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'The Muppet Show' finally hits Disney+ on February 19th
Even Statler and Waldorf might approve.
Jim Henson shows come to Amazon Prime Video, but not in the US
Amazon has added a lot more Jim Henson Company programs to Prime Video after rolling out all four season of sci-fi series Farscape for the platform. Starting today, you'll be able to access 2,500 hours of child-friendly shows with Muppets and other Henson puppets if you have a Prime or a standalone Prime Video subscription. That is, depending on where you're located -- unfortunately, most of those programs won't be available in the US due to licensing issues.
Disney reportedly plans 'Muppets' reboot for its streaming service
It's no secret that Disney's upcoming streaming service will bank on familiar names, but we're now getting a clearer sense of what that means. Hollywood Reporter sources have claimed that Disney is working on a "reboot" of The Muppets, the short-lived ABC comedy that followed the lives of Kermit, Miss Piggy and crew. Other details aren't clear, but the series is reportedly in its earliest stages -- Disney hasn't even found a writer yet.
Frank Oz on Muppets, puppets and CG Yoda
Frank Oz needs no introduction. He's voiced iconic characters like Yoda and Miss Piggy and directed classic films like Little Shop of Horrors and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. His impact extends far beyond geek circles; he's a creative legend in Hollywood. I had a chance to chat with Oz at SXSW this week about his upcoming documentary, Muppet Guys Talking: Secrets Behind the Show the Whole World Watched.
Barely Related: Learn how to make Muppets at Maker Camp
Do you understand what we're talking about? We're talking about people learning the craft of Fraggle construction. Muppet building. David Bowie army creation. Skeksis manipulation. We're talking about birthing a Sweetums, a Bert, an Ernie, a Yoda, and we're talking about doing it live. This week in BEARly Related (wocka wocka wocka), let's turn away from the madness of Gamescom '14 and cast our eyes on those people creating other things in the world at large. MAKE Magazine and Google's Maker Camp is a summer program that runs for six weeks and invites anyone over 13-years-old (or younger kids accompanied by a parent) to hop online via Google+ and learn how to create a variety of things, ranging from sculpture to computer programs to simple machines. Friday brings the 2014 Maker Camp to a close with a bang: Today's lesson comes from Jim Henson's Creature Shop. Starting at 2PM EST, Sesame Street builder Julie Zobel, animatronics specialist John Criswell (who made these), and LA Creature Shop designer Peter Brooke (who made those) will join Creature Shop Challenge winner Robert Bennet for a presentation on the ins and outs of puppet creation. How to make their eyes, their limbs, their fur, and everything else that makes them magic come to life. Want to get in on the action? Participate over on Google+, and talk to people that hang out with Kermit the Frog FOR REAL. Join us in a quick break from a video game con week and marvel at how things like how to make the costumes in the good Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie. [Images: Disney]
LittleBigPlanet 2's Muppet DLC is just about the happiest thing ever
The latest level kit for LittleBigPlanet 2 combines Sackboys and The Muppets into the most adorable thing ever. The Muppets Premium Level Kit for LBP 2 includes five new levels and two mini-games, a new soundtrack, objects, voices, seven new trophies, 12 new pins and a bonus costume of Rowlf the Dog.The Muppets are bringing two new materials to help them help you put on the best show possible: The Attract-O-Gel allows Sackboy to walk on walls and ceilings, and the Attract-O-Tweak makes it possible for any object to do the same. Upside-down cuteness.The Muppets Premium Level Kit launches this week, beginning Jan. 24, and costs $5.99 (£4.79, €5.99, AUS $ 9.95, NZD $11.50) via PSN.
Bert and Ernie TomTom voices tell you how to get, how to get to Sesame Street (video)
While some may seriously doubt their driving credentials, Bert and Ernie are the latest additions to TomTom's voice navigation library. The two muppets join the slightly more sinister likes of Darth Vader and Jeremy Clarkson, who've already offered up their distinctive vocal talents to the in-car navi. Grab your rubber duckie and see how the recording session went down after the break.
You put the Lime Odyssey in the screenshot gallery and drink them both up
We simply cannot be the only ones who see the title of Aeria Games' upcoming MMO and instantly start singing, "You put the lime in the coconut and drink them both up." Please tell us we're not. We may go mad otherwise. In any case, Lime Odyssey has released 10 new screenshots today showing off many of the lush vistas of its game world. Included in the batch are views of the Human stomping grounds of the Blue Coral Forest, the desert plains of West Tumbara, and the Muris starting zone of Haze Island. Lime Odyssey will launch with four classes, three races, and four gathering and crafting professions. You can get an eyeful of limey goodness in the gallery below, and if it piques your interest, head on over to the official site to sign up for the beta! %Gallery-127103% [Source: Aeria Games press release]
Disney imagineering long lines out of theme parks with military-grade monitoring systems
They've got a monorail system, IRL Muppets, and a house from the future, so we're not surprised that Disneyland is kicking its line-monitoring system into technological overdrive. Beneath Cinderella's iconic castle, a NORAD-style operation dedicated to eradicating downtime for visitors to the Magic Kingdom has sprung up, with a whole team tracking wait times, average number of rides ridden, and a whole bevy of other visitor-happiness metrics all over the park. From there, they can do things like re-route foot traffic to less-populated areas of the park with a mini-parade, adjust personnel at different attractions, or dispatch Jack Sparrow himself to liven up a Pirates line-waiter's afternoon. Chief Creative Executive Imagineer Bruce E. Vaughan dreams of "a day where there is memory built into these characters - they will know that they've seen you four or five times before and that your name is Bobby." Sounds delightfully frightening to us. But hey, it's all in the name of increasing visitor happiness, which we're sure goes hand in hand with visitor brokeness by the time they leave the park.
Video: Resident Evil 5, now with more Muppets
Finally. Not a day goes by that we don't play Resident Evil 5 and think, "Man, this would be better with Muppets." Seemingly hearing our mental prayers, IGN and Black20 Studios have created Jim Henson's Resident Evil 5. It's pretty much exactly what you'd expect: Resident Evil 5 -- with Muppets. Of course, these aren't actual Muppets, but that doesn't really matter. If there's one thing Muppets have taught us over the years, it's how to pretend.Despite the silly premise, the video actually features pretty good zombie makeup and special effects, including some nice gunshot wounds. Also, we might prefer its cat-stroking, Bond villain version of Wesker to the whiny, pseudo-British one featured in the real Resident Evil 5. Check out the video after the break.
Behind the scenes with Paul Barnett, featuring a big surprise
What do Joss Whedon-created television character Angel and Paul Barnett have in common? Well, apparently they've both undergone a spell that's changed them into puppets. Creepy. Well, it's also kinda cute too. Okay, fine, it's really cute, but we're only admitting it because Paul knows where we all live and now that he's a puppet with knowledge of sharp kitchenware, we really can't be taking any chances.We've even got word from secret sources that this may not be the last time we see Paul in his true form. In fact, our informant has told us that it's possible we may see a reappearance in a certain podcast featuring particular productions.Keep an eye out after the break...
Bartle talks good, bad and ugly futures
Evoking the name of Dr. Richard Bartle probably causes different reactions in different people, but the important thing isn't whether or not you know the man. What's important is that you check out this series of slides from his discussion at IMGDC about the three possible futures MMOs could be facing. We're expecially fond of how he ties in different classic movies, which end up giving each of the three futures the perfect names, "The good, the bad and the ugly" along with adding in some Muppets and Blondie for good measure.Our take on the three different futures is that we generally agree with Dr. Bartle's projections on how things would pan out -- that includes which one he thinks will actually come to pass. So go check it out, we promise that it's a very worth-while read if you've got any interest in how things could most likely play out.
Fraggles and Farscape come to iTunes!
OK, this is cool. Starting today, properties from the The Jim Henson Company are coming to iTunes. The complete first seasons of Farscape and Fraggle Rock are available now for $1.99 an episode. According to the company's press release, the entire series should be available on the site in the coming months.Now, I never watched Farscape, but as a television addict, I was pretty familiar with the various controversies over home video rights and for the show and how difficult it is to find on DVD. I can only guess that legions of Farscape fans will be happy to be able to download first season episodes from iTunes.As for Fraggle Rock, well, this is something I can get behind. I remember watching the show on HBO at a very early age and the theme song still makes me smile. Fraggle Rock is actually the only "Muppet" property not owned by The Walt Disney Company (in 2004 The Jim Henson Company sold the rights to The Muppets and a few other properties to Disney), and as a result it's trek to DVD has not been as drawn out (though in the US we're still only up to season 3), but despite my general feelings about buying TV shows on iTunes, I will totally indulge in the nostalgia of the Fraggles.Now that the TV season is pretty much at a standstill (we have Project Runway and American Idol, but that's about it), watching 25 year old Muppets sing songs or watching a beloved Sci-Fi show on the Mac or Apple TV is a bit more enticing than watching the emergency season of Big Brother.
Cinemassively: ROFLMAO!
For another excellent machinima from 2007, today we're presenting Oxhorn's ROFLMAO, a short and sweet World of Warcraft musical production. (And, fortunately, it's completely understandable even if you aren't a WoW fan. We all have a friend who speaks in nothing but l33t, right?) And if you find yourself confused as to what's so funny about this video, perhaps you might appreciate this version, made famous on the Muppet Show. (But if that doesn't help you, there's just nothing else we can do!)
Disneyland intros roving animatronic Muppets; Mickey and friends fear pink slips
The happiest place on Earth (Disneyland, not Las Vegas during CES) just got a little happier this week, thanks to a new exhibit called the Muppet Mobile Laboratory that roams the park and delights visitors with inane banter and sprays of water. Probably having nothing to do with the fact that the human costumed characters like to videotape themselves in suggestive poses while still in uniform, Disney decided to eschew flesh and bone for metal and silicon when it tasked the Imagineering studio with whipping up California Adventure's newest residents, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his always chipper, possibly speed-addicted friend Beaker. The two wacky companions approach groups of visitors in their remotely-controlled, cartoonish rocket ship, and thanks to operators monitoring embedded cameras, microphones, and speakers, are able to to carry on eerily-realistic conversations that incorporate actual traits of the audience members. The L.A. Times reminds us that the MML is only the latest in a long line of animatronic entertainers, from the Enchanted Tiki Room and Mr. Lincoln in the 60's to Lucky the Dinosaur and Crush the Turtle in the new millennium -- but Honeydew and Tweaker Beaker are the first that can be modified to entertain in almost any environment. Disney expects the new tech -- which enables remote operation from as far away as Glendale -- to eventually expand its stable of characters to include some of the Muppets who are too small to be played by actors (as opposed to mice, dogs, and ducks, which are just the right size), so next time the kids finally wear you down and win another trip to the Magic Kingdom, at least you'll be able to pass the time by chasing around little Chip 'n Dales or wirelessly hacking Kermit to tell the kiddies what he really thinks of that flaky pig.Update: Now with video! Check it out after the break. Big thanks to commenter John and YouTube member JLOatesIII.[Photo credit: L.A. Times, thanks Armando S.]
