Your Thoughts: The Muppets on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon"

[Mistoffelees]

Was that Matt Vogel as Robin? He sounded different than Letters to Santa. I wonder who all the puppeteers for this appearance were

 

[Super Scooter]

Wow... totally new Robin personality there... he looked and sounded like a grumpy, fat toad.

... Huh?

Robin seemed like a kid to me. A grumpy, fat toad would have a much more gravelly voice and say stuff like "I ain't singin' dat part, you lousy sons-a-me-mudder-in-law's-triple-chin!" I don't think a grumpy, fat toad would sound quite so... happy? Cheery? Child-like? Personally, I don't see as you can judge the personality at all based on a few lines in a song.

I agree he looked a bit bloated, but I believe that's due to the costume.

 

[bknatchbull]

Kermit

Hi,

I am surprised there is not much talk about Steve's Kermit appearance in this and other things of late. I thought he really sounded nice. Especially after all that "Where's Steve?" and Steve Petitions that were started a couple months back. Have we all just forgot about all that?

 

[dwmckim]

No one's forgotten. But Steve has been kermit for 19 years (which is why there was all the fuss when he suddenly unknowingly disappeared). He's had two decades to settle into the character where more of the recasts are much more recent. So usually there isn't much to comment about other than "wow - another of a countless number of awesome performances" in regards to Kermit. Most people after about 20 years now basically think of Steve as Kermit in the back of their minds so he doesn't get the same kind of scrutiny that newer recasts might get...he's well beyond the point of "trying to be Kermit" and just simply IS Kermit.

 

[wembleyfraggle]

I LOVED ever second! Robin was off like most said. But I soon ignored it when I head how spot on Scooter was! Love seeing him back!
Kermit did great!
Gonzo was great, still getting used to the new puppet
Robin a little off but glad to see him, Probably would have put Swedish Chef in there to make it funny!
Piggy was GREAT!
Scooter! Amazing!
Fozzie! Love the forgetting stuff!
Rowlf I just loved seeing again! Loved him with the shows band
Pepe I loved! I love the tutu! So funny!
Sam was awesome and spot on!
Rizzo was fun
Animal was so funny!
Over all it was awesome! Almost as good as Bohemian Rhapsody!

 

[Frogster]

I can definitely tell now that there's two versions of this the difference between Frank's Fozzie and Piggy and Eric's version. Piggy just hasn't had a strong presence since Frank left. And Fozzie is just outright stupid these days. It's pretty bad when Gonzo's more 'human' than Fozzie. I believe it was Fozzie in TMM who, when speaking of Gonzo, said, "We've picked up a weirdo." Fozzie's just too childish these days for me. And when it comes to Eric doing Piggy, he's only using her stereotype, not her personality (hope that makes sense). That's actually how a lot of these new people are, really. They get the actions and attitudes, but not the personality. I definitely feel bad for Robin. He used to have the best singing voice and now he kinda sounds nerdy. I gotta admit, Scooter was really good. But, just like Steve with Kermit, they need to not keep the arms up so high. Also, I wasn't sure about the new Sam look at first but it's kinda growing on me. So really, other than Piggy, Fozzie and Robin, it wasn't all that bad. At least the audience was laughing when Fozzie messed up each time.

 

[Super Scooter]

Well, to be fair, Eric's performance as Fozzie was nearly identical to the original, so I'd blame Frank Oz for making Fozzie "outright stupid." After all, was it not Frank who performed the "half-wit son" in Muppet Treasure Island? Was it not he who performed Fozzie announcing that Ma said one must always wash their hands, even when wearing invisibility spray? Fozzie was an idiot in the ninties, but don't blame Eric for that. He wasn't performing him then. I don't mean to bash Frank, either. But Fozzie in this piece was an imperfect "human", the same as he was throughout all of the Muppet Show and all of the productions of the seventies and eighties. This is why the audience cheered for him at the end. Because, as always, he was the struggling performer trying his hardest to get it right.

As for Miss Piggy... well, I saw none of her stereotypes here. Again, the performance is nearly identical to the original. What's the beef? Or pork, as it were?

 

[frogboy4]

I agree with Super Scooter here over Frogster.

Fozzie (under Frank) was primarily naive, but had some moments of mature clarity. I think, in a way, that Eric has gone back a little in the time machine to the classic core of what makes Fozzie - Fozzie. I love it and I think he really nails the character. It's the best re-cast the Muppets have ever had.

Frank Oz is hands-down the best Muppeteer there has ever been or ever will be. Talent like that is not only crafted, it's handed down by the gods. He has instincts, agility, improv skills, character variety, natural wit and the ability to connect in a way that's above and beyond what any puppeteer can expect to achieve. He's also been doing this professionally since childhood! While he's not my absolute favorite Muppeteer (that belongs to Dave Goelz and Bill Barretta too) I recognize that there's no fair way to comare anyone to Frank. Eric does an amazing job with his characters and he's risen to the level of A-list Muppeteer. He deserves that title and respect.

 

[dwmckim]

Whether it's Frank or Eric, they have to sometime go with what they're given via the writing. Frank HATED the Mr. Bimbo stuff when he first heard about it but then warmed up to it and loved it (it helped that in this case Fozzie was playing another character).

And while i think Eric has for the most part restored some of Fozzie's dignity and heart out of the ashes of the dim-bulb Fozzie that the bear had largely become towards the end of Frank's run (a lot of which was -literally- out of Frank's hands as he would be dubbing the voice over someone else's initial work), there are still the occasional moments where Eric falls into the slow-witted childish Fozzie - it really stuck out during the scene with Gonzo and Sam in LTS when they found the post office closed (though i wonder if maybe that was because Eric was doing Sam and had do dub Fozzie...if it was even dubbed)

 

[Super Scooter]

Frank Oz is hands-down the best Muppeteer there has ever been or ever will be. Talent like that is not only crafted, it's handed down by the gods. He has instincts, agility, improv skills, character variety, natural wit and the ability to connect in a way that's above and beyond what any puppeteer can expect to achieve. He's also been doing this professionally since childhood! While he's not my absolute favorite Muppeteer (that belongs to Dave Goelz and Bill Barretta too) I recognize that there's no fair way to comare anyone to Frank. Eric does an amazing job with his characters and he's risen to the level of A-list Muppeteer. He deserves that title and respect.

I agree with this very much. Upon rereading some of my previous post, I realize I was a little harsh towards Frank, which was not my intentions at all. Just trying to prove a point.

I think Frank Oz is perhaps the greatest puppeteer the world has ever known. My absolute favorite will always be Jim Henson, but Frank is the most gifted as far as technical ability, character development, and improv skills, as you stated. Watch anyone of his performances and there's always something to see; something unique to catch every time. The same can be said for Steve Whitmire. I think they are the two best Muppeteers of all time.