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Created by legendary puppeteer Jim Henson, The Muppets were one of the most beloved franchises in entertainment. Becoming global icons thanks to classics like The Muppet Show and films like The Muppet Movie. But when Disney officially acquired the Muppets in 2004, fans hoped the characters would return to their former glory. Instead, the franchise struggled to find its footing at every turn.
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Hey, sweetie. I got you a little Italian. His name's Giuseppe
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But I'm Chuck. You know, honey, you don't have to make jokes every time you're in a writer's room
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God knows these guys don't. In terms of diehard fandom and pure mass appeal
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The Muppets might as well be the great equalizer of pop culture. After the success of their legendary variety show and a storied leap into film
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Jim Henson's creations transcended to literal celebrity status. But once Disney acquired Kermit and Company
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the corporation produced a bizarre series that turned off even the most dedicated Miss Piggy loyalists
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And although Disney had a penchant for sanitizing slightly scandalous properties, this adult-oriented sitcom took the Muppets way too seriously
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Talked about overreacting to things. It's a code red. Ah! Code red! Oh my god! This is not a drug
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Put it in! Put it in! Dry, ironic, office-based humor should not be the first thing that comes to mind
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when one considers the vast cultural impact of The Muppets. But unfortunately for those who tuned into ABC and Disney's The Muppets
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comparisons to British workplace comedies and their successful American spinoffs aren't without precedence
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With all the visual panache of a drab interview scene in The Office, this forgettable foray put fans in the uncomfortable position of wondering
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what if Kermit was Michael Scott? Had a shot to go to medical school, but it turns out they just wanted to dissect me
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Self-deprecating and weirdly risque, The Muppets takes one too many liberties with well-known characters
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The entire concept of a mockumentary sitcom starring The Muppets feels off
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and for any other franchise, this drastic change in scenery might have been an interesting update
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But when it comes to The Muppets, even the earliest iterations were about as awesome as it gets
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By showcasing old-school Hollywood legends and up-and-coming megastars, Jim Henson's The Muppets Show updated the then-popular variety show format
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covered it in felt and neon fur, and took the 70s by storm. When Don Knotts and Peter Sellers showed up to go full camp for the Muppets, older audiences
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tuned in. Likewise, when Steve Martin or Madeline Kahn stopped by to meet Kermit
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70s teens and 20 saw more than just a puppet act They saw a sibling to the radical comedy of Saturday Night Live 30 seconds to curtain Miss Radner Well Scooter what all this fuss I keep hearing about me doing the Muffin Show
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And when the cast of Star Wars came blasting onto the set, the Muppet Show immediately became the coolest kids program in the galaxy
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By 1979, the Muppet movie had successfully translated Hinson's work to the silver screen
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With positive critical reception and an impressive run at the box office, it was clear the Muppets could endure
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Even after variety shows lost their luster, adored for their characterizations and personalities
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as much as their charming design and talented voice acting, the Muppets maintained their Hollywood icon status
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long after the Muppet show closed curtains. Despite diminishing returns on a pair of follow-up feature films
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the Muppets continued to rise in the cultural consciousness. The Muppets weren't your average mascots
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While Mickey Mouse was already the butt of counterculture jokes, well before Disney adults were even a thing
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the Muppets had remained eternally awesome. So when the big mouse finally got those gloves
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around Kermit's collar, well, it seemed like a bad omen. These days, our entire culture looks back fondly
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on the Muppets' Christmas Carol. Now revered as one of the greatest Christmas films of all time, early responses to this puppet adaptation
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were pretty chilly. Considered a major disappointment with first-time collaborator Walt Disney Pictures
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the box office take for this seminal holiday feature is downright depressing
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And for some, the direction taken by the Muppets under new management was a little concerning
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Although we warmly accept Kermit's Bob Cratchit performance, it was a strange sight for old school Muppet show fans
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to see Henson's felt babies being cast as anything but themselves. I'm back
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Once the Disney company bought out the Henson's and gained all rights to the Muppets in 2004
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the corporation immediately produced the disastrous ABC adaptation The Muppets, Wizard of Oz
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Widely known as the worst Muppets title by far, the notorious debacle featured Pepe the Prawn as Toto
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For those of you who have Dark Side of the Moon, Press play now
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And a surreal cameo from Quentin Tarantino. Disney didn't seem to know what to do
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with their latest property. And for several agonizing years, the Muppets lay completely dormant in the Disney vaults
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until a certain vampire rock opera offered a fresh life source for puppetry on the silver screen After being resuscitated by comedy favorite tall guy and public puppet fanatic Jason Segel in 2011 the Forgetting Sarah Marshall star made good on his Dracula
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Lament Promise. Featuring the return of our favorite characters and heaps of celebrity
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appearances, Disney's The Muppets was a smash hit. Pleasing critics, movie theater execs
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and most importantly, true fans, The Muppets reminded us why Kermit and company are the
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most righteous puppets of all time. While the follow-up Disney feature Muppets Most Wanted
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couldn't quite compete, fans had no idea what was coming. With two crowd-pleasing feature-length
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films so firmly planted in the minds of millions, you might assume the powers that be would take
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that success into consideration when plotting their next move. But in 2015, Disney decided to
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drop a bomb on fans of the franchise. Because when The Muppets was announced to be a new ABC sitcom
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even the most casual viewers couldn't believe their eyes. From the mockumentary style of filming
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laugh track-free punchlines, and even a similar title logo, the Muppets looked like The Office in basically every way you can imagine
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Co-created by Bill Prady, mastermind of the Big Bang Theory, you couldn't be faulted for believing this new series might be a fanboy's dream
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but after the first couple of episodes, all of our curiosity was sated
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and our worst fears turned out to be true. Filmed throughout the workdays of a Muppets team trying to pull off Miss Piggy's latest show
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the Muppets scrambles well-established relationships and dynamics in an attempt to keep things interesting
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But does anyone really need to hear about Kermit the Frog's latest pig friend after a messy breakup
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My life is a bacon-wrapped hell on earth. Can't say hell. The sitcom already began losing an already limited viewer base
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The changes made to the vibe of ABC's The Muppets is still startling
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From mildly creepy episodes centered on Miss Piggy's wardrobe malfunctions to truly weird poolside scenes with Pepe the King
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The Muppets made it difficult for either kids or their parents to enjoy
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Not scandalous enough to be censored on kids' streaming accounts, but too risqué to be totally understood by a young audience
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this is the rare instance of Disney comedy content going overboard. Pop
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She's popped out. This just in The pig tail is out Nobody saw that right Even Muppets diehards couldn quite gel with the new attempt at a sitcom Over the course of the first several episodes of The Muppets
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our patience for Fozzie's misfortunes waned. And as uninspired celebrity pop-ins resulted in completely unfunny situations
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belief in the franchise fell lower than ever before. By the middle of the season, clear attempts were made to salvage a shady situation
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With less adult-oriented humor and more emotional beats than before, it seemed like things might be on the mend
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After Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele showed up for an admittedly funny appearance
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some audiences saw a light at the end of the tunnel in the comedy department. With a remarkably emotional duet of a John Prine classic between Miss Piggy and Kermit
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the emotional core of The Muppets had also seemingly returned. But even this mid-season shift in tone couldn't quite soften the mood or the critics
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After just one season, The Muppets was cancelled by ABC and Disney
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This edgy and poorly received program was one of many swept under the rug by hands of corporate businesses
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With poor reviews and a drastically diminishing viewership, the company saw the perfect opportunity to eliminate their own mistake
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And when the announcement was released, even the biggest haters of ABC's The Muppets were sort of sad to hear the news
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Changing up formats and updating humor for the times is part of what makes The Muppets so damn cool in the first place
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And that very nature makes the failure of The Muppets series hard to process
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Looking back, it's clear that what the Muppets really needed was a return to their roots
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And fortunately, after several more years of rattling around in the vaults, Disney finally let the Muppets be themselves again in an all-new special
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With near-unanimous critical adoration and a warm embrace from fans young and old
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2026's The Muppet Show was a surprising mega-hit for Disney+. Produced by Seth Rogen, the special rekindled that cool, timeless Muppets magic
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that made us believe that Muppets can still rock the house. restored to their mantle as ultimate showmen and charismatic superstars
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it was a due reminder that The Muppets should never be relegated to clerical duties in musty office spaces
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While only time will tell if we actually get another shot at a real The Muppet Show comeback
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this incredible update might just be enough to help us forget the 2015 ABC series altogether