My Favorite News Anchor Besides Jon Stewart...
Written: Oct 29 '03 (Updated Oct 29 '03)
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Pros: Amazing likeness, nice desk, accessories...
Cons: I can't get over how his legs look; Stickers look a little chintzy...
The Bottom Line: You wanna drop an anvil on someone? Ping pong balls? An alligator? I've got someone you've gotta meet.
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| JediKermit's Full Review: Jim Henson's Muppets Muppet Newsman Action Figure |
The Muppet Newsman is one of the more obscure Muppets—so obscure that I never thought he’d be a part of the Palisades Toys line of action figures. And truthfully, when I saw he’d be a part of the line, I was disappointed. There are so many other wonderful Muppet characters that haven’t been made yet—give us some of those first—save the Muppet Newsman for another day.
I’m eating those words now. Palisades, in giving us these more obscure characters, is painting with a richer palette of characters than we’ve ever seen before in the realm of Muppet collecting. Even though the major storylines never touched on the Muppet Newsman, even though we don’t know what motivates him, and we don’t even know his name, he’s a great addition to the Muppets and the action figure line. If you don’t know who he is, his chief function was to give a “breaking news” news story, usually a one-liner about say, an anvil factory explosion, and then a bunch of anvils would fall on him. It was sort of a running gag, seen frequently, but never as developed as some of the other sketches like Muppet Labs, Pigs in Space, or Veterinarian’s Hospital.
And now he’s an action figure. The first thing you’ll notice about the Muppet Newsman are his legs. There are many of the Muppets whose legs we don’t ever see—he’s one of them, and his entire body is somewhat disturbing. Because he was always behind his newsdesk, seeing him without it is as jarring as seeing any news anchor’s legs.
Happily, his newsdesk comes with him, and as far as I’m concerned he’ll be permanently stationed there. I’ll get to the desk in a minute. The Newsman’s appearance is exactly as the puppet looked on The Muppet Show; he looks like he may be Guy Smiley’s cousin once removed. His most prominent feature is his nose, which is triangular and gives him a very patrician look. The tiny eyes are almost swallowed up in the bags under them, but are brought out again by his black horn-rimmed glasses, which I was surprised to see weren’t packaged on his face, but separate in the package. I always remember him wearing the glasses, but his first appearances on the Muppet Show were without glasses; a nice touch from Palisades.
His brown plaid suit coat is unapologetically 70’s, with his broad tie completing the look. The suit coat is a softer plastic than the rest of the figure (like they’ve done with Gonzo and the other jacket-wearing Muppets in this line). The pants and shoes complement the suit, but like I said before, his legs just look weird with the rest of the character. I’m sure I’ll get used to it.
His accessories are massive, almost a playset by themselves, and they fit the character perfectly. He’s got the glasses we already mentioned, and a wood grain desk that has many layers of texturing and paint applications to look like real wood. A minor detail, but it adds so much to the look of the piece. Along with the desk are a red telephone (with separate receiver and cord) for those Breaking News Hotline Calls, and a backdrop that complements the desk. There are several “news monitor” stickers that fit into the backdrop; they include special correspondent Kermit the Frog reporting live from Koozebane, Beaker giving a weather report, the Pigs in Space, and other Muppet-related segments. They’re a mixed bag, I know some people would have preferred that photos of the Muppets were used instead of photos of the action figures…I haven’t applied any of the stickers yet myself. Time will tell.
This is a great action figure, and he works well as a stand-alone figure with his little environment, or as a part of the rest of the series. He didn’t ever interact much with the other Muppets, so he’s kind of the odd man out, but Palisades Toys has convinced me to love my little Newsman. Now if they’d just give him a NAME…
You can find the Muppet action figures at Target, Sam Goody/Musicland/Suncoast/Media Play stores, EB Games, and fine online retailers like BoxingCow.com and Bean’s Toys. Pick these up while you can—you won’t regret it.
MORE MUPPETS!
Series One
Kermit the Frog http://www.epinions.com/content_81549233796
Miss Piggy http://www.epinions.com/content_81637707396
Dr. Teeth http://www.epinions.com/content_81569549956
Dr. Bunsen Honeydew http://www.epinions.com/content_81822191236
Series Two
Fozzie Bear http://www.epinions.com/content_85935820420
Crazy Harry http://www.epinions.com/content_98525613700
Floyd Pepper http://www.epinions.com/content_98514865796
Gonzo the Great http://www.epinions.com/content_98463813252
Series Three
Scooter http://www.epinions.com/content_91825081988
Lew Zealand http://www.epinions.com/content_91457293956
Zoot http://www.epinions.com/content_91549830788
Rowlf http://www.epinions.com/content_90764316292
Series Four
Link Hogthrob http://www.epinions.com/content_105889107588
Dr. Strangepork http://www.epinions.com/content_105892187780
Sam Eagle as Samuel Arrow http://www.epinions.com/content_105895988868
Rizzo the Rat http://www.epinions.com/content_105903591044
Series Five
Gonzo and Camilla http://www.epinions.com/content_115081186948
Janice http://www.epinions.com/content_117029899908
Pepe http://www.epinions.com/content_117043138180
Muppet Newsman http://www.epinions.com/content_117058145924
Playsets
Muppet Labs with Beaker http://www.epinions.com/content_81755606660
Electric Mayhem Stage with Animal http://www.epinions.com/content_98538262148
Swedish Kitchen with Swedish Chef http://www.epinions.com/content_98725432964
Coming Soon!
Series Six
Clifford
Patrol Bear Fozzie
Statler
Waldorf
Pigs in Space Swinetrek Playset with First Mate Piggy
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 7.99
Type of Toy: Action Figure
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Epinions.com ID:
JediKermit
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 in Movies, Kids & Family, Books |
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Member: Quinn
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Reviews written: 2122
Trusted by: 597 members
About Me:
Books, Movies, and Toys. Is there more to life?
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