Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
Interestingly Bill Prady who was the writer for the show also wrote Muppetvision...
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MuppetVision 3D Issues
- Thread starter drew81
- Start date
Mickey5150
Well-Known Member
I'm not arguing the quality of the 3d shows but I hope WDW doesn't go the way of DLR and close their air conditioned shows. Southern California weather is very different then central Florida weather.
Giants14
Member
I'm not sure if its the glasses or the screen or maybe a bit of both. The opening sequence with Donald Donald playing the orchestra is terrible but it does get a lot better - the Ariel scene is brilliantly effect in 3D.
I'm surprised they have never updated the glasses - how much would it cost for a couple of hundred new 3d glasses
Bender123
Well-Known Member
People seem to have a really strange memory with the muppets and think they were always the Sesame Street versions...
The new show was actually a natural update to the 70s variety show format, because the current format of the variety show is the late night chat show. The Muppets always had some edge to them, they weren't just kids stuff. They had odd sexual relationships between pig/frog and Gonzo/Chicken. They included obvious stoner characters. Piggy was physically and emotionally abusive (in todays terms, for sure).
Its just rose colored glasses that people have that make it seem like the Muppets should always be childrens characters.
geekza
Well-Known Member
What makes modern Muppet projects difficult is that, well, everyone but Dave Goelz is either dead or no longer performing. At this point, what we're seeing aren't the performers who gave the characters not only their voices, but their personality. Most importantly, no Jim Henson. Like Walt Disney, Jim Henson was the creative focus of the Muppets. He personally guided everything that was produced. When he died, the company carried on for a bit and did alright, but the farther they got from Henson's death, the more things began to fall apart. The first Disney-era movie was nice and, at times, captured the anarchic spark of the original show, but they couldn't follow it up. The second movie was bloated and kind of mean-spirited. I wanted to love the TV show, but it tried to hard to make the characters troubled. The most important thing that the Muppets stressed was that, no matter what, they were a family and had each other's backs. Things could get bad, but that love never went away. The TV show stripped that away in a lot of ways. It wasn't what people wanted to see from the Muppets and it failed pretty quickly. I understand that the Liberty Square show is a lot of fun and I'm glad they're using real puppeteers, rather than just having stiff AA Muppets. I just think that Disney is at a bit of a loss right now as to what to do next.
Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
I will say this..The only thing out there right now that has gone into this direction is the upcoming film Happytime Murders. While it is not under anything from Disney but a sub-company under Jim Henson productions called HA! Or Henson Alternative the film was directed by Brian Henson his son who created the Improv tour Puppet Up. This film is going very Hardcore into puppetbased territory further than what a Crank Yankers episode could do in 30 mins..I for one can't wait to see it....It's not a film for the Kiddos..If you learned your Lessons from The South Park Movie and Sausage Party this is not the film for them...
GhostHost1000
Premium Member
which is exactly what made the muppets so entertaining - I wish they would make a come back again. I actually liked the show on ABC myself.. it could have used some work but I liked it
Kman101
Well-Known Member
Not sure on the true details of the show as I'm avoiding "spoiling it" for myself, but couldn't Kung Fu Panda and McQueen's Screenz be considered "upgraded" theater/3D experiences? I think the novelty of 3D is tired, personally. It's cool and can be done well but meh.
Kman101
Well-Known Member
That was also why I loved the show on ABC as well. It needed some work (they started to figure it out) but I thought it was much more in line with an adult oriented Muppets. But sadly Disney = kiddie everything so of course people whined about it. They're stuck in limbo, basically. Old fans want them mature. New fans want them singing about the yellow brick road. We need to find a common middle ground. Because neither "side" will ever be happy, lol.
geekza
Well-Known Member
I've never been that interested in Universal, so I don't know anything about the Kung Fu Panda thing. As for the new Cars "show" we don't know enough details yet to know if they're planning on any in-theater effects or if it's just a movie or full-sized car AA's. They haven't done much outside of announcing it and giving a brief description of the content.
Kman101
Well-Known Member
I don't either (regarding Kung Fu Panda). Was more wondering out loud. I know we don't really have anything to go on. I guess I'll have to watch a video of the Kung Fu Panda show LOL. And I was assuming the McQueen show would be similar. Use of theater effects, large screen, and character appearances. I'll go check out a video ...
tissandtully
Well-Known Member
Was working OK a couple weeks ago, except guests these days are crazy af. My whole family likes to recite lines from the pre-show all the time and during load, my wife said aloud "Stopping in the middle is distinctly un-American", and these people who had stopped in the middle absolutely lost their minds. The lady stood up and said "I'm American, I can do whatever I want!", my wife was like chill out, it's just from the show, I wasn't talking to you. But this lady kept yelling at my wife and started to get up and confront here, that's when I told her to sit down. Man, it seems like some people are emboldened nowadays to act like idiots and a-holes.
esskay
Well-Known Member
Oh is that what those things are for
DisneyGentlemanV2.0
Well-Known Member
It's just about time for Geriatric Muppets...
Hey Gonzo, what sound do you hear when Fozzie walks by?
I don't know Scooter.
Depends...
Tom Morrow
Well-Known Member
This is why it irritates me that that new Muppet show was cancelled after one season. It wasn't great and clearly had trouble finding it's feet, but it was definitely good. People complained because of, like you said, they have this weird perception that the Muppets shouldn't be anything but wholesome and kid-friendly. Yet, if they had made a show that was wholesome and kid friendly, they wouldn't have watched it anyway.
The Empress Lilly
Well-Known Member
Ha, one of my favourites!
Random muppet with center of the universe complex who thinks that any remark in his vicinity is addressed to him/her.
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erasure fan1
Well-Known Member
Exactly. The Muppets have always had that dynamic of kid funny and adult funny. And that is one of the main things missing from new muppets. Henson and Oz have talked about not worrying about catering to a specific demo in interviews. Henson and Disney had the same idea that you shouldn't just aim for the kids. It's funny how much is in the original show that I find funny now that I missed as a kid.
geekza
Well-Known Member
What worked so well about the Muppets is that each one had a very specific personality type and everything they did sprung from that personality. Fozzie had no filters and just wanted to be loved, Miss Piggy was a narcissist, Scooter was a "Yes Man.", Gonzo was pure chaos, and Kermit was the "everyman" just trying to hold everything together while everyone around his was doing their best to tear things apart. Both adults and kids could identify with these characters and, since they kept the language clean and the "adult" jokes sophisticated enough that they flew right over the heads of kids, people of any age were able to enjoy the show.
I'll agree that the last Muppet TV show wasn't bad. There was some really nice work by the Muppeteers and there were some funny jokes and situations. What killed it, though, is that they tried to make it too sophisticated. By trying to complicate the characters and relationships, they automatically excluded potential child audiences and didn't give the adult audiences, who were familiar with the older show and movies, the characters they remembered and loved. It isn't always necessary to make things edgy. Superman is the Boy Scout who always tries to do the right thing and is the person we'd all like to be, but so often aren't. He is the Super-Man. He is better than us, in conscience as well as strength. We need archetypes. The longest-lasting stories are those centered around archetypes. Sometimes they are negative archetypes and sometimes positive, but they are important for us to identify and explore what it means to be human. For all of its inherent silliness, Jim Henson was able to tap into something pure with the Muppets that spoke to people on a primal level, no matter their age. That is what post-Henson Muppets sometimes forgets to do. It is, however, the only way that I feel that Muppets properties can be successful in the future. Sometimes the simplest approach is the best approach.
I'll agree that the last Muppet TV show wasn't bad. There was some really nice work by the Muppeteers and there were some funny jokes and situations. What killed it, though, is that they tried to make it too sophisticated. By trying to complicate the characters and relationships, they automatically excluded potential child audiences and didn't give the adult audiences, who were familiar with the older show and movies, the characters they remembered and loved. It isn't always necessary to make things edgy. Superman is the Boy Scout who always tries to do the right thing and is the person we'd all like to be, but so often aren't. He is the Super-Man. He is better than us, in conscience as well as strength. We need archetypes. The longest-lasting stories are those centered around archetypes. Sometimes they are negative archetypes and sometimes positive, but they are important for us to identify and explore what it means to be human. For all of its inherent silliness, Jim Henson was able to tap into something pure with the Muppets that spoke to people on a primal level, no matter their age. That is what post-Henson Muppets sometimes forgets to do. It is, however, the only way that I feel that Muppets properties can be successful in the future. Sometimes the simplest approach is the best approach.
junglecruise93
Active Member
In extending geekza's comments....but not speaking for by any means
I am not sure we truly want an 'updated' show...the show may need to remain as it is, since it IS characteristic of the archetype that is mentioned - the original muppet characters that Henson created. I would rather go see the current show (even though I can recite many lines from it) from a nostalgic standpoint versus the chance that more of the original idea is lost in an update. True that Liberty Square did a good job. Lots of risk though.
Same reason I watch movies like 'Airplane', 'Spaceballs' and 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' again and never tire of them. I would hate to see a "remake" of MP using current film techniques, language, and pop culture icons (e.g. a cellphone). Just make a new movie if you want that stuff.
I am not sure we truly want an 'updated' show...the show may need to remain as it is, since it IS characteristic of the archetype that is mentioned - the original muppet characters that Henson created. I would rather go see the current show (even though I can recite many lines from it) from a nostalgic standpoint versus the chance that more of the original idea is lost in an update. True that Liberty Square did a good job. Lots of risk though.
Same reason I watch movies like 'Airplane', 'Spaceballs' and 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' again and never tire of them. I would hate to see a "remake" of MP using current film techniques, language, and pop culture icons (e.g. a cellphone). Just make a new movie if you want that stuff.