I can't believe we had that in the budget

May 23, 2011 12:18 PM

Green With Envy is a new movie starring Amy Adams and Jason Segal...or is it?

Spoiler: No it isn't...it's a trailer for the new Muppet movie The Muppets.

posted by Potomac Avenue (93 comments total)

Or Jason Segel even. Y can't I spel gud?
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:20 PM on May 23, 2011

Or is it Steven Seagal?

After Henson died they seemed to lose that muppet vibe; I hope they found it again.
posted by Huck500 at 12:26 PM on May 23, 2011

Pepsi Green?

Someone had to say it.
posted by fijiwriter at 12:30 PM on May 23, 2011

Amy Adams is a national treasure. You know, like as in a legitimately good thing that we have here - not as in a terrible movie featuring Nicolas Cage and American landmarks.
posted by jph at 12:31 PM on May 23, 2011 [8 favorites]

Muppet wiki has a lot more info, because it's an awesome wiki. (I am not associated with the site, but there's a LOT of info on it.)
posted by filthy light thief at 12:32 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Amy Adams is a national treasure.

Everyone here has seen Junebug at this point, right? Everyone, go see Junebug.
posted by shakespeherian at 12:32 PM on May 23, 2011 [7 favorites]

After Henson died they seemed to lose that muppet vibe

Even before Mel Blanc died, the change in his voice made all his Looney Tunes characters seem like impostors. [Though the decline in WB animation quality certainly didn't help.]

I understand that simply retiring Henson's characters isn't an option the way it was for Lionel Hutz. But for me, any Kermit without Henson's voice is simply fake Kermit.
posted by Trurl at 12:33 PM on May 23, 2011

Amy Adams is a national treasure. You know, like as in a legitimately good thing that we have here - not as in a terrible movie featuring Nicolas Cage and American landmarks.

Take that back I will defend National Treasure against all comers.

National Treasure 2, you're on your own.
posted by Mrs. Pterodactyl at 12:35 PM on May 23, 2011 [4 favorites]

Amy Adams is confusing bc is it Amy Adams from Julia Julia or Amy Adams from Win Win?
posted by bquarters at 12:35 PM on May 23, 2011

Everyone here has seen Junebug at this point, right? Everyone, go see Junebug.


Shakespeherian, are you trying to ruin 106 minutes of people's lives?
posted by Bathtub Bobsled at 12:40 PM on May 23, 2011

Y'know, I was halfway through the trailer thinking "this can't be a real movie, this has to be a front for somethi..." and then the Muppets showed up and made me feel much better about clicking that link.
posted by Maaik at 12:41 PM on May 23, 2011

Amy Adams is confusing bc is it Amy Adams from Julia Julia or Amy Adams from Win Win?

It becomes less confusing when you realize it was Amy Ryan in Win Win.
posted by kmz at 12:41 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

.. or, bquarters, Amy Adams from The Fighter? HA.
posted by mbatch at 12:41 PM on May 23, 2011

From the Muppet Wiki: "James Bobin, co-creator of the HBO series Flight of the Conchords, is directing the film and Bret McKenzie, co-star of Flight of the Conchords, has written the film's songs.[1]"

This, this is something, that I can get behind.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:42 PM on May 23, 2011 [16 favorites]

Shakespeherian, are you trying to ruin 106 minutes of people's lives?

I will punch you in the fist for saying that.
posted by shakespeherian at 12:44 PM on May 23, 2011

Don't look at the Muppet wiki page unless you want to see pictures of "real" human beings sticking their hands up inside Muppet bodies.

Some things should just not be seen. Muppets should never break character, and they should never be shown as mere puppets.
posted by Curious Artificer at 12:44 PM on May 23, 2011 [5 favorites]

Maybe they're just kinky.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:49 PM on May 23, 2011 [2 favorites]

How about Amy Adams in Drop Dead Gorgeous?

"GO MUSKIES!"
posted by jph at 12:49 PM on May 23, 2011 [6 favorites]

Tying any beloved imaginary creature to just one mortal human seems cruelly restrictive to me, it means you are only participating in the creator's ideas to the extent that he/she, and it dies when they do.

I've been really grateful for the muppet movies of the last decade, I don't sense any sort of "vibe" problem. And considering they are made by people who idolize (and in many cases, worked alongside) Henson, disparaging the enduring figure of Kermit as "fake" seems pretty harsh.
posted by hermitosis at 12:49 PM on May 23, 2011 [2 favorites]

Tying any beloved imaginary creature to just one mortal human seems cruelly restrictive to me

Just wait until you see Michael Bay's CALVIN VS. HOBBES.
posted by shakespeherian at 12:51 PM on May 23, 2011 [9 favorites]

Or is it Steven Seagal?

Potential new puppet character?
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:51 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Whitmire!Kermit is not Henson!Kermit, but is still preferable to no Kermit at all.
posted by Faint of Butt at 12:52 PM on May 23, 2011 [2 favorites]

Sadly, Frank Oz is not involved with the project at all. He's alive, well, and working, but not voicing Miss Piggie or Fozzie Bear for the film. I'll still see it, and I'm beyond excited, but it's awfully disappointing they couldn't get him on board.
posted by cvp at 12:56 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Or is it Amy Adams from "The Office"?
posted by hal_c_on at 12:59 PM on May 23, 2011 [3 favorites]

I saw the first two Muppet movies on opening day, but then I never saw another one in the theaters. Even though my Official Muppet Fan Club membership has long expired I may have to see a third Muppet movie on opening day.
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 1:14 PM on May 23, 2011

I wonder if Disney pushed Segal to cast Amy Adams because of the success of Enchanted (which was quite good, especially the 2nd act) or if he simply did it because she is awesome and adorable and super talented.
posted by nathancaswell at 1:35 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

PS all of you please see Junebug if you haven't and you like Amy Adams
posted by nathancaswell at 1:35 PM on May 23, 2011

What if it's Amy Adams from The Fighter?
posted by nathancaswell at 1:36 PM on May 23, 2011

Christ, I have to start reading the thread before I start posting. Sorry.
posted by nathancaswell at 1:37 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Yes, whenever I try to explain the South (or at least my little corner of it) to Yankees and other foreigners, I usually just tell them to watch Junebug.
posted by Rangeboy at 1:38 PM on May 23, 2011

No no, keep saying it nathancaswell. I actually haven't seen Junebug - and that's a double shame because I may or may not have been saving myself for Embeth Davidtz. So maybe this thread is the push that I need to finally see it?
posted by jph at 1:43 PM on May 23, 2011

Junebug is my favorite film of 2005.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:45 PM on May 23, 2011

pleasedon'tsuck...pleasedon'tsuck...pleasedon'tsuck...
posted by briank at 1:54 PM on May 23, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'll one-up you shakespeherian, Junebug is my favorite film of the decade. Watched it twice in a row.

I actually called in a favor with a friend in LA to get a copy of the screenplay because I just HAD to know whether the sequence of empty rooms and exercise equipment after Madeline and Ashley go to the mall was written by Angus MacLachlan or added by Phil Morrison. And the waving neighbor. And the shot out the window after church. And now I am going to stop writing and watch Junebug again.
posted by nathancaswell at 1:55 PM on May 23, 2011

You know sometimes you see a performer in a role and wonder where you have seen the actor before, so you look at IMDB and find you have seen him or her in about eight different things and never cottoned onto it being the same person? (I call this the Stephen Root Effect.) Amy Adams is the only performer whom I have ever become aware of when she had not yet resolved out of the quantum central casting into someone I can recall. I have seen her in about nine different movies and TV shows now, and as soon as I stopped watching the trailer, I forgot who she was again.

It's not that I dislike her work, it is just the she creates an absolutely delible impression on me.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 1:58 PM on May 23, 2011 [2 favorites]

You win that one. I shall relinquish my crown.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:58 PM on May 23, 2011

Are we talking about Amy Adams the famous black and white photographer? Or the Amy Adams who appears in those Joss Whedon shows?
posted by brain_drain at 2:10 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

You had me at Amy Adams.

I'll watch the parts with the Muppets in it too.

/Junebug
posted by toekneebullard at 2:11 PM on May 23, 2011

ricochet biscuit: "(I call this the Stephen Root Effect.)"

Wow. I had no idea who Stephen Root was, so I Google image searched him. Me too.
posted by roll truck roll at 2:12 PM on May 23, 2011

Oh man, how can anybody not know who Stephen Root is? Didn't everybody watch Newsradio? Office Space? Dodgeball? (My personal Stephen Root trifecta, though I'm sure others have different lists.) Jimmy James was Jack Donaghy before Jack Donaghy was Jack Donaghy.

Also, the only person I can see Amy Adams being confused for is Isla Fisher, but Amy Adams is way way way more talented than Fisher.

Or is it Amy Adams from "The Office"?

Just don't confuse Amy Adams from The Office with Amy Ryan from The Office!
posted by kmz at 2:21 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

After Henson died they seemed to lose that muppet vibe

Except for A Muppet Christmas Carol, which remains in Mr. hippybear's top list of all-time Christmas Carol productions (and one winter we watched 27 of them in 2 months, so he's pretty well-versed on the possibilities).
posted by hippybear at 2:22 PM on May 23, 2011 [4 favorites]

Hrm. This isn't the Stephen Root profile I was thinking of when I started looking for it, and my Google-fu is failing me, but this is a decent profile of the man.
posted by hippybear at 2:30 PM on May 23, 2011

Except for A Muppet Christmas Carol,

i love that movie, it gets dumped on, but i really loved the whole vibe of it.

Since i love the muppets so much, and growing up now with more dark humor tastes, i have to admit that the greg the bunny/warren the ape people have taken the crown in my eyes. The fox show was okay, but their independent stuff was wonderful. sort of meet the feebles but less soul crushing (i love it, but damn is it depressing at times).

I also love www.transylvania-tv.com, but then i do love me some puppets. ;)

Totally don't get the junebug love though. :P
posted by usagizero at 2:37 PM on May 23, 2011

A Muppet Christmas Carol is one of the only movie tellings of that story which doesn't lose the narrator, which is actually a pretty vital role in the story as Dickens wrote it.

And while I cannot listen to ANY of the songs outside of the context of the film, in the film they work great and add a lot to the way the story is told.

And... well, I mean... Michael Caine. 'Nuff said.
posted by hippybear at 2:40 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Or the Amy Adams who appears in those Joss Whedon shows?

At the risk of spoiling your otherwise perfectly good snark: Amy Adams played Tara's sister on Buffy.
posted by Sticherbeast at 2:42 PM on May 23, 2011

Muppets should never break character, and they should never be shown as mere puppets.

Oh, get over it. Henson certainly never thought that way. He'd sit on Carson's couch with Kermit on his arm.

By the way, Eric Jacobsen is VERY impressive performing Frank's characters. But I'm disappointed to see Jerry Nelson not in the cast (he's been in poor health; when they made Muppets from Space other Muppeteers performed Nelson's characters to his voice tracks.)
posted by evilcolonel at 2:49 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Previously

(Also, can it be Peter Sagal? I'd love to see a Muppetized version of Wait Wait..Don't Tell Me!)
posted by schmod at 2:49 PM on May 23, 2011 [2 favorites]

A Muppet Christmas Carol is one of the only movie tellings of that story which doesn't lose the narrator, which is actually a pretty vital role in the story as Dickens wrote it.

Also the only movie telling of that story where Bob Cratchit is a frog; an apparently trivial detail. But I'm guessing you're one of those Russian Formalists.
posted by tigrefacile at 2:53 PM on May 23, 2011

Hrm. This isn't the Stephen Root profile I was thinking of when I started looking for it, and my Google-fu is failing me, but this is a decent profile of the man.

The interviewer had the same reaction I did:

Well, when I was looking at your reel, I kept going, "Oh, that was him!"
posted by ricochet biscuit at 2:55 PM on May 23, 2011

Is anyone else annoyed that Disney apparently owns this now? They're like cultural vampires.
posted by delmoi at 3:03 PM on May 23, 2011

Don't look at the Muppet wiki page unless you want to see pictures of "real" human beings sticking their hands up inside Muppet bodies.

Some things should just not be seen. Muppets should never break character, and they should never be shown as mere puppets.

It looks kind of bad in still pictures, but if you ever see someone perform a Muppet live, it'll completely change your opinion on this. The puppeteers are so good that even when you can see them right in front of your face moving their Muppets with their hands and talking through their own mouths without any attempt to ventriloquize, it's impossible to see it as anything but a real, live Muppet talking and moving around. And while I've seen them say things that are "out of character" (as in "Kermit would never use a word that foul!"), it's more like you're watching Kermit the actor, who isn't exactly like the Kermit in the movies, but is still very clearly a Muppet and not some guy with his hand up a pile of felt with googly eyes.
posted by ErWenn at 3:10 PM on May 23, 2011

Is anyone else annoyed that Disney apparently owns this now? They're like cultural vampires.

You force me to evoke Henson again, because he's the one who felt that Disney would be appropriate caretakers for his creations, and that there would be no better home for Kermit, Fozzie, et al. But he waffled on the deal when Michael Eisner kept trying to work the Sesame Street Muppets into the deal. Children's Television Workshop relied on the merchandising revenues to produce the show. Henson rarely showed anger, but he came close when Eisner tried to slip in the Sesame Street characters. Anyway, Henson died and the whole deal unravelled.
posted by evilcolonel at 3:11 PM on May 23, 2011 [3 favorites]

i love that movie, it gets dumped on, but i really loved the whole vibe of it

It- what? By whom? This cannot be true.
posted by jinjo at 3:11 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

The puppeteers are so good that even when you can see them right in front of your face moving their Muppets with their hands and talking through their own mouths without any attempt to ventriloquize, it's impossible to see it as anything but a real, live Muppet talking and moving around.

A possibly apocryphal story that I enjoy is that when Kermit the Frog was on Carson, the sound guys were having a hell of a time getting a good level. It turned out that they were miking the puppet's mouth instead of Jim Henson's.
posted by shakespeherian at 3:14 PM on May 23, 2011 [6 favorites]

A possibly apocryphal story that I enjoy is that when Kermit the Frog was on Carson, the sound guys were having a hell of a time getting a good level. It turned out that they were miking the puppet's mouth instead of Jim Henson's.

I've heard that story, only about Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney. That story goes on to suggest they were convinced something about the nature of "throwing one's voice" precluded it from being picked up by microphones and Winchell would have to give up the idea of his own TV show. Until he told the crew to keep the boom mic on him at all times.
posted by evilcolonel at 3:19 PM on May 23, 2011

A possibly apocryphal story that I enjoy is that when Kermit the Frog was on Carson, the sound guys were having a hell of a time getting a good level. It turned out that they were miking the puppet's mouth instead of Jim Henson's.

I've heard that story, only about Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney.

I believe that the origination of that story is Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy.

Anyway, when it comes to Muppets being Muppets but not being the Muppets you expect, you should definitely watch both parts of this Late Night With Jimmy Fallon appearance of Elmo.

Yes, it's a much less irritating incarnation of Elmo than you're used to on PBS in the afternoons.

No, you should not watch it with your 3 year old.
posted by hippybear at 3:30 PM on May 23, 2011 [3 favorites]

I've heard that "miking the puppet" story from Jay Johnson about taping Soap.

Man, it's like this Totally True Anecdote has happened to EVERY puppeteer.
posted by DiscountDeity at 3:32 PM on May 23, 2011

I can't not love muppets.
posted by nile_red at 3:36 PM on May 23, 2011

Amy Adams was great in Crank.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 3:44 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Amy Adams was great in Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day.

This trailer has raised my hopes unreasonably high. Jason Segel? Amy Adams? MUPPETS? I fear that I shall not be as delighted as think I shold be.
posted by julen at 3:50 PM on May 23, 2011

evilcolonel: " Oh, get over it. Henson certainly never thought that way. He'd sit on Carson's couch with Kermit on his arm."

I wish I could find it online, but there's an amazing clip of the puppeteers recording "Macho Macho Man" for the Muppet Show. They look like they're having more fun than adults should ever have.
posted by roll truck roll at 4:13 PM on May 23, 2011

Man, it's like this Totally True Anecdote has happened to EVERY puppeteer.

Apocryphal or not, it is human nature to attribute, well, human nature to things with human characteristics. Observe the kids playing on the world's largest marionette and how they all automatically look up at its face. The marionette is not going to perceive them and will offer them no non-verbal cues through its face. The face is exactly as expressive and important as the knee or the forearm. They all know this, and they all look anyway.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 4:15 PM on May 23, 2011

Okay I admit I made up the puppet story.
posted by shakespeherian at 4:31 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

I remain against Kermit being voiced by anyone other than Henson. In principle. In practice ... well ... I'm OK with it. I'm more than OK with this preview. I've watched it about five times today. It never stops being good.

As for Disney owning the Muppets, it was Brian and Lisa Henson who decided to go ahead and let Disney take them over. For all of Disney's many flaws, they are good at maintaining character integrity (maybe to a fault, but there you go) and the people running the Jim Henson Company (in other words, Jim Henson's children) were interested in doing other things than managing the property rights and such of the Muppets. Whether you think that's good or bad, I think it's forgivable. I'd rather they get to do interesting things and carry on Jim's legacy in that way.
posted by darksong at 4:45 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

This is Jason Segel. Jason Segel gets to guide the great ship that is The Muppets and there is nobody more perfect (and not named Jim Henson) for the job.

Also, I also called it the "Stephen Root" effect, not because I didn't know who he was - I adore Stephen Root and have since Newsradio first started - but because it will always still take me a minute to realize that whatever new, fully developed character he is playing is actually him. The only other actor I've seen who can do that is Gary Oldman.
posted by Navelgazer at 5:08 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Awesome! Can seriously not wait, and I have a good friend that I will be trying my best to take with me, we originally bonded over Sesame Street t-shirts we both owned.

For folks interested in the Muppet-in-the-real-world juxtaposition, try this appearance on Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me from Kevin Clash and Elmo - Peter Sagal has a mini freakout at Clash and elmo answering the same questions at almost the same time. I had to pull over the car the first time I heard it.
posted by pupdog at 5:38 PM on May 23, 2011 [7 favorites]

Haven't seen Junebug or the Fighter, but a thousand times yes to Amy Adams. I hope she gets the career her talent and beauty deserve.
posted by puny human at 5:54 PM on May 23, 2011

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! *Kermit arm flail!*
posted by SansPoint at 6:47 PM on May 23, 2011 [3 favorites]

Holy crap, I heard Solsbury Hill in the trailer and I was about to punch Jason Segel through my computer screen in between his beady little eyes.

And then there were Muppets and it was all okay.
posted by jabberjaw at 7:00 PM on May 23, 2011

Hmm, I should have got my Amys straight before watching Win Win. It was very confusing wondering when Marky Mark's gf was going to show up. Anyway, anything with the Muppets is win win, no questions asked. And Amy (Ansel?) Adams b+w photograms are fantastic. Now off to google Junebug.
posted by bquarters at 7:09 PM on May 23, 2011

jabberjaw, I think what you were hearing was actually The New Radicals' "Get What You Give."
posted by Navelgazer at 7:21 PM on May 23, 2011

I wish I could find it online, but there's an amazing clip of the puppeteers recording "Macho Macho Man" for the Muppet Show. They look like they're having more fun than adults should ever have.


I think you're thinking of "In the Navy", and I think the clip you're thinking of is here (starting at 11:50). Although, really, the whole thing (an old episode of the short-lived Jim Henson Hour) should be watched in its entirety, as it's a really fun Muppet behind-the-scenes documentary (for those of us who aren't too traumatized by the site of puppeteers, at least). Hosted/Narrated by The Man Himself, no less. Part 2. Part 3.
posted by DiscountDeity at 7:28 PM on May 23, 2011 [3 favorites]

Farscape has vibe and then some.
posted by Brocktoon at 7:44 PM on May 23, 2011

For folks interested in the Muppet-in-the-real-world juxtaposition, try this appearance on Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me from Kevin Clash and Elmo - Peter Sagal has a mini freakout at Clash and elmo answering the same questions at almost the same time. I had to pull over the car the first time I heard it.

Holy crap. THIS is why I love Metafilter. I crack a joke about confusing Peter Sagal and Jason Segal, whilst pining for a Muppets-NPR crossover (who doesn't?), and somebody points out that it already happened. It's not the main muppet cast, but Kevin Clash is wonderful, and I'll listen to him out of character any day. Thanks for making my week.

<sub>KERMIT: From NPR and WBEZ in Chicago, it's The Muppet Show. Yayyyyyyyy!!

[MUSIC PLAYS]

...

KERMIT: But, first let's meet our panelists. All the way from glamorous New York City, it's Miss Piggy Pigstone. Up next, with his new book out called "Weird," it's Gon-zo Rocca. Remember, if you get all three questions right, you'll win Stadler's voice on your answering machine.</sub>
posted by schmod at 8:24 PM on May 23, 2011 [2 favorites]

I can't believe anyone actively dislikes The Muppet Christmas Carol. It a) is a really good Muppet movie, and b) has always felt to me like it was inspired by Scrooge, which is (obviously) the best A Christmas Carol movie.
posted by brennen at 9:40 PM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

How about Amy Adams in Drop Dead Gorgeous?

OMG. I LOVE this movie, but I haven't seen it in YEARS - like, since before I knew who Amy Adams was (which I figured out sometime around Junebug - wasn't that into the movie overall, but she was terrific in it), and also she's a blonde in it - so I never realized that was her. Here are some highlights of Amy Adams as Leslie Miller - hilarious.

Also, anyone who doubts Jason Segel's commitment to muppets should rent Forgetting Sarah Marshall, stat. It's not a perfect movie, but the Dracula musical, omg, I would absolutely pay to see that show in its entirety.

And Muppet Christmas Carol is not just the greatest Christmas Carol of all time but also the greatest Christmas movie of all time. I won't go as far as several friends of mine who rank it as their #1 movie of all time, but it's up there.
posted by naoko at 10:35 PM on May 23, 2011

Nice use of tags, me.
posted by naoko at 10:35 PM on May 23, 2011

How about Amy Adams in Drop Dead Gorgeous?

OMG. I LOVE this movie, but I haven't seen it in YEARS

Wow, I bought it on DVD probably over a decade ago in a remainder bin for, oh, I dunno, probably $1. I've introduced more people to that movie...

Great. Now I'm going to have to watch it again. It's like a meteor of fused polyester.
posted by hippybear at 10:39 PM on May 23, 2011

Fantastic Trailer. My excitement meter for this movie went from 'yeah' to 'fuck yeah' when I found out last week that Brett McKenzie of Flight of The Conchords is writing the songs.

This trailer just sent my excitement meter through the roof. Bring in on.

I mean, just LOOK at Sweetums face when Jason Segel asks if theres Muppets in the movie.
posted by AzzaMcKazza at 11:23 PM on May 23, 2011

Agree with the praise for "Muppet Christmas Carol." One of my favorite stories of all time, and one that I will happily consume ANY variation of. (Gift of the Magi being a close second, as far as Christmas tropes go)

I think what really sells the movie is not necessarily the spirit and enthusiasm of the Muppets & their performers, but Caine's performance. This is not to say that he gave some kind legendary "worthy of Oscar" performance, but that he totally bought into the Muppetverse, which was the same chemistry that made the original TV show so great.

Here is an actor of unquestionable bona fides interacting with puppets, and taking us with him. The effect is so transparent it's probably overlooked (i.e. "working as intended.") Not to mention the script is equal parts hilarious, touching, joyful, and full of pathos. A lot of that is built in to the source material, but it takes skill to get the balance just right, and they nailed it.

Also, did art direction ever get any better than Henson's shop? I re-watched the Dark Crystal last night and was amazed that something so not-of-this-earth ever got financed, let alone made. I can imagine WETA looking at some of the costumes & sets from The Dark Crystal and thinking "I hope we can do half as good as that."
posted by ShutterBun at 12:41 AM on May 24, 2011

Some things should just not be seen. Muppets should never break character, and they should never be shown as mere puppets.

When I was about 10 years old, my family took a trip to see the Muppets on display at USC (or the museum of science, something like that) and there they were: Muppets in glass cases. They were like corpses. It was terribly morbid and *wrong*.

I mean, I "got" that they were just puppets, and this is how puppets look when they're not being performed, but man was it creepy.
posted by ShutterBun at 12:45 AM on May 24, 2011

Dearest ShutterBun,

Muppets are NOT just puppets. Ever. This is a fact.

Signed,
Everyone's childhood
posted by cerulgalactus at 1:29 AM on May 24, 2011 [1 favorite]

Also, I also called it the "Stephen Root" effect, not because I didn't know who he was - I adore Stephen Root and have since Newsradio first started - but because it will always still take me a minute to realize that whatever new, fully developed character he is playing is actually him. The only other actor I've seen who can do that is Gary Oldman.

See also the J. T. Walsh Memorial "Hey, It's That Guy!". (Oldie but goodie, for all your too-famous-for-central-casting archetype needs.)
posted by ApathyGirl at 3:55 AM on May 24, 2011

"Some things should just not be seen. Muppets should never break character, and they should never be shown as mere puppets. "

You know, I was the same way for a while. Until I saw Kevin Clash doing Elmo.

It's uncanny how good he is, and how easily he slips into character. Even though you see his arm stuck in the puppet, as soon as Elmo's in character, you're positively, definitely talking to Elmo.

Similarly, if you've seen Avenue Q, about 20 minutes into the show, you forget that the puppeteers are even on stage.
posted by schmod at 6:22 AM on May 24, 2011

I love that all the Muppet puppeteers look like hippies.

Real hippies, not the new vegan emo kind.
posted by Malice at 6:24 AM on May 24, 2011 [2 favorites]

Real hippies, not the new vegan emo kind.

You know "hippie" came from "hipster", right?

Turtles people. Turtles all the way.
posted by brennen at 12:37 PM on May 24, 2011

It's uncanny how good he is, and how easily he slips into character. Even though you see his arm stuck in the puppet, as soon as Elmo's in character, you're positively, definitely talking to Elmo.

What's the etiquette when meeting a Muppet and a Muppeteer? Whom do you greet first?
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:06 PM on May 24, 2011

What's the etiquette when meeting a Muppet and a Muppeteer? Whom do you greet first?

Whichever addresses you first or extends their hand. If a Muppeteer is operating as a character, it's best to pretend they don't even exist and address the character. But if they're just wearing the Muppet and they greet you as themselves, then they're who you talk to until the character appears in action.
posted by hippybear at 7:47 PM on May 24, 2011 [1 favorite]

I've always had a sort of peripheral love for the Muppets. Never a full on love, as I seem to always forget how awesome they are, until the next time that I see them be awesome. I think the last real Muppets thing I saw was Muppets in Space. And I don't know why I don't track down more Muppet hilarity, because whenever I do, I absolutely love it.
posted by antifuse at 10:55 AM on May 25, 2011

This is the BEST SCENE from the Muppets Wizard of Oz, and why I like Pepe the King Prawn, and the reason I have much hope for this movie.
posted by jabberjaw at 11:29 AM on May 25, 2011 [1 favorite]

Pepe the King Prawn stole Muppets in Space for me. He is my favourite muppet, of the more recent additions any way :)
posted by antifuse at 12:41 PM on May 25, 2011

And of course, that's Muppets FROM Space... Oy
posted by antifuse at 12:44 PM on May 25, 2011

There is now a second teaser trailer out for The Muppets.
posted by hippybear at 7:21 AM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]