The Muppets 2015: What went wrong?

[LittleJerry92]

I think of corny and humorous jokes.

 

[CensoredAlso]

I think of corny and humorous jokes.

Yeah and that's why I wasn't really able to get into the show (and a lot of post-Jim Muppet projects). There's too much "hip" factor and not enough corny.

 

[DarthGonzo]

I think most people think of characters like Elmo and Cookie Monster singing and dancing around. I think for the most part the mainstream audience has a very limited view of what the Muppets are.

 

[jobi71]

I think most people think of characters like Elmo and Cookie Monster singing and dancing around. I think for the most part the mainstream audience has a very limited view of what the Muppets are.

I agree that the mainstream audience's view is limited, but I don't think it is as severe as you propose.

I think they could identify Kermit, Miss Piggy, Cookie Monster and Big Bird easily as Muppets.

Mainstream audiences with a bit more attention could probably ID Elmo (I think his star has faded a bit - but I don't follow SS, so maybe he is in the top tier; Oscar, Beaker and the Chef; The two old guys - maybe they know their names, but they know their faces; and oddly enough Mahna-Mahna and the Snowths - again not their names, but I think if shown a clip they would be ID'd as Muppets.

I don't think the mainstream audiences would be aware of the different corporate sides Disney, Sesame Workshop, Henson.

Aside from the characters I imagine they would associate them with kids programming or perhaps the phrase - they did some weird things could pop up.

I have the feeling that they may not think about the Muppets or even miss their presence, but when they do see them in an ad or a cameo or a new viral video they are happy to see them.

 

[DarthGonzo]

You’re overthinking my response. I said “characters LIKE Elmo and Cookie Monster”. I’m sure they could identify others.

But clearly what mainstream audiences expect from these characters is NOT what that TV show gave them. Honestly, mainstream audiences just expect a quick nostalgia fix and that’s really about it. It’s why the 2011 film did well and MMW didn’t. People got their fix and didn’t come back for more.

 

[LittleJerry92]

Okay, now that I've actually finally watched this series, this is the only "wrong" thing I can really say about it.

I liked seeing something new with the Muppets instead of the usual silly skits and songs routine. I think the one issue is, sometimes these storylines could make characters out of character.

And from watching the show, my eyes go to Kermit. There were times I thought they tried too hard to make him look like the victim, and there were times I thought he could get really pushy, almost to the point he was unlikeable.

I'm not blaming this on Steve as some pointed out - I'm blaming this more on the people who were in charge of writing the show.

But if I also had to pick something else, another thing I didn't like about this show was Denise. She was SUCH an obvious one-note character. Her only purpose was to be Kermit's new girlfriend and then she's never seen again once they break up. I don't even think we would have seen her again if a second season was renewed.

 

[dwayne1115]

Okay, now that I've actually finally watched this series, this is the only "wrong" thing I can really say about it.

I liked seeing something new with the Muppets instead of the usual silly skits and songs routine. I think the one issue is, sometimes these storylines could make characters out of character.

And from watching the show, my eyes go to Kermit. There were times I thought they tried too hard to make him look like the victim, and there were times I thought he could get really pushy, almost to the point he was unlikeable.

I'm not blaming this on Steve as some pointed out - I'm blaming this more on the people who were in charge of writing the show.

But if I also had to pick something else, another thing I didn't like about this show was Denise. She was SUCH an obvious one-note character. Her only purpose was to be Kermit's new girlfriend and then she's never seen again once they break up. I don't even think we would have seen her again if a second season was renewed.

Amen!

Trying to put drama into what was a wonderful one sided relationship between Kermit and Piggy was bad. It worked when Kermit would flirt and Piggy get jealous and the other way around.
Look at the Kermit Piggy, and Annie Sue relationship, now that worked.

 

[MWoO]

I enjoyed the show, but agree that Kermit was not Kermit. To be honest, I was never really a huge fan of Steve as Kermit, though i am a huge fan of Steve. The only production I really liked his Kermit in was MCC and MTI. Every other time Kermit seemed like her was either depressed or way too cheesey.

In The Muppets 2015 Kermit seemed like an abuse victim. The Kermit and Piggy relationship was always Piggy being overly loving to Kermit and Kermit either rebuffing her or later on expressing genuine love. In this show Piggy became a one note character that terrorized the staff and Kermit. Kermit became an over stressed wimp that no one respected. In later episodes they started to change that a bit and the characters started to respect Kermit.

The good thing is that the stage show seems to get the Kermit dynamic fairly right.