Your Animal Replica Pictures

[frogboy4]

I would love to find something to coat it in general. I don't know what they have for foam to coat it . Any ideas?

I am fairly inexperienced with soft foams and none of the self-concocted coating solutions I've devised for other balsa and yellowfoam projects have ever looked right to me. The least bit of shine on it and that kills the effect IMHO. But, then again it increases the life of the piece. That's kinda why I wanted to see what you were using. He he.

 

[MuppetCaper]

I am fairly inexperienced with soft foams and none of the self-concocted coating solutions I've devised for other balsa and yellowfoam projects have ever looked right to me. The least bit of shine on it and that kills the effect IMHO. But, then again it increases the life of the piece. That's kinda why I wanted to see what you were using. He he.

I sent a message to Monster Makers and waiting for a reply. There might be something out there that will make it last longer. Also, I am doing research as well. The sad thing is that the bottom plate that they made for Animal is pushing tight with the top plate. I am not happy how they made the bottom plate since it is only a small one, and when you push up, the mouth does not want to close very well. I am wondering if the cotton in the bottom of his neck helps with the pressure of the bottom plate. This is frustrating.

 

[Rugby]

I don't know guys. I think that plastic eyebrow piece is cheap looking and unforgivable. I mean, it looks bad. Really bad IMO. And I've been a crazed Muppet fan my whole life. We're getting Animal for our brother who got the Fisher Price Animal puppet as a kid and we're bringing back that magical Christmas for him this year. He's a soldier in Iowa and we don't get to see him very much, so all us brothers want to do something special for him.

I'm going to be a bit embarrassed having to explain the cheap eyebrow piece. Maybe I would have been better off hunting down a mint in box(the unmarked Fisher Price box with the FP logo stamped all over the box with a white background that is completely enclosed where you can't see what's inside)...if one exists.

What is the best price you guys paid for Animal? I did a Buy It Now on ebay for $330.00 total.

 

[KermieBaby47]

Another couple of pics of my Animal. I think one of the keys to a good photo is good lighting, something that I don't have in my photos!

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y150/m1stersuper5tar/DSC01716.jpg
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y150/m1stersuper5tar/DSC01724.jpg
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y150/m1stersuper5tar/DSC01735.jpg

Those are friggin AWESOME Mr. Supes! I especially love the third one. Are those adult-size sunglasses, or kids'? Great posing.

So I have a question for my fellow Animal handlers: Are your Animals' arms kinda weak? I have a problem when I try to have my MR Animal keep his arms raised up while holding drumsticks. They sloooooooowly arc down to about level with his waist & knees area. I'm really hoping that the sticks are just too heavy (but they don't seem so); but at the same time, MR Kermits' joints are nice and stiff - hold any pose I put 'em in.

?
Thanks,

Anthony

EDIT: Forgot to address Rugby's question. I'm pretty sure you got a heckuva deal on your MR Animal. It seems that I paid more than $400, and that was with pre-ordering!

 

[MuppetCaper]

You can always fix that problem by taking him out of the bag and getting a marker and then putting him back in the bag. Maybe that will help. About his arms, yes they are that limber to where he cannot hold big drumsticks. I don't know if they got smaller ones to try out, that may help. I have not tried using smaller drumsticks yet.

 

[Rugby]

I hate to keep harping about the eyelid piece, but what were they thinking? I mean, whenever I see somebody's pic of Animal with the piece sticking out like a sore thumb, I cringe. It's shocking actually. They seriously couldn't conceal the eyelid piece in the fabric and fur? It looks like sunglass frames or something. I expected much better than that. It takes away from the whole illusion of it being Animal. Way too distracting to enjoy.

I think if the Animal we bought was mine, I'd have to keep the eyes closed so you couldn't see the thing. I take issue with the person responsible for that major design flaw. It really does look like a mistake or something. Sorry for being so negative, but wow. I like the rest of the puppet. It looks awesome. My brother is great at painting miniatures, so I'm hopeful that he can do something professional looking with it to fix the flaw.

But to be perfectly honest, it does make me question future Muppet replica purchases. I will have to do my homework thoroughly before even thinking about getting Gonzo.

 

[MuppetCaper]

Yes it is a flaw, but it is something that can be fixed and is so minor. I did a whole revamp on the puppet, but he is where I want him. As for the rest, I have good faith and who knows what to expect, I don't want to count my chickens before they hatch just yet. It just happens this way everytime we get one of these poser Muppets. No one knows what to expect from the next one. Then when we get it, where all like WOW or OOOohhh. So all we can do is wait. You got to also remember, the only ones that are going to disect these with a magnifying glass is us Muppet fans. People who remember them from there childhood or just like them in general are not going to remember the flaws that we see cause we areHUGE fans and we notice these right away. When I showed my family and friends, they did not notice the brow mechanism they would have never guessed it was not suppose to be there, they just looked at it and go WOW that is Animal and Kermit, those are awesome. But when I opened the box and saw that thing, I was oh no. But I was happy with the outcome of my little fix-it problem. I am sure when Gonzo comes out, he is going to be just fine. Just cause we notice these flaws does not mean it is the end of the line for good.

 

[KermieBaby47]

Well said MC. When I was applying hot glue & black felt to my Animals' eyelids, my wife came in and was like, "you're putting glue on him?". Then, after I explained to her how he looked before, she was just like "oooh", and then walked away, not having noticed anything wrong before (but to be fair, I had already colored the whites with a huge black Sharpie before she even saw him for the first time). So Rugby, I'm sure it'll be okay with your brother, hoping so at least. As lots of people around here have said, we Muppet fanatics can tend to be more on the picky side when it comes to licensed products.

On another note, here's a pose in progress. I'm not really sure where it's gonna go from here, but I am sure that Santa hats and my Kermit will be involved somehow, along with an appropriate background.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y265/toughie47/011.jpg

Cheers!

Anthony

 

[MuppetCaper]

He's looking better all the time Anthony! Awesome job!

 

[Rugby]

Very nice, Anthony! I love how the Muppets and Christmas just go together like magic. I also want to employ a Santa hat on my Kermit and have been talking to my brothers about doing so. Maybe even the whole outfit as seen in The Christmas Toy. That would be sweet.