Picture: Hello There

Whatnot Workshop

A few years ago, FAO Schwartz installed a Whatnot Workshop in the corner of their flagship store in New York. My wife and I considered buying one, but we were bothered by two things: first, you select the eyes, hair, and nose you want, and those are then sewed on. Since the actual Whatnots were meant to be modifiable, the parts were attached with pins or velcro on the Muppet Show and Sesame Street. That means the ones at FAO Schwartz aren't really authentic. Secondly, they cost a hundred freaking dollars each.

Well, with the new Muppet movie coming out, FAO Schwartz and their corporate overlords at Toys R Us decided to cash in on the success of the workshop by offering packaged versions with interchangeable parts. Best of all, they're priced at a more reasonable $60.

Okay, that's still a lot. But the toy's pretty cool and it gives you a good sense of what it would be like to operate a Muppet. At this price point, I will say I feel a little cheated on the accessories. There's three noses, eye sets, and wigs, along with a rod to operate his arms. They could have tossed in some costumes and/or extra eyes (I'd like to have gotten more variation). But it wouldn't be too hard to customize these: hell, with a little work, we could probably figure out what size he/she wears and pick up some baby clothes.

The package claims this is an FAO Schwartz exclusive, but that's bunk. When Toys R Us bought FAO's soul, they got access to their exclusives, as well. We picked this up at a Toys R Us on Long Island, and I'm betting they're available all over the country.

Picture: Vaudeville

Steppin' Out Rowlf

For years, Animal was my favorite Muppet. But, as I grew older, I changed my mind. That honor now belongs to Rowlf and I finally decided I've been without an action figure of the character for far too long.

Performed by Henson himself, Rowlf was the first of the major Muppets. Originally appearing in a dog food commercial in 1962, he picked up a recurring gig on The Jimmy Dean Show a year later. Whether or not it was intentional, I always felt like this informed his character on The Muppet Show and the movies. While the others seemed worried most of the time, Rowlf was generally more laid back. He seemed to have a better grasp on show business, like he'd been in the game longer. Kermit and Piggy always felt like they were struggling to build up their careers, but Rowlf always felt like his time had passed, like he was a part of the fading vaudeville era the Muppets are a tribute to. Although he never came off as bitter or upset, I always felt like there was a melancholy subtext to his character.

Well, years and years ago, Palisades produced a "Steppin' Out" Rowlf figure, which was available at comic, toy, and some other spots for a while. I'm sure I came across him once or twice - this would have roughly corresponded to when I'd just started collecting toys - and passed him by. Yeah. Live and learn.

I found this one loose on Ebay. He had all his original accessories, with the exception of his stand (identical to several others I have, anyway). He wasn't cheap, but he was more reasonable than what packaged ones are going for. My wife, also a lifelong Muppets fan, didn't object, so I bit the bullet and ordered the figure.

The figure himself is great, both in terms of sculpt and paint. The articulation is on the low side, but he has enough to pull off the poses you need. His ears are articulated, which I like.

As a result of being used, my figure has several paint scuffs on him, but that's the cost of buying used. At some point, my wife and I might see about cleaning him up, but I took pictures of him as he is.

In some ways, the accessories are as impressive as the figure himself. The figure came with two things: a scale bust of Beethoven and a scale grand piano. As awesome as the bust is, I don't think it'll surprise anyone to hear the piano is my favorite of the two accessories. Actually, in this scale, it might be my single favorite accessory ever produced.

This came disassembled, both when I bought it and in its original packaging. The legs snap in securely and hold the body up. The top opens and is held in place by a moving peg. In addition, the keys are protected by a hinged cover, and the music stand flips up or down. The whole thing is made of hollow plastic, but it looks fantastic. Once again, there are some paint scuffs on the piano, as well as the figure.
The bust is accurate to how I remember it portrayed on the show.

Given what the toy I'm looking at cost me, I'd rather not consider how little it was when originally released. Years ago, when these first hit store shelves, this would have run you about eight bucks. Now, used, it ran me $56 with shipping. That's how it goes sometimes. If I'd wanted one in the package, I'd have been looking closer to a hundred bucks - ouch.

But it was worth every penny.

Picture: Wrong Turn in Albuquerque

Muppets: "Vacation" Fozzie

As we get closer to the release date of the new Muppet movie, I thought it would be a good time to continue shouting the praises of the greatest action figure line to ever grace the shelves of toy stores. Palisades: you are sorely missed.

While Lindsay and I have plastic versions of most of what I consider the "core" Muppets - Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo, etc. - there have been a few lingering holes in our collection. The most notable, at least to the casual Muppet fan, has been Fozzie Bear. I've been meaning to remedy that for years, but I finally had a chance on Labor Day, when I found this at Midtown Comics. Thanks to a 20% off sale, I wound up taking Fozzie home for $16, which isn't quite as good a deal as getting the Koozebane Kermit for the same price, but is still more than fair as far as this collector's concerned.

I knew I'd like this, since I've yet to buy a single toy in this line I haven't at least liked. I don't think I was expecting to love this, though. I was wrong. This thing is absolutely incredible.

The toy itself is great, featuring some fantastically utilized articulation. The cut elbows manage to maintain the sculpt's integrity while opening up some gorgeous posing options. Other than that, sure, the articulation is minimal - V crotch, ball jointed shoulders, and a head joint that must a ball, even though it gives you a fairly limited range. The amount of different poses you can get is fairly staggering, and the figure always looks more like a statue than an action figure.

What really sells the figure are his accessories. Fozzie has a suitcase (sorry; it doesn't open), a hat, sunglasses, and a flotation device. The flotation device looks amazing, as does the briefcase. The sunglasses are pretty cool, though they're a little hard to position and potentially easy to lose. It's the same deal with the hat, which is held in place by a magnet - a great way to capture the look of the show without having to muck up the sculpt with pegs or holes.

Finally, you also get a sheet of stickers you can affix to Fozzie's case, if you're so inclined. While the stickers look cool, I think I'm going to hold off, since I really like the case the way it is.

It feels redundant to say it, but this is another spectacular action figure. Highly recommended if you ever see one at a decent price.

Muppets: Koozebane Kermit

In the decade I've been collecting, I've seen some great 6 inch toy lines. Mattel's DC Universe Classics, Toy Biz's Marvel Legends, and NECA's Nightmare Before Christmas are all towards the top, but - let's be clear - they're vying for second place. Because first place is owned by the now defunct Palisades, which produced a legendary line of Muppets action figures before going under.

The detail of the sculpts, the creativity in the articulation, and the sheer genius in the accessories and designs added up to a quality of action figure that's never been matched. And, frankly, almost certainly never will be, since rising costs make it more or less impossible to duplicate this level of quality at a profit.

This figure (really more of a playset) is a good example. It's a toy I never expected to get my hands on, actually: last time I checked, these were commanding a lot of cash on Ebay, and I haven't seen one in person since... well, possibly ever. Then, on Labor Day, Lindsay and I stumbled across this in Midtown Comics for $20. I'd gladly have forked that over for this set, but they were having a sale and everything was 20% off. So, in the end, this ran me about sixteen bucks.

The sheer amount of thought that went into these toys is staggering. Sure, Palisades made a point of advertising some of their other figures on the back, but they also included character accurate bios with appropriate humor. On top of that, the credits list the artists involved. Makes perfect sense to me: if I worked on this, I'd want my name attached, too.

Kermit's awesome, but the real stars here are the Koozebanians. The two larger figures have articulated arms. Only the Merdlidops (the ones with blue eyes) are attached. The rest can be moved around to your heart's content.

The base is extremely cool, though I kind of wish there were pegs to stabilize Kermit. But I can appreciate that Palisades always viewed their toys as, you know, TOYS, and wanted them played with.

I'm thrilled to add this to my collection.

It's Time to Get Things Started

All right. In honor of their upcoming movie, I'm hereby dedicating the next few weeks to The Muppets. That means, if you don't like The Muppets, YOU CAN BURN IN HELL! I mean, if you're not into The Muppets, you may want to check out other toy sites for a while. Also, the Hell thing.