Here I am at the Comic-Con International.  This is going to be a very short report, but with some really good pictures and a big announcement at the end.  Last night was “Preview Night”, which was a preview of the huge and unwieldy crowds that have descended on San Diego.  There were people walking around with cardboard shields with the movie logo of 300 on them.  That doesn’t begin to estimate the crowd.  Add up the figures on all those shields and you might be close.

But Wednesday was all about Master Replicas Muppet Photo Puppets for me.  First up, here is the final version of Animal, that growling drummer from the Electric Mayhem.

Animal is currently available for pre-order and while there are no firm promises, Travis of Master Replicas expects Animal to begin shipping this fall.  Here is a closer look at the detail in his face.

Next up is the current prototype for The Great Gonzo.  The color of his fur and tuxedo are still not right.  His tux is too pink and his fur is too gray.

They are still having problems with Gonzo’s nose.  It was originally made with reticulated foam, but that has a very short shelf life and can become brittle and crumble with age.  They are experimenting with other material so that it looks like foam but will not deterioate so quickly.  This version has some sort of mesh over it, but the concensus at the Con was that nobody likes the way this looks.  Because of this, Travis would not offer a guess as to when Gonzo will go on pre-order.

The biggest treat is in the next picture…

Yes, it’s the very first prototype of Fozzie Bear.  He didn’t arrive until partway through the evening.  Terry Angus, the fabulously talented builder, shipped him overnight.  He was so down to the wire that he didn’t have time to make Fozzie’s hat and he had to hand paint the material for his tie.

For a first prototype, he’s amazingly gorgeous.  I would take him almost as he is.  Travis and I decided his eyes and nose just need to be a little higher on his face, but Muppet expert Mike Moore, who made the eyes for Animal, Gonzo and Fozzie says that it depends on what picture you use for reference.  Every Fozzie they built was different.

And now for the big surprise.  As has already been announced, Animal and Gonzo are coming out this year, with Fozzie and Miss Piggy for 2008… but Travis hinted that they are planning a third puppet for next year, too.  I am pleased that he’s letting me break the news here… the third photo puppet for 2008 is…

Yes, it’s Rizzo the Rat.  With two big characters, they wanted to have another one in a more affordable range and Travis’ guess is that Rizzo will be priced about the same as Kermit.

There was also talk about accesory packs for the characters, but I’ll get into that in another post.  I’m Muppeted out for now!

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