The Muppets Take San Diego Comic Con

IMG_9994For over 5 decades the Muppets, lead by Kermit himself, have been bring joy and laughter to kids of all ages. At Comic Con, they showed up to show us how they are going to take over TV in the fall and show a whole new generation how funny they can be.IMG_9942On Saturday afternoon in a small room at comic con, with a line of people that rivaled that of many of the larger rooms, the creators of the new The Muppet television series saw more people turned away then could get in to see some old friends. The panel featured co-creators and executive producers Bill Prady and Bob Kushell, executive producer and director Randall Einhorn, executive producer and performer Bill Barretta, and Muppeteers Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, and Eric Jacobson and went from being the panel no one knew about to the one everyone wished they had made it to. Starting out with a screening of the “no one has seen this footage and no one will” till they just released it yesterday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2B5d-8H588

Once the crowd stopped laughing out loud it was time to get to brass tacks about what the show was. While the pitch is not the exact show within a show (it is now Up Late With Miss Piggy) most of the key beats will carry over. Fozzie will still be dating a human and Kermit and Piggy will have broken up, we did hear that he is in fact still dating a pig.IMG_9985We also found out more about the jobs of the other Muppets on the show, Kermit will naturally be the executive producer ; Gonzo’s the head writer, with Pepe and Rizzo on his staff; Fonzie will be Piggy’s right hand bear much like Ed McMahon used to be to Johnny Carson; Scooter is the talent coordinator; Bobo the Bear is the stage manager; Sam the Eagle will act as the head of broadcast standards for the network; and Kermit’s new pig girlfriend Denise is the head of marketing for the network. Rowlf the Dog owns the tavern across the street from the set. But by far what I see as the highlight of the new show will be the Swedish Chef running craft services.IMG_9956While I would love to recount the entire panel, truth be told I was laughing to hard at so many of the jokes to catch much more then the basic info about the upcoming show. I can tell you that the talented folks behind the Muppets had the entire room laughing pretty much non-stop for the hour they were on stage.IMG_9965If you happen to be at the D23 Expo in Anaheim in August, I would say make an effort to go to The Muppets panel because you will be laughing non-stop! IMG_9949Of course if you can’t make it go ahead and set your DVR’s now for Sept. 22 on your local ABC station because this is one show you won’t want to miss!IMG_9971IMG_0023 IMG_0032If you do miss it, remember you may have to answer to Miss Piggy!IMG_9981

Jeremiah Good
Our main correspondent for Walt Disney World and the Orlando area and a heck of a paleontologist if he does say so himself.