Preliminary Thoughts on Master Replica's Fozzie Bear

[MuppetCaper]

That's what he told me at Comic-Con, too. I asked him if it could be corrected on Gonzo and he said he'd look into it.

I wonder what ever happened to him.

You mean Travis? I know for a fact that he still works at MR cause Amy said that they are good friends and she went to his house for Thanksgiving last year. I remember her saying that he still works there but doing some different job. She really didn't get into it. I wonder who is in charge of the Muppets at MR now. Would be kind of interesting to know if Travis still has anything to do with the Muppets now.

 

[muppetperson]

He is now Marketing manager.

 

[Luke]

He is now Marketing manager.

He was always marketing manager, that meant he was in charge of promoting these things and it made sense he came on and gave updates before. I'm not sure if thats still his job or whether he switched to another area as has been suggested.

It's dissapointing that the customers are feeling out of the loop on these replicas to the point pre-orders are being cancelled or not placed at all. It's Master Replica's own fault, they have the opportunity here of addressing probably 90% of the customers for these. The thing is though, we have the main Muppet Central site (who i'm sure could contact Travis, Terry or that other main guy they interviewed for Kermit), Muppet Newsflash, and MuppetCast. It would probably only take some motivation from any of the guys working on these sites to get some kind of more detailed word.

 

[muppetperson]

His recent voice mail says he is marketing Manager.Wasnt he just in Sales before?

 

[Ignohippo]

He was always marketing manager, that meant he was in charge of promoting these things and it made sense he came on and gave updates before. I'm not sure if thats still his job or whether he switched to another area as has been suggested.

It's dissapointing that the customers are feeling out of the loop on these replicas to the point pre-orders are being cancelled or not placed at all. It's Master Replica's own fault, they have the opportunity here of addressing probably 90% of the customers for these. The thing is though, we have the main Muppet Central site (who i'm sure could contact Travis, Terry or that other main guy they interviewed for Kermit), Muppet Newsflash, and MuppetCast. It would probably only take some motivation from any of the guys working on these sites to get some kind of more detailed word.

Perfect point. It would take SO little time and energy to reach a huge percentage of their potential customers. I don't know of too many opportunities where you can say the same thing.

 

[ElecMayhem]

Hey everyone-

First of all, my sincere apologies for not being around at all lately. As Amy mentioned a while back, my role with the company has changed pretty drastically. Before I get into the Muppety specifics -- those that I can address, anyway -- a little background on me, and what I do exactly (in broad terms).

Interestingly enough, my title has not changed. I am Marketing Manager, and I have been Marketing Manager as long as I have been with MR. (I was, once upon a time, in sales at Palisades, but I was in Marketing the last half of my tenure there, as well.) Here's what changed for me: when I started with MR, my role was primarily in developing promotions and planning events, as well as placing ads and communicating to the public (and the media) specifics about products and product lines, etc. Basically, I was Marketing Communications, or MarCom.

NOW, I have moved more into a PRODUCT Marketing role... which means that certain lines "belong" to me. I come up with the product plans, I create the P&L for these products, I work with Product Development & Engineering to ensure that they look right, work right, are on time, are within their budgets, etc. Everything. It all comes back to me. Getting pictures taken, copy written... I may not DO everything personally, but ultimately it's my responsibility to get this stuff done. On time. With the approved budget.

While I have been transitioning to all of this, many of the MarCom aspects of the job have moved over -- in the interim -- to our Direct Marketing team. (Which included Amy!) Ultimately, I WILL BE responsible for the promotion and marketing of my lines. (We are in the process of trying to find the right PR Agency to assist in managing the day to day...) But I won't lie -- that's one area in which my attention has not really been focused. Don't take it personally that I've not been here. I am trying to get my 2008 & 09 product plans off the ground... and I started in this role late last year, so I am WAAAY behind the 8 Ball on the 08 plan! Working very long days (and nights) right now!

(While I am making pathetic excuses for not being around btw, I wanted to let everyone know about my OTHER excuse... my newborn son Alexander "Xander" Warner Allen, who has been taking up the vast majority of my time outside of the MR office!)

So, the burning question would have to be: which lines am I managing?

The answer is: you probably don't care about the others, but I am managing the Muppets (and all of Disney, actually.) The bad news is the Gonzo and Animal were both 90% developed before I moved into this role, and so while I DID try to impact them both, my actual involvement is much less than I would have liked. Not to say that I don't think that both are phenomenal... they are. But they do have their issues. (Jamie's review of Animal I think, was spot on and completely objective! Thanks, man!) Fozzie will be my first Muppet, soup-to-nuts... so you can come after me with torches and pitchforks if he is no good...

So, I still cannot be here everyday, much as I would like to. But what I would like to do is start an "Ask Travis" Thread, which I promise to check several times weekly. I will start the thread tonight, and you guys can ask me anything you want there. (Maybe a Mod can sticky it up near the top or something..?)

As for Gonzo... the pics on the MR site are of the final factory samples. That is what the product looks like. BUT, that said, it's a bad photo... just like Animal. (Yes, we are working internally to address the photography issue...) What I will tell you is this: I have a Gonzo in my office, and I love him. My girlfriend in fact -- though admittedly not a die-hard Muppet fan like this crew -- says that Gonzo is her favorite of the four. Including Fozzie who is also in my office...

The likeness on Gonzo is phenomenal. And the structure of the nose is great too. The issue that fans will have is that the nose is solid foam, covered with a netting material. This was, in the end, our only option. Why? Well, we know that the actual material corrodes over time, so that was not an option. We tried a number of other materials, but for one reason or another, they all failed. (We even flocked it at one point, which actually looked nice... but failed age testing!) In the end that -- the net -- is the direction that Disney wanted us to go, and we had spent months upon months experimenting with nothing better to go on. And so, here we are.

I am going to try to get some better pics this week... if I have to take them myself. So I know that I am biased, but I truly believe that Gonzo is on par with Animal in terms of his accuracy. (Interesting note, the Gonzo in my office is actually not SUPPOSED to be in my office -- I couldn't resist him, and "borrowed" him from one of our engineering team!) Is he 100% accurate? No. But he's the closest thing we will ever have to getting the "real deal," and he's worth the price. (This as a fan... because I have to buy mine, too!)

Sorry for the long, rambling message... I as sleep deprived on account of the new bundle of joy. Hopefully this message is somewhat coherent. Now, off to start the "Ask Travis" thread... Later gang...

Travis

 

[Kevin Knight]

That was great! I think that pretty much cleared up everything I've been seeing here. Not being a long time poster. I believe Travis has possibly assured some concerning Fozzie's future, and the purchasability of Gonzo. That was a great recap of what's going on. Rest assured that someone who works with Master Replicas IS indeed listening. Travis thank you thank you thank you. And congrats on Xander. Now we see all activity move to the greatest show of all time. What time is it kids! ASK TRAVIS! YEaaaaaaaah! BRING ON THE BEAR!

Kevin

 

[muppetguy]

Hey Travis

I already posted in the Ask Travis thread but wanted to say congrats on Xander! YAY! and thank you for listening to all of us.

 

[muppetperson]

I feel betrayed after we were told that Gonzo had gone back to the drawing board and that Amy told us that his nose was still being tweeked, yet we still have the sock nose!

 

[frogboy4]

I feel betrayed after we were told that Gonzo had gone back to the drawing board and that Amy told us that his nose was still being tweeked, yet we still have the sock nose!

It appears that they tried to change it but were unable to go beyond the sock. Disney's licensing department likely had the final say about using durable less attractive materials. There's no way around that.

I must admit, until Travis I had a hard time believing information coming from Master Replicas was on the level. Now I have great confidence. He's a brave guy coming on here (now on a regular basis) with us crazies. We're a cute lot, but some of us have been known to bite. This is what we wanted from MR and they heard us.

I still think there are other solutions to the nose that weren't explored - fabrication of a textured lightweight plastic material that could be airbrushed and molded to look much more like the real deal than stocking-covered foam. It is my thinking there was nobody at hand with the know-how for that rout.

Either way, there's the final judgement that will take place when some of us own the little guy. He's the most challenging Muppet of the lot. I'm glad the pig is slated after Fozzie and not held till last or even after Rizzo. The set will seem core-complete with her inclusion.

I don't think they will mess up the bear under Travis. Honestly, I don't think think is possible with that design unless they get a crummy factory. I still can't help but think accuracy was deemed less important with Gonzo. There's the - oh, he's wearing that cute little suit - and - I always liked that Muppet, but isn't his nose blue? - sort of mindset that seems to go on with him with many people and companies. So far it appears he is a Muppet doll, not a photo replica. Little difference to the casual observer - big issue for fans when forking over cash for him...or not.

Again with the working prototype vs factory prototype comp.