotten a theatrical movie but it seems like after the Sony deal crashed and burned no one wants to work with Henson and they are really on their own. At the end of the day, I'd much rather have studio-produced theatrical movies than have Pizza Hut commercials. But that's just me.

I've been saying for years, Henson can't find a competent partner. Their last partners were the guys that ruined Thomas the Tank Engine and a poorly run film company that only makes Oscar Bait so the industry can forget how poorly run and stupid as freaking heck those guys are... not a good sign. If the Muppets even had a movie under Henson... if they could even bother to get it to theaters, it would be a hot mess of F list celebrities (instead of basically having the luxury to cut Ricky Gervais, Billy Crystal, and Danny Trejo from the final project), annoying studio enforced pop culture jokes and toilet humor, and a terrible director unless Brian did it himself. You know, like the last theatrical project. Does the new film stack up to the originals? That's debatable. But did any of the others, from MCC to MWOZ do? No way. At least with Disney's guidance MCC and MTI at least looked good. Sony screwed both MFS and EIG, who's to say that wouldn't have happened again? The Muppets did have some studio input, and ultimately, it was a good thing because we got stronger concepts (Kermit only keeping up the mansion instead of living in it and the fact the original script had tedious references to Muppets being Puppets). It may have done so so, but it grossed higher than every movie but the first one.

 

[BobThePizzaBoy]

Exactly. We could complain about how some of the productions might not be as good as we hoped, how the merchandise can be hit-or-miss, how that one obscure Muppet special we want to see isn't on DVD, how the characters might be being Flanderized to an extent, but after a while it makes me want to react like, well...

When worst thing to complain about is that Disney is totally radio-silent about season 4 being released, I'd consider that pretty good. And think: were things really better during the last few years Henson owned the Muppets? I say no.

 

[Drtooth]

Exactly. We could complain about how some of the productions might not be as good as we hoped, how the merchandise can be hit-or-miss, how that one obscure Muppet special we want to see isn't on DVD, how the characters might be being Flanderized to an extent, but after a while it makes me want to react like, well...

The strange thing is, these are the exact same complaints we've heard WELL before Disney bought the Muppets. The Muppets are Flanderized? That Macy's Day Parade performance to promote VMX which was nothing but Piggy and Kermit soullessly chasing each other... That was Flanderization. I think people just want to stiff Disney with everything they thing is wrong with the Muppets because it's such a polarizing company that everyone loves.

 

[Duke Remington]

The strange thing is, these are the exact same complaints we've heard WELL before Disney bought the Muppets. The Muppets are Flanderized? That Macy's Day Parade performance to promote VMX which was nothing but Piggy and Kermit soullessly chasing each other... That was Flanderization. I think people just want to stiff Disney with everything they thing is wrong with the Muppets because it's such a polarizing company that everyone loves.

I agree. And it's sickening.

 

[Drtooth]

I really wanna see where they absolutely think that people LOVE Kermit and Piggy's constant bickering and fat jokes. Those are awful and tiresome, and I applaud the movie for actually giving depth to their relationship and not some dumb cartoony Flanderized version of something they all got tired of after the Muppet Show. I'm so glad interviews have started to sway against that.

 

[Duke Remington]

I really wanna see where they absolutely think that people LOVE Kermit and Piggy's constant bickering and fat jokes. Those are awful and tiresome, and I applaud the movie for actually giving depth to their relationship and not some dumb cartoony Flanderized version of something they all got tired of after the Muppet Show. I'm so glad interviews have started to sway against that.

Plus, the movie restored the pig's original "Jerk with a Heart of Gold" personality instead of continuing the "Jerk-***" characterization that she had been Flanderized into in the mid-2000's.

 

[minor muppetz]

In the movies (with 2 very big obvious exceptions), their relationship has depth.

I know that Muppets from Space is one of those two exceptions (their relationship there seemed nonexistent), but what's the other exception?

 

[Drtooth]

MWOZ, due only in part to Piggy playing the bad guy... well, all 4 Witches at any rate. But then again, there was no way to put that in there with the casting choices they made. Even though MTI had Jerry go out of the story's way to establish a gender flipped Benjamin Gunn to get Piggy in the plot.

Plus, the movie restored the pig's original "Jerk with a Heart of Gold" personality instead of continuing the "Jerk-***" characterization that she had been Flanderized into in the mid-2000's.

Thing is, she was never really that in the movies either. Seems like after MTM, they all felt that Piggy and Kermit need to settle down and both be happy with their relationship. Sure, she has an ego and she does bombastic things... but it really feels that after Jim passed on, they started to just keep throwing fat jokes about Piggy around until that was all what her character was about. And it's very hit or miss.

 

[minor muppetz]

MWOZ, due only in part to Piggy playing the bad guy... well, all 4 Witches at any rate. But then again, there was no way to put that in there with the casting choices they made.

Well, Scarecrow and one of the good witches did end up attracted to each other at the end. That's not much, and near the end, but it's more representative of their relationship than MFS was.