It’s that magical time again! Here in New York City, we’re prepping for geek mecca – New York Comic Con! It’ll be held from October 8th through the 11th, and it will be filled with nerdy panels, amazing artists, tons of celebrities, and more more more.
This year, NYCC is a little light on Muppet stuff. The new Muppet show is still in the midst of production in LA, so they’re sitting this con out. There’s nothing from Sesame or the Henson Company either. So while there’s still plenty to see and do as a Muppet fan, we’re going to have to get a little creative.
If you’re heading to NYCC, use this handy guide to make sure you see everything a Muppet fan would ever want!
Muppet Vault!
ToughPigs Presents: Muppet Vault – Geeky Stuff
Thursday, October 8 – 7:15pm
DiMenna Center – Benzaquen Hall
450 W. 37th Street @ 10th Avenue, NYC
Once again, we’re bringing the Muppet Vault to Comic Con! This time, we’re highlighting all the geeky stuff the Muppets have done from superheroes to sci-fi, from Doctor Who to Star Wars. Pretty much exactly what you’d expect from any NYCC show. But ours has a bonus Muppety twist, so it’s obviously way better. You also get to gaze upon our beautiful blogging faces, and you are very welcome for that opportunity.
Panels!
BOOM! Studios Celebrates 10 Years
Thursday, October 8 – 2:45pm
Room 1A06
BOOM! Studios (with, presumably, Archaia Comics) is celebrating their 10th anniversary, and while we’re not expecting any Muppet or Henson-related announcements, there’s only one way to find out! Show up or read about it the next day! Okay, that’s two ways.
Minimates Mini-Figures: Where Gotham Meets the Walking Dead
Thursday, October 8 – 6:45pm
Room 1A05
Gotham, Ghostbusters and Marvel Select: The World of Diamond Select Toys
Sunday, October 11 – 3:45pm
Room 1A18
Diamond Select is hosting two panels, and we’re fully expecting the new Muppet toys to be featured in both. So while we’ve only seen a few teases of the new Muppet action figures, hopefully we’ll get a better look at the entire series as well as the smaller Minimates.
Puppetry Arts New York Presents Tuffy Tiger: Live & in Orange!
Friday, October 9 – 11:00am
Saturday, October 10 – 11:00am
Saturday, October 10 – 12:30pm
Family HQ – 1C02
Tuffy-tastic Puppets
Friday, October 9 – 12:00pm
Family HQ – 1C01
Honestly, I’m not sure who this Tuffy character is, but these events puppet-related, and that’s pretty neat! If you like puppets, of course. Which we do. And you might. And everyone should.
How to Be a Professional Puppeteer with Noel MacNeal
Saturday, October 10 – 6:00pm
Family HQ – 1C02
The Bear in the Big Blue House himself will be hosting a puppetry workshop! Learn from one of the masters of the Muppet style, who also happens to be one of the nicest guys in the business.
How to Draw with Katie Cook!
Sunday, October 11 – 11:00am
Family HQ – 1C01
The talented artist Katie Cook has a lot more to say about My Little Pony than Muppets these days, but her undying love of all things Henson will likely come out during her presentation. And you never know, maybe she’ll give a tutorial on how to draw a Doozer!
ScrapKins Recycled Art Workshop
Sunday, October 11 – 1:00pm
Family HQ – 1C01
The ScrapKins “Recycled Art School” made an appearance on a recent episode Sesame Street, and you can pretend to be Murray Monster and relive the experience in person! Finally, your extremely specific and obscure Murray cosplay will be complete.
Lolly Lardpop’s NYCC Playdate with Leslie Carrara-Rudolph!
Sunday, October 11 – 1:00pm
Family HQ – 1C02
One of our favorite people ever, Leslie Carrara-Rudolph, will be bringing her sock puppet pal Lolly Lardpop to Comic Con. If you’ve never seen Leslie and/or Lolly, do yourself a favor and check this out. It’s guaranteed to be hysterical, a one-of-a-kind experience, and quite possibly the best event you’ll go to during the entire weekend.
Creatively Energizing Young People With Comic Books and the Arts
Sunday, October 11 – 1:15pm
Room 1A05
This educators’ panel returns for the umpteenth year in a row, and they’re bringing along a slew of Muppet-related celebrities. Muppet performers Leslie Carrara-Rudolph and Noel MacNeal will be on hand, as well as Muppet designer Bonnie Erickson. I don’t know about you, but I’d never pass up an opportunity to see those people talk.
Artists Alley!
Once again, some of our favorite artists who’ve worked on the Muppet, Fraggle, and Sesame comic books are returning to artists alley! Folks like Katie Cook, Jay Fosgitt, Amy Mebberson, James Silvani, and David Petersen. But that’s not all! There’s also a bunch of booths with artists spotlighting their Muppet fan art, so you never know what sort of gems you’ll find. The amount of talent at Artists Alley is staggering, and they all deserve having you check out their work and (hopefully!) buying a piece or two.
Booths!
The Funko booth will be selling an exclusive Cookie Monster figure, which is exactly like the regular Cookie Monster but with a flocked texture, which is pretty darn cool. WeLoveFine will likely have a few Muppet-related t-shirts for sale, as will many of the other t-shirt shops. And the Archaia/BOOM! booth will have the recent Henson graphic novels like the Dark Crystal prequels, Tale of Sand, and The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow. There are also about 900,000 other booths at NYCC, any of which may have some hidden Muppet gems!
Cosplay!
Last year, we spotted some Muppet Avengers, a few Labyrinth David Bowies, and one Jim Henson (complete with a Kermit/Thor puppet). What will we see this year? We’re only limited by the imaginations of the cosplayers! But yeah, probably a bunch of Yip-Yip Martians.
Merchandise!
Oh man, so much stuff to buy. The Funko toys, the vintage Sesame Street stuff, t-shirts, lunch boxes, comic books… The list goes on and on. I’ve spent more time (and way more money) than I should’ve poring over the retail booths looking for some excellent Muppet stuff to take home. It reminds me of visiting flea markets in the pre-eBay days.
We hope this list helps you to have a great time at NYCC this year! Have a great con, Muppet fans!
Click here to cosplay as a Muppet fan on the ToughPigs forum!
by Joe Hennes – Joe@ToughPigs.com
