Disney’s “Muppets Most Wanted” was released late last month, and despite reviews presaging disappointment, America took to their theaters to see how the latest installment of karate chops and sight gags would fare. Whether you’re a purist who can’t stand “wrong Muppet voices” or an overjoyed muppet-man, either way you care about Kermit. While most journalists are covering the Muppets from the angle of “did they live up to Jim Henson’s standard?” this isn’t that kind of article. What I want to know is – why do we care so goddamn much. We’re grown-ups. Why is this still so important to us?In the lead-up to the Bobin-Stoller-helmed Muppet film, we’ve been seeing a good deal of googley-eyes, fleece and flocked foam. (Contrary to popular opinion, Muppets are not made of felt.) In February, the Electric Mayhem – the Muppet Show’s raucous house band – spiced up the categorically “sensible” Toyota brand playing “No Room for Boring” in a well-received Super Bowl ad. Soon after, they played a soulful rendition of “The Weight” with Jimmy Fallon to mark the end of “Late Night,” a resonant moment, for what was effectively an NBC studio swap. Lipton and Subway ads followed, incurring Twitter backlash. Last fall, Lady Gaga and the Muppets performed a well-intentioned Thanksgiving special on ABC that no one liked. The reason for this upswing in Muppets is obvious: Disney has launched a concerted publicity campaign for its new film property. But that’s not the half of it.Lately, spontaneous references to Jim Henson and his creations have also cropped up. On “The Mindy Project”: “I will Jim Henson you into apologizing.” On “Community”: “Welcome to the Labyrinth, kid, only there ain’t no puppets or bisexual rock stars.” Comedian Mike Birbiglia has been riffing on “The Muppet Show” in his live act: telling the story of the time Statler and Waldorf heckled him on-stage. Unless this is the next phase of insidious product placement, it seems that the Muppets don’t exactly need Disney’s push. Thirty- and 40-somethings, once reminded, seem to be generating their own buzz, and this buzz was brought to us by the letter N. N, of course, is the first letter in the word “nostalgia.”
Wednesday, April 09, 2014
The Muppets and Generation X
We were molded by Jim Henson and that's a good thing. [Link]
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