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From the very beginning of Sesame Street, when everyone moved onto the block back in 1969, the Anything Muppets were among those first residents. Blank canvases for creating new characters that fit into any scene, these puppets have been the unsung stars of the show for over 50 years. As much as Grover, Oscar the Grouch or Gordon, these utility puppets have been a part of street life, singing songs, telling stories and becoming beloved by many families at home both for the one-off characters they portray and also the more stable characters that some of them became.
With their ability to change styles and genders, and how that need for change can occur daily, the whole concept of Anything Muppets reminds me of how one can experience a nonbinary identity. The word nonbinary is an umbrella term for a myriad different experiences of gender that fall outside of the binary of male and female. This includes no gender and gender fluidity. Sometimes that experience is liberating with so many options. Sometimes that experience can feel overwhelming, like it’s all too much. Sometimes it’s confusing. All of these emotions jumbled up, it might be hard to feel proud of this identity. But the Anything Muppets can help us again, demonstrating the defining wisdom of a sometimes less definitive identity.
Don’t feel limited by the first choice you make.
Everyone who has ever grown up has gone through phases of picking clothes and hairstyles that they think might best represent how they feel. Whether that’s how they feel about themselves or how they feel in relation to their family, social circle and culture, all of these feelings play a part in our experiments of self-presentation. Sometimes those choices are bold and memorable, like, say, Henrietta Wigglesworth. And while these looks may have felt true to us at the time, something evolved within us, fashion or society that made that foray no longer the right fit. So we abandoned it. For many, that need to change from their first bold declaration is made a little easier by the fact that they can fall back on gender expectations. Even if the all-pink, segmented look didn’t work out, needing to take a breather and rest inside a sweater and overalls isn’t going to make anyone bat an eye.
But for nonbinary people, we can sometimes feel as if others are watching us particularly closely so as to understand what to expect of us. If we show up for social outings wearing neon leggings, band t-shirts and glittery makeup for months or even years, it becomes harder to escape scrutiny when inside we feel a pull toward a more understated look or clothes that will align more with the fluctuations we’re feeling. Our friends and family might feel as if they don’t know us anymore even though we’re still the same person, it’s only the expression of that person that has changed.
Regardless of what others are thinking, we’re still the same people. Anything Muppets show us that there is always a core beneath the outward expression we can rely on and others can rely on too. Neither we nor our social circle should consider the first look defining. Just because they met us when we looked like Betty Lou, that shouldn’t stop us from becoming Hubert the Human Cannonball. At the core, we’re still made of the same, strong stuff.
Some days you wake up and feel like Count von Count and some days Countess von Backwards, and that’s okay.
Just like many nonbinary people, the gender expression of Anything Muppets can flow from the extremes of masculine and feminine or to everything in between or fly off the spectrum entirely. Depending on the day, it might feel appropriate to go full glam and on another day, we just want to pajam’. (Yeah, I just made up that word. It rhymes. It gets my point across. And now I want it to become the next Internet sensation.) All of this is normal and, if embraced, can result in new and interesting stories, wider social acceptance for all people and some truly fabulous fashion.
Like I said earlier, there’s no need to feel an attachment to what has come before. Each day, you are still you and whatever makes you confident when you leave the house is just right for you. It doesn’t matter if you’re bedecked in diamonds or clad in a cloak, just because a look is considered emblematic of one of the binary genders doesn’t change your nonbinariness. Like true royalty, you are bound by no (gender) rules except the ones you create.
Even if your style is inconsistent, you can still be iconic.
If you haven’t read the article Gonzo the Great: Nonbinary Icon by Ren Goetz, please stop reading this article and read that one immediately. It’s oft cited and oft quoted around these parts, and since I’m once more discussing nonbinary style and presentation as it relates to Muppets, it’s essential reading. This article has done wonders in giving nonbinary people a touchstone within the Muppet fandom, even if the actual fact is not set in stone. Gonzo’s consistent and recognizable clothing choices made this possible and have come to define him in this way.
What does that say about all of the Anything Muppets that, by definition, are always changing? Can they, and by extension, nonbinary individuals, not reach iconic status?
NO!
There are nonbinary celebrities out there blazing trails with their fashion and chosen presentation, even if they attend one industry event in a flouncy dress and the next one in a well-tailored suit. Jonathan Van Ness and Janelle Monáe among them. Nothing is stopping them from defining themselves in their expansiveness. And there’s nothing more iconic than a veteran, multi-talented Muppet of a thousand faces. The Anything Muppets have also achieved iconic status.
If you find a look that works for you, keep it!
Sherlock Hemlock, Mr. Johnson, The Amazing Mumford, Guy Smiley, Prairie Dawn, Captain Vegetable, Lefty the Salesman, Biff and Sully, Granny Fanny Nesselrode, even Frazzle for goodness sake! All of these recurring characters (and so many more) began life as varying Anything Muppets, but the look and the feel of that character clicked and so they kept it. It doesn’t change who they are at their core. Vincent Twice is still an Orange Gold Anything Muppet even though he’s settled on his pronouns and his clothing choice. Just as we are still nonbinary no matter what we wear or look like.
There’s a large family of other other people just like you out there.
One of the wonderful things about Anything Muppets is just how varied they can be. There is no one right way to be an Anything Muppet, just as there’s no one right way to be nonbinary. And you may not know that there are others out there until you’ve met them. Know that you’re not alone. Consider yourself at home. Consider yourself one of the family.
We’re all cut from the same cloth.
Whether they’re purple, orange, green, lavender, pumpkin, hot pink, or something else entirely, all of the Anything Muppets are made of the same material. And so are we. We’re all humans, of all shapes, sizes and colors, living on this beautiful planet, trying to learn about ourselves and each other. If we remember there are more similarities than differences among us, then we realize that there is nothing else to feel but pride in who we are, regardless of how we appear on the outside.
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By K. T. Lyn – [email protected]
