Sometimes I feel like Kermit on this poster.
It’s exhausting being a Muppet fan sometimes. We’ve gone through so much in the past decade as new Muppet projects have happened, some of them have connected with audiences, some of them haven’t, and all along the way there’s been nothing resembling a consensus regarding what a Muppet production should even look like. My reactions to each development in the Muppet world can vary wildly from project to project, or even from day to day.
Now get this: A few days ago, some new rumblings about the next Muppet TV series emerged on a website called Splash Report. And over the course of the day that story made the rounds, I had no fewer than NINE different reactions! Here, let me count them for you, in chronological order.
1. I’m Bored:
From the Splash Report article: The headline reads “EXCLUSIVE: THE MUPPETS PROJECT FOR DISNEY +”
Yawn. We’ve already heard more than once that there may be, or will probably be, a new Muppet series on the horizon for the upcoming Disney+ streaming service. That’s not exactly what you’d call a Muppet Newsflash.
2. I’m Intrigued:
From the Splash Report article: The first sentence of the third paragraph reads “Josh Gad (Frozen) and the creative duo behind ONCE UPON A TIME Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz have created a show called MUPPETS LIVE ANOTHER DAY.”
Hey, this is new information! I certainly didn’t expect to see the voice of Olaf the snowman and those Once Upon a Time guys creating the next Muppet show. That’s a not a very good title, but assuming they change it, there could be something there. Unless the title is a riff on 24: Live Another Day, the comeback season of the TV show 24, and the entire series will be told in 24 real-time action-packed episodes. But that seems unlikely for the Muppets.
Anyway, I know some smart, discriminating people who really liked Once Upon a Time, and Kitsis and Horowitz wrote some great episodes of Lost, and Josh Gad seems like the kind of guy who could be really passionate about the Muppets. So this is still unexpected, but they certainly have my attention.
3. I’m Surprised:
From the Splash Report article: The second sentence reads “The show takes place right after the events of 1984’s THE MUPPETS TAKE MANHATTAN.”
What? Right after The Muppets Take Manhattan? But… why? What’s the point of that? Does that mean it takes place in a setting where the Muppets recently graduated college together and just made their Broadway debut in Manhattan Melodies? Again… why? I wonder if these creators just happen to remember Manhattan from their childhoods more than the other Muppet movies, so they’re going with what they know. It was evident from 2011’s The Muppets that Jason Segel was very familiar with The Muppet Movie and The Muppet Show, but not as much the other movies.
Still, it’s an unusual choice to set a new story inside an old story. It’s not like there’s a single Muppet continuity anyway, so is there a really good reason for Live Another Day to take place right after a specific movie’s story? And is there a really good reason for it to take place in the 1980s? Perhaps they will take the opportunity to make some hilarious jokes about Ronald Reagan, and how Madonna is a flash-in-the-pan novelty, and how some real estate mogul named Donald sure has been putting his name on a lot of buildings. Boy, that would be a hoot.
4. I’m Exasperated:
From the Splash Report article: The third sentence begins “Kermit disbands the gang…”
Hubba wha? But that’s exactly what The Muppets Take Manhattan is about! Which is the movie whose events this show supposedly follows. So that means after bringing everyone to New York, tearfully separating the group, then joyfully reuniting the group, Kermit is separating the group AGAIN?! After they had a hit show on Broadway?
5. I’m Confused:
From the Splash Report article: The third sentence concludes “…but they are brought back together after the mysterious disappearance of Rowlf.”
Gosh, I wonder where Rowlf went. Maybe they should check to see if he got amnesia and went to work for an advertising agency. That would be a fresh new idea. Oh, and I have some ideas for the part about bringing the gang back together. Kermit should find Fozzie working with a trashy Muppet tribute act in Reno! Yeah, that’s it! And he should find Gonzo running a huge plumbing company! Zaparooney! This is great stuff, eh?
6. I’m Skeptical, But…:
I’ve never made a TV show, but this premise doesn’t seem like it could sustain a television series. Unlike “the Muppets do a variety show” or “the Muppets produce a talk show hosted by Miss Piggy,” it’s not an open world with the potential for dozens and dozens of individual stories. In fact, it seems like it would have a pretty clear beginning, middle, and end: The gang breaks up, Rowlf goes missing, the gang reunites, they find Rowlf. And then they probably sing “Together Again, Again, Again.”
So maybe this would be a multi-part serialized arc like so many streaming shows. That would actually be a cool new format for the Muppets to try, with wacky shenanigans happening in each episode while each episode builds toward a season-finale denouement. I could go for that. If that’s the case, I hope each episode is not 50 minutes like on Netflix’s Daredevil. And I hope there’s less brutal, bloody violence, but we’re probably safe there.
7. Okay, I’m Reconsidering:
All right. To be fair, the description of the series in the Splash Report article is only three sentences long. Three sentences! And there’s been no official announcement from Disney, so who knows if this is even the version of the series that will make it to our devices. Am I judging this news too quickly? Well… yes. As a fan, it’s hard not to, but that’s exactly what I’m doing. I should probably wait for more information.
8. But Wait, I’m Skeptical Again:
Come to think of it, what the heck is Splash Report? Do they even know what they’re talking about, or is it possible they made this whole thing up? And wouldn’t “Splash Report” be a better name for a site that covered competitive diving?
9. I’m Overwhelmed, But Hopeful:
Based on social media reactions, a lot of folks seem dubious about this concept. Which is not surprising, because there’s always dubiousness any time the Muppets do… anything. They’re never going to please everyone, no matter what they do. Some fans are like “I hope it’s not like the ABC series! That sucked!” Other fans are like “It’s too bad they cancelled the ABC series! I liked it!” Also, a lot of people are saying, essentially, “The Muppets shouldn’t do a show with this premise, or any other premise. They should only do The Muppet Show again!” Which I’ve never been convinced is the best idea. These disparate responses are overwhelming for me as a fan who cares about the Muppets a lot, so I can’t imagine what it’s like for the people who actually make Muppet things.
And yet, a new Muppet thing is still a new Muppet thing! It doesn’t really matter if it’s the Gad/Kitsis/Horowitz series, or something else. The mere fact that the Muppets are being considered an obvious choice for the new streaming service means the enormous, unfeeling monolith that is Disney is still invested in the characters, and still wants to make good stuff with them. And they still want to use those characters to make us pay them money! Because they think the Muppets are valuable enough that they’ll inspire us to pay money! If that’s not a reason to stay optimistic, I don’t know what is!
As long as they change that title.
Click here to take place in the 1980s on the Tough Pigs forum!
by Ryan Roe – Ryan@ToughPigs.com
