Thursday, April 30, 2009
Beaker FTW!
by Joe Hennes
That Beaker guy really deserves to win a little something once in a while. And only you (yes you, the funny lookin' guy) can help him win the elusive Webby Award! Today (Thursday) is the last day to vote! Beaker is even going to give you a present for voting: A brand new reedit of his "Ode to Joy" video:
Do your civic duty and vote by clicking here. And for those of you with short memories, you can view the original nominated video here.
Click here to talk about Beaker's Webby'ed feet on the ToughPigs forum!
Do your civic duty and vote by clicking here. And for those of you with short memories, you can view the original nominated video here.
Click here to talk about Beaker's Webby'ed feet on the ToughPigs forum!
joe.toughpigs@gmail.com
Labels: awards, internet, music
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Review: The Muppet Show Comic Book #2
by Ryan Roe
Issue #2 of Boom! Studios’ Muppet Show Comic Book will be released tomorrow, Wednesday, April 29th. The publisher has already sold out the first printing and announced a second, so you might want to make sure you get to the comic book store on Wednesday if you want to grab a copy. The Muppets are the new superstars of comics! They should definitely fight Wolverine as soon as possible. The first issue of the series got rave reviews all over the internet, and was loved by both diehard Muppet geeks and casual fans who couldn’t even tell you which one is Statler and which one is Lew Zealand. So the expectations are pretty high for the second outing, which is written and drawn once again by Roger Langridge.
As always, I abhor spoilers, so I don’t want to give too much away, but I will say that Issue #2 follows the same format as its predecessor – It’s an episode of The Muppet Show in comic book form, with a combination of onstage acts and backstage story. Where last month’s story focused on Kermit, this one is all about Fozzie.
The book kicks off with a fun Statler and Waldorf exchange…
… followed by another two-page splash that serves as the “This is what we call the Muppet Show!” intro. I was pretty jazzed to see Thog…
…as well as a Very Brief Cameo from a post-Muppet Show character. But I never did quite figure out why the Electric Mayhem are dressed as beatniks. Then we get into the story, which involves Fozzie coming face-to-face with failure. That’s nothing new for Fozzie, but boy, he sure would love it if he could get the approval of the Muppet Theater’s audience.
I’m pretty sure that’s supposed to be Sweetums standing there, but it looks like he shrank in the wash.
Among the highlights of the issue are a musical number that seems just like some old, obscure British song they might have done on the TV show, a “sketch” that would be right at home alongside some of The Muppet Show’s weirdest bits (and which makes very interesting use of the comic book page layout in a way that could never be reproduced on television), and some familiar segments like “Veterinarian’s Hospital,” which leads to my favorite panel in the whole issue:
So I guess the big question is: Is The Muppet Show Comic Book #2 as good as #1? The answer, I would say, is: Aaaaalmost. It was so exciting to see the first issue hit the bullseye so spectacularly, but it’s inevitable that the follow-up doesn’t seem quite so novel.
Also, this time around there were a few jokes I didn’t understand (specifically one involving Statler), although that may be my own dumbitude rather than flawed writing. There were a few moments in reading the dialogue where I found myself thinking, Waaait a minute! Would [name of Muppet character] really say that? That kind of thing is less noticeable in print, I think, but it's still important to nail down the voice of the characters. Also, when the resolution of the backstage plot arrives, it seems a bit rushed and just isn't as satisfying as last issue's.
I suppose those are pretty minor complaints. It’s still great to spend time with the Muppets and watch them struggle to put on a show, and Roger Langridge has given us another good ink-on-paper episode. Again I have to wonder if I would like this stuff as much if it were the script for a live-action Muppet Show redux, and again I have to think I wouldn't, really. But it sure is a nifty comic book.
So far Langridge has done a commendable job with Kermit and Fozzie stories, and I’m curious to see what he comes up with for next month’s Gonzo-focused issue, and even moreso for the following month's Piggy-centric issue. Miss Piggy has proven to be the most difficult character for recent Muppet writers to get right, so I’ll be crossing my fingers and hoping Langridge’s Piggy can carry her own backstage plot. But no matter what, it’s just nice to have a new Muppet production that most (or all?) of the fans can agree on.
Click here to talk about ubiquitous quilps on the Tough Pigs forum!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: comics/magazines, merchandise, review, The Muppet Show
Monday, April 27, 2009
Beaker's Campaign Ad, Muppet Comic Sell-Out, and Other News
by Ryan Roe
Beaker Wants Your Vote!
As we reported last week, the official Muppet YouTube video "Ode to Joy" -- starring Beaker, Beaker, and Beaker -- has been nominated for a Webby Award for Best Music Video. If you haven't voted yet, here's something that might persuade you: All of the official Muppet YouTube accounts have uploaded this video to get out the vote:
So go ahead, get over to the Webby Awards site and vote. After all, Beaker would vote for you if you were nominated.
Muppet Show Comic Book Does Big Business Before It's Released
In other Muppety news: Boom! Studios has announced that issue #2 of The Muppet Show Comic Book has sold out in pre-release and will be going to a second printing. What does that mean? Well, the new issue will be on sale at comic book stores everywhere on Wednesday, April 29th, but you might want to grab a copy as quick as possible if you don't want to wait for the second printing, because these things are selling like four-color hotcakes.
Spaced-Out Elmo
Elmo appeared at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum this week, dressed as an "Elmonaut" to publicize the Smithsonian debut of the Sesame Street planetarium show "One World, One Sky: Big Bird's Adventure," which stars Big Bird, Elmo, and the Muppet character Hu Hu Zhu from the Chinese Sesame co-production. The show is also playing in Chicago and New Jersey, so if you live near of one those places and you're a fan of both Sesame Street and the galaxy, you should check it out.
Muppet Stuff for Your Torso
Do you like Muppet t-shirts? If you just said "yes," take a look at these Muppet shirts at Teenormous.com. And here are some Sesame Street shirts, including the truly amazing "Mustache" shirt seen above.
Click here to talk about Muppets and other crap on the Tough Pigs forum!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: merchandise, news
Saturday, April 25, 2009
ToughPigs Art: Myth Piggy Outtakes and More!
by Joe Hennes
As you can imagine, ToughPigs' own Peter Savieri went through a few drafts before finishing his popular Myth Piggy series (all of which you can view here). Lucky for us, he's got a few of those images to share with your eyeballs!
First up is the first version of Miss Piggy as the Lady of the Lake. Says Peter, "I did this one first, then realised I'd veered into more of a spontaneous moment area, rather than an iconic pose... So that's why the more classic-yet-funny closeup for the official Lady of the Lake."
Next is an image done after the Myth Piggy series ended. By request, it's Miss Piggy rising from the ashes as a Phoenix.
Thirdly, we've got an image from ToughPigs' own Tony Whitaker, who painted this awesome picture of Jim Henson amidst a veritable Easter egg hunt of references to his characters and career. Can you spot all of them??
Special thanks to Peter and Tony for their amazing artwork!
Click here to rise from the ashes on the ToughPigs forum!
First up is the first version of Miss Piggy as the Lady of the Lake. Says Peter, "I did this one first, then realised I'd veered into more of a spontaneous moment area, rather than an iconic pose... So that's why the more classic-yet-funny closeup for the official Lady of the Lake."
Next is an image done after the Myth Piggy series ended. By request, it's Miss Piggy rising from the ashes as a Phoenix.
Thirdly, we've got an image from ToughPigs' own Tony Whitaker, who painted this awesome picture of Jim Henson amidst a veritable Easter egg hunt of references to his characters and career. Can you spot all of them??
Special thanks to Peter and Tony for their amazing artwork!Click here to rise from the ashes on the ToughPigs forum!
joe.toughpigs@gmail.com
Labels: fan art, Peter Savieri
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Muppets, Munchos, and Me: An Epic Story
by Ryan Roe
I realized something recently: Jim Henson was the most effective advertiser in history. Allow me to explain this bold statement in the form of a pointless personal story.
Just a couple of years ago, a YouTube user named batman1971 (probably not the real Batman) posted two old commercials produced by the Muppets in 1969 for a new snack food called Munchos. These commercials feature a funny-looking Muppet named Fred, but are much more notable for starring a shaggy, blue, hungry monster who would soon become America’s sweetheart.
Check ‘em out:
(Side note: Is it just me, or does the monster have a different performer in the second spot? In the first commercial it’s obvious that both of the voices are Jim Henson’s… In the second one, it’s not Jim, but I can’t tell who it is. Could it be a young Frank Oz, still new to the world of monster voices? End side note.)
So, when I saw these on YouTube, I said, “Well, those are pretty fun. And these Muncho things sound pretty good. It’s too bad they don’t make them anymore.” And that was that, and then I probably moved on to another YouTube video, which may or may not have been a spotlight for the talents of a toilet-flushing cat.
But soon thereafter, I was at the grocery store when my eyes beheld an amazing sight: There, in the snack food aisle, in amongst the Ruffles and the Tostitos and the artificially flavored puffed corn snacks, was Munchos! I was startled, but then it dawned on me: It wasn’t that my local store had just started carrying them. It was simply that I had never noticed them.
Of course I had to buy a bag so I could try them for myself. After all, how could I refuse a product whose coming was heralded by a primitive version of Cookie Monster and a Muppet who bears a striking resemblance to a thumb? And as it turned out, I liked Munchos. A lot. They’re addictively salty and delightfully crispy, although I have to say, I think they’re actually thinner than standard potato chips. So either they’ve tweaked the recipe or Fred was a big fat liar. Since then, they’ve pretty much become my potato-based snack of choice (as Fred points out, they’re potato crisps, not potato chips).
And to think: All these years, I had been completely ignorant to the fact that I was living in a universe where Munchos existed! But this commercial made by Jim Henson and his crew was so attention-grabbing, so persuasive, that it sold me on the product almost 40 years after it was produced. If that’s not a well-made commercial, I don’t know what is.
And that’s why Jim Henson was the most effective advertiser in history.
Do you have a similar story? Did decades-old Muppet commercials inspire you to drink RC Cola, to eat La Choy Chinese food, or to try Wilson’s Meats? Does Wilson’s Meats even exist anymore? I have no idea! Let's talk about it on the Tough Pigs forum!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: Muppets on TV, other Muppet/Henson shows
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Vote for Beaker!
by Ryan Roe
Here's some reasonably exciting news: The original Muppet YouTube video "Ode to Joy" has been nominated for a Webby Award! The Webbys, naturally, are awards given for stuff made for the web, and Beaker has been nominated in the Best Music Video category. In case you need to be reminded how award-worthy the video is, take a look:
You can show your support for Beaker and classical music by going to the Webby People's Voice voting site and placing your vote. You do have to register before you can vote, but don't let that stop you. I'm 85% sure they won't use your information to steal your identity.
You may remember that back in 2007, the web series Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony won a Webby Award. Except you probably don't remember, because most Muppet fans completely lost interest in that silliness when the producers replaced Steve Whitmire and Dave Goelz as the title characters. But the point is, Muppets won before, and Muppets can win again! And this time, the thing that got nominated is actually good!
So vote for "Ode to Joy!" If for no other reason than so we can hear Beaker give an acceptance speech.
Click here to lay odds on Beaker's Webby chances on the Tough Pigs forum!
You can show your support for Beaker and classical music by going to the Webby People's Voice voting site and placing your vote. You do have to register before you can vote, but don't let that stop you. I'm 85% sure they won't use your information to steal your identity.
You may remember that back in 2007, the web series Statler and Waldorf: From the Balcony won a Webby Award. Except you probably don't remember, because most Muppet fans completely lost interest in that silliness when the producers replaced Steve Whitmire and Dave Goelz as the title characters. But the point is, Muppets won before, and Muppets can win again! And this time, the thing that got nominated is actually good!
So vote for "Ode to Joy!" If for no other reason than so we can hear Beaker give an acceptance speech.
Click here to lay odds on Beaker's Webby chances on the Tough Pigs forum!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: awards, internet, music, news
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Video Roundup! Yeehaw!
by Joe Hennes
While we eagerly await the next Muppet movie, upcoming Doozers TV show, the new season of Sesame Street, and that dusty VHS you've got of Aliens in the Family, it kinda seems like there aren't any Muppets on television these days. Well, you're wrong. Dead wrong. Really really super dead wrong.
In one form or another, the Muppets have been popping their little heads on TV a lot lately. Let's take a peek at a few of them.
Three (three!) recent episodes of 30 Rock have contained tidbits that'd make more than a few Muppet fans' eyebrows to raise. Three weeks ago, a picture of Miss Piggy appeared in a non-sequitor about Jenna's wardrobe. One week ago, Alan Muraoka made a cameo as a guy about to get fired. But the kicker was two weeks ago when the cast was seen as Sesame Street Anything Muppets! Click here and here to see the video while they last!
The whole Muppet gang (kinda) made an appearance on Saturday Night Live in what might be construed as a disturbing deleted scene from The Muppet Movie. But it begs the question: Why is Rowlf driving?? Click here for watching!
Elmo and Abby Cadabby went on Bonnie Hunt's show to promote the new DVD, "Being Green," and to promote their own cuteness. I couldn't find the first half of the interview, but here they are talking about how kids can greenify their home.
Kobe Bryant, along with Mini Kobe, will be on the 40th season of Sesame Street. Mini Kobe sounds like a cut of steak on the children's menu. Watch the video!
Lastly, Elmo was on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon earlier this week. And we're doing you the great favor of linking to a video of the interview, rather than making you actually watch an episode of Jimmy Fallon's show. You're welcome. Click here, yo!
Click here to discuss this article on the ToughPigs forum!
In one form or another, the Muppets have been popping their little heads on TV a lot lately. Let's take a peek at a few of them.
Three (three!) recent episodes of 30 Rock have contained tidbits that'd make more than a few Muppet fans' eyebrows to raise. Three weeks ago, a picture of Miss Piggy appeared in a non-sequitor about Jenna's wardrobe. One week ago, Alan Muraoka made a cameo as a guy about to get fired. But the kicker was two weeks ago when the cast was seen as Sesame Street Anything Muppets! Click here and here to see the video while they last!
The whole Muppet gang (kinda) made an appearance on Saturday Night Live in what might be construed as a disturbing deleted scene from The Muppet Movie. But it begs the question: Why is Rowlf driving?? Click here for watching!
Elmo and Abby Cadabby went on Bonnie Hunt's show to promote the new DVD, "Being Green," and to promote their own cuteness. I couldn't find the first half of the interview, but here they are talking about how kids can greenify their home.
Kobe Bryant, along with Mini Kobe, will be on the 40th season of Sesame Street. Mini Kobe sounds like a cut of steak on the children's menu. Watch the video!
Lastly, Elmo was on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon earlier this week. And we're doing you the great favor of linking to a video of the interview, rather than making you actually watch an episode of Jimmy Fallon's show. You're welcome. Click here, yo!Click here to discuss this article on the ToughPigs forum!
joe.toughpigs@gmail.com
Labels: celebrities, Muppets on TV, Sesame Street
Monday, April 13, 2009
Just Like Book Club
by Joe Hennes
Okay, I'll be the first to admit that I totally dropped the ball on the last Book Club. Sadly, I chose a book that held many fond childhood memories for everyone, which nobody wants to mock in the fashion that we ToughPigs hold so dear. But look at the bright side, at least you got to read an awesome Grover book for free!
This time around, I think we'll have better canon fodder because of one thing: Ernie in his skivvies. So go ahead and read "Just Like Ernie", and post your introspective/anal-retentive/ridonkulous comments on the ToughPigs forum. Or if you'd rather do the e-mail thing, feel free to send them to me directly. In a couple weeks, I will post the best of the best right here on ToughPigs.com for the whole world to see. Now, on with the oversized glasses show!
Suggested Discussion Questions:1.) Is Bert just dealing with a mild case of depression (as always) in a new and creative way, or is he suffering from Single White Female Syndrome? Or is he perhaps using imitation as an outlet to express his true feelings for Ernie?
2.) If imitating Ernie doesn't make Bert less lame, what else can he try? Lord knows those saddle shoes aren't doing him any favors.
3.) Where can I get me one of those Super Cookie Monster lunch boxes?
4.) Do the Alphabeats go through drummers like Spinal Tap? And what does it say about their professionalism that they'll pick up a new drummer at Hooper's Store on a whim like that?
5.) How does the Figgy Fizz bottle cap hold up against the American dollar in this economic climate? Apparently they're worth at least the cost of a jacket, sunglasses, sneakers, joke book, and lunch box. Should we be adding Figgy Fizz bottlecaps to our investment packages?
Bonus question: Does Ernie wear boxers or briefs? Oh wait, nevermind.
Click here to share your thoughts on Just Like Ernie on the ToughPigs forum, just like Ernie!joe.toughpigs@gmail.com
Labels: book club, reader participation, Sesame Street
Thursday, April 9, 2009
ToughPigs Art: Character spotlights, Robin Hood, and More!
by Joe Hennes
It's been a while since we spotlighted Smig here on ToughPigs, which only gave him more time to make more pictures for us! First off, if you look to your right (no, your other right), you'll see our new PayPal and Facebook links which feature some purdy doodles from Smig himself. The quasi-obscurity of the characters only adds to the awesomeness.
Next up, Smig did a few character profiles for everyone's favorite secondary Muppet Show characters, which came out pretty great. I don't know about you, but I'm campaigning for a whole book of these.
This piece was done after a conversation on the ToughPigs forum about the upcoming Muppet Robin Hood comic book. It's also a peek into the strange workings of Smig's mind.
Have you ever wondered what Beaker's X-ray would look like? Well wonder no more!
Lastly, we've got a visual interpretation of a story we've all heard many times about how Kevin Clash first began performing Elmo.
Special thanks to Smig for putting pen to paper!
Click here to throw stuff at Kevin Clash on the ToughPigs forum!
Next up, Smig did a few character profiles for everyone's favorite secondary Muppet Show characters, which came out pretty great. I don't know about you, but I'm campaigning for a whole book of these.
This piece was done after a conversation on the ToughPigs forum about the upcoming Muppet Robin Hood comic book. It's also a peek into the strange workings of Smig's mind.
Have you ever wondered what Beaker's X-ray would look like? Well wonder no more!
Lastly, we've got a visual interpretation of a story we've all heard many times about how Kevin Clash first began performing Elmo.
Special thanks to Smig for putting pen to paper!Click here to throw stuff at Kevin Clash on the ToughPigs forum!
joe.toughpigs@gmail.com
Sunday, April 5, 2009
The Muppet Show Comic Book #1: Roger Langridge Q&A
by Joe Hennes
Way back in January, we had ourselves a little chat with Roger Langridge, the writer and artist for BOOM! Studios' recent hit, The Muppet Show Comic Book, which is already selling out and garnering rave reviews (including one from your favorite Muppet fan site). In our first of what we hope will be a monthly feature, we'll be holding a Q&A with Roger Langridge after every issue. If you've got pressing questions for Roger, feel free to e-mail me or post on the ToughPigs forum. Now, let's get on with the gettin' on!
ToughPigs: What sort of updates in the writing and design did you make between the preview comic and the first issue? Gonzo's more-rounded nose, for example, is one obvious change you've made.
Roger Langridge: As I've mentioned elsewhere, the preview comic consisted of material originally produced for Disney Adventures magazine which was never published, and my brief on those stories was to do it in my own style, hence what some fans probably regard as my stylistic eccentricities. The Boom! comic was really a fresh start, and the expectations were somewhat different, so Gonzo's streamlined nose reflects that - the comic is more like "official merchandise", as far as that goes, despite not being commissioned by Disney directly. So it wasn't so much a case of making conscious changes, more a case of treating the Boom comic as its own thing and approaching it accordingly.
TP: Did you get any notes from BOOM! or Disney about Americanizing the dialog? (Note: Roger Langridge hails from New Zealand and currently lives in London.)
RL: Jim Lewis made a couple of suggestions and queried a colloquialism or two that wouldn't travel well. They're keeping their eyes open for the obvious ones!
TP: Aside from Jim Lewis, who we Muppet fans are intimately familiar with, who are the other names listed in the "Special Thanks" section? (Tishana Williams, Ivonne Feliciano, Jesse Post, and Susan Butterworth)
RL: No idea! (Apart from Jesse Post, who was one of the people who got me into Disney Adventures when he worked there.) The Thank-Yous were put in at editorial level - presumably they're all Disney/Henson liaisons of some kind or other.
TP: What is your process for writing original songs that appear only in print form like "Bang, Boom, Splat and Pow" and "In the Pond Where I Was Born"? Did you actually write or record music for them?
RL: Good lord, no! It's just doggerel, really - I don't have a musical bone in my body. Proper songs usually involve a lot more repetition (choruses, refrains), which is something that doesn't usually work on the printed page. I'm trying to get the idea of a musical number across, but in a way that works in print. My ideal here is Alice in Wonderland (the book, that is), where characters are constantly breaking into "song" but in a way that uses the printed page to full effect, like Carroll's "Tail of a Mouse", in which the text is actually shaped like a tail. I'm not there yet, but that's something to strive towards.
TP: I enjoyed the Mick Jagger and Keith Richards analogs in the comic. Will you have "celebrity" guest stars in future issues?
RL: If I can work them into the story artfully, I'd be up for that. Nothing in the ones I've yet written, though. Believe it or not, I didn't think of the Zimmer Twins as guest stars (except to use that as an excuse to wedge them in there) - I just thought "The Zimmer Twins" was a nifty gag! Kermit and Scooter discuss possible guest stars in issue 4 as an excuse for me to trot out some atrocious celebrity Spoonerisms, for what that's worth. I'm aware it's a part of the show's format that has to be addressed from time to time.
TP: When you create original characters like the hoptoads, do you envision certain puppeteers performing each one?
RL: I'm not as immersed in the behind-the-scenes stuff as most of your readers are, so the only puppeteers I'm aware of are the really well-known ones, the household names. But since these hop-toad characters were really just throwaways, here for two pages and then gone forever, I wasn't too concerned about giving them individual personalities - in fact, I think that would have been counter-productive in this context.
TP: Rumor has it that you're already starting work on a second Muppet Show miniseries. Can you give us any details on that?
RL: As far as my work schedule is concerned, The Muppet Show Comic is an ongoing monthly series, but Boom! Studios want to re-start the numbering every four issue for marketing reasons. So the next four-issue story arc is called "The Treasure of Peg-Leg Wilson", in which rumours of a hidden treasure inside the theatre lead to, one hopes, hilarious complications - all this as a background subplot to the usual songs, sketches and so forth. Nothing radically different to the initial four issues, except the subplot element is a bit stronger. And that will lead us into the next four-issue arc, which is a logical progression from this one, I hope.
TP: Do you have a favorite character to write for? A favorite episode of The Muppet Show?
RL: I'm finding Gonzo and Miss Piggy the most enjoyable so far, because they both seem to have layers like an onion. You think you know them and then they surprise you. But I can't think of a single character I'm not enjoying on some level.
Favourite episode: Probably the Spike Milligan one. I'm a huge Milligan fan and it just seemed like such a perfect mesh of sensibilities.
TP: Is there anything else you want to relate to the Muppet fans?
RL: Just to say thanks for being open-minded about the book, and thanks for giving it such a warm reception. I really appreciate it.
Super special thanks to Roger Langridge for chatting with us! And double super special thanks to him for making The Muppet Show Comic Book! Issue #2, "Fozzie's Story," hits the stands on April 29! And while you're at the comic shop, be sure to get the first issue of Muppet Robin Hood, which will be released on the same day.Click here to break into (written) song on the ToughPigs forum!
joe.toughpigs@gmail.com
Labels: comics/magazines, interview, Roger Langridge, The Muppet Show
Sesame Toys: Adorable and Horrifying
by Ryan Roe
We haven't done heaps of coverage on merchandise here at Tough Pigs lately, but this week two recent products came to our attention that I just had to mention.
The first one is a line of officially licensed Sesame Street items made by Fisher Price. They're called Collect-a-Pals, and they were apparently designed to finally provide an answer to the age-old question, "What if Sesame Street characters were little round balls with tiny arms and legs?" You can see all of them on Muppet Wiki, but I think my favorites are Grover (as seen above), Cookie Monster...
...and Snuffy.
They had to cram a whole lot of Snuffleupagus into a tiny little space there, and I think they did an admirable job. These are reportedly available at Target, among other places, so if you've ever wanted to play softball with Elmo as the ball (and I know some of you have), now's your chance.
And now for the opposite end of the spectrum. ToyCyte.com recently posted a report on some unlicensed Sesame toys, produced by a company called RealxHead, that have to be seen to be believed. They're calling them "Real Street," and they're evidently meant to be kaiju-style, kaiju referring to the genre of Japanese entertainment involving bizarre giant monsters.
Yikes. In case you're not sure what you're looking at, that's supposed to be Cookie Monster, Elmo, Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and the Count. Now, it's tempting to put these into the "Ugly Muppet Toy" category, but the thing is, these are ugly on purpose. They're grotesque... but they're kind of amazing, too. Most of them are obvious enough reflections of what the characters would look like if they were involved is some sort of freak accident involving radiation, but look at Big Bird:
If I hadn't told you that was supposed to be Big Bird, would you have guessed that's who it was? Maybe the orange feet would have given it away. Then again, I guess it wouldn't matter much to these toymakers if their Hideous Mutant Monstrosity Big Bird doesn't look like the real Big Bird. And here's the best part: If you follow the link on that ToyCyte page, you can order this complete set for just $160 plus shipping! What a bargain!
So, there you go. Two sets of radically different Sesame Street toys. Which ones do you like best?
Click here to talk about Collect-a-Pals, and click here to talk about kaiku Sesame toys, both on the Tough Pigs forum!
The first one is a line of officially licensed Sesame Street items made by Fisher Price. They're called Collect-a-Pals, and they were apparently designed to finally provide an answer to the age-old question, "What if Sesame Street characters were little round balls with tiny arms and legs?" You can see all of them on Muppet Wiki, but I think my favorites are Grover (as seen above), Cookie Monster...
...and Snuffy.
They had to cram a whole lot of Snuffleupagus into a tiny little space there, and I think they did an admirable job. These are reportedly available at Target, among other places, so if you've ever wanted to play softball with Elmo as the ball (and I know some of you have), now's your chance.
And now for the opposite end of the spectrum. ToyCyte.com recently posted a report on some unlicensed Sesame toys, produced by a company called RealxHead, that have to be seen to be believed. They're calling them "Real Street," and they're evidently meant to be kaiju-style, kaiju referring to the genre of Japanese entertainment involving bizarre giant monsters.
Yikes. In case you're not sure what you're looking at, that's supposed to be Cookie Monster, Elmo, Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and the Count. Now, it's tempting to put these into the "Ugly Muppet Toy" category, but the thing is, these are ugly on purpose. They're grotesque... but they're kind of amazing, too. Most of them are obvious enough reflections of what the characters would look like if they were involved is some sort of freak accident involving radiation, but look at Big Bird:
If I hadn't told you that was supposed to be Big Bird, would you have guessed that's who it was? Maybe the orange feet would have given it away. Then again, I guess it wouldn't matter much to these toymakers if their Hideous Mutant Monstrosity Big Bird doesn't look like the real Big Bird. And here's the best part: If you follow the link on that ToyCyte page, you can order this complete set for just $160 plus shipping! What a bargain!
So, there you go. Two sets of radically different Sesame Street toys. Which ones do you like best?
Click here to talk about Collect-a-Pals, and click here to talk about kaiku Sesame toys, both on the Tough Pigs forum!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: merchandise, Sesame Street, weird stuff
Thursday, April 2, 2009
A Frazzled Frog Is a Funny Frog
by Ryan Roe
Who is Kermit the Frog? He's often described as the glue that holds the Muppets together. When Jim Henson's colleagues are asked which character Jim was most similar to, the frog is often the first one name-checked: He was the guy making everything work, a straight man in the middle of a throng of eccentrics. All of which is great, but you know when I really love Kermit? When he freaks the hell out. One complaint fans have of recent Muppet projects is that Kermit just doesn't lose his temper like he used to, which is a valid point. He's supposed to be a funny character, and he's never funnier than when he loses his cool.
Here are some of my favorite instances of Kermit losing his composure, rated on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest) I'm call the Freakout-o-meter, and some of which are accompanied by nifty links to the Sesame Street Video Player and YouTube.
-Grover Sells SunglassesOn Sesame Street, Kermit is free of the insanity of The Muppet Show, but he still gets to play straight man to some crazy characters. Kermit was often paired with Grover to great effect, including a series of sketches in which Grover is a salesman trying to sell Kermit products he can't really use. I guess these sketches wouldn't really work as well now that door-to-door salesmen are a nearly extinct species, but I think we can all absolutely identify with Kermit here, as he struggles to keep his temper right up until the moment when he chases Grover out of his house.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 3
Watch it on YouTube!
On the Freakout-o-meter: 9
-Cookie Monster and the Mystery BoxKermit was paired with Cookie Monster much less frequently than with Grover, but here we see that Cookie is just as skilled at pushing the frog's buttons. In this sketch, Kermit is frustrated by Cookie's willful, persistent ignorance.
No doubt most Muppet fans would consider it to be a minor entry in Kermit's history of rants, but this Whitmire-era freakout from Muppet Treasure Island deserves an honorable mention. After the roll call scene establishes that the Hispaniola's crew is full of unsavory characters, Kermit's Captain Smollett demands to know: "Who hired this crew? This is undoubtedly the seediest bunch of cutthroats, villains, and scoundrels I have ever seen, so who hired them?!" It's slight compared to some of these other moments, but I'm pretty sure this was the first time we saw Steve Whitmire's Kermit lose his temper, so it was like a sweet reunion with an old, beloved, yelling friend. (By the way, it was Mr. Bimbo, the little man who lives in Fozzie's finger. He hired the crew.)
On the Freakout-o-meter: 2
-The Wonderful World of T-shirts
All Kermit wants is a T-shirt with his name on it. But if he got what he wanted, we wouldn't have this Sesame Street sketch, with appearances by Kermit the Forg, Kermit the Grof, and Kermit the Gorf... and the inclusion of Kermit's exasperated line "I'm Kermit the Frog and I told you I want my Kermit the Frooooog t-shirt!" to which Frank Oz's shopkeeper Muppet responds, "No need to get emotional!" Left unanswered: Why Kermit is already wearing a Kermit the Frog t-shirt when he arrives at the store. How many does he need, anyway?
On the Freakout-o-meter: 6
Watch it on YouTube!
-Kermit insults Piggy's heritage
I debated whether to include this one, because it's not really Kermit getting mad so much as Kermit being mean to Piggy. In the John Denver episode of The Muppet Show, Kermit is chagrined to find that none of his fellow Muppets are looking forward to their camping trip to the swamp. Piggy is particularly unenthusiastic, and when Kermit figures this out, he gets a little testy: "We don't have to go to the swamp. We can go back to where you were born -- the sty! You know, where your roots are! Where pigs eat swill and wallow in the mud! Remember that?" This does not persuade Piggy to look forward to the swamp.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 2
-Stop That Bus Stop
Even rarer than a Kermit/Cookie Monster pairing is a Kermit/Oscar the Grouch pairing, and this one finds Kermit understandably displeased when Oscar tries to build a bus stop in his living room. "This is a terrible place for a bus stop! What kind of bus is going to drive into my living room?!" he demands, and of course the next thing that happens is a bus drives into his living room. You can't stop civic progress. As I was watching Sesame clips in preparation of this article, I noticed that they almost never used the same set more than once to represent Kermit's apartment, but if you think about it, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation: He keeps moving, in a desperate, futile effort to prevent the other Muppets from dropping by and annoying him.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 4
Watch it on the Sesame Video Player!
-Kermit's Telephone Demo
So we've seen Kermit abused by Grover, Cookie Monster, and Oscar. Now how about America's dumbest urban cowboy, Forgetful Jones? In this sketch, Kermit tries to teach Forgetful how to use the telephone, and of course everything goes smoothly and Forgetful gets it right on the first try and nothing funny happens whatsoever.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 3
Watch it on the Sesame Video Player!
-Piggy is fired This is the one, right here. In the Loretta Swit episode of The Muppet Show, Miss Piggy leaks a story to a tabloid that she and Kermit are secretly married. To say that Kermit is unamused would be a vast understatement. "I will not stand around while you do dumb things like that!" he snaps, and when she asks what he's going to do about it, he has an answer: "I'll tell you what I'm going to do, Piggy, I'm going to fire you! Piggy, you are fired! You are fired, Piggy! You are fired! FIRED!" And he fires her! But of course she's back by the end of the episode. You know, sometimes when I watch this stuff it really hits me just how dysfunctional Kermit and Piggy's relationship is.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 10
Watch it on YouTube!
-"Go ahead and walk!"
In The Great Muppet Caper, Kermit confronts Piggy at a duck pond in the park, the day after she tricked him into believing she was Lady Holiday. This scene is really more about Kermit and Piggy snapping at each other...
PIGGY: I'm playing over 800 different emotions here!
KERMIT: Well, why don't you try playing one of them right?!
PIGGY: I have a career of my own! I don't need this lousy duck pond!
KERMIT: Okay, sure, go ahead, walk! Walk! Go ahead and walk!
...than a rant from Kermit, but it's entertaining as always to see him make scrunchy faces and breathe heavily. Naturally, this scene of Kermit and Piggy screaming at each other is immediately followed by the most romantic scene in the movie, the "Couldn't We Ride" number.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 5
-The Huggies
And here's another classic Kermit/Piggy scene that confirms the notion that for these two crazy lovebirds, yelling is like foreplay. Kermit's just discovered that Piggy (whom he thought was far away at a new job) has been spying on him and his new friend Jenny. If she's just a friend, Piggy demands, why were you giving her the huggies? And then I just have to quote the scene:
KERMIT: Jenny and I were hugging because we're friends! That's what friends do! Friends do not spy!
PIGGY: I spied because I care!
KERMIT: I care too!
PIGGY: Well, why don't you say so?!
KERMIT: I JUST DID!
PIGGY: ALL RIGHT!
KERMIT: AAAGH!
PIGGY: AAAGH!
KERMIT: AAAGH!
PIGGY: AAAGH!
So the only thing that can come next is a romantic carriage ride around Central Park.
On the Freakout-o-meter: 8
Now I'm trying to remember, and I honestly can't: When was the last time we saw Kermit yell? I can only hope it happens in the next Muppet movie. I mean, lots of Muppet characters and guest star cameos are great, but could we have Kermit flipping his lid, please? Thanks.
Click here to tell me which Kermit freakouts you can't believe I forgot on the Tough Pigs forum! And scroll down to the previous post for some Tough Pigs April Fools' Day merriment!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: fanaticism, Muppet movies, Muppets on TV, Sesame Street, The Muppet Show
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
April Fool
by Ryan Roe
Hey, did you happen to check this website at some point on April 1st? If you did, maybe you noticed something odd... Tough Pigs has always been committed to honest criticism, but for April Fool's Day we were even more negative than usual. Click here to check it out. And special thanks to Tough Pigs' resident compu-wizard Scott Hanson for helping us with the compu-wizardry!
ToughPigsRyan@yahoo.com
Labels: ToughPigs
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